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.

March 21, 1997

The Hockey News March 21, 1997

A weekly compendium of significant events and developments (Feb. 28-March 7).March 1: Boston trades Adam Oates, Bill Ranford and Rick Tocchet to Washington for Jim Carey, Jason Allison, Anson Carter and a conditional draft choice.March 3: Colorado goalie Patrick Roy charged with fighting following an incident at a Denver nightclub March 1.Pittsburgh fires coach Ed Johnston. GM Craig Patrick takes over.March 4: Oates debuts with Washington, scores winning goal in 2-1 win over Calgary.March 5: Philadelphia Flyers sue radio station that broadcasts their games for defamatory comments made about Eric Lindros. Talk show host Craig Carton alleged Lindros missed recent game because of hangover.Roy returns to Montreal for first time since trade last season with Colorado and beats former team 7-3.Mar. 6: San Jose defenseman Al lafrate undergoes season-ending back surgery.Phoenix&rsquo;s Mike Gartner scores two goals in 50 win over Tampa Bay to hit 30-goal plateau for 17th time in 18-year NHL career.Capitals&rsquo; sniper Peter Bondra scores four goals in 6-3 win over Colorado. &#9632;

DEPARTMENTS

Capitals stock up with Bruins’ veterans for playoff run

<div class="byline">By Lance Hornby</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-011596/6775164-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Colorado goalie Patrick Roy signals the fans during a triumphant return to Montreal March 5. The Avalanche beat the Canadiens 7-3.</figcaption></div>After staunchly defending its actions in the face of a sex scandal dating back to the 1970s, Maple Leaf Gardens has backtracked.As Toronto police sifted through about 100 complaints from alleged victims, Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; president-GM Cliff Fletcher told The Toronto Star: &ldquo;It should have been handled differently.&rdquo;Fletcher said the organization should not have been so quick to hand off responsibility of the original complaint three years ago. The Leafs left the Martin Kruze lawsuit in the hands of lawyers and insurance claim adjusters.&ldquo;You look back on it now and it was a lousy decision,&rdquo; Fletcher said.Kruze, 34, alleged he had been sexually assaulted by MLG staff-beginning in 1975, when he was 13 years old-over a seven-year period. He launched a $1.75-million lawsuit against the Gardens in 1993 and eventually settled for $60,(MX).Gordon Stuckless, 47, a former equipment handler, faced numerous counts of indecent assault and gross indecency. John Paul Roby, 54, a long-time Gardens usher, was charged with 70 counts. Both were recently denied bail. The late George Hannah, an equipment manager with the junior Toronto Marlboros, has also been implicated.&#9633; Meanwhile, a former trainer for the Toronto Young Nats minor hockey organization was charged March 6 with sexual assault on a 12-year-old boy. The boy played in the organization over a three-year period between 1978 and 1982 and alleges the assault took place during that time.Gavin McCrae, 50, was charged with indecent assault on a male, buggery and gross indecency.&#9633; In Milton (Ont.) another man, formerly involved in minor hockey, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting four boys in the 1980s.The 67-year-old man cannot be named to protect the identities of his victims. He once served as an assistant coach with the Toronto Red Wings minor hockey association.The man will be sentenced May 20.<h2>Ex-Hab returns home &#9632;</h2>

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IN THIS ISSUE

MLG mishandled lawsuit: Fletcher

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01754/6776933-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01457/6776926-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg" title="f0040-01" width="3089" height="3536"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01379/6776919-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg" title="f0041-01" width="3108" height="3529"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-01386/6776912-1-eng-US/f0042-012.jpg" title="f0042-01" width="3094" height="3520"></div><h2>NHL GOALTENDING STATISTICS</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-01404/6776905-1-eng-US/f0043-012.jpg" title="f0043-01" width="3101" height="1042"></div> &#9632;

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NHL STATISTICAL REPORT

<div class="byline">By Dave Fay</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03430/6776540-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="578" height="900"><figcaption class="caption-body">Phil Housley</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02615/6776547-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="163" height="159"></div>In acquiring Adam Oates, Rich Tocchet and Bill Ranford, the Washington Capitals pulled off arguably the biggest deal in their 23-year history.The Caps made plain they hope to turn the infusion of talent, plus the return of the legion of injured players, into a solid run to the playoffs and beyond. There was little time to waste; the Caps were eight games below. 500 and last in the NHL in scoring.Pivotal factors: 1. Injuries. The Caps can afford no more of them and don&rsquo;t deserve any more-injuries have badly hurt the team for the past two seasons. 2. Scoring. The league&rsquo;s most lethargic offense must finally get its act in gear. 3. Power play. Oates should help improve puck control, which should lead to more chances.Hardware hopefuls: Oates, Lady Byng; Dale Hunter, Selke.Needs: Just some healthy bodies. GM David Poile said he sees no need for more trades if he can get Tocchet, Sergei Gonchar, Pat Peake, Joe Reekie and Chris Simon back in uniform.Available: Other than Oates, Peter Bondra and Phil Housley (who has a no-trade clause), if ex-Cap star Jim Carey can be dealt, nobody is safe.Trade talk: All quiet on this front.Above and beyond: Defenseman/winger Ken Klee looks like he was bom wrapped in ice bags and Ace bandages, but he rarely misses a game and never complains.Down and out: Housley was goalless in his past 32 games and had one in his past 43.NOTEBOOK: Right winger Peter Bondra broke a six-game goal-less slump with four in a 6-3 win over Colorado March 7&hellip;Center Adam Oates switched to No. 77 instead of his traditional No. 12 to honor Boston captain Ray Bourque. Bondra wears 12 in Washington&hellip;Oates had the game-winner in his first game as a Capital&hellip;Oates, his agent Brian Cook and Capitals&rsquo; management agreed to put off until the summer discussions on a new contract for the center&hellip;After the trade with the Bruins, the Capitals found themselves a man short when Oates and Rick Tocchet didn&rsquo;t show up for Islanders game. Defenseman Mark Tinordi (broken ankle) was asked if he could play, tested the foot and has been playing ever since. &#9632;

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NHL TEAMS

Deal payoff anticipated

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-011491/6774954-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Frankie Brimsek earned six shutouts in a seven-game stretch to earn the nickname &lsquo;Mr. Zero.&rsquo; (Photo from Bruce Bennett Studios archives)</figcaption></div><h2>Old Reliable hits 30 again</h2>1. 30-something Phoenix&rsquo;s Mike Gartner does it again, records 17th 30-goal season in 18 years.2. Peter the Great Washington scoring machine Peter Bondra nets four goals in win over Colorado.3. Look who&rsquo;s peaking Detroit rises in Western Conference standings with nine-game undefeated streak.4. Hot stopper Former NHLer Don Beaupre 11-0-1 with two shutouts for St. John&rsquo;s in AHL since Jan. 5.5. No Bull Belleville Bulls&rsquo; coach Larry Mavety records 500th Ontario League victory.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-021231/6774947-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="330" height="458"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Gartner</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-03914/6774940-1-eng-US/f0002-032.jpg" title="f0002-03" width="331" height="458"><figcaption class="caption-body">Peter Bondra</figcaption></div><h2>Florida flirts with disaster</h2>1. Panthers tamed Once-mighty Florida Panthers win just once in nine games, suffer back-to-back shutout losses.2. Serves you right Las Vegas&rsquo; Greg Lakovic waits for opponent outside penalty box, then gets dusted in ensuing fight.3. Slumping Penguins Pittsburgh fires coach Ed Johnson, then drops sixth straight game.4. Cheap shot Toronto&rsquo;s Mats Sundin slams Boston defenseman Ray Bourque&rsquo;s head into glass at buzzer.5. Stewin&rsquo; Bruin Boston&rsquo;s Jim Carey 0-2-0 in first two stars with Bruins, allows nine goals in four periods. &#9632;

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PLUS MINUS

<div class="byline">By Steve Dryden Editor-In-Chief</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-04685/6774985-1-eng-US/f0002-042.jpg" title="f0002-04" width="350" height="429"></div>The phone rings and rings and rings in Virginia, Minn. Finally, a legend answers.Frankie Brimsek doesn&rsquo;t get around his house as quickly as he used to get around the crease. His left leg was amputated last year because of circulation problems. Now, the 83-year-old gets around on crutches. He seldom straps on his artificial leg because it hurts too much. In this, the year a modern-day season standard has been set for NHL shutouts (105, up from 99), the man they called Mr. Zero continues to follow the game on TV and in the papers. He earned the nickname (Brimsek thinks Boston Bruins&rsquo; teammate Bill Cowley gave it to him) after recording shutouts in six of seven games during his 1938-39 rookie season.A good start was essential for Brimsek, who was replacing Hall of Fame goalie Tiny Thompson. &ldquo;When the Bruins used to go on the ice, the fans would blow the roof off,&rdquo; Brimsek said. &ldquo;The night I went on, I could hear the people breathing. When I was skating down the other end, I knew dam well if I had a bad game I&rsquo;d be on the next train out.&rdquo; There were few of those during Brimsek&rsquo;s remarkable 10-year career (1938-50). All but one season was spent with Boston. He was rookie of the year, made the all-star team eight times-his NHL career was interrupted by two-and-a-half years of service in the U.S. military during WWII-and was runner-up for league MVP in 1947-48.Brimsek was a classic stand-up goalie who played with supreme confidence, taunting the opposition on penalty shots by casually leaning back on his net as the shooter approached. His trademark was a heavy stick, both in substance and style. Brimsek asked the manufacturer to give him lots of weight and he brandished his stick with conviction, either knocking the puck off opponents&rsquo; sticks or their feet from underneath them. &ldquo;There are so many goals scored from behind the net now,&rdquo; Brimsek said. &ldquo;They never could do that with me.&rdquo;Brimsek, who was a freight train engineer for 25 years after his NHL career, continues to receive about 10 autograph requests a week. Most of them are routed through the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, where his likeness resides. Virginia, a taconite mining community in northeastern Minnesota, is about five miles from Eveleth, Brimsek&rsquo;s hometown and home to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, another shrine that has honored his career. Fifty-eight years after Mr. Zero fashioned one of the game&rsquo;s great memories, it&rsquo;s appropriate we, too, honor him. &#9632;

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From zero to hero: a rise to superstardom

<div class="byline">Bob McKenzie Associate Editor</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03865/6775030-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="346" height="432"></div>If each GM were to make two trades in the final days prior to the March 18 NHL deadline, there still wouldn&rsquo;t be as many deals this season as there were a year ago.It&rsquo;s a startling illustration of just how quiet it has been on the NHL trade front.Between draft day 1995 and deadline day 1996, there were an incredible 120 transactions involving 328 assets (players and/or draft picks). This season, through March 7 (11 days before the deadline) there had been only 59 transactions involving 165 assets, almost exactly half the activityWhy? The regular responses get trotted out-economics, parity, the firing of Mike Keenan. But Florida Panthers&rsquo; GM Bryan Murray, who was in the pre-deadline market for an offensive threat, wondered if his team&rsquo;s success last season has influenced others.&ldquo;People saw what we accomplished (a trip to the Stanley Cup final) and realized you don&rsquo;t have to go out and trade for a Peter Forsberg to have some success,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;There seems to be an attitude now of making due with what you&rsquo;ve got and letting young players develop.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s not for everyone, of course. The New Jersey Devils had the depth of young talent to be able to trade for Doug Gilmour and take a serious run at winning the Cup. The Washington Capitals were on the playoff bubble, so they went out and made the deal for Adam Oates, Rick Tocchet and Bill Ranford.No team was busier than the Pittsburgh Penguins, who led the league with nine deals, many of them significant. The San Jose Sharks&rsquo; attempts to rebuild resulted in them moving more assets (12) than any other club.But counter-balancing the likes of New Jersey, Washington, Pittsburgh and San Jose, were such teams as the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks. The Sabres were the only team in the league to not make a single deal between draft day &rsquo;96 and March 7.&ldquo;Just don&rsquo;t count how many we made in the couple of years before that,&rdquo; said Sabres&rsquo; GM John Muckier. &ldquo;It was a lot, but now we&rsquo;re content to let our talent develop. If we make a deal now, it&rsquo;s going to be for a fourth-line type of player and we won&rsquo;t be giving up anything of consequence.&rdquo;The Canucks, meanwhile, had made just one trade this season-getting tough guy Donald Brashear from the Montreal Canadiens for defenseman Jassen Cullimore. It&rsquo;s difficult to rationalize their inactivity. GM Pat Quinn&rsquo;s team was on the playoff bubble and there&rsquo;ll be hell to pay if a team with that much talent misses the playoffs. Still, Vancouver was hesitant to give up two unproven prospects-Josh Holden and Peter Schaefer-and fell out of the Oates sweepstakes. That type of sensitivity to the future has been prevalent.It even afflicted the New York Rangers. They know full well with Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky that their biological clock is ticking loudly. Yet Rangers&rsquo; GM Neil Smith said he was hesitant to make a deal for much-needed depth up front if it meant giving up some of the organization&rsquo;s top prospects. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t keep giving up the Tony Amontes and Doug Weights,&rdquo; Smith said of prospects the Rangers have surrendered who have gone on to become stars. It&rsquo;s also worth noting the Rangers are finally living with some financial constraints, which usually is a trade impediment.All that said, it would surprise no one if there&rsquo;s a trading flurry in the final hours before the deadline. The Cup-contending Philadelphia Flyers were in the market for a veteran defenseman (Jamie Macoun of the Toronto Maple Leafs or Luke Richardson of the Edmonton Oilers?). Ditto for the Detroit Red Wings. Murray&rsquo;s Panthers would love to add a sniper or playmaker (Vancouver&rsquo;s Al-exander Mogilny, Ray Ferraro of the L.A. Kings or Derek King or Marty McInnis of the New York Islanders). The Rangers, in spite of their concerns, continued to pitch for Toronto&rsquo;s Kirk Muller and/or Tie Domi. And Vancouver may yet make its move. If the right deal is there, Mogilny will be traded.Mostly, though, the big names have already gone. With the exception of a potential Mogilny deal, most action will come from non-playoff teams looking to dump veterans (or players set to become unrestricted free agents) in the direction of Cup contenders.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021317/6775023-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="1179" height="1715"><figcaption class="caption-body">Will Derek King be a former New York Islander after the deadline?</figcaption></div><h2>TRADING PLACES</h2>Listed are each teain&rsquo;s number of trades (No.) and number of players andfor draft choices (Assets) traded away since the 1996 entry draft June 22. 1996.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011649/6775016-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="396" height="1215"></div> &#9632;

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GMs fail to keep pace

Sneaky Pete is trying to rebuild and repeat at the same time.While his Colorado Avalanche remains odds-on favorite to win its second consecutive Stanley Cup, GM Pierre Lacroix has been quietly and efficiently laying a new foundation that will ensure Avs&rsquo; competitiveness well into the next century.&ldquo;Economics may force us to (divest expensive assets and rebuild) and it&rsquo;s my job to make sure we stay competitive,&rdquo; said Lacroix, who has made several outstanding deals for the future this season.He dealt surplus defenseman Tuo-mas Gronman to the Chicago Blackhawks for a second round pick in 1998. He traded spare blueliner Craig Wolanin to the Tampa Bay Lightning for another 1998 second-rounder. He packaged spare parts Landon Wilson and Anders Myrvold to get the Boston Bruins&rsquo; first round pick in 1998 and got the Washington Capitals&rsquo; top pick that year, not to mention useful Keith Jones, for Chris Simon and Curtis Leschyshyn.Factor in the 1998 first-round flipflop with the Los Angeles Kings, part of the Stephane Fiset deal, and the Avs have six of the first 52 picks in 1998, including three in the first round. One or two could even be (top 10) lottery picks.Speculation is Lacroix will use those as a package to secure Vincent Lecavalier, the Quebec League sensation for the Rimouski Oceanic who is projected to be No. 1 in 1998. (See pg. 34 for more on Lecavalier.)Lacroix is coy on the specifics, but said: &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re going to secure your future, you need the ammunition and we&rsquo;ve been able to get some without touching our core.&rdquo;Last season, Lacroix made bold moves to get Sandis Ozolinsh and Patrick Roy, key components that put the Avs over the top. His moves this season aren&rsquo;t nearly as dramatic, but could be just as important in keeping the Avs at the top of the mountain for many years to come. &#9632;

Lacroix rebuilds, reloads

<div class="byline">By Wayne Fish</div>Ed Snider helped create Philadelphia radio station WIP&rsquo;s all-sports talk format 10 years ago and now has taken legal action to penalize the station he once owned for an allegation it made about Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; star Eric Lindros.Snider, chairman of the corporation that owns the Flyers, announced at a March 5 news conference the Flyers have filed a lawsuit for unspecified damages against Infinity Broadcasting Corporation-the Flyers&rsquo; flagship station-and talk show host Craig Carton.The Flyers are seeking damages, plus a release from their contract, for what they consider to be libelous statements made by Carton concerning why Lindros did not play in a Feb. 15-16 weekend series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.In a report that aired March 31, Carton alleged Lindros was suffering from the aftereffects of alcohol use on the night of Feb. 14 and that he was suspended by the Flyers.Lindros, according to the Flyers, sustained a back injury in a collision with Janne Laukkanen of the Ottawa Senators Feb. 13 and was unable to play.The Flyers, who maintain this is just the latest in a pattern of reckless sensationalism at the station. obtained a court order prohibiting the destruction or alteration of the tapes containing all on-air comments relating to the Lindros matter.Previous WIP reports on Lindros included an alleged bar fight in Voorhees, N.J., in the fall of 1992 and reported ties to alleged Philadelphia mobster Joey Merlino in 1996.&ldquo;This is one step too many,&rdquo; Snider said. &ldquo;They finally went over the ledge. We were willing to give them the benefit of the doubt last time&hellip;not any longer.&rdquo;WIP station manager Tom Bigby said, &ldquo;It is the policy of CBS (Infinity&rsquo;s parent company) not to comment on matters involving litigation.&rdquo;The Flyers were incensed because Carton did not check with them for confirmation.Lindros says he spent the evening of Feb. 14 in the Flyers&rsquo; hyperbaric chamber for treatment. Later he rented a home video and made some phone calls from his South Jersey home.He, too, is pursuing legal options.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s unfortunate the situation has gotten to this point,&rdquo; Lindros said. &ldquo;All I can say is the allegations they have made are simply untrue.&rdquo; &#9632;

Flyers sue radio station for Lindros slam

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div>NHL vice-president Brian Burke never said that any elite NHL players are taking steroids, but he hinted banned substances are a concern for NHLers taking part in the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.The issue of banned substances came up when Burke was in Toronto March 6. He was discussing issues involved in assigning a new deadline for naming rosters for the Games.All athletes are subject to drug testing at the Olympics. Burke said the NHL received an extensive list of banned substances-which includes many over-the-counter drugs-from the International Olympic Committee and advice on how to ensure that NHLers are clean once the Games begin.&ldquo;We have gotten some proposals on how best to attack it and (potential players) are probably going to be approached prior to the end of the season because some of these substances can stay in your body for six months,&rdquo; Burke said. &ldquo;Anabolic steroids can last for six months.&rdquo;The NHL has an agreement with eight other organizations that sets Aug. 1 as the date nations have to name 18 players to their Olympic rosters, with the remainder in December.Everybody except the U.S. balked at the deadline. Canada has targeted Dec. 1 as the date when it will name its roster. Finland, Russia, and Sweden have said they would like to wait until the end of January, about two weeks before the Games begin.A proposal by the NHL and NHL Players&rsquo; Association to extend the deadline to Oct. 3 was recently rejected by the International Ice Hockey Federation. IIHF president Rene Fasel is holding out for Dec. 1.Burke said the doping issue is &ldquo;real serious. Any hockey guy will tell you the later the date the better, but that is not realistic in terms of the drug testing program. The splash we hope to generate from this&hellip;the team will have to be named farther in advance.&rdquo;TERM BEGINS: Former Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; owner and NHL board of governors chairman Bruce McNall was scheduled to make his move behind bars March 10.McNall was sentenced Jan. 9 to five years and 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $5-million restitution for his admitted role in a scheme to bilk banks, a securities firm and the NHL team of more than $235 million.He was given eight weeks to take care of personal business and was expected to turn himself in March 10. He spent part of March 5 dining with former Kings Wayne Gretzky and Luc Robitaille when the New York Rangers made a stop in Los Angeles. &#9632;

NHL guarding against drug scandal

<div class="byline">Compiled by THN staff</div>It had become a way of life in Pittsburgh. When the Pittsburgh Penguins won, coach Eddie Johnston got no credit. When they lost, he got the blame.Fans screamed for his head on a regular basis, claiming the game had passed him by. The numbers would not bear that out, as the Penguins improved each of his four years.But when the Penguins fell into a February funk, the fans got their wish. GM Craig Patrick replaced Johnston behind the bench and appointed him assistant GM March 3.&ldquo;The team is not responding to our current situation and a change was necessary,&rdquo; Patrick said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got a ship that&rsquo;s off-course.&rdquo;&ldquo;I want to thank Craig and the organization for allowing me to spend four great years here,&rdquo; Johnston said. &ldquo;Unfortunately, we haven&rsquo;t been going too well since the All-Star Game.&rdquo;&ldquo;Craig was the one who recommended (firing Johnston), but I supported it 100 per cent,&rdquo; said Penguins&rsquo; chairman Howard Baldwin. &ldquo;You just can&rsquo;t keep trading players.&rdquo;Johnston had a 153-98-25 record in his second stint in Pittsburgh.SHUTOUT RECORD: NHL goalies established a modern-day shut-out record in early March and were pushing toward the all-time mark.There were 105 shutouts through March 6, breaking the old mark of 99, set in 1993-94. The all-time mark is 120, set in 1928-29.WOMEN&rsquo;S NATIONALS: Prince Edward Island was at the Canadian Women&rsquo;s Hockey Championship in Richmond, B.C., but it couldn&rsquo;t be faulted for thinking it was actually in the twilight zone.After losing 4-0 and being outshot 78-6-by Ontario March 6, PEI scored four goals in 2:10 the next day for a 5-5 tie with Saskatchewan. (See pg. 45 for standings and scores.)&ndash;With a file from Mike Dudurich &#9632;

GM Patrick goes back to bench

The house that Doug Gilmour built is now silent. I hope Gilmour has a great tenure with the New Jersey Devils and comes back to haunt the Toronto Maple Leafs.The next time the Leafs win the Cup, they&rsquo;ll be playing hockey on the moon. Come to think of it, the last time they won the Cup. we hadn&rsquo;t even been there yet.Houston, we have a problem.Terry Kozelko,&nbsp; Sudbury, Ont.<h2>Easy as A-B-C</h2>This is what is wrong with the Doug Gilmour deal: Alyn McCauley isn&rsquo;t Jarome Iginla. Simply put, the Toronto Maple Leafs traded an &ldquo;A&rdquo; player and got &ldquo;B&rdquo; and &ldquo;C&rdquo; players in return.The New Jersey Devils gave up three players they could easily replace. That doesn&rsquo;t say much about the proceeds going to Toronto.Rick Charlton,&nbsp; Calgary, Alta.<h2>Another bad one</h2>It was really sad to see Doug Gilmour get traded, particularly in light of the fact that Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; GM Cliff Fletcher was forced into that position by a bunch of bad trades prior to this one.But Fletcher is not the only one at fault. Owner Steve Stavro and his sidekicks slashed the budget, forcing Fletcher to make unpopular moves.Bryce Malott,&nbsp; Amherstburg, Ont.<h2>Change gears</h2>Note to Vancouver Canucks&rsquo; coach Tom Renney: Don&rsquo;t drive a Ferrari like a Jeep.The Canucks are the fastest team in the league, but without direction they&rsquo;re dead in the water. Stop sulking about the failure of your defensive system and coach the Ferraris to at least a playoff spot.S. Madeloni,&nbsp; Tampa, Fla.<h2>Get some grit</h2>Shame on Vancouver Canucks&rsquo; GM Pat Quinn. The Canucks lack the grit and courage to succeed in the NHL.He must give coach Tom Renney a few grinders and lose some of that finesse. For someone who played a gritty style of hockey throughout his career, he sure didn&rsquo;t build a team in his own image.Bill Pottyondy,&nbsp; Montreal, Que.<h2>Is Eric worth it?</h2>As I watch the Philadelphia Flyers play, I often wonder how Peter Forsberg would look in orange and black.Eric Lindros is a great player, but he is often hurt and doesn&rsquo;t seem to rise to the occasion when the Flyers need him most. Most people don&rsquo;t want to admit it, but maybe Lindros wasn&rsquo;t worth the price.Sam Zawaski,&nbsp; Mohrsville, Pa.<h2>Hear me out</h2>I find it laughable that the NHL threatens players, coaches and GMs with fines if they complain about the officiating.Well, they can&rsquo;t fine me. The refereeing in the NHL stinks.Ken Aeon,&nbsp; Middletown, Pa.<h2>They didn&rsquo;t forget</h2>In Stan Fischler&rsquo;s Feb. 7 column, he states that the 1979-80 Philadelphia Flyers &ldquo;forgot to win the Stanley Cup.&rdquo;Hogwash. Everyone else who saw Game 6 of the final that year remembers the Flyers had the Cup stolen from them when the linesman missed a blatant offside.William Mattiford,&nbsp; Killeen, Tex.<h2>Get rid of ties</h2>In your Feb. 28 issue, you discussed 10-1/2 ways to make the game better. Well, I think you missed one.For the love of God, could the NHL please do away with ties? What could be more exciting than the outcome of a game hinging on a shootout between Patrick Roy and Jaromir Jagr?It&rsquo;s time hockey caught up to other major sports because ties really are pointless.Antonio Scultore,&nbsp; Franklin Square, N.Y.<h2>Think of the kids</h2>A couple of thoughts on your story on 10-1/2 ways to make the NHL better.&#9633; Bob Clarke is absolutely right-the red line must go. This would allow skilled players to bring some speed and finesse back into the game.&#9633; I can&rsquo;t believe you didn&rsquo;t mention the icing on penalty situations. Only the NHL would think of calling a penalty and giving the penalized team an advantage.&#9633; Two points for a goal? Give us a break. Can you imagine kids thinking a goal is twice as important as an assist?Jerry Cherneski,&nbsp; Moose Jaw, Sask.Make your feelings known. Fax us your comments at&nbsp;(416) 340-1641&nbsp;or write to&nbsp;Letters, TON, 777 Bay St, Suite 2700, Box 148, Toronto, Ont, M5G 2N8&nbsp;in Canada. In the U.S., write to&nbsp;Letters, THN, P.O. Box 904, Buffalo, N.Y., 142409947. E-mail us at <a href="mailto:THN@transc.com">THN@transc.com</a>. Include home and business phone numbers.&nbsp;THN&nbsp;reserves the right to edit submissions. &#9632;

Gilmour deal means no Cup hope for T.O.

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011771/6775267-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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ELSTON

<h2>Sittler steals spotlight</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021210/6775298-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="606" height="890"></div>A few milestones were set when the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Boston Bruins on Feb. 7, 1976. Bruins&rsquo; center Jean Ratelie scored his 350th career goal to become only the 18th player to reach that mark. Teammate Johnny Bucyk upstaged him by scoring his 1,283rd point to move into second place behind Gordie Howe on the all-time scoring list.Nice numbers, but nobody cared. No Ratelle re-telling his story to reporters after the game, no bands playing Hail to the Chief. They had the misfortune to set their marks on a night when Toronto captain Darryl Sittler made Bruin goalie Dave Reece a footnote to history.The only thing Sittler didn&rsquo;t do in an 11-4 Leaf win was bank one in off coach Red Kelly&rsquo;s pyramids while sitting on the Leaf bench. His 10 points (six goals, four assists) broke a 32-year-old record of eight points in a game set by Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; right winger Rocket Richard in 1944 (and equalled 10 years later by Habs&rsquo; left winger Bert Olmstead). The Sittler mark still stands.&ldquo;The thing I&rsquo;ll remember most about it is the ovation the fans gave me when I got my ninth point,&rdquo; Sittler said in the Feb. 27, 1976 issue of THN. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s something you just never forget.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0006-02

50th ANNIVERSARY FLASHBACK

<div class="byline">By Bob McKenzie Associate Editor</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011610/6775343-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jozef Stumpel is a rarity: a 1990&rsquo;s draft pick who still plays for the Boston Bruins. (Photo by Canapress)</figcaption></div>In the midst of the Boston Bruins&rsquo; darkest days in three decades, battle-scarred GM Harry Sinden defiantly sees the light.&ldquo;My hero has always been Winston Churchill,&rdquo; Sinden said. &ldquo;To me, our situation is kind of like the Battle of Britain. (Churchill) took a beating, but rallied the troops and won out in the end.&rdquo;And so it will be for the Bruins, Sinden said, even though the franchise will post a losing record and miss the playoffs for the first time since 1966-67.With 17 games remaining, the Bruins were 21-35-9, last overall in the league. Now that they&rsquo;ve traded goalie Bill Ranford and veteran forwards Adam Oates and Rick Tocchet to the Washington Capitals for a struggling goalie (Jim Carey) and two young unproven forwards (Anson Carter and Jason Allison) and a conditional draft pick, the remaining days of this season are nothing if not bleak for a lineup that looks more like an American League team than an NHL outfit.Regardless, the NHL&rsquo;s longest string of winning campaigns-second longest in all of North American pro sports-is over.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of sad, I guess,&rdquo; Sinden said. &ldquo;The playoff streak doesn&rsquo;t mean much to me because making the playoffs in the NHL isn&rsquo;t such a great accomplishment. But to have a team with a winning record for 29 years, yeah, that&rsquo;s significant, something to be proud of.&rdquo;It is likely a mark that will be honored more outside Boston than within. Bruin fans have grown weary of high prices at the &lsquo;Fleece&rsquo; Center for a product they&rsquo;ve known for years isn&rsquo;t a legitimate contender. They don&rsquo;t necessarily think of 29 winning seasons as much 25 straight years without the Stanley Cup.In either case, the common denominator has been Sinden. He signed on to coach the Bruins in 1966 the last season of the Original Six and Bobby Orr&rsquo;s rookie year-and, save a two-year hiatus after a Cup win in 1970, has been front and center ever since.The Bruins&rsquo; numbers during the 29-year run are staggering, at least relative to the failures of many organizations (notably the Bruins&rsquo; partners in the Original Six). Under Sinden, the Bruins won one Cup, lost in the Cup final five times and made it to the NHL&rsquo;s final four on six occasions, all on a shoestring budget that has put millions in owner Jeremy Jacobs&rsquo; pockets.&ldquo;We had 91 points last season,&rdquo; Sinden said. &ldquo;How often have Vancouver or Toronto had 90-point seasons in the past 20 years?&rdquo; (FYI: three for Toronto; two for Vancouver; 12 for Boston).And yet Sinden admitted the Bruin formula has been to place a greater emphasis on being competitive than being a real over-the-top contender. It also fit nicely with the self-imposed financial constraints.&ldquo;For quite some time now there has always been someone better than us,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I never felt we had the talent to win it all in the 1980s, there was never any illusion we were better (than the Edmonton Oilers, for example).&ldquo;But in a city like Boston, there&rsquo;s no downtime allowed. They tell you, &lsquo;Forget the rebuilding, you jerk.&rsquo; We&rsquo;re not Toronto. Our fans won&rsquo;t keep coming out to support a losing team.&rdquo;That is quite likely to become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The Bruins simply aren&rsquo;t very good and there is no obvious reason to believe it will be turned around anytime soon.Boston&rsquo;s drafting record in the 1990s has been poor. Aside from promising defenseman Kyle McLaren, Jozef Stumpel and prospect Cameron Mann, there isn&rsquo;t much in the Bruin lineup to show for seven years of drafting. Some of their better picks (Bryan Smolinski, for example) are playing elsewhere. Sinden writes it all off as the vagaries of a bad drafting position.The trades of the 1990s haven&rsquo;t been great either. Getting Jon Casey for Andy Moog was a disaster. As was trading Joe Juneau for Al lafrate and then lafrate for Jeff Odgers. Getting Anders Myrvold and Landon Wilson for a 1998 first round pick? And the Oates-Ranford-Tocchet deal with Washington?Perhaps that is reflective of a changing of the guard that has gone largely unnoticed by many in the NHL. Sinden, who turns 65 this year, started to step away from day-to-day hockey operations a few years back when Mike Milbury was being groomed as his replacement. But Milbury bolted and the role of management trainee fell to former NHLer and assistant GM Mike O&rsquo;Connell.In the past couple of seasons, O&rsquo;Connell has been largely responsible for day-to-day hockey personnel decisions. Nothing is ever finalized until it passes across Sinden&rsquo;s desk, but the GM admitted he&rsquo;s that mostly in name only: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not into it as much as I used to be.&rdquo;Sinden said it may only be a matter of time before he drops the GM title entirely, although he doesn&rsquo;t &ldquo;want it to look like I&rsquo;m running for cover.&rdquo; In the next breath, though, Sinden suggested he could return to the hockey wars full-time, if that&rsquo;s what&rsquo;s required.Clearly, something is needed. The big Oates-Ranford-Tocchet deal with Washington was supposed to be a critical step in the rebuilding process. Its long-term success hinges on the play of netminder Carey, the Vezina Trophy winner who has fallen on hard times.Carter looks as though he has a chance to be a decent NHLer with some offensive upside, but Allison&rsquo;s lack of quickness could be a fatal flaw.O&rsquo;Connell, however, believes the deal with the Caps is precisely what the Bruins need. Carey, he said, secures their goaltending long term. He considers Carter and Allison &ldquo;two good young players&rdquo; who will spearhead a revamped Bruin attack.&ldquo;I think Anson Carter and Jason Allison are going to fit in great,&rdquo; said Bruins&rsquo; coach Steve Kasper. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a big believer in Jim Carey. I think we&rsquo;ll see the best of him here.&ldquo;With one trade, we got a lot younger with a lot of promising talent. That in itself bodes well for the future. It obviously changes the makeup of our team, but it only enhances it. It may take some time to prove that.&rdquo;Maybe the decline of the Bruins was inevitable, perhaps even overdue, given the premature end to Cam Neely&rsquo;s career. Maybe nature should take its course, allowing for rebuilding that turned the moribund Quebec Nordiques into the Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche.Unquestionably, Boston looks like the No. 1 contender for No. 1 in the 1997 entry draft. All things being equal, they&rsquo;ll end up with toprated Joe Thornton. It doesn&rsquo;t hurt they&rsquo;ve also got the Hartford Whalers&rsquo; first round pick and that may be a top 10 selection, too.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011664/6775336-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="718" height="1295"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bruins&rsquo; coach Steve Kasper thinks Anson Carter will fit in just fine.</figcaption></div>But Sinden refused to acknowledge the Bruins must suffer for years before they rise again. He claimed the team isn&rsquo;t far away from doing what the Florida Panthers and Buffalo Sabres have done.&ldquo;To me, the team approach is everything and we&rsquo;re making a conscious effort to put together a team along the lines of Florida,&rdquo; Sinden said. &ldquo;I kind of like this Bruin team now because it has got some character to it. The Bruin teams that lost to Florida and New&rsquo;Jersey in the last two playoffs were the wimpiest Bruin teams I&rsquo;ve ever had. We&rsquo;ve changed that and here in Boston, we don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s necessary to spend a long time rebuilding.&rdquo;In other words, the Bruins will never surrender (to long-term rebuilding). And Winston Churchill couldn&rsquo;t have said it any better than Harry Sinden.Just one question, though. Wouldn&rsquo;t it mean a lot more if Sinden planned on actually being in the trenches when the Bruins fight the battle to regain respectability?<h2>Sports&rsquo; longest streaks</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-021086/6775329-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="1447" height="342"></div> &#9632;

f0007-01

FEATURES

The Boston Ruins

<h2>HARDWARE HOPEFULS</h2>Mark April 16 on your calendar. That&rsquo;s when the Stanley Cup marathon begins and it could last as long as two months.The last possible date for the 1996-97 playoff champion to be determined is June 17 according to the NHL post-season schedule released March 7.The dates are subject to change, but this much we know: the playoffs will be played under the same format as last year, when the league introduced &lsquo;A&rsquo; and &lsquo;B&rsquo; scheduling alternatives for all teams, rather than strict scheduling on alternate nights by conference. (See pg. 45 for the full playoff schedule.)Not until after the Stanley Cup tournament concludes are regular season trophy winners announced, but here&rsquo;s a sneak preview at the candidates. It would be the first time in 35 years a goalie won the Hart Trophy if Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; superstar Dominik Hasek earned the honor.Hart Trophy (Most Valuable Player): Hasek; Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh; Paul Kariya, Anaheim; Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh.Vezina Trophy (Top Goalie): Martin Brodeur, New Jersey; Hasek; Andy Moog, Dallas; Mike Richter, Rangers; Patrick Roy, Colorado.Norris Trophy (Top Defenseman): Ray Bourque, Boston; Chris Chelios, Chicago; Vladimir Konstantinov, Detroit; Brian Leetch, Rangers; Sandis Ozolinsh, Colorado.Calder Trophy (Top Rookie): Bryan Berard, Islanders; Jim Campbell, St. Louis; Jarome Iginla, Calgary; Janne Niinimaa, Philadelphia, Patrick Lalime, Pittsburgh.Selke Trophy (Top Defensive Forward): Dale Hunter, Washington; Jere Lehtinen, Dallas; Joel Otto, Philadelphia; Mike Peca, Buffalo; Shjon Podein, Philadelphia; Niklas Sundstrom, Rangers; Rob Zamuner, Tampa Bay.Lady Byng Award (Most Sportsmanlike): Brett Hull, St. Louis; Kariya; Igor Larionov, Detroit; Leetch; Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit; Adam Oates, Washington; Joe Sakic, Colorado, Pierre Turgeon, St. Louis.Adams Award (Top Coach): Marc Crawford, Colorado; Ken Hitchcock, Dallas; Jacques Lemaire, New Jersey; Ted Nolan, Buffalo.<h2>THEME ISSUE</h2>To get you ready for the NHL stretch drive and March 18 trading deadline. we&rsquo;ve broken down each NHL team report into seven categories: Pivotal factors, circumstances that will determine the season&rsquo;s outcome; Hardware hopefuls, players rated as trophy candidates; Needs, what a team needs to improve; Available. players who could be available before the trading deadline; Trade talk, potential deals; Above and beyond, a player who has performed above expectations; and Down and out, a player who has performed below expectations. &#9632;

Eyes on prizes

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011581/6775426-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">While the Capitals fell, a Thanksgiving pow-wow helped Philly go unbeaten in 17 straight. (Photo by Scott Leary/BBS)</figcaption></div><h2>NORTHEAST DIVISION</h2>Boston: Adam Oates spewed venom an management after the Colorado Avalanche scored with 3.8 seconds left for a 3-2 win Feb. 18. It was in the middle of a 0-6-1 season-killing road trip.Buffalo: Players met after an early season loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning and rallied around coach-under-siege Ted Nolan. A four-game winning streak ensued and set them on their way.Hartford: A nasty string of injuries that began shortly after Paul Coffey was traded turned a promising season into a dogfight. From Dec. 29 to March 5, the Whalers had seven wins.Montreal: Saku Koivu&rsquo;s dynamic playmaking allowed the Habs to trade Pierre Turgeon, but a knee injury Dec. 7 knocked him out of action and sent the club into a turmoil-filled tailspin.Ottawa: Season-ending injuries to defensemen Sean Hill and Stan Neckar in the season&rsquo;s fifth game could have been devastating. The Sens have been in the playoff hunt because others stepped up.Pittsburgh: Patrick Lalime replaced the injured Ken Wregget and ran off an NHL rookie record 16-game undefeated streak. When he went cold so did the Penguins.<h2>ATLANTIC DIVISION</h2>Florida: The week of Nov. 10 was devastating. Johan Garpenlov was injured, Stu Barnes traded and Rob Niedermayer sidelined. It was the beginning of mediocrity.New Jersey: Team Bland averaged five goals per game after getting Doug Gilmour. Players said their 13-game unbeaten streak (6-0-7) could have been a winning streak with Gilmour.Islanders: Hot goaltending by Tommy Salo and Eric Fichaud helped carry the surprising Islanders close to the. 500 level, but they couldn&rsquo;t sustain that excellence after Dec. 17.Rangers: An eight-game winless streak in March included a practice injury to Mark Messier and an embarrassing loss to Philadelphia Feb. 23 that had management questioning whether the team was a serious contender.Philadelphia: Eric Lindros&rsquo; return from an abdominal injury was crucial. So was a closed-door meeting after a Thanksgiving Eve loss to the Islanders. A 17-game unbeaten streak followed.Tampa Bay: After trailing the Washington Capitals 4-1 Feb. 14 in Daren Puppa&rsquo;s return and quick exit, the Lightning was inspired by a comeback (even though it lost in OT).Washington: The Capitals were cruising until dropping back-to-back November home games-scoring just once in the process-to weak sisters Ottawa Senators and the Islanders.<h2>CENTRAL DIVISION</h2>Chicago: The Jan. 25 trade of brooding and complaining Ed Belfour to the San Jose Sharks allowed Jeff Hackett to emerge and alter the team chemistry.Dallas: The Stars went to Vail, Colo., for training camp and have remained at ratified heights ever since. Players reported in the best shape of their careers and the Stars started 6-0-0.Detroit: Brendan Shanahan scored nine goals in five games when united with Igor Larionov and Darren McCarty Feb. 8 and the inconsistent Red Wings went on a 7-1-4 run.Phoenix: In the midst of a 12-day road trip and after an 8-2 loss to the Islanders, GM John Paddock was fired. That was followed by a four-game winning streak.St. Louis: Spirits soared on the bench when Mike Keenan was fired and Joel Quenneville brought in from Colorado. The Blues went 7-2-0 in Quenneville&rsquo;s first nine games.Toronto: A four-game, four-loss November road trip was the beginning of the end, but doom was inevitable after the summer fire sale of Todd Gill, Mike Gartner and Dave Gagner.<h2>PACIFIC DIVISION</h2>Anaheim: When Paul Kariya returned Halloween Eve from an abdominal muscle strain, the Ducks&rsquo; ghoulish days ended. Anaheim has been well above. 500 since.Calgary: The Flames were sixth in goals against when Rick Tabaracci was dealt to Tampa Bay Nov. 19. Then Trevor Kidd went seven weeks without a win and the Flames&rsquo; goals against tumbled.Colorado: With five of their top six scorers from last season injured by Jan. 4, the Avalanche not only survived, but thrived under the influence of the lesser-lights.Edmonton: The Oilers were five games above. 500 and surging Feb. 12 when the goaltending of Curtis Joseph started to falter. Edmonton outshot the opposition five of the next seven games, but won just once.Los Angeles: The Kings won five straight games and had moved to within four points of a playoff spot March 2 when Stephane Fiset went down with an injury. Two losses later, the Kings were back in the longshot class.San Jose: Ed Belfour arrived from the Chicago Blackhawks as a savior and the Sharks&rsquo; final bid to make the playoffs. But his Feb. 1 knee injury was followed by an 0-4-1 run.Vancouver: The Canucks had a solid 8-4-1 January and looked to be picking up the pace when a five-game February road trip (0-4-1 in eight days) derailed the team. They hadn&rsquo;t won back-to-back games since.<h2>NORTHEAST</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-021115/6775419-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="682" height="654"></div><h2>ATLANTIC</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-03698/6775412-1-eng-US/f0009-032.jpg" title="f0009-03" width="684" height="738"></div><h2>CENTRAL</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-04536/6775405-1-eng-US/f0009-042.jpg" title="f0009-04" width="680" height="694"></div><h2>PACIFIC</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-05405/6775398-1-eng-US/f0009-052.jpg" title="f0009-05" width="684" height="740"></div>In times of crisis, one man must assume the burden of leadership. Such a man knows what he must do. He must call a meeting. He must tell his mates it&rsquo;s them against the world. That it they don&rsquo;t do it, nobody will. That there&rsquo;s no letter &lsquo;i&rsquo; in the word team. And so a championship team is bom. OK, maybe the key to a team&rsquo;s season doesn&rsquo;t unfold exactly like that, but you get the picture. Below are dividing lines for the NHL&rsquo;s 26 teams, an event (such as the ever-popular closed door meeting) or development that has turned their 1996-97 seasons for better or worse. &#9632;

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Lines of Division

<div class="byline">By Mike Brophy</div>Adam Oates, Bill Ranford and Rick Tocchet for Jason Allison, Jim Carey, Anson Carter&hellip;and Joe Thornton?Well, not exactly. Not yet anyway.When Boston Bruins&rsquo; GM Harry Sinden traded three veterans to the Washington Capitals for three youngsters he may have done more to secure the first pick in the top-heavy 1997 entry draft than anything else.That&rsquo;s because the Bruins and New York Islanders, main contenders in the NHL&rsquo;s turtle race for last place overall, meet four times in March. The outcome of those games will go a long way toward deciding who places last.At stake is Thornton, a strapping center with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario League who is a slam-dunk to be picked No. 1. The team that finishes last has the best odds in the lottery that decides who gets first pick in the draft.&ldquo;You think Harry didn&rsquo;t have that in mind?&rdquo; said one NHL executive. &ldquo;Dream on. He could have got more for those guys if he waited until closer to the trading deadline, but he moved early.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011640/6775464-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="736" height="1457"><figcaption class="caption-body">Adam Oates, top, and Bill Ranford with their new team.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021217/6775457-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="814" height="1038"></div>The Capitals get some much-needed veteran help up front in Oates and Tocchet and a proven goalie in Ranford. Ranford is a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Edmonton Oilers and Tocchet won one with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992. The Bruins receive three players who could play for them the next 10 years, but how much they&rsquo;ll contribute is a big question.Oates, the central figure in the deal, held true on his vow not to join a new team before having his contract is renegotiated. He told THN in mid-February his current contract was, &ldquo;a Boston Bruins&rsquo; contract, signed under the Ray Bourque salary cap.&rdquo;That was in reference to veteran defenseman Bourque who accepted substantially less money than he is worth to remain with the Bruins. Oates did, however, take No. 77 with the Capitals in honor of his former teammate.Oates was absent when the Capitals lost 2-0 to the Islanders March 2. Wouldn&rsquo;t it be something if the Capitals missed the playoffs by two points?Oates finally agreed to play the remainder of this season under his old contract under the promise it will be re-negotiated in the off-season. He said his contract was only one small factor in his wish to be traded.&ldquo;The biggest thing was the lack of effort management made to improve the team,&rdquo; Oates said. &ldquo;We lost Cam Neely and management made absolutely no effort to replace him.&rdquo;It made sense for the Bruins and Capitals to hook up in a deal. Boston will likely miss the playoffs for the first time in 30 years and, apparently, has decided to take a hit today to ensure a more prosperous future.Washington, meanwhile, thinks it can be a contender. And much like the New Jersey Devils, who traded three youngsters to get center Doug Gilmour and defenseman Dave Ellett from the Toronto Maple Leafs a week earlier, the Capitals had a wealth of young prospects to offer. In fact, the Capitals were the toprated team in this year&rsquo;s THN Future Watch and completed the deal without giving up one of their prospects.Should the Bruins have received more? They likely could have if they had traded the players individually. And if they were intent on shipping the three to Washington, they should have held out for any one of Nolan Baumgartner, Brendan Witt Alexander Volchkov, Jan Bulis or Yogi Svejkovsky.The deal breaks down like this: Ranford, 30, for Carey, 22; Tocchet, 32, for Carter, 22, and Oates, 34, for Allison, 21, and either a third round pick in 1997 or a second-rounder in 1998 (depending on whether Tocchet re-signs with the Caps). When you look at it that way, there&rsquo;s no doubt the Bruins should have received more for Oates. In the four years leading up to this season, only Jaromir Jagr (412) had scored more points than Oates (399). And he looks like he&rsquo;ll be productive for another few years.&ldquo;This is a perfect example of the lack of money the Bruins put into scouting coming back to haunt them,&rdquo; said one rival executive. &ldquo;They didn&rsquo;t even know who to go for.&rdquo;Sinden could not be reached for comment.Carey won the Vezina Trophy last season, but has straggled this year and was shelled in his first game with the Brains, allowing four goals on nine shots in the first period against Toronto March 3 before being pulled. (See pg. 11 for more on Carey.)Allison was the Canadian Hockey League player of the year for 1993-94, but has not emerged as a quality NHLer. He&rsquo;s not a great skater, is not strong for a big man and has a questionable work ethic.Carter is a power forward who, if he must, can ran over people to get where he is going. The Brains fell in love with him when he scored two goals against them Feb. 24 in a 3-3 tie. &#9632;

f0010-01

Sowing their Oates

<div class="byline">By Mark Brender</div>Jim Carey once thought he would be bitter if he was traded, but acrimony toward the Washington Capitals is not something that comes easily.He&rsquo;s too measured, too reflective to speak without thinking, and when the cast-aside 22-year-old goalie thinks about the deal that sent him to the Boston Bruins along with young forwards Jason Allison and Anson Carter, he can&rsquo;t help but admit his former team did the right thing.&ldquo;Look at the players,&rdquo; Carey said the morning of his Bruins&rsquo; debut, March 3 in Toronto. &ldquo;They get Adam Oates, who&rsquo;s going to add a lot to that team. He&rsquo;s their (top) scorer right now. And then you get Bill Ranford, so they&rsquo;re not going to miss me, and then they get Rick Tocchet. They&rsquo;re basically swapping goalie for goalie, and then getting two great players too, two guys that have been around that I think you need to win in the playoffs.&rdquo;Carey, on the other hand, has never won in the playoffs. Two first-round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins the past two seasons-his only two seasons-have left him with a 2-5 record, a 4.62 goals-against average and an evidently still-raw nerve when asked if his inability to perform better led to the Capitals&rsquo; decision to move him.&ldquo;What do you consider better, winning the Stanley Cup?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;No, if I won the Stanley Cup they probably wouldn&rsquo;t have traded me. But Washington has got to win the Stanley Cup, not Jim Carey, just like the Boston Bruins have to win the Stanley Cup, not Jim Carey. I can carry them, I can hopefully carry them, I can play well, but the team has got to do it.&rdquo;Despite two excellent regular seasons-he was the Calder Trophy runner-up in 1994-95 and Vezina Trophy winner and first team all-star in 1995-96 the playoff disappointments have become Carey&rsquo;s baggage to carry around and discard, like the Capitals&rsquo; equipment bag he was still lugging around before the Leaf game.The fact that he&rsquo;s unlikely to get that chance in his hometown Boston this season likely hurts more than he&rsquo;s willing to admit. Carey, nicknamed the &lsquo;Net Detective&rsquo; for his superb play with the Capitals, said he has to continue to prove himself each year. Only in private will he acknowledge he wants his shot at playoff redemption.The positive side to the deal is that he&rsquo;s getting out of a situation where he was getting blamed for Washington&rsquo;s topsy-turvy season and its inability to score. Even last year at times, Capitals&rsquo; coach Jim Schoenfeld would single him out occasionally after a poor performance, and Carey&rsquo;s agent, Brian Lawton, said he noticed his client become more reserved and generic in his comments to the media.His 17-17-3 record and 89.3 save percentage with the Caps this season didn&rsquo;t do anything to improve matters. Lawton said the criticism wasn&rsquo;t easy to accept for a player who believes teams win together and lose together.So keep in mind the public response after Carey&rsquo;s terrible debut as a Bruin. Leaf defenseman Jamie Macoun scored his first goal in two years and made Carey flop around like a fish out of water. He was pulled after allowing four goals on nine shots in the first period.Ray Bourque said the goals weren&rsquo;t Carey&rsquo;s fault because the Bruins let the Leafs swarm the net. Carey fared little better in his second outing, however, a 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders March 6.&ldquo;Boston is making steps where I fitin,&rdquo; said Carey, putting the trade in a positive light. &ldquo;I was given a great opportunity (in Washington). I got called up, I took advantage of it, I played well, and here I am now. Three years later I don&rsquo;t think I could be in a better spot.&rdquo; &#9632;

Carey out to prove he’s no Net Defective with Bruins

<div class="byline">By Al Morganti</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011599/6775519-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="386" height="503"></div>Give Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; GM Craig Patrick credit for making himself the most likely target for the team&rsquo;s inevitable fall in this spring&rsquo;s playoffs.If nothing else. Patrick will be right there behind the bench full of players whom he brought together in an attempt to earn the franchise one last hurrah with Mario Lemieux.While you&rsquo;re at it, also give Patrick credit for taking over a team which has already used up a booster shot from a hot goalie and one which will be without one of its star forwards for up to a month because of a severe groin injury.True to form, the Penguins continue to do things differently.For example, when was the last time a coach was fired with as little acrimony and finger pointing as in Pittsburgh when Patrick took over for Eddie Johnston?There are not many coaches in pro sports who last as long as Johnston and do not grow an ego the size of Prince Edward Island. But that was the case in Pittsburgh where Johnston&rsquo;s second tenure with the club was suddenly and unexpectedly ended when the Penguins went into their second severe slump of the season.&ldquo;Maybe we don&rsquo;t have as much talent as before, and maybe that&rsquo;s why we need more direction,&rdquo; said Lemieux, obviously recalling the days of back-to-back Stanley Cups.Well, maybe the Penguins do not have as much depth as they did during their Cup runs, but what they do have is a payroll second only to the New York Rangers-much of which is being gobbled up by Lemieux&rsquo;s $11million haul, which is more than some teams spend on their starting five skaters and goalie.Lemieux earned his bucks with a legendary career, but what Patrick now faces is a future which will no longer feature No. 66. And when he fired Johnston, it was a good indication the Penguins have already started looking toward the post-Mario era. &ldquo;We have a ship that is off-course,&rdquo; Patrick said, &ldquo;and we have to get it back on course.&rdquo;Actually, Patrick has already done a pretty good job of getting the ship back on course. Following a truly horrible first quarter in which the Penguins won only six of their first 20 games, Patrick went to work making serious roster moves.The Penguins had become a version of Peru in the NHL-with all sorts of wealth at the top, but not a whole lot of depth. They also had goaltending problems, and the last thing they needed was for Lemieux to think his final season was going to wind up in the NHL scrap heap of teams out of the playoffs.Patrick scrambled to make a few key moves, shuttled eight players onto the roster via trades over the next several weeks, and with the addition of rookie goalie Patrick Lalime, the Penguins got a second life.After the turnaround, it appeared Patrick had been correct in patiently waiting before he unloaded unhappy forward Bryan Smolinski. And by the time the dealing was done, useful players such as Darius Kasparaitis, Stu Barnes, Greg Johnson and Jason Wooley were Penguins.The Penguins got the most help from an unexpected source, namely Lalime. With Tom Barrasso and Ken Wregget both injured, Lalime was summoned from the minors and went on a 16-game undefeated tear. Ultimately he cooled off. So did the team.The pity of it all is a nice guy like Johnston never got to fully enjoy a healthy Lemieux, and the bigger shame is Lemieux will not go out with a celebration twirl around an ice surface holding the Stanley Cup above his head.The GM is now behind the bench and by time next season rolls around, he will again be in his office where the calculator will be smoking in an attempt to make financial ends meet.True, the cupboard is not bare, but the man who takes Patrick&rsquo;s place behind the bench this summer will have a lot less of a chance to win it all than the man who was just fired.He won&rsquo;t have Lemieux at his disposal. &#9632;

f0012-01

COLUMNISTS

Pens prepare for life after Mario

<div class="byline">By Mike Brophy</div>Martin Gelinas is not used to getting standing ovations.So when he got one-in a restaurant, no less-it was a little embarrassing. The cause for celebration? Gelinas scoring four goals in a 6-2 win for the Vancouver Canucks over the Phoenix Coyotes Feb. 27.Mario Lemieux scores goals in his sleep. Martin Gelinas works for every one he gets-and the fans appreciate it.&ldquo;I went out for a meal after the game and when we got into the restaurant, the people inside starting clapping-they gave me a standing ovation,&rdquo; said the eight-year pro, who doesn&rsquo;t recall ever scoring four goals in a game, not even when he connected for 63 in 65 games with the Quebec League&rsquo;s Hull Olympiques in 1987-88.&ldquo;The next day when I went for my morning coffee, people were coming up to me and shaking my hand. It was really kind of weird.&rdquo;Canuck fans have been grappling for something, anything, positive in yet another year of under-achievement. Gelinas, an honest worker who inspires his teammates with industrious play, has become something of a fan favorite in Vancouver.Gelinas&rsquo; legs are among the thickest in the NHL and he is a swift skater which makes him a prime candidate to kill penalties and play the power play. His shot is average so most of his goals come on rebounds from in tight. Mayhem is his middle name.His success is a breath of fresh air for Canuck fans, who have grown accustomed to negative storylines surrounding their star players since the team made it to the 1994 Stanley Cup final.Right winger Pavel Bure missed most of last season with a knee injury and was inconsistent this year before being sidelined again with a whiplash problem. Right winger Alexander Mogilny scores goals, but his defense and lack of commitment to team play frustrates those around him. He is constantly named in trade rumors. Captain Trevor Linden has stopped scoring. Same with right winger Russ Courtnail and he&rsquo;s probably leaving after this season as an unrestricted free agent (if he&rsquo;s not traded first).Gelinas, meanwhile, is always the first player to arrive at the rink and generally shows up wearing a smile.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011587/6775550-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="884" height="2059"><figcaption class="caption-body">Left winger Martin Gelinas is on pace for his second 30-goal year. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/BBS)</figcaption></div>&ldquo;He takes losses just as hard as anybody on the team,&rdquo; said coach Tom Renney.&ldquo;But few players seem to take the day-to-day enjoyment out of playing in the NHL like Marty does. And he&rsquo;s humble. If he enjoys personal success and the team loses, his only concern is if he could have done any more to help us win. He takes losses personally.&rdquo;At 26, the 5-foot-11, 195-pound Gelinas is hitting his stride in the NHL. While the Canucks struggle in their attempt to qualify for the playoffs, Gelinas had 23 goals and 46 points in 57 games. At that pace, he would score 31 goals in 78 games. His previous high was 30 in 81 games last season.Gelinas broke in with the Edmonton Oilers in 198990 and was given ample playing time. His numbers, though, never met the expectations of a player who averaged nearly a goal a game in junior and was part of the mega deal that sent the NHL&rsquo;s all-time scoring leader, Wayne Gretzky, from the Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings.After a few years, he found himself playing on the fourth line, then shipped to the Quebec Nordiques where he played 31 games-on the fourth line. Things improved when he was dealt to the Canucks midway through 1993-94 and was immediately placed on a line with Bure.The past two years, he has played with Linden and a variety of right wingers. Linden has struggled this season, with just seven goals in 41 games after six straight 30-plus goal seasons, (including a pro-rated 31 during the lockout shortened 1994-95 season).&ldquo;He is a solid second line guy who has been forced to play on the No. 1 line on our team because of circumstances,&rdquo; Renney said. &ldquo;His work habits are such that he is hard to play against and it is contagious for his linemates.&rdquo;Unless Gelinas suddenly starts making a habit out of scoring four goals per game, he may best be known for his involvement in the first Gretzky trade.&ldquo;At the time it didn&rsquo;t mean much to me,&rdquo; Gelinas said. &ldquo;I was 18 years old and all I wanted to do was play in the NHL. It wasn&rsquo;t the big deal to me that it was to the fans and the media.&ldquo;Now as I look back on it, I realize it was one of the biggest trades in all of sports history. Still, it is just something I was part of; it&rsquo;s nothing I accomplished on my own.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0014-01

Breath of fresh air

<div class="byline">By Mike Brophy</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011467/6775588-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="381" height="537"></div>When Doug (Unhappy) Gilmour refused to skate back onto the ice at Maple Leaf Gardens after being selected one of the three stars in one of his final games with the Toronto Maple Leafs, it was because he was upset at reporters who suggested he might be traded.Sure, that&rsquo;s a good enough reason to stiff 16,000 people. What Gilmour did was thumb his nose to the loyal Leaf fans who hung around in anticipation of the announcement and presentation of the game&rsquo;s three stars. And he snubbed tradition.Over the years, the announcing of three stars has taken on a life of its own. It is expected following NHL games. More and more, though, fans who stick around for the ceremony are being cheated by players who refuse to return to the ice when they are named one of the game&rsquo;s stars. It is especially prevalent among visiting team players.It&rsquo;s hockey&rsquo;s version of leaving the fan at the altar-and further proof some players either don&rsquo;t understand or simply care about the value of such a simple public relations gesture.Picking three stars is a nifty little tradition unique to hockey. But if the NHL is going to continue with the three star process, then do it right. Make the players come out.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-021022/6775581-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="508" height="881"><figcaption class="caption-body">Eddie Shack</figcaption></div>We all know that players can&rsquo;t be made to do anything in today&rsquo;s NHL, but c&rsquo;mon guys. You&rsquo;re paid great money for what you do and people pay big money to watch you do it. Is it asking too much to take a token skate when you&rsquo;ve been honored as one of the three best players in a game? Sure, you may have just lost a tough game on the road and you&rsquo;re a little grumpy, but let&rsquo;s have a little perspective here.That said, it&rsquo;s not always the player&rsquo;s fault when they are no-shows. In fact, Bob Goodenow, head of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, has confronted players who seemingly blew off the ceremony only to find they would have been perfectly willing to acknowledge their selection had they known about it. Someone else&rsquo;s inability to get the message to them left the players looking bad.&ldquo;I support the three stars,&rdquo; Goodenow said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a nice touch. Players understand it&rsquo;s important to the fans and fans look forward to it.&rdquo;Sometimes, there are extenuating circumstances. Boston Bruins&rsquo; captain Ray Bourque was run heavily into the boards at the buzzer of a recent game in Toronto, then got into a shoving match with Mats Sundin.Informed he was one of the stars. Bourque continued to the dressing room and did not return. Bourque said he regretted his actions. He was shaken up by the hit and upset by the confrontation. Apology accepted, but that doesn&rsquo;t mean every time a player gets ticked off, he can ignore his obligation to the show.Picking the three stars dates back to the mid-1940s when Imperial Oil, which sold a brand of gasoline called Three Star, sponsored a ceremony honoring the game&rsquo;s top players.Some players even have fun with it. There were some nights in Toronto watching the Maple Leafs when Tiger Williams racing back onto the ice after the game and riding his stick in response to being named a star was more entertaining than the game itself. Eddie (The Entertainer) Shack and Brad Marsh would skate hard to center and slam on the brakes, spraying a sheet of ice chips into the air.On the night he scored five goals in a playoff game, Rocket Richard was selected the first, second and third star.Originally players picked as stars were awarded an ESSO spoon. Today, in Canada, Molson Breweries sponsors the three stars and there are monthly and yearly awards for most three-star selections. Cash donations in the winner&rsquo;s name are donated to charity.Seeing the stars come out is also a reward for fans who are at the game, since time constraints generally don&rsquo;t allow networks to show the three-star ceremony to viewers at home.&ldquo;Certain things in this game deserve to be preserved and protected,&rdquo; said NHL spokesman Arthur Pincus. &ldquo;This is one of them.&rdquo;The NHL and NHLPA agree; now do something about it. &#9632;

f0015-01

Fans stiffed when NHL’s stars don’t come out

<div class="byline">By Stan Fischler</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011374/6775619-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="384" height="504"></div>Impertinent thoughts on pertinent topics:&#9633; Brian Leetch is not given to outrageous comments. Which is why his public blasting of Fox Network&rsquo;s Toys &lsquo;R Us puck is important. Essentially, Leetch said the black disc called FoxTrax behaves differently than a normal puck. Leetch is right on because the glow puck incorporates foreign, electronic material inside its tummy. Therefore, it can&rsquo;t be the same as a regular puck no matter how hard NHL spin doctors say otherwise. Therefore, it is a phony-or gim-mick-puck and should go the way of all phony equipment.&#9633; Jim Carey&rsquo;s biggest challenge will be convincing Causeway Street critics he isn&rsquo;t the next Mike Moffat, Blaine Lacher or any other &ldquo;can&rsquo;t-miss&rdquo; Boston Bruins&rsquo; goalie dating back to Jack Gelineau. Carey&rsquo;s second biggest challenge will be proving NHL shooters haven&rsquo;t figured a critical flaw in his game.&#9633; Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; defenseman Rob Blake is pulling ahead of St. Louis Blues&rsquo; defenseman Chris Pronger in the annual neck-and-neck race of the overrateds.&#9633; The newly minted Rob Zamuner Underrated Trophy could go to any one of the following players: Mike Peca, Randy McKay, Tom Fitzgerald, Rob DiMaio, Scott Pellerin, Chris Tamer or Doug Brown.&#9633; Of all the savvy characters who belong back at the big league level, none are missed more here than Pierre Maguire and E.J. McGuire.&#9633; The suggestion the Rangers deal Mark Messier before the trade deadline makes lots of sense if you live on the banks of the Zambezi River. Along the Hudson River, it&rsquo;s logical only on the assumption the Blueshirts can&rsquo;t win the Stanley Cup. But to assume a team loaded with Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Mike Richter and Brian Leetch can&rsquo;t win the Cup is absurd.&#9633; Enough with that obsolete YMCA tune already. Do we really need to hear it over and over again in rinks around the NHL?&#9633; In 1980, New York Islanders&rsquo; GM Bill Torrey dealt for Butch Goring during the homestretch and won the Stanley Cup a couple of months after the trade. Seventeen years later, New Jersey Devils&rsquo; GM Lou Lamoriello has dealt for Goring-clone Doug Gilmour in the stretch and now has another Cup in his sights.&#9633; Possible destinations for Mike Keenan: 1. Phoenix, because such egregious underachievement with Jeremy Roenick and Keith Tkachuk in the lineup is unacceptable. 2. Vancouver, because an underachieving team with billionaire ownership can afford Keenan.&#9633; When the Senators issue a &ldquo;buy tickets or else&rdquo; decree, it tells us they are pushing harder for the &ldquo;or else&rdquo; than the &ldquo;buy tickets&rdquo; part of the equation.&#9633; Where is disrespect more intense-between NHL players and NHL players or between NHL players and NHL referees?&#9633; Ron Hextall needs an Anti-Defamation League all his own.&#9633; Being NHL warden is a high-paying yet thankless job that should be wearing down even a competitive bull such as Brian Burke. That&rsquo;s why whispers that Gary Bettman&rsquo;s &ldquo;hockey man&rdquo; will be exiting his Sixth Avenue digs after the season to manage one of the new expansion franchises sound awfully logical.&#9633; The Rangers&rsquo; decline began precisely the day Steve Larmer left Manhattan. Slippage was further accelerated by the departure of Ray Ferraro who never should have exited Long Island-let alone Manhattan-in the first place.&#9633; If Don Koharski is such a good referee-and purportedly such a good guy-how come all those bad things, like the recent J.J. Daigneault swipe, keep happening to him?&#9633; Two great, but little-known hockey cities: 1. Omaha, Neb., where the United States Junior League (Jr. A) team has sold out more than 200 consecutive home games. 2. Quad City, Mich., where the Colonial League&rsquo;s Mallards are averaging more than 7,000 per game. &#9632;

f0016-01

Fox-trot the FoxTrax out of here

<div class="byline">By Robyn Norwood</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011229/6775650-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="161" height="159"></div>A difference of one point put the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim on the golf course in midApril last season. They were determined this year would be different. It still can be-and it certainly should be, but it was very tight.The Ducks had the fourth-best record in the Western Conference since Nov. 1, but were 1-9-2 in October when Paul Kariya was out. Because of that, they were still clawing to make the playoffs.Pivotal factors: 1. Depth. The Ducks need their weaker links (defense corps, forwards after Teemu Selanne, Paul Kariya and Steve Rucchin) to remain strong. 2. Guy Hebert&rsquo;s stamina. The goalie was superb, starting 32 of 33 games. Can he stay sharp for nearly 50 games in a row? 3. Kariya and Selanne. They merely have to be themselves. Anything less spells doom.Hardware hopefuls: Kariya, Hart, Lady Byng.Needs: The Ducks could use a solid, stay-at-home defenseman. Dmitri Mironov and J.J. Daigneault-serving a 10-game NHL suspension for abuse of official until March 21-have helped. And rookie Dan Trebil exceeded expectations on emergency duty, but what about a solid, defensive veteran? The Ducks could also use scoring help. Selanne, Kariya and Rucchin had combined for 85 of the Ducks&rsquo; 188 goals as of early-March.Available: Disappointing Roman Oksiuta, playing for his third team in three seasons, is very available. Ken Baumgartner, who shifted back to defense before breaking his hand, could be the odd-man out when he returns.Trade talk: The Ducks like New York Islanders&rsquo; center Bryan Smolinski, who might be available again.Above and beyond: After an ugly start, Hebert was rock-solid with a 2.65 goals-against average and 92.0 save percentage.Down and out: Jari Kurri still has his dignified and gracious aura, but had only 26 points and was an uncharacteristic minus-11.NOTEBOOK: A 4-1 win over Ottawa March 5 extended the Ducks&rsquo; unbeaten streak to a season-high six games (4-02)&hellip;Right winger Warren Rychel tied a career high with his 10th goal of the season in a 4-1 win over Washington Feb. 28. That left him just four behind his namesake, center Robert Reichel of Calgary&hellip;Goalie Guy Hebert, who started the season 0-6-2, climbed above the. 500 mark for the first time this season (23-22-8) with the win over the Senators&hellip;The schedule could become a factor for the Ducks down the stretch. Eight of their final 11 games are on the road, where the team was playing. 359 hockey through March 6&hellip;Left winger Paul Kariya, who scored his 100th NHL goal March 5, led the league in one category: shots per game (5.1). &#9632;

f0017-01

Making up for horrible start

<div class="byline">By Mike Loftus</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02928/6775681-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="161" height="160"></div>The party line was that the Boston Bruins were going to use the last 20 per cent ot tneir schedule to make a breakneck run at extending their record steak of consecutive playoff berths to 30 years.The reality was a March 1 trade with the Washington Capitals greatly weakened them in the short term. The Bruins stretch drive seemed more likely headed for the bottom of the NHL standings and a shot at the first overall pick in the 1997 entry draft.Pivotal factors: 1. Jim Carey&rsquo;s adjustment. After playing three seasons behind the Capitals&rsquo; smothering defense, Carey admitted he&rsquo;d have to change his game to thrive in Boston&rsquo;s more wide-open style. 2. Power play. The power play was among the league&rsquo;s worst even before Adam Oates and Rick Tocchet were traded. A nearmiracle improvement is needed. 3. Health of the defense. Don Sweeney was the only blueliner to play in the first 65 games. The battered blueline contributed to a 25th overall goals-against mark.Hardware hopefuls: Ray Bourque, Norris.Needs: Boston was looking for a left winger, as always, and a defense-man-preferably one who could move the puck.Available: Since the Bruins are trying to make themselves a younger squad, Sweeney&rsquo;s name has popped up.Trade talk: After making the blockbuster deal with the Capitals, the swap talk has been very quiet in Boston.Above and beyond: Right winger Steve Heinze, who had 17 goals in 30 games, was a very pleasant surprise for the Bruins before knee, hip and groin injuries sidelined him, probably for the season. Otherwise, left winger Ted Donato established a career-high with 25 goals through 65 games.Down and out: Rookie defenseman Steve Staios, after a good start, was near the bottom of the NHL with a minus-26 rating.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Ray Bourque was knocked out of the lineup on a day-to-day basis March 6 when he was struck on the inside of his right ankle by a shot from Islanders&rsquo; center Bryan Smolinski. &ldquo;The shot was coming too hard to react,&rdquo; Bourque said. &ldquo;I saw it when I felt it.&rdquo;&hellip;Rookie center Anson Carter, a Toronto native, played in his hometown NHL rink twice in less than a week. His first game as a Bruin came March 3 in Toronto, five days after he visited Maple Leaf Gardens as a member of the Capitals&hellip;Neither Carter nor fellow newcomer, center Jason Allison, had points in their first two Bruins&rsquo; games&hellip;The Bruins scored twice on long shots in the final 1:17 March 1 to pull out an unlikely 5-5 with Philadelphia. &#9632;

f0017-02

Best hope now? No. 1 pick

<div class="byline">By Jim Kelley</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011263/6775712-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="161" height="158"></div>When they look at where they are and where they came from, even the Buffalo Sabres are surprised to be the surprise team of the NHL. They were in first place in the Northeast Division.Not bad for a team that last season finished 15 points out of a playoff spot.Pivotal Factors: 1. Health. Randy Burridge was still out of the lineup with knee problems and Mike Peca suffered a charley horse. Suddenly players such as Ed Ronan, Barrie Moore and Wayne Primeau were getting a lot of ice time in key situations. 2. Dominik Hasek. If he slips even an inch, the Sabres fall a mile. 3. Road play. Eleven of Buffalo&rsquo;s final 18 games are on the road.Hardware Hopefuls: Hasek, Vezina, Hart; Peca, Selke; Ted Nolan, Adams.Needs: An experienced checking center to back up Peca in the playoffs or an experienced, mean defenseman.Available: There was talk left winger Brad May might be expendable, but May has been injured a lot and no one has a read on when he&rsquo;ll be healthy.Trade Talk: It was remarkably quiet. May had drawn some interest, especially now that Rick Tocchet has moved.Above and Beyond: You could say something about the whole team, but Alexei Zhitnik, Peca, Dixon Ward and Matthew Barnaby all stand out.Down and Out: Defenseman Jay McKee&rsquo;s development has been hin-dered by spending too many nights in the press box and not enough playing.NOTEBOOK: The Sabres&rsquo; 12-game unbeaten streak came to an end with a loss at New Jersey Feb. 27, but their home unbeaten streak reached 11 games with a 42 win over Pittsburgh March 5&hellip;The sellout crowd for Pittsburgh (18,595) raised Buffalo&rsquo;s season attendance to 565,396. The Sabres in their last season at the Aud drew 563,271 for the entire 1995-96 season&hellip;With the win over Pittsburgh, its 34th of the year, Buffalo bettered its win total for all of last season&hellip;Center Pat LaFontaine was skating alone in recent weeks and appeared to be working toward getting in game shape. LaFontaine is recovering from post-concussion syndrome and is due back at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn, sometime in March for another evaluation. &#9632;

f0018-01

No need to stop dreaming, first place real possibility

<div class="byline">By Eric Duhatschek</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03644/6775743-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="576" height="901"><figcaption class="caption-body">Robert Reichel</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02932/6775750-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="163" height="159"></div>It took a five-game sweep of a mid-February homestand for the Calgary Flames to edge themselves back into playoff contention in the ultra-tight Western Conference.In a 48-hour span, in which they won twice, the Flames moved from 10th to sixth place in the standings.&ldquo;Of course, you could go from sixth to 10th as quickly,&rdquo; pointed out defenseman Steve Chiasson, just before being traded to the Hartford Whalers.Pivotal factors: 1. Theo Fleury. He needs to emerge from a slump that saw him score just two goals in February. 2. Goaltending. Trevor Kidd needs to be consistent down the stretch. 3. Road play. The Flames were 8-20-5 away from home.Hardware hopefuls: Jarome Iginla, Calder.Needs: Someone who can score goals. The Flames already had four 20-goal scorers by the end of February, but there was a chance they could finish without a 30-goal man.Available: Center Dave Gagner, an unrestricted free agent following the season, could be had.Trade talk: The Flames acquired Whalers&rsquo; prospect Hnat Domenichelli in the deal for Chiasson. If the playoffs remain in doubt, other veterans could be shifted.Above-and-beyond: Considering he will not turn 20 until July, Iginla was far more productive offensively than the Flames expected.Down-and-out: Through 66 games, Robert Reichel was sixth on the team in goal-scoring with 14.NOTEBOOK: Coach Pierre Page, discussing newly acquired left winger Hnat Domenichelli. said Domenichelli&rsquo;s primary asset is his speed, a quality with which Page says he is &ldquo;not happy&rdquo; on the current edition of the Flames. &ldquo;(Domenichelli) is the fastest guy of all the prospects in hockey maybe. He was one of the two fastest skaters at the AHL All-Star Game. He&rsquo;s a big scorer. He&rsquo;s a character kid. He&rsquo;s a winner.&rdquo;&hellip;Defenseman Jamie Huscroft was expected to miss a week after a tendon in his right wrist was nicked by a teammate&rsquo;s skate blade in a 2-1 loss to Washington March 4. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s bad luck,&rdquo; Huscroft said, &ldquo;but it&rsquo;s good luck in a way too because the doctor said if the tendon had been cut only a centimeter more, I would have been out for the season.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0018-03

Playoffs still in jeopardy

<div class="byline">By Tim Sassone</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-011166/6775781-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="162" height="159"></div>Things were so bad for the Chicago Blackhawks in January, coach Craig Hartsburg basically pleaded for GM Bob Pulford to make a trade just to shake up the club.When Pulford did Jan. 25 and sent unhappy goalie Ed Belfour to the San Jose Sharks for Ulf Dahlen, Michal Sykora, Chris Terreri and a conditional draft pick, the Hawks took off. If they are to scare anyone in the playoffs, however, they still need some adjustments.Pivotal factors: 1. Offense. Tony Amonte has been the only consistent goal-scorer. Alexei Zhamnov and Eric Daze must step up. 2. Jeff Hackett&rsquo;s play. So far, goalie Hackett has excelled in the No. 1 role. But the playoffs are a totally different kind of pressure. 3. Chris Chelios&rsquo; health. The Hawks can&rsquo;t win without Chelios, who went down with a mild knee sprain March 1.Hardware hopefuls: Chelios, Norris.Needs: The Hawks desperately need another scorer, preferably at center.Available: Sergei Krivokrasov, Murray Craven, Gary Suter, Eric Wein-rich, Kevin Miller and Cam Russell.Trade talk: Dave Gagner of the Calgary Flames and Shayne Corson of the Montreal Canadiens have been mentioned.Above and beyond: Amonte has emerged to become one of the game&rsquo;s elite players.Down and out: Zhamnov, earning nearly $3 million, isn&rsquo;t giving the Hawks near enough bang for their buck.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Chris Chelios wasn&rsquo;t expected to miss any more than three games after suffering a strained left knee March 1 at Colorado when he was boarded by Avalanche right winger Keith Jones. Coach Craig Hartsburg called Jones&rsquo; hit a &ldquo;very cheap shot.&rdquo; Said Chelios: &ldquo;He ain&rsquo;t going anywhere and I ain&rsquo;t going anywhere. I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;ll get the chance to play against him again.&rdquo; The Hawks and Avs are done with their season series, but could meet in the Western Conference playoffs&hellip;After becoming the No. 1 goaltender, Jeff Hackett was 7-4-1 with a 1.66 goals-against average&hellip;Center Murray Craven&rsquo;s tough luck continued as his goal scoring drought stretched to 28 games. &#9632;

f0019-01

Hawks’ battleship righted, but still needs top gunner

<div class="byline">By Adrian Oater</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03555/6775812-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="574" height="850"><figcaption class="caption-body">Keith Jones</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02840/6775819-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="162" height="158"></div>The Colorado Avalanche entered the stretch drive in the same high gear it was in during the 1996 playoffs.Despite lengthy injuries to its top two offensive players earlier in the season, it owned the NHL&rsquo;s best record and a determination to become the first team since the Pittsburgh Penguins to repeat as Stanley Cup champion.Pivotal factors: 1. Intensity. The Avs can&rsquo;t become complacent now that their key players have returned. 2. Goaltending. Nobody questions Patrick Roy&rsquo;s playoff ability, but what about Craig Billington&rsquo;s if Roy goes down? 3. Star power. The Avs would like to see Peter Forsberg and Joe Sakic consistently play at their pre-injury levels.Hardware Hopefuls: Marc Crawford, Adams; Sakic, Lady Byng; Roy, Vezina; Sandis Ozolinsh, Norris.Needs: Most of the parts are in place, but another enforcer might give the stars more room on the ice.Available: GM Pierre Lacroix doesn&rsquo;t seem to have anybody on the block. The Avalanche is a tight group, a team with which Lacroix is happy.Trade talk: Lacroix loves to make deals, but he would be playing with fire if he changed team chemistry. As such, the rumor mill has been silent all year.Above and beyond: Right winger Keith Jones has been a pleasant surprise since being acquired from the Washington Capitals, pitching in with 22 goals in 63 games.Down and out: Center Mike Ricci robbed us of the only legitimate candidate for this category when he turned his game around at the mid-season point.NOTEBOOK: Goaltender Patrick Roy had an eventful couple days. On March 2 at a charity event, he was involved in a bar fight with a 6-foot-10, 295-pound Colorado Springs man. Kevin Morris. The two men reportedly grabbed each other&rsquo;s throats before being separated by defenseman Adam Foote. Both men were ticketed by police for fighting and could face either a $500 fine or 90 days in jail. Three days later. Roy made a triumphant return to Montreal, making 34 saves in a 7-3 win over the Canadiens. The former Habs&rsquo; great, who left Montreal amid bitter controversy, was generally well received by Canadiens&rsquo; fans in a game he desperately wanted to win. &ldquo;I really appreciated it, the crowd support,&rdquo; Roy said. &ldquo;I want to thank everybody who stood up for me.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0019-03

Parts primed for Cup No. 2

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-011051/6775850-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0020-01

CLASSIFIED

<div class="byline">By Mike Heike</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02450/6775881-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="312" height="412"><figcaption class="caption-body">Andy Moog</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01822/6775888-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="162" height="160"></div>The Dallas Stars&rsquo; playoff chances may have been defined by two games in February.Missing five regulars, the Stars went into Denver and whipped the Colorado Avalanche 6-2. They followed it two nights later by losing 4-1 to the Calgary Flames.The team proved it could beat anyone in the Western Conference one night. The next night it proved it could also lose to anyone.&ldquo;I think from all of this we&rsquo;ve seen that we have to take it to another level,&rdquo; said coach Ken Hitchcock. &ldquo;The players know they have another one and they know we have to go there.&rdquo;Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. This team will only go as far as the goaltending takes it. Andy Moog is the go-to guy, but if he falters or gets hurt, who will be No. 2-Arturs Irbe or Roman Turek? It&rsquo;s an issue that needs to be decided. 2. Team defense. The Stars play best when they stick to Hitchcock&rsquo;s tenacious forechecking and backchecking system. The blueliners are solid, but they have to get help from the forwards. 3. Star power. The team has proved it has plenty of depth and a team&rsquo;s worth of role players. But someone has to step up in the playoffs. There are several candidates: Mike Modano, Joe Nieuwen-dyk, Pat Verbeek and Sergei Zubov.Hardware hopefuls: Hitchcock, Adams; Jere Lehtinen, Selke; Moog, Vezina.Needs: The Stars still would like a big left winger who can play on either the first or second line-but just about everyone in the NHL needs that. It&rsquo;s a need they may not be able to address until the off-season.Available: To get that first line winger, they&rsquo;d have to open up a space and Benoit Hogue is a likely candidate to be moved. If they want to land the big one, though, they might have to give up young players such as Todd Harvey or Jamie Lan-genbrunner or blue-chip prospects.Trade talk: GM Bob Gainey has always held his cards close to the vest and the organization rarely leaks word on what is going on. But if it does go after that big left winger, there are several players it could pursue, including Kevin Stevens of the Los Angeles Kings, Wendel Clark of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Shayne Corson of the Montreal Canadiens. There is no evidence the Stars have talked to any of them, but they&rsquo;re out there.Above and beyond: The Stars, who wondered about their goaltending prior to the season, have received an MVP year from Moog.Down and out: Hogue hasn&rsquo;t been horrible, but he has yet to find a fit on this team.NOTEBOOK: Sexual assault charges in Winnipeg against wingers Todd Harvey and Grant Marshall were dropped for lack of evidence March 1. &ldquo;We knew if we stuck by our guns, they&rsquo;d realize she was lying,&rdquo; Marshall said. Harvey and Marshall had been charged in connection with an incident at a party in August. Each player said he did not expect to file a lawsuit&hellip;The Stars reunited the line of Greg Adams-Mike Modano-Jere Lehtinen for the first time in 32 games March 5 and Modano and Lehtinen each scored in a 3-2 win over St. Louis&hellip;The Stars were 8-1-0 at home and 14-6-1 overall after the all-star break&hellip;The Stars were 14-4-0 in games in which they were outshot&hellip;After missing five players with various injuries in late-February, the Stars expect to be completely healthy by mid-March&hellip;The Stars broke the franchise record for road wins in a season when they got their 20th in a 6-2 victory Feb. 27 in Colorado&hellip;The victory over the Blues March 5 was Dallas&rsquo; first in four meetings this season against its Central Division rival. &#9632;

f0021-02

Coach Hitchcock says it’s time for Stars to strive for next level

<div class="byline">By John Niyo</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-04180/6775919-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="313" height="413"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sergei Fedorov</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-03252/6775926-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="161" height="160"></div>The Detroit Red Wings are trying a different approach this year, whether they want to or not. No longer the front-runner, Detroit will see how the underdog tag fits come playoff time. The players already seem to be relishing the role.The Wings retooled, got bigger up front, younger on the blueline, and paid the price in the regular season. No records, no Presidents&rsquo; Trophy and perhaps no home-ice advantage after the first round. In a few months, they&rsquo;ll know whether it was worth all the trouble.Pivotal Factors: 1. Goaltending. Chris Osgood (20-10-7) was still the No. 1, having shaken a mid-winter slump. But his struggles ensured veteran Mike Vernon will stay around. 2. Rookie defensemen. Jamie Pushor, Aaron Ward, Anders Eriksson and converted forward Mathieu Dandenault made strides, but the Wings still lured 18-year veteran Mike Ramsey out of retirement as a safeguard. 3. Sergei Fedorov. The one-time Hart Trophy winner, who is seeking a $6-million-per-year deal, was reduced to third line center.Hardware Hopefuls: Vladimir Konstantinov, Norris; Nicklas Lidstrom, Igor Larionov, Lady Byng.Needs: Another defenseman would be a bonus. The Wings answered one off-season criticism by getting bigger on the wings, adding Brendan Shanahan, Tomas Sandstrom and Joey Kocur. But they still could use some muscle in front of the net.Available: Of the youngsters with NHL experience, only Ward and possibly Eriksson-if it&rsquo;s a major deal-could be had. And the Wings aren&rsquo;t keen on mortgaging the future. Among the regulars, management made the moves to get bigger up front and isn&rsquo;t about to take a step backward. Slava Kozlov might be the only one considered expendable.Trade Talk: Acquiring Boston Bruins&rsquo; defenseman Ray Bourque-a hot rumor after the Adam Oates trade-is a pipe dream, according to management. The Wmgs have talked to the Edmonton Oilers about big defenseman Luke Richardson. Veteran defensemen Murray Baron, Sylvain Cote, Mark Tinordi and Bryan March-ment were other names bandied about.Above and Beyond: Shanahan&rsquo;s arrival received tremendous fanfare in Detroit and his production hasn&rsquo;t disappointed.Down and Out: Eriksson got two chances to stay with the club this season and was demoted both times. He wasn&rsquo;t in prime shape at training camp and his defensive lapses put him squarely in coach Scotty Bowman&rsquo;s doghouse.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Mike Ramsey&rsquo;s return date was still up in the air, but coach Scotty Bowman hoped to have him in the lineup during a six-game west coast swing that ends March 16 in Denver. As for his unofficial retirement, Ramsey says he wasn&rsquo;t playing games when he didn&rsquo;t sign his retirement papers: &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know there were retirement papers, I really didn&rsquo;t,&rdquo; Ramsey said. &ldquo;I had heard one day about, I think it was Mike Foligno, &lsquo;Well, he signed his retirement papers.&rsquo; But I just thought that was a cliche. I really didn&rsquo;t know you were supposed to sign anything.&rdquo;&hellip;Skating on a line with center Igor Larionov and left winger Brendan Shanahan. right winger Darren McCarty responded with seven goals and 14 points in 14 games. He had a career-high 17 goals and 38 points. His previous highs were 15 and 29&hellip;Senior vice-president, hockey operations Jimmy Devellano joined the team for its western swing and was expected to meet with center Sergei Fedorov&rsquo;s agent, Michael Barnett, to discuss a new deal. &#9632;

f0021-04

No record book, no first overall, maybe no playoff flop this time

<div class="byline">By Dan Barnes</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01952/6775957-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="162" height="158"></div>The Edmonton Oilers are hoping their first trip to the playoffs in five years starts at home, but it won&rsquo;t be easy.The Oilers were battling the St. Louis Blues for fourth in the Western Conference, but injuries to key players and a tough road schedule in March presented formidable challenges to overcome.Pivotal factors: 1. Curtis Joseph&rsquo;s play. Joseph, so good for much of the season, was part of the problem behind the team&rsquo;s recent slump. The goalie must rediscover his &lsquo;A&rsquo; game. 2. Jason Arnott. The Oilers will be OK up front if Arnott can sustain a resurgence that started in early-March. 3. Luke Richardson trade. Dealing the popular defenseman could upset team chemistry.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: While fighting decreases in the playoffs, the Oilers could still use a designated enforcer for policing duties.Available: Defenseman Jeff Norton and left winger Louie DeBrusk are up for grabs.Trade talk: Richardson, eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer, is the focus of most rumors. A likely destination is the Washington Capitals, with defenseman Brendan Witt the payoff.Above and beyond: Left winger Ryan Smyth, who scored twice in 48 games last year, was just one away from 30 this season.Down and out: Norton&rsquo;s season was a disaster thanks to injuries and poor play. The offensive defenseman had just 12 points in 57 games.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Bryan Marchment returned after missing eight games with cracked ribs. The team went 15-2 without him and missed his physical play&hellip;Left winger Petr Klima had a goal and two assists in his third game for Edmonton, a 5-4 loss to Montreal March 1. Klima signed a contract Feb. 26 for the remainder of the season, but the Oilers can opt out&hellip;Right winger Mariusz Czerkawski had 41 points in 60 games, setting a new career high&hellip;Rookie defenseman Sean Brown looked steady in a five-game stint with the Oilers before being returned to Hamilton of the American League&hellip;The Oilers are raising season-ticket prices for the first time in three years. Next season, the top ticket will be $60, up from $50. &#9632;

f0022-01

Oilers face big challenge to get fourth playoff seed

<div class="byline">By Dave Joseph</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03465/6775988-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="576" height="896"><figcaption class="caption-body">Scott Mellanby</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02655/6775995-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="161" height="156"></div>The Florida Panthers were slumping.Since the all-star break the defending Eastern Conference champions were under. 500, were having trouble scoring and GM Bryan Murray&rsquo;s phone calls to get a goal-scorer had gone unanswered.Unless Murray can get some help or the Panthers snap out of their funk, it could be a long off-season.Pivotal Factors: 1. Scoring. Ray Sheppard and Scott Mellanby, the only two players with more than 20 goals, need to step up. 2: Ed Jovanovski. It&rsquo;s time for Jovo-Cop to make his presence felt offensively. 3: Help from grinders. Tom Fitzgerald, Bill Lindsay, Dave Lowry and Jody Hull need to contribute as they did last season when Mellanby and Sheppard grew cold.Hardware Hopefuls: None.Needs: A scorer, preferably one who plays center.Available: Since Rob Niedermayer, Jovanovski and Dvorak are off-limits, defenseman Rhett Warrener&rsquo;s name has been mentioned.Trade Talk: Murray would have loved to get Doug Gilmour or Adam Oates, but he never got the chance to make his best offer. He&rsquo;d likely part with a first round pick-1998 or later.Above and Beyond: Defensemen Robert Svehla, fourth in goals (12) and third in total points (36) was solid.Down and out: Martin Straka had just nine goals in 65 games after being acquired last year. Niedermayer has talent and promise, but isn&rsquo;t happy with 10 goals.NOTEBOOK: How anemic was the Panthers&rsquo; offense? For the first time in franchise history they were shut out in back-to-back games: March 1 against Tampa Bay (2-0) and March 5 against Phoenix (3-0). The Panthers entered the second week of March having been shut out three times in nine games and on a 1-6-2 slide. After the loss to the Coyotes-in which the Panthers showed no sense of urgency-coach Doug MacLean said; &ldquo;That&rsquo;s as bad as we&rsquo;ve played all season. It was a poor, poor, unacceptable performance.&rdquo;&hellip;During Florida&rsquo;s nine-game slump, center Rob Niedermayer was the only forward to have scored two goals&hellip;The Panthers&rsquo; 14 shots against the Coyotes tied a team record for fewest shots in a game. &#9632;

f0022-03

No scoring, no winning

<div class="byline">By Jerry Higgins</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02536/6776026-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="312" height="413"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sean Burke</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01843/6776033-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="161" height="160"></div>There are so many issues swirling around the Hartford Whalers. For every question about the on-ice product, there are a couple about off-ice happenings.As much as the players like to say the turmoil doesn&rsquo;t affect them, there is a spot in the backs of their minds where they tuck away info about new arenas, ticket campaigns and the stability of this rocky ship. It hovers like a black cloud around Hartford&rsquo;s playoff push.And that push? The inconsistent Whalers look like contenders on some nights, beating up on elite teams, then patsies the next, losing to second tier teams. Somewhere in the final six weeks of the season, they need to find that missing consistency or they&rsquo;ll be out of the playoffs for the fifth straight year.Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. Sean Burke&rsquo;s recurring back problem could be painful to everyone if it flares up again. He must stay healthy for the team to have any shot. 2. Health. Hartford was second in the league in man-games lost. Much of its 11-23-3 record after Dec. 12 can be attributed to injuries (217 man-games lost in that time). 3. Schedule. Eight of Hartford&rsquo;s final 17 games were against teams fighting for the final two Eastern Conference-playoff spots. They also have seven games against teams with better than. 500 records remaining.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: The Whalers need more size up front and more offensive zip from the blueline. Defenseman Steve Chiasson, picked up in a March 5 trade from the Calgary Flames, may provide some of that.Available: The team has tons of second-line players who are there for the asking. But GM Jim Rutherford is reluctant to get rid of core players such as Burke, Geoff Sanderson and Andrew Cassels.Trade talk: The Whalers and Flames finally completed a long-expected deal for Chiasson. Hartford gave up a scoring prospect in left winger Hnat Domenichelli, a mistake-prone defenseman in Glen Featherstone and two draft picks.Above and beyond: Center Kent Manderville came to training camp on a tryout basis and eventually earned a spot in the lineup as a productive member of the penalty killing unit and versatile forward.Down and out: One year after scoring 29 goals, right winger Nelson Emerson had only seven in early-March. A telling stat was the fact he was scoreless on the power play after finishing second on the team last year with 12.NOTEBOOK: About an hour after a 2-0 victory over Calgary March 5, the Whalers traded defenseman Glen Featherstone, left winger Hnat Domenichelli. a second round pick in this year&rsquo;s draft and a third-rounder next year to Calgary for defenseman Steve Chiasson and a third-rounder this year. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a risk in trading Hnat because he could become a good player in the NHL,&rdquo; said GM Jim Rutherford. &ldquo;But that won&rsquo;t happen for a couple of years. We have a defenseman in Chiasson who will help us right now.&rdquo; Chiasson, 29, started his career with Detroit in 1986-87 and was traded to Calgary for goalie Mike Vernon in 1994. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound native of Barrie, Ont., is known as a solid, two-way defenseman whose best offensive season was 1992-93 with the Wings when he recorded 12 goals and 62 points in 79 games&hellip;The shutout was goaltender Sean Burke&rsquo;s first victory in 12 career games against the Flames after 11 straight losses. Both Hartford goals came off Flames&rsquo; players. &#9632;

f0023-02

Quest for consistency continues with stability issue as backdrop

<div class="byline">By Helene Elliott</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-04265/6776064-1-eng-US/f0023-042.jpg" title="f0023-04" width="311" height="412"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stephane Fiset</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-03373/6776071-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="162" height="160"></div>Just as the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; playoff drive kicked into high gear and their winning streak reached a season-high five games, it came to a screeching halt.Goaltender Stephane Fiset, so instrumental in the team&rsquo;s resurgence, sustained a groin/abdominal strain March 4 in a game against the Edmonton Oilers.The Kings felt the pain, losing their next two games and jeopardizing their chances of making the playoffs for the first time in four years. Fiset was listed as week to week, and the same uncertainty applies to the Kings&rsquo; post-season hopes.Pivotal factors: 1. Fiset&rsquo;s fitness. If Fiset is lost for any length, can the Kings count on Byron Dafoe or Jamie Storr to lead a playoff charge? 2. Power play. It has ranked at or near the bottom of the league most of the season and had been victimized for 12 shorthanded goals against. Even a small improvement could provide the extra goal or two they need. 3. Veteran leadership. Will the Kings have any? Center Ray Ferraro hinted he would want out if a contending team were interested. Left winger Kevin Stevens (bruised left ankle) and defenseman Rob Blake (sore left knee) were out of the lineup.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: The most pressing need is offense. The Kings were the last team in the league to have a 20-goal scorer (Ed Olczyk). A first line center and a scoring forward would be at the top of the wish list.Available: Ferraro may be on the block after saying he would prefer to play for a contender rather than a rebuilding team because he&rsquo;s nearly 33 and doesn&rsquo;t have time for Kings&rsquo; kids to blossom. Stevens may also be available, although coach Larry Robinson has praised his leadership.Trade talk: GM Sam McMaster, looking for offensive punch, spoke to the Rangers&rsquo; about a Stevens for Luc Robitaille deal around mid-season, but backed off. McMaster has said he won&rsquo;t trade the two first-round picks he holds in the June entry draft.Above and beyond: Defenseman Aki Berg has improved dramatically since his first appearance last season. He&rsquo;s sure of himself with the puck, hits hard and has stepped into a regular rotation without difficulty.Down and out: The Kings are not paying Stevens $2.97 million to score 12 goals, regardless of his leadership ability. He had four goals in the Kings&rsquo; first 41 games and eight in the next 15, but was silent before injuring his left ankle Feb. 22. He was getting good chances consistently, but simply couldn&rsquo;t finish. His minus-22 was no mirage.NOTEBOOK: Goalie Stephane Fiset&rsquo;s abdominal pull was a recurrence of a problem that idled him for two games in early December. The initial prognosis was he might miss several weeks&hellip;Goalie Jamie Storr, promoted from Phoenix of the International League after Fiset was injured, made his 1996-97 debut March 6, relieving Byron Dafoe in a 6-2 loss to the Rangers. Storr played one period and gave up one goal&hellip;The Ranger game was center Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s second visit to the Forum since the trade that sent him to St. Louis a year ago. Gretzky scored the Rangers&rsquo; first goal and center Mark Messier had three assists, playing before only the fourth Forum sellout of the season. &ldquo;We did too much watching and not enough playing,&rdquo; said coach Larry Robinson. &ldquo;It was like we were in awe of all of their players out there. Gretzky and Messier had so much room to skate out there, no one touched them all night.&rdquo; Gretzky said he was &ldquo;a little nervous&rdquo; in his return to the city where he spent 7-1/2 seasons. &#9632;

f0023-04

Entire Kings’ team feeling pain from goaltender Fiset’s groin pull

<div class="byline">By Herb Zurkowsky</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01926/6776102-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="161" height="159"></div>The Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; season began with so much promise-four games without a loss and 20 goals scored.Then reality set in. This is a mediocre team, plagued by inconsistency. They can score, but have trouble keeping the puck out of their net.Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. Jocelyn Thibault and Jose Theodore are promising netminders, but too frequently allow soft goals. 2. Home ice disadvantage. Teams no longer fear coming to Montreal, where the Canadiens (1415-4) have lost their edge. 3. Leadership. This team requires someone to grab it by the throat and lead by example.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: The Canadiens could use a defenseman who is both tough and solid in front of the net. A veteran goalie wouldn&rsquo;t hurt, either.Available: Almost everyone except Finnish center Saku Koivu, the Canadiens&rsquo; captain-in-waiting.Trade talk: Among the goalies rumored en route to Montreal this season have been Mike Vernon, Glenn Healy and Felix Potvin.Above and beyond: Brian Savage has become a more rounded player and had 57 points in 64 games.Down and out: It has been three seasons since Stephane Richer last hit the 30-goal mark. Montreal gave up steady defenseman Lyle Odelein to New Jersey for Richer, who had 37 points in 51 games.NOTEBOOK: For one night, at least, the Canadiens could take solace from the Scott Thornton for Andrei Kovalenko trade. Thornton, the former Edmonton Oiler center, came back to haunt his former team in a 5-4 Montreal victory March 1. He scored twice and would have registered his first career hat trick if not for striking the post late in the game. The two goals gave him 10 in 62 games this season&hellip;GM Rejean Houle was serious when he stated he wasn&rsquo;t looking to make any more trades. Edmonton GM Glen Sather informed Houle defenseman Luke Richardson was available and three teams were interested. Houle&rsquo;s response: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve made all my trades.&rdquo; Richardson is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. &#9632;

f0024-01

Goaltending, leadership missing from Habs’ mix

<div class="byline">By Rich Chere</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-03404/6776133-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="576" height="898"><figcaption class="caption-body">Martin Brodeur</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02621/6776140-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="162" height="158"></div>Before Doug Gilmour&rsquo;s magic carpet even landed in New Jersey, the Devils were good enough to be considered one of a halfdozen teams with a shot at winning the Stanley Cup.With Gilmour, Dave Ellett and the boost in confidence that came along with those two veterans, only the defending champion Colorado Avalanche figured to enter the playoffs with lower odds than the Devils.Pivotal factors: 1. Gilmour&rsquo;s injured eye. X-rays showed no structural damage, but Gilmour expected to miss the better part of a week while the Devils held their breath for the aftereffects after he was hit by a puck March 5. 2. Dave Andreychuk&rsquo;s slump. At one point, the big left winger went nine games without a goal. His confidence needs to be high entering the playoffs. 3. Ability to stay with the program. A defensive club could get into trouble if it starts to believe it&rsquo;s something else.Hardware hopefuls: 1. Martin Brodeur, Vezina; Jacques Lemaire, Adams.Needs: None pressing as long as Gilmour recovers and Mike Dunham is deemed an adequate backup.Available: Sergei Brylin, playing with the Albany River Rats of the American League, is tradable.Trade talk: The Gilmour deal was it.Above and beyond: Denis Pederson&rsquo;s offensive skills blossomed quicker than anyone expected.Down and out: Petr Sykora&rsquo;s NHL career is on hold and he will spend the remainder of the season in the minors.NOTEBOOK: Deflected pucks KO&rsquo;d two key players. Right winger Randy McKay suffered a cut below his right eye and a bruised cheekbone Feb. 27 before center Doug Gilmour joined him on the sidelines. Gilmour&rsquo;s mishap, a deflection off the stick of Philadelphia defenseman Eric Desjardins, occurred March 5 on his last shift with 1:52 left in the game&hellip;Coach Jacques Lemaire had resisted reuniting Gilmour and left winger Dave Andreychuk. They played on the same line the past couple of seasons in Toronto&hellip;Goalie Mike Dunham left a March 4 game in Pittsburgh because of leg cramps, but was still credited with his first victory since Dec. 16&hellip;Defenseman Scott Niedermayer had points in six straight games entering the stretch drive. &#9632;

f0024-03

Gearing up for Cup run

<div class="byline">By Jim Smith</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01823/6776171-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="163" height="159"></div>With 17 games left, the New York Islanders were five points out of a playoff spot, but GM Mike Milbury was waffling about making a trade to help them get there.Milbury promised Feb. 21 if the team was in the hunt after a five-game stretch ending March 2, he would make a deal. Talk is cheap. As of March 7, he had not done anything.Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. Tommy Salo will have to steal a few more victories. 2. The Boston Bruins. The Islanders meet the Bruins four times in March (the Islanders won the first game) with the results going a long way toward deciding who finishes last overall. 3. Road play. The Islanders were 7-17-7 with 10 road games to go.Hardware hopefuls: Bryan Berard, Calder.Needs: A goal-scoring winger and another center who can win faceoffs.Available: Left winger Derek King could be had, as could underachieving right winger Todd Bertuzzi and defenseman Rich Pilon.Trade talk: There was speculation Bertuzzi might be headed to the Chicago Blackhawks to play for his exjunior coach Craig Hartsburg or to the San Jose Sharks.Above and beyond: Salo has proved he belongs in the NHL.Down and Out: Goalie Eric Fich-aud took a step back with a poor sophomore season; Bertuzzi disappeared for weeks at a time and did not use his size effectively.NOTEBOOK: Goalie Tommy Salo became the first goalie in club history to record three shutouts against the same team in one season when he blanked Washington 2-0 March 2. He also beat the Capitals 2-0 Nov. 29 at USAir Arena and 2-0 at Nassau Coliseum Dec. 7&hellip;Defenseman Dennis Vaske hoped to return March 16. He missed the last 63 games last season due to a concussion and played only five games this year due to a dislocated shoulder and a concussion. He changed his number from 37 to 38, which he wore at the University of Minnesota-Duluth&hellip;With his one-month-old son, Thomas, and wife, Amy, in the stands March 6, Dan Plante got his first goal since he scored the team&rsquo;s first goal of the season Oct. 4. It broke a 48-game drought. &#9632;

f0025-01

Isles could make playoffs, or stumble to 26th overall

<div class="byline">By Rick Carpiniello</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03337/6776202-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="578" height="893"><figcaption class="caption-body">Luc Robitaille</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02523/6776209-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="164" height="158"></div>The New York Rangers&rsquo; realistic chances for a Stanley Cup run seemed to evaporate when they hit an eight-game winless streak (0-6-2) during which they were barely competitive in the six losses.If there is a hope, it is that the Rangers&rsquo; core players are genuine stars and that when those stars are on, the Rangers can beat any team.Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. The Rangers offensive inconsistency means Mike Richter can&rsquo;t be anything less than sensational. 2. Penalty killing. Opponents were scoring at a 20.4 per cent clip on the power play, which spells playoff doom. 3. Mark Messier&rsquo;s ailing back. The Rangers crumble when he&rsquo;s out for any extended period.Hardware hopefuls: Brian Leetch, Norris, Lady Byng; Richter, Vezina; Niklas Sundstrom, Selke.Needs: A winger who can produce on one of the top two lines.Available: Luc Robitaille could be had, but the remaining four years at $13.6 million on his contract make him hard to move. The Rangers would part with Sergei Nemchinov or Glenn Healy.Trade talk: Since the Rangers fell out of the Rick Tocchet sweepstakes, it is unlikely anything major will happen.Above and beyond: Richter&rsquo;s stats may not be sensational, but he sees many odd-man rushes and plays behind the NHL&rsquo;s worst penalty-killers.Down and out: Robitaille had two goals in 14 games (both the same night) and has been periodically removed from the Wayne Gretzky line during games.NOTEBOOK: The Rangers ended an eight-game winless streak in ugly fashion, blowing a 4-2 third period lead at home against San Jose before winning in overtime on right winger Niklas Sundstrom&rsquo;s goal&hellip;Center Wayne Gretzky had two goals in a five-game span, giving him two in 1997 and two in 26 games&hellip;Center Mark Messier returned after missing two games with upper back spasms. Messier was minus a tooth, thanks to a stick from New Jersey center Peter Zezel and had stitches in his head thanks to a practice collision with defenseman Ulf Samuelsson&hellip;The Rangers lost center Sergei Nemchinov to a ribcage injury suffered during practice. Center Chris Ferraro was recalled from Binghamton of the American League. &#9632;

f0025-03

Look to stars for destiny

<div class="byline">By Chris Stevenson</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01903/6776240-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="163" height="161"></div>The Ottawa Senators&rsquo; ability to rebound from injuries using a troupe of unknowns and key contributions from Alexei Yashin and Daniel Alfredsson has put them in a playoff race for the first time.It&rsquo;s probably not enough to win them a postseason berth, but still, after four years of finishing dead last, it&rsquo;s solid progress in Ottawa.Pivotal Factors: 1. Injuries. Bumps and bruises are a key for any team, but particularly so where depth is also a question mark. The Senators were without captain and spiritual leader Randy Cunneyworth (broken cheekbone) on a western swing and had defenseman Steve Duchesne go down with back spasms. Goaltender Damian Rhodes is still out with a tender left calf. 2. Help! If the Senators are going to make the playoffs, they&rsquo;re going to need the teams in front of the them to start losing. 3. Alexei Yashin. The big center is the club&rsquo;s offensive leader and will need to get hot down the stretch.Hardware Hopefuls: None.Needs: Like most clubs, Ottawa could use a defenseman with an edge. A more realistic possibility is some added toughness at forward.Available: Defenseman Steve Duchesne can probably be had for the right price. It would take a heck of an offer to pry away any of the Senators&rsquo; young nucleus, guys like Yashin, Alfredsson, Radek Bonk or Alexandre Daigle.Trade Talk: There were rumors the Detroit Red Wings were interested in Duchesne, but interest will probably cool since Duchesne has been experiencing back problems of late.Above and Beyond: Rookie right winger Andreas Dackell, taken 136th overall in the 1996 entry draft, has emerged as the surprise of the season. He has been playing on the club&rsquo;s top line with Yashin and Shawn McEachern, is good along the boards and has a decent scoring touch.Down and Out: Radek Bonk. Yes, the big center has been bothered by injuries, but he had just four goals in 35 games. That&rsquo;s not much for the top-rated player in the 1994 draft.NOTEBOOK: Goalie Damian Rhodes underwent an MRI in Anaheim which showed no extraordinary damage to his sore left calf. The next day he went out and tweaked it again in practice. No date had been fixed for his return&hellip;Coach Jacques Martin was upset with his team&rsquo;s lackluster performance in a 4-1 loss to the Mighty Ducks after he brought the team to the West Coast a day early for their Wednesday game. &ldquo;I thought we had a good practice Monday, but then it&rsquo;s almost like we got into a vacation mode,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know, maybe it&rsquo;s the weather. (The lack of effort) is one way to make sure you don&rsquo;t come back early next time.&rdquo;&hellip;Sens GM Pierre Gauthier isn&rsquo;t tipping his hand on what his trade plans might be, but nobody is holding their breath for a blockbuster deal like the Adam Oates deal pulled off by Washington. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like to fuel speculation with what I might be thinking of doing,&rdquo; Gauthier said. &ldquo;Those things (trades) happen in sports. Before they happen, the status quo is the only thing you can count on.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0028-01

Even if playoff drive falls short, just being in hunt is fine reward

<div class="byline">By Wayne Fish</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02599/6776271-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="162" height="161"></div>Despite questions about the health of key players, the Philadelphia Flyers hit the stretch run in good spirits.Eric Lindros, Dale Hawerchuk and Ron Hextall were battling nagging injuries, but the Flyers managed to maintain their hold on first place in the Eastern Conference.Pivotal Factors: 1. Goaltending: Hextali is the team&rsquo;s designated No. 1 goaltender. He has struggled since the all-star break, opening the door for Garth Snow, who ran off a 16-game unbeaten streak. 2. Hawerchuk&rsquo;s status: When healthy, he&rsquo;s still an effective second-line center. When he&rsquo;s not, the Flyers wonder if they should have gone the extra mile for Doug Gilmour or Adam Oates. 3. Balanced scoring: Trent Klatt (20 goals) and Shjon Podein (14 goals) have enjoyed career years. Can they keep it going in the playoffs?Hardware hopefuls: Podein and Joel Otto, Selke; Janne Niinimaa, Calder.Needs: The Flyers desire a hard-hitting defenseman. One of their best stay-at-homers, Kjell Samuelsson, is coming off neck surgery and his status for the playoffs is unclear. The Flyers also lack a proven tough guy/scorer at right wing.Available: Pat Falloon was a million-dollar benchwarmer for the better part of a month, however, his contract and size are big turnoffs. Chris Therien is much sought-after, but the Flyers probably would only part with him for a big-name talent.Trade Talk: GM Bob Clarke spoke to Washington GM David Poile just a day after Rick Toc-chet was dealt from Boston to the Caps, so there&rsquo;s still some interest there. Edmonton Oilers&rsquo; defenseman Luke Richardson has drawn interest.Above and beyond: Right winger Trent Klatt, who was put on waivers when the season began, is probably the team&rsquo;s most improved player ahead of Podein and Snow.Down and out: Hawerchuk has been hampered throughout the season by injuries. He was talking retirement early in the year, due to a hip injury, and the latest problems (rib muscle, groin) may have him thinking that way again.NOTEBOOK: Goalie Garth Snow&rsquo;s 16-game (11-05) unbeaten streak came to an end in a 3-1 loss to New Jersey March 5. It was Snow&rsquo;s first defeat since a 2-0 setback at Boston Nov. 26&hellip;Center Vaclav Prospal, the leading scorer in the American League, was recalled from the Philadelphia Phantoms for the Devils&rsquo; game, his first in the NHL. Prospal, 22, centered the Flyers&rsquo; top line of left winger John LeClair and right winger Mikael Renberg because center Eric Lindros was sidelined with a charley horse&hellip;In response to a videotape the Flyers sent in to the NHL regarding an 8-5 win over Ottawa Feb. 13, the league awarded another assist to Lindros&rsquo; totals, giving him one goal and six assists for the game. That set the club record for assists (Lindros and Bob Clarke shared the old record of five), established a career-high one-game point total for Lindros and gave the Legion of Doom 16 points for the night, tying its own club mark set earlier this season. The seven points are one short of the team record held by former defenseman Tom Bladon. &#9632;

f0028-02

Physical foibles of key performers only concern for high-Flying crew

<div class="byline">By Bob McManaman</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01796/6776302-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="162" height="158"></div>Temperatures in Phoenix were starting to climb right along with the blood pressure of team co-owner Richard Burke, who is about to reach his boiling point.A porous defense and lack of scoring depth has Burke asking if some major changes should be in order.Pivotal factors: 1. Coach Don Hay. The rookie NHL coach must get his players to start playing with more consistency. 2. Jeremy Roenick. The Coyotes still weren&rsquo;t seeing the dividends they expect from a $20-million player. 3. Nikolai Khabibulin. Forced to play nearly every game for more than two months because of backup Darcy Wakaluk&rsquo;s sore knee, the &ldquo;Bulin Wall&rdquo; began to show some cracks.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: Management keeps looking for a big, strong, top-four defenseman.Available: Left winger Igor Korolev has great hands and great skills, but just hasn&rsquo;t clicked.Trade talk: Forget about the J.R. rumors: The Coyotes don&rsquo;t want to move him. Tough guy Kris King could go because he becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer, but the Coyotes can&rsquo;t afford to lose any enforcers.Above and beyond: No one has performed beyond expectation, which is a big part of the Coyotes&rsquo; problems.Down and out: Dave Manson has been near the NHL&rsquo;s minus leaders all season. It&rsquo;s true Manson has been put in some tough situations, but the Coyotes clearly expect more.NOTEBOOK: Boston-born center Jeremy Roenick took a shot at the Canadian media, which he claims hasn&rsquo;t given him a chance in Phoenix. &lsquo;The Canadian media likes to look down on American hockey players and that&rsquo;s fine,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They always want to make a stink about this and that and they&rsquo;re jealous because we make the money we make. It&rsquo;s&rsquo; too bad there aren&rsquo;t people there critiquing their writing sometimes, because maybe their writing sucks, too.&rdquo;&hellip;Veteran defenseman Brad McCrimmon began practising again after missing a month with a wrist injury. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s great for us in the dressing room even when he doesn&rsquo;t play,&rdquo; said coach Don Hay, &ldquo;but that&rsquo;s even more important when he&rsquo;s on the ice.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0029-01

Coyotes’ poor performance leads to owner impatience

<div class="byline">By Mike Dudurich</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03333/6776333-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="582" height="895"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mario Lemieux</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02513/6776340-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="163" height="158"></div>This isn&rsquo;t how Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s farewell season was supposed to go.At about this point, the Penguins were supposed to be challenging for the Eastern Conference title, Lemieux was supposed to be running away with the scoring race, and all that should have been left was planning for the Stanley Cup victory parade.Wrong. A shocking collapse in January and February exposed the Penguins as pretenders, not serious contenders.Pivotal factors: 1. Goaltending. If the Penguins are to have any success, they need their Patrick Lalime back. 2. Injuries-particularly the groin injury suffered by Jaromir Jagr that took the league&rsquo;s most exciting player out of action. 3. Goal scoring. Who&rsquo;d have believed the goal-happy Penguins would be struggling to find the back of the net?Hardware hopefuls: Jagr and Lemieux, Hart; Lalime, Calder.Needs: A big, strong left winger who can score some goals.Available: Petr Nedved, who won&rsquo;t put up anything near the 45 goals he scored last year, can be had.Trade talk: It&rsquo;s possible that GM Craig Patrick replacing Ed Johnston as coach might be the biggest thing the Penguins do before the trade line.Above and beyond: Lalime started his NHL career by going 14-0-2, best ever by a rookie goalie.Down and out: Goaltender Tom Barrasso, who started the season 0-5-0 with a 5.78 goals-against average, had surgery on his shoulder and disappeared.NOTEBOOK: Center Ron Francis received assists on both goals in the Penguins&rsquo; 4-2 loss to Buffalo March 5, moving him into 16th place on the all-time scoring list with 1,327 points&hellip;Center Mario Lemieux and referee Paul Stewart banged heads again in the Penguins&rsquo; 3-1 loss to New Jersey at the Civic Arena March 4. Lemieux became upset over a non-call by Stewart and when teammate Garry Valk was given a checking from behind major penalty and game misconduct in the second period, Lemieux blew a fuse. After being hit with a 10minute misconduct, Lemieux chased Stewart and verbally assailed him despite being held back by teammates and the linesmen. He did not return to the game and missed the game the next night in Buffalo. &#9632;

f0029-03

So much for farewell tour

<div class="byline">By Dave Luecking</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01898/6776371-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="162" height="159"></div>The phrase, &ldquo;the more things change, the more they stay the same,&rdquo; applies perfectly to the St. Louis Blues.Despite the personnel turnover, the Blues had 62 points through 60 games, the same total they had through 60 games in 1995-96. On the bright side, the mood is upbeat these days and the team is competitive enough to possibly make a little noise in the playoffs.Pivotal factors: 1. The big line. The No. 1 unit of Brett Hull, Pierre Turgeon and Geoff Courtnall is the Blues&rsquo; offense and must keep it up, especially since Jim Campbell got hurt. 2. Grant Fuhr&rsquo;s play. With a one-dimensional offense, the Blues rely heavily on their goaltending. 3. Power play. It was successful just 12 per cent of the time after Joel Quenneville took over as coach.Hardware hopefuls: Campbell, Calder; Turgeon and Hull, Lady Byng.Needs: The Blues sorely need a second line playmaking center.Available: Veterans Trent Yawney, Sergio Momesso, Marc Bergevin, Stephane Matteau, Igor Kravchuk and Mike Peluso could be trade bait.Trade talk: With a $30-million payroll they want to reduce, the Blues may tweak, but they won&rsquo;t overhaul.Above and beyond: Campbell, a Mighty Ducks of Anaheim castoff, led NHL rookies in scoring before getting hurt.Down and out: Joe Murphy, the $10-million winger, was a bust.NOTEBOOK: The Blues&rsquo; owners have pumped $16 million into the team and the Kiel Center to cover projected losses for this season. It&rsquo;s the second $16-million &ldquo;cash call&rdquo; in as many years. The owners put $16.6 million into the team last season&hellip;Right winger Jim Campbell&rsquo;s injury is worse than originally diagnosed. His sprained thumb turned out to be a severed ligament between his thumb and forefinger and he underwent surgery March 3. He&rsquo;ll be out until the last week of March&hellip;The Blues sent backup goalie Jon Casey to Worcester of the American League March 6 for a two-week conditioning stint. Casey started only two of 31 games since Dec. 22&hellip;The Blues were winless in six (0-4-2) to drop their record to 1010-4 under coach Joel Quenneville. &#9632;

f0030-01

Attitude has changed, but performance same

<div class="byline">By Dan Wood</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03414/6776402-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="573" height="893"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jeff Friesen</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02601/6776409-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="160" height="157"></div>The good news for the San Jose Sharks this season is they&rsquo;re a lot more competitive than they were in 1995-96. The bad news is it doesn&rsquo;t matter-they were still losing on a frequent basis.In fact, the Sharks were in danger of finishing last in the overall standings, a notch below last season, thanks to the improvement of the Ottawa Senators.Pivotal factors: 1. Ed Belfour. It&rsquo;s time for the team&rsquo;s big acquisition to prove he was worth it. 2. Scoring. San Jose struggled all season to capitalize on scoring chances. That must change. 3. Mike Rathje&rsquo;s impact. The Sharks are hoping his return from groin surgery will stabilize the defense.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: Among the league&rsquo;s lowest-scoring teams all season, the Sharks desperately needed a sniper or two.Available: Veterans Todd Ewen, Doug Bodger and Darren Turcotte were available to be moved.Trade talk: San Jose is not likely to be very active before the trade dead-line. Center Jeff Friesen&rsquo;s name has surfaced several times, but don&rsquo;t count on the Sharks moving one of their prized possessions.Above and beyond: After spending nine of the season&rsquo;s first 11 games in the press box, Marcus Ragnarsson had developed into perhaps the team&rsquo;s best defenseman.Down and out: A free agent signed to be the team&rsquo;s top enforcer, Ewen played in just 38 of the first 65 games, with only one assist and 121 penalty minutes.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Al lafrate underwent season-ending back surgery March 6 in Los Angeles. The surgery was performed by renowned back specialist Dr. Robert Watkins. lafrate is expected to be fully recovered in time for training camp next season&hellip;After missing 13 games because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee, goalie Ed Belfour returned with 32 saves in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Rangers March 3. He followed that up with a 29-save effort in a 2-0 shutout over visiting Ottawa March 6. It was San Jose&rsquo;s first shutout in 150 regular season games&hellip;Right winger Shean Donovan scored two goals in his first three games back with the Sharks after being recalled from Kentucky of the American League. &#9632;

f0030-03

Better team still losing

<div class="byline">By Boy Cummings</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01832/6776440-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="163" height="160"></div>If the Tampa Bay Lightning can make the playoffs it will be proof miracles really do happen.The Lightning was without goalie Daren Puppa, top scorer Brian Bradley, Alexander Selivanov and its captain, Paul Ysebaert, for various parts of the year. It simply doesn&rsquo;t have the depth to survive without those key players.Pivotal factors: 1. Rick Tabaracci. The 28-year-old goalie must continue the excellent job he has done filling in for Puppa. 2. Chris Gratton. After three disappointing seasons, Gratton became the team&rsquo;s offensive leader and must have a strong finish. 3. Defense. Too often opponents were getting second and third shots at the Lightning net.Hardware hopefuls: Rob Zamuner, Selke.Needs: A point man for the power play who can get the puck into the other end without turning it over.Available: Gratton, Daymond Langkow, Jason Wiemer and Puppa are considered untouchables. Just about anybody else could be had, even Dino Ciccarelli or Roman Hamrlik.Trade talk: There has been a lot of talk of a deal for Luke Richardson.Above and beyond: After joining the Lightning in mid-November, Tab-aracci&rsquo;s goals against average was 2.66 and his save percentage was 90.4.Down and out: Even when he was healthy, Selivanov was not producing. When he went down, he was skating on the fourth line.NOTEBOOK: Center Brian Bradley said his sprained right wrist will likely force him to miss the rest of the season and maybe even the playoffs. &lsquo;There&rsquo;s a slight chance I can come back and play if we make the playoffs, but that&rsquo;s real slim,&rdquo; Bradley said. &ldquo;Basically what the doctors are telling me now is they don&rsquo;t see me playing until training camp next year.&rdquo; Bradley has been out since Jan. 9. He said doctors have told him not to even hold a stick for a month. If no significant progress is detected after that, he said, he may have to have surgery. Bradley has led the Lightning in scoring four straight years&hellip;Two days after being named NHL player of the week for the period ending Feb. 23, center Daymond Langkow was named NHL Rookie of the Month for February. &#9632;

f0031-01

Tabaracci delivers for short-staffed Lightning

<div class="byline">By Damien Cox</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03393/6776471-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="579" height="897"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tie Domi</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02543/6776478-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="162" height="159"></div>As the Toronto Maple Leafs limped down the stretch of a nightmarish season, they were stuck between trying to land a playoff berth and beginning preparations for next season.To make the post-season, the club would have to win 70 per cent of its games and would need teams such as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks to all fall flat on their faces.Pivotal factors: 1. Team identity. When the Leafs were a dangerous team in the early 1990s, they knew what they were-big, defense-oriented and nasty. Now, they seem to have little or no idea. 2. Goaltending. Felix Potvin has to re-establish himself as a netminder his teammates can count on. 3. Discipline. Too many Leafs went their own ways this season and by the time coach Mike Murphy got around to benching veterans, it was too late.Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: Size and aggressiveness on the wings.Available: Mike Craig and Matt Martin are open for any and all takers.Trade talk: Kirk Muller might be moved to the New York Rangers, while defensemen Jamie Macoun, Larry Murphy and Dimitri Yushkevich could also be dealt to contending teams.Above and beyond: Tie Domi not only proved he could take a regular shift, but be an aggressive forechecker and intimidating bodychecker as well.Down and out: Potvin showed his best form only in February, long after the Leafs were all but eliminated.NOTEBOOK: After being recalled only a week earlier, defenseman David Cooper was returned to the minors March 4 after showing up five minutes late for practice&hellip;Defenseman Mathieu Schneider announced plans to undergo season-ending abdominal surgery in early-March&hellip;Defenseman Jamie Macoun scored his first goal of the season in his 64th game, the winning goal in a 4-2 victory over Boston March 3&hellip;Center Jamie Baker was hit by a slapshot from San Jose defenseman Greg Hawgood March 1 and suffered a serious facial cut and a fracture of his orbital bone&hellip;The Leafs signed Ottawa 67&rsquo;s junior Alyn McCauley March 3 to the maximum allowable salary and bonus under the rookie salary cap system. He remains with his junior team. &#9632;

f0031-03

Domi’s play bright note

<div class="byline">By Elliott Pap</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01892/6776509-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="160" height="158"></div>In the military, they have an expression called a &ldquo;snafu,&rdquo; which stands for &ldquo;situation normal, all fouled up.&rdquo; That is the state in which the Vancouver Canucks found themselves entering the stretch drive and they were in jeopardy of missing the playoffs in the mild, mild west.Pivotal factors: 1. Pavel Bure&rsquo;s health. Bure&rsquo;s return from a whiplash problem-or how the Canucks compensate in his absence-is critical. 2. Alexander Mogilny&rsquo;s offense. Mogilny had just 27 goals entering March. The team needs him to pick up the pace to be successful. 3. Coaching. Tom Renney&rsquo;s weak-side lock was never fully accepted by the players. Can that situation be rectified in time?Hardware hopefuls: None.Needs: The Canucks require a playmaking center, an abrasive center who can kill penalties, a power play pointman and a stay-at-home defenseman.Available: Forwards Esa Tikkanen, Russ Courtnall, Markus Naslund and Alexander Mogilny could all be had.Trade talk: Mogilny-for-Jeremy Roenick (one underachiever for another) has been rumored, but with Bure hurt, Mogilny will probably stay. Montreal showed some interest in goalie Kirk McLean.Above and beyond: Martin Gelinas, who had 12 goals in February, was on pace for a career-high 31 goals.Down and out: Tikkanen has been unhappy with contract talks; fans have been unhappy with his play.NOTEBOOK: Right winger Pavel Bure was ordered March 4 to rest for at least two weeks in the hopes he could overcome the whiplash injuries that have dogged him all season. Bure, initially hurt opening night when he was slammed into the end boards by Calgary defenseman Todd Simpson, admitted he was playing at about 60 per cent when a hit from Colorado defenseman Aaron Miller March 3 finally put him on the shelf. Bure had one goal and was minus-8 in 13 games before sitting out&hellip;If the logo for the 1998 All-Star Game (to be played in Vancouver) is a tip-off, the Canucks&rsquo; new colors next season will be dark blue, dark red, sky blue and silver. A killer whale, or orca, is also believed to be part of the new design. &#9632;

f0032-01

Bure injury, turmoil affect underachieving Canucks

<div class="byline">By Stuart Cowan</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0034-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01899/6776578-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Vincent Lecavalier&rsquo;s style has been compared to Jean Beliveau&rsquo;s. (Photo by Remi Senechai)</figcaption></div>Vincent Lecavalier&rsquo;s mother will never forget the first time she watched her son play a Quebec League game.Christiane Lecavalier and husband Yvon spent the summer debating whether Vincent should accept a U.S. college scholarship or play for the Rimouski Oceanic, who selected him fourth overall in the QMJHL midget draft.Christiane was hoping Vincent would follow in the footsteps of his older brother Phil, who is a senior at Clarkson University. But Yvon believed Vincent had the talent to play in the NHL and the junior route would be best for him.After making a visit to Rimouski in the summer and meeting with Oceanic officials as well as teachers from a local private school, Christiane reluctantly agreed to let Vincent play major junior hockey.So, on Sept. 21. Christiane and Yvon made the six-hour drive from their home in Ile Bizard (a western suburb of Montreal) to Rimouski to watch Vincent play in the second game of the regular season against the Victoriaville Tigres.Two seconds into the game, Dean Stock, a 19-year-old enforcer with Victoriaville, jumped the 16-year-old Lecavalier and started pummeling him.Welcome to junior hockey, Mrs. Lecavalier.&ldquo;Oh yeah, I remember that,&rdquo; Christiane says. &ldquo;It was hard for us because he&rsquo;s only 16 years old and you don&rsquo;t see things like that in U.S. universities where there&rsquo;s no fighting. For me it was a big surprise, but I know that that&rsquo;s part of the game. But for a mother it&rsquo;s not easy to take.&rdquo;Victoriaville ended up winning the game 6-5 and Vincent was held to one assist. After the game, his parents packed up the car and made the six-hour trip back home. They didn&rsquo;t exchange a word the whole way.&ldquo;It was very quiet,&rdquo; Christiane recalls with a laugh. &ldquo;We were thinking a lot.&ldquo;That weekend was very hard for us. We thought that we made a big mistake. But things have gone well since then and we know now that we made the right decision.&rdquo;No kidding.With 39 goals and 97 points in 60 games, Lecavalier, a 6-foot-3, 177-pound center, is being touted as a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 NHL entry draft.&ldquo;I think he has the potential of being a franchise player,&rdquo; says Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; scout Garth Malarchuk. &ldquo;He has got skill, great hands and he knows where to go on the ice.&rdquo;Malarchuk says he has seen Lecavalier do more with the puck with his skates than some players can with their stick.The Colorado Avalanche has loaded up with 1998 draft picks in anticipation of the young forward&rsquo;s availability. (See Bob McKenzie&rsquo;s Insider on Pg-3.)Lecavalier&rsquo;s style has been compared to that of Hall of Famer Jean Beliveau (he even wears the same No. 4) and he is considered the most explosive skater in the QMJHL since Alexandre Daigle.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve (gotten more points) than I thought I would this season,&rdquo; Lecavalier says. &ldquo;But I&rsquo;m not really looking just at the points. I&rsquo;m just going game by game and trying to be consistent every game. That&rsquo;s the most important thing.&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ve improved my defensive play this season. I&rsquo;ve tried to concentrate on that a little more, that&rsquo;s what the coach wants.&rdquo;Rimouski coach Gaston Therrien has been as impressed with Lecavalier&rsquo;s maturity as much as he has his natural talent.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s very smart,&rdquo; Therrien says. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s like a 19-year-old with talent, but he&rsquo;s only 16. He&rsquo;s so good with the puck. Every game he shows something new.&ldquo;At the beginning of the year (the NHL scouts) were wondering if he was strong enough to play or if he was too young. Now I think they have the answer.&rdquo;Lecavalier, who had 36 penalty minutes, still remembers that game against Victoriaville when Stock decided to initiate the new kid on the block.&ldquo;It surprised me, but it was only a fight.&rdquo; he says sheepishly. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you should make a big deal about it.&rdquo;More significant is that Lecavalier is looking like the real deal.<h2>Gretzky best of youngsters</h2>Records are scarce, but it&rsquo;s believed Wayne Gretzky set the standard for 16-year-olds in major junior hockey when he collected 182 points with the Ontario League&rsquo;s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1978-79.Vincent Lecavalier of the Rimouski Oceanic is nowhere close to that total, but his 97 points in 60 games did represent one more than Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s 96 in 64 games as a 16-year-old (1981-82).Lecavalier had four games to become the ninth QMJHL 16-year-old to surpass 100 points. He was on pace for 103 points. Alexandre Daigle of the Victoriaville Tigres was the last to perform the feat with 110 points in 1991-92.The Western League doesn&rsquo;t keep track of such a record. &#9632;

f0034-01

Vincent Lecavalier: name to remember

<div class="byline">By Stuart Cowan</div>Halifax Mooseheads&rsquo; GM Clement Jodoin must be a believer in the axiom the best trades are sometimes the ones you don&rsquo;t make.During the Quebec League&rsquo;s final trading period, which ended Jan. 20, there was speculation the Mooseheads would deal star goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere to help build for the future.After all, the Mooseheads were a sub-.500 team at the time and Giguere, the Hartford Whalers&rsquo; first round pick in the 1995 NHL entry draft, was struggling with a 14-15-1 mark.But when the deadline passed, Giguere was still in a Mooseheads&rsquo; uniform.&ldquo;I received a couple of offers for him,&rdquo; Jodoin said. &ldquo;But I had told him two weeks before that he would finish his career in Halifax. It&rsquo;s a question of loyalty.&ldquo;And when you have a good goaltender you never know what can happen in the playoffs. It&rsquo;s nice to keep talking about next year, next year, but sometime you have to start living.&rdquo;Well, the Mooseheads have been living it up since the trading deadline passed.Center Marc Chouinard&rsquo;s overtime goal March 2 gave Halifax a 4-3 victory over the defending Memorial Cup-champion Granby Predateurs and improved Halifax&rsquo;s record to 13-1-2 since the trading deadline. Giguere had played in every minute of every game during that span, posting a 2.85 goals-against average.Giguere said he was thrilled when he learned he would finish his career in Halifax.&ldquo;I was the first player in Mooseheads&rsquo; history (selected in the 1994 expansion draft),&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I was pretty happy to stay here. I like the city. It&rsquo;s like my second hometown now.&ldquo;Before I came here I couldn&rsquo;t speak English. Playing here has helped me in a lot of ways, not just in hockey.&rdquo;Giguere, now fluently bilingual, said the key to the Mooseheads&rsquo; success is a strong team spirit and work ethic that is finally paying off.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not a really talented team, but we play as a family,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re very close to each other and we have a good team spirit. We try to play tough, in-your-face hockey and it shows.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02631/6776609-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="578" height="291"></div>WILDCATS OUT: The Moncton Wildcats (15-47-2) were officially eliminated from playoff contention after a 6-0 loss to Granby March 1. It marked the seventh time the Wildcats had been shut out this season, a league record.GM Bill Riley, however, is optimistic about next season.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re an improved hockey team,&rdquo; Riley said. &ldquo;We have a better nucleus of players coming back than what we had this year and we&rsquo;re going to the (midget) draft loaded for bear with eight picks in the first four rounds.&rdquo;BAD NEWS: The Victoriaville Tigres were dealt a blow Feb. 25 when it was discovered center Daniel Corso had mononucleosis and would be out of the lineup for four to six weeks.Corso was third in league scoring with 51 goals and 119 points in 54 games. He had earned points on 46 per cent of the team&rsquo;s goals this season.Victoriaville lost its first three games without Corso, scoring a total of seven goals.FAN-TASTIC: The Quebec League set an attendance record March 1 when 18,150 fans attended four games, bringing the season total to 1,137,017 (an average of 2,510 per game) with 37 games still remaining. The previous record of 1,131,473 (an average of 2,309) was set last season. &#9632;

f0034-02

LEAGUES

Giguereled Halifax back in hunt

<div class="byline">By Jim Cressman</div>Jeff Zehr didn&rsquo;t have a key for the old Tavistock (Ont.) Arena. The side door was left open.If a practice began at 7 a.m., Zehr was on the ice at 6:30. If a free hour was available at night, he was there.The old rink is gone-a new arena opened last fall-but the memories remain.&ldquo;I was home for Christmas and skated on the new rink,&rdquo; said the Windsor Spitfires&rsquo; left winger, ranked 27th among North American skaters eligible for the 1997 NHL entry draft. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a big ice surface and when you raise your stick after a goal, you don&rsquo;t hit the roof, like in the old one.&rdquo;Zehr, 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds, had 26 goals, 56 points and a team-leading 188 penalty minutes in 53 Ontario League games.He helped his draft cause with two goals in Team Orr&rsquo;s 7-2 win over Team Cherry at the Canadian Hockey League Prospects Game Feb. 12. He also had the third-fastest shot in the skills competition.Former NHL linesman Neil Armstrong, now a scout for the Montreal Canadiens, said more skilled players are coming from the smaller centers.&ldquo;In Tavistock (pop. 2,000) and small towns, a guy is going to get double-shifted, as opposed to a place like Toronto or London where there are 18 kids on a team,&rdquo; Armstrong said. &ldquo;A smalltown team goes with 14 or 15 players because they don&rsquo;t have any more in that age group.&rdquo;Armstrong said it&rsquo;s also a big advantage to get that early-morning or late-evening icetime. And there&rsquo;s never a charge to the kids.&ldquo;In the big city, they want your $150 before you get on the ice,&rdquo; he said.Washington Capitals&rsquo; scout Hugh Rogers said the free time gives a young player a chance to try things with the puck.&ldquo;And if you make a mistake, you learn from the mistake,&rdquo; Rogers said. &ldquo;Players in the big cities get out there for 50 minutes, the whistle blows and the Zambom comes out. It&rsquo;s not a fault, it&rsquo;s just a fact.&rdquo;MADE IN RUSSIA: Max Spiridonov kissed his mother for the first time in almost two years when she and her husband landed in Toronto Feb. 27.Svetlana Spiridonov last saw her son in June 1995, before he was spirited out of Moscow. He spent last season with the Jr. A Smiths Falls (Ont.) Bears and this season is with the OHL&rsquo;s London Knights after being the first player picked in the CHL import draft. Vladimir Spiridonov visited his son last May.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01854/6776640-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="698" height="242"></div>Spiridonov, 18, spent last summer in Canada and will again this summer. He&rsquo;s afraid if he returns home right now he&rsquo;ll be forced to do his two-year army stint, required of all 18-year-old Russian males.&ldquo;I get used to it,&rdquo; Spiridonov said of being apart from his family. I miss them. Sometimes it&rsquo;s an up-and-down feeling, but I really like my teammates and I love the fans in London.&rdquo;After 52 goals in 51 Jr. A games last season, he was tied tor sixth in OHL rookie scoring with 27 goals and 48 points in 52 games.Knights&rsquo; trainer Don Brankley said it is rough on Spiridonov, but what helps is his command of the English language. He didn&rsquo;t speak a word when he arrived in Canada.&ldquo;I asked him one time how he learned to speak English and he said &lsquo;Oprah,&rsquo;&rdquo; Brankley said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s such a nice kid.&rdquo;MILESTONE: Belleville Bulls&rsquo; coach Larry Mavety registered his 500th career win, 4-3 over the Sudbury Wolves March 1.Mavety, 54, in his 16th season, ranks third in the OHL fraternity behind Brian Kilrea (755) and Bert Templeton (704). Mavety is sixth on the CHL list.QUICK THREE: Brock Boucher, Mike Henrich and Chris George scored in a 45-second span Feb. 29 against the Kitchener Rangers for the fastest three goals in Barrie Colts&rsquo; history. &#9632;

f0035-01

Zehr’s small-town training beneficial for development

<div class="byline">By Rob Vanstone</div>The Prince Albert Raiders addressed the future without damaging their immediate interests.Prince Albert&rsquo;s Western League record improved after the Raiders traded their marquee players-defenseman Chris Phillips and right winger Shane Willis-to the Lethbridge Hurricanes Jan. 24.The Raiders sported an 8-7-2 record after the blockbuster. Prince Albert was 20-24-6 when the deal was completed at the trading deadline.&ldquo;On the outside, people might have thought we were giving up the ghost,&rdquo; said Raiders&rsquo; coach and director of operations Chris Stewart.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not doing that. We&rsquo;ve got a playoff spot. I don&rsquo;t think we&rsquo;re sacrificing anything as far as this year goes. I still think we have an opportunity to do some things.&rdquo;Stewart&rsquo;s optimism is commendable, considering his team traded the first overall selection in the 1996 entry draft in Phillips and a 50-goal scorer in Willis.Along with Phillips, 18, and Willis, 19, the Raiders sent defenseman Dylan Kemp, 17, and goalie Blaine Russell, 19, to Lethbridge.In return, the Raiders got center David Cameron, 16, left winger Cam Severson, 18, defensemen Richard Seeley, 17, and Ross Lipischuk, 15, plus a first round pick in the WHL 1997 bantam draft. Lipischuk is not eligible to play in the WHL until next season.&ldquo;From the beginning of the year, we stressed work ethic,&rdquo; Stewart said. &ldquo;We added three guys who fit into what we&rsquo;re trying to accomplish. They bring that to the table, all of them.&rdquo;Even so, Stewart admitted it&rsquo;s difficult not to have weapons such as Phillips and Willis.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s actually tough to look down the bench and not see those guys,&rdquo; Stewart said. &ldquo;Not only are they highly skilled players, they&rsquo;re also character people. Trading people you respect makes it a lot harder.&rdquo;Lethbridge hadn&rsquo;t done so badly, either, going 13-5-1 after making the deal.NEW LEASE ON LIFE: The Brandon Wheat Kings have signed a 10-year lease extension, plus a five-year option, to play at the Keystone Centre. The new lease takes effect June 1.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy with it,&rdquo; Wheat Kings&rsquo; majority owner Bob Cornell told The Brandon Sun. &ldquo;We were kind of unsettled with being on a one-year lease and we certainly are pleased to have the Wheat Kings play a part in the city of Brandon for another 15 years.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02619/6776671-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="359" height="360"></div>STARS ON ICE: The 1998 WHL All-Star Game will be played Jan. 21 in Regina.Lethbridge, the Portland Winter Hawks and Kamloops Blazers also bid for the event.Regina and Lethbridge were the finalists. Lethbridge agreed to withdraw from the 1998 bidding in return for receiving the 1999 All-Star Game. Governors then unanimously voted in favor of the 1998 and 1999 sites.AWARD FINALISTS: Swift Current Broncos&rsquo; coach-GM Todd McLellan has two shots at a year-end award. He joins Brent Peterson of Portland as finalists for coach of the year and is up against Portland GM Ken Hodge in executive-of-the-year balloting.Other finalists include:Top defenseman: Chris Phillips (Lethbridge) and Randy Perry (Seattle Thunderbirds). Top goaltender: Donovan Nunweiler (Moose Jaw Warriors) and Brian Boucher (Tri-City Americans). Most sportsmanlike player: Kelly Smart (Brandon) and Matt Davidson (Portland). Rookie of the year: Donovan Nunweiler and Brad Ference (Spokane Chiefs). Humanitarian of the year: Jesse Wallin (Red Deer Rebels) and Brent Belecki (Portland).WHL teams also announced their nominees for player of the year (See pg. 45 for list.)NOTEBOOK: Red Deer right winger BJ. Young set a team record March 2 by scoring his 53rd goal. Craig Reichert set the previous record of 52 in 1993-94&hellip;Regina&rsquo;s home-ice undefeated streak ended at 27 games (25-0-2) Feb. 28 when Prince Albert won 5-4&hellip;The 1997 bantam draft is April 24 in Calgary. &#9632;

f0035-02

Raiders make playoff charge after dealing top dog Phillips

<div class="byline">By John Packett</div>The East Coast League is finally starting to live up to its name again.After adding teams from the south and midwest in recent years, it announced Feb. 27 an expansion franchise for Upper Marlboro, Md.,-located just outside Washington, D.C.-next season.The franchise is headed by Michael Caggiano, who also owns the American League&rsquo;s Baltimore Bandits and recently put the team up for sale. (See AHL notebook for more) The ECHL team will play in the Show Place Arena, which will seat about 6,000 once the three-year-old building is fitted with an ice-making plant.&ldquo;Having spent a year with Baltimore,&rdquo; Caggiano said, &ldquo;I realized hockey is a wonderful family sport and I think it will be a good fit.&rdquo;No nickname or logo was announced.The league expects to put a franchise in Trenton, N.J., possibly for 1999-2000, if the ownership group there can work out a deal with the city and state for a new arena complex.&ldquo;(Upper Marlboro) will be an integral part of expansion into the Northeast corridor,&rdquo; said Richard Adams, the ECHL president and CEO. The price tag for an ECHL franchise is $1.5 million.The addition of Upper Marlboro and another new franchise in New Orleans gives the ECHL 25 teams. For that reason, the owners have decided to go from the current three-division setup to a two-conference, four-division alignment for 1997-98.Conference A will be divided into the Northeast Division, composed of the Hampton Roads Admirals, Johnstown Chiefs, Richmond Renegades, Roanoke Express, Upper Marlboro and Wheeling Nailers; and the Northwest Division, composed of the Columbus Chill, Dayton Bombers, Huntington Blizzard, Louisville RiverFrogs, Peoria Rivermen and Toledo Storm.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01807/6776702-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="376" height="389"></div>Conference B will be divided into the Southeast Division, composed of the Charlotte Checkers, Jacksonville Lizard Kings, Knoxville Cherokees, Raleigh IceCaps, South Carolina Stingrays and Tallahassee Tiger Sharks; and the Southwest Division, composed of the Baton Rouge Kingfish, Birmingham Bulls, Louisiana Ice-Gators, Mississippi Sea Wolves, Mobile Mysticks, New Orleans and Pensacola Ice Pilots.STREAKING: Huntington ended a 10-game losing skid with a 6-2 victory over Birmingham March 2, but couldn&rsquo;t prevent Bulls&rsquo; center Dany Bousquet from extending his point-scoring streak to an ECHL season-high 29 games.Bousquet, a candidate for rookie of the year, had 56 points during the streak. For the season, he had 46 goals and 92 points in 59 games.COAST LINES: Charlotte welcomed the one millionth fan in team history before their March 6 game against Dayton. Charlotte becomes the sixth ECHL franchise-and third this season-to reach that plateau&hellip;The Columbus Chill hosted the fourth annual Chill-e Hoedown and helped raise more than $30,000 to benefit the Netcare Foundation, which provides mental health, alcohol and drug crisis and assessment services to residents of Franklin County, Ohio. &#9632;

f0036-01

Addition of Upper Marlboro gives ECHL 25 teams

<div class="byline">By Kevin Oklobzija</div>The third time has not been a charm for the American League in Baltimore.When the season ends, so does the brief existence of the Baltimore Bandits. Owner Michael Caggiano, who bailed out the financially strapped franchise founders last spring, is selling the team and doubts a local buyer can be found.The leading candidate appears to be a group from Cincinnati, which wants a tenant for the soon-to-be-vacant Cincinnati Gardens. Caggiano said he spoke with a group from Cincinnati, which has been home to the International League&rsquo;s Cincinnati Cyclones for five years.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02560/6776740-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="303" height="442"><figcaption class="caption-body">John Gruden</figcaption></div>The Cyclones are moving to Riverfront Coliseum next season and Gardens&rsquo; management wants a new team for the 11,000-seat arena.&ldquo;We are committed to remaining in the hockey business,&rdquo; said Pete Robinson, vice-president of Cincinnati Gardens. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re looking at four leagues and I don&rsquo;t know if we have a clear-cut favorite.&rdquo;Robinson wouldn&rsquo;t discuss Baltimore or an AHL franchise specifically, but said &ldquo;the caliber of play is extremely important.&rdquo;Should the AHL approve the move of a franchise to Cincinnati, it would be the first time the league has gone head-to-head in an IHL market. The NHL&rsquo;s Pittsburgh Penguins were reported interested in locating a farm team in Cincinnati for next season.AHL president Dave Andrews was unavailable for comment.Caggiano abandoned his efforts to save hockey in Baltimore because poor attendance-an average of 3,135&mdash;led to mounting losses, the same reason two other Baltimore franchises failed. The Clippers folded in 1976 and the Skipjacks in 1993. The Bandits had the shortest life span-just two years.&ldquo;We spent $400,000 on marketing,&rdquo; Caggiano said. &ldquo;I can look in the mirror and say I did everything humanly possible to make it work.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03462/6776733-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="439" height="438"></div>SECOND CHANCE: When John Gruden&rsquo;s collegiate career ended at Ferris State in 1994, he immediately jumped to the Boston Bruins. The next season, he played all but one game in the NHL.Now, having spent all of his third pro season with the Providence Bruins, Gruden thinks the promotion to the NHL came too early. A chance to play often in the AHL may have provided better development.&ldquo;Maybe I shouldn&rsquo;t have been up in Boston right away,&rdquo; said Gruden, 26, who was leading AHL defensemen with 15 goals. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m very thankful for the opportunity to be up when I was. But I think I might be playing the best hockey in my three years and now Boston already has their mind made up that I can&rsquo;t play in the NHL.&rdquo;Gruden hopes other teams have noted his progress. He signed a termination contract last summer and he&rsquo;ll be an unrestricted free agent after the season.&ldquo;Knowing that it&rsquo;s the last year of your contract. you always want to get back to the NHL, but you don&rsquo;t want to put too much pressure on yourself,&rdquo; he said.That&rsquo;s his approach to offense, too. The 6-foot, 190-pound Gruden is better in his own zone and picking his spots offensively.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t go into a game saying I&rsquo;m going to score two goals,&rdquo; Gruden said. &ldquo;I try to help the offense, I don&rsquo;t try to score goals.AHL TIDBITS: Worcester IceCats&rsquo; goalie Mike Buzak had such an easy time in posting his first career shutout (16 saves) that he wasn&rsquo;t even one of the three stars in the 4-0 victory over the Saint John Flames March 2&hellip;The Philadelphia Phantoms became the first team to clinch a playoff spot, 44 days before the end of the season&hellip;Carolina Monarchs&rsquo; defenseman Bob Halkidis underwent knee surgery and will miss the remainder of the season&hellip;Rochester Americans&rsquo; center Terry Yake had an impressive six-game run scoring three goals and 14 points and climbed to sixth in the league scoring race with 24 goals and 69 points in 58 games. &#9632;

f0036-02

Cincinnati may be next stop for another Baltimore failure

<div class="byline">By Kevin Iole</div>The Detroit Vipers have taken GM Rick Dudley into familiar territory. His veteran-laden team vaulted to the top of the International League standings, reminding Dudley of one of his favorite former teams.&ldquo;The only team that I can remember that was as disciplined as this group was that team I had in San Diego (in 1992-93),&rdquo; Dudley said.The San Diego Gulls reeled off a league-record 132 points that year. After 63 games, including 12 straight wins, the Vipers had 93 points. They were on pace for 121.The Vipers had allowed just 2.43 goals per game, which, if they kept it ur&gt;, would be the lowest since the 1956-57 Cincinnati Mohawks permitted just 1.88 goals a night.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04350/6776778-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="299" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body">Steve Ludzik</figcaption></div>&ldquo;We have guys on this team who play on both sides of the puck,&rdquo; said Detroit coach Steve Ludzik. &ldquo;There is so much character and leadership on this team, they demand guys do that.&ldquo;I remember a conversation Rick and I had in the summer. He said he had a new philosophy and would only sign high-character, no-maintenance players. Guys like (exViper Daniel) Shank had to go. The game plan has worked.&rdquo;Detroit has a superb defense, led by Brad Shaw, whom Dudley calls the best player in the league. Its forwards don&rsquo;t score much, but all three lines have potential.In addition, Dudley may have taken care of the scoring woes. He signed ex-NHLer Jimmy Carson March 1. The 28-year-old Southfield, Mich., native was working as a financial advisor after retiring last season.Carson was practising with the team and decided he missed playing too much. Carson had an assist in his Vipers debut March 1.BERRY ANGRY: IHL senior vice-president Tom Berry had stern words for Las Vegas Thunder coach Chris McSorley after a pair of incidents involving the team.Prior to the shootout in what turned out to be a 3-2 loss to the Houston Aeros March 2, McSorley sent Ryan Bast and Greg Lakovic, two players who were not to take part in the shootout, to clear snow from in front of the Houston net. McSorley said Houston goalie Frederic Chabot was accumulating piles of snow to make it difficult for players to handle the puck.Berry fined McSorley an undisclosed amount and issued a stem warning, saying a similar incident could spark a brawl.&ldquo;It was very, very bush league,&rdquo; Berry said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll string up the coach for 20 games the next time they resort to that bush league stuff. There&rsquo;s a pattern here and we&rsquo;re well aware of his antics. I&rsquo;m not going to tolerate this kind of thing from him any more.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05294/6776771-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="397" height="448"></div>Berry was also upset about an incident that occurred late in a Feb. 25 game against the Michigan K-Wings. With Michigan&rsquo;s Patrick Cote in the box and Las Vegas on the power play, Lakovic stood outside the penalty box, leaning on his stick, waiting for Cote to come out so the two could fight.They fought immediately upon Cote&rsquo;s exit, with Cote beating Lakovic badly. Cote was given an instigator and game misconduct, but Berry eliminated them upon review. &ldquo;Neither incident did anything other than to embarrass the organization.&rdquo; Berry said.McSorley was apologetic. He said he made a mistake in the shootout incident and denied culpability in the Lakovic incident. &ldquo;I used poor judgment,&rdquo; McSorley said. &ldquo;Unfortunately, at that moment, I was so focused on winning that shootout and scattering those moguls Freddie had built that I forgot about everything else.&rdquo;I-OPENERS: The Fort Wayne Komets traded defenseman Shawn Evans and left winger Craig Duncanson to the Cincinnati Cyclones March 3 for defenseman Marc Laniel and left winger Jeff McLean&hellip;Rob Brown of the Chicago Wolves missed six games with a groin injury during which time the Wolves went 0-60. He returned to play on the power play in a 21 shootout win over the Phoenix Roadrunners Feb. 28&hellip;Richard Adler, former president of the Atlanta Knights (now Quebec Rafales), is expected to take a similar post with the Milwaukee Admirals. &#9632;

f0036-04

No-maintenance approach has Vipers on top of league

<div class="byline">By Chris Miller</div>Every season, the Western Collegiate Hockey Association&rsquo;s best regular season team gets to skate around the rink hoisting the MacNaughton Cup.There was more than enough joy this season, because that happened twice. North Dakota celebrated in Grand Forks Feb. 22 after a sweep of Alaska-Anchorage enabled it to clinch a tie for the title. After the Sioux and their fans went crazy, the trophy was sent south in case it was needed again.It was. A week later, Minnesota completed a sweep of Wisconsin and waited eagerly for word from Denver. North Dakota had lost the opening game against Denver and the end the second game was piped into the PA system at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.When Denver won again, the MacNaughton Cup was presented to Gopher players and they took some celebratory laps in front of the fans who had remained in the stands.The only other tie for the league title came in 1963 when North Dakota and Denver had the same winning percentage.The Gophers and the Sioux took different roads to the title, although neither was a preseason favorite.Minnesota lost 10 seniors from last season and faced a tough rebuilding job. The key player was stalwart junior defenseman Mike Crowley, who ended up sharing the scoring title.The Gophers&rsquo; offense got strong down the stretch, led by 24-goal scorer Ryan Kraft, and Minnesota entered the playoffs with solid goaltending from junior Steve DeBus.North Dakota got off to a quick start and led virtually the entire season. Picked to finish in the middle, the Sioux were sparked by sophomore Jason Blake, a transfer from Ferris State, and diminutive sophomore Dave Hoogsteen. Freshman goalie Aaron Schweitzer has also been a find. He led the WCHA with a 2.45 goals-against average and three shutouts.D-LIGHTFUL: Minnesota defenseman Mike Crowley and Colorado College sophomore center Brian Swanson shared the scoring title with 42 points. Crowley finished with five goals and 37 assists in 32 games while Swanson had 15 goals and 27 assists in 32 games.Their average of 1.3 points per game was lowest winning mark in WCHA history. The league&rsquo;s average of 6.9 goals per game was also an all-time low.Crowley was only the second defenseman to lead the league in scoring-Minnesota&rsquo;s Lou Nanne did it in 1962-63.CRADLE OF COACHES: NCAA Division III power Wisconsin-River Falls can boast of an impressive feat. Three of the Falcons&rsquo; former coaches-Alaska-Anchorage&rsquo;s Dean Talafous, St. Cloud State&rsquo;s Craig Dahl and Denver&rsquo;s George Gwozdecky-are coaches in the WCHA. &#9632;

North Dakota, Minnesota share MacNaughton Cup

<div class="byline">By Tom Boggle</div>Clarkson couldn&rsquo;t have asked for a better finish to the regular season.First, the Golden Knights defeated Cornell 31 Feb. 28, clinching the regular season championship and an automatic berth in the NCAA post-season tournament.Then on March 1, coach Mark Morris recorded his 200th career coaching victory when the Knights defeated Colgate 7-3.Senior center Todd White became just the fourth Clarkson player, and first since 1982, to win the ECAC scoring title. White finished the regular season with 24 goals and 47 points in 22 league games.White led the nation in scoring average (2.03 points per game) and game-winning goals (eight).HAPPY ENDING: In terms of name recognition, Brown junior Damian Prescott is at the low end of the spectrum.But Prescott worked his way into Brown hockey history, even though the Bears finished at 7-19-3 and were the first team knocked out of Eastern College Athletic Conference playoff contention.Prescott, a left winger from Ipswich, Mass., finished the season with 20 goals, becoming the first Brown player to hit that mark in 20 years. The last player to reach the 20-goal plateau was Bob McIntosh, who had 35 in 1976-77.The amazing thing about Prescott&rsquo;s total is that he only scored a total of five goals and 21 points in his first two seasons at Brown.&ldquo;He had a great year,&rdquo; said Brown coach Bob Gaudet. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s not a big guy (5-foot-11, 175 pounds), but he scores a lot of his goals from in tight, in the slot and in the crease, which are tough areas to get to.&ldquo;Down low, on the power play, he takes a beating, but he inspires the team because he goes in where all the bigger men play.&rdquo;Prescott was an explosive scorer at Governor Drummer Academy in Byfield, Mass., so when he started slowly at Brown, Gaudet remained patient.&ldquo;We hoped he would score, but it wasn&rsquo;t something we demanded of him,&rdquo; Gaudet said. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to hold it over his head.&rdquo;Gaudet&rsquo;s patience paid off this season, as Prescott finished the year with 20 goals and 29 points in 29 games.&ldquo;Damian has always worked hard, but this year, he had an attitude of confidence,&rdquo; Gaudet said. &ldquo;He put a little extra something into his game.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Junior Trevor Koenig became the first Union College player to win the ECAC goaltending title. Koenig finished the season with a 2.19 goals-against average, beating out Clarkson senior Dan Murphy (2.28). Koenig was also the leader in save percentage (93.1). &#9632;

Clarkson’s White Knight finishes as national star

<div class="byline">By Paul Harris</div>Dan Boyle may have been the best-kept secret in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association this season.The Miami-Ohio junior defenseman quietly finished sixth among CCHA players in league and overall scoring. In 36 games overall, he had 10 goals and 52 points. In 27 league games, he had seven goals and 38 points.&ldquo;I would characterize Danny Boyle as the most underrated player in the CCHA,&rdquo; said Miami coach Mark Mazzoleni. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s an extremely dynamic player. He&rsquo;s a Paul Coffey-type defenseman at the college level. (He&rsquo;s) a dynamic offensive player and a force in getting the puck out of his own zone.&rdquo;Boyle, 20, certainly rushed his way to a strong regular season finish. The Ottawa native was the CCHA offensive player of the week for the period ending March 2 on the strength of two goals and eight points in two games.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s an offensive defenseman. One of the best offensive defensemen in the league,&rdquo; said Michigan coach Red Berenson. &ldquo;He plays the point on the power play and handles the puck well.&rdquo;Not only does Boyle, 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds, bring talent and offense to the ice, but he also brings a bit of attitude.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s one of the most competitive players that I&rsquo;ve ever had the joy of coaching,&rdquo; Mazzoleni said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve heard some comments that he takes too many chances. But I don&rsquo;t necessarily agree with that because he picks his spots and he doesn&rsquo;t go in situations where it would really hurt us if he lost the puck.&rdquo;Boyle plays in all situations-even strength, 4-on-4, power play and penalty killing-and his coach thinks he should be on the all-conference team.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s the complete deal for us,&rdquo; Mazzoleni said.BIG ZERO: Michigan State junior goalie Chad Alban equalled the CCHA record for career shutouts with his sixth in a 0-0 tie with Bowling Green March 1. Alban now shares the mark with Michigan junior Marty Turco, who set the record Feb. 21.Alban finished the season on a tear, putting together a shutout streak of 103:55. He was named CCHA defensive player of the week for the period ending March 2.NOTEBOOK: Two Michigan players picked up honors as the CCHA regular season ended. Senior center Brendan Morrison was the CCHA&rsquo;s leading scorer with 18 goals and 49 points in 27 games. Marty Turco won the conference&rsquo;s best goalie award. He had a 2.35 goals-against average, 89.2 save percentage and 20-3-3 record&hellip;Senior defenseman Andy Roach finished his college career as Ferris State&rsquo;s all-time leading goal-scorer among defenseman with 42. &#9632;

Blueliner Boyle(s) over down stretch for Miami

<div class="byline">By Larry Mahoney</div>Scoring counts on the scoreboard, but consistency counts for Chris Drury.The Boston University junior center is a repeat winner of the Hockey East scoring race. Drury had 27 goals and 41 points in 24 league games to finish one point better than New Hampshire&rsquo;s Jason Krog. New Hampshire&rsquo;s Mark Mowers and Eric Nickulas tied for third with Maine&rsquo;s Steve Kariya at 36 points each.&ldquo;I feel I&rsquo;ve been more consistent this year,&rdquo; Drury said, downplaying his second straight scoring championship. &ldquo;When it comes to working hard for the full 60 minutes, I think I&rsquo;ve gotten a lot better at it. I&rsquo;ve tried to play hard every shift.&rdquo;Drury, a 1994 third round draft pick of the Colorado Avalanche, has amassed 149 career points to sit 16th on the all-time BU list.&ldquo;He may be the hardest worker I&rsquo;ve ever coached,&rdquo; said coach Jack Parker. &ldquo;He works as hard in practice as he does in the games. He has a good chance to have a long NHL career.&rdquo;First things first. The Terriers shared the regular season title with New Hampshire, setting the stage for an intriguing playoff. BU has now won the league title outright or shared it a record four consecutive years.BU&rsquo;s 5-1 win over New Hampshire March 1, the Terriers&rsquo; third over the Wildcats this season, gave them the top seed for the playoffs. They also shared the title with Maine in 1995 while winning crowns in 1994 and 1996.New Hampshire&rsquo;s share of the title was its first in the 13-year history of the conference.GETTING BETTER: UMass-Amherst finished its third season in the league with a 7-18-0 record, its best to date. However, the Minutemen lost nine of their last 10 games.&ldquo;We were much more competitive than we&rsquo;ve ever been,&rdquo; said UMass coach Joe Mallen. &ldquo;We took the season series from Providence and UMass-Lowell (along with Northeastern). But we haven&rsquo;t been able to do anything with the top three teams in the league (BU, New Hampshire and Maine).&rdquo;Mallen said the talent level of his team will improve over the next few years.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got some quality kids coming in next year and (Maine transfer) Timmy Lovell will help us,&rdquo; said junior center Ryan Furness.JUST SIGN HERE: Four of Maine&rsquo;s five seniors signed tryout contracts with American League teams after the final game of the season.Maine finished with six straight wins and 12 victories in 13 games, but the Bears are ineligible for post-season play for a variety of violations.Center Dan Shermehorn, left winger Reg Cardinal and defenseman Jason Mansoff signed with the Portland Pirates while center Trevor Roenick signed with the Springfield Falcons. Roenick was a 1993 fourth round draft pick of the Hartford Whalers. &#9632;

Drury’s diligence pays off with second point crown

<h2>NOTE</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-02282/6777104-1-eng-US/f0043-022.jpg" title="f0043-02" width="500" height="1981"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-04156/6777097-1-eng-US/f0043-042.jpg" title="f0043-04" width="496" height="2351"></div>Unofficial game summaries provided by National Hockey League; (shots on goal/plus-minus); SA-shots against: GA-goals against; ENG-empty net goals; Decdecision, charges to goaltenders of record when winning goal is scored.<h2>FRIDAY, FEB. 28</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-03233/6777090-1-eng-US/f0043-032.jpg" title="f0043-03" width="2041" height="2299"><figcaption class="caption-body">Chicago Blackhawks&rsquo; Jim Cummins appears to have the upper hand on the New York Islanders&rsquo; Paul Kruse. (Photo by John Giamundo/BBS)</figcaption></div><h2>SATURDAY, MARCH 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01306/6777083-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg" title="f0044-01" width="497" height="3421"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-02179/6777076-1-eng-US/f0044-022.jpg" title="f0044-02" width="498" height="3501"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-03126/6777069-1-eng-US/f0044-032.jpg" title="f0044-03" width="496" height="3495"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0493/6777062-1-eng-US/f0044-042.jpg" title="f0044-04" width="498" height="784"></div><h2>SUNDAY, MARCH 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0579/6777055-1-eng-US/f0044-052.jpg" title="f0044-05" width="510" height="2649"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0670/6777048-1-eng-US/f0044-062.jpg" title="f0044-06" width="508" height="1901"></div><h2>MONDAY, MARCH 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0765/6777041-1-eng-US/f0044-072.jpg" title="f0044-07" width="506" height="1529"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0853/6777034-1-eng-US/f0044-082.jpg" title="f0044-08" width="496" height="2016"></div><h2>TUESDAY, MARCH 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0949/6777027-1-eng-US/f0044-092.jpg" title="f0044-09" width="493" height="1412"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-01246/6777020-1-eng-US/f0045-012.jpg" title="f0045-01" width="497" height="2911"></div><h2>WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-02141/6777013-1-eng-US/f0045-022.jpg" title="f0045-02" width="494" height="525"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-03101/6777006-1-eng-US/f0045-032.jpg" title="f0045-03" width="503" height="3510"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0477/6776999-1-eng-US/f0045-042.jpg" title="f0045-04" width="509" height="3508"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0564/6776992-1-eng-US/f0045-052.jpg" title="f0045-05" width="499" height="2162"></div><h2>WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0657/6776985-1-eng-US/f0045-062.jpg" title="f0045-06" width="500" height="1279"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0751/6776978-1-eng-US/f0045-072.jpg" title="f0045-07" width="500" height="3507"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0837/6776971-1-eng-US/f0045-082.jpg" title="f0045-08" width="502" height="839"></div><h2>STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS</h2>The NHL playoffs open April 16 and could end as late as June 17 if the Stanley Cup final goes seven games.For the second straight year, each series will be designed to follow either Schedule &lsquo;A&rsquo; or &lsquo;B&rsquo;. based on criteria that includes individual matchups, building availability, travel issues and television commitments.The final playoff schedules will be announced when all matchups are determined.All series will be played under a best-of-seven format in a 2-2-1-1-1 basis with the higher-seeded team getting the first two games at home and the extra home game except in a series that involves a Central Division club versus a Pacific Division team.In that case, the higher ranked team has the option of playing a 2-2-1-1-1 or 2-3-2 format. If the 2-3-2 format is selected, the higher-ranked club will also have the choice of playing Games 1. 2, 6 and 7 at home or Games 3,4 and 5 at home.The four regular season division champions will be ranked in the first two positions in their respective conferences; the clubs with the greater number of points being ranked first in their respective conferences. The remaining six playoff clubs in each conference will be ranked based on regular season points. Then first in the conference plays eighth, second plays seventh, third plays sixth and fourth plays fifth.The start dates for the conference semifinals may be moved up depending on a number of factors, including building availability and travel schedules.The Eastern and Western Conference champions will meet in the Stanley Cup final. Home ice will be determined by higher number of regular season points.For the purposes of tiebreakers, if two teams accumulated the same number of points, home ice goes to the team with more wins. If still tied, the team with more points in head-to-head games in the regular season gets home ice. If still tied, it will come down to the greater difference between goals for and goals against for the regular season.The final is scheduled to begin June 3, but could be moved up if previous series end early. It will be played on a 2-2-1-1-1 basis.<h3>CONFERENCE QUARTERFINALS (Series A to H)</h3>Schedule A: Wednesday. April 16; Friday, April 18; Sunday, April 20; Tuesday, April 22; &lsquo;Friday, April 25; &lsquo;Sunday, April 27; &lsquo;Tuesday, April 29.Schedule B: Thursday, April 17; Saturday, April 19; Monday. April 21; Wednesday, April 23; &lsquo;Saturday, April 26; &lsquo;Monday, April 28; &lsquo;Wednesday, April 30.<h3>CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS (Series I to L)</h3>Schedule A; Friday, May 2; Sunday, May 4; Tuesday, May 6; Thursday, May 8; &lsquo;Saturday, May 10: &lsquo;Monday May 12; &lsquo;Wednesday, May 14.Schedule B: Saturday, May 3; Monday, May 5; Wednesday, May 7; Friday, May 9; &lsquo;Sunday, May 11; &lsquo;Tuesday, May 13; &lsquo;Thursday. May 15.<h3>CONFERENCE FINALS (Series M and N)</h3>Schedule A: Sunday, May 18; Tuesday, May 20; Friday. May 23; Sunday, May 25; &lsquo;Tuesday. May 27; &lsquo;Thursday, May 29; &lsquo;Saturday, May 31.Schedule B: Saturday, May 17; Monday, May 19; Thursday, May 22; Saturday, May 24; &lsquo;Monday, May 26; &lsquo;Wednesday, May 28; &lsquo;Friday, May 30.<h3>STANLEY CUP (Series 0)</h3>Tuesday. June, 3; Thursday. June 5; Saturday. June 7; Tuesday, June 10; &lsquo;Thursday, June 12; Saturday, June 14; &lsquo;Tuesday, June 17. if necessarySchedule subject to change.<h2>WOMEN&rsquo;S NATIONALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0934/6776964-1-eng-US/f0045-092.jpg" title="f0045-09" width="503" height="509"></div> &#9632;

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NHL SUMMARIES

NHL ROSTERS AND TRANSACTIONS

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0047-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-01274/6777166-1-eng-US/f0047-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-01187/6777159-1-eng-US/f0048-012.jpg" title="f0048-01" width="3084" height="3510"></div> &#9632;

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CANADIAN LEAGUE

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0049-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-01164/6777197-1-eng-US/f0049-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0049-01

SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">By Larry Starks</div>The Oklahoma City Blazers have broken their own Central League record for wins in a season and have the best goaltending tandem, top defenseman and most balanced scoring.But don&rsquo;t tell Blazers&rsquo; coach Doug Sauter his team, close to clinching the regular season championship, is the favorite to win its second straight CHL playoff title.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way we have the CHL championship locked up,&rdquo; Sauter said. &ldquo;(Second place) Fort Worth has a better record against us and have been a thorn in our sides all season. Also we&rsquo;re 0-1-1 against Huntsville. There are a lot of teams capable of beating us in the playoffs. It will be a tough road.&rdquo;The Blazers had bettered records they set last season for most wins (47), points (98), road wins (20). And defenseman Hardy Sauter, the coach&rsquo;s nephew, shattered the CHL record for points by a defenseman with 91 after 57 games.The Blazers solidified their run for the playoffs by adding veteran goalie Mike Williams, who helped lead the San Antonio Iguanas to the CHL final last season. Williams will likely play backup to Jeanian Filiatrault.NOTEBOOK: Tulsa Oilers&rsquo; center Luc Beausoleil was fined $50 and ordered to perform 10 hours of community service by CHL commissioner Monte Miron because of comments Beausoleil made that the league was trying to ensure the San Antonio Iguanas make the playoffs. The Iguanas are one of six teams owned by the league&hellip;The Wichita Thunder traded league scoring leader Trevor Jobe to the Columbus Cottonmouths for right winger Casey Hungle. Jobe had broken curfew rules several times. With nine games remaining, Jobe needed 14 points to tie Brian Shantz&rsquo;s CHL single-season scoring record of 139. set last season with San Antonio. &#9632;

Blazers loaded for repeat of Central League title

<div class="byline">By Steve Keating</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-01150/6777252-1-eng-US/f0051-012.jpg" title="f0051-01" width="384" height="504"></div>And NHL coaches think they have trouble with players taking the occasional night off.Gary Sheehan&rsquo;s entire team went on vacation at the same time-and he couldn&rsquo;t find it.At least that&rsquo;s what the former Quebec League coach told the Swiss hockey federation when it ordered his team, Geneva-Servette, to play a fifth and deciding game against Ajoie in a playoff series.&ldquo;We thought it was over and gave our guys some time off before the next round and now we can&rsquo;t find them,&rdquo; Sheehan said before Game 5. &ldquo;Some went off skiing, others were with their girlfriends. We&rsquo;ve even got the police trying to help us find one guy. He has gotta be somewhere.&rdquo;Geneva thought it had won the best-of-five series 3-1, but Ajoie filed a protest with the league claiming Servette had used an ineligible player in a 4-1 win in Game 3. The league upheld the protest and awarded Ajoie a 5-0 victory, which made the fifth and deciding game necessary.Sheehan was able to round up 12 players, including imports Martin Desjardins, a fifth round selection of the Montreal Canadiens in 1985, and Claude Verret, the Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; 12th pick in 1982, but not enough to play the match, rescheduled for March 4.The league then postponed the game to March 6, but the Geneva players, the ones who could be found, initially voted not to play.&ldquo;The (ineligible) guy we used was a junior and he only played the last 20 seconds,&rdquo; Sheehan said. &ldquo;A guy playing the last 20 seconds didn&rsquo;t affect the game. Our players believe they&rsquo;ve won this series and don&rsquo;t believe they should have to win it again.&rdquo;Upon further reflection, however, Servette opted to play. Losing the series, after all, would mean relegation to a lower pool.Things didn&rsquo;t look good for the undermanned team in Game 5, but it overcame a 4-1 third period deficit to tie the game 4-4 and force overtime. When the extra period decided nothing, the teams went to a shootout and Servette prevailed 4-3.Justice, some might say, was served for Servette.EURONOTES: International Ice Hockey Federation president Rene Fasel is set to meet with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman in a lastditch effort to secure an NHL team for a mini-tournament being billed as the Super Cup this September. While the IIHF remains hopeful, it has been told a crowded schedule may prevent an NHL team from taking part in the event, which will also feature Lada Togliatti from Russia, winners of the European Cup, and European Hockey League champions TPS Turku from Finland. &ldquo;There are just so many things going on that it might be hard to get a team,&rdquo; said IIHF spokesman Kimmo Leinonen. &ldquo;The NHL will have two teams (likely the Vancouver Canucks and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim) opening the season in Japan next year and then there is the Olympics and we&rsquo;ve been told they want to squeeze in the All-Star Game before the Winter Games. But we are still hoping.&rdquo;&hellip;Hockey is hurting in Norway. Many are blaming a drop in attendance and poor TV ratings on a satellite-cable company that holds the rights to most of the country&rsquo;s hockey properties. TV3 reaches only a small audience and officials point to that as the reason for the lack of interest. How bad is it? One First Division game brought in just 36 paying customers&hellip;Former Calgary Flames&rsquo; left winger Chris Lindberg was the German League&rsquo;s goal-scoring leader. &#9632;

Search for your favorite player or team

March 21, 1997

Capitals stock up with Bruins’ veterans for playoff run

MLG mishandled lawsuit: Fletcher

NHL STATISTICAL REPORT

Deal payoff anticipated