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OTTAWA - Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk is looking for consistency. Like many, the Senators owner had high hopes for the team this season, and he admits to being disappointed at the teams current state. After overcoming key injuries and making a playoff run last season, the Senators look like they have taken a step back. They currently sit sixth in the Atlantic Division with a 13-15-6 record. "I think we could always improve," Melnyk said. "Theres no question. I just spoke to (general manager Bryan Murray) and the coach and were looking for improvement from certain players. They have to step up and show us what they can actually do." Melnyk said he has faith in the current players on his team, but added theres a sense of urgency for the team to show signs of improvement. A lack of consistency has been an issue for the Senators and Melnyk said the team is in need of a lengthy winning streak. Ottawa has not won more than three straight games this season. "I mean we are 32, 33 games into the season. Its about time that we start getting into some streaks," he said. "Nothing beats a nice six, seven or eight game winning streak. Give me six out of eight and Ill be happy." Melnyk also discussed Murrays future. The general manager is in the final year of his contract and its widely expected that he will get an extension. "Weve had some preliminary talks, me and Bryan," Melnyk said. "I would love to see Bryan here next year and he would like to finish off with a Stanley Cup and I would like to see him leave with a Stanley Cup. Those are still preliminary so well just continue talking and let things work out where they work out." Melnyk said re-signing Murray is not a priority at this time. He also said that he gave his full support in allowing assistant general manager Tim Murray to speak with the Buffalo Sabres regarding their general manager opening. Melnyk said he sees no reason to hold individuals back if the right situation arises. As well as struggling on the ice, the Senators have also been a bit of a disappointment at the box office. Ottawa had struggled to fill the Canadian Tire Centre this year with just four sellouts after 18 home games. Despite the empty seats, Melnyk says the team is actually generating better revenue than when they offered reduced ticket incentives. "These are the real numbers," Melnyk said. "Theres no more gimmicks. This is what it is. This is the only way we can accomplish really getting a solid number out there for everyone to understand where we are." Melnyk believes much of the Senators attendance issues have had to do with a "wonky" schedule that has seen Ottawa play a number of matinee games as well as numerous Monday night games. "Weve had a very strange schedule this year that made it difficult to sell the walk-up tickets, but our season tickets are up 2,000 seats and our revenue is up," Melnyk said. Melnyk also knows hes likely to make money on the Senators upcoming contract for regional television rights. The Senators current agreement with Sportsnet expires at the end of the season and Melnyk said the team already has competing bids for next seasons broadcasts. "Here in the Ottawa market we are a good market for television and I think people will pay accordingly," he said. Melnyk was on hand at the Canadian Tire Centre to present Senators jerseys, helmets and skates to over 100 local children as part of the 10th annual Eugene Melnyk Skate for Kids. Over the past decade Melnyk has purchased equipment for over 1,000 kids. Cheap Air Max 720 NZ . After overcoming a three-goal deficit the Senators forced the game to overtime only to watch it slip away as Seth Jones scored the winner 3:49 into the extra period as the Nashville Predators defeated the Senators 4-3 Monday night. Air Max 720 For Sale NZ . -- Cole De Vries had a couple of key strikeouts during what could have been the inning that doomed him to defeat against the Kansas City Royals, allowing him to escape further damage and keep the game tied up. http://www.airmax720nz.com/. Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. Clearance Air Max 720 . Expensive. The NFL fined Tomlin $100,000 on Wednesday for interfering with Baltimores Jacoby Jones on a kickoff return in the third quarter of a 22-20 loss to the Ravens on Thanksgiving night. Nike Air Max 720 NZ . Huntington doesnt want to help run the club unless Hurdle is in the dugout. The combination thats returned the franchise to respectability will remain intact for years to come.Scottsdale, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - Ryan Palmer fired a 7-under 65 in Thursdays opening round and stood alone atop the leaderboard as play at the Phoenix Open was suspended due to darkness. Palmer, who is coming off a tie for 10th last week at the Humana Challenge, is a three-time winner on the PGA Tour. Tiger Woods returned to action for the first time in an official event since last years PGA Championship. He rallied from a poor start for a 2-over 73, which left him tie for 104th. Woods opened with a pair of bogeys at one and two. A poor chip led to a double-bogey, which dropped him to 4-over par through four holes. He got one stroke back with a 13-foot birdie putt at five, but he tripped to a bogey at nine as his drive stopped on the edge of a bunker and he had a poor stance. Around the turn, Woodss drive at 11 stopped under a small bush and that led to another a dropped shot. After a solid drive on the par-5 13th, he stuffed his second shot inside a foot. The tap-in eagle got Woods back to plus-3. He parred the next two, then drove the green at the drivable 17th. He 2-putted for birdie from 20 feet out. A par at the last left Woods at 2-over par and nine strokes off the lead. Im just having a hard time finding the bottom. Because of my old pattern, I was so steep on it that I have new grind on my wedge, and sometimes its hard to trust, Woods explained of his poor chipping. I got into the flow of the round, but it was just trying to get committed to this new swing change. I struggled with it in the beginning. I just need tournament rounds like this, where I can fight through it and turn it around, grind through it and make adjustments on the fly. Major champions Keegan Bradley and Bubba Watson share second place at minus-6. They were joined there by Daniel Berger, who was through 16 hholes of round one at the TPC Scottsdale.dddddddddddd Former Masters winner Zach Johnson carded a 5-under 66. He was joined in fifth place by Martin Laird, Robert Streb and Ben Martin. Phil Mickelson, a three-time winner of this event, also started slowly as he was 3-over par through six holes, but he carded five birdies over the final 11 holes for a 2-under 69. He is in a large group tied for 29th. Play was suspended for the day by darkness with nine players left on the course. They will return to TPC Scottsdale at 10 a.m. ET on Friday to complete their opening rounds, while round two will start as scheduled at 9:30 a.m. Palmer played the back nine first on Thursday and he got going with a 9-foot birdie effort at the 12th. Like Woods, Palmer dropped his second at the 13th to kick-in range and that eagle quickly moved Palmer to minus-3. The 38-year-old rolled in a 19-footer for birdie at the raucous par-3 16th and made it two in a row with a short birdie effort at 17. After a par at 18, Palmer turned at minus-5 and he was one shot off the lead. Palmer dropped his approach to nine feet at No. 2 and he drained that to gain a piece of the lead. He made it two in a row as he also birdied the third to move atop the leaderboard at minus-7. After taking the lead, Palmer closed with 2-putt pars on the final six holes. In that span, his shortest birdie chance was from 27 feet out. NOTES: Palmer matched the second-lowest 9-hole score in PGA Tour history last week at the Humana as he fired a 9-under 27 on the back at nine of the Nicklaus Private course at PGA West ... Woods, who is winless since the 2013 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, carded his first eagle on the PGA Tour since that same WGC event in 2013 ... Thursdays attendance was 118,461, which set the Thursday record by 30,000 fans. ' ' '