Chapman in the bottom

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NEW YORK -- Mark Messier is leaving the New York Rangers organization after being passed over to replace fired head coach John Tortorella. Messier, who had been a special assistant to Rangers general manager Glen Sather, announced Thursday in a statement that he is resigning in order to "expand the game of hockey in the New York area by developing the Kingsbridge National Ice Center." However, he added that the Rangers choice to hire veteran coach Alain Vigneault to be the new head coach wasnt a factor in his departure from the team. "I would like to thank the New York Rangers and particularly Glen Sather for giving me the opportunity over the last four years to work with the Rangers," said Messier, who has no NHL coaching experience. "Although some will perceive this as a reaction to the coaching decision, nothing could be further from the truth. I completely respect the decision that was made and for all the reasons it was made. I harbour no hard feelings toward Glen or the Rangers. "This is a personal choice I am making to create a program in the New York area that will give our children more choices and opportunities in the future. I wish the Rangers nothing but the best in the future." Messier, who captained the Rangers to the 1994 Stanley Cup championship, hoped to lead the team again -- this time from behind the bench -- after Tortorella was dismissed. He interviewed with Sather for the position that eventually went to Vigneault, who was let go after the season by the Vancouver Canucks. "Mark Messier will always be a part of the New York Rangers family," Sather said in a statement. "As a player and then as part of the management team, he brought incomparable passion and dedication to the organization. We wish him well in his future endeavours." Messier took his position as an assistant to Sather, who also serves as Rangers team president, in August 2009. A 16-time NHL All-Star, Messiers crowning achievement with the Rangers came in 1994 when he led the team to its first Stanley Cup title in 54 years. He set a Rangers playoff record with 12 post-season goals, including the Cup winner in Game 7 of the finals against Vancouver. Messiers No. 11 was retired by the Rangers in January 2006. The Hockey Hall of Famer ranks fifth on the teams scoring list with 691 points and seventh in goals with 250 of the 694 he scored in his career. He is second in career NHL points with 1,887 and seventh in goals. In addition to the championship with the Rangers, Messier won the Stanley Cup five times with the Edmonton Oilers, where Sather served as coach and general manager. Sather had a list of 13 potential coaching candidates that he cut down to nine. He interviewed Messier and Vigneault in person and decided to go with experience. "It was a difficult decision," Sather said last week. "Weve both grown up with each other. At this stage, A.V. was the man. Mark has got to decide what he wants to do." Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . And though his comeback night didnt quite go to script, Bryant couldnt help reflecting on the work necessary to get back on that court -- and all the months of steady labour ahead to reclaim his game. Bryant had nine points and eight rebounds in his season debut, but Amir Johnson scored a career-high 32 points in the trade-depleted Toronto Raptors 106-94 victory over Los Angeles on Sunday night. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . The 90-plus minutes of play are about trends and approach. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку!. -- With Tony Allen back, the Memphis Grizzlies were able to turn up their defence pressure and hold off the Los Angeles Clippers down the stretch. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! .Y. - Brooklyn Nets centre Brook Lopez has a strained lower back and will miss at least a week. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . Chris Heisey followed with a two-run triple and Billy Hamilton added an RBI double, all but sealing Cincinnatis fourth straight victory and seventh in eight games. Brandon Phillips, celebrating his 33rd birthday, hit a go-ahead homer in the ninth for the Reds before pinch-hitter Buster Posey tied it with an RBI double off hard-throwing closer Aroldis Chapman in the bottom half.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Detroit Red Wings and New York Islanders will both try to put rough losses behind them when the Eastern Conference foes meet Saturday afternoon in the Motor City. Detroit hosts todays matinee after having a season-high six-game winning streak snapped with Thursdays 5-1 loss in Tampa Bay. The Red Wings entered the Atlantic Division showdown with a one-point lead over the Lightning for first place, but the Bolts claimed the top spot with the regulation win. Montreal also picked up two points with Thursdays road win over the New York Rangers to forge a tie with Detroit for second place in the Atlantic. The Canadiens, who have two games in hand over the Red Wings, host Washington this afternoon, while Tampa welcomes Columbus on Saturday night. The Red Wings were torched for three goals by the Lightnings Cedric Paquette, who notched his first career hat trick to power Tampa to the easy win. Darren Helm supplied the Red Wings lone goal. Petr Mrazek allowed five goals on 15 shots, while Tom McCollum stopped all 17 shots he faced in the third period. We just had a good run here, won six in a row, Detroit head coach Mike Babcock said. We got spanked here tonight. Red Wings forward Pavel Datsyuk is slated to play in his 8863rd career game today, moving him past Ted Lindsay for sole possession of 12th place in Detroit history.dddddddddddd The Islanders lost for only the second time in eight games Thursday when they were handed a 5-2 setback by the visiting Boston Bruins. New York fell behind 2-0 in the first period before evening the score on second-period goals from John Tavares and Michael Grabner. However, Bostons Kevan Miller tallied the game-winner with just 3.4 seconds remaining in the middle stanza and the Bruins added to their cushion in the third period. We didnt play a 60-minute game, but I thought we played well enough to win the game, said Islanders coach Jack Capuano. Obviously, the third goal was the turning point. Jaroslav Halak allowed four goals on 32 shots for the Isles, who lead Pittsburgh by only one point for first place in the Metropolitan Division. Halak is expected to start today and is 5-4-1 with a 3.22 goals against average in his career against the Red Wings. He stopped 17-of-18 shots to record the win in a 2-1 regulation victory at Detroit on Dec. 19. The Isles have won two straight and seven of their last eight games against Detroit overall and the Red Wings have dropped five straight at home in this series. ' ' '