DENVER -- Jared Bednar never got a shot in the NHL as a player but hes getting one now as a coach.The Avalanche on Wednesday formally introduced Bednar, who was hired two weeks ago to lead Colorado after spending years in the minor leagues as a player and as a coach.I havent been in a rush to get to this point in my career, Bednar said. I was hopeful this opportunity would come. I hadnt stopped believing in that.Bednar succeeds Patrick Roy, who abruptly resigned as head coach and vice president of hockey operations on Aug. 11. With Roys departure coming six weeks before the start of training camp, the team had to move quickly to find a replacement.We knew we didnt have the luxury of interviewing 20 candidates, but we tried to put a gd group of candidates together, said Joe Sakic, the teams executive vice president and general manager. Usually you have one or two interviews after, but we didnt have that luxury.Without the benefit of time, Sakic sought input from around the league and became convinced Bednar was the best fit for Colorados young core.There were a lot of phone calls to different people that know him and coached against him, Sakic said. The message was consistent.The 44-year-old Bednars path to the Avalanche began with an unspectacular minor league playing career. He scored 61 goals in 434 games for two different teams in the ECHL, had one goal in 74 AHL games and three more goals in 74 games in the International Hockey League.He never got an NHL call-up.Probably didnt come very close, Bednar said. I was just kind of a bubble player, a role player, but I was never really considered a prospect. Its disappointing because you work your whole life to be a player in the NHL.He spent his last two years with the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL and found a second hockey life there at the end of his playing days.I started coaching and realized how much I loved it, he said. Ive been a more dedicated coach than I was a player.He began as an assistant with the Stingrays in 2002 and became the clubs head coach in 2007. He led the Stingrays to the conference finals in his first year, and they won the Kelly Cup in his second year.He jumped to the AHL in 2011 with Peoria, where he spent two years. He tk over the Columbus Blue Jackets affiliate in Springfield in 2014 and guided the Lake Erie Monsters to a Calder Cup title this year.His success in the minors helped him land the job with the Avalanche.I put value in winning a championship, Sakic said. Its hard to do that in any league.Things have moved fast for Bednar over the past two weeks. His wife, Susan, and their children stayed in Cleveland while he hopped into his truck for the move to Denver.I drove because I had some stuff I wanted to bring and it gave me some time to think, he said.His biggest realization? That finally reaching the NHL is not the end of his journey.Being the coach of the Avalanche isnt the be-all, end-all for me, its the success I want our team to have, he said. Getting here is certainly achieving something but its what you do when youre here thats more important.Abraham Almonte Diamondbacks Jersey . "Four now," Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report proudly following a 5-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night, the clubs fifth straight at home. Robbie Ray Jersey . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a pr start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim. http://www.diamondbackssale.com/diamondbacks-jake-lamb-jersey/ . 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Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is.The Associated Press has been selecting a college ftball Coach of the Year since 1998 and no one has yet to won the award three times.Alabamas Nick Saban could be the first.For the first time, the AP asked its poll voters to cast a ballot for national coach of the year with a top three, in order. Three points are awarded for a first-place vote, two for second a one for third.The voting was conducted after championship weekend and 10 coaches received support, including Saban, who won the award in 2003 when he was at LSU and against in 2008 with Alabama.The winner will be announced Thursday. Here are the top three vote-getters in alphabetical order:James Franklin, Penn StateIn the offseason, Franklin brought in a new offensive crdinator, Joe Mrhead, to overhaul that side of the ball and promoted Brent Pry to defensive crdinator to maintain recent success on that side. Both moves worked, but Penn State needed some time to settle in. After a 2-2 start that had some Penn State fans questioning how long the third-year coach would be around, the fifth-ranked Nittany Lions won nine straight and the Big Ten championship for the first time since 2008.Mike MacIntyre, ColorradoMacIntyre entered his fourth season at Colorado under pressure to produce results.dddddddddddd The Buffaloes had improved in his first three seasons, but still managed only two Pac-12 victories. The rebuild tk a huge step forward this season. The 11th-ranked Buffaloes won the Pac-12 South and had their best season in more than a decade. Their seven-win improvement in Pac-12 play is the largest in the history of the conference. MacIntyre has gone from hot seat to hot commodity.Nick Saban, AlabamaSaban is arguably the most successful coach in college ftball history. He could be Coach of the Year every year but his accomplishments at Alabama tend to get overlked during award season because he has established such high standards with the top-ranked Crimson Tide. After winning a fourth national championship at Alabama, he brought back an even better team led by a freshman quarterback that is undefeated heading into the playoff.---Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP---More AP college ftball: tball.ap.org" target="_blank">www.collegeftball.ap.org ' ' '