The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.

April 29, 2013

The Hockey News - Apr-29-13

<p><b>Ilpo Peltola</b></p><p>Finland</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1245/9838818-1-eng-US/f0006-122.jpg" title="f0006-12" width="514" height="775"></div><p>THINK YOU ARE A BIG FAN? SUBMIT YOUR PHOTOS AT <a href="http://THN.COM/BIGFAN">THN.COM/BIGFAN</a><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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DEPARTMENTS

BIG FAN

<p><i>Penguins become first team in history with a</i>&nbsp;<b><i>10-GAME</i></b>&nbsp;<b><i>win streak three consecutive seasons</i></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-012263/9839406-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="811" height="1312"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(PENGUINS: GREGORY SHAMUS/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><i>Isles&rsquo; Evgeni Nabokov and Flyers&rsquo; Ilya Bryzgalov were only goalies to win every game for their teams</i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021705/9839399-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="679" height="727"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(NABOKOV: ANDY MARLIN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-031152/9839392-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="645" height="664"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(BRYZGALOV: LEN REDKOLES/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04788/9839385-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="233" height="164"></div><p><b><i>Flyers could be only second team since 1967 to have league-leading PP yet miss the playoffs (2006-07 Habs are the other)</i></b></p><p><i>New York Rangers deadline acquisitions <b>Ryane Clowe, Derick Brassard</b> and <b>John Moore</b> each score in April 3 debut and are in on all six goals</i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-05542/9839378-1-eng-US/f0014-052.jpg" title="f0014-05" width="236" height="228"></div><p><b><i>Brampton Battalion</i></b>&nbsp;<i>play final game before relocating to North Bay: a 1-0 OT loss to Sudbury March 29, eliminating them from OHL playoffs</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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Ice CHIPS

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-021479/9839039-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="626" height="574"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(ANDY DEVLIN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>+PLUS</b></h2><h3><b>ATTA BOY, &lsquo;SULLY&rsquo;!</b></h3><p><b><i>Steve Sullivan</i></b> latest NHLer to play 1,000 games. Hits mark with Coyotes before deal to Devils.</p><h2><b>&ndash;MINUS</b></h2><h3><b>FLAME OUT</b></h3><p>Calgary drops two games in a row to the rival baby Oilers by combined score of 12-3.</p><h2><b>+PLUS</b></h2><h3><b>CARDIAC KELOWNA</b></h3><p>Kelowna becomes second team in WHL history to win a series after losing first three games.</p><h2><b>&ndash;MINUS</b></h2><h3><b>TRAGEDY OVERSEAS</b></h3><p>Dmitri Uchaykin dies of a stroke at 32 after a head shot in Kazakhstan&rsquo;s top league.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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PLUS MINUS

<div class="byline">WITH ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0032-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02987/9839971-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>BUILDING BLOCK</b></p><p>In 22-year-old superstar John Tavares, the Islanders have a true franchise nucleus again.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(MIKE STOBE/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-011458/9839978-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="194" height="229"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span><b>HE RESIDUAL GRIME THAT ACCUMU</b>lates after years of losing, mismanagement and bad luck has discolored everything the New York Islanders have done in recent years. For every step there was a misstep, for every building block, a buckled beam. In this shortened season, however, the prognosis for the Isles looks different. They&rsquo;re still not close to the cream of the NHL&rsquo;s crop as they were in the heyday of Denis Potvin, Mike Bossy and Billy Smith, but they&rsquo;re no longer a laughingstock.</p><p>It starts on Long Island with franchise center John Tavares, who was on a point-per-game pace for the second straight year and is still just 22 years old, but it doesn&rsquo;t end with him. He and the rest of the Islanders were challenging for a playoff spot as of early April. Ownership managed to convert veteran defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky from a disgruntled no-show at the start of the season to a believer, signing him to a two-year contract extension before the trade deadline. Most importantly, there is a firm date on the calendar (the summer of 2015) after which the team will move from crumbling Nassau Coliseum to Brooklyn&rsquo;s Barclays Center.</p><p>At long last, optimism abounds on Long Island in a way that had become foreign to the team and its fans through the lean years. And there are a few reasons behind the change of fortune. First of all, you have to credit GM Garth Snow for demonstrating patience with his prospects and not shipping out young talent for quick-fixes. There isn&rsquo;t a slew of stars behind Tavares on the NHL roster, but in THN Future Watch 2013, the Islanders boasted the league&rsquo;s No. 10 farm system and a panel of scouts and executives ranked three of their players in the top 75 prospects.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;THERE ARE SO MANY VARIABLES AND ALL HAVE TO LINE UP FOR YOU TO PULL YOURSELF OUT OF THE MUD<br>&ndash; Eastern asst. GM</blockquote><p>Secondly, they&rsquo;re operating in a better business environment thanks to a new collective bargaining agreement and Snow has made some savvy salary caprelated moves to stem the franchise&rsquo;s considerable financial losses. Bringing in the contract of Tim Thomas to get to the cap floor isn&rsquo;t a positive message to send to Islanders fans, but it&rsquo;s well within the team&rsquo;s rights to minimize losses for a couple more seasons until it makes it to Barclays and makes the most of a more modern money-making building. And Snow has done well to get key players under contract for the long term while also maintaining significant flexibility: the Isles are nearly $30 million under the $64.3-million cap ceiling in 2013-14.</p><p>That financial prudence brings up another important contributor to the Islanders&rsquo; turnaround: sending Rick DiPietro to the American League. Now, this isn&rsquo;t to say the hard-luck goalie was in and of himself a burden to the organization, but his untradeable contract, which has eight years remaining after this season, had become a symbol of an era people want to forget. Removing it from the everyday operations is an important step in that process.</p><p>The final thing to remember about the Isles&rsquo; struggles and improvement is what an Eastern Conference assistant GM said: &ldquo;I look at the Islanders and they tell me how hard it is for any team that has sunk into a losing situation to get out of it. People look at Pittsburgh and think, &lsquo;Well hell, all you have to do is pile up a bunch of No. 1 picks and the rest follows automatically.&rsquo; But that&rsquo;s bulls---. There are so many variables at play &ndash; coaching, ownership resources, prospect development &ndash; that all have to line up for you to pull yourself out of the mud. When mud sticks to you, it&rsquo;s not easy to get it off.&rdquo;</p><p>The Isles aren&rsquo;t in the same area code as the Promised Land yet and many factors could send them into disarray again. But they&rsquo;re closer to respectability than they&rsquo;ve been in the cap era. For fans painfully familiar with the short end of the stick, that will have to suffice.</p><p><b>WANT MORE PROTEAU?</b> READ HIS EXCLUSIVE WEB COLUMN THURSDAYS AT <b><a href="http://THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM/PROTEAU">THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM/PROTEAU</a></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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ISLES’ LONG WAIT IS ALMOST OVER

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-012204/9838617-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GREGG FORWERCK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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IN THIS ISSUE

BISHOP TO KING

<div class="byline">WITH JASON KAY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-012250/9838655-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="526" height="923"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(RYAN BROOK/TC MEDIA)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>HE ENTITY THAT CALLS</b> itself Leafs Nation would make for a fascinating anthropological study, one that scientifically explains the inverse relationship between the massive performance failures of the club it supports and the massive loyalty it consistently exhibits. It&rsquo;s as if an entire fan base is afflicted with Stockholm Syndrome and has fallen in love with its captors, dependent on the franchise for its feelings no matter how meager things have become.</p><p>And make no mistake, followers of the Leafs have led a threadbare existence. Read the evidence and weep (or laugh): since they last won the Stanley Cup, as part of a six-team NHL in 1967, Toronto hasn&rsquo;t returned to the final. The only other current franchises that haven&rsquo;t appeared in the final are Columbus, Winnipeg, Phoenix, Minnesota and Nashville, all of whom entered the NHL after 1979, and two of which relocated. The Leafs are also the only club not to qualify for the playoffs since the 2004-05 lockout (a fact cover boy Nazem Kadri and his mates are trying to rectify this year. See pg. 22 for more on Kadri).</p><p>There has been pitiful solace over the years, the cresting moment coming in 1992-93 when a Doug Gilmour-led squad <i>nearly eliminated</i> Los Angeles in the conference final. Gilmour was awarded the Selke Trophy as best defensive forward that year, a crumb of joy for a team that hasn&rsquo;t produced a Hart, Norris, Vezina, Art Ross, Richard or, of course, Conn Smythe winner over the past 45 years. Only the relative newbies &ndash; Phoenix, Minnesota and Nashville &ndash; haven&rsquo;t had players take home the aforementioned glamor awards (though the former Jets had Teemu Selanne tie for the league lead in goals in 1992-93, before the Richard Trophy was born).</p><p>The Leafs have had some company in major North American sports when it comes to futility, but what sets them apart is the ability to remain pre-eminently profitable in their league. Chronic losing erodes fan bases and bank accounts. No team anyplace has been this bad, for this long and continued to be No. 1 in terms of franchise value.</p><p>Critics claim the curious loyalty has been a disincentive for management to improve. That&rsquo;s doubtful, but debatable. Perhaps we&rsquo;ll get the answer if (when?) the market gets a second franchise. Or, dare we say it (with face nearly straight), sooner?</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021905/9838648-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="456" height="245"></div><h2><b>NEXT ISSUE MAY 13, 2013</b></h2><p><b>CUSTOMER SERVICE AND TO SUBSCRIBE:</b> <a href="http://THN.com">thn.com</a></p><p><b>CONTACT US:</b> <a href="mailto:editorial@thehockeynews.com">editorial@thehockeynews.com</a><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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IN T.O. IT HURTS SO GOOD

<h2><b>NEED SAVE KEEPING</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><i><span>I</span> am 44 and have played goal since I was eight and made it up to the Jr. A level. I totally agree with what James Reimer had to say in the &ldquo;Protection vs. Production&rdquo; story (Inside Hockey, April 15). Stick technology, player size and overall game speed have advanced so much that goalies need more protection, not less. I would not be as concerned with the height of pads, but rather the width &ndash; and that&rsquo;s been addressed in recent years.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Robert K. Varga, Burlington, Ont.</i></b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021689/9838787-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="595" height="813"></div><p>CONTACT US:</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-012480/9838780-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="154" height="95"></div><p><a href="mailto:letters@thehockeynews.com">letters@thehockeynews.com</a></p><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-031009/9838773-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg" title="f0006-03" width="77" height="78"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><p>/thehockeynews</p><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-04643/9838766-1-eng-US/f0006-042.jpg" title="f0006-04" width="77" height="78"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><p>/+thehockeynews</p><h2><b>CREASE IS SACRED</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-05505/9838759-1-eng-US/f0006-052.jpg" title="f0006-05" width="154" height="95"></div><p>Why in the world are defenders allowed to be completely in the crease to deflect shots or stop pucks from going over the goal line? I thought the crease was a &ldquo;goalie only&rdquo; zone? Why have it if players are allowed to put their entire bodies in there? Just get rid of it. Better yet, go back to not allowing players in the crease. If the league wants to increase scoring, this is the way.</p><p><b><i>Scott Reid, Tampa, Fla.</i></b></p><h2><b>CROSBY HAS HART</b></h2><p><i>Re: Ken Campbell&rsquo;s &ldquo;Will Sidney Crosby Still Win The Hart Trophy?&rdquo; <a href="http://THN.com">THN.com</a> column, April 1</i></p><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-06358/9838752-1-eng-US/f0006-062.jpg" title="f0006-06" width="78" height="78"></div><p>Sidney Crosby should still win the Hart. He makes all the players on that team better. His work in practice forces them to keep up or look lazy. He leads and the team follows. The voters need to give him what he so much deserves.</p><p><b><i>Nancy MacNamara Marcotte</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-07234/9838745-1-eng-US/f0006-072.jpg" title="f0006-07" width="78" height="78"></div><p>If Crosby misses the rest of the season, then the Hart should most likely go to Jonathan Toews. Patrick Kane, Eric Staal and even Nazem Kadri should merit some consideration as well, depending how the Canes and Leafs finish. But Toews is the most valuable to his team in all facets of the game after Crosby. Both he and Chicago have been dynamite this year.</p><p><b><i>Tim Blatt</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-08145/9838738-1-eng-US/f0006-082.jpg" title="f0006-08" width="78" height="78"></div><p>I&rsquo;m a Pens fan, but whoever has the most points before the playoffs deserves to win the Hart.</p><p><b><i>Joe Sweeney</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-0995/9838731-1-eng-US/f0006-092.jpg" title="f0006-09" width="78" height="78"></div><p>I would rather have Crosby for 36 games than any other player for 48 games. Therefore, he&rsquo;s the MVP.</p><p><b><i>Brian Barna</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><h2><b>IGGY FOR AIR?</b></h2><p><i>Re: Brian Costello&rsquo;s &ldquo;Chances Are, Flames Dealt Iginla For Nothing&rdquo; <a href="http://THN.com">THN.com</a> column, March 29</i></p><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1155/9838724-1-eng-US/f0006-112.jpg" title="f0006-11" width="77" height="77"></div><p>I think it was a good get for Calgary considering they&rsquo;ll basically get three pro prospects. Iginla only has two more solid years tops and within those years Calgary won&rsquo;t make the playoffs. They had to get younger and build for the future. Smart move.</p><p><b><i>Michael Thompson</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1071/9838717-1-eng-US/f0006-102.jpg" title="f0006-10" width="78" height="78"></div><p>The Flames are one of the worst managed teams in all of pro sports. Been a Calgary fan for more than three decades, but I am done. Management has no commitment to win or even compete.</p><p><b><i>Todd Ramsted</i></b></p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1334/9838710-1-eng-US/f0006-132.jpg" title="f0006-13" width="78" height="78"></div><p>The Flames absolutely did not get burned. They got two choice prospects and a first round pick. Iginla is 35 and the Penguins have him only for this season before he becomes a UFA. The deal favors the Flames in the long term and the Pens in the short term.</p><p><b><i>Steve Capone, Jr.</i></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p></div>

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THN INBOX

<p>@THEHOCKEYNEWS</p><p><i>WHICH DEADLINE DEAL WILL HAVE THE MOST IMPACT?</i></p><p><b>J. Virtanen @Amateur_Hockey:</b> Marian Gaborik to Columbus. Brings a star to a team that&rsquo;s been missing one since Rick Nash left and gives the team some credibility.</p><p><b>Justin Day @50shadezofDay:</b> Jason Pominville to the Wild. He adds a right-handed scoring threat that will be a great addition to their first PP unit.</p><p><b>adtrace @adtrace:</b> Funny thing about people touting Pominville deal is Sabres fans were thrilled to get rid of him. Biggest trade? Hardly.</p><p><b>Mikey Basile @mikeybasile1:</b> The Preds scoring Filip Forsberg for Martin Erat. Forsberg will make a big impact for them.</p><p><b>Chas McNeill @McNeill79:</b> Derick Brassard to the Rangers. Gobs of talent but lacked motivation. Needed change of scenery and new surroundings.</p><p><b>Matt Dickinson @Skiptrack:</b> Steve Mason to Philly. It pretty much means Ilya Bryzgalov will be gone next year. Flyers won&rsquo;t spend more than $9 million a year on goalies.</p><p><b>Clay Holt @clayace:</b> The Flames losing Jarome Iginla and Jay Bouwmeester. That almost assures them of landing a top-two pick.</p><p><b>T. Miller @thomasjoemiller:</b> Jerred Smithson to the Oilers. While the Oilers are making their playoff push, they need a guy who will win draws.</p><p><b>Chris Jablonski @chefjaaws:</b> Ben Bishop to the Lightning. All part of Stevie Y&rsquo;s plan to use just as many if not more goalies than the Flyers.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

CHIRPS

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-012190/9838887-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="522" height="135"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-021498/9838880-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="500" height="491"></div><p><b>PITTSBURGH</b> 44%</p><p><b>COLUMBUS</b> 21%</p><p><b>MINNESOTA</b> 12%</p><p><b>NY RANGERS</b> 10%</p><p><b>OTHER</b> 13%</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03935/9838873-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg" title="f0007-03" width="518" height="518"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>BRENDEN</p><p><b>MORROW</b></p></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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PUCKPOLL

<p><b>QUESTION:</b> When was the last time a goalie won the Calder Trophy? Robin Lehner has been posting good numbers. Do you think he could win it?</p><p><b><i>Chris Burke, Kanata, Ont.</i></b></p><p><b>ANSWER:</b> You needn&rsquo;t look back far at all to see a goalie claiming rookie of the year: Columbus&rsquo; Steve Mason won it in 2008-09, Boston&rsquo;s Andrew Raycroft won it in 2003-04 and Evgeni Nabokov (at 25) won it in 2000-01. The problem with Lehner is the lack of consistent work he&rsquo;s received in Ottawa. Craig Anderson and the now-traded Ben Bishop played more than the young Swede. That&rsquo;s ultimately why a skater will win it.</p><p><b>QUESTION:</b> Do you think it was a bad move for Pittsburgh to make those big trades? The team was already doing well without Jarome Iginla, Douglas Murray and Brenden Morrow. What if it changes team chemistry? Why fix something that ain&rsquo;t broken at all?</p><p><b><i>Pierre-Marc Drouin, Montreal</i></b></p><p><b>ANSWER:</b> There is risk any time you add a new element to a team. However, when you acquire three quality veterans as Pens GM Ray Shero did &ndash; and at a very reasonable cost &ndash; you look at what they can add, not take away. All three players are looking for their first Stanley Cup and on a team like Pittsburgh that has already climbed that mountain, you&rsquo;re adding a psychological motivator when you bring in the trio.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-04595/9838918-1-eng-US/f0007-042.jpg" title="f0007-04" width="827" height="689"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>ROBIN</p><p><b>LEHNER</b></p></figcaption></div><p><b>QUESTION:</b> Do you think Martin St-Louis will be a member of Team Canada at the Sochi Olympics? I was shocked when he wasn&rsquo;t picked in 2010. He brings great leadership, heart and can put up points consistently.</p><p><b><i>Matt Eizenga, Burlington, Ont.</i></b></p><p><b>ANSWER:</b> I&rsquo;d put St-Louis on my team any time. That said, Canada has unparalleled depth at forward, including Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Toews, Claude Giroux, Rick Nash, Eric Staal, Corey Perry, Tyler Seguin and Ryan Getzlaf Can you select a guy who will be 38 when the Games begin ahead of one of those players? Perhaps Yzerman atones for leaving St-Louis off the 2010 roster, but it&rsquo;s likely he&rsquo;ll be snubbed again due to a very deep pool of talent.</p><p>READ MORE &lsquo;ASK ADAM&rsquo; EVERY FRIDAY AT <a href="http://thehockeynews.com">THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM</a><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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Ask Adam?

<div class="byline">&#x2013; ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-012369/9838977-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="273" height="311"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021813/9838970-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="521" height="624"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEREK <b>ROY</b> <span class="photo-credit">(ROY: RICH LAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-031292/9838963-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="593" height="818"><figcaption class="caption-body">JAROMIR <b>JAGR</b> <span class="photo-credit">(JAGR: JARED WICKERHAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-04737/9838956-1-eng-US/f0008-042.jpg" title="f0008-04" width="498" height="597"><figcaption class="caption-body">RYANE <b>CLOWE</b> <span class="photo-credit">(CLOWE: BRUCE BENNETT/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-05523/9838949-1-eng-US/f0008-052.jpg" title="f0008-05" width="1123" height="1044"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>RENT TO OWN?</b></p><p>The Jarome Iginla trade could turn into outright thievery if he re-signs with the Penguins.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(IGINLA: GREGORY SHAMUS/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span><b>CQUIRING A RENTAL PLAYER</b> at the trade deadline is always a gamble. He could be the asset to help a team secure a Stanley Cup, but often the price paid for a rental dwarfs the results.</p><p>Hall of Famer Ray Bourque, considered to be the most successful rental player in recent memory, actually wasn&rsquo;t one. Colorado acquired Bourque, a pending unrestricted free agent, along with veteran left winger Dave Andreychuk in exchange for Brian Rolston, Sammy Pahlsson, defenseman Martin Grenier and a first round pick in March of 2000. Bourque and the Avalanche failed in their first attempt at winning a Cup, but he re-signed that summer and was part of their 2001 title. But what if Bourque hadn&rsquo;t remained in Colorado and either retired or signed elsewhere?</p><p>With league-wide parity growing each year, teams are hesitant to take such a risk. That was evident at this year&rsquo;s trade deadline when there were notable transactions, but only for players signed through at least 2013-14. When it came to rentals, even Jaromir Jagr, Derek Roy and Ryane Clowe fetched pittances by comparison to past hauls. Even when teams do bite on a rental deal, they often have a longer relationship in mind.</p><p>That was the case last season when Nashville dealt a first round pick for center Paul Gaustad, who had never posted more than 36 points in a single season. But when he signed a four-year, $13-million extension, the expenditure became more palatable. &ldquo;Many times when you&rsquo;ve made the move to acquire a player, your intention is to re-sign them to recoup your costs,&rdquo; said Predators assistant GM Paul Fenton. &ldquo;If the player is retained, the price may not be as shocking as it may appear on the day you make the trade.&rdquo;</p><p>As always, perspective is everything when it comes to players in the final year of their contract.</p><p>One Eastern Conference executive said that rather than searching for another franchise&rsquo;s player to help on a short-term basis, teams would be well advised to look inward first and pinpoint their pending UFAs as potential low-risk, high-reward solutions. &ldquo;If you have a player that&rsquo;s perceived as a rental and in theory you can get something back for him, but he&rsquo;s in a position to help you over the rest of the regular season and the playoffs, philosophically is that like you getting a rental without giving anything up?&rdquo; the executive said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re not getting anything back, but you&rsquo;re not giving anything up. And the player isn&rsquo;t walking away for nothing &ndash; you&rsquo;re getting his cap space.&rdquo;</p><p>As we saw with Corey Perry in the weeks leading to this year&rsquo;s deadline, it&rsquo;s less likely teams allow star players to get to rental status and the trade market. Those who do, such as former Flames captain Jarome Iginla, are usually armed with no-trade clauses that give them power to determine their destinations.</p><p>Instead, it&rsquo;s the league&rsquo;s lower classes who will be shopped around more frequently. &ldquo;If I put my job on the line over a trade, I assure you it&rsquo;s not going to be for a big move at the deadline and especially for a player who has no horse in the race beyond this season,&rdquo; the executive said. &ldquo;But a trade for a complementary rental player costing you a mid-round pick or average prospect? I&rsquo;ll make that trade every year.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-01

RENTAL MARKET GETS SOFTER

<div class="byline">By Charlie Teljeur</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-012108/9839008-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0009-01

THE INSTIGATOR

<div class="byline">&#x2013; BRIAN MURPHY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0010-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-012344/9839077-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SHATTERING THE CEILING</b></p><p>Amanda Kessel is the fourth player in women&rsquo;s NCAA history to reach 100 points in a season.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(KESSEL: UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span> <b>JOYFUL AMANDA KESSEL</b> celebrated the Minnesota Golden Gophers&rsquo; record-shattering NCAA title, grateful to share history with her teammates and aware of the ephemeral nature of their achievement.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04766/9839070-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="180" height="107"></div><p>The Patty Kazmaier Award winner as the country&rsquo;s most prolific player helped the Gophers win their second straight national title, completing a 41-0 season and extending their winning streak to 49 games. The junior winger became just the fourth player to eclipse 100 points in a season. (Minnesota&rsquo;s Natalie Darwitz holds the NCAA record with 114 points in 2004-05. Teammate Krissy Wendell had 104 points the same season. Jennifer Botterill of Harvard had 112 points in 2002-03.)</p><p>Kessel, sister of Toronto Maple Leafs right winger Phil, is expected to return for her senior season after playing in Sochi, Russia, for the 2014 U.S. Olympic team. She&rsquo;ll have plenty of memories to keep her collegiate fire burning. &ldquo;A lot of people are crying, but it hasn&rsquo;t hit me yet,&rdquo; Kessel said after Minnesota&rsquo;s dominant 6-3 win over Boston University in the March 24 championship game. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to be sad not playing with this bunch of great seniors. But I just can&rsquo;t stop smiling. I thought it was impossible. We made the impossible possible.&rdquo;</p><p>With history and the pressure of defending a national championship bearing down at their home arena, the Gophers rose to the challenge and scaled heights reached by no other team in the sport. Since the NCAA sanctioned women&rsquo;s hockey in 2001, no Div. I team has had an undefeated season. Wisconsin came close in 2007, when it won the national championship with a 36-1-4 record.</p><p>Minnesota added to a trophy case that includes consecutive national titles in 2004 and &rsquo;05. The Gophers&rsquo; toughest games were a triple-overtime win over archrival North Dakota in the WCHA championship followed by a 3-2 overtime victory over Mercyhurst in the national semifinal. &ldquo;I do feel like the weight of an undefeated season weighed on them not playing as well when you&rsquo;re in a one-and-done situation,&rdquo; said coach Brad Frost. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just mindboggling. I can&rsquo;t even believe it. To go 41-0 is amazing. It&rsquo;s very surreal.&rdquo;</p><p>The Gophers boasted the country&rsquo;s three best players, including blueliner Megan Bozek and goalie Noora Raty, the Finnish phenom who concluded her collegiate career as the NCAA&rsquo;s all-time leader in victories (114) and shutouts (43). For the second straight year, Raty earned the Frozen Four&rsquo;s most outstanding player honor. The 2010 Olympic bronze medallist finished the season 38-0 with a 0.96 goals-against average and .956 save percentage. &ldquo;I just want to say it feels way better to be national champ than MVP,&rdquo; she said.</p><p>Kessel was clutch when the stakes were highest, with two goals and four points against the Terriers. She edged her teammates for the Kazmaier. &ldquo;All three, to me, could have won the award,&rdquo; Frost said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know how the voting turned out. I&rsquo;m sure it was very close. It&rsquo;s great to see Amanda win it, but just as easily Noora or Megan could have won it.&rdquo;</p><p>Basking in their second straight national title and an unblemished season, the Gophers were unwilling to proclaim themselves the greatest ever, preferring to let the facts speak. &ldquo;Doesn&rsquo;t that already say we are the best or arguably the best women&rsquo;s team in history?&rdquo; Raty said. &ldquo;No other team has done this.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

PICTURE PERFECT

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021718/9839115-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="491" height="734"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MENS CIS: DEREK MORTENSEN/HOCKEY HALL OF FAME)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>M</span>ake it four Canadian Interuniversity Sport titles in the past seven years for the University of New Brunswick men&rsquo;s team after second-seeded UNB beat the Saint Mary&rsquo;s Huskies 2-0 for its fifth University Cup. Former NHL goalie Daniel LaCosta made 17 saves for the shutout.</p><p>Led by team captain <b>CHRIS CULLIGAN</b>, the Varsity Reds went 3-0 in the six-team tourney, outscoring opponents 13-4. Tyler Carroll was named MVP, with four goals in three games. <b>&ndash; BYRON HACKETT</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-031111/9839108-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="455" height="527"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(WOMEN&rsquo;S CIS: RICK DENHAM/HOCKEY HALL OF FAME)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>THE MONTREAL CARABINS</b> defeated the defending champion University of Calgary Dinos for the 2013 CIS women&rsquo;s title.</p><p>The championship is the first for the Carabins&rsquo; women&rsquo;s program and the first CIS school banner for the Universite de Montreal since it brought back its athletics program in 1995. Captain Kim Deschenes received MVP honors, scoring two goals in the 3-2 win over the Dinos in the final. <b>&ndash; LINDSAY COLLICOTT</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-02

CIS WRAP UP

<div class="byline">&#x2013; CHANELLE SEGUIN</div><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span><b>N A CONDENSED SEASON, ONE OF</b> the most difficult challenges for players is how to push themselves without overexerting, how to bend and not break.</p><p>Many players are wary of how much they are putting their bodies through. And coaches are, too, which is why their trying to keep their players from fatigue and injury by limiting onice workouts. &ldquo;Practices have changed a lot,&rdquo; Boston Bruins defenseman Dennis Seidenberg said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t remember the last hard drill or long practise we had. And you can&rsquo;t, because you have to stay sharp for the game. If you practise too long and do wrong things, you&rsquo;re going to over-train yourself and it&rsquo;s not going to help.&rdquo;</p><p>With teams playing 48 games in 99 days, rest is the priority and practice time is at a premium. Morning skates are no longer a quick hour of basic drills to get the legs moving and blood pumping. They&rsquo;re now used for practises. &ldquo;Every minute is really precious,&rdquo; said Florida Panthers coach Kevin Dineen. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s so important with the travel&hellip;Every drill, we&rsquo;re trying to get a little something accomplished.&rdquo;</p><p>Finding gym time has been tricky, too. In a compressed season, players have to be smart about their off-ice workouts. &ldquo;You try to make (going to the gym) happen,&rdquo; said Florida defenseman Brian Campbell. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s just how you&rsquo;re feeling, getting time in, not long workouts. But if you can maintain something and make it short, it&rsquo;s going to make you better.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011949/9839153-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="921" height="754"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SHORT AND SIMPLE</b></p><p>The Boston Bruins have kept practices short and shied away from doing hard drills.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(BOSTON: STEVE BABINEAU)</span></figcaption></div><p>With the increased likelihood of injuries, keeping a healthy roster has garnered even greater importance, which is why Dineen doesn&rsquo;t do any drills, particularly 1-on-1 compete drills down low, that could result in losing a player.</p><p>In a full 82-game campaign, teams could spend multiple practices working on specialty team, breakout or faceoff drills. This season, each practise is different, depending on weaknesses seen the game before. &ldquo;I always try to pick one thing every morning skate,&rdquo; Dineen said, &ldquo;to try to work out hoping that it will play into effect that night.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-021417/9839146-1-eng-US/f0011-022.jpg" title="f0011-02" width="513" height="756"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>KEVIN</p><p><b>DINEEN</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(DINEEN: ELIOT J. SCHECHTER/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0011-01

WE’RE TALKING ’BOUT PRACTICE?

<div class="byline">&#x2013; ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-03952/9839191-1-eng-US/f0011-032.jpg" title="f0011-03" width="533" height="1002"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(KNIGHT: BRANDON TAYLOR/CWHL)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>M</span>ARKHAM, ONT. &ndash;</b> Hilary Knight completed a dream season when her Boston-based Canadian Women&rsquo;s League team won the Clarkson Cup championship in late March. Now she and her American teammates turn their attention to adding an Olympic gold medal at the 2014 games in Sochi, Russia.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-04710/9839184-1-eng-US/f0011-042.jpg" title="f0011-04" width="152" height="152"></div><p>If they are to do so, though, they&rsquo;ll need her to be at least as dominant as she was this year. &ldquo;To win any championship is a great moment,&rdquo; said Knight, who was named the CWHL&rsquo;s MVP before her Boston Blades beat the Montreal Stars 5-2 to win the team&rsquo;s first Clarkson Cup title. &ldquo;All individual awards in a team sport are really team awards. We like to keep it light and have fun, but we work hard and to be recognized on this stage is something special.&rdquo;</p><p>The 23-year-old Knight finished tied for the CWHL lead in goals with 17 in 24 games and led all Clarkson Cup point-getters with five points in the four-game tournament. The Sun Valley, Idaho, native &ndash; who uses her 5-foot-11 frame masterfully on the ice and can see the game as well as any elite female player &ndash; got her initial Olympic experience at the 2010 Games and took home a silver medal after losing to Canada in the final, but she won&rsquo;t be satisfied with the same results in Sochi.</p><p>That said, Knight is thankful to have a league in which to play during non-Olympic years. When she left her NCAA team at the University of Wisconsin, Knight learned what all older elite players know: finding a highly competitive game is no easy task. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m so fortunate to have the CWHL and a good, competitive schedule,&rdquo; Knight said. &ldquo;This is national team players vs. national team players and you can&rsquo;t get any better than that for training.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0011-03

KNIGHT RIDER

<div class="byline">&#x2013; CASEY IPPOLITO</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-012285/9839271-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="714" height="631"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SELANNE: GERRY THOMAS/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>e won&rsquo;t bet on it, but a pair of all-time greats might ice their NHL careers at season&rsquo;s end. Jaromir Jagr and Teemu Selanne, 10th and 11th in career goals, are surefire Hall of Famers who have terrorized opposing goalies. Selanne electrified the NHL in his 1992 rookie season, two years after the mullet-clad Jagr, who took a three-season hiatus from 2008-09 to 2010-11 to play in the KHL. Since Jagr came into the league, no NHLer has more points. Since Selanne debuted, none has more goals.</p><p>In honor of their two decades of dominance, we&rsquo;ve compiled a comparison of Jagr and Selanne, the greatest Czech and Finn to ever play in the NHL.</p><h2><b>TEEMU</b>&nbsp;SELANNE</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021803/9839278-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="174" height="98"></div><p><b>&gt; Drafted</b>: 10th, 1988 (Winnipeg)</p><p><b>&gt; Age:</b> 42</p><p><b>&gt; Pos:</b> Right winger</p><h3><b>Individual achievements:</b></h3><p><b>&gt;</b> Stanley Cup (Anaheim, 2007)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> Calder Trophy (1993)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> NHL&rsquo;s leading goal scorer (&rsquo;93, &rsquo;98, &rsquo;99)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> Masterton Trophy (2006)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> First-Team All-Star (twice)</p><h3><b><i>VS</i></b></h3><h2><b>JAROMIR</b>&nbsp;JAGR</h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-031167/9839264-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="120" height="121"></div><p><b>&gt; Drafted</b>: 5th, 1990 (Pittsburgh)</p><p><b>&gt; Age:</b> 41</p><p><b>&gt; Pos:</b> Right Winger</p></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><h3><b>Individual achievements:</b></h3><p><b>&gt;</b> Two Stanley Cups (Pittsburgh, &rsquo;91 and &rsquo;92)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> Art Ross Trophy (&rsquo;95, &rsquo;98, &rsquo;99, &rsquo;00, &rsquo;01)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> Hart Trophy (&rsquo;99)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> Ted Lindsay Award (&rsquo;99, &rsquo;00, &rsquo;06)</p><p><b>&gt;</b> First-Team All-Star (seven times)</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-04702/9839257-1-eng-US/f0012-042.jpg" title="f0012-04" width="739" height="588"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JAGR: JARED WICKERHAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>SEASON BY SEASON GOALS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-05492/9839250-1-eng-US/f0012-052.jpg" title="f0012-05" width="398" height="47"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-06397/9839243-1-eng-US/f0012-062.jpg" title="f0012-06" width="1705" height="581"></div><h2><b>SEASON BY SEASON POINTS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-07325/9839236-1-eng-US/f0012-072.jpg" title="f0012-07" width="398" height="46"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-08274/9839229-1-eng-US/f0012-082.jpg" title="f0012-08" width="1716" height="982"></div><h2><b>ALL-TIME STATS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-09219/9839222-1-eng-US/f0012-092.jpg" title="f0012-09" width="530" height="1732"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0012-01

Great GREYBEARDS

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011992/9839316-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="505" height="560"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>pril 29, while playoff teams are preparing for the post-season, each of the NHL&rsquo;s outsiders will be hoping lady luck comes its way. That&rsquo;s because for the first time in NHL history all 14 non-playoff teams (or clubs that acquired their first-rounders) have a shot at the No. 1 overall selection. Only one, however, will get lucky. The others will slip somewhere else among the top 14 spots. No team can move down more than one position. See where your team is likely to slide in.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-021388/9839309-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="1703" height="1403"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0013-01

Feeling LUCKY?

<div class="byline">&#x2013; JON WALDMAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-031007/9839347-1-eng-US/f0013-032.jpg" title="f0013-03" width="399" height="559"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(THE UPPER DECK COMPANY)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>J</span>onathan Huberdeau, Cory Conacher, Justin Schultz and other NHL rookies will remain freshmen next season in the trading card world. The NHLPA, in consultation with card companies, disallowed this season&rsquo;s rookies from being in 2012-13 card sets, which meant the freshman class is limited to players like Chris Kreider, who debuted after the 2012 All-Star Game. &ldquo;We had to move forward and build products accordingly,&rdquo; said Karvin Cheung, Product Development Director at Panini America.</p><p>After the 2004-05 lockout, 2005-06 featured a double dose of rookies, including Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. Next season&rsquo;s sets will be similar, said Chris Carlin, Upper Deck&rsquo;s Sports Marketing Manager. &ldquo;It is lining up to be a very deep class with a bevy of standout players.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0013-03

SOPHOMORE ROOKIES

f0014-11

TRADE DEADLINE DRAMA

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-07325/9839482-1-eng-US/f0014-072.jpg" title="f0014-07" width="443" height="486"></div><h2><b>1976</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-06418/9839489-1-eng-US/f0014-062.jpg" title="f0014-06" width="119" height="112"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><p>Atlanta Flames draft Kent Nilsson 64th overall</p><h2><b>1985</b></h2><p>Now in Calgary, Flames deal Nilsson to North Stars for a second-rounder and use it to draft Joe Nieuwendyk</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-08266/9839475-1-eng-US/f0014-082.jpg" title="f0014-08" width="201" height="479"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(NILSSON: STEVE BABINEAU/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>1995</b></h2><p>Calgary sends Nieuwendyk to Dallas Stars for Jarome Iginla</p><h2><b>2013</b></h2><p>Flames trade Iginla to Penguins for first round pick and rights to Kenneth Agostino and Ben Hanowski</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-09231/9839468-1-eng-US/f0014-092.jpg" title="f0014-09" width="489" height="479"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(AL BELLO/ALLSPORT+JUSTIN K. ALLER/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0014-07

Trail of the Trade

<div class="byline">BY GRANT MCCAGG</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011959/9839555-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(DEKEYSER: GS PHOTO/WMU ATHLETICS)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-03964/9839562-1-eng-US/f0015-032.jpg" title="f0015-03" width="233" height="231"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span><b>HIS YEAR&rsquo;S GROUP OF U.S. COLLEGE FREE AGENTS LACKED A</b> top-end talent in the Justin Schultz mold, but the depth of the field led to recruiting battles for the services of several undrafted collegians, including three highly regarded D-men.</p><p>This year&rsquo;s big catch was Western Michigan&rsquo;s Danny DeKeyser, a 6-foot-3 mobile, stay-at-home defenseman who signed a two-year NHL deal with Detroit <a href="http://Mar.ch">Mar.ch</a> 29. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s not a flashy player who will wow you with an end-to-end rush, but he&rsquo;s a solid shutdown defender with some jam who skates very well,&rdquo; said one NHL scout. &ldquo;He shouldn&rsquo;t be too far away from an NHL position.&rdquo;</p><p>DeKeyser&rsquo;s 49 points in 118 CCHA career games, and career-low 15 points this season, are strong indicators the Michigan native won&rsquo;t be asked to play an offensive role. &ldquo;Offense is not his game,&rdquo; the scout said. &ldquo;You hope he becomes a shutdown guy who is on your top PK unit, who&rsquo;s on the ice the last minute protecting a lead and making life difficult in the corners and in front of the net.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>DANNY DEKEYSER</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> DETROIT</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> MATT GREENE</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-021389/9839548-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="412" height="425"></div><h2><b>ANDREJ SUSTR</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> TAMPA BAY</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> JEFF SCHULTZ</p><p>Andrej Sustr, signed at the start of free agency March 21 is a towering defenseman at 6-foot-8, 220 pounds.</p><p>The Czech-born 22-year-old just completed his junior year at the University of Nebraska-Omaha, compiling a career-high nine goals and 25 points in 35 games. &ldquo;For a guy his size he skates pretty well,&rdquo; said one Eastern Conference scout. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t expect (Zdeno) Chara in his own end, though, he&rsquo;s not very hard to play against physically. He relies more on his skating, reach and stick than his brawn in defensive situations.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-04722/9839541-1-eng-US/f0015-042.jpg" title="f0015-04" width="411" height="427"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SCHMIDT: UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA ATHLETICS)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>NATE SCHMIDT</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> WASHINGTON</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> MARK GIORDANO</p><p>Nate Schmidt, a six-foot, 195-pound junior blueliner from the University of Minnesota signed a two-year entry-level deal with the Washington Capitals April 2. &ldquo;This kid plays all out,&rdquo; said one pro scout. &ldquo;He arrives in a foul mood and makes you pay the price. Too bad he wasn&rsquo;t larger. He&rsquo;ll find it tougher to play that style as he moves up.&rdquo;</p><p>The slick skating St. Cloud, Minn., native provides some offensive skills, having collected 73 points in 83 games the past two seasons. &ldquo;He may not be on your first unit, but he could be on an NHL power play some day,&rdquo; the scout said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a decent puck distributor.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-05504/9839534-1-eng-US/f0015-052.jpg" title="f0015-05" width="411" height="413"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(LAGANIERE: YALE ATHLETICS)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>ANTOINE LAGANIERE</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> UNSIGNED</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> JOE COLBORNE</p><p>Antoine Lageniere was considered the top free agent college forward available, having shown steady improvement over his four-year career at Yale, culminating in a Frozen Four appearance this season.</p><p>Lageniere is notable for his puck protection skills and long reach, but will need to continue refining his game. &ldquo;There will always be interest in a skilled, 6-foot-4 center who is productive,&rdquo; said one Eastern Conference assistant GM, &ldquo;but he still needs to work on his overall game, including his skating strength. He will need to compete more consistently to make it to the next level.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-06405/9839527-1-eng-US/f0015-062.jpg" title="f0015-06" width="411" height="421"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(HARTZELL: QUINNIPIAC ATHLETICS)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>ERIC HARTZELL</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> UNSIGNED</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> MIKE SMITH</p><p>Quinnipiac stalwart goalie Eric Hartzell is a 6-foot-4 senior who backstopped his club to a Frozen Four appearance.</p><p>The Hobey Baker Award finalist led all NCAA goalies with 29 wins and stifled opponents with a 1.55 goals-against average and .933 save percentage. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s the reason that team is so good,&rdquo; said a scout. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a dominant goalie. With his height he covers a lot of the net and isn&rsquo;t afraid to challenge shooters. Plus, he&rsquo;s technically sound.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-07343/9839520-1-eng-US/f0015-072.jpg" title="f0015-07" width="411" height="432"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SUSTR+WALTERS: JEFF BEIERMANN/OMAHA ATHLETICS)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>RYAN WALTERS</b></h2><p><b>NHL TEAM:</b> UNSIGNED</p><p><b>COMPARABLE:</b> MIKE SANTORELLI</p><p>University of Nebraska-Omaha pivot Ryan Walters is a six-foot junior from Rosemount, Minn., who more than doubled his career high with 52 points. &ldquo;He really came on this season&rdquo; said the pro scout, who thinks Walters has a good chance of making the step up to the NHL. &ldquo;He was a force at both ends of the ice. He&rsquo;s a smart player who anticipates the play well. He&rsquo;s not a speedster, but he&rsquo;s slippery. He moves well laterally.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-01

PAY DAY FOR NCAA UFA CROP

<div class="byline">BY MICHAEL RUSSO</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-012028/9839607-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>M</span>IKE YEO, MINNESOTA&rsquo;S SECOND-YEAR coach, tried to convince Darryl Sydor to turn the dial, but the Wild assistant couldn&rsquo;t help himself. He likes listening to sports radio and early in the season and nearly drove off the road a few times when he heard Ryan Suter being sliced and diced by the talking heads behind the mic.</p><p>&ldquo;I wanted to call up and be like, &lsquo;Uh, this is Bob from Woodbury. Are you stupid?&rsquo;&rdquo; Sydor says, using a fake voice. &ldquo;I look back and I&rsquo;ve been in the same situation where I&rsquo;ve gone to a new team and everything&rsquo;s new. We all knew down deep in the guts of the whole thing that it takes time.</p><p>&ldquo;But Ryan&rsquo;s a levelheaded guy. He&rsquo;s just like a duck. Water off the back. It doesn&rsquo;t bother him. He knew where he was going to be and what type of player he is, and now he&rsquo;s relishing it.&rdquo;</p><p>To see where Suter&rsquo;s level of play has risen to now compared to those dog days of January, it&rsquo;s almost laughable there was so much scrutiny and, frankly, panic in the brisk Minnesota air. As part of the July 4 fireworks that still reverberate through the Twin Cities, Suter came to the Wild along with Zach Parise to the tune of $98 million over 13 years. After he looked lost his first half-dozen games, fans and media critics started to wonder what the heck the Wild had gotten themselves into.</p><p>Suter <i>was</i> lost. And understandably so. In Nashville, he spent most of his career playing alongside one defense partner, Shea Weber. He was coached by one man, Barry Trotz. He never had to adjust to playing with a new partner, learning a new system, living and acclimating himself to a new city.</p><p>He admits now he was &ldquo;just overwhelmed&rdquo; those first couple weeks. &ldquo;When you make a change like that, everything changes, not just the team, everything &ndash; your routines before the game, where you&rsquo;re living,&rdquo; Suter says. &ldquo;I was just trying to get everything under control. At first, it&rsquo;s kind of shell-shock. New systems and new everything and you just don&rsquo;t feel comfortable.</p><p>&ldquo;When that happens, it feels like everything&rsquo;s going against you.&rdquo;</p><p>But starting with a two-assist game in which he helped set up the overtime winner against his old team, Nashville, Feb. 9, Suter and the Wild have taken off.</p><p>As of April 1, Suter led the NHL in ice time per game (27:18) and was tied for the league lead among defensemen with 25 assists and 28 points. The last defenseman to pace the NHL in all three categories was Hall of Famer Brian Leetch in 2000-01.</p><p>Suter has given the Wild the No. 1 defenseman they have long sought. He plays half the game, controls the play, gets the puck out of the defensive zone, creates offense and calms the waters.</p><p>Paired with Calder Trophy contender Jonas Brodin, a mobile 19-year-old with similar ice in his veins, Suter is a bona fide Norris Trophy candidate and displayed exactly why Parise made sure to align himself with him during last summer&rsquo;s free agent frenzy.</p><p>Yeo says the number of subtle things Suter does on the ice that lead to big things is remarkable. Suter&rsquo;s calming demeanor has become contagious and his poise with the puck continually leads to smooth exits and quick transitions, which of course lead to offensive zone time.</p><p>The Wild continue to be stingy defensively while climbing the charts offensively. &ldquo;You think how much of the game is played in the neutral zone, just kind of like a Ping Pong ball back and forth,&rdquo; Parise says. &ldquo;When you can get a flat pass in stride, it&rsquo;s a tough thing for a D-man to do, but he&rsquo;s got the ability to do that, to get you going, to lead you forward and put it flat on your tape so you don&rsquo;t have to take that extra second trying to settle it down.</p><p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s a small thing, but that&rsquo;s the difference between just tipping a puck in or carrying it on a rush.&rdquo;</p><p>Assistant coach Rick Wilson is the man who throws the defensemen over the boards. He&rsquo;s coached some of the greats, from Paul Coffey and Rob Blake to Sergei Zubov and Sydor in Dallas.</p><p>Wilson has rarely seen a defenseman as level-headed as Suter. He hardly ever scrambles around his own end, he barely gets hit and constantly wins puck battles. &ldquo;The top guys all have the genuine sincerity to compete &ndash; they want to win,&rdquo; Wilson says. &ldquo;But with Suter, there&rsquo;s no anxious energy, which hurts a lot of players. He can just stay a little calmer. He plays at the tempo that he thinks the game needs to be played at that time. He&rsquo;s got about five speeds and can change it in a snap.&rdquo;</p><p>Suter&rsquo;s game seemed to climb after a conversation early in the year with GM Chuck Fletcher. Fletcher started to hear the criticism and wanted to ensure Suter knew the Wild were thrilled that they signed him and that it would take time. &ldquo;I wanted to remind him he and Zach didn&rsquo;t sign 10-day contracts. They were 13-year contracts, that people will form their own opinions, but that &lsquo;we&rsquo;re happy we have you.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>In that conversation, Fletcher told Suter his guess was it would take 20 games to adjust. That number was almost like a wakeup call to Suter. If it took him 20 games in a 48-game season, what would that do to the Wild&rsquo;s playoff chances?</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sitting there thinking, &lsquo;Twenty games is too long. If he says it&rsquo;s 20, I&rsquo;m going to try to make it 10,&rsquo;&rdquo; Suter says.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011746/9839600-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="950" height="1175"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>NORTH STAR</b></p><p>After a sluggish start, Ryan Suter now sees his name among the league leaders.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(DAVE REGINEK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;HE DOESN&rsquo;T GET TOO HIGH. HE&rsquo;S JUST A FLAT-LINER, WHICH IS THE BEST TYPE OF DEFENSEMAN<br>&ndash; Darryl Sydor</blockquote><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-021330/9839593-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="537" height="863"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(BRUCE KLUCKHOHN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Today, in Minnesota, the accolades toward Suter keep pouring in, yet as Sydor says, &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t get too high. He&rsquo;s just a flat-liner, which is the best type of defenseman. It&rsquo;s like the way he is on the ice. No matter what happens in a game, whether it&rsquo;s good or bad, he just goes out the next shift and does his job.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s calming to know a guy of his stature is back there.&rdquo;</p><p>Suter&rsquo;s presence allows the Wild&rsquo;s other defensemen to be slotted into roles more suited for them. He&rsquo;s also a tremendous mentor for young blueliners like Brodin, Jared Spurgeon and eventually Mathew Dumba, Minnesota&rsquo;s first pick last June (seventh overall).</p><p>Suter is a quiet guy, but Parise sensed how much the tough adjustment was eating at Suter. &ldquo;But now you can tell the confidence he&rsquo;s playing with,&rdquo; Parise says. &ldquo;Around the locker room, it&rsquo;s not like he was pouting, but seeing him now, you can tell he feels a lot better.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0016-01

FEATURES

SUTER’S CRITICS EAT CROW

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03946/9839659-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="274" height="172"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>E</span>arly panic over Ryan Suter&rsquo;s production with the Wild was understandable based on his numbers in seven January games, but he trended upward during his 12 February outings and took off in 15 March contests. As a result, Minnesota has vaulted into the Northwest Division title hunt &ndash; and Suter has emerged as a favorite for the Norris Trophy.</p><h2><b>POINTS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-04691/9839652-1-eng-US/f0017-042.jpg" title="f0017-04" width="629" height="559"></div><h2><b>PLUS/MINUS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-05485/9839645-1-eng-US/f0017-052.jpg" title="f0017-05" width="630" height="559"></div><h2><b>HITS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-06372/9839638-1-eng-US/f0017-062.jpg" title="f0017-06" width="630" height="560"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-03

ON THE RISE

<div class="byline">By&nbsp;RYAN KENNEDY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011907/9839711-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="262" height="241"></div><p class="dropcap"><b><i><span>M</span></i>ATT DUCHENE IS A RENAIS</b>sance man. Always has been. Not only is the fourth-year pro a very good hockey player, but he also plays guitar and once designed the jersey for the high school team in his hometown of Haliburton, Ont. Which is to say he knows how to translate things from brain to fingers.</p><p>But last season, his brain was tripping him up and the rest of his body wasn&rsquo;t following. The kid who burst onto the NHL scene as an 18-year-old with the Colorado Avalanche in 2009-10 saw his points per game drop, as well as his ice time and his plus-minus. After being named to the all-rookie team and playing in the All-Star Game as a sophomore, Duchene was hit with injuries to his ankle and knee that limited him to 58 games after missing just three total in his first two campaigns. Something was amiss and it was time to reassess his approach to the game &ndash; starting with his off-ice regimen. &ldquo;I got away from my game plan,&rdquo; Duchene says. &ldquo;I went overboard in the weight room and got away from what made me tick.&rdquo;</p><p>The slick speedster went from an athlete who cared about form to one who focused on big weights and big reps and it wasn&rsquo;t working. &ldquo;I started listening to a lot of outside sources, too many different voices,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I needed to get back to my roots.&rdquo;</p><p>So this summer, he went back to Haliburton and Laurie Kah, who along with Sidney Crosby&rsquo;s trainer Andy O&rsquo;Brien and on-ice skills coach Darryl Belfry got Duchene&rsquo;s body in tune. The results have been excellent: Duchene was a point-per-game player for the first time in his young career, making magic with P-A Parenteau on Colorado&rsquo;s most dangerous line. &ldquo;Matt has a real intrinsic feel for his body and that&rsquo;s why he can apply lessons so quickly,&rdquo; Belfry says. &ldquo;You can tell a player something or show it to them, but most of your top young players today are feel-based, a motion goes from awkward to comfortable. Matt can understand when he can feel what is going on.&rdquo;</p><p>Belfry, who is based in St. Catharines, Ont., works 1-on-1 with a host of NHLers from John Tavares and Patrick Kane to Shawn Horcoff and Dan Girardi. Duchene and Crosby worked with him in Los Angeles over the summer, with glowing reports. &ldquo;He put us through our paces,&rdquo; Duchene says. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s been huge for my game.&rdquo;</p><p>Belfry keeps in touch with his clients via video during the season, hammering home the specific skills he wanted them to develop. &ldquo;Young players, when they move from junior to the NHL or from one role on a team to another, they don&rsquo;t necessarily know what skill got them there,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;For Matt, his best attribute is his skating ability. What we found through video analysis is that he was generating offense off the rush, but not down low. He was either stationary or had no speed. Now, he has movement down low. He can manipulate defenders.&rdquo;</p><p>Duchene&rsquo;s skating is what Belfry refers to as the pivot&rsquo;s &ldquo;Pandora skill,&rdquo; which when added or improved opens up other skills in a player&rsquo;s game and allows him to make big gains in a short amount of time. From there, a &ldquo;habit profile&rdquo; is created, containing objectives Duchene is to use each game (there&rsquo;s a &ldquo;magic number&rdquo; for these, but the amount is a trade secret for Belfry). For instance, if Duchene can be a threat off the wall in the offensive zone, he can force defenders to switch the man they&rsquo;re covering. That opens up more opportunities for Duchene and his linemates, since chaos favors the attackers. Changing speeds is also important for the Colorado center to keep in mind. &ldquo;No matter how fast you are,&rdquo; Belfry says, &ldquo;guys can gap you at the NHL level.&rdquo;</p><p>It almost appears to be kismet that Duchene has played alongside Parenteau this season, where the former Islanders wizard and the big-bodied Jamie McGinn have been glove fits for the 22-year-old. &ldquo;P-A likes to slow the game down,&rdquo; says Avs coach Joe Sacco. &ldquo;He has a lot of patience with the puck and he&rsquo;ll curl around at the blueline and hold onto it. &lsquo;Dutchie&rsquo; is a straight-ahead, push-the-pace kind of player, so they work well together because P-A can dish him the puck when Dutchie has speed.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-011670/9839704-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="2445" height="3270"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GERRY THOMAS/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES;)</span></figcaption></div><p>But before the skilled center refined his skill game on the ice, he had to become one with himself in the gym. &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re in the right position in the weight room,&rdquo; Duchene says, &ldquo;you&rsquo;ll be in the right position on the ice.&rdquo;</p><p>With Kah, the Colorado star was getting back to fitness routines he had done growing up, activities that were movement - based and organic. &ldquo;I was always comfortable with my strength,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;But I was disconnected. My legs were working on their own, my core was working on its own.&rdquo;</p><p>With Kah and O&rsquo;Brien providing a 1-2 training punch, Duchene got right. He met with O&rsquo;Brien in Los Angeles, spending all of June with the guru and really getting down to brass tacks. &ldquo;The first time I met Matt, we spent five or six hours just talking,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien says. &ldquo;I really just wanted to get to know him. His numbers were significantly down from the previous year and I wanted to know why he thought that was.&rdquo;</p><p>Duchene thought he lacked jump in his game, so O&rsquo;Brien began to do some detective work. Was there a biomechanical issue? After all, Duchene had sustained injuries to his knee and ankle last season. Could it be neurological? Timing is everything for an elite athlete and if the messages aren&rsquo;t getting to the right place at the time, all the raw power in the world won&rsquo;t matter. As it turns out, it was a bit of both. Neurologically, Duchene had an undiagnosed intolerance to gluten. An autoimmune reaction to that caused inflammation, general stiffness and decreasing flexibility, so he went through a total diet change (see sidebar).</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b><i>&ldquo;If you&rsquo;re in the right position in the weight room, you&rsquo;ll be in the right position on the ice</i></b><br>&ndash; Matt Duchene</blockquote><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-011660/9839697-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="1030" height="917"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b><i>OUT OF SYNCH</i></b></p><p>Matt Duchene&rsquo;s body parts, trainers concluded, weren&rsquo;t working in harmony.</p></figcaption></div><p>Biomechanically, Duchene&rsquo;s earlier injuries were indeed having a lasting effect. &ldquo;There were definitely times where he felt under-recovered last year,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien says. &ldquo;What we found is that he had a really limited range of motion in his hip. That was causing a lot of deficiencies.&rdquo;</p><p>Duchene&rsquo;s ankle, knee and hip were not working together in synch and that&rsquo;s what it&rsquo;s all about. O&rsquo;Brien&rsquo;s directives worked on better posture, hip flexibility, better activation in Duchene&rsquo;s core and even the angles of his shins. &ldquo;At first it was so difficult for me,&rdquo; Duchene says. &ldquo;It was always like tapping your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. I wanted to get more hockey-specific and he&rsquo;s the best when it comes to hockey training. He finds my weaknesses and helps them. He&rsquo;ll definitely be my trainer for the rest of my career.&rdquo;</p><p>On the ice, the new trainer noticed Duchene had some inefficiencies in his techniques even an elite skater could stand to eliminate. &ldquo;We talked a lot about the way he moved on the ice when he was making plays,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien says. &ldquo;For example, when he crossed his feet, his body moved upwards, whereas you should be staying low in order to accelerate.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-021189/9839690-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="2279" height="1596"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b><i>PEAK PRODUCTION</i></b></p><p>Into early April, Duchene&rsquo;s point-per-game pace was the highest of his career.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(JEFF VINN ICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>With the body taken care of, Duchene still had the matter of his head. Losing was not familiar for a kid who followed success in junior on the Ontario League&rsquo;s Brampton Battalion with a playoff berth in his NHL rookie season, where the Avs nearly upset top-seeded San Jose in the opening round. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a very passionate individual,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien says. &ldquo;And he&rsquo;s very passionate about the Colorado Avalanche, the team he grew up cheering for. It weighed on him. But to Matt&rsquo;s credit, he says, &lsquo;I&rsquo;m better than this.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>And though Duchene&rsquo;s 67 points as a sophomore improved upon his 55 points as a rookie, last season his points-per-game average was nearly slashed in half. &ldquo;Maybe he put a little too much pressure on himself to score, rather than focus on his other responsibilities,&rdquo; Sacco says. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s more confident this year, much like he was in his first season. When you&rsquo;re 18, you&rsquo;ve got nothing to lose. You just go out and play your game.&rdquo;</p><p>Which, thanks to the lockout, is what Duchene got to do in the fall when he joined the legendary Frolunda franchise in Sweden. The Canadian kid rang up 14 points in 19 games for a team on which the leading scorer for the full season (fun trivia: it was Henrik Lundqvist&rsquo;s twin brother Joel) only totalled 34 in 55 contests. From there, it was on to Switzerland, where Duchene played a couple games for Ambri-Piotta before joining Team Canada at the Spengler Cup, where a loaded Canucks squad also featuring Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza overpowered a Davos team buttressed by Joe Thornton and Loui Eriksson. &ldquo;It was an absolute blast playing in Frolunda and Ambri,&rdquo; Duchene says. &ldquo;And I can&rsquo;t say enough about the way Hockey Canada treated us, just class all the way. Coming off of last year, I felt rejuvenated. It was a test, a trial.&rdquo;</p><p>Duchene admits Year 3 of this NHL career held a steep learning curve and though his coach points out that the player&rsquo;s youth more than excuses some of his missteps, he also admits that sometimes the driven talents are the ones that need more help. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s the type of young man that needs the reassurance that he&rsquo;ll come out of his slumps, that the skill will come out,&rdquo; Sacco says. &ldquo;He&rsquo;ll get down and he needs to be reminded that he&rsquo;ll get out of it. There will be highs and lows. What I&rsquo;ve liked about Matt this season is his overall consistency. Not just from an offensive standpoint, but moving towards being a complete player. His play away from the puck has improved and certainly the effort is there to play 200 feet.&rdquo;</p><p>If only the rest of the Avs had followed suit. Colorado was put under a cloud right away during the shortened campaign when the effort to re-sign heart-and-soul center Ryan O&rsquo;Reilly went south in a public way. Duchene&rsquo;s 2009 draftmate (O&rsquo;Reilly also jumped straight to the NHL after the Avs took him 33rd overall) missed the first month and a half of the campaign due to the impasse, while new captain Gabriel Landeskog was held out a month after sustaining a concussion in Game 4. Overall, the Avs had one of the worst offensive attacks in the NHL, despite the growing array of talent assembled by the franchise. With the playoffs a dream right now, the team must look at where things went wrong. &ldquo;We had some really big games where we played well and others where we didn&rsquo;t,&rdquo; Sacco says. &ldquo;If there&rsquo;s a lesson this year it&rsquo;s that when you don&rsquo;t have your &lsquo;A&rsquo; game, you want to at least bring your &lsquo;A-minus&lsquo; or &lsquo;B&rsquo; game instead of your &lsquo;C&rsquo; game because that&rsquo;s when things go into the ditch.&rdquo;</p><p>Still, it&rsquo;s hard to look at the core of Duchene, Landeskog, O&rsquo;Reilly and netminder Semyon Varlamov and not see promise, particularly since several solid young blueliners are poised to bring even more offense to the team soon. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to come together,&rdquo; Duchene says. &ldquo;The consensus among the guys on our team is that we have the talent and we have the character.&rdquo;</p><p>With a crack squad of specialists helping him along the way, Duchene&rsquo;s point-pergame pace this season seems like the new norm for the young Avs star, rather than an aberration abetted by the shortened season. With body and mind now firing on all cylinders, it&rsquo;s going to be even more difficult for the opposition to slow him down.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-01

REMADE IN THE ROCKIES

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-011332/9839742-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="498" height="823"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(RICH LAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>C</span>hicken and pasta seems to comprise 90 percent of a hockey player&rsquo;s meal intake, but a growing number of athletes are finding that the latter&rsquo;s wheat-based composition is slowing them down. Duchene went on a gluten-free diet over the summer and immediately saw improvements to his health. &ldquo;He started June 1,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien said. &ldquo;By June 30, he was already getting a lot of comments about his face looking leaner and his skin looking healthier.&rdquo; Along with eschewing wheat products, Duchene was encouraged to consume more fish oils and organic coconut &ndash; &ldquo;good&rdquo; fats. Coconut oil, for example, breaks down sugars in the body in a quick and efficient manner. &ldquo;We wanted to repair his damaged gut,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Brien said.</p><p>Two summers ago, Washington&rsquo;s Karl Alzner and Jay Beagle tried going gluten free and also felt the effect. &ldquo;From less stomach aches and gas to just having more energy, it was great,&rdquo; Alzner said. &ldquo;But you have to find the foods that work for you. Just because something is gluten-free, doesn&rsquo;t mean it&rsquo;s healthy for you.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0021-01

Skate or DIET

f0022-01

LEAP YEAR

<div class="byline">RYAN KENNEDY & ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0028-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-011473/9839909-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg"></div><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span></b>he NHL trade deadline brings endless rumor-mongering and excitement, but also nostalgia. Most blockbusters mirror famous ones of yesteryear, some of which occurred on deadline day and some that didn&rsquo;t. With that, the first THN Tradesies analyze this season&rsquo;s hottest moves and look at how they connect to the talked-about swaps of seasons past.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-021032/9839902-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="405" height="411"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(ROY: JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>BUTCH GORING AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>DEREK ROY</b></h3><p>Missing piece of the puzzle</p><p>When the Islanders acquired Goring from Los Angeles in 1980, New York was in need of secondary scoring and he provided it, helping the Isles to four straight Stanley Cups. Roy comes into Vancouver as a secondary scorer, too, much like he was in Dallas. He gives the Canucks depth down the middle and his nifty playmaking helps reinvigorate a stale offense much too reliant on the Sedin twins&rsquo; line. With Ryan Kesler working his way back from a broken foot, Vancouver needed someone to take defensive pressure off the Sedins and Roy can be that guy for a team with the Cup in its sights.</p><h2><b>TOM KURVERS AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>MARTIN ERAT</b></h3><p>Shortsighted move that surrenders a top young prospect</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-04557/9839895-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="417" height="421"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(ERAT: PATRICK MCDERMOTT/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>In 1989-90, when Toronto got Kurvers from New Jersey for a first round pick in &rsquo;91, GM Floyd Smith didn&rsquo;t know the third overall selection would be Scott Niedermayer and Kurvers couldn&rsquo;t get the Leafs past the first round. Washington GM George McPhee felt the heat from fans for his scuffling Caps, but trading 2012 first-rounder Filip Forsberg for playoff ghost Erat (plus prospect Michael Latta) will haunt him. Forsberg led the underdog Swedes to silver at the world juniors, got his club team promoted to the nation&rsquo;s top division and was junior player of the year back home. He&rsquo;s just beginning to ascend.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03765/9839888-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="408" height="413"></div><h2><b>RICK TOCCHET AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>RYANE CLOWE</b></h3><p>Power forward with something to prove</p><p>Tocchet was a prototypical Philadelphia Flyer whose offense dried up in 1992, spurring a trade to the Penguins. He went off for 14 goals in 19 games and Pittsburgh won its second straight Cup. Clowe had been a stalwart for San Jose in recent years, but entered the trade deadline with an embarrassing zero goals on the season. But the Rangers were in need of some snarl after losing Brandon Prust to free agency in the summer and Clowe fit the bill. On top of hitting and the occasional fight, Clowe does still have a scorer&rsquo;s pedigree and popped his first two of the season in his Blueshirts debut.</p><h2><b>RAY BOURQUE AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>JAROME IGINLA</b></h3><p>Classy vet for whom everyone wants to win a Stanley Cup</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05440/9839881-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="411" height="420"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(CLOWE+IGINLA: BRUCE BENNETT/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>It took an extra season, but the Colorado Avalanche helped long-time Bruin Bourque get his Cup in 2001. Much like those Avs, a good chunk of Pittsburgh&rsquo;s core already have their rings from 2009, but the motivation to hand &lsquo;Iggy&rsquo; the Cup will be a great theme to buy into. Iginla is one of the most respected players in the NHL and, much like Bourque, had come close to glory with the team he spent his entire career with, the Calgary Flames. But Iginla is no charity case. He can still snipe and on a line with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal he&rsquo;ll be more dangerous than he has been in years.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-011296/9839874-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="407" height="412"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(REGEHR: JUAN OCAMPO/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>DUSTIN PENNER AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>ROBYN REGEHR</b></h3><p>Player who went from cold and losing to warm and winning</p><p>Penner was a flop in Edmonton, so the Oilers did him a favor and shipped him to L.A. where he won a Cup one season later in 2012. Regehr is also a member of the Kings now, courtesy of a deal from Buffalo, where the Sabres&rsquo; implosion and local lake-effect snow is in his rearview mirror. With Willie Mitchell missing the entire campaign due to a knee injury and Matt Greene laid up (back), the Kings needed a defensive defenseman who could kill penalties and play physical, something Regehr will be more than happy to do in a town where he can wear shorts to the rink.</p><h2><b>MIKE GARTNER AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>MARIAN GABORIK</b></h3><p>Sniper winger banished from Broadway</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03635/9839867-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="411" height="414"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GABORIK: JOHN RUSSELL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Gartner was an incredibly gifted winger who spent time in Minnesota, then joined the Rangers for an extended run before they dealt him to Toronto at the 1994 deadline. Gaborik&rsquo;s formative years also came in Minnesota and he also played in Manhattan for a stretch until the Blueshirts traded him to Columbus for Derick Brassard, Derek Dorsett and John Moore. Gaborik was acquired to jumpstart Columbus&rsquo; horrible offense. And though he&rsquo;s struggled to put up points this season, it&rsquo;s tough to score from your coach&rsquo;s doghouse. A new environment is just what Gaborik needs.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-05399/9839860-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="411" height="416"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JAGR: STEVE BABINEAU/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>MARK RECCHI AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>JAROMIR JAGR</b></h3><p>Boston-bound Stanley Cup winner with nothing left to prove</p><p>In 2009, the Cup-contending Bruins wanted some veteran scoring touch for their playoff push and added Mark Recchi, a 41-year-old pending UFA who already had two Stanley Cup rings. Four years later, the Cup-contending Bruins wanted some veteran scoring touch for their playoff push and added Jaromir Jagr, a 41-year-old pending UFA who has two Stanley Cup rings. (He and Recchi won the Cup together as Penguins in 1991.) If the crafty Czech does nothing but resuscitate Boston&rsquo;s moribund power play, the price they paid &ndash; two prospects and a conditional second-rounder &ndash; will be worth it.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02888/9839853-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="409" height="423"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(POMINVILLE: VICTOR DECOLONGON/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>JOE NIEUWENDYK AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>JASON POMINVILLE</b></h3><p>Like the Hall of Famer and current Stars GM who was dealt out of Calgary to Dallas in 1995 in return for a young prospect named Jarome Iginla, Pominville was shipped from the Sabres to Minnesota for blue-chippers Matt Hackett and Johan Larsson and first and second round picks. The speedy, skilled Pominville will bring the same sense of quiet leadership to the Wild&rsquo;s dressing room that Nieuwendyk carried with him. Pominville also gives his new team impressive depth at right wing and the 30-year-old will provide a boost to the Wild&rsquo;s middling power play.</p><h2><b>RANDY CARLYLE AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>JAY BOUWMEESTER</b></h3><p>Decorated D-Man dealt from a lousy team</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04480/9839846-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="408" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(BOUWMEESTER: BILL SMITH/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Carlyle won the Norris in 1981, but hadn&rsquo;t experienced much playoff success and was moved in 1984 from a lousy Penguins team to Winnipeg for a first round pick and futures. Bouwmeester hasn&rsquo;t played a single postseason game, but no doubt was pleased to be traded from an abysmal Flames team to St. Louis for two prospects and a conditional first-rounder. Bouwmeester makes an already talented Blues blueline that much deeper. And the 29-year-old, who averages more than 25 minutes a game, allows coach Ken Hitchcock to preserve Alex Pietrangelo and Kevin Shattenkirk.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-06332/9839839-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="421" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MASON: ANDY DEVLIN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>TOM BARRASSO AWARD</b></h2><h3><b>STEVE MASON</b></h3><p>Calder-winning goalie who gets a another chance</p><p>Tom Barrasso won the Calder Trophy in 1984. Mason did so 25 years later. They also have being traded at the deadline in common: Barrasso was shipped from Pittsburgh to Ottawa in 2000 for Ron Tugnutt and Janne Laukkanen; Mason was moved from Columbus to the Flyers this year for Michael Leighton and a third round pick. Mason&rsquo;s arrival caused speculation Flyers No. 1 Ilya Bryzgalov will be bought out this summer, but let&rsquo;s not get ahead of ourselves. The 24-year-old Mason must prove he can be an NHL starter again first. In the pressure-cooker of Philadelphia, that won&rsquo;t be easy.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0028-01

TRADE DEADLINE AWARDS

<div class="byline">BY WAYNE FISH</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0030-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-011480/9839940-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span><b>HE TAG OF A BREAKTHROUGH SEASON GENERALLY</b> means a player&rsquo;s career has officially taken off. So why, after finishing third in scoring last year with 93 points, has Claude Giroux&rsquo;s flight been forced to make an emergency landing?</p><p>Those who observe the Philadelphia Flyers on a regular basis can come up with more reasons than a rink full of warmup pucks.</p><p>If a poll were taken, these theories would lead the list:</p><p>1. Naming Giroux captain before the start of a season with so many question marks on the roster might have been premature, considering the numerous stress and distraction factors.</p><p>2. The decision not to aggressively attempt to retain Jaromir Jagr &ndash; Giroux&rsquo;s linemate, mentor and security blanket &ndash; has had an effect on the 25-year-old centerman&rsquo;s confidence.</p><p>3. Losing his left winger, Scott Hartnell, for a month due to a broken foot hasn&rsquo;t helped matters. While the addition of Jakub Voracek to the line picked up some of the slack on offense, Giroux had slipped to a minus-8 through 35 games.</p><p>To his credit, Giroux isn&rsquo;t buying any of those excuses. He&rsquo;s been critical of his own play. Leadership? After a 4-1 loss in Montreal Feb. 16, Giroux called out the entire team, including himself.</p><p>As for not having Jagr or Hartnell, Giroux shrugs it off, pointing out Voracek is enjoying a career year and others have filled in admirably. &ldquo;Every year the lines change a lot,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Sometimes guys have ups and downs. You just try to find guys that can play well together.&rdquo;</p><p>The Jagr-Hartnell-Giroux trio did some stellar things together. Hartnell walked away with a career-best 37-goal season while Giroux was among the league leaders in several offensive categories.</p><p>This season Giroux has played with lesser known names like Tye McGinn and Matt Read and each game seems to be a feeling-out process. &ldquo;I guess you&rsquo;re right,&rdquo; Giroux says when asked about his revolving door of new linemates. &ldquo;Last year it was me, &lsquo;Jags&rsquo; and &lsquo;Hartsy.&rsquo; At the start of this year, we were moving a little bit here and there. It just depends.&rdquo;</p><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;THE HARD PART FOR HIM IS THAT HE FEELS LIKE IT&rsquo;S ALL ON HIM<br>&ndash; Danny Briere</blockquote><p>In the end, Giroux understands he&rsquo;s been part of the problem for the team&rsquo;s poor play and, conversely, other players&rsquo; mediocre performances might have contributed to his erratic efforts. Teammate Danny Briere, himself a young captain back in his Buffalo days, says Giroux shouldn&rsquo;t be too hard on himself. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s been playing as hard as I&rsquo;ve ever seen him,&rdquo; Briere says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not from a lack of effort. He wants it bad. It&rsquo;s not like he&rsquo;s playing badly.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe he&rsquo;s not at three points a game like he was last year (in some games), but he&rsquo;s still about a point a game, playing hard. He&rsquo;s certainly not the reason we are where we&rsquo;re at today.&rdquo;</p><p>Giroux, who had 11 goals and 34 points through 35 games, appears to take each loss with increasing frustration. &ldquo;The hard part for him is he feels like it&rsquo;s all on him,&rdquo; Briere says. &ldquo;But we all know it isn&rsquo;t, it has nothing to do with him. It&rsquo;s just a tough position for him to start as a captain, in a losing season after the team has done so well the last few seasons.</p><p>&ldquo;It has nothing to do with him not being a good leader or not trying. He&rsquo;s an all-out kind of guy. He doesn&rsquo;t do things halfway.&rdquo;</p><p>Briere notes Jagr isn&rsquo;t the only player missed from last year&rsquo;s team.</p><p>&ldquo;We lost a lot of guys,&rdquo; Briere says. &ldquo;Chris Pronger, Matt Carle, who is a close friend of Claude&rsquo;s and was his roommate on the road, and James van Riemsdyk, another good friend.&rdquo;</p><p>Giroux lived with Briere when he first joined the Flyers and the two still talk often. Briere&rsquo;s advice is simple: &ldquo;You just have to play, just be the same person you&rsquo;ve always been,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t try to change anything. At some point things are going to start going the other way.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0030-01

DEFEAT ON HIS WINGS

<div class="byline">WITH STAN FISCHLER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0033-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-011295/9840009-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>GAMBLE PAYS OFF</b></p><p>Toronto acquired &lsquo;King&rsquo; Clancy for $35,000, of which $12,000 came from winning a horse race.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(NAT TUROFSKY/HHOF IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02894/9840016-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="194" height="229"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>K</span><b>AY KYSER&rsquo;S SONG &ldquo;HORSES DON&rsquo;T BET ON PEOPLE,&rdquo; LEADS</b> the listener to ask, &ldquo;so why do people bet on horses?&rdquo; If Toronto Maple Leafs major domo Conn Smythe were around today, his answer would be, &ldquo;because a nag helped me build my team into a winner.&rdquo;</p><p>And so it did, though circuitously. Recall that Smythe bought the NHL&rsquo;s Toronto St. Patricks in February 1927, changed the team&rsquo;s name to Maple Leafs and proceeded to rebuild a doddering franchise the next three years.</p><p>After his club wobbled through 1929-30 &lsquo;The Little Major,&rsquo; as Smythe was known for his Second World War exploits, decided an explosive move was necessary. The Leafs had finished fourth in the Canadian Division (17-21-6), but had the makings of a winner if only Smythe could somehow con a top defenseman from another club. Namely, Francis Michael &lsquo;King&rsquo; Clancy of the Ottawa Senators.</p><p>After nine starry seasons in Canada&rsquo;s capital city, Clancy had reached the level of the Canadiens&rsquo; Howie Morenz and the Bruins&rsquo; Eddie Shore as the league&rsquo;s top attractions. The Ottawa-born blueliner was colorful, cantankerous and canny, the perfect performer for a Smythe-led team. But Clancy wasn&rsquo;t inclined to leave his hometown and especially didn&rsquo;t want to play for Toronto because of a long-standing feud with Maple Leafs defenseman Clarence &lsquo;Hap&rsquo; Day. The Great Depression had also just hit North America and money, even for Smythe, was tight.</p><p>Ever wily, Smythe figured he could overcome the first two issues if only he had enough dough to buy Clancy from the debtridden Senators. What he did have was a filly named Rare Jewel, which he&rsquo;d purchased from a Cobourg, Ont., woman for $250. And there was good reason for the bargain price, since Rare Jewel had lost every race she&rsquo;d entered. In her last outing, she finished a tortoise-like 10th.</p><p>Yet Smythe had been lucky in virtually all of his ventures and betting was one of them. With that in mind, he decided to enter Rare Jewel in the Coronation Stakes for Canadian-bred two-year-olds Sept. 20, 1930. When Smythe advised trainer W.G. &lsquo;Bill&rsquo; Campbell of his decision, Campbell shot back that Smythe simply was wasting his entry fee.</p><p>But the jockey, Dude Foden, who already had told his wife to bet on another horse (the favorite, Froth Blower), believed Rare Jewel was worth the gamble and Smythe seconded the motion. Meanwhile, odds-makers placed Rare Jewel at 107-1. If Smythe had reason to smile, it was when he learned his much-maligned filly was No. 7 on the card and wound up with pole position 11.</p><p>After an encouraging start, Foden urged his filly in on the rail as, astonishingly, it galloped to the home turn leading by a couple of lengths. Down the stretch, Froth Blower came on strong, but couldn&rsquo;t make up the distance. Rare Jewel won by half a length and paid $214.40 on a $2 bet. Smythe&rsquo;s winnings totalled more than $12,000 and when The Little Major was congratulated at the Winner&rsquo;s Circle, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Now we can buy Clancy. Now we&rsquo;re going to win the Stanley Cup!&rdquo;</p><p>Sure enough, Smythe set the trade in motion. His first order of business was dispatching his aide, Frank Selke, to Ottawa where Clancy agreed to put aside his dislike for Day and skate for the Maple Leafs. Secondly, Smythe placed an ad in the Toronto papers on Oct. 9, 1930, asking fans if they would approve a deal for Clancy. The replies were unanimously affirmative.</p><p>With the cash he&rsquo;d won from Rare Jewel and the rest coming from the team, Smythe acquired Clancy for $35,000 plus defenseman Art Smith, whose value was estimated to be $10,000, and forward Eric Pettinger, worth about $5,000. At the time, it wasn&rsquo;t only a stunning exchange, since the money covered Ottawa&rsquo;s previous season&rsquo;s debt, it was regarded as the NHL&rsquo;s biggest trade since the league was organized 13 years earlier.</p><p>As for Smythe, by 1932, in Clancy&rsquo;s second of seven seasons with Toronto, he not only made good on his Stanley Cup promise, but the Clancy effect had enabled The Little Major to launch another of his almost impossible projects: the rapid construction of Maple Leaf Gardens, which opened in record time for the 1931-32 Cup-winning season. Not surprisingly, Clancy starred in the playoff run, setting up the first goal in the Cup-clinching game against the Rangers.</p><p>And the filly that made all this possible wasn&rsquo;t forgotten. As Smythe later recalled: &ldquo;that&rsquo;s what Rare Jewel did for me.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0033-01

MONEY WHERE HIS HORSE IS

<div class="byline">BY MIKE LOFTUS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-021036/9840054-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="378" height="289"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-011479/9840047-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="1530" height="1303"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>MOUTH TO HANDS</b></p><p>Notorious talker Brad Marchand was scoring at a prorated 50-goal pace early on this season.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(TRAVIS GOLBY/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>B</span><b>RAD MARCHAND WON&rsquo;T TRY TO CONVINCE</b> anyone he&rsquo;s a saint and nothing like the little devil he&rsquo;s portrayed as outside Boston. He&rsquo;s not going to argue that every penalty minute, suspension (two) and fine (one) has been assessed unjustly. He also won&rsquo;t deny he&rsquo;s never deserved any of his scoldings or lectures from on-ice officials, coaches, even teammates.</p><p>At one point in his career, the most important part of Marchand&rsquo;s game was his knack for bugging people. He did so through deeds like incessant forechecks, dogged puck battles and well-placed words. It was a means to an end for the 5-foot-9, 183-pound left winger, the end being an opportunity to use his offensive skills on a full-time basis. &ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t going to come in and crack the Bruins&rsquo; lineup just by being a scorer,&rdquo; Marchand said. &ldquo;I had to find something else to do to make the team.&rdquo;</p><p>Marchand scores so frequently now, it&rsquo;s easy to forget he didn&rsquo;t net a single goal in his first 28 NHL games. It finally came Nov. 3, 2010, while he was a fourth-liner waiting to prove he could be the offensive threat he&rsquo;d been at the Quebec and American league levels. Halfway through 2010-11, Marchand had successfully completed enough energy and penalty-killing assignments to earn a promotion from coach Claude Julien. He moved to a line with the eminently responsible duo of center Patrice Bergeron and Hall of Fame hopeful Mark Recchi.</p><p>Presto. Twenty-one goals by the end of the regular season, plus 11 more in the playoffs, including two in Game 7 of the 2011 Cup final in Vancouver.</p><p>And Marchand hasn&rsquo;t stopped. He scored 28 goals last year, just one fewer than team leader and linemate Tyler Seguin. He was a machine at the start of this shortened season, with 12 in his first 19 games, never going more than a single game without a goal until early March.</p><p>Marchand, who turns 25 May 11, couldn&rsquo;t maintain what was a 50-goal pace over an 82-game season, but he still was a key performer. There were 10 assists over the next 14 games, contributions to the Bruins&rsquo; league-leading penalty-killing unit and still the talk and actions that threw opponents off their games. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s his forecheck, his playmaking, it&rsquo;s being gritty, being the way he is &ndash; he&rsquo;s in your face,&rdquo; Julien said. &ldquo;If you bring that, it makes (goal scoring) a lot easier.&rdquo;</p><p>It also makes it easier for Marchand&rsquo;s linemates, Bergeron and Seguin, to continue strong seasons for the Bruins&rsquo; most important line. In addition to relying on it for scoring, Julien also matches it against opponents&rsquo; No. 1 units. &ldquo;&lsquo;Bergie&rsquo; and I have played together three years and it&rsquo;s two with &lsquo;Segs,&rsquo;&rdquo; Marchand said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re obviously very comfortable together and we&rsquo;re also comfortable talking about things we can do differently, too.&rdquo;</p><p>Marchand doesn&rsquo;t want his status to change, though. He relishes his major, all-situations role and everything that comes with it. And Seguin knows Marchand will continue to find ways to produce. &ldquo;He does the little things right and that&rsquo;s what really matters,&rdquo; Seguin said. &ldquo;When he&rsquo;s at the top of his game, it&rsquo;s because he&rsquo;s competing so well. I definitely enjoy it.&rdquo;</p><p>Marchand is having a good time as well. Just a few years after managing one assist over 20 games in his first taste of the NHL, he&rsquo;s already signed to a four-year extension worth $4.5 million per season.</p><p>He&rsquo;s proud he earned it by working to prove he could do what he always believed he could do: become a bona fide NHL scorer. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what I wanted,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what I felt I could contribute to this team. It was always my goal, always what I was working toward.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0034-02

THIS ‘B’ IS MORE THAN JUST A BUG

<div class="byline">&#x2013; RICH CHERE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0035-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-011369/9840162-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02975/9840155-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="660" height="633"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>MARTIN</p><p><b>BRODEUR</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(BRODEUR: RICHARD WOLOWICZ/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>E<b>VEN AS HE APPROACHED HIS 41ST</b> birthday, Martin Brodeur was still the Devils&rsquo; difference-maker</p><p>Brodeur hasn&rsquo;t changed over the years, but he has made some concessions to age. During the playoffs last year, he ended a long-standing policy of talking to the media on the morning of games and has continued that this season. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always been good about (doing interviews on game days),&rdquo; Brodeur said. &ldquo;I just felt last year when I decided not to do it, the reason was a negative vibe I was getting after morning skates.</p><p>&ldquo;I personally didn&rsquo;t need to start thinking about it when I went on the ice. I just felt that was the best way for me to get prepared. This year I totally forgot about it, but then I thought, &lsquo;It worked in the playoffs so I&rsquo;m going to let it remain like that.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>Which brings up the question about whether he&rsquo;d have been even better had he not talked on game days throughout his career. &ldquo;When I was younger, it was probably easier for me even if I was distracted,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Now, concentration has a little more of an impact on my game. I need to be on if I want to be successful. I just can&rsquo;t wing it like when I was younger.</p><p>&ldquo;The game has changed a lot. And the media has changed a lot with what I had to deal with in my first 15 years compared to the last five years.&rdquo;</p><p>With one more season left on his contract, Brodeur would like to aim at 700 career wins despite his brother&rsquo;s idea to stop at 666, which would make him a true Devil.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03808/9840148-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04668/9840141-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="327" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SULLIVAN: ANDY DEVLIN/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Steve Sullivan</b> returns to where it all began in New Jersey, which drafted him in the ninth round in 1994. He has the fourth-most points of any ninth-rounder after Luc Robitaille, Gary Suter and Pavol Demitra. Should the 38-year-old return next season, he could hit the 300-goal mark. He sat just 12 shy.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05570/9840134-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="753" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06514/9840127-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="328" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MARTIN: ANDRE RINGUETTE/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Whether stationary or mobile, every opposing player is a target of <b>Matt Martin</b>. After an NHL record 374 hits last season, 81 more than second-place Dustin Brown, Martin is again throwing his 206 pounds around. His 180 hits were 21 more than next-best Chris Neil, a pace that would almost break 400 in an 82-game schedule.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07440/9840120-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-08379/9840113-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="327" height="505"></div><p>The Rangers&rsquo; trade deadline haul of forwards Ryane Clowe, Derick Brassard and Derek Dorsett spelled the end for rookies J.T. Miller and <b>Chris Kreider</b>, who were sent to AHL Connecticut on deadline day. Coach John Tortorella was worried about their development under the stress of the Rangers&rsquo; playoff push.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-09327/9840106-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-10284/9840099-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="328" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(KREIDER+GAGNE: BRUCE BENNETT/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The storybook start to <b>Simon Gagne&rsquo;s</b> return to Philadelphia has since turned into a terrible run. Gagne scored in his first game back, but had just one goal and two points in 13 games subsequently. As his production nose-dived, so did his ice time. His 16 minutes in his first game were cut by more than half 11 games later.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-11242/9840092-1-eng-US/f0035-112.jpg" title="f0035-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-12212/9840085-1-eng-US/f0035-122.jpg" title="f0035-12" width="328" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(VOKOUN: JONATHAN KOZUB/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>After going 1-2-0 with a 4.65 GAA and .842 SP in the season&rsquo;s second month, <b>Tomas Vokoun</b> went 7-0-0 with a 1.43 GAA and .952 SP in March, playing a big part in Pittsburgh&rsquo;s 15-game winning streak. He also posted a pair of shutouts during a stretch of 173:06 over four games in which he didn&rsquo;t allow a goal.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0035-01

OLD DOG, NEW TRICK

<div class="byline">&#x2013; BRUCE GARRIOCH</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0036-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-011380/9840270-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02943/9840263-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="660" height="645"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>PATRICK</p><p><b>WIERCIOCH</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(WIERCLOCH: ANDRE RINGUETTE/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>P<b>ATRICK WIERCIOCH CAN FINALLY MAKE</b> himself at home in the NHL.</p><p>The road wasn&rsquo;t easy for the Ottawa Senators defenseman to get here, but the 22-year-old got the best news he could expect a couple of weeks before the trade deadline when he was told to get a place to live in Ottawa. After spending more than two months in a hotel, it was a relief for Wiercioch.</p><p>His career has included bumps in road since being drafted 42nd overall in 2008 &ndash; including a scary incident on Dec. 9, 2011, when he took a puck in the throat while playing for Binghamton in the AHL &ndash; but he&rsquo;s overcome the obstacles to find his way to the NHL.</p><p>With injuries to Erik Karlsson and Jared Cowen, Wiercioch has watched his role grow. He&rsquo;s become a stalwart on the blueline, here for the long term, and has shown tremendous poise with the puck in contributing offensively. &ldquo;When you get involved in all aspects of the game,&rdquo; Wiercioch said, &ldquo;it just helps you have more confidence when there&rsquo;s something you are comfortable with, to make the right play, the right decision.&rdquo;</p><p>Playing with longtime friend Kyle Turris has helped, but so has the fact he spent last summer in Ottawa working with strength coach Chris Schwarz to get the physical tools he needed to take the step up and become a bona fide NHLer. &ldquo;&lsquo;Schwartzie&rsquo; did a phenomenal job of training both Kyle and I, and we were both really excited for the upcoming season,&rdquo; Wiercioch said. &ldquo;Everything that happened this summer got me off on the right foot.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03779/9840256-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04623/9840249-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="327" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JAGR: JARED WICKERHAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The Bruins are future Hall of Famer <b>Jaromir Jagr&rsquo;s</b> sixth NHL team, which is no surprise given their history. Two of the most travelled Hall of Famers in NHL lore have played for them: Paul Coffey, who suited up for nine teams, and Adam Oates, who played for seven. Doug Gilmour called seven teams his own, but never Boston.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05526/9840242-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="753" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-06465/9840235-1-eng-US/f0036-062.jpg" title="f0036-06" width="327" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(LARSSON: HANNAH FOSLIEN/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The next Sabres captain might not want to put down roots in Buffalo. With the trade of Jason Pominville, which netted Matt Hackett and <b>Johan Larsson</b>, the Sabres have gone almost 27 years since a player retired as their captain. Hall of Famer Gilbert Perreault was the last to do it back in 1986-87. All the others have been dealt away.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-07394/9840228-1-eng-US/f0036-072.jpg" title="f0036-07" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-08335/9840221-1-eng-US/f0036-082.jpg" title="f0036-08" width="327" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(KRISTO: UND ATHLETICS/ERIC CLASSEN)</span></figcaption></div><p>Montreal signed <b>Danny Kristo</b> to a two-year deal April 3. He was reunited in AHL Hamilton with Louis Leblanc, his ex-linemate with Omaha of the USHL. It was fitting as both have experienced precipitous declines among Habs prospects. Kristo was a Hobey Baker finalist this season, but has experienced several off-ice incidents.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-09284/9840214-1-eng-US/f0036-092.jpg" title="f0036-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-10253/9840207-1-eng-US/f0036-102.jpg" title="f0036-10" width="327" height="505"></div><p>Senators GM Bryan Murray didn&rsquo;t know much about <b>Cory Conacher</b> before trading for him, but said players on Ottawa&rsquo;s farm team constantly brought up his scoring ability and competitiveness when he played in the AHL. If he wins the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, he&rsquo;ll be the first to do so after being dealt mid-season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-11231/9840200-1-eng-US/f0036-112.jpg" title="f0036-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-12215/9840193-1-eng-US/f0036-122.jpg" title="f0036-12" width="326" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(CONACHER+LUPUL: GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The Leafs did not make a major deadline trade &ndash; Lord knows they tried with Miikka Kiprusoff and Roberto Luongo &ndash; but got the equivalent of a blockbuster addition when <b>Joffrey Lupul</b> returned in mid-March. In six games after coming back from a broken arm &ndash; with a two-game suspension tossed in &ndash; he had eight goals and 13 points.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0036-01

PACK UP AND STAY

<div class="byline">&#x2013; ADAM PROTEAU</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-011232/9840378-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02871/9840371-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="660" height="630"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>MATT</p><p><b>CARLE</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(CARLE: ANDRE RINGUETTE/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span><b>HEN MATT CARLE CHOSE TO SIGN</b>&nbsp;with the Tampa Bay Lightning as an unrestricted free agent last summer, the veteran defenseman didn&rsquo;t envision a team blessed with the talents of Steven Stamkos and Martin St-Louis missing the playoffs.</p><p>But Tampa has underachieved, fired coach Guy Boucher and will likely be out of the playoffs for the second straight year by season&rsquo;s end. But if you&rsquo;re thinking Carle wants a do-over on his choice to leave the Philadelphia Flyers and sign a six-year, $33-million contract with the Bolts, think again. &ldquo;No regrets,&rdquo; Carle said. &ldquo;I enjoyed Philadelphia, but I believed in the guys in this room when I signed here and still do. All teams face adversity.&rdquo;</p><p>With prized youngster Victor Hedman still learning the game at age 22, Carle stepped into the Lightning lineup and immediately became their top minute-munching defenseman, averaging 23:33 per game.</p><p>The 28-year-old isn&rsquo;t about to pin Tampa Bay&rsquo;s struggles on any one element of its season, but acknowledged putting new pieces in place in a heavily compacted schedule &ndash; especially on the blueline, where the Lightning also had to work former Vancouver Canuck Sami Salo into the mix &ndash; was a significant challenge. &ldquo;With a shortened training camp there seemed like there was a little bit of overload trying to go over new systems and integrate new guys,&rdquo; Carle said. &ldquo;With the limited amount of practice time, it makes it tough making adjustments.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03702/9840364-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04604/9840357-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="322" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(BERGERON: GREGG FORWERCK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Marc-Andre Bergeron</b> was acquired to wake up a dreadful power play. Bergeron is a one-dimensional player whose strength lies in offense and who specializes on the power play. Bergeron had 82 career regular season goals, 44 of which came on the man advantage, and seven post-season goals, all of which came on the power play.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-05545/9840350-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="753" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-06485/9840343-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="328" height="505"></div><p>The original underwhelming return for Roberto Luongo was Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan Allen and Alex Auld. Allen was moved for Sergei Samsonov and Auld was lost for nothing, but Bertuzzi was dealt for <b>Shawn Matthias</b>. Matthias had 25 goals in 205 games coming into this year, but led the Panthers with 14 through 37 games in &rsquo;12-13.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-07416/9840336-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-08326/9840329-1-eng-US/f0037-082.jpg" title="f0037-08" width="327" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MATTHIAS+GUDAS: GRAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Cory Conacher was Tampa&rsquo;s best-performing rookie before he was traded, but he&rsquo;s not the only first-year player making an impact. Six different Bolts make their NHL debuts and all recorded their first NHL goals. Aside from Conacher, <b>Radko Gudas</b>, Richard Panik, Alex Killorn, Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat have gotten on the board.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-09266/9840322-1-eng-US/f0037-092.jpg" title="f0037-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-10227/9840315-1-eng-US/f0037-102.jpg" title="f0037-10" width="328" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(OVECHKIN: JONATHAN KOZUB/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>When <b>Alex Ovechkin</b> eclipsed the 700-point plateau in his 579th NHL game, he became the third-fastest active NHLer to accomplish the feat, behind Jaromir Jagr (557) and Teemu Selanne (541). &lsquo;Ovie&rsquo; also became the third player to hit 700 points as a member of the Capitals, joining Peter Bondra and current coach Adam Oates.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-11189/9840308-1-eng-US/f0037-112.jpg" title="f0037-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-12165/9840301-1-eng-US/f0037-122.jpg" title="f0037-12" width="328" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(TROUBA: U-M PHOTOGRAPHY)</span></figcaption></div><p>Winnipeg&rsquo;s prospect pipeline ranked fifth in Future Watch 2013 and it won&rsquo;t be long before its best young players are contributing regularly. If <b>Jacob Trouba</b>, who left the University of Michigan to sign with the Jets, gets into a game this season, all five of Winnipeg&rsquo;s top-ranked prospects will have seen time with the team.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0037-01

THE CLOUDS WILL LIFT

<div class="byline">BY SARAH MCLELLAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-011339/9840416-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="378" height="282"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02935/9840409-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="1530" height="1164"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>STAYING CENTERED</b></p><p>Oliver Ekman-Larsson thinks he sees the ice well because his dad had him play a year of pivot at 15.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(JEFF VINNICK/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span><b>HE ONLY STANDARD OF PLAY PHOENIX</b>&nbsp;Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson recognized as a youngster in Sweden was that of fellow countryman Nicklas Lidstrom.</p><p>Ekman-Larsson wanted to skate and shoot and pass like the Red Wings great and if that package of skills morphed him into an elite defenseman like his idol, that was all right, too. &ldquo;I want to be, of course, a superstar in this league,&rdquo; Ekman-Larsson said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s my goal. Maybe not this year or next year, but a couple years from now. I want to improve everything &ndash; D-zone, offensive, my shot, my passes, my skating. That&rsquo;s what I try to do every day, just get better.&rdquo;</p><p>In his second full season with the Coyotes, the 21-year-old has done just that, scaling the depth chart to become the team&rsquo;s No. 1 blueliner. He&rsquo;s top three in team scoring and plus-minus and leads in ice time.</p><p>As a result, the Coyotes tagged their future franchise defenseman by signing Ekman-Larsson, who was set to be a restricted free agent at season&rsquo;s end, to a six-year, $33-million extension in mid-March. &ldquo;Every time you draft a player, you hope they mature quickly and become stars and front-line players in the league,&rdquo; said Phoenix GM Don Maloney. &ldquo;In Oliver&rsquo;s case, it was really the second half of last season and his performance in the playoffs that we really felt we went from hoping we had something special to realizing we do have something special.&rdquo;</p><p>The Coyotes took Ekman-Larsson sixth overall in 2009, but he was on their radar by August 2008. That&rsquo;s when his ability to be an offensive sparkplug on the blueline became hard to ignore.</p><p>&ldquo;What jumps out at you is his skating ability and his ability to move the puck,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s still maturing physically. Right away you could see his skating and his puck-moving ability and his instinct for the game, but he was this kind of scrawny skinny kid. Obviously he&rsquo;s continued to grow and mature.&rdquo;</p><p>Ekman-Larsson is continually compared to his childhood idol, having the ability to insert himself into situations all over the ice without exerting much energy &ndash; just like Lidstrom did in his 20-season career with Detroit. But it&rsquo;s Ekman-Larsson&rsquo;s speed and offensive vision that make him unique, both byproducts of the time he spent as a forward when he was 15. &ldquo;My dad wanted me to see the ice different, so I played center,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It made it easier to go back to &lsquo;D&rsquo; and see the ice from the back end. That helps me a lot.&rdquo;</p><p>No doubt, then, Ekman-Larsson embodies this new-age defenseman who can start a rush up the ice just as easily as he can stop one. That became clear after he had 13 goals and 32 points last year and helped the Coyotes reach the Western Conference final. &ldquo;Oliver is very serious about his game and for a young player, it&rsquo;s not all about goals and assists and that&rsquo;s a very admirable quality,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;He wants to be a good player, but more importantly he wants to win. Ultimately to win and be a consistent Stanley Cup threat, you need your homegrown draft picks to emerge.&rdquo;</p><p>Ekman-Larsson demonstrated his commitment to the franchise by spending the lockout with the club&rsquo;s American League affiliate instead of staying in Sweden. Once the NHL season started, he was already in prime condition and has been able to manage a heavy workload that includes power play and penalty kill responsibilities.</p><p>His impact this season has also planted him firmly in the conversation for the Norris Trophy, an honor Lidstrom received seven times.</p><p>As much as he continues to chase that level of stardom, Ekman-Larsson is appreciative of what he&rsquo;s accomplished so far in his young career with the Coyotes. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m living my dream now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I just have to keep playing hard. I try to have fun every day and enjoy it.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0038-01

EKMAN-LARSSON AIMS HIGH

<div class="byline">&#x2013; JEREMY RUTHERFORD</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-011226/9840524-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02827/9840517-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="659" height="654"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>CHRIS</p><p><b>STEWART</b></p></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>D</span><b>URING ST. LOUIS BLUES TELECASTS,</b>&nbsp;Chris Stewart is routinely featured during commercial breaks yelling at opponents. And that anger has a wide-ranging effect. &ldquo;The games when I&rsquo;m most involved physically and emotionally are the games that I get the best results on the scoresheets,&rdquo; Stewart said.</p><p>A year ago, Stewart was not engaged. At 24, he was out of shape and out of sync. After scoring 28 goals in back-to-back seasons, 2011-12 was a colossal disappointment. He finished with 15 goals and 30 points in 79 games. He signed a $3-million &ldquo;prove it&rdquo; contract in June. &ldquo;I wanted to eliminate all doubts and excuses,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>Stewart worked with trainer Matt Nichol in the off-season and then played in Germany during the lockout. &ldquo;I was playing 25-30 minutes a game and really just getting my confidence back and feeling the puck a lot more.&rdquo;</p><p>Stewart scored two goals in the Blues&rsquo; opener and hasn&rsquo;t slowed down. He reached last year&rsquo;s goal total in his 30th game, 49 games sooner than last season. &ldquo;I told him, &lsquo;If you compete hard, all the points will take care of themselves, but if you don&rsquo;t compete, there will be too many peaks and valleys in your game,&rsquo;&rdquo; Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said.</p><p>Stewart owed this effort as much to himself as the Blues. &ldquo;I was this big first round pick and traded for the first overall pick,&rdquo; said Stewart, who came to St. Louis from Colorado in a trade for D-man Erik Johnson. &ldquo;I really wanted to re-establish myself as a premier power forward in this league.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03653/9840510-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="750" height="595"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04551/9840503-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="316" height="504"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(HANDZUS: GRAIG ABEL/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The Hawks acquired <b>Michael Handzus</b> for his size and savvy. He returns for a second stint with Chicago after a forgotten 2006-07 in which he had eight points in eight games, then suffered a season-ending knee injury. Don&rsquo;t expect similar production this time: Handzus is 36 and had just two points in 28 games with San Jose.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-05468/9840496-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="753" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-06391/9840489-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="328" height="499"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(LETESTU: GERRY THOMAS/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>As <b>Mark Letestu</b> became increasingly sought after at the trade deadline, the Blue Jackets realized they wanted him just as much, so they signed him to a two-year, $2.5-million extension. The versatile pivot had 20 points in 34 games before the deal. He has 44 points, including 20 goals, in 85 games since Columbus acquired him last year.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-07340/9840482-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="752" height="595"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-08289/9840475-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="327" height="501"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(COLAIACOVO: MARK BUCKNER/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Carlo Colaiacovo</b> was the equivalent of a trade deadline acquisition for Detroit, returning to action after not suiting up since Jan. 21. Before injuring his shoulder, Colaiacovo had played just two games and both were on the road, so April 1 marked his first contest in a Wings uniform at Joe Louis Arena, one of his favorite rinks to play in.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-09235/9840468-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-10204/9840461-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="328" height="504"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JOSI: ANDRE RINGUETTE/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Ryan Suter is having a career year (see pg. 16), but his replacement as Shea Weber&rsquo;s partner in Nashville has been no slouch. <b>Roman Josi</b> matched his rookie goal total in 20 fewer games, was third on the Predators in blocked shots and played 23:16 per contest, more than P.K. Subban, Dan Boyle and Brent Seabrook.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-11179/9840454-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-12163/9840447-1-eng-US/f0039-122.jpg" title="f0039-12" width="328" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(STEWART+ SHATTENKIRK: JEFF VINNICK/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>The stretch run will be crucial for <b>Kevin Shattenkirk</b> to establish his value before becoming a restricted free agent. The puck-moving D-man exploded for eight points in his first seven games, but had only 13 and was a minus-4 in his next 27. Perhaps a new partner &ndash; freshly acquired Jordan Leopold &ndash; will get his game back on track.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0039-01

SHOW-ME STATE OF MIND

<div class="byline">&#x2013; BEN KUZMA</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0040-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01935/9840632-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-02607/9840625-1-eng-US/f0040-022.jpg" title="f0040-02" width="658" height="657"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>MASON</p><p><b>RAYMOND</b></p></figcaption></div><p>A <b>CAREER-THREATENING INJURY, A GOAL</b>&nbsp;drought and then a pay cut.</p><p>Mason Raymond was grateful to recover from a vertebrae compression fracture sustained in Game 6 of the 2011 Stanley Cup final, but the Vancouver Canucks winger had but 10 goals in 55 games last season and was taken to arbitration in the summer. The result was a $325,000 shave and a chip on his shoulder after receiving a one-year deal for $2.3 million.</p><p>Instead of sulking, Raymond regained his stride, shot and confidence. A week before the trade deadline, the 27-year-old was tied for the team lead in goals with nine on a makeshift speed line with Jordan Schroeder and Jannik Hansen. &ldquo;I wanted to come in, play good hockey, be a good player and leave it at that,&rdquo; Raymond said. &ldquo;If you play well, things take care of themselves. I had something I wanted to prove and I&rsquo;ve been going about my business.</p><p>&ldquo;Last year is last year. Coming off that injury, it was good to have an off-season to prepare, to train and a lot of it is just learning through experience.&rdquo;</p><p>Experience has taught Raymond his chip-and-chase game is effective, as long as he uses speed to get to the middle of the ice. Now he&rsquo;s looking like the 2009-10 Raymond who scored a career-high 25 goals. &ldquo;Am I picking the perfect corner all the time? No, but that&rsquo;s scoring,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;You shoot enough pucks and there can be a rebound or even a faceoff in the offensive zone.&rdquo;</p><p>And perhaps a new contract with the Canucks, too.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-03471/9840618-1-eng-US/f0040-032.jpg" title="f0040-03" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-04376/9840611-1-eng-US/f0040-042.jpg" title="f0040-04" width="327" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(CERVENKA: RAD WATSON/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Calgary&rsquo;s overdue rebuild and trading of veterans will ensure <b>Roman Cervenka</b> gets more ice time. His summer signing was sold as &ldquo;the best player outside the NHL,&rdquo; by GM Jay Feaster, but Cervenka couldn&rsquo;t get in coach Bob Hartley&rsquo;s everyday lineup until recently. He had four points in a five-game stretch with increased ice time.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-05320/9840604-1-eng-US/f0040-052.jpg" title="f0040-05" width="753" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-06283/9840597-1-eng-US/f0040-062.jpg" title="f0040-06" width="327" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(O&rsquo;REILLY: JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Ryan O&rsquo;Reilly</b> has been able to build on his breakout offensive season of 2011-12 with four goals and 13 points in 17 games since Colorado matched the offer sheet he signed with Calgary. That&rsquo;s a 63-point pace, which would top the 55 he surprised with last season. As a team, though, the Avs had just four wins in O&rsquo;Reilly&rsquo;s 17 games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-07245/9840590-1-eng-US/f0040-072.jpg" title="f0040-07" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-08212/9840583-1-eng-US/f0040-082.jpg" title="f0040-08" width="327" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SMITHSON: RAIG ABEL/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>In <b>Jerred Smithson</b>. the Oilers get a faceoff specialist who has averaged a sterling 55 percent in the circle in his eight-plus NHL seasons. Edmonton has ranked 30th in that department three of the past four campaigns including 2012-13. Any offense will be a bonus. Smithson, 34, has just 95 career points in 578 games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-09160/9840576-1-eng-US/f0040-092.jpg" title="f0040-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-10146/9840569-1-eng-US/f0040-102.jpg" title="f0040-10" width="327" height="504"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(POMINVILLE: VICTOR DECOLONGON/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Minnesota&rsquo;s acquisition of <b>Jason Pominville</b> strengthens an offense that was just middle of the pack. The Wild dipped into a deep stockade of prospects to trade for a proven producer who has averaged 26 goals and 65 points over an 82-game season during his career. Pominville is sure to boost Minny&rsquo;s 18th-ranked power play.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-11128/9840562-1-eng-US/f0040-112.jpg" title="f0040-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-12117/9840555-1-eng-US/f0040-122.jpg" title="f0040-12" width="326" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(RAYMOND+ROY: JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Though a pending UFA, <b>Derek Roy</b> fills a gaping hole in the lineup that will be crucial if the Canucks are to contend. With Ryan Kesler returning from injury, Roy will center the third line. One concern: Roy&rsquo;s faceoff percentage is just 46.7. Over nine seasons, he&rsquo;s averaged 19-plus minutes of ice time, very high among NHL forwards.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0040-01

THREE STRIKES BUT NOT OUT

<div class="byline">&#x2013; DAVID POLLAK</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0041-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01814/9840740-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-02536/9840733-1-eng-US/f0041-022.jpg" title="f0041-02" width="652" height="626"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>BRENT</p><p><b>BURNS</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(BURNS: JONATHAN KOZUB/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>T<b>HE SAN JOSE SHARKS WERE SLIPPING</b>&nbsp;out of the Western Conference playoff picture when Todd McLellan showed a little coaching creativity.</p><p>With his team struggling to score and defenseman Brent Burns coming back from yet another injury in mid-March, McLellan drew upon their days together in the Minnesota Wild farm system. Burns was drafted as a forward, so why not give him a shot there again?</p><p>The experiment was an instant success. Soon skating on a line with Joe Thornton and Martin Havlat, Burns racked up five goals and five assists in his first nine games up front. And with Burns in a top-six role, McLellan could then move Joe Pavelski into the third-line center spot he was slotted for from the start.</p><p>With those moves, the Sharks immediately went on a five-game winning streak that saw them climb from 10th to sixth place in the tight West. &ldquo;We were just looking at what we feel some of our needs are and what some of our strengths are in moving players around,&rdquo; McLellan said. &ldquo;&lsquo;Burnsie&rsquo; has been very good. He&rsquo;s changed the dynamic of our forwards.</p><p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a big man to control down low and he&rsquo;s got a tremendous shot. When he uses those assets, working with his linemates, he can be very dangerous.&rdquo;</p><p>Burns, 28, talks as if the positional swap was easy, crediting his linemates for what success they&rsquo;ve had. &ldquo;A lot of time,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just running around trying to cause chaos and those two are making great plays.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-03436/9840726-1-eng-US/f0041-032.jpg" title="f0041-03" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-04379/9840719-1-eng-US/f0041-042.jpg" title="f0041-04" width="327" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(SOURAY: RICH LAM/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>It&rsquo;s hard to ask much more of veteran <b>Sheldon Souray</b>. Brought in to bring the Ducks more size on the blueline, he led the team with a plus-25 rating, ranked second in ice time at a shade under 21 minutes and even dropped the gloves a couple times. He and Francois Beauchemin have been Anaheim&rsquo;s key defensemen.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-05342/9840712-1-eng-US/f0041-052.jpg" title="f0041-05" width="753" height="594"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-06298/9840705-1-eng-US/f0041-062.jpg" title="f0041-06" width="328" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(NIEUWENDYK: DAVE SANDFORD/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Joe Nieuwendyk</b> has cycled through talent since taking over as Dallas GM four years ago and while a young core is emerging, the veteran pieces are unsettled. Thanks to the lockout, Dallas got only 64 total games from Jaromir Jagr and Derek Roy before trading them in separate deals. Roy cost the Stars fan favorite Steve Ott.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-07255/9840698-1-eng-US/f0041-072.jpg" title="f0041-07" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-08200/9840691-1-eng-US/f0041-082.jpg" title="f0041-08" width="316" height="504"></div><p>During his lockout cameo on <i>Conan,</i>&nbsp;<b>Dustin Penner</b> showed off his humorous side. But with L.A. visiting the White House to celebrate its Cup win with President Obama, Penner took it to another level. On Twitter, he joked he wouldn&rsquo;t attend for political reasons, referencing Tim Thomas&rsquo; snub the year prior before noting &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not an idiot.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-09150/9840684-1-eng-US/f0041-092.jpg" title="f0041-09" width="752" height="596"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-10123/9840677-1-eng-US/f0041-102.jpg" title="f0041-10" width="326" height="501"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(PENNER+SMITH: JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>There was a question about whether <b>Mike Smith</b> would still be in the desert once the trade deadline passed, but GM Don Maloney stood pat on his starter. Even though Smith is an unrestricted free agent this summer, the netminder has experienced much more success under coach Dave Tippett than he has elsewhere.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-11101/9840670-1-eng-US/f0041-112.jpg" title="f0041-11" width="752" height="597"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-1286/9840663-1-eng-US/f0041-122.jpg" title="f0041-12" width="326" height="506"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(TENNYSON: THEARON W. HENDERSON/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Northern California is still an emerging hockey market, but the Sharks have their first hometown hero in D-man <b>Matt Tennyson</b>. The free agent from Western Michigan University debuted April 1 against Vancouver, earning an assist. He was raised in nearby Pleasanton and is the first San Jose Jr. Shark to play for the NHL club.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0041-01

BACK TO THE FRONT

<div class="byline">BY RYAN KENNEDY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-02563/9840778-1-eng-US/f0042-022.jpg" title="f0042-02" width="986" height="1234"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>STRENGTH IN SWARMS</b></p><p>Riley Barber was a Pittsburgh Hornet alongside John Gibson, J.T. Miller and Vince Trocheck.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(JEFF SABO/MIAMI UNIVERSITY)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span><b>HOUGH MICHIGAN DEFENSEMAN</b>&nbsp;Jacob Trouba, a Winnipeg Jets first-rounder from 2012, had a fantastic freshman campaign, Miami&rsquo;s Riley Barber got his team to the Frozen Four tournament and finished second in conference scoring with 39 points in 40 games. So it&rsquo;s no surprise it was the RedHawk who took home honors as the last CCHA rookie of the year.</p><p>Barber, who arrived in Ohio with much less fanfare than his Wolverines rival, strafed the college scene for 15 goals and 39 points in 40 games (only teammate Austin Czarnik bested him with 40 points), while also earning a gold medal at the world juniors with Team USA. If the Americans seemed to have a lot of chemistry, they should have: four of the squad&rsquo;s players were midget hockey teammates with the Pittsburgh Hornets, coached by Barber&rsquo;s father, Don. &ldquo;My dad knows a lot about hockey and it was great to have him,&rdquo; Barber said. &ldquo;It really helped my development.&rdquo;</p><p>Along with the future Miami standout, that Hornets team boasted goalie John Gibson and forwards J.T. Miller and Vince Trocheck. Gibson was the MVP of the world juniors, Miller has already been called up to the NHL&rsquo;s New York Rangers and Trocheck led the Ontario League in scoring this season. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s really special for all of us,&rdquo; Miller said of the world junior reunion. &ldquo;We knew where each other were over the past couple years, but kind of lost touch, so it&rsquo;s really awesome to share this with them. Pittsburgh&rsquo;s on the map a little now.&rdquo;</p><p>Clearly Barber&rsquo;s dad was onto something, but was he harder on his kid? &ldquo;If you asked him he&rsquo;d say no,&rdquo; Barber said. &ldquo;But everybody else on the team would probably say yes.&rdquo;</p><p>Either way, the results have been great. Riley won a United States League title with Dubuque in 2010-11 before forcing his way onto Team USA&rsquo;s world junior entry. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the way he&rsquo;s played,&rdquo; said U.S. coach Phil Housley. &ldquo;He wasn&rsquo;t invited to our tournament in Lake Placid, but he played his way onto this team and filled the role we wanted him to play and did a terrific job.&rdquo;</p><p>In fact, Barber was the only eventual team member not invited to that summer camp, but his play alongside undrafted Czarnik (CCHA player of the year) and Dallas pick Curtis McKenzie at Miami was too much to ignore. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a finisher, he can score,&rdquo; Housley said. &ldquo;He gets open and has a great awareness and instincts about getting into the good spots to score. That&rsquo;s what makes him special.&rdquo;</p><p>The right winger went under the radar at the 2012 draft, eventually getting snapped up by Washington in the sixth round. After Dubuque, Barber went to the U.S. National Team Development Program, where more marquee names such as Trouba, Stefan Matteau and Nic Kerdiles overshadowed him.</p><p>But at Miami, he&rsquo;s a big man on campus and more than happy to be calling Oxford his home. &ldquo;It all starts with &lsquo;The Brotherhood,&rsquo;&rdquo; Barber said. &ldquo;Caring about the guy next to you more than you care about yourself. It creates an atmosphere where individuals can be great, but also teams can be great. I love it. It&rsquo;s a great place to be.&rdquo;</p><p>Miami was one of just two CCHA teams to make the Frozen Four tourney, along with Notre Dame, which won the conference tournament. With the Big Ten taking the heart of the conference away next year, the CCHA is now officially dead. Miami and Western Michigan will join up with some of the top teams from the old WCHA to form the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), including North Dakota, Minnesota-Duluth and Denver.</p><p>The RedHawks have been stung by defections to the Ontario League lately, with NHL first-rounders Tyler Biggs and Connor Murphy at the top of the list, so depth may be an issue next year. But no matter the conference or his teammates, Barber will be a dangerous customer to deal with.</p><h2><b>RILEY BARBER</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-03443/9840771-1-eng-US/f0042-032.jpg" title="f0042-03" width="192" height="144"></div><p><b>POSITION</b></p><p>Right winger</p><p><b>AGE</b> 19</p><p><b>HEIGHT</b> 6-0</p><p><b>WEIGHT</b> 194 lbs</p><p><b>DRAFTED</b></p><p>Washington, 167th in 2012</p><p><b>39</b></p><p>Points for Riley Barber in 40 games with Miami Ohio this season. He finished second in CCHA scoring, one point behind teammate Austin Czarnik, and was named the soon-to-be defunct conference&rsquo;s final rookie of the year.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0042-02

RED LIGHT REDHAWK

<div class="byline">BY JOHN MATISZ</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0043-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-01842/9840816-1-eng-US/f0043-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>&lsquo;THE MULE&rsquo; AS A MODEL</b></p><p>Mike McCarron names Detroit&rsquo;s Johan Franzen as the player he tries to emulate most.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(TOM SORENSEN)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>Y</span><b>OU CAN&rsquo;T SWING A DEAD CAT IN</b>&nbsp;the American hockey community right now without hitting someone excited about Mike McCarron&rsquo;s potential.</p><p>The big-bodied right winger, a key cog of the well-oiled machine that is the U.S. National Team Development Program, has been demanding attention all season. &ldquo;The development trajectory has been very, very high,&rdquo; said U.S. under-18 bench boss Don Granato. &ldquo;He evolves week-to-week. After a week of practices, us coaches look at each other and go, &lsquo;How much better can he get?&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>McCarron, 18, is 6-foot-5 and 228 pounds. By the end of March, he had compiled 27 points and 196 penalty minutes in 54 games for the under-18 team over two seasons.</p><p>NHL Central Scouting considers McCarron first round material for this June&rsquo;s NHL draft, recently upgrading the Western Michigan University-bound power forward to an &lsquo;A&rsquo; rating after originally granting him &lsquo;B&rsquo; status.</p><p>The Macomb, Mich., native was ranked 31st among North American skaters and 20th among forwards in its mid-term rankings, with his stock on the rise. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s really an interesting prospect,&rdquo; said Central Scouting director Dan Marr. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s got some really soft hands and is really good with the puck under pressure. He&rsquo;s good cycling the puck, gets a lot of good scoring chances out of it.&rdquo;</p><p>Granato, who coached McCarron last season as well, is thoroughly impressed with his initiative, especially in regards to beefing up that frame. In the summer, McCarron travelled to the NDTP headquarters in Ann Arbor, Mich., to work out with the team&rsquo;s strength coach. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s one of the biggest &ndash; probably the biggest &ndash; reasons why I came to the U.S. program,&rdquo; McCarron said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m so tall and you work out so much here. I need it.&rdquo;</p><p>Granato describes him as a &ldquo;big, jolly, happy guy&rdquo; who has a &ldquo;mean streak in him when it comes to competition.&rdquo;</p><p>To harness that on-ice intensity, McCarron, a graduate of Honeybaked, the famed Michigan minor hockey system, has received training from the U.S. development program&rsquo;s boxing coach.</p><p>As for NHL player comparisons, McCarron reminds Marr of St. Louis Blues captain David Backes. Western Michigan coach (and coincidentally former Blues coach) Andy Murray sees a little Keith Primeau.</p><p>The player McCarron attempts to mimic is Detroit Red Wings right winger Johan Franzen. &ldquo;He grinds, he&rsquo;s a gritty player, he puts pucks in the net,&rdquo; McCarron said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a power forward. I like to open up ice for everyone out there. I see myself more as a playmaker than a goal scorer, but when I get the chance I bury them.&rdquo;</p><p>After originally leaning toward attending Michigan State, then backing out of a verbal commitment to Cornell University, a squad his brother John plays for, McCarron signed a letter of intent with Western Michigan in November 2012. &ldquo;I went down for a visit there and the coaches really drew me in,&rdquo; McCarron said. &ldquo;I just fell in love with the coaching staff and fell in love with the place, the setup.&rdquo;</p><p>This year&rsquo;s Broncos went 19-11-8 in the regular season, but were quickly swept by rival Michigan University in a CCHA quarterfinal. Upon his arrival at Western Michigan next fall, McCarron will play a top-six role. Murray, who acknowledges McCarron must improve his skating, has confidence in the young man. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s areas of his game he needs to work on, but I firmly believe he is going to be a first-rounder this summer,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;We think he can play with the tempo and pace (of college hockey).&rdquo;</p><h2><b>MIKE MCCARRON</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-02588/9840809-1-eng-US/f0043-022.jpg" title="f0043-02" width="295" height="129"></div><p><b>POSITION</b></p><p>Right winger</p><p><b>AGE</b> 18</p><p><b>HEIGHT</b> 6-5</p><p><b>WEIGHT</b> 228 lbs</p><p><b>DRAFTED</b></p><p>2013 eligible</p><p><b>31</b></p><p>Mike McCarron&rsquo;s ranking among North American skaters according to Central Scouting<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0043-01

BUCKING BRONCO ON THE FORECHECK

<div class="byline">BY NATHAN FOURNIER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0044-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01742/9840854-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SOUNDING BOARD</b></p><p>Nino Niederreiter is the Sound Tigers&rsquo; top scorer and a strong dressing room presence.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(CH RISTOPHER PASATIERI/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>B<b>EFORE HE REALIZES HIS NHL</b>&nbsp;potential, Nino Niederreiter must find consistency in the American League.</p><p>The New York Islanders first round pick in 2010 is in his first full year in the AHL after a disastrous 2011-12 with the Isles in which he had one point in 55 games and was minus-29.</p><p>Niederreiter didn&rsquo;t get a post-lockout camp invite this year and his agent requested a trade because of it, but it appears the Isles knew what they were doing. The 6-foot-2, 207-pound left winger found his touch with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. He led them in goals with 26 and points with 45 through 64 games.</p><p>He was also named to the Eastern Conference team for the AHL All-Star Classic. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s definitely way easier to play hockey when you play more minutes,&rdquo; Niederreiter said. &ldquo;Last season, it wasn&rsquo;t the easiest one in my career so far. Obviously I learned a lot from it.&rdquo;</p><p>His presence on the ice has made his teammates&rsquo; jobs easier, too. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s unbelievable in every aspect,&rdquo; said defenseman Matt Donovan. &ldquo;He knows how to play at the NHL level. He knows where to be and where the puck will be before it&rsquo;s there. Having him is an example of how our guys need to play.&rdquo;</p><p>Scott Pellerin, a veteran of 536 NHL games and the Sound Tigers first-year coach, insists his players develop a complete game. He has seen Niederreiter&rsquo;s maturation &ndash; getting better in the defensive zone, competing in the corners and skating through the neutral zone. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s your play away from the puck,&rdquo; Pellerin said. &ldquo;Obviously he has higher-end skills, shooting and scoring. He has had those for a long time as a player. Now as you move forward it&rsquo;s about bringing all those other pieces together.</p><p>&ldquo;When you look at an established NHL player, you know what you are going to get in game in and game out. Through youth and experience sometimes a player will be inconsistent in the overall production of their game. Nino is in that mix. He needs to find that consistency to bring it every night.&rdquo;</p><p>While Niederreiter&rsquo;s time in the NHL was limited and his numbers left a lot to be desired, last season wasn&rsquo;t a waste. His experience in an NHL dressing room has made him a leader in Bridgeport. &ldquo;He knows what it takes to get to that level,&rdquo; Donovan said. &ldquo;He plays like an NHL player.&rdquo;</p><p>Pellerin said one of the reasons why Niederreiter has fit in so well with his Sound Tigers teammates is it&rsquo;s a young team. Most of the players are in their early 20s and, like everyone else, he still needs to grow as a player. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s good to see them develop together,&rdquo; Pellerin said. &ldquo;The exciting part for me is as a coach is to see them all get better and push each other in a positive way.&rdquo;</p><p>During the NHL lockout, Niederreiter, a native of Chur, Switzerland, wasn&rsquo;t given the option to play in Europe since he&rsquo;s on his entry-level deal. But even if he could have headed back overseas, he said he would still have reported to the AHL as it gives him the best path back to the NHL. &ldquo;I am,&rdquo; Niederreiter said, &ldquo;trying to be the best player I can be.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>NINO NIEDERREITER</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-02481/9840847-1-eng-US/f0044-022.jpg" title="f0044-02" width="188" height="174"></div><p><b>POSITION</b></p><p>Left winger</p><p><b>AGE</b> 20</p><p><b>HEIGHT</b> 6-2</p><p><b>WEIGHT</b> 207 lbs</p><p><b>DRAFTED</b></p><p>Islanders, 5th in 2010<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0044-01

‘EL NINO’ BRAVES CHOPPY WATERS

<div class="byline">BY RYAN KENNEDY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0045-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-01654/9840892-1-eng-US/f0045-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>KRONA IN THE BANK</b></p><p>Scouts say Jacob De La Rose, ranked just outside first round by ISS, a safe pick in a deep draft.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(DE LA ROSE: JESSICA STRÖM)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>J</span><b>ACOB DE LA ROSE HAS ONE</b>&nbsp;of the better names in hockey right now, but it does sound a little off when you consider the player that wears it. After all, the left winger hails from the west side of Sweden and his powerful game is much more thorny than it is floral. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s actually from France,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;On my dad&rsquo;s side it&rsquo;s like, his grandma&rsquo;s grandma was from there.&rdquo;</p><p>De la Rose, 17, was one of the outstanding underagers who helped Sweden to an unexpected silver medal at the world juniors after the squad was robbed of half a dozen of its best players due to injury pre-tournament. A power forward who&rsquo;s never afraid to get his nose dirty, De La Rose uses his 6-foot-2, 183-pound frame to cause chaos on the forecheck. &ldquo;I love his game,&rdquo; said one scout. &ldquo;You get the same effort every game. He works in the trenches and plays don&rsquo;t die with him. Big, strong guy. Top-six is realistic, but he could also be a hell of a third-liner.&rdquo;</p><p>Another scout referred to De La Rose as a safe first round pick and there&rsquo;s something to be said for prospects with more substance than flash. Last year, Zemgus Girgensons was the poster boy for that makeup and Buffalo made sure it wouldn&rsquo;t miss out on the Latvian workhorse. &ldquo;Girgensons has more savvy with the puck,&rdquo; said the first scout. &ldquo;But De La Rose may play a more complete game defensively.&rdquo;</p><p>Back home, De La Rose has been manning the fourth line for the Leksand Stars, a team that just earned its way back into the Elite League from the Allsvenskan (second tier) by taking one of the two promotion spots in a post-season tournament. Leksand had come close last season thanks in part to Washington Capitals firstrounder Filip Forsberg, but this time the Stars got the job done. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s been some years now since Leksand was in the Elite League,&rdquo; De La Rose said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a big dream of ours because Leksand is big in Sweden. We have fans all over the country even though it&rsquo;s a small town. In the past the team was really good, so when we are at away games we have just as many fans as the home team.&rdquo;</p><p>Ranked 31st for the 2013 draft by International Scouting Services, De La Rose put up a respectable six goals and 12 points in 38 games for Leksand during the regular season, though the educational aspect of playing against men was invaluable. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re stronger guys so I have to play strong, protect the puck better,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s something I have to improve on, so it&rsquo;s good for me. I learn things every day.&rdquo;</p><p>And it won&rsquo;t be long before North American audiences learn a thing or two more about De La Rose.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-02440/9840885-1-eng-US/f0045-022.jpg" title="f0045-02" width="173" height="173"></div><h2><b>JACOB DE LA ROSE</b></h2><p>POS Left winger</p><p>AGE 17</p><p>HT 6-2</p><p>WT 183 lbs</p><p>DRAFTED Ranked 31st by ISS for 2013 draft<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0045-01

NO DOUBTING DE LA ROSE

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-03373/9840923-1-eng-US/f0045-032.jpg" title="f0045-03" width="484" height="632"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p>ROBERT</p><p><b>HAGG</b></p> <span class="photo-credit">(HAGG: DAVE REGINEK/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>1. ELIAS LINDHOLM</b></h2><h3><b>BRYNAS</b></h3><p>Two-way center is a character kid who works the corners and earned power play time on the big squad.</p><h2><b>2. ROBERT HAGG</b></h2><h3><b>MODO</b></h3><p>Big defenseman can play a rugged shutdown role, but also has some pretty good hops when rushing up ice</p><h2><b>3. ALEXANDER WENNBERG</b></h2><h3><b>DJURGARDEN</b></h3><p>Always seems to be in the right place to score and never stops working. Key contributor despite age.</p><h2><b>4. JACOB DE LA ROSE</b></h2><h3><b>LEKSAND</b></h3><p>Crash-and-banger with great size not intimidated by older competition. Helped team to promotion.</p><h2><b>5. ANDRE BURAKOWSKY</b></h2><h3><b>MALMO</b></h3><p>Son of former Sens player Robert Burakowsky had tough year, but brings tremendous offensive upside.</p><h2><b>6. LUCAS WALLMARK</b></h2><h3><b>SKELLEFTEA</b></h3><p>Swift playmaker was loaned to Karlskrona for relegation tourney where he thrived as setup man.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0045-03

SWEDES ON TOP

<div class="byline">BY ADAM PROTEAU</div><p class="dropcap"><span>J</span><b>AMIE BAKER WAS A HARDWORKING DEFENSE-MINDED CENTER</b>&nbsp;who never felt secure in eight NHL seasons. But he does hold two records: he&rsquo;s the only NHLer to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators and Quebec Nordiques, and the only one to play his final NHL game in Tokyo, Japan.</p><p>Not bad for an U.S. collegian who had to overcome a serious injury before he ever played a professional game. In his senior year, Baker broke an ankle and tore ligaments. The doctor told him two things: the bad news was he was done for the year, but the good news was the injury wasn&rsquo;t career threatening.</p><p>Baker went on to play 404 NHL games in 10 seasons. And he still cherishes being an American Leaguer playing for Robbie Ftorek in Halifax in 1989-90 and getting that first call-up to play for the Nordiques against the Hartford Whalers. It was in the wee hours of the morning in Ftorek&rsquo;s hotel room in Rochester, N.Y., and Ftorek told Baker he&rsquo;d be playing right wing with Joe Sakic and Michel Goulet. &ldquo;Two Hall of Famers,&rdquo; says Baker, now 46 and a color radio analyst for the San Jose Sharks, laughing. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m like, &lsquo;No, no, no, don&rsquo;t do that to me.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>Baker was proud of making the NHL, but realized he&rsquo;d have to become a different type of player than the one who beat the odds to make it there. &ldquo;When a guy&rsquo;s backhand is harder than your slapshot, the decision to make changes is pretty easy,&rdquo; Baker says. &ldquo;Joe Sakic&rsquo;s backhand was harder than my slapshot.&rdquo;</p><p>In his initial NHL training camps, Baker saw Sakic, Guy Lafleur, Michel Goulet and Peter Stastny in the same room. He knew he&rsquo;d never be that good and took faceoffs, penalty killing and defensive zone coverage more seriously, knowing it would be his way to remain.</p><p>Baker spent parts of two seasons in Quebec City before he signed with his hometown Senators for their modern-day inaugural season in 1992-93. He posted a career-best 19 goals and 48 points, but personal success was greatly overshadowed by the Sens&rsquo; inability to win (they won just 10 games). Still, he counts the first game in Ottawa as one of his career highlights. &ldquo;People were so happy having hockey there,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Though there were no expectations for the team, you don&rsquo;t make it to the pro level accepting losses very well. It was a long year.&rdquo;</p><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;WHEN A GUY&rsquo;S BACKHAND IS HARDER THAN YOUR SLAPSHOT, THE DECISION TO MAKE CHANGES IS EASY<br>&ndash; Jamie Baker</blockquote><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-01591/9840954-1-eng-US/f0047-012.jpg" title="f0047-01" width="925" height="1310"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>SOLO IN THE RISING SUN</b></p><p>Jamie Baker played his last NHL game in Tokyo, Japan &ndash; the only NHL player ever to do so.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(STEVE BABINEAU/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p>Baker left the Sens after one season and enjoyed his most productive NHL time in the three years following, when he played in San Jose. From 1993 to &rsquo;95, the Sharks played 26 playoff games and thrilled the relatively new hockey market. San Jose traded Baker to Toronto in 1996 where he suited up for one of hockey&rsquo;s most storied franchises. &ldquo;The first exhibition game with Toronto when I pulled that jersey over my head, I quietly walked into the bathroom area and I looked at myself in the mirror,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Though I&rsquo;d been in the NHL a while, it gave me chills.&rdquo;</p><p>Baker spent a year and a half in Toronto then left for the International League&rsquo;s Chicago Wolves, where he won a Turner Cup title in 1998. He played one more NHL game &ndash; with the Sharks in Japan &ndash; and retired after a short stint in Finland. With 71 NHL goals, 150 NHL points and a slew of friends around the game, he feels fortunate to have taken the route he did. &ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t good enough from an offensive standpoint game-in and game-out to be on the top two lines on good teams,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;You have to provide value in the NHL. Good role players understand it and accept it.&rdquo;</p><p><b>FOR MORE TALES</b> OF PLAYERS PAST, CLICK ON <b><a href="http://THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM/BACKCHECKING">THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM/BACKCHECKING</a></b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0047-01

ONE BAKER, MANY ROLES

<div class="byline">BY ALAN BASS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-01461/9840985-1-eng-US/f0048-012.jpg" title="f0048-01" width="958" height="1342"><figcaption class="caption-body"><p><b>PERKS OF THE JOB</b></p><p>Comcast president Peter Luukko plays shinny every day on the same ice as the Flyers.</p> <span class="photo-credit">(DAVE SANDFORD/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span><b>T&rsquo;S 10:00 A.M. AND PETER LUUKKO IS IN SITTING HIS OFFICE AT</b>&nbsp;the Wells Fargo Center, home of the Philadelphia Flyers. He&rsquo;s surrounded by an array of hockey memorabilia &ndash; signed jerseys, hockey trinkets, photos of family members playing the game. He picks up a miniature version of the Prince of Wales Trophy and points to his name inscribed on the base. &ldquo;I would&rsquo;ve preferred the big one,&rdquo; he says, smiling, referring to the 2010 Stanley Cup, which his Philadelphia Flyers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks. &ldquo;But this one is still nice.&rdquo;</p><p>Luukko&rsquo;s morning rarely begins in the office. He&rsquo;s often in the building for nearly two hours before he steps foot on the top floor. That&rsquo;s because he&rsquo;s playing hockey with the &ldquo;7:15ers,&rdquo; a collection of staff and friends who play some puck before the workday begins. &ldquo;The alarm goes off at 5:43,&rdquo; Luukko says. &ldquo;Get a cup of tea and jump in the car, come down and play hockey, which to me is probably one of the greatest perks of this job. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a good opportunity to create the teamwork we have here with our staff and get together.&rdquo;</p><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;I&rsquo;M VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE MY JOB. IT&rsquo;S REALLY COOL<br>&ndash; Peter Luukko</blockquote><p>But as president and COO of Comcast-Spectacor, the Flyers&rsquo; parent company, Luukko does more than play and watch hockey.</p><p>The company was created in 1996 when Comcast approached Spectacor chairman Ed Snider regarding a possible merger with his management company, which ran the Flyers. Comcast-Spectacor is now one of the largest sports-operations businesses in the world, with annual revenues exceeding $4 billion.</p><p>Luukko travels a great deal with the Flyers, as well as for the other entities in the company, but for him there&rsquo;s no such thing as a typical day in the office. One day he&rsquo;s trying to close a business deal, the next he&rsquo;s working with Comcast SportsNet to improve the Flyers&rsquo; television broadcasts. &ldquo;What makes the business great is that you come in and you never know what&rsquo;s going to happen,&rdquo; Luukko says. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what I love about this. That&rsquo;s the most thrilling part of the job.&rdquo;</p><p>But the real perk comes around 4 p.m. on game days when he looks out his window and sees the players pulling into the parking lot below. &ldquo;You start to get that excitement, no matter if it&rsquo;s a good or bad day,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m very fortunate to have my job, because it&rsquo;s one thing to do business and gain accounts and the ability to travel and see the world, but to sit here with 20,000 people in orange rooting your team on, it&rsquo;s really cool.&rdquo;</p><p>At the end of what most would consider a full day at the office, Luukko walks into the press box and sits next to GM Paul Holmgren. With that comes the ability to talk about anything, be it the game, the company&rsquo;s business operations or recent trade calls. Even in silence, Luukko takes pride in watching the game next to people he respects. &ldquo;I know enough about hockey to be dangerous,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;but no matter how many games you&rsquo;ve watched or played yourself, you look at these GMs and these coaches throughout the league and they all played at the highest level. I would give anything to watch a game through Bob Clarke or Paul Holmgren&rsquo;s eyes.</p><p>&ldquo;I may be seeing the game, but I&rsquo;m not seeing what they&rsquo;re seeing.&rdquo;</p><p>Nearly 12 hours after he skated on the ice below, it&rsquo;s 7 p.m. and the Flyers pile out for a tilt against the Panthers. Luukko takes it all in, pleased his day is able to start and end with his true passion. Through the game&rsquo;s ups and downs, he&rsquo;s able to forget any problems at the office, if only for a few hours.</p><p>Intense during the action, Luukko emerges from his box at intermissions, mingling excitedly with those around him. His excitement remains until the last player leaves the ice at the end of the 3-2 shootout loss.</p><p>Fifteen hours after he arrived at the office, Luukko heads toward the exit, smiling, ready to do it all again in the morning. He rushes home for a short night of sleep.</p><p>After all, a 7:15er needs his pregame nap.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0048-01

MR. PRESIDENT A PHILLY FANATIC

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-01446/9841016-1-eng-US/f0049-012.jpg" title="f0049-01" width="483" height="592"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(GUESS WHO: JEFF VINNICK/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><blockquote class="pullQuote"><i>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve spent my whole NHL career with the Wild, who drafted me sixth overall in &rsquo;01.&rdquo;</i></blockquote><blockquote class="pullQuote"><i>&ldquo;I captained Finland to the gold medal at the World Championship in 2011.&rdquo;</i></blockquote><blockquote class="pullQuote"><i>&ldquo;I made my NHL debut 10 years after my brother, Saku, did the same with Montreal.&rdquo;</i></blockquote><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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Guess WHO!

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-02343/9841054-1-eng-US/f0049-022.jpg" title="f0049-02" width="230" height="404"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(NYSTROM: ANDY DEVLIN/NH LI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>ERIC NYSTROM</b></h2><p>Dallas Star&rsquo;s broken jaw bone in 2008 was not so lovely. Spent early part of career as a Calgary Flame.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-03269/9841047-1-eng-US/f0049-032.jpg" title="f0049-03" width="230" height="404"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(TUCCI: ALBERTO E. RODRIGUEZ/GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>STANLEY TUCCI</b></h2><p>Hollywood star an Oscar nominee for <i>The Lovely Bones</i>; will appear in <i>The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.</i></p><p><b>Submitted by:</b> Rick Johnson</p><p>Email your suggestions to <b><a href="mailto:sab@thehockeynews.com">sab@thehockeynews.com</a></b></p><p>WHO AM I: MIKKO KOIVU<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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Separated AT BIRTH

<div class="byline">By Larry Humber</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0049-04" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-04250/9841085-1-eng-US/f0049-042.jpg"></div><h2><b>ACROSS</b></h2><p>1 They locked out players again in 2012</p><p>4 Assist</p><p>9 John ___ was with the Isles for all four Cups</p><p>10 Country coached by Rick Cornacchia</p><p>11 Blow or squander</p><p>12 Little by little</p><p>13 Syl ___ was Maple Leafs captain in the 1940s</p><p>15 Rick ___ was taken first overall in 2002</p><p>18 Legendary trainer ___ Murray</p><p>21 Goalies keep ___ bottles on top of their nets</p><p>23 Hoist</p><p>24 Bob ___ was an enforcer with Detroit</p><p>25 Goading, ___ on</p><p>26 Hockey boots</p><h2><b>DOWN</b></h2><p>1 Where &lsquo;Alfie&rsquo; & Co. play</p><p>2 Dave ___ is GM in Toronto, pictured</p><p>3 Pucks that won&rsquo;t sit down</p><p>5 THN art director/CWHL goalie __ Vanderveer</p><p>6 Hockey nut Charles Schulz gave us this famous comic strip</p><p>7 Cornwall team that won three Memorial Cups</p><p>8 Hall of Famer ___ Clancy</p><p>14 Suiting up while injured, ___ hurt</p><p>15 Where 15 Across now plays</p><p>16 Jordan ____ led Oilers in scoring last season</p><p>17 Monsters</p><p>19 Not dirty, like Lady Byng winners</p><p>20 Redirects the puck</p><p>22 ____ Frayne wrote <i>The Mad Men of Hockey</i></p><p><b>ANSWERS AVAILABLE IN THE NEXT ISSUE AND AT <a href="http://THN.com/XWORD">THN.com/xword</a></b></p><h2><b>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S CROSSWORD SOLUTION</b></h2><p><b>ACROSS</b> 1. MARIAN, 4. WILKES, 9. CHARLIE, 10. LUPUL, 11. EATON, 12. FLOATER, 13. SHEA, 15. HART, 18. ALL-STAR, 21. UPSET, 23. TWIST, 24. SIT DOWN, 25. EVGENI, 26. ANGELA</p><p><b>DOWN</b> 1. MICKEY, 2. REACT, 3. ATLANTA, 5. IGLOO, 6. KOPITAR, 7. SALARY, 8. JEFF, 14. HOLDING, 15. HOUSTON, 16. BATTLE, 17. STANZA, 19. TITAN, 20. ROSS, 22. SHORE<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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CROSSWORD

<div class="byline">&#x2013; MATT LARKIN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-05198/9841116-1-eng-US/f0049-052.jpg" title="f0049-05" width="920" height="877"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(MASK: DAVEART.COM)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>VIKTOR FASTH | ANAHEIM DUCKS</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>s &ldquo;the fire rises,&rdquo; according to Bane in <i>The Dark Knight Rises,</i> Ducks goalie Viktor Fasth&rsquo;s GAA has fallen. The freshman netminder has been harder to penetrate than Bane&rsquo;s army. Maybe that&rsquo;s why he modelled his latest mask after the Batman villain&rsquo;s.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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Behind THE MASK

<div class="byline">&#x2013; RYAN KENNEDY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-06119/9841147-1-eng-US/f0049-062.jpg" title="f0049-06" width="622" height="614"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JERSEY: TOP SHELF SHOTS/SERENA DALHAMER)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span>ogo styles have changed numerous times over the years and though crests have been cartoonish in the past, the current pop culture fascination with graphic novels is yielding some nice returns in sports. Case in point, the United States League&rsquo;s Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, who updated their horse mascot with excellent results. The team font also got a makeover and the finished product is a slick jersey with attractive colors. As a nod to the past, the RoughRiders maintain an old mark on the shoulder.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0049-06

Jersey HOUND

<div class="byline">WITH KEN CAMPBELL</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-02325/9841178-1-eng-US/f0050-022.jpg" title="f0050-02" width="949" height="761"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(JEFF VINNICK/NHLI VIA GETTY IMAGES)</span></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-01433/9841185-1-eng-US/f0050-012.jpg" title="f0050-01" width="194" height="219"></div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span><b>EGEND HAS IT THAT EVERY TRAINING</b>&nbsp;camp, Gordie Howe would sit down with Detroit Red Wings GM Jack Adams and sign a deal that gave him a modest little raise and a free Red Wings jacket. Now <i>that&rsquo;s</i> a contract that sucked.</p><p>A 12-year deal worth $64 million where you make $62 million in the first 10 years and in exchange for playing in one of North America&rsquo;s most beautiful cities? Maybe not so much. But that&rsquo;s what Roberto Luongo thinks. He thinks his contract sucks. He actually said that on trade deadline day when that very contract prevented him from being traded by the Vancouver Canucks.</p><p>Does that make Luongo an ingrate? No, not exactly. Out of touch? Oh yeah. Insensitive, both to the common man and the hundreds of players who only wish they had a contract that could suck nearly as badly as his? Yeah, maybe a little.</p><p>Still, it&rsquo;s difficult not to feel a touch sorry for Luongo, who, like Howard Hughes, is finding that money doesn&rsquo;t always buy happiness. It certainly doesn&rsquo;t buy time in the crease in the NHL. In fact, Luongo has come to realize the same contract that so richly rewarded him just three years ago has become the curse of his career. There is nothing else that&rsquo;s preventing Luongo from moving on in his career and his life.</p><p>Let&rsquo;s take stock of the salary cap system in the NHL. You have probably a third of the league spending more money than it would ever budget to spend simply to get to the salary floor. Until the most recent collective bargaining agreement, you had teams circumventing it by coming up with contracts like Luongo&rsquo;s, which basically makes them untradeable and almost impossible to buy out. You have players skipping out on the last years of those contracts to retire because it&rsquo;s not worth their while to play for relatively little money. And you have Roberto Luongo telling everyone who will listen, &ldquo;I&rsquo;d scrap it right now if I could.&rdquo;</p><p>Aside from that, the salary cap world is working just fine, wouldn&rsquo;t you say? Yes, if Luongo really wanted to, he could refuse to report, which could conceivably trigger his contract being voided and him becoming an unrestricted free agent. But there&rsquo;s no way Luongo is going to turn his back on that kind of guaranteed money. The Canucks could use one of their amnesty buyouts on him over the summer, but that would cost $27 million in real money.</p><p>Or the Canucks could get realistic about his value and essentially trade him to a team for nothing. In return, they would get out from under the contract and Luongo would be able to resume his career elsewhere. But the Canucks are not at that stage yet. GM Mike Gillis, who did the deal in 2009, still wants to be rid of the Luongo commitment and get something in return. And he doesn&rsquo;t want to take on any of Luongo&rsquo;s cap hit going forward. And he doesn&rsquo;t want anyone&rsquo;s junk contracts back in return.</p><p>Man, that&rsquo;s a tall order. So Luongo sits and waits with his ball cap firmly placed on his head, waiting for Cory Schneider to falter. An it could happen. Hey, maybe Schneider drops the ball in the playoffs, Luongo picks it up and gets hot and leads the Canucks through several rounds and the Canucks instead trade Schneider over the summer. It could happen.</p><p>While Luongo sits in contract purgatory, the salary cap world has ensured we haven&rsquo;t seen the last of these situations. As long as Alex Ovechkin continues to have his ups and downs, he&rsquo;s going to go from either being one of the hottest players in the NHL to one of the &ldquo;Most Popular Buyouts&rdquo; on <a href="http://capgeek.com">capgeek.com</a>. After this season, the New York Rangers will have paid Brad Richards $24 million and face the prospect of shelling out another $33 million with a $6.7 million cap hit each of the next four seasons with a no-movement clause.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;HARD NOT TO FEEL FOR LUONGO WHO, LIKE HOWARD HUGHES, IS FINDING MONEY DOESN&rsquo;T BUY HAPPINESS</blockquote><p>And these things aren&rsquo;t going to go away just because the league managed to get the maximum length of contracts down to seven or eight years in the new collective bargaining agreement. It&rsquo;s interesting actually, that the league could have used the Luongo example in the argument against long-term deals when they were negotiating through the first half of the season. &ldquo;Even the players don&rsquo;t want these things,&rdquo; deputy commissioner Bill Daly could have said while talking about dying on a hill to get a five-year maximum.</p><p>And now, with the salary cap coming down instead of going up, these deals are going to come under more scrutiny. The players, however, will always get their money and their term, even under the new system. We&rsquo;ve already seen it with Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Alexander Semin.</p><p>But having those kinds of deals will squeeze the more marginal players and force them to take deals far inferior to the ones they&rsquo;re receiving now.</p><p>Now, that&rsquo;s going to suck.</p><p><b>CAN&rsquo;T GET ENOUGH CAMPBELL? CLICK ON <a href="http://thehockeynews.com">THEHOCKEYNEWS.COM</a> FOR KEN&rsquo;S EXCLUSIVE COLUMN</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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April 29, 2013

BIG FAN

Ice CHIPS

PLUS MINUS

ISLES’ LONG WAIT IS ALMOST OVER