OTTAWA - Injuries have forced Canadian distance runner Simon Bairu to retire.The 31-year-old from Regina is the Canadian record-holder in the 10,000 metres and has won three national 10-K titles on the road.Bairu was a cross-country standout at the University of Wisconsin, then went on to win seven national cross-country titles. He also finished 12th at the 2010 world cross-country championships — one of the best results ever by a Canadian.After dealing with constant injuries I decided it was time to move on, Bairu said in a statement. Bairu, who grew up in Saskatchewan after arriving as a Saudi Arabian refugee with his family as a young boy, was pegged as a future Canadian marathon star. But injuries continued to derail his attempts at the 42.195-kilometre distance.Bairu has accepted a sports marketing job with Nike. Stitched NBA Jerseys . Kuznetsov, who was selected by the Capitals in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, has been playing for his hometown team Chelyabinsk Traktor of the KHL. Clearance NBA Jerseys .Y. - Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby captured his second career Art Ross trophy on Sunday after leading the NHL in scoring this season. https://www.nbachinajerseys.us/ . That was OK with him. He was just happy his team came away with two points. Letestu redirected Jack Johnsons shot from the point with 2:38 left, lifting the Blue Jackets past the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Monday night. Cheap NBA Jerseys . They named Mark Washington as their defensive co-ordinator on Thursday and appear to be closing in on an offensive co-ordinator. NBA Jerseys Outlet . Marc-Andre Fleury made 27 saves to backstop the Penguins to a 2-1 victory over the Flames, handing Calgary its team record sixth consecutive home regulation loss.GREEN BAY, Wis. - Ted Thompson is happy to have Julius Peppers in the fold. But the Packers general manager insisted Thursday that landing the eight-time Pro Bowl defensive end from the rival Chicago Bears wont have an effect on what Green Bay does with its nine selections in next weeks NFL draft. In his first public comments since Peppers surprising signing on March 15, Thompson said he believes the 34-year-old lineman has plenty left in the tank and that he expects him to have an impact on the Packers up-and-down defence. "Theres no evidence of any decline in his play, in our opinion," Thompson said Thursday. "He still has the same athletic traits that he had coming out (of college). Hes had a remarkable history in the NFL in terms of durability. Were looking forward to it. I think he is, too." The 6-foot-7, 287-pound Peppers certainly has been durable, playing in 186 of a possible 192 games. Hes also been productive, registering the second-most sacks (118.5) in the NFL and forcing the fifth-most fumbles (39) since he entered the league. He leads all NFL defensive linemen with nine interceptions over that span. But playing 855 snaps for the Bears last season, Peppers managed only 7.5 sacks, the third-lowest total of his 12-year NFL career. The Packers envision him as a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker in their 3-4 defence, and their hope is that by playing him fewer snaps, they will not only increase his production but give opposing offences another pass-rushing threat to worry about opposite four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Clay Matthews. Matthews, who missed six games last season with a twice-broken thumb, is expected to be fully healthy for training camp. "When I view him as a football player, hes an individual youd like to create targeting problems," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said of Peppers in March. "He has the ability to pplay from the two-point stance, has the ability to play on the move.dddddddddddd" In 10 career games against the Packers with Carolina and Chicago, Peppers has recorded 9.5 sacks, his fourth-highest total against a specific opponent. The Packers finished tied for eighth in the 32-team NFL last season in sacks with 44 despite Matthews absence. Their hope is that Peppers, who reported for the first day of the off-season program last week, will have an impact on more than just that one category. Last season, the Packers finished tied for 24th in scoring defence (26.8 points per game), 25th in yards allowed (372.3), 25th in rushing yards allowed (125.0), 24th in passing yards allowed (247.3) and tied for 20th in takeaways (22). "Its fun to see Julius. Hes a specimen. He looks great," Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said last week. "Itll be fun to get him really into the fold and get him feeling like hes part of the team, encouraging him to be a leader for us. I think he brings a lot to the table -- on the field and in the locker room. Im just excited about not having to run away from him anymore." As hopeful as the Packers are of Peppers contributions, Thompson insisted that he wont approach the No. 21 overall pick - or any of his other picks - differently with Peppers on board. "We talked about this before. I might sound like a broken record, but we feel that the draft is a long-term investment," said Thompson, whose teams most immediate needs appear to be at safety, linebacker, tight end, offensive line and cornerback. "We dont get too carried away with what our perceived needs are at the moment. We think thats good business. If you can marry those things up thats fine but if you stretch to try to fill quote unquote need somewhere then you end up messing up a couple of spots, so we try to stick to the best player available." ' ' '