CHICAGO -- New Florida coach Tom Rowe met with captain Derek MacKenzie and the rest of the Panthers leadership on Monday. He talked to the whole team on Tuesday.Rowe knows Gerald Gallant is well-liked in Floridas locker room, and he wanted to be as transparent as possible on why the coach was let go just 22 games into the season.I came in and I told them, I said `Listen, were not going to change a whole lot. We need to tweak a few things, Rowe said. But if I came in here and wasnt sensitive to that, it just wouldnt work. I love our room. I love our leadership group, and weve got the right guys to help us get going.The good news for Rowe is the Panthers dont have to travel very far. They were on the fringe of the Eastern Conference playoff race heading into their first game since Gallant was fired.We all feel very responsible for whats going on, MacKenzie said before Tuesdays matchup with Chicago. Quite frankly, our performance to this point hasnt been good enough. Unfortunately, you know, Gerard was the end result of that.The message has been sent and we need to be better and we will be, starting tonight.Gallant was believed to be the right guy for Florida after he coached the Panthers to a franchise-record 103 points and the Atlantic Division title last season. He got a contract extension last January that runs through the 2018-19 season, and then-general manager Dale Tallon called him an ideal fit for our group.Not so much anymore. At least from the perspective of Floridas front office.The Panthers dropped to 11-10-1 when they blew a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss at Carolina on Sunday night, and that was it for Gallant. The players were informed of Gallants dismissal and the coachs luggage was taken off the team bus headed to the airport in Raleigh, North Carolina. Assistant coach Mike Kelly also was fired.They were pretty blunt, center Vincent Trocheck said. Made a coaching change, that was it.Gallant, who played parts of 11 seasons in the NHL, mostly with the Detroit Red Wings, then departed the arena in a taxi, drawing criticism from some of the teams fans.It was bad the way it all happened, unfortunately, said Rowe, who was promoted to general manager in May in a front-office shake-up that elevated Tallon to president of hockey operations. It didnt look good, but Ill tell you right now, we respect him and like him and Gerard and I had a good relationship.The Panthers ownership and other team officials rely heavily on advanced statistics, and Gallant was not the biggest fan of analytics. But Rowe, who returns to the bench on an interim basis, made it sound as if he was only planning small changes, beginning with Floridas defensive zone coverage.Really big believer in the D-zone being more area than man on man, he said.Rowe coached Floridas AHL affiliates in Portland and San Antonio before moving into the Panthers front office. He also served as an assistant with the Hurricanes from 2008-11.Hes hard-nosed, old-school kind of guy, said Trocheck, who played for Rowe in the minors. He gets the most of his players by getting them to work hard, make sure everybodys playing the right way.But Trocheck, who liked a handful of pro-Gallant messages on Twitter after his dismissal, said he didnt think coaching was the reason for Floridas disappointing start.Its just a matter of us kind of pulling it together, he said. Got to come together as a group and realize that we havent been playing our best hockey and we have a lot more to go.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap Discount Old Skool . LOUIS -- Attorneys for the St. Cheap Old Skool Authentic . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. http://www.cheapoldskool.com/ . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. Cheap Old Skool Sale . -- Kyrie Irvings last-minute 3-pointer helped seal another victory for Cleveland -- and the Cavaliers longest winning streak since LeBron James left. Wholesale Old Skool . Soukalova missed only one target and completed the 15-kilometre course in 40 minutes, 32.6 seconds for both victories in this seasons individual discipline. Darya Domracheva of Belarus was second, 34.New Zealand captain Jesse Bromwich is prepared for a strong England squad in Saturdays Four Nations clash in Huddersfield. Bromwich was in the Kiwis team beaten 2-1 by England in their Test series in 2015 and admits the return of Sam Burgess from his spell in rugby union has added to the size of their task as they begin the defence of their Four Nations crown.Theyve a great team, with a lot of NRL experience, a lot of players Ive played against, said the Melbourne Storm prop. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract Sam is an outstanding player, someone I used to look up to when I watched the Kiwis play England a few years back now.Ive played against him a few times now and hes a tough competitor. Hes very aggressive, the whole forward pack is impressive. Its a tough ask.New Zealand have lost their last three matches and scored just six points in their two meetings with Australia this year but head coach David Kidwell, who takes charge for the second time following the departure of Stephen Kearney, believes he has solved those problems. New Zealand players celebrate after winning the Four Nations Final Australia in 2014 Weve addressed that in training and weve put it into action, said Kidwell after putting his team through their final training run at the John Smiths Stadiumm on Friday afternoon.dddddddddddd We just need to execute it tomorrow.Weve prepared well this week and were looking forward to what is going to be a big challenge tomorrow in front of a sold-out crowd.Im sure some of the boys that havent experienced an English crowd will be looking forward to enjoying it. Live New Zealand NPC Rugby October 29, 2016, 7:15am Live on Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass Kidwell is aware of the threats posed by the eight-strong NRL contingent in Englands 17 and says he has done his homework on the Super League-based players.Its a really strong competition over here, he said. Mixed in with some NRL players, its a very dangerous pack and team. Weve to be on our A game tomorrow.Well definitely be better for that run we had (in Perth). Weve had some really good training sessions and worked on the things that let us down. Hopefully weve worked hard enough to fix them up.You can watch Premier League and EFL Cup football, plus Englands tour of Bangladesh and the Mexican Grand Prix on Sky Sports. Upgrade now and enjoy six months at half price! Also See: Eddie Joness decisions Dont scrap promotion play-offs Wales quartet extend dual deals Larkham quits Brumbies for ARU ' ' '