Im not sure when I feel worse for the coaches I know. Justin Layne Jersey . When they get fired, and take temp gigs on our TSN panel. Or when they get re-hired, and start peeling more years off their lives with the relentless stress and scrutiny of an NHL head-coaching job. I saw it in Paul Maurices eyes as he stood at the podium Monday in Winnipeg, answering a question about accountability on his team. Maurice is one of the best men Ive met in hockey, and might be the single most polished media presence there is in the NHL coaching ranks. But as that question was asked, he swallowed hard, the veins bulged a little in his neck, and he answered, I could f----- make you cry in that room. You could see him catch himself after he said it, and moments later he would apologize for the profanity. But he meant it. It was raw, real, and...understandable from a coach of a struggling team, whose collective character was being called into question. Mos blue moment spoke volumes. No matter how cool and composed you are, coaching in the NHL in 2014 can make you lose your f----- mind.* (*I wrote flippin Mom. Promise. The editors just dashed it for effect.) We used to get 20 games before we had to deal with the real pressure, but now these guys are feeling it three or four games in, says longtime NHL coach Marc Crawford, who is currently coaching in Zurich in the Swiss-A League. I think its because of the increased intensity of the coverage, especially in Canadian markets, and the parity in the league. A week into the season and if you arent doing well, everything gets questioned — coaching, goaltending, captaincy. Ive faced a lot of scrutiny in my time, but Ive never seen it at this level. On the second day of training camp, Toronto Maple Leafs coach Randy Carlyle was asked if he thought Phil Kessel hated him. Before his team had played a single pre-season game, he was listed as the Vegas odds-on favourite to be the first NHL coach fired. People speculate endlessly about Mike Babcock coming to Toronto next year like there is already a vacancy. You feel like Carlyle should be over in the corner jumping up and down waving his arms yelling, Hello!?! Over here! Still the Leafs coach! Just sayin! Ive come to expect the unexpected in this market, Carlyle told me back at training camp. The most trivial things somehow become stories. It bothers me that my friends are upset by it, that my family gets upset. He maintains he doesnt get upset. I dont believe him. When you guys are ranking the top five coaches on the hot seat before the season starts, I think its just the stupidest thing in the world, says Crawford. Where else in society do we do this? Do we list the top five teachers to be fired, the top five executives? NHL coaches get paid very well and no one is going to feel sympathy for us, but lists like the ones you do are ridiculous. Err...Well this is awkward. That weird section of the column where you use a Marc Crawford quote saying youre part of the problem that youre writing about. I suddenly feel like Leo DiCaprio when he realizes hes the insane killer at the end of Shutter Island. Oopsie. Crows right. The panel, The Quiz, Sportscentre — its all part of this Godzilla of scrutiny the coaches have to deal with when theyd rather just be playing with their whiteboards, designing new breakouts. Crows also right when he says they wont get sympathy from most. As tough as the gig has become, Crawford and every other ex-NHL coach would kill to get back in the league, and be stuck in the middle of this media mayhem again. Such is the drug. But I do feel for them. Mostly because Ive seen what theyre like when they arent coaching: relaxed, stress-free, excited as kids at a birthday party when their pizza arrives at intermission. By my count, weve had a full rosters worth of ex-NHL coaches on our panel over the years — Maurice (twice), Crawford (twice), Ron Wilson, Mike Babcock, Peter Laviolette, Tom Renney, John Anderson, Craig MacTavish, Andy Murray, Bobby Francis, John Tortorella, Mike Keenan, Joel Quenneville and Claude Julien (both for just one Tradecentre appearance), Kevin Constantine, Mike Milbury, and Pierre McGuire. Only McGuire and Milbury were content being full-time broadcasters. The rest were between jobs, and the panel is a decent place to watch a lot of hockey, and maybe keep your name fresh on the mind of the next general manager who decides a change of direction is needed. I still get asked all the time, What is (insert coach/panelist here) really like? The answer is almost always the same: Really nice guy. In other words, not at all like the guy you see ripping the reporter in the post-game scrum, trying to climb over the partition to get at the opposing coach, or grabbing certain body parts (that have to be pixeled out on Sportscentre) to make his feelings clear to an official. General television/life rule: when we have to pixel out your junk, youve had a bad day. I get asked about Tortorella more than anyone else. He is the poster boy for how opposite a personality a man can have when he isnt in front of the microphones every night defending his power play. When he was at TSN, Torts was church-boy polite. Shy almost. He would struggle not to doze off during the double-headers because his usual bedtime is 9pm. Our top-ten lists show the one or two short clips when he got angry on the panel, ripping Sean Avery and The Quiz. The endless replays of those brief soundbites warp everyones memory of the five months Torts spent with us. Reality is, he was mostly calm and quiet (to a fault for television), and said almost nothing controversial. Then he got the back behind the bench in New York, and later Vancouver, and...well we all watched it. I checked in on Torts this week. He sounds happy (if you can actually sound something in a few texts), spending most of his time keeping up with the careers of his two grown children, and working with his wife on animal welfare causes (they have a house full of rescued dogs). I tried to ask a couple of hockey questions, but he chose not to answer, opting instead to just ask about my kids...and dogs. Wounds still too fresh, I assume. Peter Laviolette is another of my ex-panelist favourites - smart as a whip with a dry sense of humour. Hes off to a great start in Nashville and will likely be there a long time. But Lavy is also acutely aware of the tenuous position of the NHL head coach - always just one long losing streak away from...another potential panel temp job. I reached him the other night, looking for some insight on Filip Forsberg, the young Swede who is off to a great start with the Predators. He gave me a couple of quotes about what a good young player Forsberg is, then began the following text exchange: Kevin Greene Womens Jersey .The Toronto Raptors guard, who will represent the Eastern Conference at the All-Star Game in New Orleans on Sunday, says he doesnt complain in the face of adversity "because I know this little girl is just happy for anything. Terrell Edmunds Womens Jersey .ca. Mr. Fraser, I think everyone would like to hear your opinion on what sort of suspension Zac Rinaldo should get. His comment after the game of I changed the whole game, man. http://www.steelersrookiestore.com/Steelers-Joe-Greene-Jersey/ . -- The Los Angeles Angels have agreed to a minor league contract with reliever Brandon Lyon that includes an invitation to their big league camp for spring training.ALAMEDA, Calif. - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. The veteran backup is certainly qualified to speak on the topic, having received a crash course on it over the past 15 months. Jennings will make his second start of the season Sunday against the New York Giants while Darren McFadden rests his sore hamstring. He also started six games for Jacksonville in 2012 while Maurice Jones-Drew was sidelined with a foot injury. The message Jennings delivered? Dont wait or its too late. "When I was in high school I kept a quote: When opportunity presents itself, its too late to prepare for it," Jennings said. "So every day be prepared to be that guy." Thats been the case for Jennings, who has been a jack-of-all-trades in his first season with the Raiders. Besides filling in for McFadden, hes blocked two punts and recovered an onside kick on special teams this season. Despite his part-time status, Jennings is also the only Oakland player to catch more than six passes in a game this season. He had eight against Washington on Sept. 29 after McFadden left that game injured, then grabbed another seven in last weeks 49-20 loss to Philadelphia. When McFadden got hurt last week against Philadelphia, Jennings responded with his first 100-yard game in nearly three years. "It just goes back to the mental preparation and trying to put yourself in the game," Jennings said. "You never know when youre going to get called, you really dont. I dont think thats coined as mmuch as its really said and its kind of passed over. Benny Snell Jr. Jersey. But you dont know, you never know. So make sure youre ready." Jennings game against the Eagles marked just the second time this season that an Oakland running back has topped the century mark. McFadden ran for 129 yards against Jacksonville in Week 2 but has been mostly ineffective and is averaging just 3.6 yards a carry. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor, who has a pair of 100-yard rushing games this season, has given the ground game a lift. He leads the team with 485 yards rushing and is the primary reason the Raiders have the fourth-ranked running offence. Jennings would be content with anything as long as Oakland wins. The Raiders (3-5) play four of their next five games on the road and are just 7-25 in November since 2005. McFadden didnt accompany the team on its trip to New York. Neither did right tackle Matt McCants, who has a foot injury. McCants injury means second-round pick Menelik Watson will make his first start in New York, one week after making his NFL debut. Hell also be the third different starting right tackle Oakland has used this season. "Obviously, hes gotten limited exposure but we have confidence in him," Raiders coach Dennis Allen said Friday. "Really, thats what your job is. When youre called upon to go in and do a job, you have to go in and do the job. Thats the way of the National Football League." Rookie nickelback D.J. Hayden will also be held out of the game. Oaklands first-round draft pick injured a groin muscle earlier this week and has been held out of practice each of the past two days. ___ AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org ' ' '