Rangers Fire Coach, GM

Rangers roster

The Rangers, who have the leagues' highest payroll at $60 million, will be coached through their last four remaining games by assistant coach John Tortorella.

"Once you make a decision like this, the sooner the better," Madison Square Garden president Dave Checketts said. "We made the decision last night. I didn't see any reason to wait."

Smith held the GM post for 11 years and enjoyed success as the Rangers had several great seasons in the early 90s and eventually ended a 54-year drought by winning the Stanley Cup in 1994.

"It's going to be a tremendous amount of work, and it's going to require new leadership," Checketts said. "I want to do what I have to to make it work for the fans. They deserve so much more."

Rangers went on a shopping spree after last season, signing free agents such as Theo Fleury, Sylvain Lefebvre, Stephane Quintal and Tim Taylor, but none of them had a good season.

"I'm not taking myself out of responsibility for what happened," Checketts said. "None of the free agents has performed the way we thought they would."

If the Rangers don't make the playoffs, t will be the first time since 1963-66 they have missed the playoffs in three consecutive years.

"At best it was disappointing, at worst embarrassing," Checketts said.