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EDMONTON -- Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish feels optimistic about his teams future despite a last-place finish in the Western Conference standings. MacTavish gave his head coach a vote of confidence Tuesday and said while its hard to determine where the team is in its development stage, he feels most of the "heavy lifting" has been done. "Were closer to the end in my mind than we are to the beginning in terms of the development of this team," MacTavish said Tuesday at a season-ending media availability. Expectations were higher in Edmonton this season but the team struggled from the start and finished with a 29-44-9 record for 67 points, good for a 28th-place finish in the 30-team league. There were a few bright lights for the Oilers. Taylor Hall had a strong year with 80 points in 75 games and fellow forwards Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had productive campaigns. Defensive woes were a constant problem. The Oilers struggled on the blue-line and between the pipes, allowing a league-worst 270 goals. MacTavish has no plans to add anything "middle of the road" to the current defence core and feels the teams younger players can fill those positions. He does plan to target a high-end defenceman in the off-season. "We need a few pieces that can really move this thing along," said MacTavish. The GM added that Eakins -- who completed his first season as an NHL head coach -- has a bright future with the team. "Im convinced this guy is the right coach to lead us into much more successful times ... hes relentless," MacTavish said. Despite the foundation of young, talented offensive players, the Oilers managed only 203 goals. The goaltending situation was unsettled throughout the season as netminder Devan Dubnyk struggled in the starters role. Dubnyk was dealt to Nashville at the trade deadline and the Oilers acquired Ben Scrivens from Los Angeles. Scrivens and fellow mid-season acquisition Viktor Fasth posted decent numbers as Edmonton finished with a 14-13-3 mark over its last 30 games. MacTavish said there is plenty of work ahead and admitted the team did not live up to expectations. But he likes the young core and is confident improvement can be made. "Were building our team around this group," he said. "And you have to have pieces in that locker-room that you view as guys that are going to develop into winners and guys that are going to develop into superstars. "I feel strongly that we have a number of those pieces in there and those are the guys were going to build that team around. I want them to feel the ownership, I want them to feel the loyalty from myself and the coaching staff that we have the confidence in them to drive this team forward." Raphael Guerreiro Jersey .com) - On a night the Bulls played without Derrick Rose, it was time for Pau Gasol to take charge. Eric Oelschlagel Jersey . It will then be back to business once the puck drops as the two clubs battle for key points in their respective playoff races. Watch the game live on TSN Canadiens and listen on TSN Radio 690 starting at 7:30pm et. http://www.dortmundfcfanshop.com/c-22-julian-weigl-fc-borussia-dortmund-jersey.aspx .com) - Quarterback Cardale Jones will return to Ohio State next season. Erik Durm Jersey . Perhaps as important, shes sending a message to 17-year-old gold medal favourite Sara Takanashi of Japan. Iraschko-Stolz relegated Takanashi, who has 10 World Cup victories this season, to second place in two of three training jumps Saturday. Abdou Diallo Jersey . On the day after Billy Horschel posted his 12th straight round in the 60s, won his second straight tournament against a world-class field and picked up an additional $10 million bonus as the FedEx Cup champion, Watson was kicking back in his seat at a Kansas City Royals game.WASHINGTON -- It came right down to the final moment of the final regular-season game for the Tampa Bay Lightning to secure home-ice advantage against the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs. "Lets not kid ourselves: We still have to go in and play. It doesnt matter where you play -- the better teams going to win the game -- but it is nice to go home, sleep in your own bed, play in front of your home fans," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. "You work so hard for 82 games, and it comes down to the last shot of the game in a shootout to attain that goal." Matthew Carle scored the only goal, Anders Lindback sealed his first shutout of the season by stopping attempts by Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Evgeny Kuznetsov in the tiebreaker, and the Lightning edged the Washington Capitals 1-0 in the teams regular-season finale on Sunday. "Im glad I could deliver," said Carle, who put the puck past Capitals goalie Braden Holtby. The victory clinched second place in the Atlantic Division for Tampa Bay, which finished with 101 points, one more than Montreal. "They really wanted to get over that century mark in points," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said about his players. "Everybody was genuinely excited for each other. Thats what makes it fun." Tampa Bay will host Montreal in Game 1 on Wednesday night. The Canadiens were idle Sunday, after closing their regular season with a 1-0 overtime victory over the New York Rangers on Saturday night. "You hear stories from when they went on their run," Carle said, "and the building sounds like it gets pretty rowdy." Ovechkin finished with an NHL-leading 51 goals, but he also had a minus-35 rating, and the Capitals failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2006-07, his second season in the league. "Its weird," Ovechkin said. "Its kind of a hard moment to realize youre not going to be in the playoffs and youre not going to fight for the Stanley Cup." His between-the-legs attempt in the shootout was blocked by Lindback, and Ovechkin woundd up 2 for 16 in tiebreakers this season.ddddddddddddThe Capitals played in an NHL-record 21 shootouts this season, going 10-11 in those games. "A lot of em," said Capitals coach Adam Oates, who has one year left on his contract. "Theres a lot of points there." Washington finished with 90 points, three fewer than Detroit, which got the last wild-card playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Asked about recent speculation about his job status, Oates said: "For me, you know what? All you can really do, all I focused on, is doing my job. Doing the best I can. And dont worry about it." Washington already had been eliminated but won four games in a row before Sunday. Tampa Bay, meanwhile, heads into the post-season on a four-game winning streak. While Cooper explained beforehand that he wanted to win to secure the higher playoff seeding, he also knew he needed to rest injured players such as centre Valtteri Filppula and left wing Ondrej Palat. "We want those guys to be ready for Wednesday. Were taking every step to make sure that happens," Cooper said. "I cant sit here and say theyre going to play on Wednesday. But they will be better Wednesday than they are today." Notes: Cooper said he didnt think LW Ryan Malones DUI and cocaine possession charges would be a distraction to the team. "Ryan is probably a little embarrassed of whats gone on. He made a poor decision, getting behind the wheel when he had alcohol in his system," Cooper said. "But for me, Ive watched all the good decisions Ryan Malones made in his life, and how charitable hes been and what a staple hes been in our community in the years hes been here. I hope this one instance doesnt take away from that, because hes been a class act for us, on and off the ice." Malone didnt travel with the team to Washington. His playoff status isnt known. ... Ovechkin and Backstrom tied for the team lead in points with 79. ... Tampa Bay C Tyler Johnson briefly stayed down on the ice in the second period and hunched over as he skated off, but he returned to action. 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