RALEIGH, N.
Custom Green Bay Packers Jerseys .C. -- Jim Rutherford stepped down as general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday, and the team promoted Hall of Fame player Ron Francis to replace him. In a series of moves, the Hurricanes also hired Mike Vellucci as assistant GM and director of hockey operations and promoted Brian Tatum to assistant general manager. Rutherford, who also owns part of the team, will remain in an advisory role as team president. He assembled the teams that won one Stanley Cup, played for another and reached the Eastern Conference final in 2009. The Hurricanes havent made the playoffs since then, the longest active drought in the East. "I look at this as a fresh start," Francis said. "I dont want to just kind of build a team that gets into the playoffs for one year. I would like to build it so that its a very solid franchise and we can do it on a yearly basis." Francis had long been considered the teams GM-in-waiting. The former team captain holds team records with 382 goals, 793 assists and 1,186 games played. He has been the teams vice-president of hockey operations since June 2012. He took over as the teams director of player development in 2006 and was an assistant coach under Paul Maurice from 2008-11 before returning to the front office that June as director of hockey operations. Now that hes running a team for the first time, it remains unclear just how much financial flexibility Francis will have. The four highest-paid players -- forwards Alexander Semin and Eric and Jordan Staal, and goalie Cam Ward -- are coming off subpar seasons. They made a combined $28 million last year and will do so again in 2014-15. "This year we were at the (NHL salary) cap, I believe. Didnt make a heck of a lot of difference, did it?" owner Peter Karmanos Jr. said. "Well set the budget wherever we think we can have the most competitive hockey team." One of Francis first jobs will be deciding whether Kirk Muller will receive a fourth year as coach. Muller is 80-80-27 in three seasons and the Hurricanes finished 13th in the 16-team East this year with a 36-35-11 record. "In fairness, I think its a decision that kind of needs due process," Francis said. Rutherford, 65, is a former NHL goalie who spent two decades as the clubs GM, and helped shepherd its move from Hartford to North Carolina. He said he and Karmanos casually discussed stepping aside and those talks grew increasingly more serious beginning in January and February and continued through the early off-season. "Twenty years is a long time for me," Rutherford said. "Ive thought about this for a few years, and certainly the time is right now." Vellucci, 47, will oversee the teams scouting and player development after spending the past 14 seasons as head coach and general manager of the Plymouth Whalers -- the Ontario Hockey League team owned by Karmanos. Tatum, 40, is entering his 17th year with the team and has been its vice-president of team operations since 2012 after spending five years as its senior director of team operations.
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Green Bay Packers Pro Shop . They wanna make t-shirts about it and sell them at our next hockey game..DB: Wow, they want to make t-shirts? That sounds pretty amazing.MS: Yeah, I was also on the Top 10, I was number 1 today, so that was pretty cool.Rangers manager Mark Warburton has told Sky Sports News HQ that hes keen to add experience to his team with Burnleys Joey Barton. The 33-year-old midfielder visited Murray Park training ground over the weekend to discuss a potential move to Ibrox, according to Sky sources.Barton has reportedly been offered a one-year contract at Burnley after helping them secure the Sky Bet Championship title, but no agreement has been reached. Rangers manager Mark Warburton wants to add more experience to his team Rangers are preparing for their future in the Scottish Premiership after securing promotion back to the top flight with last months 1-0 win over Dumbarton. Warburton believes Barton, who won Burnleys Player of the Year award, would be a good addition to the squad.Joey is a very talented player, Warburton told Sky Sports News HQ. Hes a Burnley player still. Hes a very talented individual. He offers the experience and maturity that we need to add to the squad. Burnleys Joey Barton (right) challenges Cardiffs Joe Ralls (left) Theey are Championship team of the year after a fantastic season for Joey, Im sure he has a lot of options.
Packers Jerseys 2020. All we can try and do is show him what Rangers represents, the opportunity we represent and just see where that goes.The Scottish club have also been linked to New York Cosmos midfielder Niko Kranjcar with Warburton said to have travelled to the States to discuss terms with the Croatian. Former QPR midfielder Niko Kranjcar (middle) has been linked with a move to Rangers Warburton said: There are lots of options we are looking at. I dont like to talk about one specific player. What we have to do is get that balance. We have had a young, hungry team, superbly marshalled by the likes of Kenny Miller and Lee Wallace.Yes we need some maturity and experience but we dont want to lose the energy and intensity of how we play the game.Liverpool midfielder Jordan Rossiter and Accrington pair Josh Windass and Matt Crooks are the latest players to sign with the Gers. Also See: De Boer backs Barton for Gers McLean honoured to ref final Butcher: Tie Warburton down Dyche: Barton not cheap ' ' '