Ed note: The Whitecaps formally introduced Carl Robinson as their new head coach Monday, December 16. The Vancouver Whitecaps have found a replacement for head coach Martin Rennie, who was fired at the end of the 2013 MLS season. And they didnt have to look very far. Rennies former assistant coach, Carl Robinson, will be officially announced as Vancouvers new head coach on Monday, bringing an end to the clubs six-week search for Rennies replacement. This will be Robinsons first job as a head coach after serving the past two seasons as an assistant coach in Vancouver. I knew Robinson as a player when we were on opposite sides of the Old Farm derby in England; I played for Ipswich Town, while Robinson played for our biggest rivals, Norwich City. He was a difficult opponent to play against, and someone who was clearly a leader on and off the field. He never suffered fools and was never afraid to call someone out if they werent performing up to the required standards. He had a very strong tactical understanding of the game as a player, and the fact that he has taken this and other leadership skills into his career as a coach is not a surprise. Robinson didnt jump straight into a head coaching position after calling time on his playing career, though. It was a transition he took gradually, taking the time to educate himself and gain experience as an assistant coach first. He holds the UEFA Pro license - the highest coaching license awarded by Europes governing body. One of Robinsons strengths as a coach is his conviction; he has a clear philosophy about how he wants the game to be played and he believes in his coaching ability. He is, however, open-minded; he is the first to admit that he still has a great deal to learn. Robinson relates very well to younger players, something that will be important for the Whitecaps, who have stated their desire to see more young players graduate from their academy to their first team. Players like Russell Teibert have already made that breakthrough, but others - like Sam Adekugbe, Bryce Alderson, Marco Bustos and Kianz Froese - are expected to do the same in years to come. Critics will argue that being the head coach requires a different approach to being an assistant, that you sometimes need to be ruthless with players when you are the man in charge. They will suggest that Robinson might have a difficult time making the transition from being someone the players look to as a friend to being someone who now holds their professional aspirations in his hands. Those critics dont know Robinson very well, though. He wont change the way he interacts with the players - because he wont have to. He has always been a straight talker, and even as an assistant coach was never afraid to offer players praise or constructive criticism, depending on what was required. This is one of the reasons that so many Whitecaps players wanted Robinson as Rennies replacement in the first place - he is honest with them. As a player, more than anything you want your coach to be honest with you. If you know where you stand, what you need to do to get in the first team and what you need to do to stay there, youre happy. Because playing time is the currency that means the most to players. There wont be any mind games with Robinson. Players wont be strung along, taken advantage of or treated poorly. Every player will know exactly where they stand with him, and those that arent pulling their weight will know what areas of their game they need to improve to warrant more playing time. He wont keep everyone happy (no coach ever does) but the players will get nothing but honesty from Robinson, which means he will earn their respect. Critics will suggest that Robinson was third or fourth choice for the Whitecaps, that Bob Bradley and Jason Kreis were always their preferred options, and that Robinson is simply the best of the rest. Those critics might be right - but that doesnt mean the Whitecaps have made the wrong decision hiring Robinson. In fact, I think it is a blessing in disguise and might just be the best decision theyve ever made. Authentic Dzanan Musa Jersey . For one, he still gets to crank the intensity to the max. "I push pretty angry. I ran pretty angry too though, but I have fun doing it," Lumsden said. Authentic Drazen Petrovic Jersey . Earnshaw, 31, most recently spent time on loan in Israel with Maccabi Tel Aviv from Welsh club Cardiff City, which plays in Englands second-tier League Championship. Earnshaw began his career with Cardiff Citys youth program and turned professional in 1998. http://www.cheapnetsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-kenneth-faried-jersey . 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Authentic Caris LeVert Jersey . -- Even as Chris Paul remained evasive about his future, he did what team leaders are expected to do.VANCOUVER - The Vancouver Canucks are happy with where they sit just over a third of the way through the NHL schedule.That doesnt mean theyre satisfied.Coming off a season-long seven-game road trip that saw Vancouver go 3-3-1, but finish on an 0-2-1 slide, the club is back at Rogers Arena for an important stretch of four home dates ahead of the Christmas break.For all the good feeling around a team that missed the playoffs for the first time in six years during a disastrous 2013-14 campaign, Vancouver (18-9-2) was just three points up on ninth place in the Western Conference heading into Friday after consecutive losses in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal.We knew it was going to be tight, said captain Henrik Sedin. I think after 29 games — 18 games on the road, 11 at home — we would have taken this record. It was a really disappointed team that flew back from Montreal, but if you look at where we are (and) playing at home for a while, we put ourselves in a good spot.Daniel Sedin agreed with his brothers assessment that getting seven of a possible 14 points on the trip was something he would have taken back in September.You look at the schedule before the season and after this road trip, if someone would have told me we would have been in this position I would have been pretty happy, said Vancouvers assistant captain. Now its time to take care of business at home.Canucks goalie Ryan Miller, who spent most of his career with the Buffalo Sabres, said he knew it was going to be a fight for every point in the West after signing with Vancouver as a free agent following a brief stint in St. Louis. Thats kind of what I expected coming out here, he said. You see it every season, theres no getting around it. From first place to eighth, ninth is not that far. Its competitive hockey. Its what everybody wants.Nine of the Canucks next 11 games are in Vancouver, beginning Saturday against former head coach Alain Vigneault and the New York Rangers (12-10-4).Teams coming off long stretches on the road often have difficulty in their first game back home, but the Canucks dont see that as being a problem considering their current situation.I think were honest with ourselves and were aware of that, said Canucks defenceman Kevin Bieksa. Weve lost three in a row and we need a win. Luuckily weve had a couple days between getting home and playing that first game.ddddddddddddTheres been a lot of emphasis on this game.Were playing a former coach and a few former teammates ... I dont think its a game thats going to be hard to get up for.But after giving his team two days off to recuperate and re-energize, Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins said Fridays practice demonstrated that the players were still shaking out some cobwebs.We were sluggish. It wasnt that the guys didnt want to go, it was just like they were skating in sand, said Desjardins. I think the biggest thing is we know how big of a game it is. We know we have to be ready.We wont be overconfident coming in. We know we have to get going, and it will be tough.After starting the seven-game swing with wins over Columbus, Washington and Pittsburgh in three of the first four outings, the Canucks said fatigue — and the corresponding mistakes — started to creep into the lineup.That was a tough road trip, said Daniel Sedin. It is a long time — 14, 15 days is long — but I think were used to that in this group. Thats not an issue. Youve got to find ways to get your energy level up, and thats up to each individual.The Canucks also had a good start to last season under soon-to-be-fired head coach John Tortorella before falling off the rails, and this incarnation knows how quickly things can go sideways.Theyre all big, but this four-game segment gets put in a bubble with coming home and the Christmas break, said Bieksa. It allows us to look at these games and make sure that we have a good showing.Expectations have obviously grown pretty high around here. Weve been playing some good hockey to start the season.Notes: The Canucks are 6-0-0 against the Metropolitan Division so far this season, while the Rangers are 1-1-0 against Pacific Division opponents. ... Canucks defenceman Dan Hamhuis remains out with a lower-body injury and will miss his 10th straight game on Saturday. ... Desjardins said forward Zack Kassian is getting closer to a return from his finger injury that saw him miss the entire road trip. ... The Canucks recalled Alex Biega on Friday from the AHLs Utica Comets after demoting fellow defenceman Frank Corrado and forward Nicklas Jensen to the minors on Wednesday. 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