The Oilers have missed the playoffs seven straight years. They were 19-22-7 in the lockout-shortened season.

General manager Craig MacTavish, who addressed the media at a late-afternoon news conference, said he spent a week in discussions with Krueger about bringing on a veteran assistant coach.

"During the process of me conducting those interviews, I recognized I was trying to add a coach that was more closely aligned with the way I wanted to run the team than I was in supporting Ralph and the head coach of our team at the time," MacTavish said.

MacTavish, who took over as general manager this spring, said the team is "very close" to hiring a new coach. A deal hasn't been completed, and MacTavish wouldn't reveal the name of the candidate.

Krueger spent one season as head coach after serving as an associate coach for two seasons. The Oilers dismissed Tom Renney in 2012 after two seasons on the job.

Edmonton finished fifth in the Northwest Division in both years with Renney behind the bench.

The Oilers, who are loaded with top young players like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov, will now have their third coach in three seasons.

Some of the potential options include former NHL head coaches Lindy Ruff, Alain Vigneault, and John Tortorella, and Dallas Eakins of the AHL's Toronto Marlies.

The 53-year-old Krueger was the head coach of the Swiss national team from 1997-2010. He led the team to 12 world championship appearances and three Winter Olympics. He also coached VEU Feldkirch in Austria's first division.

MacTavish admitted the decision to remove Krueger would be disruptive to the Oilers, but added that his other concerns trumped any issues about continuity.

"Philosophically, I differ somewhat with Ralph, and it doesn't mean my strategy is right or Ralph's strategy is right," MacTavish said. "But I'm the general manager, and it's my job and my decision to make. That's why I've made that decision."

MacTavish said he still wants to add a new assistant coach. The GM said he will also have more "difficult decisions" to make, and that the team is headed toward a "tumultuous" summer.

"I don't think this was in any way fair to Ralph," MacTavish said. "This wasn't about being fair to Ralph. I mean, it was a consideration in this. You always want to be as fair with your personnel and your staff as possible.

"Ralph was unquestionably 100 percent committed to the Edmonton Oilers. His passion and energy is amazing and we wish him nothing but the best as he moves forward in his impressive career."

The number of IT jobs grew 0.27 percent sequentially last month to 4,449,200, according to TechServe Alliance, a collaboration of IT & Engineering Staffing and Solutions firms, clients, consultants and suppliers. With the upward revision in April's numbers from 0.24 to 0.53 percent, IT employment has grown by 5.43% since May 2012 adding almost 230,000 IT workers.

"I am pleased to see accelerating growth in IT employment reflecting robust demand for talent," stated Mark Roberts, the CEO of TechServe Alliance. "Going forward, the greatest risk potentially inhibiting the full potential for IT employment growth in the U.S. is an inadequate supply of talent. As a nation, we need to dramatically increase education and training in STEM occupations and enact reasonable immigration policies that encourage well educated foreign nationals in high-demand skillsets to live and work in the US," added Roberts.

For the complete May 2013 IT Index please visit:

About TechServe AllianceTechServe Alliance is a collaboration of IT & Engineering staffing and solutions firms, clients, consultants and suppliers dedicated to advancing excellence and ethics within the IT & Engineering staffing and solutions industry. Hundreds of IT & Engineering staffing and solutions firms and tens of thousands of affiliated professionals, count on TechServe Alliance to keep their leadership informed, engaged and connected. TechServe Alliance serves as the voice of the industry before the policymakers and the national and trade press. By providing access to the knowledge and best practices of an entire industry and tapping the "collective scale" of hundreds of companies, TechServe Alliance supports its members in the efficient delivery of best-in-class IT & Engineering staffing and solutions for clients and exceptional professional opportunities for every IT & Engineering consultant.

SOURCE TechServe Alliance

The gains were muted ahead of the European Central Bank's monthly policy decision and another raft of U.S. economic data in the run-up to Friday's nonfarm payrolls report for May, which often sets the market tone for a week or two after its release.

On Wednesday, stocks in the U.S. and Europe fell sharply as concerns over the state of the U.S. economy trumped any expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve might continue its monetary stimulus program. That sell-off fed through into Asia's session on Thursday.

"Stocks took something of a beating yesterday and so far there's no sign of a quick rebound," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at Interactive Investor. "That said, traders may be tempted to sit on their hands in the short term with the non-farm payrolls due for release tomorrow."

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.1 percent at 6,426, while Germany's DAX rose 0.2 percent to 8,211. The CAC-40 was trading 0.4 percent higher at 3,866.

Trading on a number of European exchanges started about an hour late Thursday after a problem with NYSE Euronext's systems prevented customers from placing orders. Exchanges in Paris, Lisbon, Brussels and Amsterdam were affected by the unexplained glitch.

Wall Street was poised for a solid opening, with both Dow futures and the broader S&P futures down 0.3 percent.

The focus over the rest of the day will hinge on the monthly policy decision from the ECB and the ensuing press briefing from the central bank's president, Mario Draghi. The ECB is not expected to announce any major new measures to boost the ailing economy of the 17-country Eurozone, but investors will monitor Draghi's comments for hints of future policies.

The euro was solid in the run-up to the ECB decision, trading 0.2 percent higher at $1.3121. The dollar was 0.1 percent higher at 99.14 yen.

Once the ECB meeting is out of the way, the focus will turn to Friday's U.S. payrolls data. This week's economic newsflow out of the U.S. has been disappointing and investors now think it's less likely that the Fed will decide to reduce the amount of financial assets it has been buying in the markets in the hope of stimulating the U.S. economy.

Fed chief Ben Bernanke has said the U.S. central bank might pull back on its $85 billion a month bond-buying program as economic data improves. But other Fed officials have spoken about a winding down of asset purchases sooner. The uncertainty over a possible tapering of the stimulus has been a cause for concern for many stock investors over the past couple of weeks.

The purchases have been one of the main drivers in financial markets in recent years and have contributed to the rise in many global indexes to record highs.

Later in the day, the market focus will be on U.S. weekly jobless claims.

In Asia, markets responded to the weakness experienced the previous day in Europe and the U.S.

The Nikkei closed down 0.9 percent at 12,904.02. That's on top of Wednesday's 3.8 percent fall. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.1 percent to 21,838.43, while Shanghai's main index dropped 1.3 percent to 2,346.80. Markets in South Korea were closed for a public holiday.

In oil markets, the benchmark contract for July delivery was up 55 cents to $94.29 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 43 cents on Wednesday.

The teen pop star is the latest celebrity to sign up for a suborbital flight to the edge of space aboard Virgin Galactic's , joining actors Angeline Jolie, Ashton Kutcher and Leonardo DiCaprio.

"Great to hear @justinbieber & @scooterbraun are latest @virgingalactic future astronauts. Congrats, see you up there!" , Virgin Galactic's billionaire founder, tweeted Wednesday (June 5). (Scooter Braun, Bieber's manager, has also booked a flight.)

Bieber responded with an idea whose seriousness is tough to gauge.

"@richardbranson @scooterbraun @virgingalactic let's shoot a music video in SPACE!! #nextLEVEL," the pop star tweeted to his more than 40 milion Twitter followers.

For the study, researchers looked at weather patterns in 2007, whencovering the Arctic Ocean hit one of its lowest summer extents since satellite tracking began in the late 1970s.

In fall and winter, when sea ice would normally insulate the ocean from frigid Arctic air temperatures, the small ice pack meant lots of heat could escape from the ocean into the atmosphere, the study found. The heating changed , said lead study author Elizabeth Cassano, a climate scientist at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) in Boulder, Colo. The results were published May 21 in the International Journal of Climatology.

"What we saw, particularly in the fall and winter, was a decrease in [atmospheric] pressure over the areas of open water," Cassano told LiveScience. Areas of high and low pressure drive weather, with low pressure producing stormier weather and high pressure leading to clear, calm days, Cassano said. The group's computer model generally agreed with weather records from the latter half of 2007, according to the study.

While thehad a significant effect into the winter, there was little change in weather patterns in early 2007, before the ice pack shrank, the study found. However, Cassano points out that the climate model doesn't include a major high-pressure system that was in the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska and played a role in the big ice melt. Its absence could affect the modeling results.

The researchers now plan to examine how the feedback between sea ice and the atmosphere alters weather in the United State and other regions, Cassano said. "There's an open question of how these changes that we see in the Arctic influence the weather that we see here in the mid-latitudes," she said.

Emailor follow her . Follow us , & . Original article on .

Retired Gen. John Allen says Afghans need certainty on how many U.S. troops will stay behind after the majority complete their withdrawal by Dec. 31, 2014, before they will choose to side with the Afghan government instead of the Taliban. Allen was speaking in coordination with the release of a new report released by the Center for a New American Security, authored by Allen and two other top Obama advisers.

Allen also says that knowing the post-2014 troop number would help silence Taliban claims that all U.S. troops are leaving.

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama has declared war on the press, say writers at Slate, the Daily Beast, Reason, the Washington Post (Jennifer Rubin, Dana Milbank and Leonard Downie Jr.), Commentary, National Journal (Ron Fournier), the New York Times editorial page, CBS News, Fox News (Roger Ailes) and even Techdirt.

Scores of other scribes and commentators have filed similar dispatches about this or that federal prosecution "chilling" the press and pulping the First Amendment.

Downie, who could open an aquatics center with the leaks his reporters collected during his 17 years as executive editor of the Washington Post, calls the "war on leaks the most militant I have seen since the Nixon administration."

The most recent casualties in the alleged press war are Fox News Channel and the Associated Press. The phone records of reporters at these outlets were subpoenaed by federal investigators after the organizations published national security secrets.

Then you have New York Times reporter James Risen. Federal prosecutors have been trying to force Risen onto the stand in the trial of alleged leaker-to-the-media Jeffrey Sterling (CIA) since the latter days of the Bush administration. When media strumming on the free-press topic reaches full volume, reporters and their defenders include the leak prosecutions of Thomas Drake (National Security Agency) and John Kiriakou (CIA), even though no journalist (or journalist record) appears to have suffered a subpoena in these cases. (However, the indictments in both the Drake and Kiriakou cases cite email communications with journalists.)

Championing the besieged press has become so popular that some Republicans have switched sides. Even the commander-in-chief of the alleged war, Barack Obama, has proved himself capable of making sad faces about the "war" on journalism!

In his national security speech Thursday, he said, "I am troubled by the possibility that leak investigations may chill the investigative journalism that holds government accountable." Obama went on to promise a review of the Department of Justice guidelines on press subpoenas. These are the guidelines that ordinarily exempt reporters from federal subpoenas and which his Department of Justice ignored in the AP and Rosen investigations.

To make nice with the press, Obama promised to convene a powwow of DoJ bigwigs and media organizations to address the press corps' "concerns." (Word to my press colleagues: Invitations to discuss "concerns" with bureaucrats are usually a prelude to a kiss-off.)

But all this legal battering of the press, while real, hardly rises to the level of war. Take, for example, the language in the affidavit for search warrant for Fox News reporter James Rosen's emails, which refer to a "criminal offense." To journalists' ears, the affidavit sounds like the precursor to an arrest, and has caused many otherwise sober reporters to protest that the Department of Justice was attempting to criminalize their business. But as George Washington University Law School Professor Orin Kerr argues in this precise blog item, the language in the affidavit "is designed to show compliance with the Privacy Protection Act" and is not a prelude to a prosecution.

No charges have been filed against Rosen, and the Department of Justice say none are anticipated. The Obama administration has yet to indict any journalists for acquiring or publishing classified information and claims it has no plans to do so. Testifying before the House Judiciary Committee on May 15, Attorney General Eric Holder expressed his negative enthusiasm for prosecuting journalists.

"You've got a long way to go to try to prosecute people the press for the publication of that material," Holder said, and such prosecutions have "not fared well in American history." (See Josh Gerstein's take on the affidavit and the business of prosecuting journos.)

The leak crackdown and there has been one has been mostly on the supply side, in the bureaucracy's offices and corridors where the government leakers dwell, and not the demand side in newsrooms, where journalists hang out.

As Scott Shane and Charlie Savage explained in the New York Times almost a year ago long before the AP and Rosen cases surfaced happenstance contributed to the uptick in prosecutions. Obama inherited cases from the Bush administration, both parties in Congress supported a more restrictive secret-keeping policy, leak investigation protocols were "streamlined" in 2009 and surveillance technology was making it easier to bring prosecutions that stick.

Also, the WikiLeaks torrent of 2010 ripped through the headlines, causing the administration major grief and leaving it with a grudge against the press. And, in June 2012, additional new rules to hinder leakers were promulgated.

Meanwhile, Republicans cheered on leak-chasers.

In June 2012, 30 Republican senators agitated for greater leaks investigations because they believed that Obama's administration seeking to improve the president's chances in the 2012 election was planting leaks about the drone program, the "kill lists" and Stuxnet with the New York Times, where big stories appeared.

Of the drone story in the Times, conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer declared, "This was no leak. This was a White House press release." These sentiments were shared by progressive Glenn Greenwald, who wrote that the story came from inside the administration and was "designed to depict President Obama, in an Election Year, as a super-tough, hands-on, no-nonsense Warrior." (Hat tip to Huffington Post's Michael Calderone.)

Meanwhile, Senators Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) demanded the naming an outside special counsel to investigate the leakers. I have little doubt that before too long we'll be reading on our front pages about the press-entangling investigations into the drone, the kill list and Stuxnet leaks, and the cries of war on the press will escalate again, a crackdown on suppliers, not demanders.

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, went the Republican leak-haters one better last year proving that Obama's war on the press belongs to all political parties and two branches of government by proposing a dozen new anti-leak measures.

She wanted intelligence agency employees to report all contact with the media, to limit contacts between intelligence employees and the press to designated officials only, to expand polygraph testing in the executive branch, to restrict commentary in the press by former government officials and to establish a half-dozen record-keeping programs to monitor and discourage leaks. The bulk of Feinstein's initiative failed, but it will be back.

Inevitably, press complaints about a war against them include gripes about how tightlipped the current administration has become. According to Leonard Downie, reporters covering today's White House say officials won't talk to them and refer them to hostile, bullying press aides instead. "The White House doesn't want anyone leaking," one anonymous reporter told Downie about the permanent snub, continuing, "There are few windows on decision-making and governing philosophy. There is a perception that Obama himself has little regard for the news media."

I can match Downie's reporting on this point: My colleagues tell me the same about the Obama administration, likening it to an information black hole. And here, I think, we locate the bedrock of the press beef against Obama. Journalists naturally oppose leak investigations for the practical reason that leak investigations dam the free flow of information that makes their stories breathe.

Of course, the work that journalists do is important, and yes, I want more openness from the administration and less vindictive approaches to leakers. But to fully comprehend the press corps' complaints, it helps to understand that the press lobbies just like any other interest group whose privilege is threatened by government laws, policies and prosecutions. Inordinately sensitive to any changes in the standard source-reporter customs, the Washington press corps revolts at even minor changes in their status.

Obama's wholesale deflation of their standing has made comrades out of ideological enemies. How else to explain Len Downie hollering "Nixon" at the same time Fox News's Roger Ailes is invoking "McCarthy" to denounce the Obama administration?

Suppression of the press contains in it the seeds of its own destruction. Or at least I like to think so. By bottling up information and limiting the opportunity of the press (and civilians) to scrutinize it, politicians lose the faith of some of the most ardent supporters and inspire professional doubters and free-thinkers in the press to redouble their efforts. Obama's campaign against leaks can only succeed if he exterminates all second-guessing from inside the national security establishment.

And seeing as the president is only a short-timer and the national security establishment is permanent, and constitutes an interest group as well, all his victories over leakers and the press will be temporary.

(Jack Shafer is a Reuters columnist covering the press and politics.)

(Jack Shafer is a Reuters columnist but his opinions are his own.)

Big changes are impending worldwide in this very important educational service. Starting in 2014, the cost may go up. Up until two years ago, the classes in our community were free. The testing cost $7.50, which paid for a printed diploma. Since then, the cost has gone up -- first to $25 and then to $35.

Now the GED program has been bought by a for-profit organization and the costs will go higher than ever. Furthermore, it will no longer be possible to take the test using pencil and paper. It will all be done on computer.

Please encourage the thousands of adults who do not have their high school degrees to make a life-changing decision for themselves and their families now! -- JOY IN A CLASSROOM DOWN SOUTH

DEAR JOY: I am sure many readers will thank you for this important heads-up. Readers, the changes Joy has described will go into effect on Jan. 2, 2014. According to the media representative for the GED Testing Service in Washington, D.C., the costs of the tests will be determined by the state in which it is administered. It is currently between $0 and $250, and in 2014 will "marginally increase or decrease" according to which state you live in. (Decrease? Forgive me for being doubtful ...) Criteria for passing or failing the test will remain the same.

Readers, any of you who are not computer literate should start now. Do not delay. If you are uncomfortable with technology and have a friend or relative who is knowledgeable, more information can be obtained by visiting www.gedtestingservice.com.

DEAR ABBY: I have been in the workplace for 20 years. During that time I have witnessed lying, cheating, lechery, betrayal, vicious gossip, arrogance, entitlement, stealing and bullying, etc.

Last week, a co-worker whom I liked and respected confided to me that she hopes a 102-year-old relative will die soon because she needs to inherit some money. I was floored and had a hard time keeping the shock off my face.

Does work bring out the worst in people? Is it because we all must be here every day? Is it too many people competing for too few resources? Is my hide too thin? Am I in the wrong job? -- THE DAILY GRIND

DEAR DAILY GRIND: When you spend eight hours a day with people, they usually reveal their core values at some point. In your case, you appear to work with someone who "over-shares." I don't think your hide is too thin, and I'm not in a position to tell you if you're in the wrong job. You may, however, be overdue for a vacation.

P.S. Let's cross our fingers and hope that relative makes it to 110.

DEAR ABBY: Please settle a family disagreement. A scratch ticket is given to a friend or relative as a gift. If that ticket is a winner, is there an expectation that the winnings should be shared with the person who gave the ticket? -- JEFF IN MASSACHUSETTS

DEAR JEFF: A gift is a gift. There is no obligation to share. Alexander Pope wrote, "Hope springs eternal in the human breast," but if you are hoping you'll get a cut of the money, don't hold your breath.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

To receive a collection of Abby's most memorable -- and most frequently requested -- poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.

MADRID, May 30 (Reuters) - Departing Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini has said he has a verbal agreement to coach Manchester City in an interview with Spanish radio station Onda Cero on Wednesday.

"I have a commitment to make Manchester City my priority. I have a verbal agreement with them and I hope it is carried out," the Chilean said.

Last week, the 59-year-old former Villarreal and Real Madrid boss said he was leaving the Costa del Sol club at the end of the season.

He has been linked with a move to Manchester City since the sacking of Roberto Mancini earlier this month.

"I am motivated a great deal by a project as exciting as the one at Malaga," he added.

"To be able to build up a club, this is as important as going to an institution where you will be able to win titles.

"Until things have been signed, you cannot say everything is completely done."

Malaga are sixth in La Liga and visit champions Barcelona in their final game on Saturday.

They are on course for a place in the Europa League next season, but they will not be able to take it up unless a UEFA ban, imposed because of delays in payments to creditors, is overturned. (Reporting by Mark Elkington, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

The former president was taken from a military hospital where he was recovering from liver surgery and a heart condition and put on a plane, according to his lawyer Mauricio Berreondo. He said the plane was bound for New York, where he is also charged with embezzling $1.5 million in foreign donations intended to buy school library books in Guatemala.

"I blame the government for what could happen to him," Berreondo said. "Portillo is sick and there are several pending appeals."

He said one appeal had to do with establishing the state of Portillo's health.

Deputy Foreign Minister Rita Claverie said that both the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court had notified the government there are no pending appeals in his case.

Portillo, who was Guatemala's president from 2000 to 2004, was taken out of the hospital on orders of Interior Secretary Mauricio Lopez Bonilla, Berreondo said.

An Associated Press reporter saw a small white jet carrying Portillo, 61, dressed in a black sweatshirt take off late morning local time.

"This decision is an important affirmation of the rule of law and due process in Guatemala," the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala said in a statement. "We commend the Guatemalan authorities in the strengthening of rule of law and the fight against organized crime and corruption."

In brief remarks to a local radio station, Portillo said his extradition was illegal.

"This is a kidnapping," he said.

Portillo was turned over to U.S. authorities in the same week that the high court threw out a genocide conviction in another high-profile case against an ex-president, former dictator Efrain Rios Montt. That decision that has been widely questioned and criticized, including in the United States.

For Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think tank, Portillo's extradition comes as a relief to the government.

"It comes at moment when the government is under a lot of criticism and this is something they can point to as an example of them being serious about fighting crime and adhering to the rule of law," Shifter said.

Guatemala has been struggling to build a credible justice system, including with the help of a U.N.-sanctioned team of international prosecutors.

For Oscar Vasquez, director of the non-governmental organization Citizen Action, Portillo's extradition shows the difficulties the country's justice system is facing.

"As in the case of genocide in Guatemala, the justice system shows signs of chaos, confusion and disorder, given that we no longer know who is right, the state for extraditing him or his defense lawyers," Vasquez said.

"It seems that we are left to rely on the justice of others," he added, referring to the United States.

Human rights activist Claudia Samayoa said the extradition comes as a distraction away from the case of Rios Montt. Samayoa was one of about 2,000 people who marched Friday to protest the annulment of Rios Montt's conviction.

"Extraditing him today was to distract people from (Rios Montt's) trial, which has been in the news for weeks," she said.

In the U.S. case, Portillo allegedly deposited the money in Miami and transferred it to a Paris account in the name of his ex-wife and daughter.

Guatemala's highest court upheld the extradition last August after it was granted by former President Alvaro Colom as he left office in 2011.

Portillo has called the proceedings a political reprisal by powerful Guatemalan businessmen and the U.S. government for not bending to their interests. He has also said the court agreeing to his extradition constitutes a violation of his human rights.

Upon leaving office in 2004, Portillo fled to Mexico, where he began working as a financial adviser for a construction materials company.

He was extradited from Mexico to Guatemala in 2008 to face embezzlement charges at home.

Portillo was found not guilty in 2011 in Guatemala of charges that he stole $15 million from the country's Defense Department during his presidency.

In 2010, police captured Portillo at a beach preparing to flee Guatemala by boat, a day after U.S. authorities charged him with laundering money.

While running for president in Guatemala in 1999, Portillo acknowledged he had killed two of his former students while a professor in the Mexican state of Guerrero in 1982.

He said the killings were in self-defense and he fled the state because he could not get a fair trial. The case has since been closed, and he can no longer be charged in those killings.