MINOR-LEAGUE MANAGEMENT:

Here’s a listing of the general managers and coaches at the end of last season and starting this season in the American, International and East Coast Leagues. NHL affiliations are listed in parentheses. AMERICAN LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE EAST COAST LEAGUE…

ELSTON

Graphite improves new skates for ’94

The European invasion has not only brought an influx of talented hockey players to the NHL but it has also brought an influx of foreign skates. And high-speed Russian star Sergei Fedorov, who won the NHL’s fastest skater competition at last year’s All-Star Game, is one player who uses a foreign brand. Even before the Iron Curtain crumbled, Fedorov and other stars like countryman Alexander Mogilny, looked west to Switzerland where Graf skates are made. “A lot of these players, such as Fedorov, Mogilny and Sergei Zubov grew up in Graf skates,” said Bob Harris, president of Graf USA. “Pavel Bure used to wear them until Canstar paid him to switch (Bure now wears Mega Air 90s). Because these European players have done so well, we’ve received calls from other players.” Despite the romantic…

’98 GAMES PLANS GET ENDORSEMENT

The NHL anticipates a shutdown of no more than 10 days should its players compete in the 1998 Olympics-as is expected in the wake of a joint NHL-International Ice Hockey Federation announcement the world’s two foremost hockey bodies are committed to making the dream a reality. A major change in Olympic tournament format would have to take place for such a short interruption to the NHL schedule. Tn past Olympics, medal-winning teams have competed for the full two-week duration of the Olympics. One proposal is for 12 non-seeded teams to compete during the first week for two berths in a second round that would include six seeded teams from among such hockey powers as Canada, United States. Sweden. Finland. Russia and the Czech Republic or Slovakia. The remaining teams would play a three-game…