Optik » he Ottawa Senators have fired head coach Paul MacLean. Mac

ASHBURN, Va. - Mike Shanahan said he has no plans to resign, then reminded everyone that he might not be back as coach of the Washington Redskins. He then cryptically offered a picture of the possible changes that might be in store if he does return. He dropped Gary Kubiaks name twice, stoking questions that there might be a new offensive co-ordinator. He also said that Robert Griffin III is "clearly" the starting quarterback but would welcome "legitimate competition" from Kirk Cousins. Just another day in the world of the Redskins. Shanahan said Monday it was "accurate" that he doesnt plan to quit after what will be his third losing season in four years. The Redskins (3-11) have lost six straight, and the coach has one year remaining on his five-year, $35 million contract. However, he reiterated that his fate wont be determined until he and owner Dan Snyder meet at the end of the season and discuss their views about the direction of the franchise. "All we can do at the end of the season is communicate," Shanahan said. "And I think we have that type of relationship where we can talk and be honest to each other." One possibility is the Shanahan returns with a new set of co-ordinators. Defensive co-ordinator Jim Haslett could surely be on the bubble, given the way the defence has performed, but a change on the other side had seemed improbable because the coachs son, Kyle Shanahan, is the offensive co-ordinator. Yet Kyle Shanahan last week sounded like someone pitching himself for a new job and expressed annoyance that people "always put an s on the last name of the Shanahans" when discussing the Redskins, a first possible hint that the father-son experiment had run its course. Mike Shanahan gave a rambling answer Monday when asked about his co-ordinators and mentioned Kubiak, who was the coachs longtime offensive co-ordinator with the Denver Broncos and who is out of work — having been recently fired by the Houston Texans. "It doesnt matter if Gary Kubiak is my offensive co-ordinator, Mike Heimerdinger, Jim Haslett — a co-ordinators a co-ordinator," Shanahan said. "Theyve got a job to do. And theyre going to do it. If they dont do it, then the chances are theyre not going to be a co-ordinator for long. That has nothing to do with anybody in particular. But theyve got some autonomy there in relative to their position, if its Jim, if its Kyle — obviously I get involved with all the football matters, and I will be heavily involved on both sides." Mike Shanahan also named Kubiak and Haslett as examples of people who might have connections to the people have leaking various stories about the Redskins in recent weeks. Then theres the question of the quarterback dynamic if Mike Shanahan returns. With Griffin benched for the rest of the year, Cousins threw for 381 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions in Sundays 27-26 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Thats more yards than Griffin has tallied in any of 28 starts, and Cousins better pocket presence was evident as he took only one sack and led scoring drives late in both halves before an incomplete pass on a 2-point conversion attempt in the final minute settled the game. The coach cautioned that it was Cousins first start of the season — "Lets not get carried away with one game," he said — but he walked a fine line when discussing the quarterback situation for next season. "The thing that you want on your football team is that you want competition, legitimate competition," Mike Shanahan said. "The better players you have, the more people compete. When you look behind your shoulder and you know that guys pretty good, it makes you work a little bit harder. "Robert is clearly our starting quarterback ... I think Roberts got a lot of confidence in himself and he should," the coach added. "Hes got all the ability in the world and he will get better and better every day. And I think thats one of the reasons why we decided to not play him for the last three games. We wanted him to go into the off-season fully healthy." Notes: Rookie TE Jordan Reed, the teams second leading receiver, is still experiencing headaches from the concussion he suffered Nov. 17 against Philadelphia. Reed missed his fourth consecutive game Sunday. ... FB Darrel Young aggravated his hamstring injury and could be sidelined again for next weeks game against Dallas. Toronto Blue Jays Shirts . Both of Padakins goals came in the second period while Zane Jones added a single in the first period for Calgary (13-6-4). Hitmen goaltender Chris Driedger finished with 30 saves for the shutout. Blue Jays Jerseys 2020 . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers (5) – He had good saves on Giroux, Akeson, and Hartnell tonight. https://www.cheapbluejays.com/ . -- Packers cornerback Tramon Williams has been fined $26,250 for contact with an official, per NFL guidelines. Fake Blue Jays Jerseys . - Ryan Spooner scored twice to lead the Boston Bruins to a 6-1 victory over the New York Islanders in a preseason game Friday night. Toronto Blue Jays Gear .75 million contract for the 2014 season and avoided arbitration. The team announced the agreement on Tuesday.Ottawa, ON (SportsNetwork.com) - The Ottawa Senators have fired head coach Paul MacLean. MacLean was in his fourth season with the Senators, who are 11-11-5 this season. Ottawa had lost five straight games before picking up a 4-3 overtime win over Vancouver on Sunday. The Senators failed to reach the playoffs last season for the first time in MacLeans tenure. He finished with a record of 114-90-35. MacLean led Ottawa tto the playoffs in each of his first two seasons.dddddddddddd. The Senators lost a seven-game series to the New York Rangers in the first round of the 2012 playoffs, then beat Montreal in the opening round of the 2013 postseason before falling to Pittsburgh. The Nova Scotia native won the Jack Adams Award as the NHLs top coach for the lockout-shortened 2013 season after the Senators posted a record of 25-17-6. ' ' '