a cliff losing streak named for then-GM Brian Burkes quote.

TORONTO - Inconsistency ended Randy Carlyles tenure as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, according to general manager Dave Nonis. Carlyle was fired Tuesday after the Maple Leafs lost five of seven games on their last road trip. The Leafs have a 21-16-3 record this season and currently hold one of the two wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference. I think wed all agree weve had some good periods, good stretches, but I dont think I can stand here in front of you and say that weve been consistent, Nonis said at a news conference. We just felt at this point this was the right time to make the change and move ahead and try to get this team back playing like we have played for periods this season. Assistants Peter Horachek and Steve Spott will handle coaching duties for Wednesday nights home game against the Washington Capitals. Horachek ran the first practice of the post-Carlyle era. Nonis did not indicate if or when the Leafs might hire a full-time head coach. According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, a replacement process and candidates review will begin immediately, however, no timeline has been established for a new hire. Dreger adds that all Leaf players are now potential trade targets as the team moves forward. Its possible Horachek and/or Spott could handle the job for the rest of the season, though there are several external candidates available. They include Pete DeBoer, who was recently fired as coach of the New Jersey Devils. TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie reports that the most likely scenario is Horachek becoming the interim head coach, as there will likely be many big name coaching candidates available this summer. Carlyle, who was informed of managements decision Monday night, longed for answers back to last season, when the Leafs lost eight straight in regulation and 12 of their final 14 games to fall out of playoff contention. When Brendan Shanahan took over as president, he and Nonis reviewed aspects of the organization and opted to fire Carlyles assistants, Dave Farrish, Scott Gordon and Greg Cronin, and give him a two-year contract extension. Even with hindsight, Nonis said that was the right decision. Randy deserved to come back, Nonis said. I think hes an excellent coach. You dont coach over 700 games without being good at it. Good coaches get let go and unfortunately today we had to do that and it has nothing to do with the summer or whether or not he was the right guy. He was the right guy to bring back and unfortunately today this was the right decision for our team. The Leafs were blown out by the Buffalo Sabres and Nashville Predators in consecutive losses in November, bringing up concerns that Carlyles job may be in danger. When asked if players were trying to get their coach fired, defenceman Cody Franson answered no and added an expletive. Following those losses and in the aftermath of a controversy about not saluting fans at Air Canada Centre following a win, the Leafs went 9-1-1 to rocket into a playoff spot. Recently, some old problems began to creep up, especially on this 2-5 road trip. Its been too much of a roller-coaster, Nonis said. Its not that (players are) not capable because they are, its not that they havent done it because they have. Thats probably the biggest reason, or one of the biggest reasons, for the change today. Carlyle went 91-78-19 in 188 games as Leafs coach over parts of four seasons. The native of Sudbury, Ont., replaced Ron Wilson with 18 games left in the 2011-12 season. Wilson was fired following the infamous 18-wheeler going right off a cliff losing streak named for then-GM Brian Burkes quote. Carlyle and the Leafs made the playoffs in the lockout-shortened 2013 season before falling behind three games to one in the first round against Boston. They came back to force a Game 7 and led 4-1 with 11 minutes left before losing in overtime. In 2013-14, the Leafs were easily in a playoff spot when goaltender Jonathan Bernier suffered an injury. They lost eight in a row in regulation and dropped 12 of their final 14 games. Carlyles job appeared in jeopardy then, but Shanahan decided he wanted some time to evaluate the team. The final decision came with his firing, the fourth NHL coach this season to get the axe. Paul MacLean of the Ottawa Senators was first, then Dallas Eakins of the Edmonton Oilers, followed by DeBoer. Carlyle won the Stanley Cup as coach of the Anaheim Ducks in 2007. Hes a good man, a good coach and hell be back in this game quickly, Nonis said. Discount Sports Shoes Online Australia . - Buffalo Bills running back C. Running Shoes Australia Sale . Snedekers best result so far this year is a tie for eighth place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He sits 113th in FedEx Cup standings and has dropped to 31st in world rankings — not the results expected from a player ranked fourth in the world only two years ago. http://www.runningshoesaustraliawholesale.com/ . Last year, Matt Kuchar closed with a 4-under 68 to beat Kevin Chappell by two strokes for his second win of the 2013 season and sixth of his career. Cheap Running Shoes Australia .ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. Running Shoes Online Australia Sale . The Redblacks are taking on the Edmonton Eskimos in their second regular season game Friday night. Catch the game live on TSN as the back end of a doubleheader starting at 10pm et/7pm pt.Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist to lead the Columbus Blue Jackets in a 4-2 win over the Dallas Stars on Tuesday. Nick Foligno had three assists while Kevin Connauton, James Wisniewski and Mark Letestu all scored for the Blue Jackets, who have won four of five. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 24 shots in the win. It was a real good win for all the guys out there, said Columbus head coach Todd Richards. We probably could have managed the puck a little better, but I thought that was a really complete game we played. Antoine Roussel and Ales Hemsky each scored a goal for the Stars, who have dropped their past two. Anders Lindback allowed four goals on 20 shots. Columbus struck 5:21 into the game as Wisniewski cranked a blast from the high slot that hit off a stick in front and got past Lindback for a 1-0 lead. Just over two minutes later, the Blue Jackets made it a 2-0 game on the power play thanks to Scott Hartnell blowing down the left wing to set up a 2-on-1 and passing it to the right where Johansen snapped it high for his 13th of the season. Columbus took a 3-0 lead 3:57 into the second period on a one-timer from the high slot by Connauton, but the Stars were able to rally.dddddddddddd I thought we got off to a real poor start, said Stars coach Lindy Ruff. We werent ready to play. Taking three penalties in the first, that hurt us. Hemsky got his team on the board at 5:28 of the second when his big blast from the right circle found the back of the net, and Roussels snapper from the slot beat Bobrovsky to make it a 3-2 game with 6:46 to play in the second. Dallas had a power play early in the third period but was unable to capitalize, and held off a Columbus man advantage a bit later to keep it a one-goal game. The Blue Jackets, though, put the game away on a 2-on-1 break that Letestu finished off on a redirect of a Alexander Wennberg pass with 2:58 showing on the clock. Game Notes Hartnell finished the game with two assists ... Columbus plays in Toronto on Friday ... Dallas plays at Nashville on Thursday ... Columbus went 1-for-5 on the power play, while Dallas was 0-for-5. ' ' '