with the Devils this season, with bot

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BRUSSELS - Former Tour de France winner Andy Schleck retired from cycling on Thursday, three months after crashing and pulling out of cyclings premier event with a knee injury.At 29, the one-time prodigy from Luxembourg is hanging up his bike at an age when many multi-stage racers are still in their prime. And even the absolute highlight of his career, winning the 2010 Tour, was imperfect because he only earned it two years later when Alberto Contador was disqualified for doping.At first, he said he found no joy in winning it after the fact, but on Thursday he was happy to embrace the victory.It is a good memory because I won that tour and I deserve it, Schleck said.In 2011, he seemed poised to win the Tour in real time, only to lose it during the final time trial on the penultimate day to Australian rival Cadel Evans.Schleck showed exceptional talent from an early age but even his sizable accomplishments, including two Tour runner-up finishes and victory in the Liege-Bastogne-Liege one-day classic, left him open to criticism that he did not do enough with his career because of a lack of total dedication.My career was full with a lot of success — but also a lot of missed success, Schleck said. If you fly high you fall down, deep. But I always stood up.Faced with a mangled knee, he said, now I cannot stand up.With his older brother Frank, Andy put Luxembourg on the cycling map, as the two often combined efforts in Frances mountains to challenge the best riders over the toughest stages.We spent great time together on the bike... you know memories are forever.be proud, Frank tweeted.Over the past two years, though, Andys career went downhill through a series of mishaps. In the last preparatory event for the 2012 Tour, he crashed in the Dauphine race and injured his spine. He missed the race where he was among the top favourites and even had to skip the London Olympics.This season, in a year marred by bad crashes throughout the peloton, Schleck did not escape misfortune. He collided with a spectator on the side of the road in London during the third stage of the Tour and had to withdraw. He hurt knee ligaments, cartilage and his meniscus.By that time, he had had to abandon so many races that he became known as Abandy Schleck.There is nothing more we can do, Schleck said.___Raf Casert can be followed on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/rcasert . -- The Windsor Spitfires were left with just one goaltender Tuesday after having their starter walk out on them midway through Game 3 of their Ontario Hockey League playoff matchup with the London Knights. . Tokarski, a somewhat controversial choice -- with his 10 games of NHL experience and all -- to replace an injured Carey Price in Game Two had a night to remember, turning back a Rangers team that was dominating play from the get-go, outshooting the Canadiens 14-4 in the first period and 37-25 overall. http://www.cheapphilliesjerseys.com/. -- The Sacramento Kings have claimed forward Travis Outlaw off waivers under the NBAs new amnesty provision, filling out the frontcourt with another veteran. . The Maple Leafs handed their embattled head coach a two-year contract extension on Thursday, while at the same time announcing that assistants Dave Farrish, Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon will not be back. . The Reds will host the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight in the opener of a four-game series at Great American Ball Park, and the debut matchup will feature a pair of pitchers whose recent resumes have included a fair number of bases-clearing hits.(SportsNetwork.com) - A pair of teams in the midst of three-game slides will clash on Monday evening when the Pittsburgh Penguins visit the New Jersey Devils. The Penguins are on their longest slide of the season, one that was extended with Saturdays 3-0 setback to the Washington Capitals. That loss snapped Pittsburghs five-game winning streak at home and it comes in having dropped four straight (0-1-3) on the road. Marc-Andre Fleury made 31 saves and allowed all three goals on Saturday, though he didnt get beat for a second time until 5:36 into the third period. They grabbed momentum with that second goal, said Penguins forward Sidney Crosby. We were hanging around for a while. The Pens are dealing with a rash of injuries and have also been one of several teams this season to see some of their players diagnosed with the mumps. Forward Steve Downie and backup goaltender Thomas Greiss are two players currently dealing with the illness. Pittsburgh caught no breaks on Saturday, with Patric Hornqvist suffering a lower-body injury that is expected to sideline the forward for a few weeks according to head coach Mike Johnston. Defenseman Kris Letang also did not practice on Sunday due to a bruised right ankle, but was expected to make the trip to New Jersey. The Penguins have won the first two of five meetings with the Devils this season, with both victories coming in Pittsburgh. Crosby scored twice in an 8-3 rout on Oct. 28, while Evgeni Malkin had a goal and Fleury posted 29 saves in a 1-0 triumph on Dec.dddddddddddd 2. Fleury is 19-22-4 versus the Devils in his career, posting a 2.44 goals against average, .917 save percentage and five shutouts. New Jersey has won four straight and 12 of its past 14 at home versus Pittsburgh, a trend it would like to continue in its second game since firing Peter DeBoer as head coach. DeBoer was let go on Friday and president and general manager Lou Lamoriello named Adam Oates and Scott Stevens co-coaches the following day ahead of a meeting with the New York Rangers. Oates will handle the forwards and Stevens the defense, with Lamoriello joining them on the bench for an unknown length of time. The shake up didnt help versus the Rangers, with the Devils falling 3-1 to lose for the eighth time in nine games. Cory Schneider made 25 saves and Steve Bernier had the goal. It was interesting just watching, listening and seeing what was transpiring, and I thought it was extremely positive. The bench was extremely alive, Lamoriello said. New Jersey did see forwards Dainius Zubrus and Jacob Josefson return to the lineup from injury, but also played without forwards Martin Havlat (illness), Michael Ryder (mumps) and Patrik Elias (mumps). Schneider, who has lost his past six starts, is likely to start this game, but is 0-4-0 in his career versus the Devils with a 3.30 GAA and .867 save percentage. He started both losses this season. ' ' '