Pens GM Hextall understands fans’ anger
Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Ron Hextall grew accustomed to being booed long ago during his lengthy playing career. He’s not going to let growing frustration from Pittsburgh’s fan base sway him from how he goes about doing his job.
Chants of “Fire Hextall” erupted several times inside PPG Paints Arena on Thursday night as the Penguins were in the midst of getting blown out 7-2 by the Edmonton Oilers. Pittsburgh’s fourth straight loss dropped the Penguins to 10th in the Eastern Conference with less than two months to go in the regular season.
“We have high expectations and we haven’t met them,” Hextall said Friday. “People pay good money to come to the rink and they have the right to chant and say whatever they choose. It’s not going to affect anything I do ... Criticism is part of the business.”
Hextall, the former Philadelphia Flyers goalie and general manager, reiterated that he plans to approach next week’s trade deadline looking for deals that could improve the Penguins this season and in the future. Translation: He’s looking for players whose contracts extend beyond this season and he’s reluctant to part with draft picks to do it.
“We are going to do everything we can to improve the team,” Hextall said. “We’re not looking to spend big assets on rentals. If we’re going to spend, it’s going to help us this year and in years to come.”
The Penguins have made the playoffs 16 straight years, the longest active streak in major North American professional sports. They have been erratic for most of this season and are just 9-12-5 since Dec. 18.
“The hardest thing with our team right now is probably the volatility,” Hextall said. “It’s a tough one quite frankly to put a finger on . ... We’ve showed we’re capable of being a very good team.”
Just not consistently. The Penguins were booed repeatedly Thursday. Even longtime captain Sidney Crosby wasn’t immune as a sellout crowd roared in dismay after he opted not to shoot from in close during a power play in the second period.
Crosby shrugged off the angst afterward, saying simply “It was a tough night for everybody.”
Soccer
MLS UNION CRITICIZES FIFA, LEAGUE >> The union for Major League Soccer players criticized FIFA, its rules-making body and the league for failing to allow trials of temporary substitutes to replace players suspected of sustaining concussions.
The International Football Association Board said Jan. 18 that no consensus was reached on the proposal for trials by MLS and England’s Premier League. The IFAB includes four representatives from FIFA and one each from the governing bodies of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
“FIFA and IFAB’s shortsighted, misguided decision demonstrates once again their failure to prioritize player health and safety in our sport,” the Major League Soccer Players Association said in a statement Friday. “Their refusal to act provides yet another example of global soccer’s broken governance structure.”
The union maintained current rules “do not provide sufficient time for the proper assessment of players for potential concussions.”
“Players too often remain in games with head injuries,” the MLSPA said. “Medical professionals also agree that the solution to this problem is to provide for temporary concussion substitutes to allow players to be properly evaluated.”
MLS starts its season Saturday, and the union said the league should have adopted a trial without the IFAB’s approval.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber said Wednesday the league was powerless to act without IFAB approval. He maintained the league was willing to innovate and cited adoption of video review in 2017 as an example.
NFL
COWBOYS NAME SCHOTTENHEIMER OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR >> Brian Schottenheimer is taking over as offensive coordinator for Dallas, with the Cowboys still planning on coach Mike McCarthy taking on play-calling duties.
Schottenheimer’s move from consultant to Kellen Moore’s replacement was announced Friday.
Schottenheimer is the son of the late Marty Schottenheimer, who gave McCarthy his first NFL job on the elder Schottenheimer’s Kansas City staff in 1993.
College basketball
OLE MISS FIRES DAVIS >> Mississippi coach Kermit Davis’s tenure is over, his team mired in a four-game losing streak and in last place in the Southeastern Conference standings.
Ole Miss Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics Keith Carter said Friday the school and Davis “have mutually agreed to part ways effective immediately.”