EDMONTON - Edmonton Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish, in a testy, defensive news conference Friday, tossed the boys under

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EDMONTON - Edmonton Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish, in a testy, defensive news conference Friday, tossed the boys under the bus and doubled down on head coach Dallas Eakins. Emmitt Smith Jersey .The accountability of the players to execute has to improve, said MacTavish.Visually to me were a better hockey team.(But) there isnt any tangible evidence of any of that improvement, and thats whats so difficult for everybody to swallow.MacTavish has been feeling the heat from fans and media with the team at the bottom of the NHL standings (6-15-5) in the throes of an 11-game losing streak.The Oilers have not been in the playoffs since 2006. Since then, fans have endured multiple coaching changes and failed rebuilding plans.MacTavish said the team has not progressed as fast as he expected, but said he wont deviate from his long-term plan to draft and develop talent.As painful as this process is, we feel that its a necessary step to get us to the next level, he said.Asked if the plan is not just behind schedule, but the wrong plan or the right plan executed by the wrong people, MacTavish retored: Is it time to punt out the core of these players at 23 and 24 years old as theyre developing?Ive switched out 14 or 15 players in the 18 months that Ive been on the job, and what I think I have now is a group that is capable of growth.MacTavish said everyone is under scrutiny from the front office to the dressing room, but defended his first hire, second-year coach Dallas Eakins. He suggested Eakins isnt going anywhere.Hes evolving, said MacTavish. (But) weve changed assistant coaches. Weve brought in co-coaches. Weve brought in former head coaches. (Weve had) four coaching changes (since 2009).Those coaches were all delivering the same message and we need a higher level of execution (by the players).Eakins has been criticized for giving some players too much rope, doing too much Xs and Os analysis and not enough yelling. The coach skated the players hard in Fridays practice but insisted it wasnt a punishment for poor performance, rather it was a pre-scheduled conditioning day.The worst day is when my boss and the players boss has to come in here and get pelted with bullets and questions about the team, Eakins said of MacTavishs news conference. That responsibility falls on me, my staff and the players in that room. Its something I take personally and certainly all of the players should be taking it personally.Eakins said his main concern was not whether he might lose his job but bridging the divide between the fans and the team.Were doing everything we can to repair that, he said.MacTavish has been around the Oilers for much of the last, lost decade, as a coach or in another front office capacity, but lashed out when a reporter tried to tie him to it its failings.Dont lop me in to a situation of (previous) power and influence in the management level of this organization, said MacTavish. Ive been on the job for 18 months.MacTavish has been criticized for leaving Eakins with little to work with at centre after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins while saddling him with subpar goalies in Ben Scrivens and Viktor Fasth.MacTavish said its not easy to trade when you have so few tradeable assets.There are four or five (Oilers) players that would bring us significant value, (but if you trade one) we solve one (problem) and we create another.Captain Andrew Ference agreed with MacTavish that the players need to step up.As players, we all know that everybody has a role in whats be going on, he said. All of us have different facets we have to work on and improve on which will collectively make us more successful.But fan anger this year has shifted squarely to the front office given the Oilers have drafted few meaningful players outside the first round in recent years while some Oilers players traded away flourish under other coaches and systems.Fans have also focused their vitriol on owner Daryl Katz, who came of age cheering for MacTavish, Oilers hockey operations president Kevin Lowe, and other players during the teams glory years in the 1980s.Katz is too close to his old buddies and wont pull the trigger to fix the front office, say critics.MacTavish said no one is more upset about the Oilers plight than the man in charge.I would characterize the owner as upset. Hes like a lot of our fans times 10, he said.The Oilers next play the San Jose Sharks at home on Sunday.---The Oilers are closing in on dubious history. Here is a look at record NHL and Oilers streaks:Longest NHL winless streak: 30 games, 1980-81 Winnipeg JetsLongest NHL losing streak: 17 games, 1974–75 Washington Capitals and 1992-93 San Jose SharksLongest Oilers winless streak: 14 games, 1993-94 teamLongest Oilers losing streak: 13 games, 2009-10 Orlando Scandrick Jersey . They were expecting him there all along. The Pacers announced Friday night that George has been cleared "to return to normal basketball activity," a decision made three days after he was concussed in Game 2 of the Indiana-Miami series. James Hanna Jersey . -- Former Penn State coach Joe Paterno was admitted to the hospital Friday for observation due to minor complications from cancer treatments, his family said. http://www.shoptheofficialcowboys.com/Customized/ ." One game is checked off, 15 remain and the next one to get crossed out could come Tuesday night when the defending champion Heat host the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference playoff series.SEATTLE - Fresh off spending more than two hours winding his way in front of a parade crowd that surpassed the population of Seattle, Pete Carroll was ready for the post-season to finally arrive. Perhaps Carroll was so prepared for a break because he believes there is very little the Seattle Seahawks need heading into the off-season. "I dont see anything that we need to add. We just have to get better," Carroll said. "These players know that they got better all the way to the last game of the season. Thats always out there for us and that will continue to be our focus." Carroll and his team were feted in grand fashion on Wednesday, enjoying the first championship parade for a team in one of the four major sports in the city of Seattle since 1979. Seattle officials estimated the crowd along the parade route at 700,000 while owner Paul Allen, addressing a celebration at CenturyLink Field, said it was 1 million fans that crammed downtown streets. Carroll was at the front of the parade and later was leading the charge that this team he helped put together is not expecting to be a one-year wonder. "They have come together to do something very special and its not just one year," Carroll told the crowd. "Were just getting warmed up if you know what Im talking about." That means Carroll doesnt believe the Seahawks need to make major off-season additions as they did a year ago when Seattle signed defensive linemen Cliff Avril, Tony McDaniel and Michael Bennett in free agency and traded for Percy Harvin. Seattle will continue to mine the draft for gems like those they have found in the past and look at free agency but Carroll said they are very comfortable with the roster they have moving forward. "The priority is for us to get back to work and work really hard again. Thats going to be more important. Its not going to be something from the outside of us. We have what we need, we just need to get back to work when the time comes with the right attitude and the right focus. Thats all Im concerned about." It appears SSeattles free agency focus will be on trying to retain players on its current roster that could be coveted by others. Jason Witten Jersey. Wide receiver Golden Tate and Bennett will both be free agents in the off-season and both expressed their desire to return to Seattle. Tate is at the end of his rookie contract, while Bennett gambled on a one-year deal with Seattle last off-season and now could be in line for a significant pay increase after a standout season with a team-high 8 1/2 sacks in the regular season and another 1 1/2 in the playoffs. Bennett became the interior pass rusher that Carroll has sought since his arrival in Seattle and part of a defensive line rotation that caused havoc. "I want to be back here 100 per cent," Bennett said. "I love the team. I love my teammates. Pete does a great job letting us play. I want to be a part of that. I know we can go back and win a Super Bowl again with all of these guys." Tate was Seattles leading receiver this season, his fourth with the team after being a second-round pick in 2010 as part of Carrolls first draft class. Tate said he would consider accepting a "little" less money for a chance to stay with the Seahawks. "In my eyes I would rather stay and play in a great organization, in a great city, around great people, around great teammates for a little less than go to a crappy city and win a ball game every now and then and be miserable for six months and have a fan base that doesnt care about the sport," Tate said. "Youve got to give a little or take a little, whatever. Well see how it works out. Hopefully, it does work out. I think Ive done everything in my power to earn the trust and respect of this organization." Carroll said Seattle will go into the off-season very healthy, the only lingering concern being a possible surgery on the toe of left tackle Russell Okung, who was injured in Week 2 against San Francisco and aggravated it later in the season. Harvin came out of the Super Bowl fine with his hip and now gets an entire off-season to get healthy. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '