turned too many pucks over.Detroit had a power play with 3:14 left in regulation when MacKenzie was called for goaltender interference, but couldnt take advantage of the opportunity.On a night in which Detroit didnt generate many scoring chances, it was fortunate get a goal early in the game. Florida

Inside the smaller theatre at Madison Square Garden about five years ago, shortly before a world title fight, Emile Griffith was introduced one more time to the crowd. He rose shakily from his seat, waved ever so briefly and then sat down. The applause kept going. Revered in retirement perhaps more than during his fighting days, Griffith died Tuesday at 75 after a long battle with pugilistic dementia. The first fighter to be crowned world champion from the U.S. Virgin Islands, Griffith required full-time care late in life and died at an extended care facility in Hempstead, N.Y. "Emile was a gifted athlete and truly a great boxer," Hall of Fame director Ed Brophy said. "Outside the ring he was as great a gentleman as he was a fighter." An elegant fighter with a quick jab, Griffiths brilliant career was overshadowed by the fatal beating he gave Benny "The Kid" Paret in a 1962 title bout. The outcome darkened the world of boxing, even prompting some network television stations to stop showing live fights. It also cast him as a pariah to many inside and outside the sport. He went on to have a successful career after that fatal fight, but Griffith acknowledged later in life that he was never the same boxer. He would fight merely to win, piling up the kind of decisions that are praised by purists but usually jeered by fans hoping for a knockout. Griffith often attended fights in his later years, especially at the Garden, where he headlined 23 times. He was also a frequent visitor to the boxing clubs around New York City, and made the pilgrimage most years to the sports Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y. "He always had time for boxing fans when visiting the hall on an annual basis," Brophy said, "and was one of the most popular boxers to return year after year." That outpouring of love that he received late in life stood in stark contrast to the way he was received after March 24, 1962, when he fought Paret before a national TV audience at the Garden. Griffith knocked out his bitter rival in the 12th round to regain his own welterweight title, and Paret went into a coma and died from his injuries 10 days later. Sports Illustrated reported in 2005 that Griffith may have been fueled by an anti-gay slur directed at him by Paret during the weigh-in. Over the years, in books and interviews, Griffith described himself at various times as straight, gay and bisexual. "People spit at me in the street," Griffith told The Associated Press in 1993, recalling the days after Parets death. "We stayed in a hotel. Every time there was a knock on the door, I would run into the next room. I was so scared." The Paret fight left a cloud over the sport for many years. NBC halted its live boxing broadcasts, and then-New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller created a commission to investigate the bout and the sport. The referee that night, Ruby Goldstein, never worked another fight. The fight became the basis for the 2005 documentary "Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story." One of the final scenes shows Griffith embracing Parets son. "I was never the same fighter after that. After that fight, I did enough to win. I would use my jab all the time. I never wanted to hurt the other guy," Griffith said. "I would have quit, but I didnt know how to do anything else but fight." And fight he could. Known for his overwhelming speed and slick style -- certainly not his punching power -- Griffith was a prodigy from the moment he stepped in Hall of Fame trainer Gil Clancys gym in Queens. Griffith had been working in a hat factory when, as the story goes, he took off his shirt on a hot day and the factory owner realized noticed his muscles. Under the watchful eye of Clancy, Griffith blossomed into a New York Golden Gloves champion and eventually turned professional. He easily defeated the likes of Florentino Fernandez and Luis Rodriguez during an era when it was common to fight every couple of weeks. He quickly earned a title shot against Paret in 1961, winning the welterweight belt with a knockout in the 13th round. Griffith would lose it to Paret in a rematch five months later. After winning back the title during their controversial third fight -- many believe Paret never should have been allowed in the ring after a brutal loss to Gene Fullmer three months earlier -- Griffith would eventually move up to middleweight. He knocked down Dick Tiger for the first time in his career and claimed the title with a narrow but unanimous decision. Griffith would go on to lose twice during a thrilling trilogy with Nino Benvenuti, his lone victory coming at Shea Stadium in 1967, and lost two bouts against the great middleweight Carlos Monzon. Griffith would finally retire in 1977 after losing his last three fights. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1990 with a record of 85-24-2 and 23 knockouts. Griffith would go on to train several champions over the years, including Wilfred Benitez and Juan Laporte, among the most popular boxers in Puerto Rican history. His humour and generosity buoyed those close to him as his health deteriorated in later years. He would regale fans young and old with tales of his fights, even though details often became hazy, the result of the many blows during his career. Griffith had four sisters -- Eleanor, Gloria, Karen and Joyce -- and three brothers -- Franklin, Guillermo and Tony. He is also survived by his adopted son, Luis Griffith. Funeral arrangements are pending.Discount Air Max 1 . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July. Air Max 1 Sale Cheap . The FA rejected Wilsheres appeal that the length of his punishment was "clearly excessive" and said Thursday his suspension begins with immediate effect. He will miss league matches against Chelsea on Monday and West Ham on Dec. http://www.discountairmax1.com/ . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. Air Max 1 Wholesale . It is a cliché dragged out by fans and pundits regularly when discussions take place around which teams are better than others. Air Max 1 Clearance Sale . President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest was fired Friday after 12 years with the Marlins. The move came as the team neared the end of its third consecutive last-place season in the NL East.DETROIT -- Tom Rowes first two games in charge of an NHL team lasted longer than regulation, making him sweat it out to earn his first taste of success.Aleksander Barkov scored on a breakaway 2:04 into overtime to lift the Florida Panthers to a 2-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night, giving their interim coach his first victory.The Panthers outplayed Detroit after a rough start. They lost 2-1 in a shootout at Chicago in Rowes debut on Tuesday night.In between periods I was saying, `We deserve it, Rowe recalled.Rowe said equipment manager Teddy Richards gave him the game puck as a keepsake. Rowe coached Floridas AHL affiliates in Portland and San Antonio and was an assistant with Carolina before moving into the Panthers front office and then behind the bench to replace the fired Gerard Gallant.Big win, first for him, Panthers captain Derek MacKenzie said. Hopefully, theres many more.The Red Wings extended their point streak to five games after losing four straight and nine of 11, but were fortunate to get anything positive out of a night in which they struggled at both ends of the ice.We should feel very lucky that we got one, Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall said.The Red Wings went ahead 1:23 into the game when Henrik Zetterberg scored on their first shot, ending a six-game drought.We weathered the storm, Rowe said. The beginning of the game they came out hard on us, but we were able to get out of the first period with a tie.The Panthers were close to skating into the second period with the lead.Floridas Vincent Trocheck had a goal negated late in the opening period when Detroit coach Jeff Blashill challenged that Panthers defenseman Jason Demers was offside. Demers then scored with 1:45 left in the first, pulling the Panthers into a tie on a shot that was redirected off Detroit defenseman Danny DeKeyser.The Panthers put much more pressure on Petr Mrazek, who stopped 28 shots in regulatioon, than Detroit did on Roberto Luongo, who faced just 13 shots over the first two periods and had just 18 saves through three periods.ddddddddddddhen you outplay someone like that, theres a good chance youre going to outshoot them, Blashill said. They outplayed us certainly in one area because we turned too many pucks over.Detroit had a power play with 3:14 left in regulation when MacKenzie was called for goaltender interference, but couldnt take advantage of the opportunity.On a night in which Detroit didnt generate many scoring chances, it was fortunate get a goal early in the game. Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad made a no-look, between-the-legs pass behind him in his teams end of the ice, and it went off a teammate before Zetterberg got to the loose puck. Zetterberg took it from the right circle and into the slot for a backhander that went past Luongo.Rowe insisted he didnt have a problem with Ekblads pass.A little too risky, but we dont want to take creative plays out of our players hands, he said.Demers scored in a 4-on-4 situation on a sequence off a faceoff in which Floridas other three skaters touched the puck.Game notesThe Red Wings have been banged up this season, losing players at every position to injuries, and may have taken another hit in the first period when forward Justin Abdelkader left with a lower-body injury. I dont think hes going to be out that long, but well see, Blashill said. ... Rowe and Gallant, who was fired Sunday, are former Red Wings players. ... Detroit F Drew Miller along with Florida D Dylan McIlrath and F Shawn Thornton were healthy scratches.UP NEXTPanthers: Play at Ottawa on Saturday in fourth of five-game road trip.Red Wings: Start a three-game road trip Saturday at Pittsburgh.---Follow Larry Lage at http://www.twitter.com/larrylage ' ' '