Former NHL coach Dave Tippett is expanding his responsibilities with the group looking to put an expansion team in Seattle.

The former coach of the Arizona Coyotes and Dallas Stars has signed on as senior adviser for Seattle Hockey Partners LLC. Tippett was already working under President and CEO Tod Leiweke on infrastructure projects two-plus years before a franchise could begin play. It’s his first job since mutually parting ways with the Coyotes a year ago and taking last season off.

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Seattle is in the middle of the expansion process with the goal of renovating KeyArena and starting up for the 2020-21 season. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman says the league’s board of governors could vote to approve a 32nd franchise as soon as this fall but has emphasized there is no specific timetable.

Tippett, who turns 57 in August, jumped at this opportunity when approached by Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke about the possibility of working for potential owners David Bonderman and Jerry Bruckheimer. His eldest daughter, her husband and Tippett’s three grandchildren live in nearby Bremerton, Washington.

That family connection to the Pacific Northwest helps [url=http://www.indianapoliscoltsteamonline.com/peyton-manning-jersey]Peyton Manning Jersey[/url] , even if an office job is different for someone who has coached at some level for more than two decades. He has a hand in helping with renovations, the design of a possible practice facility, the efforts to line up an affiliate in the American Hockey League and the beginnings of what the front office might look like.

”There’s lots of things that go in before you start selecting players,” Tippett said. ”Just lots of little things from the hockey side that I’ll be involved in, just helping to try to get the thing up and moving.”

Tippett knew Tim Leiweke during his time as a Los Angeles Kings assistant from 1999-2002. He coached the Stars for six seasons and then the Coyotes for eight, taking each team to the Western Conference final.

While this job so far mirrors the one former NHL forward Murray Craven took with the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, Tippett could assume a bigger role at some point for Seattle and could be in line to be its first coach.

”I’m not going to rule anything out,” Tippett said. ”But right now this is intriguing to me. ”Very few people get an opportunity to be involved with a group to start a team from the ground up and when that opportunity kind of got put in front of me [url=http://www.greenbaypackersteamonline.com/kenny-clark-jersey]Kenny Clark Jersey[/url] , it was very exciting. So I’m looking forward to trying to build something that could be a great franchise.”

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Julio Teheran was confident he could shake off his slow start against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night. Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker was not so sure.

Teheran walked the first two batters he faced and then buckled down to retire 15 of the next 16 as the Braves rolled to a 5-1 win over the Cardinals.

Teheran (6-5) allowed just two hits over six shutout innings. He struck out four and did not walk a batter after issuing two free passes over his first 13 pitches.

”The (heat) was kind of bothering me a little bit at first,” Teheran said. ”Then, I started concentrating on the game. When you get your head into what you want to do, everything else is secondary.”

Snikter was initially concerned.

”The first two or three batters, I was wondering if he was going to make it through,” Snitker said. ”Then he just kind of righted himself and he was sharp, efficient. His stuff was really good.”

It marked the fifth time this season that Teheran tossed six or more scoreless innings in 16 starts.

”He threw us a bunch of strikes and just kept guys off base,” St. Louis infielder Matt Carpenter said. ”He kept us off balance.”

Johan Camargo had three hits including a two-run double to help Atlanta win for only the fourth time in 13 games in St. Louis since the start of the 2016 season.

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Dan Winker recorded his first major league save by retiring the only two batters he faced.

Miles Mikolas (8-3) gave up one run on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings for the Cardinals, who have lost two straight.

”I felt pretty good out there,” Mikolas said. ”It was tough dealing with the heat the first couple innings, but after that, I think I settled in.”

The Braves used successive singles by Camargo, Dansby Swanson and Danny Santana to load the bases with one out in the seventh. Austin Gomber relieved Mikolas and his first pitch glanced off Ender Inciarte’s helmet for a 1-0 lead.

Camargo slapped a two-run double off Jordan Hicks in the eighth to push the lead to 3-0, and Swanson capped off the three-run inning with a run-scoring single.

Swanson also had three hits, trying a season high.

Atlanta’s Ozzie Albies singled in the ninth to extend his hitting streak to a career-high nine games [url=http://www.chicagobearsteamonline.com/marcus-cooper-jersey]http://www.chicagobearsteamonline.com/marcus-cooper-jersey[/url] , and later scored on Nick Markakis‘ sacrifice fly.

Kolten Wong grounded into a fielder’s choice with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth as the Cardinals avoided a shutout.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Braves: C Tyler Flowers left the game with a right hamstring cramp after flying out to end the sixth inning. The game-time temperature was 92 degrees, ”I did everything I could to prepare for it,” Flowers said. ”No answer.”

… OF Ronald Acuna Jr. returned to the lineup on Friday after missing 27 games with a left knee sprain. He went 0 for 4 … RHP Brandon McCarthy was placed on the 10-day disabled list with right knee tendinitis. … RHP Matt Wisler was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett.

Cardinals: INF Paul DeJong went 1 for 3 in his first rehab start with Triple-A Memphis on Friday. DeJong, who has missed 38 games with a fractured bone in his left hand, is likely to be recalled on Monday. … RHP Matt Bowman also began a rehab stint on Friday in Memphis. He has been sidelined with blisters and numbness in his fingers.

UP NEXT

RHP Luke Weaver (4-6, 4.59) will face LHP Max Fried (0-2, 4.09) in the second of the three-game series on Saturday. Weaver struck out a season-high nine batters in an 8-2 win at Milwaukee on June 24. Fried was scratched from a scheduled start at Gwinnett on Friday.

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