is means so much for the players, Hopson said. Those guys played Southern Miss football, tough hard-nosed football.KENTUCKY: The

VANCOUVER -- Former Vancouver Canucks coach Alain Vigneault appears to have some interesting opportunities as he pursues a new job. Given his experience and success with the Canucks, Vigneault should get some consideration for the vacant Dallas Stars job. Dallas has a strong core of young, emerging talent, but missed the playoffs the past two seasons under former first-time NHL coach Glen Gulutzan. Vigneault guided the Canucks to a berth in the 2010-11 Stanley Cup finals, two Presidents trophies and six Northwest Division titles. But he got the axe after the Canucks were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight year. In addition to the Dallas job, he could get consideration for vacancies that have yet to occur, pending the conclusion of the post-season. Most of the opportunities appear to be with teams that toiled in the Eastern Conference this season prior to next seasons realignment. Four or five Eastern teams that missed the playoffs -- including Winnipeg, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Carolina, and Florida -- will likely be evaluating their coaching situations extensively. John Tortorella of the New York Rangers could also be on the hot seat because of the Rangers second-round struggles against Boston. Winnipeg could be a good fit for Vigneault, because he coached Vancouvers former top farm club for one season before moving up to the Canucks and knows the teams owners and management. Most teams who toiled in the Western Conference this season appear to be set. But with Phoenix coach Dave Tippetts contract due to expire, an opportunity could emerge with the Coyotes. Accordingly, Canucks general manager Mike Gillis has no shortage of possible candidates as he looks to find Vancouvers next coach. Gillis, who has come under heavy criticism since firing Vigneault on Wednesday, must decide whether he wants someone with experience or a fresh young face. Potential candidates mentioned publicly range from former Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff to ex-Calgary and New Jersey coach Brent Sutter to former Tampa Bay Lightning coach Guy Boucher. Scott Arniel, the coach of Vancouvers AHL farm club in Chicago in 2012-13, appears likely to get an interview based on his lengthy ties to the Canucks. He is in his second stint as the head coach of their top affiliate. He spent four seasons as head coach of the Manitoba Moose and served for two others as an assistant. But he had limited success in his lone NHL head-coaching assignment, lasting only a season and a half with the Columbus Blue Jackets between 2010-12. Less experienced possible candidates include AHL coaches Dallas Eakins of the Toronto Marlies coach and Willie Desjardins of the Texas Stars. Meanwhile, Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo, who was not traded as expected, expressed irony on Twitter on Thursday in that Vigneault left the club before him. "Since our 1st year when we arrived together, AV would always tell me that hed be gone before I would. I guess he was right. Very ironic....," Luongo tweeted. Nike Sb Dunk High Cheap .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. Cheap Nike Dunk Shoes .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. http://www.nikedunkscheap.com/nike-dunk-high-shoes.html . After dropping their final six games of December, the Wild opened the new calendar year with four consecutive wins. Following a loss to Colorado on Saturday, Minnesota rebounded the following night to blank Nashville 4-0, but then had the tables turned on them Tuesday. Nike Dunk Low Cheap . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. Nike Sb Dunk Low Clearance . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Nick Mullens ran for two 1-yard touchdowns -- including the go-ahead score late in the third quarter -- and passed for two TDs as Southern Mississippi scored 34 unanswered points to upset Kentucky 44-35 in its season opener on Saturday night.Kentucky appeared in control with a 35-10 second quarter lead as Drew Barker threw TD passes of 72, 43, 9 and 53 yards on drives totaling 13 plays. Jojo Kemps 7-yard TD run seemed to provide a safe cushion that the Wildcats defense complemented with three interceptions of Mullens.Neither Mullens nor the Golden Eagles quarterback panicked as he answered Kentuckys final score with a 71-yard TD pass to Isaiah Jones with 26 seconds left before halftime. Mullens then sandwiched 1-yard TD runs around an 18-yard scoring pass to Julian Allen, followed by two Parker Schaunfield field goals.My mindset didnt really change, Mullens said. I just had to relax, focus and make the next play.Mullens finished 18 of 28 passing for 258 yards to help Jay Hopson win his debut as Golden Eagles coach.THE TAKEAWAYSOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles stuck with the game despiite being outscored 35-3 in the first half, rebounding with the trio of Mullens, Ito Smith (36 carries, 173 yards, 1 TD) and George Payne (16 carries, 100 yards).dddddddddddd Offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson got the final word against his former team as Southern Miss outgained Kentucky 554-443 and dominated the final 32 minutes. The victory ended a 13-game losing streak to Southeastern Conference schools dating back to 2000. This means so much for the players, Hopson said. Those guys played Southern Miss football, tough hard-nosed football.KENTUCKY: The Wildcats still have time to reach the six-win plateau for bowl eligibility. Thats a tough loss and our fans deserved better, coach Mark Stoops said. And Ill tell you this, well play better.UP NEXTSOUTHERN MISS: The Golden Eagles aim to follow up their big win when they host FCS Savannah State next weekend.KENTUCKY: The Wildcats visit No. 25 Florida next Saturday in hopes of ending a 29-game losing streak to the Gators. ' ' '