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TORONTO - Bob Murray was California dreaming about the American Hockey Leagues new Pacific Division because the Anaheim Ducks general manager will be able to wake up and drive down the coast to see his minor-league team in San Diego.Thats impossible for Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers executives, but those Canadian NHL teams will also benefit from the AHLs Westward relocation. Starting next season the Flames will have their top affiliate in Stockton, Calif., and the Oilers in Bakersfield in an attempt to give those organizations better development and access to minor-league players.As part of the all-California cluster, the Los Angeles Kings will have a team in Ontario and the Sharks in their own arena in San Jose.Us and Calgary dont have the luxury that the California teams do, but the division is going to be highly competitive and that will be really good on the development side, Oilers president Kevin Lowe said on a conference call Thursday. From our perspective, its the proximity for the other teams within our own division and the benefit that well get for our players in terms of having more practice days. Thats the biggest benefit.The Flames AHL team currently resides in Glens Falls, N.Y., which is a drive to a major airport and then a long flight from Alberta. The Oilers AHL team is in Oklahoma City.San Joses AHL team is now in Worcester, Mass., Anaheims in Norfolk, Va., and Los Angeless in Manchester, N.H.One practical implication is that these teams can now recall players from the AHL on shorter notice if injuries occur.You cant always control travel, but you would suspect in California youve got less of the travel issues as it relates to weather and those types of things, Calgary GM Brad Treliving said in a phone interview. The fact of the matter is its easier to get a body from Stockton, Calif., to Calgary than it is from the East Coast to Calgary, for a host of different reasons.These five AHL teams will play fewer games than the current 76 on the schedule, which Lowe said was part of the deal in creating the Pacific Division. Its unclear just how many there will be.Its going to drop, and the purpose of that is more emphasis on development and really to try to reduce completely the three (games) in three nights, Lowe said. Most people on the management side of hockey teams will suggest that its not great for development.This idea has been bandied about for several years. Murray said at a news conference in San Jose that he and former GM Brian Burke talked about it as soon as they got to Anaheim. The Pacific Division is the first phase of trying to geographically balance out the AHL, which historically has been centred in the East.I think it was just a matter of time, Treliving said. Its taken a long time and its not an easy undertaking. Theres a lot of moving pieces here.AHL president David Andrews called relocating five teams a complex process but one that launches a new era for the American Hockey League and for professional hockey in California.The Kings, Sharks and Ducks will get the benefit of having their teams in the same state. San Joses AHL team will even share SAP Center with the Sharks, an arrangement no other organization currently has.The Toronto Maple Leafs top affiliate, the Marlies, are in the same city, and the Philadelphia Flyers once had the Phantoms in another arena across the parking lot.Torontos a perfect example: Theres a benefit of being right there and theres a reason why they moved their team to Toronto, Treliving said. A player pulls a groin in Toronto on a morning skate, you can get a guy to drive across town.Edmonton to Bakersfield and Calgary to Stockton isnt that close, but its an improvement. Lowe estimated that the AHLs Condors will have about 20 to 25 extra practices per season than the Barons had in Oklahoma City, when the closest opponent was a six-hour bus ride away.This isnt a full-scale relocation as the Vancouver Canucks AHL team will remain in Utica, N.Y., and the Winnipeg Jets in St. Johns, N.L., for at least next season. But there are rumours of each NHL club wanting the same type of move as their Western Conference Canadian counterparts.The Jets have been linked to Thunder Bay, Ont., or even Winnipeg itself, and the Canucks potentially to Abbotsford, B.C., which used to be the home of the AHLs Heat. The Arizona Coyotes would like to join this movement, as well, and could put a team in Scottsdale.Theres no question that weve been involved in a lot of these discussions with a lot of our compadres in the West, and we hope to be a part of the Pacific Division if at all possible as early as the following season, Coyotes president and CEO Anthony LeBlanc said before his teams game against the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre. I would anticipate well be the ones to break the mould and our franchise wont be in California but itll be in Arizona.A bigger Pacific Division is very possible for the 2016-17 season. At that point it may even include a minor-league affiliate paired with a Las Vegas expansion team.The division has a flexibility if it grows in the future to play strictly in our own division, Lowe said. We like to think that the division will grow in time, but theres nothing concrete at this point.___Follow @SWhyno on Twitter Bobby Grich Angels Jersey . Sweeting scored two in the first and three in the second before Strong (4-4) got two back in the fourth. Sweeting then scored three in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh to grab a commanding 9-2 lead. Cam Bedrosian Angels Jersey .ca. Hello Kerry, After watching Nino Niederreiter clobber Alex Burrows with an open-ice hit on Wednesday, do you think he should have gotten more than the two minutes for interference. https://www.cheapangels.com/763j-don-baylor-jersey-angels.html . The Yankees made the moves before Tuesdays game against Baltimore. Robertson was listed retroactive to Monday. Robertson posted two saves in three games as the replacement for retired Yankees closer Mariano Rivera before getting hurt. 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Karim Benzema put Madrid ahead at the Vicente Calderon Stadium after three minutes but, instead of wilting, Atletico hit back with two goals to take the lead by halftime. Koke smashed a low shot beyond Madrid goalkeeper Diego Lopez, who then watched Gabi Fernandezs swerving effort from 30 metres (yards) fly past him just before the break. Madrid stayed three points ahead of Atletico, but Barcelona was able to cut its deficit to Madrid to one point after a laboured 4-1 win against Almeria at the Camp Nou. Barcelona led 2-0 by the 24th after Alexis Sanchez tapped a rebound into the empty goal before Lionel Messi curled an exquisite left-foot free kick around the defensive wall and into the top of the goal for his 15th league strike of the season. A rout looked in the cards until Angel Trujillo got free to head home a corner in the 27th, and the relegation-threatened club made Barcelona work for its points. Carles Puyol, who had made a rare start, scored an even rarer goal after Messis header came off the bar straight to him in the 83rd minute. Xavi Hernandez scored moments later as the Catalans bounced back from a 3-1 loss to Real Sociedad last weekend. Madrid leads with 64 points, Barcelona has 63, and Atletico is on 61 points. The fifth meeting between crosstown rivals Atletico and Madrid since last Mays Copa del Rey final kept its trademark liveliness and aggression, with Atletico knowing defeat would likely end its dreams of a first title since 1996. "Atletico tried to make the game violent," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "We dont play that way, however. But they tried right to the end." Atleticos defence played Benzema onside for the France striker too score his 15th of the season, leaving him alone to guide Angel Di Marias cross into the box past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.dddddddddddd Ugly confrontations followed as both teams used gamesmanship to try and gain an edge, with Arda Turan booked for protesting in the 11th after Sergio Ramos tripped Diego Costa inside the area with no penalty awarded. But Atleticos pressure paid off in the 28th when Turan spotted Koke inside the area to smash past Lopez. Diego Costa, who will play at the Calderon for Spain on Wednesday, was a physical presence and troubled Madrid throughout. Atletico took the lead in first-half stoppage time when Gabis powerful drive beat the slow-footed Lopez for a deserved lead. In the second half, Lopez kept it close as Atletico found space on the counter with Madrid pressing for an equalizer. Despite being outplayed, Madrids attack finally connected when Gareth Bale failed to control a cross but the ball fell to Ronaldo to extend Madrids unbeaten run in all competitions to 28 games. "Atletico played a bruising style right to the end, when we finally got a chance to play and create opportunities," Ancelotti said. Madrid is unbeaten at the Calderon for 15 games, dating to June 1999. "The result is what it is," Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. "We had chances to win it. At least we showed we are still alive in the title race." Ruben Castros late goal gave bottom side Real Betis a 1-1 draw at 10-man Villarreal, which slipped six points from fourth and the final Champions League spot. Betis was left 11 points from safety. Real Sociedad fell seven points behind fourth-place Athletic Bilbao after Kevin Gameiro skipped through a pair of defenders and netted the rebound from his initial shot to lead Sevilla to a 1-0 victory. Joaquin Larrivey scored as Rayo Vallecano climbed within three points of 17th-place Almeria -- and safety from the drop -- with a 1-0 win over Valencia, which played the last 15 minutes with 10 men. ' ' '