David Poile earned a chance to be general manager of the U. Tim Hardaway Jersey .S. hockey team after paying his dues as an NHL general manager for more than three decades and giving up a lot of his free time to help USA Hockey.Since last summer, he spent countless hours trying to shape a roster that would give the Americans a shot to win Olympic gold for the first time since he witnessed whats known as the "Miracle on Ice," in 1980.Poile, though, wont be at the Sochi Games to see the team he helped set up.The Nashville Predators GM and former Washington Capitals executive was hit in the face by a deflected puck during an NHL game last week, a freak accident that will force him to watch the U.S. go for gold on TV from his home in Tennessee."Serving as GM of the U.S. Olympic Team has been the opportunity of a lifetime and I am forever grateful to USA Hockey," Poile said Monday in a statement from the Predators. "However, it is not possible for me to travel at this time, but I will remain in contact with Ray Shero, Brian Burke, Jim Johansson and our coaching staff during the games."Team USA is in great hands and I will be there in spirit. I wish all the best for our players, coaches and entire group as they begin play in the 2014 Olympics and go for the gold."Poile is recovering from surgery and stitches he needed after the puck hit him while he was standing in a tunnel behind the Predators bench in Minnesota."I first want to thank everyone who has reached out to me since suffering this injury," Poile said. "The outpouring of support and comfort has been overwhelming."He led a selection committee that picked the Olympic team after months of work, and his role during the 12-day tournament would have been largely behind the scenes in a supporting role."To hear that he had been hurt and to know that hes not going to be coming over is a huge disappointment," U.S. coach Dan Bylsma said.Shero, who is general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins, will be acting GM in Sochi."Having worked with Dave for eight years in Nashville, and knowing, as I told the team, how much passion, time and effort he has put into putting this team together, its disappointing," Shero said.Poile won the Lester Patrick award in 2001 for his contributions to hockey in the U.S., and is a three-time finalist for NHL GM of the year. He has also filled various roles with USA Hockey.He was the associate GM for the U.S. at the Olympics four years ago, when he assisted Burke after he dealt with tragedy. Burkes 21-year-old son, Brendan, died Feb. 5, 2010, in a car accident, and he skipped the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Games. Dallas Mavericks Gear . The third-ranked Buckeyes were down eight points to Notre Dame with less than 2 minutes to play and their offence was nowhere to be found. Yogi Ferrell Jersey .5 million, two-year contract with the San Francisco Giants on Thursday, a deal that covers his final two arbitration seasons. https://www.cheapmavericks.com/ .Y. -- Nothing seems to phase No.DUBLIN - Robbie Brady scored twice to lead a second-string Ireland side to a 4-1 win over the United States in a friendly on Tuesday.Ireland, which changed all 11 starters from Fridays 1-0 defeat by Scotland in European Championship qualifying, went ahead in the seventh minute when Anthony Pilkington chipped U.S. goalkeeper Bill Hamid. David McGoldrick, making his international debut, provided the through pass as Pilkington made his run.Mix Diskerud equalized in the 39th after Jozy Altidores lofted cross into the penalty area fell to Chris Wondolowski. He dropped a cushioned header to Diskerud, who used the outside of his right foot to flick the ball low into the right corner of the net as chants of U-S-A! U-S-A! rang out in Aviva Stadium.Brady restored Irelands lead in the 55th after he got behind the defence and scored from seven yards out, and James McClean made it 3-1 in the 82nd with a shot that deflected off defender Geoff Cameron.Brady scored his second of the night with a 25-yard (meter) free kick in the 86th that curled into the top left corner — extending the Americans winless streak to four games.Its good to finish the year on a high, Brady said. The Americans have had a good year. We knew it was going to be a tough game, because theyre no pushovers. So were delighted to get the win, and for a lot of our lads who dont normally get a chance to play to do so well.Ireland is battling to qualify for the 2016 European Championship in France. Fridays defeat meant the Irish slipped to fourth place in Group D behind Poland, Germany and Scotland — although they are level on points with the Germans and Scots.We scored 4 goals tonight and it was nice to reegain momentum from Friday night, said Ireland manager Martin ONeill, whose squad faces its next European test against Poland at home in March. Dallas Mavericks Shirts. oming off Fridays 2-1 defeat to Colombia in London, the Americans have lost consecutive games for the first time since late 2011, while the four-game winless streak is their longest since Jurgen Klinsmann replaced Bob Bradley as coach in July 2011.In a worrisome trend for the defence, the U.S. has conceded 10 goals from the 80th minute onward in their last nine games.On Tuesday, the U.S. team also narrowly missed several scoring chances. Fabian Johnson hit the right post in the 22nd minute with a long-range shot and Altidores effort from the edge of the penalty area ricocheted off the crossbar in the 43rd.We controlled the first half and we should have scored a second goal before going in at halftime, Klinsmann said. We didnt do it and then we gave away the second goal, and that obviously kind of broke the game.He said the U.S. team needed to introduce young players, even at the cost of victories, to develop the squad ahead of 2018 World Cup qualifying. He highlighted the need to give a second cap for goalkeeper Hamid, who wasnt even listed in the official match program and was a surprise starter ahead of Brad Guzan.Obviously it always looks bad if you concede four goals, Klinsmann said of Hamid. But those four goals were not his fault.Jordan Morris, a 20-year-old forward who is a Stanford sophomore, made his debut in the 76th minute. The U.S. Soccer Federation says no college player has appeared for the national team since Ante Razov in 1995, the year before Major League Soccer started. ' ' '