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TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed general manager Steve Yzerman to a four-year contract extension. The Lightning have made the playoffs twice in four seasons under Yzermans watch, reaching the Eastern Conference Final in 2011. Tampa Bay has already qualified for this seasons playoffs and is currently in third place in the Atlantic Division. "Im grateful for the opportunity to continue the process we started four years ago and would like to thank (owner) Jeff Vinik for entrusting me with the responsibility of leading the Tampa Bay Lightning," Yzerman said in a statement. "Im very excited about what lies ahead for our organization and truly enjoy working with a fantastic group of people in Tampa Bay." Yzerman, who has one year remaining on his initial contract with Tampa Bay, also served as general manger of Canadas gold-winning Olympic mens hockey teams in 2010 and 2014. Yzerman spent 27 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings as a player, captain and front-office executive prior to joining the Lightning. The Hall of Famer ranks sixth in NHL history with 1,755 career points. He is a four-time Stanley Cup Champion, winning three as a player in 1997, 1998 and 2002 and another as a member of Detroits management team in 2008. "Since the day Steve agreed to serve as our vice president and general manager, he has worked tirelessly to transform our hockey department and establish the groundwork for sustained success", Vinik said. "We are very pleased with Steves job performance thus far, and I am fully confident Steve remains the right person to continue to lead us." The Lightning also announced Monday that Steve Griggs has been promoted to president. Griggs had served as the teams chief operating officer since 2010. He also spent six years in various roles with Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment. Devin Hester Jersey . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. Getting Creative The Pittsburgh Penguins will try their best to acquire Ryan Kesler from the Vancouver Canucks before the Trade Deadline. Mike Ditka Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., who trains out of San Diego, will fight bantamweight champion (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey on July 5 in the co-main event of UFC 175 in Las Vegas. http://www.officialchicagobearspro.com/W...y-bears-jersey/. Mickelson shot a 2-under 70 after opening with a 77 -- his worst score of the season -- on TPC San Antonios AT&T Oaks Course. Lefty was 11 strokes behind leader Steven Bowditch, the Australian who had a 67 to reach 8-under 136. Custom Chicago Bears Jerseys . Needing to bulk up on both sides of the line, the Falcons agreed to terms with guard Jon Asamoah, defensive end Tyson Jackson and defensive tackle Paul Soliai. Asamoah and Jackson played last season with Kansas City, where Asamoah lost his starting job. Brian Urlacher Jersey . The Goldeyes (10-7) lost 4-1 to the Saltdogs (8-9) Sunday afternoon before 5,834 sizzling fans at Shaw Park. The loss drops Winnipegs record to 3-4 during this past weeks seven-game homestand.BALTIMORE – Before Tuesdays middle game at Oriole Park, TSN.ca sat down with Colby Rasmus for a discussion about his season, whats gone wrong and what lies ahead beyond his days in Toronto. Much has been said and written about Rasmus, including in this space, and this was an opportunity for Rasmus to share his thoughts without interpretation. The interview runs approximately 21 minutes. Listen to the audio here. Below is the transcript: TSN.ca: Colby, in your own words, can you describe what this year has been like for you? RASMUS: Its been another learning experience. Coming into spring it was a lot of talk about my free agent year and all that stuff. I tried to put that to the side. I felt like I did pretty good about that, about not worrying about those things and what was ahead for me, just trying to focus on what I was doing. I ran into a crazy year of baseball this year as far as the shift goes and things like that. These pitchers pitched me into the shift pretty well. I believe I had my highest percentage of hard balls or line drives since Ive been in the big leagues but the lowest average on balls in play. Thats been tough and I dont think Ive been through a stretch like that in my career to where balls that Ive hit hard have been caught so much and its been a struggle to not try to do too much up there because Ive hit so many balls hard and hit into the shift or whatever. Even some balls Ive hit to leftfield have been caught in, I guess you could say, in a row. Ive hit a few balls over there and a lot of them were caught. Maybe a couple of them fell in there at times. The thought process in my mind has always been to want to hit the ball harder, to blast it through them. I guess thats just my competitiveness and that approach didnt work. You know, the harder I hit it the more they caught it and the more I was getting diced up at the plate and getting off my approach and then started thinking about hitting some balls the other way and then just coming in and out of my swing and not feeling comfortable. Last year, with (Chad Mottola), I was able to get myself comfortable with what I was trying to do and coming into the season, in the offseason, getting word that Motor was fired, I talked to Motor and that was a tough time for me because it was such a fun year for me last year working with him and the things that we accomplished and learned. He helped me learn about myself, things that I wasnt able to pick up on or wasnt able to see which I tip my hat to him for being help me in that way. As far as (Kevin) Seitzer this year, hes done nothing but try to help me. Hes been a great guy to me. I know he was trying to help me but its like the same things Ive run into in the past, its been kind of hard with the things that have gone on this season, like I just talked about, with the balls in play and just getting some balls caught and then trying a little bit too hard at times and maybe I wasnt as nice to the umpires as I should have been, I guess or whatever it was but I had a little bit of a tough streak as far as the strike zone and its been tough to get a good plan of what my strike zone is and what I want to swing at and what I dont want to swing at and thats been another challenge this year. I think Seitzer has done nothing but try to help me but its been a grind for both of us I guess you could say on what to do and what not to do with the way these teams and the shift has put a damper on what Ive done in the past. I know that aint a quick summary, thats a lot of stuff going on but I just chalk it up as it wasnt my year. I came in, tried hard and I played hard and had some problems with the turf and my hips that had my hamstrings barking on me, which I havent dealt with in the past me. The turf has taken a little toll on me in the past couple of years. I try to tell myself that Ive played hard on the turf, Ive dove on that turf and played a lot of games in a row. I think in the past couple of years Ive played like over 50-something games in a row on the turf without an off day and I think that might have had a little something to do with it. But, you know, just got to learn from that, keep working and hopefully I can get my body back right. TSN.ca: Youre going into free agency for the first time and whether or not youll be back here is to be determined although its believed that you wont be. How difficult has the last few weeks been for you, predominantly coming off the bench, knowing that you want to get your numbers up to increase your value to would-be teams that would be looking to sign you? RASMUS: I look at it like theres nothing I can do about it. The balls in their court and they have all the power over me and that was their decision to do that. Nothing I can really do. Ill look at it like, man, I was able to make it through another season in the big leagues. Maybe it wasnt the way that people or myself thought it was going to go but theres been other seasons like that too. I just feel that I tried to handle it the best way I could. I didnt try to blow up on nobody or make a scene because I know we had a chance to maybe have a little chase to the playoffs. I didnt understand why they would take me out, especially as hard as Ive played this year, even through some aches and pains with the body but that was their decision and like I said theres nothing I can do about it. But as far as going into the offseason, Im just going to keep my head up. After this year Ill have six years in the big leagues and if you would have told me I would have six years in the big leagues when I was 15, 16, 17 years old Id have told you you were crazy, there was no way I was going to be able to do it. I was a little scrawny thing and nobody thought I was going to be nothing so Im not going to put my head down just because of what the organization does and some of the things that have happened. This year has been a tough year and Im just going to go home, enjoy it, go back to the drawing board and try to work my tail off this offseason to get in good shape and hopefully find a place to where I fit in well and I can help my team win. TSN.ca: Do you feel youre misunderstood either as a person or as a player? RASMUS: Yeah, at times. I think its just my nature. Im a little more relaxed. Ive always been that way. Ive always had people wanting to push me and prod me to do better and to try to light a fire under me. With that happening as Ive grown up its kind of let my flame out a little bit and Ive lost a little bit of that drive sometimes just because so many people are always just poking and prodding at me and I felt at times like an animal at the zoo. You know, you just keep poking at it until one day they bite back at you. Its just my nature. I think it comes off to people like I dont care. In the outfield I run smooth and people have always told me that I run smooth but at the same time they think Im not trying at times when really Im playing as hard as I can and playing through pain a lot. In this game, if you play a number of years youre going to be playing through pain. Thats just part of it. I think that the misconception of me sometimes and people seeing what in their mind what they see me to be and not understanding how I am and just wanting me to be what they think I should be, I think thats where confrontation comes in and I have trouble understanding what theyre trying to get out of me and Ive tried to express myself and say that I dont want people on me like that and want to be pushed in that way because when I get on the field Ive always loved playing baseball and I always get after it, Im real competitive. People pushing me all the time and wanting me to do better has made me get up there and try too hard and want to do more than I probably could have done if Id just been relaxed and being myself. Knowing that, at times, I still have trouble with getting out there and just relaxing and enjoying the game. Watching Adam Jones play, hes the most relaxed player out there. Hes just having a good time, always smiling and I feel like if Im smiling out there Im doing something wrong because playing with St. Louis, when I was in the minor leagues man I used to have a lot of fun. I would sign a lot of autographs and just enjoyed, just loved being a part of playing in the big leagues and getting all the cool stuff, getting Nike stuff sent to me because when I was little I got like, one Christmas I think I got a baseball glove and an apple or something for Christmas. To be able to get that stuff man it was the greatest thing bbut I turned into not liking that because I put my name on my glove in spring training one year and they hung it up in the locker room making fun of me in St.dddddddddddd Louis and just a number of things over my time there made me not like it, made me real emotionless because times when I did try to have fun Tony (La Russa) was telling me not to do that and just be quiet and dont do anything. I couldnt talk. Id just go to the locker room and sit there and look at my clothes and put my headphones on. It was a crazy time in my life because at that time before that I enjoyed playing the game, I enjoyed working out to get better but after that I really didnt because they made it so unenjoyable that I had trouble wanting to come to the yard everyday and enjoy it. This year Ive kind of run into some of that but I wont go into detail on that. Its been a crazy ride, man. TSN.ca: Based on what youre saying, it sounds like youve had to overcome a lot more than maybe people would think. I think all big leaguers probably have to overcome challenges to get to this level. You have to do that. But even through the good times, even through the tough times its like youre overcoming these barriers or perceived challenges that youve had. RASMUS: Well yeah, when I got drafted by St. Louis they were like, Hes going to be the next Jim Edmonds. The organization boosted me up so high, you know and I was ranked the number one prospect in the organization. I got MVP of Double-A when I was 20 years old and they boosted me up so high in all these articles, things that I didnt even say that were said by other people. So I got to the big leagues and I was around guys that had been there 10, 12, 14 years and youve got Red Schoendienst coming into the clubhouse whos been to, I dont know, 70-something spring trainings and La Russa whos been managing for 37 years and all these different people whod been doing this so long and I dont know whether they looked at me having fun as a bad thing because I was too young to be there and some of those guys had fought through struggles. You know, Albert (Pujols) wasnt drafted in the first round and I was drafted in the first round, got a good chunk of money and I feel like sometimes they might have thought I had it too easy and I was just blessed with all this talent but I really worked my balls off to be able to get to how strong I was and how fast I was and how I was able to throw up countless hours in the gym. I mean, four hours a day and on the field all the time. My dad just grinding on us, working out; we did just ridiculous stuff to try to get better at baseball. I think, the way I was, I knew that Id worked hard and I knew Id put in the time to do all that stuff to be good so I just tried to enjoy it and just be myself but being myself wasnt what they wanted out of me. They wanted me to be something else and I didnt know how to do that so it changed me and it made me a different person and I kind of just went into this shell and tried not to be flamboyant and have fun and be myself and let my emotions go. So I trapped my emotions in to try to fit whatever mould they wanted me to be in. It was tough, it was a grind and I didnt understand it. I had a lot of nights of just laying there looking at the ceiling not understanding what was going on and why it was going that way. I always just envisioned the big leagues just being fun man and them just letting me go and letting me play and letting me be free. That wasnt the case and here I am now and this is how I turned out. TSN.ca: Baseball has been such a huge part of your life. The Little League World Series tape is famous. There you are doing your thing, playing way back in the day and you worked so hard at it even at a younger age. How would you describe your relationship with the sport? How do you feel about baseball? RASMUS: Its a love-hate relationship, no doubt. A lot of times I just feel like I want to be able to enjoy it but its so hard for me now to just flip that switch. I dont know how to. Last year I started getting back into that feeling like I was having fun and enjoying it but man, some people who have done this longer than me and there are better players than me and I realize that but its been a crazy ride as far as the game goes and just the countless hours of working and trying to get better. I like to say that I worked out harder than most people because when I was growing up my focus was I know there are guys working out in wherever, all over the world trying to get better. My focus was always to be as good as those guys and make sure I did the extra reps, the extra swings in the cage. You know, taking 300, 350 swings a day in the cage. Working out on top of that, running, running hills, sleds, just all the workouts that we did were some crazy workouts. My dad on us all the time to be better, drinking four protein shakes a day filled with the nastiest stuff just bubbling and at the top, you know raw eggs and things like that. It was just crazy. Fifteen-hundred calorie shakes, four times a day and all that stuff trying to get better. TSN.ca: Do you look back on that fondly? RASMUS: What do you mean? TSN.ca: Do you look back on that fondly? Like, are those good memories? RASMUS: Man, I would say it was worth it to get to where Im at now but man it was a grind. My dad used to always say, You aint had no job. I look at my job now and some of the jobs that are considered to be jobs here that there are now and when I was younger, it was way harder than what I do now. The stuff that I had to do was work. Drinking those shakes and walking with dumbbells that I could barely hold, doing lunges across the yard, that was work but I dont regret it. It was a tough time but it got me to where Im at today. Maybe it would be a little easier for me now and easier on my body if I wouldnt have done all those things because those were taxing times on my body, a lot of times putting music in my earphones and blasting music so loud that I couldnt hardly think straight and Im pushing up this weight, just felt like my heads about to explode doing as much weight I could possibly do trying to get as strong as I could. That might have took a toll on my body and on my mind, mentally, you know you get worn down slowly because at the end of the day, I dont want to say it to be like nothing weird or whatever but Im just like a normal person. Maybe I was definitely gifted with some talent and athletic ability but I put a lot of work in and over time I think that kind of burnt me out a little bit doing, sometimes I might have done a little too much. TSN.ca: If we had an opportunity to do this one year from today, wherever you are, wherever youre playing and it had been a perfect year and you could sit down and say, This has been a great year, how would you describe that perfect year or as close to a perfect year as possible? RASMUS: I would say just get to … a perfect year? Almost like I had last year, just to be able to play baseball and enjoy it with my teammates and be a part of the team and just in a good place and obviously be able to help my team in the best way I can but not pushing myself to the limit to where I feel like I burn myself out on I get out there and play I dont know how to, Ive had trouble with going too hard at times, you know running into the walls and playing with my shoulder all banged up and I guess a season to where I can play as many games as possible and still play good enough to help my team and not worry about how much money Im going to make or all that stuff, just play, enjoy it and want to come to the field everyday and want to be there and just be with a good group of guys that are, you know, I guess just good people. TSN.ca: If this is it for your time in Toronto, how do you want Blue Jays fans to remember you? RASMUS: I would just want them to remember me as playing hard. You know, this last little bit has been tough for me. When I got sick in the last game against the Yankees I was definitely not on top of my game. You know, I punched out three times and I didnt look too good. I was still trying. This game can be hard some times. Nobody was really hitting (Brandon) McCarthy that day anyways. I was struggling a little bit and when I got sick I was hurting but I went out there and I played and I tried hard. I would just want them to remember me as playing the best centrefield I could and I tried hard and this games not easy. TSN.ca: Thank you very much, Colby, appreciate it. RASMUS: You got it, man. Blackhawks Jerseys Store Cheap Wild Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Penguins Jerseys Store Capitals Jerseys For Sale Blues Jerseys Store Cheap Kings Jerseys Adidas Lightning Jerseys Stars Jerseys For Sale Cheap Predators Jerseys Ducks Store Sharks Jerseys For Sale Cheap Sabres Jerseys Rangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '