Bayern Trupp » the possibility of a trade to fill in other

(SportsNetwork.com) - The Winnipeg Jets have thrived under Paul Maurice despite injury limiting Evander Kane to just four games under the new head coach.Kane is expected to return to the lineup on Thursday night when the Jets face the Phoenix Coyotes.Winnipeg has gone 9-3-1 in 13 games since replacing Claude Noel with Maurice, who made his coaching debut with the club in a 5-1 win over the Coyotes on Jan. 13. Ondrej Pavelec made 18 saves and the Jets got goals from five different players to beat the Coyotes for a second straight time following a six-game series losing streak.The Jets have also won both of their meetings at home versus the Coyotes since relocating from Atlanta.Coincidentally, the Coyotes franchise used to call Winnipeg home before moving to Phoenix prior to the 1996-97 season.The current Jets have endured just one losing streak under Noel, a current two-game slide that includes a shootout setback to St. Louis in the final game before the Olympic break.Kane missed the last six games with a hand infection and has been limited to just four games since Jan. 7 due to injury. He has 15 goals and 29 points in 42 games this season.The fourth overall pick of the 2009 draft is likely to skate on a line tonight with Blake Wheeler and Mark Scheifele.I want him to play his game in our framework, Maurice said of what he wants to see out of Kane. Thats what Im asking from everybody. Keep the individual things that make you special, just fly in formation, especially when we dont have the puck.The Jets come in with 62 points, two fewer than the Coyotes, who trail the Vancouver Canucks by just one point for the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. Phoenix also is six points behind Los Angeles for third place in the Pacific Division.Consistency has been an issue for the Coyotes, who lost their final game before the Olympic break and are 4-5-1 since last winning back-to-back games on Jan. 16 and 18.Phoenix returns five players to its roster who competed in the Sochi Olympics, including goaltender Mike Smith, who won a gold medal with Team Canada even though he did not get into a game during the tournament.I knew going over there that thered be a good possibility that I wouldnt get into a game, Smith told Phoenixs website. I was just doing everything I could to be a part of the team and kind of keep the dressing room light and get to know a lot of the guys I play against (in the NHL).Like the Coyotes, Smith has had an up-and-down season, going 20-17-9 with a 2.77 goals against average and .913 save percentage.Smith yielded all five goals on 38 shots in the earlier loss to the Jets, falling to 7-6-0 with a 2.53 GAA against the franchise.Pavelec is 2-1-1 in his career versus the Coyotes, posting a 1.73 GAA. Spencer Dinwiddie Jersey .com) - It appears both the Houston Rockets and Chicago Bulls will reach the playoffs, but the two squads are coming off losing efforts. Wilson Chandler Nets Jersey . The Red Sox maintained a share of the AL wild-card lead Tuesday night, using four home runs to beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-7 and set up a dramatic conclusion to the regular season. The skidding Red Sox were 6-19 this month before rebounding to edge the last-place Orioles. https://www.netsrookiesshop.com/Theo-Pin...ion-Jersey/.com) - Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was named the National League Player of the Month for April. Kevin Durant Nets Jersey . Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane wanted to stay in Chicago and the Blackhawks wanted to keep the high-scoring forwards in the only NHL uniform they have ever known. Wilson Chandler Jersey . -- Ricky Romeros comeback bid hit another road bump Tuesday in an ugly 18-4 Jays loss to a Detroit Tigers split squad.TORONTO -- It didnt take long for the first shoe to drop in the wake of Kevin Paynes dismissal from the Toronto FC front office. On Monday, just days after Payne was fired as the MLS teams president and general manager, his prize acquisition was shipped to the Portland Timbers In trading away 22-year-old Argentine forward Maximiliano Urruti and an international roster spot, Toronto received 26-year-old forward Bright Dike (pronounced Bright DEE-kay), a first-round draft choice in 2015 and allocation money, which the club can use to stretch its salary cap. The international roster slot in the deal expires on Dec. 31. Toronto also gets to hold 20 per cent of Urrutis rights, so it will profit if he is sold. And Toronto now has three first-rounders in the 2015 draft. In the wake of his dismissal Thursday, Paynes reserved parking sign was gone Monday as the 4-13-10 team returned to training following a 4-0 weekend defeat in Portland. Paynes loss was the gain of one of the two reporters who showed up for practice at the teams north Toronto training centre and unexpectedly found a primo parking place. The Urruti trade has to be seen in the context of other planned Toronto moves. Some could happen this week if the club can pull the trigger before MLS rosters are frozen Friday at 5 p.m. ET. But it still came as a shock. After all, Payne pursued Urruti like Captain Ahab in search of Moby Dick. "We are thrilled to finally get this deal concluded for Maximiliano Urruti," Payne said when the signing was finally announced Aug. 15. "He is a player that we have been aware of for nearly two years and we have scouted him extensively in person." All told, Urruti saw just 37 minutes of action with Toronto in two substitute appearances. The Argentine arrived in off-season shape so fans did not see him at his best. "For what were bringing in and what we got for Portland, it was just a deal we couldnt turn down," manager Ryan Nelsen said Monday of the trade. "And it works for us in a very big way." Change is in the offing at Toronto FC with Nelsen looking to fill a shopping list of needs. Tim Leiweke, president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, told season ticket-holders Sunday at the teams annual barbecue that Toronto is after two designated player strikers. He added that the money is not a problem, given that the board had authorized $26 million for two such deals over the August transfer window. That cash was never spent, but Nelsen and Leiweke have specific marquee targets for the January window. Two star strikers would leave little room for Urruti. During the lengthy pursuit of Urruti, Toronto FC talked of the league coming up with a new category to enable marquee talent without labelling them designated players. And on Monday in an interview, Nelsen referred to Urruti as being a "league DP" with the league having signed the player and holding 80 per cent of the player. But in a hastily called conference call Monday night, a league official said there was no DP tag attached to Urruti and denied that the Argentine was anything but a normal international signing. "The terms of the Urruti acquisition or signing are confidential but he is not a designated player," Lino DiCuollo, the MLS vice-president of competition and player relations who signed the player, said in a subsequent interviiew.dddddddddddd DiCuollo said there is no such thing as a league designated player. He also said the league was not involved in the Urruti trade. He did call the Urruti signing with MLS "definitely one of the most complicated transactions to work on" because of the many parties involved. Teams are allowed a maximum of three designated players (Toronto currently has two in midfielder Matias Laba and striker Danny Koevermans). Nelsen see Dike as a valuable piece of what will be a new Toronto puzzle. His career line with the Timbers reads like this: 23 games, nine starts and six goals over three injury-disrupted seasons (in 2011 he ruptured his Achilles tendon in pre-season). Dike blew out his knee in the pre-season but was on the Timbers bench for their 4-0 win over Toronto on Saturday and has played 80 minutes in a reserve game. He scored five goals in 12 games for Portland last season. At six foot one and 210 pounds, Dike is a physical presence. He has "power and pace," according to Nelsen. "And hes got lots of it," he added. And with a contract of US$60,6876.50, he will not break the bank. "Hes a completely different dimension to what were going to get and what we have," said Nelsen. "We dont have anything like him. Hes at a good age and hes hungry." Originally drafted 12th overall by the Columbus Crew in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft, the Oklahoma-born Dike has one cap for the Nigerian national team. He is eligible to play for the African country through his parents, who are both natives of Nigeria. Dike was of one four players to be announced as the Timbers first MLS signings on Oct. 19, 2010. He played collegiately 86 games at Notre Dame, leading the team and the Big East Conference in scoring as a junior and a senior. Much of this season has been spent by Toronto trying to free itself of the shackles of large, unwieldy contracts. Designated player Torsten Frings retired, as did veteran defender Danny Califf. Captain and defender Darren ODea was encouraged to move on, while midfielder Terry Dunfield was one of many players to be released. Backup goalie Stefan Frei (whose salary is $200,000) and fullback Richard Eckersley ($310,000) are both big-ticket items in a $2.95-million salary cap world although, Freis contract expires at the end of the season. The future of Welsh forward Robert Earnshaw may also be in question, given the arrival of Dike and promise of star strikers to come. At $155,500 and with a proven scoring touch, Earnshaw may be easy to move, with the possibility of a trade to fill in other holes in the lineup. Portland sees Urruti as a young talent who gives Argentine playmaker Diego Valeri another weapon. Urruti made 56 appearances and scored 12 goals for Argentine club Newells Old Boys from 2010 to 2013. "Maximiliano is a player we know well, one we feel will be a great fit in our system and scouted extensively prior to him signing with Toronto," Timbers coach Caleb Porter said in a statement. "He is a quality young player who has cut his teeth with one of the top clubs in the Argentine first division. "Urruti will complement the depth we have in the striker position, and once he is acclimated and match-fit, will bring a dimension to the No. 9 role that weve been looking for." Toronto hosts the Chicago Fire (10-11-5) on Wednesday. ' ' '