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.

August 1, 1998

The Hockey News August 1, 1998

<div class="byline">By Jim Smith</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01867/6902223-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="187" height="183"></div>Most hockey teams that finish 11 games under .500 would conclude they must upgrade their on-ice talent.But more than three months into the New York Islanders&rsquo; off-season, the only significant changes they had made were restructuring their front office and providing coach-GM Mike Milbury with the largest staff in the NHL.Milbury completed that staff July 21, hiring American League coach of the year Bill Stewart of the Saint John Flames as an assistant and Steve Stirling as an organizational coach.They joined previously-hired associate coach Lome Henning, assistants Stefan Lunner, Wayne Fleming (an incumbent) and Greg Cronin, organizational coach Gilles Gilbert and strength and conditioning coach Scott Livingston.Gordie Clark, who was previously director of player personnel, was promoted to assistant GM and Mike Santos to manager of player contracts.But as of late July, the Islanders still had not signed any of their own free agents, including forwards Ziggy Palffy, Trevor Linden, Ken Belanger, Jason Dawe and Joe Sacco and defenseman Kenny Jonsson.NOTEBOOK: Club insiders figure it will cost about $10.5 million this season to re-sign right winger Ziggy Palffy, center Trevor Linden and defenseman Kenny Jonsson&hellip;According to a published report, the Islanders offered 29-year-old 1998 draft pick and Czech Olympian Jiri Dopita a contract based on games played which would have paid him $800,000 if he played all 82 games. The Isles are said to have withdrawn the deal. &#9632;

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NHL TEAMS

Milbury’s help keeps growing

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0040-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01480/6902885-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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STATISTICS

NAGANO OLYMPICS 1998

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0032-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01916/6902792-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01926/6902785-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="6935" height="4115"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01833/6902778-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="3440" height="4121"></div> &#9632;

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1997-98 STATISTICAL REVIEW

<div class="byline">By Dan Wood</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-04214/6902416-1-eng-US/f0025-042.jpg" title="f0025-04" width="186" height="183"></div>The San Jose Sharks completed one of their top off-season priorities July 13 with the signing of unrestricted free agent defenseman Bob Rouse.The addition of Rouse, combined with the July 1 acquisition of Gary Suter, should upgrade the club&rsquo;s blueline corps considerably.San Jose will count on Suter to quarterback the power play and add an offensive threat at even strength. Rouse&rsquo;s job will be to provide steadiness and veteran leadership.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t have a better guy around your young guys,&rdquo; said Sharks&rsquo; GM Dean Lombardi of Rouse. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s an element of stability. We can pair him with a young player and feel confident. And he brings intangibles in the locker room we feel are crucial.&rdquo;San Jose lost some of that dimension July 9 with the defection of unrestricted free agent right winger John MacLean, who signed with the New York Rangers.Rouse, 34, played in all 42 of the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; post-season games the past two years as they claimed back-to-back Stanley Cup championships. Including his 1993 and 1994 stints with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Rouse has appeared in the past six Western Conference finals.&ldquo;I expect this team to go in the right direction,&rdquo; Rouse said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s close to being a top contender and surprising a lot of people. They have a solid organization in place now. They&rsquo;re very close to the championship level.&rdquo;San Jose figures to enter training camp with a defense corps that also includes Bryan Marchment, Marcus Ragnarsson, Mike Rathje, Bill Houlder and promising second-year player Andrei Zyuzin. The Sharks are also high on youngsters Shawn Heins, Scott Hannan and Brad Stuart.Rouse received a two-year deal worth $3.7 million, with a third-year option for $1.75 million that includes an $850,000 buyout clause.NOTEBOOK: The Sharks signed backup goaltender Steve Shields, acquired June 18 from Buffalo, to a two-year, $1.3-million contract&hellip;Former Toronto and Dallas right winger Mike Craig, who played in the International League last season, signed a free agent deal with San Jose&hellip;GM Dean Lombardi reported contract agreements in principle with defenseman Bryan Marchment and wingers Murray Craven and Tony Granato, but the club had not announced official deals as of mid-July&hellip;The NHL schedule makers didn&rsquo;t do the Sharks many favors. The Sharks will endure a franchise-record 10-game road trip in February, an excursion that includes two separate stops in Phoenix. &#9632;

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Sharks look to Rouse for leadership

<div class="byline">By Steve Dryden Editor-In-Chief</div>Brian Burke is a graduate of the Harvard Law School. His successor as NHL judge and jury is a graduate of the School of Hard Knocks. Or in the words of Colin Campbell, the School of Knocked Hard.The one-time scrappy defenseman was on the receiving end of more blows than he cares to remember during a 24-year pro playing and coaching career, but he may well suffer even more slings and arrows in his new position as NHL senior vice-president, director of hockey operations. Campbell, 45, moves into one of the hottest seats in hockey, becoming just the second man to fill the role.Burke&rsquo;s job was to ensure the interests of the game were protected and furthered. He did so with great vigor-too much for some people&rsquo;s tastes. But there can be no denying he was consumed by the job and passionate about dispensing justice. Now, Campbell, whose background is more practical than theoretical, is in charge of the hockey department. It&rsquo;s believed, though, the job description is being rewritten or re-oriented to be more narrow in scope. Campbell says, simply, he will apply the tried-and-true KISS formula with common sense as his guide. David Nonis, Burke&rsquo;s assistant as hockey operations manager, will stay on at least through a transition period while ex-NHLer Claude Loiselle, a law graduate, learns the ropes as Campbell&rsquo;s assistant.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011680/6901158-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="327" height="411"><figcaption class="caption-body">(Photo by Al Messerschmidt)</figcaption></div>The hockey department&rsquo;s mandate seems clear: raise the bar on suspensions, particularly related to head-hunting incidents; oversee rules experimentations; and, of course, keep the fighting issue on the backburner. Campbell, whose puckhandling skills were limited as a player, neatly stickhandled around the question when asked his position on fighting. Before Campbell&rsquo;s appointment July 20, he was quoted as contemplating changes that would reduce the incidence of fighting. Campbell, who has a two-year contract, wouldn&rsquo;t be pinned down on new standards for suspendable offenses, but don&rsquo;t be surprised if they change. Campbell sounds a lot like his predecessor when he says he doesn&rsquo;t want to eliminate hard hockey, but will deal appropriately with hard-headed hockey. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve sat there with the toughest players,&rdquo; Campbell says. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve roomed with Tiger Williams. I&rsquo;ve coached with Wayne Cashman. They were mean, tough, hard players. I&rsquo;ve played and coached with them all. Those guys cringe as much as the next guy when they see a violent act take place on the ice.&rdquo;There should be a profound difference between shrinking violets and shrinking from violence in the NHL.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021344/6901151-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="2245" height="2075"><figcaption class="caption-body">Felix Potvin may have played his last game as a Toronto Maple Leaf now that the organization has signed Curtis Joseph. Pg. 8.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

Will practical make perfect at headquarters?

<div class="byline">By Dana Pannett</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011682/6901189-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hayley Wickenheiser got lots of attention at the Flyers&rsquo; rookie camp.</figcaption></div>While conducting a power skating session, Cindy Bower encouraged her pupils with a loud, &ldquo;C&rsquo;mon guys.&rdquo;She should be forgiven the mistake. After all, it&rsquo;s not everyday that Bower has to worry about gender while working at an NHL training session.But in early July, the Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; camp for prospects went co-ed. Hayley Wickenheiser, a cornerstone of Canada&rsquo;s Olympic silver medal winning hockey team, joined the ranks for the eight-day session.Invited by Flyers&rsquo; GM Bobby Clarke following the Olympics, Wickenheiser jumped at the chance to work out with Flyers&rsquo; future players. Though sporting a Philadelphia sweater with No. 77, once belonging to Paul Coffey, Wickenheiser insisted she has no designs on the NHL.&ldquo;For me, the NHL is a totally different game, much more physical,&rdquo; the 19-year-old said. &ldquo;I have no intention of playing for the Flyers. For women, the Olympics are our NHL.&rdquo;Nor does Clarke have any intention of following in the footsteps of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who once played goalie Manon Rheaume a period in a pre-season game. He extended the offer because he had seen Wickenheiser skate in Nagano and thought he could help his home country&rsquo;s cause by giving her a chance to work out.&ldquo;Hayley&rsquo;s not going to be playing with the men anytime, but this was a chance for her to face a faster paced game and a way to still get better,&rdquo; Clarke said. &ldquo;She was very happy about it, said yes immediately.&rdquo;One of Canada&rsquo;s top women players, Wickenheiser joined the national team in 1994 and has since earned two world titles as well as the Olympic silver medal. In Nagano, she had two goals and six assists and in 1997, she helped Canada to the World Championship with four goals and five assists in five games.Big by women&rsquo;s standards at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, Wickenheiser nonetheless was dwarfed by her male counterparts. Hardly intimidated, the power forward easily held her own in the drills and even appeared less winded from Bower&rsquo;s workout. While many of the guys complained of dizziness and even vomited after the first workout, Wickenheiser kept going.&ldquo;This is going to do wonders for her skating,&rdquo; Bower said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll do a lot of individual work, so she&rsquo;s going to see a tremendous improvement.&rdquo;No stranger to men&rsquo;s hockey, Wickenheiser played boys Bantam Double-A hockey with the Northwest Bruins in Calgary before making the jump to the women&rsquo;s game.She said the Flyers&rsquo; workout wasn&rsquo;t much different than what she experienced with the women&rsquo;s national team and her peers agreed she was no different either.&ldquo;She&rsquo;s the same as the*other guys,&rdquo; said Flyers&rsquo; first round pick in 1998, Simon Gagne. &ldquo;We treat her just the same.&rdquo;In fact, other than her hair, which hung a little further outside her helmet, the only thing that distinguished Wickenheiser were the TV crews and cameras that followed her every move. She insisted this wasn&rsquo;t intended as a publicity stunt, but that didn&rsquo;t stop the media circus that ensued.&ldquo;The other guys joked about all the cameras,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I took some heat for that, but they&rsquo;re in a tough position. We&rsquo;re all here for the same reason-to improve our game.&rdquo; &#9632;

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LEAGUES/DEPARTMENTS

Wickenheiser’s camp goes according to plan

<div class="byline">Compiled by THN staff</div>About 1,400 former NHL players will share the $1 million (Cdn.) restitution fund paid into court by disgraced former NHL Players&rsquo; Association executive director Alan Eagleson.Split equally among the eligible players who were active from 1976 to 1991, the restitution payout amounts to about $714 each.Eagleson was ordered to pay the restitution after his guilty plea in U.S. District Court Jan. 6 to three counts of fraud and theft involving players&rsquo; insurance premiums. The founder of the NHLPA was sentenced to an 18-month jail term and was released July 6. after serving six months.Some former players said they would like to channel the money to those who most need it.CAMPBELL IN COMMAND: A former Ranger boss is now the NHL&rsquo;s sheriff.Colin Campbell, fired as coach of the New York Rangers during the Olympic break, became the NHL&rsquo;s senior vice-president and director of hockey operations. He replaces Brian Burke, who left to become GM of the Vancouver Canucks. (See pg. 2 for more on Campbell.&rsquo;)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021469/6901220-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="614" height="764"><figcaption class="caption-body">Muzz Patrick (Photo By Canapres)</figcaption></div>Campbell, 45, will oversee on-ice officials and be in charge of discipline. He signed a two-year contract. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said an important part of the position will be to apply stricter penalties to players who deliver deliberate blows to the head.Campbell said he&rsquo;ll study the way Burke handled matters and seek input from Bettman, the league owners and players before determining how he will crack down on such infractions.&ldquo;I have to go in with an open mind,&rdquo; he said.PATRICK DIES: Muzz Patrick, who was intertwined with the New York Rangers over a four-decade career as player, coach and GM, died of a heart attack July 23 at his home in Riverside, Conn. He was 83.Son of Hall of Famer Lester Patrick and uncle to current Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; GM Craig Patrick, Muzz was part of one of hockey&rsquo;s most famous families.He won his only Stanley Cup as a defenseman with the Rangers in 1939-40. He gained fame for a one-punch knockout of Boston Bruin defenseman Eddie Shore at Madison Square Garden in 1939.ALUMNI GATHER: The World Hockey Association is holding its 25th anniversary reunion one year late with an event Sept. 10-13 in Mashantucket, Conn.Reunion committee chairman Dennis Murphy expects more than 300 former players, coaches, officials and administrators to gather at the event.&ldquo;The response has been great,&rdquo; said Murphy, co-founder of the defunct professional league. &ldquo;There will be a lot of storytelling.&rdquo;Those interested in attending the anniversary can call Murphy at (714) 385-1769. &#9632;

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Players share fund

<div class="byline">By Brian Costello</div>It could be the year of Martin Straka.Superstitious observers might want to keep an eye on No. 82 for the Pittsburgh Penguins this season. The numbers might just fall his way.The 82-game regular season of the NHL&rsquo;s 82nd year will begin in the 82 degree temperature of Tokyo, Japan (we called the weather office) when the Calgary Flames play the San Jose Sharks Oct. 9.Other opening night matchups feature the New York Rangers hosting the Philadelphia Flyers and the Florida Panthers hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning at the new National Car Rental Center in Broward County.The Penguins and Straka, the only play in the NHL to wear No. 82, begin their season Oct. 10 against the New York Islanders. By the way, Straka&rsquo;s fifth goal this season will be No. 82 for his career.The addition of the Nashville Predators as the 27th team increases the number of games to 1,107. Each team plays 41 at home and 41 on the road and for the first time, the NHL has a six-division setup.Eastern Conference teams play five times against divisional opponents, four times each against teams in the other two divisions of. their conference and one time against each team from the Western Conference.Western Conference teams play six times against divisional foes, four times each against teams in the other two divisions of their conference and one time against each team from the Eastern Conference.Each of the 27 teams also plays at least 12 &ldquo;wild card&rdquo; games based on traditional rivalries and proximity.The Eastern Conference is made up of three divisions: Atlantic (New Jersey, Islanders, Rangers, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh), Northeast (Boston, Buffalo, Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto) and Southeast (Carolina, Florida, Tampa Bay and Washington).The Western Conference divisions break down as follows: Central (Chicago, Detroit, Nashville and St. Louis), Northwest (Calgary, Colorado, Edmonton and Vancouver) and Pacific (Anaheim, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Jose).The season ends April 18 and the playoffs begin April 21. The league is reviewing the scheduling process to condense the length of the playoffs. &#9632;

NHL’s 82nd season has brand new look

Pierre Turgeon, Mark Recchi and Ray Whitney are among 26 players who have sought arbitration in salary disputes with their NHL teams.Hearings are Aug. 1-15 in Toronto.Players are eligible to select salary arbitration if they meet certain qualifications based upon their age when they signed their first contract and the amount of professional experience.Only players who qualify as restricted free agents and who have not signed an offer sheet are eligible for arbitration.Players and teams can settle at any time leading up to the arbitrator&rsquo;s decision. The decision is issued no more than 48 hours after the hearing and includes the length of the contract, the base salary and bonuses. Each team is allowed one walk-away right per year,which would then render the player an unrestricted free agent.Players scheduled for arbitration are: Jim McKenzie of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim; Dimitri Khristich, Rob Tallas and Tim Taylor of the Boston Bruins; Brian Holzinger and Paul Kruse of the Buffalo Sabres;Marty McInnis of the Calgary Flames; Jeff Shantz of the Chicago Blackhawks; Todd Marchant and Dean McAmmond of the Edmonton Oilers; Whitney of the Florida Panthers; Craig Johnson and Sean O&rsquo;Donnell of the Los Angeles Kings; Recchi of the Montreal Canadiens;Jason Dawe and Joe Sacco of the New York Islanders; Shawn McEachern of the Ottawa Senators; Trent Klatt and Rod Brind&rsquo;Amour of the Philadelphia Flyers; Bob Corkum, Louis DeBrusk and Dallas Drake of the Phoenix Coyotes; Jim Campbell and Turgeon of the St. Louis Blues;Marcus Ragnarsson of the San Jose Sharks; and Steve Staios of the Vancouver Canucks.Cory Stillman of Calgary, Stu Barnes of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Scott Pellerin of St. Louis filed for arbitration by the July 15 deadline, but subseouentlv signed with their teams. &#9632;

Twenty-seven NHL players file for salary arbitration

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011803/6901323-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"></div>Just when I thought being a Hartford Whaler fan couldn&rsquo;t get any worse, the Carolina Hurricanes sign Ron Francis.I was one of the many faithful fans who choked up on Francis&rsquo; departure to the Pittsburgh Penguins and was devastated when the Whalers left town. But by now, I should be accustomed to feeling used. From Peter Karmanos to Brendan Shanahan to Paul Coffey to Eddie Johnson, I&rsquo;ve had a lot of practice.Perhaps Mr. Karmanos could pull some strings and have Ron Francis come back to town and personally kick me in the groin. It would certainly be less painful than watching the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers pre-season game at the Hartford Civic Center.Robert Alexander, Bloomfield, Conn.<h2>Picture perfect</h2>I want to congratulate The Hockey News and Bruce Bennett on the excellent photograph of Jonathan Chee-choo that appeared in the Season in Review edition.Your staff likely has no idea the significance or impact this picture has on the people in Cheechoo&rsquo;s hometown of Moose Factory, Ont.In looking at the picture again and again, I am overwhelmed with the genuine excitement that this local hero and his community share. It&rsquo;s a dream come true. Jonathan Cheechoo could have been milling about with his agent, team officials or other players, but he is where he belongs, with the people who have supported him all his life.Northern Ontario has contributed many hockey players to all levels of professional hockey. Places such as Kirkland Lake, Sudbury, Cochrane, Kapuskasing, South Porcupine, Schumacher and Timmins have a long and storied history of producing big-league players. Moose Factory is now part of this rich tradition.I applaud your staff for adding a different dimension to the draft issue with this half-page photo. I don&rsquo;t know Cheechoo or his family, nor have I ever seen him play, but I gotta believe he&rsquo;s a keeper.Brian McCusker, Thompson, Man.<h2>I&rsquo;ll take The Coast</h2>I&rsquo;ve put up with the NHL long enough. My family used to hold season tickets to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but we gave them up and now spend our hockey time at East Coast League games. They are much, much cheaper and a lot more fun.The game is rife with problems and yet NHL management goes blindly onward. In Pittsburgh, we&rsquo;re faced with the miserable spectacle of Mario Lemieux suing the Penguins over money owed. Penguins&rsquo; co-owner Roger Marino was recently fined by the league for stating the blatantly ob-vious-that clutching and grabbing is seriously damaging the game. Former NHL great Pierre Larouche stated on a recent radio program that the clutching and grabbing is far worse than when he played in the league and that he might not even be able to play in today&rsquo;s NHL.When will the league learn that people pay money to see superstars play the game and not to see Craig Berube and Co., clutch and grab?And now we&rsquo;ll have four more teams in such hockey hotbeds as Nashville and Columbus, watering down the talent level even further.What a waste. When the NHL gets its house back in order, I may decide to return to a game or two. Until then, I&rsquo;ll be taking my kids to the ECHL.Graham Peace, Wexford, Pa.<h2>No goals, no glory</h2>It constantly amazes me how some people lack a firm grasp of the obvious.The Dallas Stars did not lose to the Detroit Red Wings because Ed Bel-four &ldquo;could not come up with the big save when his team needed it the most,&rdquo; as one recent letter writer put it (THN, July 3).The Stars lost because they didn&rsquo;t know where their next goal was coming from-a problem Detroit didn&rsquo;t have.Jim Fix, Williamsville, N.Y.<h2>Slap in the face</h2>Stan Fischler&rsquo;s observation that the Detroit Red Wings would have lost the Stanley Cup without Doug Brown (THN, July) is ridiculous.Brown was a great role player for the Wings, but it makes you wonder if Fischler was watching the same playoffs as the rest of us. The Wings overcame the loss of Vladimir Konstantinov and playoff MVP Mike Vernon to win the Cup. To say they would not have won it without Brown is a slap in the face to Steve Yzerman and the whole Red Wings&rsquo; organization.George Belbusti, Orange, Conn.<h2>Two refs better</h2>In one breath, Stan Fischler complains about the quality of NHL officiating. Then in another, he writes that adding a second referee would be &ldquo;the most absurd move of the halfcentury.&rdquo; (THN, July)To me, adding a referee is common sense. I agree that current officiating is erratic at best and I have never been able to understand why one of the world&rsquo;s fastest sports is the only one without multiple referees.Hockey begs for at least two on-ice referees. If crowded ice is a concern, why not take the linesmen off the ice entirely and have them sit off-ice at the end of each blueline?Lawrence Israeloff, Merrick, N. Y.<h2>Stingers live on</h2>The Cincinnati Stingers existed in the World Hockey Association for only four years before the league disbanded in 1979, but they still have a strong presence in the NHL.The Stingers can claim two of the game&rsquo;s top all-time players in 700-goal scorer Mike Gartner and six-time Stanley Cup winner Mark Messier.In management, they are represented by one GM (Rick Dudley), two head coaches (Jacques Demers and Rob Ftorek), one broadcaster (Barry Melrose) and even a referee (Paul Stewart).With Cincinnati&rsquo;s eye for talent, perhaps it should have been granted an NHL expansion franchise.John Dickie, London, Ont.<h2>Beezer bamboozled</h2>I can now say that I fully understand the reason why Florida Panthers&rsquo; GM Bryan Murray has never been able to win the Stanley Cup and has not been able to stay with an NHL team too long. I need to look no further than his treatment of John Vanbiesbrouck.Beezer is a undoubtedly a premier goalie in the league, a former Vezina Trophy winner, and Murray blew him off as quickly as he selects his daily lunch.Vanbiesbrouck brought respect, and most important, wins to an ex pansion team that seemed destined to be a joke. After just three years in the league, the Panthers advanced to the Stanley Cup final, largely because of the man in goal. He deserved the money he wanted, but the Panthers tossed him around like dirty laundry.Vanbiesbrouck is a caring man who deserves respect and, most of all, a Stanley Cup. TTie Philadelphia Flyers are lucky to have him.Anne Elizabeth Ralph, Roselle, N.J.Fax us your comments at (416) 340-1641 or write to Letters, THN, 777 Bay St, Suite 2700, Box 148, Toronto, Ont, MSG 2N8 in Canada. In the U.S., write to Letters, THN, P.O. Box 904, Buffalo, N.Y., 14240-9947. E-mail us at campbellk-@transcontinentaLca Include home and business phone numbers. THN reserves the right to edit submissions. &#9632;

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Hurricane Francis kills hockey fans in Hartford

<div class="byline">Compiled by THN staff</div>The Tampa Bay Lightning made the most personnel additions through July, but it may not be enough to lift the team out of the lower rung in the NHL.The expansion Nashville Predators stocked their roster with expansion draft castoffs, entry draft hopefuls and free agent signings. However, they also lost the most talent as expansion draft picks Mike Richter, Al lafrate and Uwe Krupp signed with other teams as unrestricted free agents. The Predators will be compensated with 1999 entry draft picks.The Lightning, meanwhile, should be improved with the acquisition of forwards Craig Janney and Wendel Clark, defenseman Michal Sykora and goalie Bill Ranford.Other teams who have emerged on the plus side of the back-and-forth player ledger are the Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and San Jose Sharks.Carolina signed lafrate and center Ron Francis as unrestricted free agents. Dallas added forwards Brett Hull, Tony Hrkac and Aaron Gavey while losing Bob Bassen. The Rangers picked up forwards John MacLean and Scott Fraser. Philadelphia signed goalie John Vanbiesbrouck and center Marc Bureau. San Jose added goalie Steve Shields and defensemen Bob Rouse and Gary Suter while losing MacLean.The biggest losers of talent so far are the Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers and St. Louis Blues.Edmonton lost Fraser and goalie Curtis Joseph. Florida lost Vanbiesbrouck and defenseman Dallas Eakins. St. Louis lost defenseman Steve Duchesne and Hull.All other teams are plus or minus one on the movement ledger. (See pg. 37 for transactions and a listing of each team&rsquo;s 25-man roster.)As of July 24, there were still 36 Group III and V free agents on the market. (See pg. 9 for listing.) &#9632;

Lowly Liqhtning makes flurry of off-season additions

<div class="byline">By Jeff Gordon</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011639/6901378-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Harrv Ornest welcomed Mark Hunter at the Blues draft table in 1985. (Photo By Bruce Benet Studios)</figcaption></div>Hockey is vibrant in St. Louis today. The St. Louis Blues routinely draw crowds of more than 20,000 in the gleaming Kiel Center, the city&rsquo;s downtown monument to hockey. A who&rsquo;s who panel of local businessmen own the team and the building.And none of this would be happening had colorful Harry Ornest not saved the franchise.Ornest, who died July 21 at 75 after undergoing a heart procedure, swept in from Beverly Hills in 1983 and took the franchise off the NHL&rsquo;s doorstep.Ralston-Purina had abandoned the team after the league squashed its bid to sell the Blues to Saskatoon, Sask., investors.The Blues were idle for the 1983 entry draft. The rickety St. Louis Arena sat in disrepair. Corporate St. Louis turned its back on hockey and left the franchise in limbo.Enter the opportunistic Ornest, who paid just $3 million in cash and a $9 million note for the team and arena.For the next three years, Ornest whipped the Blues into fiscal fitness and battled to re-establish the team in the community.His regime with the Blues became controversial, since Ornest clashed with his players, the media, local politicians, local businessmen, fellow owners&hellip;really, just about anybody who got near his team.Ornest rather enjoyed being difficult. As a self-made millionaire, he never felt compelled to play by the rules. He bowed to nobody. If a social event called for tuxedos, there was a good chance Harry would show up in a sport coat. He enjoyed showdowns and never cowered from litigation.Ornest hired another iconoclast, Ron Caron, to run his team. Caron slashed the payroll, hired coach Jacques Demers in a bargain deal and dealt big-ticket players Mike Liut and Joey Mullen at Ornest&rsquo;s command.But Caron&rsquo;s operation became a model of efficiency; sparked by the charismatic Demers, the budget Blues reached the Western Conference final in 1986. They took the Calgary Flames to a seventh game before bowing out in a 2-1 thriller, missing a trip to the Stanley Cup final by inches.Ornest enjoyed addressing the Blues players from time to time and he could parry with reporters for hours. He knew his hockey-he was a former referee and linesman-but his real flair was business. His mercenary instincts were uncanny. He built his fortune by selling and servicing vending machines, building a business that expanded across Western Canada.He made Class AAA baseball big in Vancouver before selling at a tidy profit. He repeated his buy-low, sell-high pattern with the Blues. He turned a $12 million investment into a $34 million return, selling the Blues to investors led by Michael Shanahan for $19 million and the arena to the city for $15 million Dec. 15,1986.Later, Ornest worked the same fiscal magic with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League, profiting nicely from his sale of the team to Wayne Gretzky, actor John Candy and Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; owner Bruce McNall. At the time of his death, he was deputy managing director at the Hollywood Park race track and its largest shareholder.Ornest also found himself in the middle of the Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; sale to Steve Stavro in the wake of Harold Ballard&rsquo;s death. A minority shareholder, Ornest opposed Stavro&rsquo;s bid for the takeover of the team, claiming he was offering less than fair market value. After years of legal wrangling, Stavro eventually agreed to increase the share price.&ldquo;He rode in on the white horse,&rdquo; recalled Blues&rsquo; scout Bob Plager, who held the same post during Ornest&rsquo;s regime. &ldquo;Then he started doing all those things and ticked everybody off. But as he said, &rsquo;Anybody else could have saved (the Blues) before I did. Nobody else wanted to.&rsquo; &#9632;

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Ornest kent Blues alive in NHL

You can expect to see a more passive Eric Lindros and a feistier Paul Kariya next season.Both NHL stars are profiled in The Hockey News 1998-99 Year-book-which hits newsstands Aug. 24-and both reveal that fans will see a change in their games next season.For Lindros, that means more finesse and less force. For Kariya, it means no more Mr. Nice Guy.&ldquo;Next year I&rsquo;m going to just shoot more; tone things down physically and just shoot more,&rdquo; Lindros said in a profile by Mike Brophy.Kariya, a two-time winner of the Lady Byng Trophy, told THN editor-in-chief Steve Dryden that his stick will be raised for more than goal celebrations in &rsquo;98-99.&ldquo;If there&rsquo;s a guy coming at me, I mean, my stick&rsquo;s going to come up,&rdquo; said Kariya, whose season ended after 22 games when he was crosschecked in the face by Gary Suter. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not just going to sit there and get hit all the time.&rdquo;Lindros and Kariya are prominent in another feature on the top 50 players in the NHL today.The Yearbook is chock full of other profiles, an extensive stats package and reports on all 27 teams. &#9632;

THN Yearbook hits streets in late August

<div class="byline">By Damien Cox</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0008-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011695/6901433-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Toronto-area native Curtis Joseph returns home with wife Nancy and children Taylor, Madison and Tristan. (Photo by Marko Shark)</figcaption></div>It was, in some ways, a most unusual free agent signing, since it neither filled a hole nor substantially upgraded a position for the team doling out the money.After all, when the Toronto Maple Leafs caused financial shock waves throughout the NHL by signing un-restricted goaltender Curtis Joseph to a four-year, $24 million contract July 15, numbers that even made the New York Rangers pause, part of the strange nature of the transaction was that the Maple Leafs already owned a respected No. 1 goaltender in Felix &lsquo;The Cat&rsquo; Potvin.Indeed, when the Leafs made the deal, they had three veteran goalies in Joseph, Potvin ($2.7 million) and Glenn Healy ($1.4 million) earning a combined $10 million, more than one-third of the club&rsquo;s total payroll.The Leafs not only made Joseph the second-highest paid netminder in the game behind Dominik Hasek of the Buffalo Sabres and ahead of such goaltenders as Patrick Roy of the Colorado Avalanche and Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils, but also made him the big winner among this year&rsquo;s bumper crop of free agent netminders that also included Mike Richter and John Van-biesbrouck.Extraordinary, really, for a goalie who has never won the Vezina Trophy, been selected to the NHL first or second all star team or been part of a Stanley Cup winning squad since joining the St. Louis Blues as a highly-sought free agent out of the University of Wisconsin nine years ago.&ldquo;I want to win and (the Leafs) are much better than a lot of people give them credit for,&rdquo; said Joseph in explaining his decision. &ldquo;I know that Leaf fans want a winner and I&rsquo;m no different.&ldquo;I think I can make a difference.&rdquo;The Leafs haven&rsquo;t qualified for post-season play since 1995-96 and their most glaring weaknesses entering the summer appeared to be goal-scoring and an alarmingly-thin blueline. So why sign a goalie?Well, the logic behind the unconventional Joseph signing was, actually, straightforward. The initial Leaf plan was, on July 1, to pursue free agent defensemen, specifically Jyrki Lumme and Uwe Krupp. But the Leafs found themselves both unable to attract those players and unwilling to extend the kind of long-term arrangements that were being offered to both the top-end blueliners and the most sought-after free agent forwards.The contingency plan then became to pursue Joseph with an eye to installing him as the club&rsquo;s starter and then use Potvin as trade bait to acquire younger, less expensive players to improve elsewhere. Even if Joseph and Potvin were seen as roughly equal in talent, Potvin could be used as a marketable asset while the Leafs could feel comfortable giving a four-year deal to a 31-year-old netminder as opposed to a 35-year-old forward.That scenario, however, grew more complicated as other clubs pursued Joseph. The Philadelphia Flyers-which seemed to be Joseph&rsquo;s likeliest destination-went for Vanbiesbrouck. Then it appeared Richter&rsquo;s troubled negotiations with the New York Rangers might land Joseph in Manhattan.But within a matter of hours, the Florida Panthers offered Richter a five-year, $27-million deal, the Rangers opted to re-sign him rather than lose him to the Panthers and Joseph was left without a home.The Leafs jumped in with both feet, including giving Joseph a no-trade guarantee for the first two years. Once the Joseph signing was announced, a for sale sign went up on &lsquo;The Cat.&rsquo;&ldquo;You&rsquo;re paying Curtis $6 million, it&rsquo;s a sign of what&rsquo;s going to happen,&rdquo; said an unhappy Potvin.While the Potvin auction could carry on for weeks or even months with Florida the Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks the likeliest buyers, Maple Leafs&rsquo; associate GM Mike Smith insisted there was no urgency to the transaction despite erroneous reports suggesting Joseph had been guaranteed Potvin would be moved immediately.&ldquo;There are only so many ways to make your team better and having Curtis and Felix on your team gives you some options,&rdquo; Smith said. &ldquo;We have lots of time and in the end, we&rsquo;re solid in goal.&rdquo;The two high-profile goalie situation isn&rsquo;t entirely new for Joseph. Prior to the 1995-96 season, the St. Louis Blues traded his rights to the Edmonton Oilers, a team that already had Bill Ranford. After sitting out die first half of that season as an unsigned free agent, Joseph agreed to terms Jan. 11, 1996, and that same day the Oilers dealt Ranford to the Boston Bruins.For the Leafs, the Joseph signing was part of a flurry of activity that also included the addition of free agent winger Steve Thomas and journeyman Dallas Eakins. More significantly, it solidified Smith&rsquo;s enhanced role as the club&rsquo;s de facto GM, with Ken Dryden having moved out of the day-to-day hockey decisions almost entirely.The Joseph negotiations, for example, was Smith&rsquo;s baby entirely and didn&rsquo;t include Dryden, assistant GM Anders Hedberg or assistant to the president Bill Watters. &ldquo;It was my call all the way,&rdquo; Smith said.With Smith calling the shots and Pat Quinn entrenched as the new coach, the chain of command in the Maple Leafs&rsquo; front office has been clarified considerably. Last year, Smith and coach Mike Murphy feuded, while the so-called &ldquo;fourheaded monster&rdquo; of executive authority lacked decisiveness and direction.The fact the Leaf ownership group gave its blessing to more than $30 million worth of free agents in a four-day period in July also seemed to signal the end of the club&rsquo;s recently penurious ways.That should at least leave the club better positioned to improve this fall, although much of that resides in the ability of Smith to turn Potvin into usable assets. As it stands, the beginning of the Cujo era in Toronto surely means NHL free agency has become a dog-eat-cat world. &#9632;

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FEATURES

Dog-eat-Cat world

The fishing has never been finer. Then again, neither has the bait.Less than a month into the free agency season, 32 notable unrestricted free agents (veterans who played in the NHL last season), had signed new deals. Through roughly the same period last summer, 24 unrestricted players of note had cashed in.The more telling increase, however, is the number of fat contracts being handed out.Last year through late July, just two unrestricted free agents-Mark Messier from the Vancouver Canucks ($6.67 million) and Ed Belfour from the Dallas Stars ($3.3 millionj-received new deals worth more than $3 million per season.That number has swelled to 11 this summer.Taking advantage of a seller&rsquo;s market have been: Doug Gilmour, Chicago ($6 million per season); Curtis Joseph, Toronto ($6 million); Brett Hull, Dallas ($5.6 million); Mike Richter, Rangers ($5.45 million); Ron Francis. Carolina ($5.2 million); Uwe Krupp, Detroit ($4.1 million); John Vanbiesbrouck, Philadelphia ($3.6 million); Steve Duchesne, Los Angeles ($3.5 million); Jyrki Lumme, Phoenix ($3.4 million); Gary Suter, San Jose ($3.3 million); and Geoff Courtnail, St. Louis ($3.3 million). &#9632;

Seller’s market swells NHL’s rich & famous club

A busy free agency season is in full swing. Listed below, alphabetically by team, are the notable unrestricted signings. Also included are the 36 Group III and V unrestricted players who hadn&rsquo;t sinned through July 23.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011607/6901488-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="665" height="2874"></div> &#9632;

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Unrestricted Free Agents

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-021129/6901519-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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NHL GAME USED JERSEYS, STICKS & EQUIPMENT

<div class="byline">By Dave Pollard</div>When the hockey community failed to police itself in a manner he deemed satisfactory, Andrew Long took a bold step.Long, a 19-year-old Newmarket, Ont., native who played last season for the Ontario League&rsquo;s Guelph Storm, filed a complaint with the Plymouth (Mich.) Township police June 4 that resulted in Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; prospect Jesse Boulerice being charged with &ldquo;assault to do great bodily harm less than murder.&rdquo; The crime is a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $5,000 fine.Boulerice pleaded not guilty to the charge, which was laid by Wayne County prosecutors July 16, at an arraignment July 21. He was released by Judge Ronald Lowe on a $10,000 personal bond.Boulerice, a 19-year-old defenseman from Moders, N.Y., who played for the Plymouth Whalers, will be back in court Aug. 17 for a preliminary hearing.Long filed the complaint after a stick-swinging incident in Game 4 of the OHL semifinal between the Storm and Whalers in Plymouth April 17. Long was left unconscious and convulsing on the ice with serious facial injuries and a concussion.Boulerice was suspended for all of next season by the OHL, preventing him from the unlikely prospect of returning as an overage player. The American League followed by banning him until Nov. 15, 1998. Boulerice, who had 43 points and 170 penalty minutes in 53 games for Plymouth, is expected to play in the AHL for the Flyers&rsquo; affiliate, the Philadelphia Phantoms next season.Long, who has since recovered completely from the injuries, said he is simply looking for justice.&ldquo;I wish there was another way,&rdquo; said Long, a right winger and Florida Panthers&rsquo; prospect. &ldquo;I wanted to see what happened (with the AHL suspension). I wish they could have taken something away from him. He took away my Memorial Cup, he took away my OHL final.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011669/6901550-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="562" height="835"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jesse Boulerice</figcaption></div>&ldquo;I really think it was the right thing to do. This shouldn&rsquo;t happen on the ice. Somebody has to be punished.&rdquo;According to the nearly 100-page police investigation report, Long checked Boulerice into the boards behind the Storm net less than six minutes into a game the Whalers trailed 3-0. After a short shoving match between the two, Long turned to skate away and was hit across the face with a two-handed &ldquo;baseballtype swing,&rdquo; police said.Long was knocked unconscious and went into convulsions while bleeding on the ice. He spent time in a Michigan hospital recovering from a blood spot on the brain, a broken nose, nasal cavity and cheekbone and a cut that required 20 stitches to close.But the punishments weren&rsquo;t severe enough, according to Long&rsquo;s father, David.&ldquo;I never expected that the outcome would be consistent with the action,&rdquo; David Long said. &ldquo;We are, to a point, satisfied it&rsquo;s in proper legal hands. The hockey world just goes along and would like to ignore this incident. There has to be some justice here.&rdquo;For the Longs, that meant taking a step that rarely occurs following an incident on the ice-filing a complaint with the police.Boulerice&rsquo;s lawyer, James Howarth, suggested to the Associated Press that hockey players often hit opponents with their stick, aiming for the chest, but missing by inches.&ldquo;It happens everywhere from peewee to the NHL,&rdquo; Howarth said.David Long wasn&rsquo;t buying that argument from Howarth.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s sort of the Johnnie Cochrane style of defence in its early stages,&rdquo; he responded.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not a vindictive family, but we certainly want to see justice done. I wouldn&rsquo;t even want to predict or suggest what a punishment should be. It&rsquo;s been a very difficult time for the family.&rdquo;<h2>HOCKEY CRIME & PUNISHMENT</h2>Jesse Boulerice&rsquo;s baseball-swing attack on Andrew Long is not the first time a player&rsquo;s actions have attracted unwanted attention of criminal prosecutors. Here&rsquo;s a look at three of the more egregious offenses.Sept. 21, 1969 Ted Green of the Boston Bruins and Wayne Maki of the St. Louis Blues engage in a stick swinging duel that leaves Green with a compound skull fracture. He undergoes two brain operations; a metal plate is inserted in his head. Both men are charged with assault and found not guilty.Oct. 25, 1978 Wilf Paiement of the Colorado Rockies hits Detroit Red Wing Dennis Polonich in the face with his stick. Polonich&rsquo;s nose is broken and he receives multiple cuts and other injuries. A criminal investigation ends without charges, but Polonich wins $850,000 in a civil suit against the Rockies.Jan. 6, 1988 Dino Ciccarelli of the Minnesota North Stars is fined $1,000 and sentenced a day in jail for assaulting Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; defenseman Luke Richardson with his stick. &#9632;

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Boulerice faces assault charge

<div class="byline">By Jay Greenberg</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011504/6901588-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="406" height="579"></div>This is a knifing so hideous, John Muckier could not bring himself to turn it in Ted Nolan&rsquo;s back. Even Ron Wilson coming across a bleeding Tony Tavares at a Morton&rsquo;s national sales conference, wouldn&rsquo;t pour salt in a wound so deep.Ron Francis is going back to the Whalers, except they are no longer the Whalers, which is enough to make a person in Hartford jump off a tall building, if there had been enough of them there with enough people working in them to save the franchise.Problem was, too many persons didn&rsquo;t think the franchise was worth saving after 1991, when Francis and Ulf Samuelsson got traded by Eddie Johnston to Pittsburgh for John Cullen and Zarley Zalapski. The deal put the Penguins over the top and eventually helped make the Whalers the Carolina Hurricanes, where last season they still smelled like the Whalers 600 miles away.The not-too-deep South&rsquo;s first exposure to the NHL was with a team that didn&rsquo;t get the puck in very deep, in part because it was putting in more miles than Dale Earnhardt. In temporary digs in Greens-boro, the Hurricanes play, basically, before only the anti-to-bacco lobby of North Carolina.The new, state-of-the-art, cash-cow arena in Raleigh is still at least a year from completion, which means the ink remains redder than most of the proposed fans&rsquo; necks. But owner Peter Karmanos sprung $21-plus million on a four-year deal for Francis anyway.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-021074/6901581-1-eng-US/f0011-022.jpg" title="f0011-02" width="543" height="822"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ron Francis</figcaption></div>Having turned 35, Francis got about $5-to-$10 million more than he will likely be able to earn by the end of the contract, but as GM Jim Rutherford sighs, in the free agency game you always have to give an extra year and an extra few million more than prudent or you don&rsquo;t get what you need.&ldquo;If Ron&rsquo;s skills diminish, we think his leadership will still add something to our team,&rdquo; Rutherford said. After the last two seasons, one spent packing up in Hartford, the other used up largely on 1-40, leadership hasn&rsquo;t had such a test since Moses. His team missed the playoffs for 40 consecutive years, only 34 more than the Hurricanes&rsquo; current streak. Karmanos and Rutherford, who were matched in their bid for Sergei Fedorov in February, were still intent on making a big move. Oops, let&rsquo;s rephrase that. You don&rsquo;t want to use the word &ldquo;move&rdquo; around the Hurricanes. What we mean is that it is time, finally, to end the Alexander Godynyuk era.&ldquo;It was a playoff team last year,&rdquo; Rutherford said. &ldquo;We got off to that bad start and we had injuries. Once we moved Sean Burke and Geoff Sanderson out and got over our (travel) situation, we were a pretty good team.&rdquo;The biggest need was for a high tier center who can make something good happen this season to send the Hurricanes into Raleigh smokin&rsquo;. And it doesn&rsquo;t take the funny kind of cigarettes to envision that happening.First of all, if the Los Angeles Kings made the playoffs last year, almost anybody can. Secondly, now that Carolina has a No. 1 center, Keith Primeau and Jeff O&rsquo;Neill look pretty good as No. 2 and No. 3 centers.The Kidd in goal should be all right and a defense looks well-anchored by Glen Wesley, Curtis ILeschyshyn, Adam Burt and Kevin Haller. Missing is a boomer from the point, so Rutherford signed Al lafrate.lafrate, who has played only 59 games in the past four years, has agreed to a contract that guarantees only $350,000. If he is healthy enough to play the whole season, lafrate will get about $800,000; by making all his bonuses for games and points, he could get up to $2.6 million. If he doesn&rsquo;t play any better than Brian Glynn, lafrate owes the Hurricanes $600,000 for wasting their time.At this stage, &rsquo;Big Al&rsquo; might be an even longer shot than that drive back from Greensboro in the wee hours. Nothing would be finah than to be in Carolina on the morning the Hurricane leaves Greensboro for good.This hasn&rsquo;t been a bump in the road, more like an odyssey (appropriate for a team once coached by a Holmer). The franchise wants a happy ending written finally, so in Francis it hired a ghost. &#9632;

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COLUMNISTS

Hurricanes may finally be ready to wreak havoc

<div class="byline">By Michael Ulmer</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011627/6901619-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Matthew Barnaby has realized he can do more for the Sabres than just be a good quote and instigator. (Photo By Bruce Benet/BS)</figcaption></div>From a comer of the Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; dressing room, a media relations person appeared with a portable podium.&ldquo;Hang on,&rdquo; Matthew Barnaby said to the crush of reporters and photographers gathered at his stall on the day of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final. &ldquo;Gotta have my podium.&rdquo;In no subsequent interview did the 25-year-old Sabre left winger identify his essence as perfectly as with those four words.&ldquo;Gotta have my podium.&rdquo;In three rounds of Stanley Cup playoffs, he did. While the Sabres lost a spirited six-game conference final to the Washington Capitals, Barnaby reemerged as the focal point of the Sabres&rsquo; position players. His 13 points tied him with Donald Audette for the club&rsquo;s post season lead and his seven goals, including a hat trick in the second round against the Montreal Canadiens, led the Sabres. Just as memorable was the penalty total, 22 minutes in 15 games compared with 36 minutes in only eight games in the 1997 post-season.The six-game loss to Washington aside, it was a memorable finish to a season on the edge. Barnaby promised in The Hockey News&rsquo; 1997 Yearbook that he would run goalie Dominik Hasek for mandating the departure of former coach Ted Nolan. He pouted and played terribly through most of the season and then demanded a trade which the Sabres refused to grant.Barnaby scored only five goals and rang up 289 penalty minutes through the regular season.Teammate Dixon Ward said Barnaby may never know how close his career came to slipping into oblivion.&ldquo;What happens if (Buffalo GM) Darcy Regier trades him to some oldtime hockey coach who doesn&rsquo;t understand his crap, who puts him on the fourth line and tells him to fight every night?&rdquo; Ward said. &ldquo;His career could be done. This playoff redefines his whole career, what direction he wants to go and how he wants to get there.&rdquo;After three years as a regular, Barnaby confirmed in the post-season what his junior numbers (111 points with the Victoriaville Tigres in 199293) and 19-goal sophomore NHL campaign bear out. He is a legitimate offensive player with a surprisingly deft passing touch.The Ottawa native showed flashes of that in 1996-97, when he scored 19 goals and recorded 43 points in 68 games. But his nasty edge too often was two-sided and self-inflicted wounds were the result Opponents expected him to take at least one dumb penalty a game.The message he got from coach Lindy Ruff and teammates in the playoffs last season got through: prove your detractors wrong.&ldquo;Guys like Rob Ray would talk to me and say, &rsquo;You can&rsquo;t drop your gloves every time,&rsquo; &ldquo;Barnaby recalled. &ldquo;&lsquo;You can be a better player, you can score 20 goals or 60 points.&rsquo; Getting older, you kind of see what kind of player you can be.&rdquo;Suddenly, flushed by the success of his playoff, Barnaby sees himself as something more than a good quote and instigator.&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t want to be known as a goon. I think I have the talent to create chances. They don&rsquo;t want me fighting any more and there&rsquo;s not much fighting in the playoffs so you&rsquo;ve got to take on a different role.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0012-01

Barnaby’s rough edges rounded by successes

<div class="byline">By Cammy Clark</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021222/6901650-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="324" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pierre Gauthier</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011616/6901657-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="186" height="183"></div>After a rocky season, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim think they have found stability by naming Pierre Gauthier as team president and Craig Hartsburg as coach.Hartsburg agreed to a deal July 20, just days after Utah Grizzlies&rsquo; coach-GM Butch Goring turned down a take-it-or-leave-it offer of $1,125 million for three years.Hartsburg, 39, had an initial interview with GM Jack Ferreira before the NHL draft, but had not been asked for a second interview until talks broke down with Goring. Hartsburg replaces fired Pierre Page and is the Ducks&rsquo; third coach in 14 months.&ldquo;This is a fresh start for me and a fresh start for the Mighty Ducks,&rdquo; said Hartsburg, who was fired by the Chicago Blackhawks April 28 after the team failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 1969. During his three seasons with Chicago, the Blackhawks went 104-102-40.Hartsburg said he has no problem being the Ducks&rsquo; second choice. Ferreira also said that is no big deal. &ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t even my wife&rsquo;s first choice,&rdquo; Ferreira said.Gauthier was named Ducks&rsquo; president July 15 and will oversee all hockey operations. Tony Tavares, the former team president, retains his other functions in the Disney organization.Gauthier, who had left the Ducks in 1995 to become GM of the Ottawa Senators, cited &ldquo;personal reasons&rdquo; when he resigned from the Senators in June. He returned to Southern California, where he still maintained a home in Irvine from his days as assistant GM of the Ducks.Gauthier insisted he had no pre-arranged agreement with the Ducks to return. But Tavares asked him to lunch in early July. Gauthier said he wanted no part of the Ducks if it meant taking the GM duties of his good friend, Ferreira, but the new position appeared to be a good fit for everyone.&ldquo;We gave up something when Pierre left and we never seemed to re-find our way in his areas of strength (organizational skills, decision-making),&rdquo;Tavares said. &ldquo;Now we&rsquo;re delighted he&rsquo;s back&hellip; We&rsquo;ve put what I feel is a very successful team back together again.&rdquo;Gauthier will run the business operations and oversee the hockey side and will be Ferreira&rsquo;s direct boss. When Gauthier left, Ferreira was his boss. Ferreira said the new arrangement is no problem for him.&ldquo;Even when (Gauthier) was managing in Ottawa, we probably talked to each other three or four times a week,&rdquo; Ferreira said. &ldquo;We always ran things by each other. I don&rsquo;t think that will change. We&rsquo;ll just be discussing one franchise instead of two.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Coach Craig Hartsburg said one of his first priorities was to talk with Ducks&rsquo; captain Paul Kariya. After Kariya was crosschecked in the face by Chicago&rsquo;s Gary Suter last February, Hartsburg said: &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a good player, but I don&rsquo;t think the league should bend over backwards for Paul Kariya. Chris Chelios takes more hits per game than Paul Kariya does and we don&rsquo;t whine.&rdquo; Kariya said in June that he would have no problem playing for Hartsburg&hellip;It took more than four years, but the Ducks finally signed their 1994 second round pick, center Johan Davidsson of Sweden. The 22-year-old has a good chance of making the Ducks team at training camp&hellip; New rugged left winger Jim McKenzie, acquired from Phoenix in June for center J.F. Jomphe was the only Duck to file for arbitration&hellip;GM Jack Ferreira confirmed the Ducks had tried to sign unrestricted free agent goalie Curtis Joseph, who eventually agreed to a four-year deal with Toronto. &#9632;

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Coach Hartsburg joins prez Gauthier to comnlete Ducks’ office overhaul

<div class="byline">By Mika Loftus</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04565/6901688-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="325" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sergei Samsonov</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03838/6901695-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="183" height="184"></div>He was drafted eighth overall, led all NHL rookies with 47 points in 1997-98, won the Calder Memorial Trophy and earned slightly less than $2 million (U.S.) between June, 1997 and June, 1998.Sergei Samsonov knows none of that will mean anything come October. People won&rsquo;t ask the Boston Bruins&rsquo; dynamic left winger how he feels about his impressive first NHL season; they&rsquo;ll want to know what he plans to do for an encore.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to try not to put pressure on myself,&rdquo; said Samsonov, who collected 22 goals and 25 assists in his first season with the Bruins. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s _ probably not the right thing for me to do. It&rsquo;s hard for me to (set) any goals before the season and I don&rsquo;t really like to do that.&ldquo;Of course. I know there will be some pressure on me, but I&rsquo;ll try my best not to think about it. I just want to go out and play hockey.&rdquo;Samsonov, named the NHL&rsquo;s top rookie one year after earning the same honor with the International League&rsquo;s Detroit Vipers (he&rsquo;s the only player to win those awards in consecutive seasons), understands the pressure won&rsquo;t just come from fans, media, the Bruins&rsquo; front office, coach Pat Bums, or even from himself. There&rsquo;ll be plenty of heat from every team Boston plays, as well.&ldquo;The line I play on will probably be checked a lot next year,&rdquo; said Samsonov, a 5-foot-8, 184-pounder who will turn 20 Oct. 27. &ldquo;I know there&rsquo;s no way I can go out and play at 50 per cent just because I had a good first year. I&rsquo;ll have to be prepared every single game, and play at 100 per cent all the time.&rdquo;One of the things Bums liked most about Sam-sonov in 1997-98 was his determined, professional attitude. Samsonov, who credited his father for doing the most to help him reach the NHL, had an excellent example to follow once he arrived in Boston.&ldquo;Ray Bourque helped me a lot, right from the beginning,&rdquo; Samsonov said of Boston&rsquo;s captain, the team&rsquo;s last Calder winner in 1980. &ldquo;He tried to take care of me, I guess, give me lots of advice. He doesn&rsquo;t five too far from me, so he&rsquo;d usually pick me up before games and we&rsquo;d drive in together. He was trying to make me feel comfortable, and I really appreciate that.&ldquo;I was frustrated at the beginning, of course, but not to much,&rdquo; said Samsonov, who had only 13 points halfway through the season before going on a second-half tear.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t expect to end up doing this well, but I&rsquo;m pretty happy with the way it turned out.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Right winger Dimitri Khristich filed for salary arbitration. Khristich, who asked Boston about renegotiating the deal he signed while still in Los Angeles, earned $1 million while finishing second on the club in goals (29), assists (37), points (66) and power-play goals (13)&hellip;Checking line center Tim Taylor and backup goalie Rob Tallas ($400,000 for going 6-3-3, 1.83, .926) also chose the arbitration route. In the case of Tallas, the issue is about more than salary: He and agent Jay Fee were disappointed the Bruins&rsquo; qualifying offer was a twoway contract. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t ask for a one-way deal if I didn&rsquo;t feel Robbie had earned the right,&rdquo; Fee said. Said assistant GM Mike O&rsquo;Connell: &ldquo;(Tallas) doesn&rsquo;t have the experience, under the collective bargaining agreement, where we have to make a one-way offer. And we don&rsquo;t know which two goalies (Jim Carey and Ron Grahame will compete with Tallas and starter Byron Dafoe) will end up with us next year."&hellip; The Bruins signed free agent center Peter Ferraro to a one-year contract. &#9632;

f0014-04

Surprise Calder winner Samsonov knows next season won’t be easy

<div class="byline">By Jim Kelley</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-021084/6901726-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="325" height="437"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rob Ray</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011402/6901733-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="185" height="183"></div>Having failed to land Ron Francis in a brief flirtation in the free agent market, Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; GM Darcy Regier hinted there could be a trade to fill the need for a No.l center.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re a team that wants to improve and there are other ways to do that besides unrestricted free agency,&rdquo; Regier said after Francis turned down a reported three-year, $15-million-plus package and signed with division rival Carolina Hurricanes. &ldquo;We have a good collection of young players.&rdquo;Some of them will be taking the Sabres to arbitration this summer.Center Brian Holzinger and left winger Paul Kruse both filed for contract arbitration. Three other restricted free agents-Alexei Zhitnik, Donald Audette and Geoff Sanderson-opted not to invoke that option.Mike Wilson and Miroslav Satan are also restricted free agents, but do not yet have arbitration rights.Losing Francis was a blow to the Sabres&rsquo; hopes of improving on a run that took them to the Eastern Conference final last spring. They proved a gritty team with great goaltending could go a long way, but perhaps not quite far enough without more of a scoring presence.The Sabres have had a hole at the offensive center position since trading Pat LaFontaine to the New York Rangers last fall.It was somewhat of a surprise the Sabres were even in the bidding in that they have not been known as a team that plays in the free agent market. Regier had also indicated at his end-of-season news conference the Sabres likely would have no interest this summer, either.&ldquo;The thing that changed our mind was Ron Francis,&rdquo; Regier said, leaving out the part about new ownership freeing up some cash to aid in the pursuit. &ldquo;When we evaluated this hockey club&hellip;Ron Francis was a player we felt could help us take the next step. That&rsquo;s why we tried to acquire him.&rdquo;Regier confirmed the Sabres offered a three-year deal. There were some reports they moved from $15 to $18 million, but Francis took a four-year deal with Carolina said to be worth $20.4 million.&rsquo;We looked at him as someone who could gives us three years,&rdquo; Regier said. &ldquo;But Ron Francis, with all due I respect, is 35 years old. We felt it (a four-year contract) was too much to commit. It&rsquo;s different if you&rsquo;re not talking that kind of money.&ldquo;It is disappointing, but it&rsquo;s still a good young hockey club here. We have plenty of time and we have some flexibility.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: After testing the free agent market, tough guy right winger Rob Ray went with his heart and signed a three-year, $2.35-million deal to stay in Buffalo. He said he had received some interest from other teams, but declined to identify them&hellip;Entering into the free-agent fray, even with a failed bid for center Ron Francis, indicates a change of philosophy from ownership. The Sabres have been acquired by John Rigas and the Adelphia Communications group. Their apparent willingness to enter the market indicates the financial clout of Adelphia as opposed to the limited partnership that previously ran the team. Adelphia&rsquo;s stock recently traded as high as $45 on the New York stock exchange-a gargantuan leap from just about six months ago when it was trading at $14.. John Cudmore, the team comptroller and a vicepresident in the administration of fired president Larry Quinn, has resigned to take a similar position with the Madison Square Garden Corporation in New York City. The Sabres are searching for a replacement. &#9632;

f0016-02

Failed free agent foray for Francis forces GM Reqier to foraqe further

<div class="byline">By Eric Duhatschek</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04594/6901764-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="325" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body">Michael Nylander</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03807/6901771-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="186" height="183"></div>For the second time in his brief Calgary Flames&rsquo; career, center Michael Nylander wants out.The first time it happened-following the 1995-96 season-Nylander was unhappy enough with the organization that he spent a year in Switzerland. Following a coaching change, from Pierre Page to Brian Sutter, Nylander had a change of heart and returned to Calgary last year, posting 13 goals and 36 points in 65 games.Nylander missed the final 11 games of the season with a knee injury that required major reconstructive surgery in May. He missed six other games as a healthy scratch.Nylander&rsquo;s agent, Neil Abbott, said his client&rsquo;s recovery was on schedule and he should be able to resume playing in October or November, but he does not believe Nylander is a good fit in the Flames&rsquo; organization.&ldquo;His preference would be a trade from Calgary,&rdquo; Abbott told the Calgary Herald. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t think he fit in the big picture before he got hurt and we don&rsquo;t think he fits into the big picture now. That would be our preference. You never say never and I don&rsquo;t know what will happen, but he is a Group II restricted free agent, so we&rsquo;ll see how it goes.&rdquo;The crux of the newest conflict stems from the qualifying contract offer made to Nylander, who earned $700,000 (U.S.) last season. Under the collective bargaining agreement, teams are obliged to offer restricted free agents making less than the NHL average salary a 10-per-cent raise. However, there is also a provision in the collective bargaining agreement that permitted the Flames to insert a two-way clause in their offer to Nylander because he did not play 180 NHL games over the past three seasons. Accordingly, the Flames&rsquo; offer called for an NHL salary of $775,000 (U.S.), but a minor league salary of only $40,000.In June, the Flames approached Nylander to see if he would consider signing a one-year contract for less than his qualifying offer. They were flatly rejected.&ldquo;All this does is force them to negotiate with us,&rdquo; said Flames&rsquo; GM Al Coates. Coates indicated he had no immediate plans to act on Abbott&rsquo;s request and expects Nylander to play an integral part on the team next season.&ldquo;I personally like Nylander and his offensive ability,&rdquo; Coates said. &ldquo;Given the fact we were able, under the by laws, to qualify him with a two-way contract doesn&rsquo;t mean we think he would clear waivers to be sent to the minors. We&rsquo;re just taking advantage of our rights.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Phil Housley is back in town after the Flames picked him up off waivers from Washington July 21. Housley, 34, played two seasons in Calgary (1994-95 and 1995-96)&hellip; The Flames completed a minor trade, acquiring defenseman David Cooper, the 11th player chosen overall in the 1992 entry draft, in a deal with Toronto for right winger Ladislav Kohn. Cooper played nine games in Toronto last season, contributing three assists, but added 19 goals and 42 points in 60 games for St. John&rsquo;s of the American League. The 6-foot-2, 204-pound Cooper likely will challenge Chris O&rsquo;Sullivan for a place on the NHL roster. &ldquo;It puts another young player with some offensive upside into our system,&rdquo; said GM Al Coates&hellip; Right winger Theo Fleury turned 30 on June 29 and said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not big on birthdays.&rdquo; He should be, though. The timing of his birth-day-a day before the league&rsquo;s deadline for qualifying offers-makes him an unrestricted free agent next summer. one year earlier than if he&rsquo;d been bom July 2. &#9632;

f0016-04

Two-way clause in contract offer cause of Nylander’s trade wishes

<div class="byline">By Steve Polltl</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02952/6901802-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="324" height="439"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ron Francis</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011257/6901809-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="186" height="183"></div>If you like irony, you can&rsquo;t help but like this.Ron Francis was traded eight years ago from the Hartford Whalers in what&rsquo;s regarded as one of the worst deals in NHL history. Following the trade, in which he and defensemen Ulf Samuelsson and Grant Jennings went to the Pittsburgh Penguins for center John Cullen, defenseman Zarley Zalapski and right winger Jeff Parker, the Whalers lost in the first round of the playoffs two consecutive years, then missed them altogether for the &rsquo; next six. The Penguins, meanwhile; won back-to-back Stanley Cups.Now, after signing with the Carolina Hurricanes as an unrestricted free agent July 13, Francis becomes the man responsible for putting the Carolina Hurricanes back into the post-season, for putting an end to the chaos his departure-and the departure of the team from the city where he made his name-helped create.The deal Francis signed covers four years and is worth $20.8 million. The 17-year NHL veteran, who is now 35, will be 39 in the final year of his contract.&ldquo;I feel he still has a lot of hockey in him and he&rsquo;s a premium player in this league,&rdquo; said Hurricanes&rsquo; GM Jim Rutherford of his new center. &ldquo;Now, can that go for four or five years? Nobody knows. But I feel very strongly it&rsquo;s going to go for two or three years.&rdquo;The Hurricanes also signed free agent defenseman Al lafrate to a one-year, incentive-based deal. He will have a base salary of $300,000, but if he plays a full season he could make up to $3 million.The fourth year was a big selling point for Francis. Other suitors, including the Buffalo Sabres, were willing to pay the $5-million salary, but weren&rsquo;t willing to go a fourth season.So far, there has been no noticeable drop-off in Francis&rsquo; game. He had 87 points last season on 25 goals and 62 assists, tied for fifth in the league.&ldquo;My game isn&rsquo;t based on my skating speed or my strength,&rdquo; Francis said. &ldquo;My strongest asset is my mind and my ability to read and react to what is taking place. Unless I lose my mind, I still think I&rsquo;m able to play a little bit longer.&rdquo; Francis owns just about every significant record in Whalers&rsquo; history.. Drafted fourth overall in 1981, he became &ldquo;Ronnie Franchise&rdquo; during the I 10 seasons he played in Connecticut.The &rsquo;Canes expect him to be a spokesman for their team as well.&ldquo;Ron is willing to get out into the community and be part of it,&rdquo; Rutherford said. &ldquo;That just adds to everything else.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Over 35 does not mean over the hill in the NHL. Last season, there were 48 players in the NHL bom in 1963 or earlier. Of them, only Rangers center Wayne Gretzky, 37, scored more points than new Carolina center Ron Francis&hellip; Francis&rsquo; big-dollar contract could have a big impact on the rest of Carolina&rsquo;s lineup. At the end of next season, most of the team&rsquo;s top players including centers Keith Primeau and Jeff O&rsquo;Neill, right wingers Sami Kapanen. Nelson Emerson and Ray Sheppard and goalie Trevor Kidd will need new contracts. Suffice to say looking that far into the future is not one of GM Jim Rutherford&rsquo;s favorite pastimes. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to think about that,&rdquo; Rutherford said&hellip; Defenseman Al lafrate played minor hockey in the Compuware organization, owned by Hurricanes&rsquo; owner Peter Karmanos&hellip;lafrate has played in just 59 regular season games over the past four seasons because of injuries, including serious knee problems. &#9632;

f0017-02

Homecoming of sorts for Francis as ’Canes land big-ticket center

<div class="byline">By Tim Sassone</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-04504/6901840-1-eng-US/f0017-042.jpg" title="f0017-04" width="327" height="445"><figcaption class="caption-body">Paul Coffey</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03687/6901847-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="187" height="186"></div>Paul Coffey might not skate like the wind anymore, but the 37-year-old defenseman still thinks he has plenty to offer the Chicago Blackhawks.&ldquo;I know I&rsquo;ve got a lot of gas left in the tank,&rdquo; said Coffey, acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers June 27 for a fifth-round draft pick in 1999. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m looking forward to getting back on track here.&rdquo;The Hawks have big plans for Coffey, who is coming off two sub-par seasons. He is expected to help revive one of the NHL&rsquo;s poorest power plays and supply leadership to a club that needs it in the worst way.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think our young guys could have two better players to learn from than Coffey and (Doug) Gilmour,&rdquo; said Hawks&rsquo; GM Bob Murray. Coffey had just two goals and 27 assists in 57 games for the Flyers and was scratched from all five of Philadelphia&rsquo;s playoff games against the Buffalo Sabres.Coffey does feel the need to prove he isn&rsquo;t finished as one of the game&rsquo;s premier rushing defensemen-but only to himself.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve talked to people and they&rsquo;ve said, &rsquo;You don&rsquo;t have anything to prove,&rsquo; but, yes, I do,&rdquo; Coffey said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like the way I&rsquo;ve played the last couple years. I&rsquo;ve gotten stale and stagnant. I love the game and the last couple years have been hard. That&rsquo;s why I&rsquo;m excited about this, just for myself.&rdquo;Coffey doesn&rsquo;t want to analyze just what went wrong for him in Philadelphia.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t have a clue what happened there and I&rsquo;ve tried not to dissect it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I know theftbrand of hockey, dump it in and chase it, didn&rsquo;t fit my style. There wasn&rsquo;t a lot of puck movement there. But that&rsquo;s all water under the bridge now. I&rsquo;m just overjoyed to be coming to Chicago. I know I&rsquo;ve got a lot of good hockey left in me.&rdquo;The Hawks are banking an estimated $5 million over the next two seasons that Coffey is right. The Flyers will pick up $ 1 million of that tab.&ldquo;His age doesn&rsquo;t bother me,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;He didn&rsquo;t play last year. They sat him out. The year before that, I thought he played well.&rdquo;Coach Dirk Graham said he likely won&rsquo;t play his pair of former Norris Trophy winners, Coffey and captain Chris Chelios. together except on the power play.Murray thinks Coffey will be helped playing in the more offense-oriented Western Conference, although the NHL&rsquo;s highest scoring defenseman (1,473 points) doesn&rsquo;t feel there&rsquo;s any difference.&ldquo;To me, hockey is hockey,&rdquo; Coffey said. &ldquo;I played five years in Pittsburgh and did fine.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: The Hawks dealt defenseman Michal Sykora to Tampa Bay July 17 for goalie Mark Fitzpatrick and a draft pick. Immediately there was speculation GM Bob Murray had another trade in mind that involved one of his goalies-Fitzpatrick, Jeff Hackett or Chris Terreri&hellip;Sykora became the ninth Hawk to leave the club since the season ended. The others are forwards Sergei Krivokrasov. James Black. Dmitri Nabokov. Brent Sutter, Kevin Miller and Greg Johnson and defensemen Gary Suter and Jay More&hellip;Center Jeff Shantz filed for arbitration, the only Hawk eligible to do so&hellip;Right winger Eric Daze, a restricted free agent who had a disappointing season last year with 31 goals and 42 points in 80 games, was looking for a new agent after parting company with Gilles Lupien&hellip;Bruce Cassidy, a first round draft choice of the Hawks (18th overall) in 1983, was named coach of Chicago&rsquo;s International League affiliate in In-dianapolis. &#9632;

f0017-04

Coffey assures fleet form of old will make return in Windy City

<div class="byline">By Adrian Oaten</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02955/6901878-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="327" height="442"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pierre Lacroix</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011289/6901885-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="189" height="189"></div>Colorado Avalanche GM Pierre Lacroix says his team will go &ldquo;in a new direction&rdquo; in certain areas of personnel for the 1998-99 season.His critics have a word for that direction: cheap.The Avs&rsquo; decision to make no effort to re-sign veteran defenseman Uwe Krupp and, to a lesser extent, forward Tom Fitzgerald, has left some fans feeling short-changed this off-season.Krupp was a popular member of the team who led the Avs in plus-minus last season at plus-21. He had been a mainstay of the blueline corps since being dealt to the Quebec Nordiques in an off-season trade with the New York Islanders on entry draft day in June, 1994.But after making a token offer late in the season, Lacroix decided to abandon pursuit of Krupp when he became an unrestricted free agent July 1. Krupp went on to sign a four-year, $16.4-million contract with Colorado&rsquo;s arch-rival, the Detroit Red Wings.Seeing Krupp in a Wings&rsquo; sweater was too much for some Avs&rsquo; fans. According to the Avalanche ticket office, the team received more than a dozen cancellations of season tickets the day Krupp signed with the Wings.Lacroix defended the decision to let Krupp go by pointing to emerging young defensemen such as Wade Belak and Eric Messier.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to give them a chance to play,&rdquo; Lacroix said.Coincidentally, Belak was drafted by Quebec with the 12th overall selection in 1994-a pick also acquired from the Islanders that day as part of the Krupp deal.Messier was signed as a free agent in 1996 and impressed the club with his progress. He played 62 games in Colorado last season, but figures to take on a bigger role and more ice time in 1997-98.The Avs have opened their pocketbooks a little this summer. They re-signed backup goaltender Craig Billington and grinding forward Rene Corbet to two-year contracts.But Lacroix and Ascent Entertainment have taken heat, and not just from the 100-plus degree Denver days this summer.Avalanche fans were upset at Krupp&rsquo;s and Fitzgerald&rsquo;s departures, along with the fact Western rivals such as Detroit, the Dallas Stars (right winger Brett Hull), Chicago Black hawks (center Doug Gilmour) and Toronto Maple Leafs (Curtis Joseph) all spent considerable money in the free agent market to get better while the Avalanche sat on the sidelines.NOTEBOOK: Goalie Craig Billington, signed two years ago, was supposed to be little more than a stopgap before the Avs could turn the backup reins over to prospect Marc Denis, but Billington&rsquo;s sticking around longer than some people thought. Billington, who had a sparkling .923 save percentage in 17 games last season, will receive $650,000 next season and $850,000 in 1999-2000 on his two-year contract&hellip; Left winger Rene Corbet. 25, gets $675,000 next season and $750,000 the year after. Corbet had 16 goals and 28 points in 68 games for the Avs last season&hellip;The Pepsi Center, scheduled to open for the 1999-2000 season, was about one-quarter complete through mid-July&hellip;Goalie Patrick Roy reportedly mended old wounds with his former Montreal coach Mario Tremblay by shaking hands and playing nine holes of golf in Quebec in July. Roy&rsquo;s behind-the-bench blow-up with Tremblay after being pulled from a game against Detroit precipitated Roy&rsquo;s trade to Colorado in December, 1995. &#9632;

f0018-02

Lacroix looks to Messier, Belak to fill hole left by Krupp’s exit

<div class="byline">By Mike Heika</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-04417/6901916-1-eng-US/f0018-042.jpg" title="f0018-04" width="327" height="442"><figcaption class="caption-body">Aaron Gavey</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03663/6901923-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="186" height="187"></div>While the Dallas Stars believe their free agent signing of Brett Hull takes care of a big hole in the offense, it became clear just days later that the Stars aren&rsquo;t through tweaking the lineup.In the days that followed, the Stars also traded winger Bob Bassen to the Calgary Flames for center Aaron Gavey; acquired center Tony Hrkac from the Nashville Predators for future considerations; picked up minor league help in the form of Kelly Fairchild and Greg Leeb; finally signed 1996 draft pick Jon Sim; and began poking around for an enforcer.The moves give the Stars a few more players with offensive skills, just in case some of the big guns get hurt, and also help get more speed into the lineup.By trading Bassen, the Stars have opened up a left wing spot for Jamie Wright, Jason Botterill or a yet-to-be-found enforcer.By acquiring Gavey, they get a young center who can spell Guy Carbonneau or Brian Skrud-land this season and work himself in as a regular next season.By acquiring Sim, Leeb and Fairchild, the Stars are helping their International League affiliate in Kalamazoo and are also providing some depth in case of injuries.Hrkac might actually start the season centering Dallas&rsquo; No. 2 line. Joe Nieuwendyk continues to recover quickly from knee surgery, but the team likely will use extra care in working him back into the lineup. The original prognosis for return from having both anterior cruciate ligaments replaced was six months, putting him back sometime in November.Wright, 22, gave the Stars a new dimension in the playoffs: speed. Even so, he might find him-self battling with a fighter for a roster spot. The loss of Bassen continues to erode the team&rsquo;s toughness and GM Bob Gainey has said the need to find an enforcer has been a topic of conversation among management.&ldquo;We realize that an argument can be made that the amount of injuries that we suffered last season could be related to our lack of a player in that mold,&rdquo; Gainey said. &ldquo;And that&rsquo;s something we ourselves have discussed.&rdquo;Right winger Brent Severyn, who played last season for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, is available as an unrestricted free agent. The Stars tried to sign restricted free agent defenseman Sean Gagnon, but the Phoenix Coyotes matched their offer. Ideally, whomever Gainey does bring in will fit into coach Ken Hitchcock&rsquo;s plan of playing his fourth liners 10 minutes a game.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman Sergei Zubov was cleared of all assault charges in a June incident in which he was arrested following an argument with his wife. The grand jury in Dallas County found insufficient evidence to carry on with the case&hellip;In acquiring center Tony Hrkac. the Stars ended a strange circle for the veteran center. The Stars last season acquired Hrkac to play for Michigan of the International League and then brought him up as a replacement for injured centers Joe Nieuwendyk and Mike Modano. When both those players were healthy, Hrkac was waived and picked up by Edmonton, where he had 19 points in 36 games. He then was picked up in the off-season by Pittsburgh and Nashville-neither of whom he played for-before finally ending up back with the Stars&hellip;There was no progress reported on contract talks for the team&rsquo;s restricted free agents: defensemen Darry l Sydor and Richard Matvichuk, right winger Jamie Langenbrunner and goalie Roman Turek. &#9632;

f0018-04

Skill, speed added in tinkering; tough guy could be next on list

<div class="byline">By Cynthia Lambert</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-011076/6901954-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="190" height="187"></div>When the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; season ended, coach Scotty Bowman drank it up. With champagne being sprayed on him by little-used defenseman Aaron Ward, Bowman joked about how Ward might not be back for this season, how Ward&rsquo;s heart might not be in it.Little did Bowman know at the time that his own stay in Detroit might be cut short because his own heart might not be strong enough to return.While undergoing a complete physical in the second week of July, Bowman learned he had a partially obstructed right coronary artery. He underwent angioplasty surgery at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Mich., July 16. Bowman had a 70 per-cent blockage and had wire mesh inserted to keep the artery open.Bowman underwent the complete physical in part because of the recent death of his brother, Jack, who worked as a scout for the Buffalo Sabres. Bowman said at the time that he would not return for the final year of his coaching contract unless his health was 100 percent.But following the surgery. Dr. William O&rsquo;Neill of Beaumont Hospital said Bowman&rsquo;s prognosis for a full recovery is &ldquo;excellent.&rdquo;Wings&rsquo; GM Ken Holland said he would wait as long as necessary for Bowman to make his decision on whether or not to return.&ldquo;Scotty is our coach and we want him to remain as our coach,&rdquo; Holland said. &ldquo;From my end of things, I&rsquo;m pre pared to wait as long as possible to get Scotty back behind our bench this season. I want to make sure Scotty has a medical and gets a clean bill of health. However long that process takes, I&rsquo;ll wait.&rdquo;Once Bowman recovers from the angioplasty, he must undergo knee replacement surgery, which had been in the works since the beginning of July. He will be out at least two months recovering from that surgery, meaning he will miss most of training camp at minimum.NOTEBOOK: The Wings shored up their defense July 6 with the signing of unrestricted free agent Uwe Krupp to a four-year contract worth $4.1 million each season, and a notrade clause for the first three seasons. &ldquo;I wanted to come here,&rdquo; said Krupp, 33. Originally drafted by Scotty Bowman when he was with Buffalo, Krupp has not forgotten Bowman or his influence on his life. &ldquo;This guy gave me a chance to have a career in the NHL. You tell me what kind of impact he has had on me. I can&rsquo;t say enough about him."&hellip;The Wings reacquired forward Doug Brown from Nashville July 14 by giving up prospect Petr Sykora and two draft picks. &#9632;

f0020-01

GM Holland will wait as long as necessary for Bowman

<div class="byline">By Dan Barnes</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02725/6901985-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="187" height="184"></div>In the end, despite hopes of retaining their No. 1 goalie of the past three seasons, the Edmonton Oilers weren&rsquo;t even close. As a result, their quality in the crease is a huge concern.Curtis Joseph signed an incredible four-year, $24 million (U.S.) deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs July 15 and the Oilers, who dropped out of the bidding for the unrestricted free agent after offering him $4 million (U.S.) per season, were left with Eric Fichaud, Tim Thomas, Steve Passmore and Mike Minard on the depth chart.Bob Essensa and J.F. Labbe also hit the unrestricted market July 1. Essensa&rsquo;s one-year contract expired and the Oilers chose not to pick up the $500,000 (U.S.) one-way option year on a contract for Labbe, who eventually signed with the New York Rangers.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll be able to find another goaltender,&rdquo; said GM Glen Sather. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to have to, sooner or later, or let these kids play. We&rsquo;ll either find another one or Fichaud will play.&rdquo;And they will get over the loss of Joseph, one of the team&rsquo;s best players.&ldquo;You can get over anything,&rdquo; Sather said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a great guy. I hate to see him go, but there&rsquo;s not much we can do.&rdquo;Sources said Sather was not sold on the prospect of bringing Essensa back for a third season as an Oiler. It seems he may be more focussed on Arturs Irbe, another unrestricted free agent who played last year with the Vancouver Canucks. But Essensa hadn&rsquo;t given up the thought of returning to Edmonton: &ldquo;I said all along I&rsquo;d like to come back no matter what happened with Curtis,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We knew it would be tough to get him back. It&rsquo;s still my first choice.&rdquo;Irbe&rsquo;s agent, Paul Theofanous, said a conversation with Sather indicated an interest in his chent. He believes Irbe would be happy in Edmonton, even if he had to share the crease with Fichaud, who won&rsquo;t be counted on to play anywhere near the 70-plus games the Oilers have squeezed out of former No. 1 men Joseph, Bill Ranford and Grant Fuhr.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a good team and a competitive one,&rdquo; Theofanous said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s all (Irbe) is about. The only thing on his mind is winning a Stanley Cup.&rdquo;The only sure thing is the Oilers are farther from that goal after losing Joseph than they were before it happened.NOTEBOOK: Two small steps forward, one giant step back. That was the kind of day the Oilers had July 15, signing 1997 first round pick Michel Riesen and second-time Oiler center Josef Beranek hard on the heels of losing free agent goalie Curtis Joseph to Toronto. Riesen, a 19-year-old right winger, rejected an offer to play in Switzerland to sign a three-year deal with the Oilers. In 32 games with Davos last season, he had 16 goals and 25 points. Beranek, 28, had an out in his contract with Vsetin in the Czech Republic, but had to sign by July 15 in order for the Oilers to avoid possible compensation payments to Vsetin. He got a one-year deal with Edmonton for $650,000 (U.S.) plus a team option on the second year at $700,000 (U.S.)&hellip; The Oilers exercised their option to retain defenseman Drake Berehowsky. He&rsquo;ll earn $500,000 this season. &#9632;

f0020-02

Free agent Irbe possibility to bolster Fichaud in goal

<div class="byline">By Dave Joseph</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-03488/6902016-1-eng-US/f0020-032.jpg" title="f0020-03" width="190" height="186"></div>The Florida Panthers offered Mike Richter $31 million reasons to come to South Florida. But in the end, not the sun, the sand, or Disney World could lure Richter from the Big Apple.In an attempt to resolve their goaltending questions, the Panthers offered Richter a five-year contract (with an option year) worth approximately $31 million. The Panthers were so certain Richter would accept the contract they had plane reservations for Richter and his wife to fly in for the signing, and GM Bryan Murray hopped a jet to fly back to Florida from his summer home in Canada. But when Richter decided to remain with the Rangers, it left the Panthers still groping for a goalie to fill their needs.Murray said once Richter re-signed with the Rangers and Curtis Joseph signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs, he had preliminary discussions with Leaf officials about Felix Potvin and agent Mike Liut about free agent Sean Burke. But the Panthers expressed concern about some injury problems Burke has had over the last few years.As for Potvin, Murray was told it would take Ed Jovanovski or Robert Svehla, as well as a prospect, to get the 27-year-old goalie.&ldquo;But there&rsquo;s still a couple of goaltenders out there,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;And, at the moment, we still have Kirk (McLean) and Kevin (Weekes).&rdquo;The veteran McLean, acquired late last season from the Carolina Hurricanes, was 4-2-1 with the Panthers last season with a 3.25 goals-against average. And while Weekes, 23, is a promising talent, he has yet to win a game in the NHL, going 0-5-1 last season with a 3.96 GAA.&ldquo;Kirk came in and the guy played very well at the end of the year,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;If we come (to camp) and start with him, I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s anything wrong with that. As for Kevin&hellip;we know he&rsquo;s a very good athlete and the games he played at the end of last year are going to help him tremendously. He has high expectations and that&rsquo;s one of things I like about him. But the question with any young goalie is whether he&rsquo;s ready, whether he has seen enough NHL games.&rdquo;Murray made it clear, however, Weekes and McLean will see some competition come the start of training camp.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s a couple of goaltenders still out there,&rdquo; Murray declared. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re still looking for an NHL goalie.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Restricted free agent left winger Ray Whitney is headed toward arbitration. Whitney, who earned $300,000 last season, had career highs in goals (32), assists (33) and points (65) after being claimed off waivers by the Panthers early in the season. Whitney, seeking approximately $2 million, turned down an offer of $1.2 million&hellip;GM Bryan Murray has high hopes for fifth-round draft pick, defenseman Jaroslav Spaeek. The 5-foot-ll, 198-pounder played for Faijestad in the Swedish League last season and logged lots of time for the Czech gold medal team at the Nagano Winter Olympics. &ldquo;He moves the puck well and we believe he can be one of those guys to help us,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hoping he can come in and play right away&rsquo;&ldquo;. &hellip;The Panthers named Slava Lener and Bill Smith assistant coaches July 23. &#9632;

f0020-03

Come fall, McLean, Weekes will have company in crease

<div class="byline">By Lonnie White</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01845/6902047-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="186" height="184"></div>The Los Angeles Kings made upgrading their defense a priority during the off-season. No less an authority than Kings&rsquo; coach Larry Robinson, himself one of the all-time greats, believes they&rsquo;ve already accomplished that goal.With the addition of Steve Duchesne and Doug Bodger, who were acquired via free agency and trade respectively, to go along with Norris Trophy winner Rob Blake, Robinson believes the Kings now have one of the league&rsquo;s elite group of defensemen.&ldquo;If we do not have the best then we have one of the best corps (of defensemen) in the NHL.&rdquo; said Robinson, who also has solid rearguards Mattias Norstrom, Aki Berg, Sean O&rsquo;Donnell. Philippe Boucher, Doug Zmolek and Garry Galley on the roster.&ldquo;Teams better be ready because you&rsquo;re not going to score a lot of goals on us next season.&rdquo;For Duchesne, who began his NHL career with the Kings, returning to Los Angeles to play under Robinson was an easy decision after playing last season with the St. Louis Blues, which swept the Kings in the first round of last season&rsquo;s playoffs.&ldquo;The reason why I wanted to come back was because I really like the team,&rdquo; said Duchesne, who signed a three-year deal with a fourth-year player option worth $3.75 million a season. &ldquo;(The Kings) are a big team&hellip;that works hard and plays with the style that Larry Robinson wants.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: For the second consecutive year, the Kings have reached an agreement with Long Beach of the International League and will maintain a total of six players there for the 1998-99 season. &ldquo;It is really a win-win situation for both organizations, with the Kings easily monitoring the progress of our players because of the close proximity between Los Angeles and Long Beach,&rdquo; said GM Dave Taylor. &ldquo;Also, I feel the Kings need a strong presence in the IHL and this alliance also works towards our commitment of building a larger hockey fan base in Southern California.&rdquo; The Kings will also have a minor league affiliation with Springfield of the American League&hellip;Right winger Dan Bylsma, 27, had successful surgery to repair a broken bone in his foot. &#9632;

f0021-01

Coach likes what he sees in revamped defense corps

<div class="byline">By Herb Zurkowsky</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-03270/6902078-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="618" height="970"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mark Recchi</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02471/6902085-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="187" height="183"></div>Goaltender Felix Potvin might yet wind up in a Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; uniform. But chances are it won&rsquo;t be at the expense of Mark Recchi.The Canadiens have one fewer goalie on their roster following the retirement of Andy Moog in late June. Although Montreal GM Rejean Houle indicated he was prepared to sink or swim with the tandem of Jocelyn Thibault and Jose Theodore, it has become apparent Montreal has inquired about Potvin.Houle, it should be noted, made a similar statement last summer about Thibault and Theodore, only to sign Moog to a two-year contract in midJuly.According to reports out of Toronto, the Canadiens were going to trade right winger Recchi, their leading scorer last season, to the Maple Leafs for Potvin. Toronto would then ship Recchi and Mats Sundin to the Philadelphia Flyers for Eric Lindros. The proposed threeway deal was denied by each organization.Houle, who spent a good part of July on vacation, reiterated his desire to resign as many of the Canadiens&rsquo; restricted free agents as possible. He said, once again, that Recchi, who scored 32 goals and 74 points in 82 games, is at the top of his list.Recchi, who earned $2.75 million U.S. last season, is eligible for arbitration and could easily see his contract skyrocket into the $5-million or $6-mil-lion range. That had led to speculation the Canadiens might dump his salary.NOTEBOOK: The Canadiens suddenly appear thin at center following the signing by Philadelphia on July 6 of unrestricted free agent Marc Bureau. Montreal was unwilling to pay the checking specialist $1 million (U.S.) per season and also was reluctant to give him a multi-year contract. While Bureau is coming off a career-best season in which he scored 13 goals, there was concern about his age, 32, and the fact he missed nearly half the 1996-97 season with a serious knee injury&hellip;Without Bureau, the Canadiens enter training camp with only two natural centers, Vincent Damphousse and Saku Koivu, although several others, including left wingers Shayne Corson and Scott Thornton and right winger Patrick Poulin, have occasionally played the position. &#9632;

f0021-03

Potvin might still be a Hab

<div class="byline">By Jetf Legwold</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-04193/6902116-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="191" height="184"></div>It was simple math. Two players expressed reservations about becoming Nashville Predators and two players were quickly traded away after they made those reservations known.&ldquo;The management of the Predators does not want players who don&rsquo;t want to be here.&rdquo; said GM David Poile. &ldquo;And I don&rsquo;t think the fans do either.&rdquo;Veteran center Tony Hrkac was the first. Hrkac wanted assurances he would play at the NHL level next season and not the team&rsquo;s International League affiliate in Milwaukee. The Predators were unwilling to give him those assurances, so they shipped him off to the Dallas Stars.The second was veteran winger Doug Brown. He had been held up by head coach Barry Trotz as the model player for the fledgling franchise, but began to express his desire to not come to Nashville to Poile as soon as the team selected him in the expansion draft.Brown has four children in school, is renovating his house and did not wish to uproot his family. Brown called it &ldquo;an arranged marriage.&rdquo;As a result, Poile dealt Brown back to the Detroit Red Wings for 19-year-old Petr Sykora, a third round pick in 1999 and another pick in either the 1999 or 2000 draft.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s difficult enough to start a team, we need people who want to do it,&rdquo; Trotz said. &ldquo;We all have to want to be here if it&rsquo;s going to work.&rdquo;&ldquo;Doug&rsquo;s heart was just was not in it,&rdquo; Poile said. &ldquo;I have no doubt he would have been a professional and played hard, but we want people who want to be here. We had two players who said they really didn&rsquo;t want to be here and those two players are now someplace else.&rdquo;Brown&rsquo;s 19 goals last season had been the most by any player on the roster. His offense will be certainly missed, but the team has made it clear it will not risk any unnecessary waves while putting together its team.NOTEBOOK: The Predators were quick to sign 19-year-old center Petr Sykora, acquired in the trade for Doug Brown. Sykora got a three-year deal that included a $225,000 signing bonus and will pay him $350,000 in 1998-99, $375,000 in 1999-2000 and $400,000 in 2000-2001 should he make the Predators roster in those years&hellip; Former Florida and Colorado center Tom Fitzgerald was immediately named the team&rsquo;s first captain when he signed a contract July 6. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been there,&rdquo; Fitzgerald said of the expansion process. &ldquo;I think 1 know a lot of what it takes and 1 feel 1 can supply that to this team."&hellip; Mitch Korn was hired as goaltending coach July 23. He was formerly goalie coach for Buffalo. &#9632;

f0021-04

Quick hello, goodbye for unhappy duo

<div class="byline">By Rich Chare</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02673/6902147-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="325" height="438"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bobby Holik</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01975/6902154-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="185" height="180"></div>There&rsquo;s gold in them Wyoming hills and it belongs to Bobby Holik.Unwilling to approach the $18 million it would have taken to keep Doug Gilmour, the New Jersey Devils instead sent a chunk of their unspent &rsquo;Killer Kash&rsquo; to Holik&rsquo;s summer home in Jackson Hole, Wy" to re-sign him with a three-year contract worth $7.6 million.Holik, who was happy to avoid salary arbitration or a possible training camp holdout, said he would not take for granted that he became the team&rsquo;s No. 1 center just because he is making more money."I don&rsquo;t assume anything. I am what I am. When we had Doug Gilmour, we did have a No. 1 center. In years past, we didn&rsquo;t,&rdquo; Holik said.&ldquo;Only Robbie (Ftorek) can answer whether I&rsquo;ll be the first-line center. I think he&rsquo;ll try to keep the same system going and I can only do what I can do.&rdquo;Now 27 and entering his seventh season in New Jersey after spending his first two years with the Hartford Whalers, Holik has steadily improved as a productive two-way forward. After helping the Devils win the Stanley Cup in 1995 by centering the Crash Line with Randy McKay and Mike Peluso, Holik sat out training camp in 1996 and demanded an expanded role from former coach Jacques Lemaire.He backed up his request by scoring 23 goals in 1996-97 and led the Devils with 29 goals and 65 points last season. Holik missed the 30-goal plateau when he failed to put the puck in the net in his final 16 regular season games.His season ended on a sour note when he sat out the final playoff game against the Ottawa Senators after suffering food poisoning at a team meal the previous night.GM Lou Lamoriello praised Holik for being a &ldquo;team player&rdquo; who backed up his past demands with results on the ice. He said Holik is one of five centers on the depth chart, including Brendan Morrison, Petr Sykora, Denis Pederson and Bobby Carpenter. Barring a rash of injuries or a flop by Morrison in camp, Jason Arnott will not be shifted from right wing to center.Holik, who credited Lemaire for making him &ldquo;the player I am,&rdquo; would not make predictions of surpassing the 30-goal plateau for the upcoming season.&ldquo;I never set goals like that,&rdquo; he said.&ldquo;Looking at the last year or two and the way I&rsquo;ve improved, yes. But who knows what is going to happen?&ldquo;If I play my best, the numbers will be good. I know the team will rely on me offensively.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Owner John McMullen and GM Lou Lamoriello remained adamant that the Devils will not share a proposed new arena in Newark, N.J. with the National Basketball Association&rsquo;s New Jersey Nets. Their plans were to remain in Continental Airlines Arena until a hockey arena is built in Hoboken, N.J&hellip;Left winger Dave Andreychuk asked for his option papers and will play out his contract this season at $2.5 million&hellip;Lamoriello inquired about bringing goalie Craig Billington back to New Jersey as Martin Brodeur&rsquo;s backup, but Billington re-signed with Colorado. Free agent Mike Buzak was signed to replace veteran Peter Sidorkiewicz, who planned to retire&hellip;The team&rsquo;s final offer to left winger Steve Thomas was $3.5 million over two years. Thomas signed with Toronto for $5 million over two years&hellip;The Devils&rsquo; last proposal to center Doug Gilmour was three years at $12 million. Gilmour wound up getting $18 million over three years from Chicago. &#9632;

f0022-02

Holik picks up some Gilmour cash in hones he’ll nick up points, too

<div class="byline">By Rick Carplniello</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-04320/6902185-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="328" height="438"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brian Leetch</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03474/6902192-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="186" height="182"></div>Throughout goalie Mike Richter s sometimes ugly foray into unrestrict-ed free agency, he received support and advice from his close friend and career-long New York Rangers&rsquo; teammate Brian Leetch.And once Richter signed his four-year, $21.8-million contract, it became Leetch&rsquo;s turn to cash in.Leetch will surely demand more money now-and perhaps twice as much if he has a bounce-back year and becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer. That&rsquo;s why the Rangers hope to sign him to a new contract before the 1998-99 season even begins.Leetch, scheduled to earn $3.4 million this season, insists Richter&rsquo;s signing had no bearing on his decision to sign a new long-term contract himself, but it sure didn&rsquo;t hurt the chances of his inking a long-term pact in New York. Leetch and agent Jay Grossman have begun preliminary talks with the Rangers and Leetch also wants to get it done in the summer.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s more of a distraction during the season,&rdquo; Leetch said. &ldquo;During the summer, that&rsquo;s all you have to worry about. In the season you have to concentrate on playing and there&rsquo;s a lot more to talk about than your contract or being traded. There&rsquo;s a lot you don&rsquo;t want to have to deal with during the season. But if we make it through to (next) summer, I think it will be a little different situation for me than it was for Mike. The goaltenders were a little limited.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve made that clear on numerous occasions, where I&rsquo;d love to be. If I could play my whole career here, that would be ideal. But I&rsquo;ll take the upcoming negotiation as the first step.&rdquo;Then he said the dangerous words about becoming an unrestricted free agent: &ldquo;Once you get to (next) summer, you&rsquo;ve made it that far, you might as well see what happens.&rdquo;If negotiations don&rsquo;t go well early, the Rangers may have to trade Leetch rather than risk losing the superstar defenseman for nothing.&ldquo;They&rsquo;re genuine (concerns),&rdquo; said Rangers&rsquo; president-GM Neil Smith. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve talked to Brian and his agent a number of times. All I can say is we&rsquo;re a year away from free agency and I know you&rsquo;ve heard that before. But we&rsquo;re showing a genuine desire to have Brian stay here the rest of his career.&rdquo;If Leetch doesn&rsquo;t sign early, he&rsquo;ll have lots of incentive to rebound from a tough 1997-98 season. The two-time Norris Trophy winner finished ninth among defensemen in scoring with 17 goals and 50 points in 76 games and posted an un-Leetch-like minus-36.NOTEBOOK: The Rangers signed unrestricted free agent right winger John MacLean to a three-year, $7.2-million deal July 9. MacLean, who will turn 34 in November, had 16 goals and 43 points in 77 games for New Jersey and San Jose last season&hellip;Goalie Mike Richter re-signed with New York despite not getting the no-trade clause he sought. He nearly ended up a Florida Panther. On the night he agreed to terms with the Rangers, he had a flight scheduled to Miami, where he was close to signing a six-year back-loaded contract&hellip;The Rangers reached a settlement on the remaining contract of former coach Colin Campbell, who July 20 became the NHL&rsquo;s senior vice-president and director of hockey operations. Campbell, fired Feb. 18, received about $1.4 million of the $1.65 million remaining on his three-year contract&hellip; The Rangers signed minor league goalie Jean-Francois Labbe. He posted a 24-17-11 record and a 2.85 goals-against average last year for Hamilton of the American League. &#9632;

f0022-04

Leetch relieved by Richter’s deal, but own touah dealinq yet to come

<div class="byline">By Bruce Garrioch</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02555/6902254-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="180" height="176"></div>The Ottawa Senators won&rsquo;t be doing any shopping on the NHL&rsquo;s free agent market this summer.Instead, newly appointed GM Rick Dudley is going to concentrate his efforts on signing players already with the organization.With the Canadian dollar falling and a mandate from above to keep salaries modest on what is already one of the lowest payrolls in the league, Dudley can&rsquo;t afford to get involved in bidding wars for high-priced bodies.&ldquo;Our priority is to get the people that we&rsquo;ve already got in place,&rdquo; Dudley said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s an ongoing process. I&rsquo;ve talked to (coach) Jacques (Martin) about 20 times and we both feel pretty good about what we have here.&rdquo;With a list of 10 restricted free agents sitting on his desk at the Corel Centre, Dudley must now begin the arduous task of getting those players signed. While most of the players shouldn&rsquo;t be any problem, there could be difficulty in negotiations with wingers Shawn McEachern and Andreas Dackell, center Vaclav Prospal and defenseman Stan Neckar.All will be seeking raises. However, only McEachern had the right to file for arbitration and that gives him strength in negotiations.McEachern, 29, who finished second in team scoring with 24 goals and 48 points, has a hearing scheduled for Aug. 7, but he&rsquo;d like to avoid going through the process.&ldquo;We&rsquo;d like to get a deal done,&rdquo; said McEachern&rsquo;s agent Mark Witken. &ldquo;We weren&rsquo;t happy with the offer they presented, so we decided to go to arbitration. That&rsquo;s where things stand.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Talks have started on a new contract for coach Jacques Martin. GM Rick Dudley met with Martin&rsquo;s agent Rob Campbell July 13 in Toronto. Martin, 45, who has led the Senators to the playoffs the last two years, has one year remaining on a contract which pays him the lowest of any coach in the league at $350,000 (Cdn.) It&rsquo;s believed he is seeking a deal which will pay him $600,000 (U.S.) per season&hellip;Player personnel director Marshall Johnston, who was hired by former GM Pierre Gauthier, could wind up with the expansion Atlanta Thrashers as their chief scout. The talk is Johnston has an out clause in his contract and will be interviewed for the job by Atlanta GM Don Waddell. &#9632;

f0023-02

Housekeeping on GM’S plate

<div class="byline">By Wayne Fish</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01952/6902285-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="184" height="183"></div>John Vanbiesbrouck might turn out to be the best free agent goalie fit for the Philadelphia Flyers, but with a few months to go before the resumption of hockey, area fans and media had time for a little second-guessing.Rather than pursue the higher price tags attached to Mike Richter and Curtis Joseph, the Flyers opted for the 34-year-old Vanbiesbrouck, who came at a far cheaper cost. Vanbiesbrouck agreed to a three-year, $10.75-million deal. Both Richter ($21.8 million) and Joseph ($24 million) will make considerably more over a four-year period with the New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs, respectively.GM Bob Clarke insisted the move was made strictly based on hockey, that Vanbiesbrouck would be best suited playing again for Roger Neilson, his former coach with the Florida Panthers.But the local hockey community didn&rsquo;t immediately buy it. With goaltending viewed as the key missing part of the Flyers&rsquo; puzzle, Clarke&rsquo;s motives have been questioned.At a July 13 news conference to formally introduce Vanbiesbrouck, the goalie was the first to defend himself.&ldquo;Am I a bargain?&rdquo; Vanbiesbrouck smiled. &ldquo;Well, I don&rsquo;t consider myself a coat on a rack. But I looked at free agency a little differently than others. I didn&rsquo;t see it as a cash windfall or &rsquo;win the lottery.&rsquo; I looked at it as trying to get myself in good position to where I want to be, where I can compete on a top level night-in, night-out.&rdquo;Clarke, who said he wanted Vanbiesbrouck all along and made the first move for that reason, was visibly upset when the questioning turned to dollars and sense.&ldquo;John is the second-highest paid player (behind Eric Lindros) in the history of the Flyers,&rdquo; Clarke said. &ldquo;We paid very well for our goaltender.&rdquo;Vanbiesbrouck will get $3.5 million in 1998-99, $3.75 million in 1999-2000 and, in an option year the Flyers control, $3.5 million in 2000-2001. &ldquo;We could have signed the other two guys, but we got the goaltender we wanted,&rdquo; Clarke said.NOTEBOOK: Negotiations on a new contract for center Eric Lindros were scheduled to begin at the end of July. Lindros&rsquo; current deal expires after the 1998-99 season. Owner Ed Snider said Lindros, who will receive $8.5 million for the upcoming season-tied for the NHL&rsquo;s top salary with Anaheim left winger Paul Kariya-should realize going into the talks he has not been named hockey&rsquo;s best player in several years. Lindros won the Hart Trophy in 1994-95&hellip;Center Rod Brind&rsquo;Amour filed for arbitration. Blind&rsquo;Amour is said to be seeking a contract in the $3.5-million range. Right winger Trent Klatt also filed&hellip; Craig Ramsay, a former assistant coach to Roger Neilson in Florida, was named assistant coach July 7, replacing Keith Acton who moved to the Rangers&hellip;Goalie Ron Hextali reached an agreement on a one-year contract extension through 1999-2000. Reportedly, some restructuring was done so he will earn about $1.8 million each of the next two seasons. He was scheduled to earn $2.5 million this season. &#9632;

f0024-01

Clarke perturbed with criticism Vanbiesbrouck was cheap option

<div class="byline">By Bob McManaman</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02641/6902316-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="186" height="185"></div>Teppo Numminen and Jyrki Lumme were on the same plane when they left their native Finland for their first NHL training camp. Now, about a decade later, they are on the same team.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a big reason why I wanted to come to Phoenix,&rdquo; said Lumme, the veteran defenseman who left the Vancouver Canucks to sign a five-year, $17-million free-agent contract with the Phoenix Coyotes. &ldquo;Teppo is such a solid defenseman. He can do it all. I think I&rsquo;m going to have a great time playing with him next season.&rdquo;Lumme and Numminen are expected to be paired together on the team&rsquo;s No. 1 defensive unit, bolstering the overall strength of the blueline corps, which GM Bobby Smith says is &ldquo;the jjpst it has ever been.&rdquo;The other expected pairings are Keith Carney with Oleg Tverdovsky and Gerald Diduck with either Jason Doig or Deron Quint, each of whom is now ready for full-time NHL duty.&ldquo;The history of the Winnipeg Jets has always been that the team was weak on defense,&rdquo; Smith said. &ldquo;Well, this is now the best defense this franchise has ever had. I&rsquo;ve made a very concentrated effort to improve our defense and now, by adding a player of Jyrki Lumme&rsquo;s quality, I can proudly say, &rsquo;Mission accomplished.&rsquo; &ldquo;Lumme, 30, led Canucks&rsquo; defensemen in scoring during the majority of his seven seasons in Vancouver. He had nine goals and 30 points last season, but was also a disappointing minus-25 on a Canuck club that missed the playoffs.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s simply a by-product of Jyrki playing a ton of minutes for a very bad hockey team,&rdquo; Smith said.Lumme spumed offers from several clubs, including the Chicago Blackhawks, Toronto Maple Leafs and San Jose Sharks. &ldquo;At times, I was pretty confused,&rdquo; Lumme said of his three days he spent on the free agent market. &ldquo;There were a lot of teams talking to us, but every time my wife (Minna) and I talked about it, it always came back to Phoenix.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Left winger Keith Tkachuk, who likely will threaten a holdout if he isn&rsquo;t paid at least $8 million a season, has been in limbo since GM Bobby Smith pulled a three-year contract extension off the table July 1. &ldquo;I want to work with them to get something done,&rdquo; Tkachuk said, &ldquo;and they&rsquo;re pretty much saying, &rsquo;We don&rsquo;t want you back.&rsquo; That&rsquo;s the way I&rsquo;m taking it. I think they&rsquo;ve had this planned all along."&hellip;Right winger Dallas Drake, center Bob Corkum and left winger Louie DeBrusk filed for salary arbitration, but likely will avoid a hearing and agree to new contracts before Aug. 15&hellip;Several Phoenix players, including center Jeremy Roenick and right winger Rick Tocchet, are spending part of the summer working out with fitness guru T.R. Goodman on Venice Beach in Southern California&hellip; Through mid-July, Smith had purged 11 players who saw action last season with the Coyotes, by far the highest total in the NHL. &#9632;

f0024-02

Lumme to pair up with Numminen on franchise’s ’best defense ever’

<div class="byline">By Joe Starkey</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01849/6902347-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="188" height="185"></div>The second Ron Francis pulled on his red Carolina Hurricanes&rsquo; sweater, the Pittsburgh Penguins had a new set of problems to add to their growing list.Francis was the team captain, the top-line center, the second-leading scorer, a community treasure and-perhaps most importantly a calming influence on volatile star Jaromir Jagr.One person who won&rsquo;t lose sleep over it is Penguins&rsquo; coach Kevin Constantine. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a saying that when one door closes, another one opens,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;A wonderful opportunity just opened up for someone in our organization.&rdquo;Hello, German Titov.The ex-Calgary Flames&rsquo; enigma is the top candidate to replace Francis on the first line. Other possibilities include Stu Barnes, who could switch from left wing to his natural center position, Martin Straka and Robert Lang.But there is only one player in the organization who fits the title of first-line center and that&rsquo;s Petr Nedved.Thing is, Nedved hasn&rsquo;t taken a NHL shift since April, 1997. He sat out last year as an unsigned free agent and has shown no desire to return to Pittsburgh. GM Craig Patrick said he still hopes to sign Nedved, who wants to be traded. &ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t heard anything that would encourage us to trade him,&rdquo; Patrick said.Would Patrick let Nedved sit out another season?&ldquo;That&rsquo;s an option.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Howard Baldwin and Roger Marino continued to negotiate for sole ownership of the team. The two met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman July 8 in Boston. Marino came away from the meeting believing Bettman wanted him to run the franchise. &ldquo;It was a good meeting,&rdquo; Marino said. &rsquo;I&rsquo;m glad we got (Bettman) involved.&rdquo; Baldwin is said to have investors lined up in case he opts to try to buy out Marino. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always had the resources,&rdquo; said Baldwin, the team&rsquo;s majority owner for most of this decade. The much-wealthier Marino remains the favorite to take control&hellip;Left winger Stu Barnes was the only Penguin to file for arbitration. He made $800,000 last season. His agent, Rick Curran, said the two sides will try to avoid arbitration. &#9632;

f0025-01

Titov top candidate to fill vacant No. 1 center role

<div class="byline">By Dave Luecklng</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03348/6902378-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="619" height="978"><figcaption class="caption-body">Scott Young</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02540/6902385-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="191" height="184"></div>After the Ron Francis Sweepstakes got too pricey, the St. Louis Blues switched to Plan B of their free-agent shopping plan and signed right winger Scott Young, late of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.Young signed a four-year deal in excess of $7 million, which coincidentally is how much the guy he replaces at right wing signed for in 1990 in his first big contract. That would be none other than Brett Hull, who signed as a free agent with the Dallas Stars after the Blues told him they would not offer him another contract in a budget-cutting move.Although Young, 31, replaces Hull on the roster, he does not see himself filling Hull&rsquo;s skates.&ldquo;I hope people know enough not to make any comparisons there,&rdquo; Young said after signing July 19. &ldquo;There is no comparison there.&rdquo;Blues&rsquo; GM Larry Pleau said he isn&rsquo;t looking for Hull-like numbers from Young, who played for him with the Hartford Whalers in the late 1980s.&ldquo;He has a chance to come in and score 15-to-20 goals,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;He can play on the point and he can play on the half-boards. He kills penalties and he gives us speed.&rdquo;Young also is familiar with Blues&rsquo; coach Joel Quenneville, a former teammate with the Whalers and his assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche when it won the Stanley Cup in 1996. Young said being familiar with Quenneville as a coach was the biggest factor in his signing with the Blues.NOTEBOOK: With a lack of depth on left wing, the Blues might pursue unrestricted free agent Benoit Hogue&hellip; The Blues signed three of their restricted free agents July 20: left winger Scott Pellerin, center Mike Eastwood and defenseman Ricard Persson. The signings leave center Pierre Turgeon, right winger Jim Campbell and defenseman Jamie Rivers as the last restricted free agents on the NHL roster. Minor league defensemen Libor Zabransky, Rory Fitzpatrick, goalie Rich Parent and right wingers Bob Lachance and Shayne Toporowski also are restricted free agents&hellip;Assistant GM John Ferguson Jr. has been handed addition titles of GM and director of hockey operations for the Blues&rsquo; American League affiliate in Worcester, Mass. &#9632;

f0025-03

Young brings goals, speed

<div class="byline">By Tim Buckley</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01931/6902447-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="185" height="179"></div>Wendel Clark won&rsquo;t cost the Tampa Bay Lightning big bucks. He won&rsquo;t be asked to wear the &rsquo;C&rsquo; like he once did in Toronto. And he won&rsquo;t be counted on to hit the 30-goal plateau, which he has done five times in an injury-plagued, 13-season NHL career.What the Lightning does hope for, however, is a tad of virtually everything the feisty 5-foot-ll, 194-pound left winger has displayed since the Toronto Maple Leafs made him the No. 1 overall pick of the 1985 draft.The 31-year-old free agent promised to do just that after signing a one-year contract with a base salary believed to be $1.4-million. The Lightning holds the option for a second season.&ldquo;I think I can bring a little bit of offense, a little bit of scoring&hellip;some toughness, and-since I&rsquo;ve played 12, 13 years-hopefully I can bring some leadership, too,&rdquo; said Clark, who is recovering from late-April surgery to repair a soft-tissue tear in his lower abdomen. &rsquo;I&rsquo;m just going to be another piece of the puzzle and hopefully I&rsquo;ll help the team. But I can&rsquo;t go down there and be something I&rsquo;m not.&rdquo;Nor does the NHL&rsquo;s last-place Lightning expect him to be.&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have the same Wendel Clark of 10 years ago,&rdquo; said coach Jacques Demers, who hopes to get 20 goals out of Clark playing him on one of his top two lines. &ldquo;But we have a character guy who&rsquo;s still a very capable player.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: The Lightning traded the rights to restricted free agent goalie Mark Fitzpatrick and a 1999 fourth round draft pick to Chicago for defenseman Michal Sykora July 17. Coach Jacques Demers said he considers Sykora a No. 5 defenseman&hellip;The Lightning signed defenseman Paul Mara, its first round pick in 1997, July 14. Mara will be given the chance during training camp to be one of the Lightning&rsquo;s top four defensemen&hellip;The Lightning signed two of its other draft picks, defensemen Karel Betik of the Czech Republic and Russian-born Andrei Skopintsev&hellip;Unsigned center John Cullen. in remission from non-Hodgkin&rsquo;s lymphoma, has been invited to Lightning training camp. &#9632;

f0026-01

Clark expected to be cog, not focal point on offense

<div class="byline">By Damien Cox</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03491/6902478-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="607" height="956"><figcaption class="caption-body">Steve Thomas</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02617/6902485-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="187" height="182"></div>From Punch Imlach to Mike Pahnateer to Wendel Clark to Bob McGill, the Toronto Maple Leafs have always been a franchise that has welcomed past performers for a second go-round.Steve Thomas became the latest to follow that tradition July 12 when he signed with the Leafs as a free agent. Thomas wore three sweater numbers and played 161 games for the Leafs from 1984-85 through 1986-87 before being dealt to the Chicago Blackhawks because he wanted a pay raise of about $30,000.The 268 goals he scored between stops in Toronto suggest that would have been a good investment at the time. Instead, Thomas scored those goals for the Hawks, New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils before rejoining the Leafs 10 years and 10 months after he left.&ldquo;Toronto was my first choice all along,&rdquo; said the 35-year-old Thomas. &ldquo;I wish I would have never left. My heart has always been here.&rdquo;Thomas signed a two-year deal for $2.5 million a season, with the club holding an option for a third.While Thomas has scored 40 goals twice in his career, he has scored only 29 in the past two years while being held to only 112 games because of injuries. Last season, he had 14 goals and 24 points in 55 games.&ldquo;I have a lot of goals left in me,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I like being the go-to guy. I&rsquo;ve been a checker the last three years and getting a chance to put more emphasis on offense excites me.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK: Left winger Wendel Clark, who signed with Tampa Bay after the Leafs decided not to make him an offer, said he had no hard feelings about the way his second tour of duty in Toronto ended. &ldquo;I know that this is a business,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I have a home here and I&rsquo;ll probably always live here, but it&rsquo;s time to move on."&hellip;The Leafs added some depth on defense when they signed 31-year-old journeyman Dallas Eakins July 13&hellip;Center Nikolai Antropov, the team&rsquo;s first round pick this year, signed a three-year deal July 15, but will likely spend the season with Moscow Dynamo of the Russian Elite league&hellip;Assistant coach Mike Kitchen was fired July 10 and goaltending consultant Rick Wamsley was reassigned to the scouting department. &#9632;

f0026-03

Return thrill for Thomas

<div class="byline">By Elliott Pap</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02556/6902516-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="328" height="444"><figcaption class="caption-body">Murray Baron</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01885/6902523-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="188" height="187"></div>After making last summer&rsquo;s major free agency splash with the signing of Mark Messier, the Vancouver Canucks were pretty much silent through the first three weeks of July in 1998.The Canucks did capture stay-at-home defenseman Murray Baron, but were unsuccessful in landing a goalie, an offense-minded blue-liner or a center, the team&rsquo;s three biggest needs.New GM Brian Burke was not fazed, at least publicly, and reminded anyone who cared to listen that Vancouver&rsquo;s regular season doesn&rsquo;t start in July, August, or even September. He became especially agitated when the subject of goaltending arose.&ldquo;The last time I looked the season started Oct. 12 and we don&rsquo;t need a goalie until then,&rdquo; Burke declared.The Canucks were in the bidding for Mike Richter, who eventually re-signed with the New York Rangers, but didn&rsquo;t even bother pursuing John Vanbiesbrouck before he signed with the Philadelphia Flyers or Curtis Joseph, who ended up with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Burke felt all along he would have to trade for a No. 1 netminder and that is apparently going to be the case.Joseph&rsquo;s signing with Toronto made Felix Potvin expendable and the Canucks will undoubtedly bid for &lsquo;The Cat.&rsquo; But it&rsquo;s uncertain whether they can meet the Leafs&rsquo; asking price, even though Potvin finished 25th in goals-against average last season.The signing of Baron, meanwhile, plugs a hole in the foster left by the free agent departure of Jyrki Lumme. but does nothing to address the Canucks&rsquo; crying need for a defenseman who can run the power play. Baron, who had a career-high 16 points in 1990-91 with the Philadelphia Flyers, will make $2.2 million (U.S.) per season on a three-year deal.Vancouver was not able to land even a second-tier power play quarterback such as Dmitri Mironov, who went to the Washington Capitals, and it will be interesting to see what Burke and coach Mike Keenan can come up with by October.The logical answer, of course, is to trade dis-gruntled marquee forward Pavel Bure to fill the craters and hope Alexander Mogilny regains his form on the first fine. Burke did meet with Bure in early July and the GM said he is now aware of the Russian&rsquo;s discontent. It&rsquo;s believed Bure&rsquo;s chief desire is to live in a major American city.NOTEBOOK: Defenseman-tumed-forward Steve Staios was the only Canuck to file for salary arbitration&hellip;Canuck center prospect Josh Holden, the team&rsquo;s first choice, 12th overall, in the 1996 NHL entry draft, was in Vancouver for a mini-camp in mid-July and said he is recovering nicely from a skate cut that severed 10 tendons and a ligament in his left wrist. The injury occurred during a Western League playoff game with the Regina Pats. Holden still does not have full strength in the wrist&hellip;Canuck coach Mike Keenan, who dealt goaltender Curtis Joseph out of St. Louis three summers ago, said he was &ldquo;flabbergasted&rdquo; by Joseph&rsquo;s four-year, $24 million deal with Toronto. &ldquo;To my knowledge, Curtis Joseph has never won a championship,&rdquo; Keenan said. &ldquo;Where does this leave Patrick Roy and Grant Fuhr?"&hellip;University of Michigan right winger Bill Muckalt, a Hobey Baker finalist, participated in Vancouver&rsquo;s mini-camp despite the fact he was still unsigned. Muckalt, 24, is expected to have a good shot at making the team. &#9632;

f0027-02

Burke denies holding anxieties over team’s unfilled hole in goal

<div class="byline">By Dave Fay</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-04247/6902554-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="321" height="436"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dmitri Mironov</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03362/6902561-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="185" height="181"></div>The Washington Capitals have taken a step to plug one large hole on defense which was exposed during the Stanley Cup final, but there may not be many more additions to the club which made it to the final round.The Caps signed unrestricted free agent defenseman Dmitri Mironov to a four-year deal July 14, giving them an experienced, 6-foot-3, 215-pound defender who can play both ends of the ice.Mironov, 32, played most of last season with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim before being traded to the Detroit Red Wings in March.Washington went through most of the playoffs and virtually all of the final rotating two pairs of blueliners while occasionally spotting fifth and sixth defensemen. The top four were exhausted by the time they met the Wings and Detroit was able to take advantage.The Mironov signing was the only major move Washington made in the free agent market through mid-July. The Caps also signed Toronto-born goalie Mike Rosati, who had been playing in Italy and Germany for the past eight seasons, and re-signed team captain Dale Hunter who will start his 19th season in October.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll continue to work to improve the team, but there won&rsquo;t be any more signing of free agents,&rdquo; said GM George McPhee. &ldquo;Anything else that happens will either come through a trade or a young guy stepping up.&rdquo;Besides depth along the blueline, the Caps were looking for some help from the point on the power play and Mironov might be part of the answer there. Playing 62 games for Anaheim in 1996-97, the defenseman had 12 goals and 46 points, was plus-20 and spent &rsquo;ll minutes in the penalty box. Mironov was coached in Anaheim that season by current Caps&rsquo; coach Ron Wilson.The addition of Mironov means the Caps probably won&rsquo;t resign defenseman Jeff Brown. Brown missed almost the entire playoffs with post-concussion syndrome.The addition of Mironov might also give the Caps some leverage elsewhere. Defenseman Sergei Gonchar is a restricted free agent for the second straight summer. Mironov could give Washington some added depth if Gonchar decides not to report to training camp.Both defensemen are represented by Jay Grossman and both played for the silver medal-winning Russian Olympic team last February in Nagano.NOTEBOOK: Center Joe Juneau, who led the team with four game winners in the playoffs, re-signed with the Caps July 23&hellip;Goalie Mike Rosati likely will compete in training camp with minor leaguers Martin Brochu and Sebastien Charpentier for the backup job behind Olie Kolzig&hellip; The Caps&rsquo; schedule for next season includes a stretch of eight consecutive games away from home, the longest away streak in the team&rsquo;s 25-year history. The eight games go coast-to-coast, starting in Philadelphia Dec. 5 and ending in Nashville Dec. 26. Two-thirds of the team&rsquo;s home games (27 of 41) are Sunday through Thursday night contests-tough sells in this market&hellip; Washington&rsquo;s pre-season schedule includes two home games (Sept. 19, Philadelphia, and Sept. 25, Pittsburgh), double the usual number of home exhibition games&hellip; There will be two rematches of the Stanley Cup final between the Caps and Detroit within a week of each other, but only one will count. The Caps are at Joe Louis Arena Oct. 5 for an exhibition game, then meet eight days later in Washington for their only regular season matchup during 1998-99. &#9632;

f0027-04

Addition of Mironov adds depth to Capitals’ blueline contingent

<div class="byline">By Kevin Oklobzija</div>Tom McVie, the self-proclaimed Rodney Dangerfield of hockey, is back on the unemployment line, but said his firing as coach of the Providence Bruins has nothing to do with a generation gap.Providence was a league-worst 19-54-7 under the 62-year-old McVie, a career coach who has a 328-327-67 record in 722 American League games. It was the third-worst season in the AHL since the 80-game schedule was adopted in 1976-77.&ldquo;No one was younger than me, no one outworked Tom McVie,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There was no generation gap. Anyone saying that is looking for a life jacket.&rdquo;The Bruins, however, threw out the lifeline in early July when they decided a change was necessary. Providence chairman Ed Anderson and president Frank DuRoss pushed hard with the parent Boston Bruins for the hiring of McVie last summer. Anderson and DuRoss also made the decision to replace McVie, their longtime friend.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01924/6902592-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="442" height="443"></div>&ldquo;This was a difficult decision since Tom McVie has been a close personal friend and confidant for almost 20 years,&rdquo; Anderson said.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re very discouraged,&rdquo; DuRoss said, &ldquo;but we were discouraged with a 19-54-7 season.&rdquo;The firing is nothing new for McVie, who made NHL coaching stops with the expansion Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets and the New Jersey Devils. His record in eight full or partial seasons was 126-263-73.During his playing career he was traded five times. He was also fired by Boston after the 1994-95 season, when he was an assistant for Brian Sutter, who was fired at the same time.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s 12 times someone told me to take a hike,&rdquo; McVie said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s mind-boggling. But it&rsquo;s the same with a fighter. It doesn&rsquo;t matter how many times you get knocked down, as long as you get back up the same number of times.&rdquo;McVie&rsquo;s assistant, Rod Langway, also was let go. McVie has two years remaining on his contract and Langway has one year to go. Both will likely be offered other positions in the organization..ANDREWS STAYING PUT: AHL president Dave Andrews was among the candidates to replace Brian Burke as NHL vice-president, but is quite happy to stay in a league that has grown from 16 to 21 teams and added major markets of Philadelphia, Lexington and Hartford during his four-year tenure.Although former New York Rangers&rsquo; coach Colin Campbell replaced Burke, Andrews spoken with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, but withdrew his name before it decision time.&ldquo;As time wore on I realized I really didn&rsquo;t have a desire to leave,&rdquo; said Andrews, 49. &ldquo;Sometimes it just doesn&rsquo;t feel right and as time went on, it didn&rsquo;t feel right.&rdquo;Andrews has five years remaining on his contract with the AHL and, while attendance has increased every season-surpassing four million last season-there is room for growth.STEWART MOVES ON: The Saint John Flames are looking for a new coach after Bill Stewart accepted an assistant&rsquo;s job with the New York Islanders.Stewart, 40, led the Flames to the AHL final where they lost to the Philadelphia Phantoms. He was selected THN&rsquo;s minor pro coach of the year by a panel of scouts and media. Just one year earlier, he coached the Oshawa Generals to the Ontario League championship.&ldquo;I needed a year in pro to make this step,&rdquo; Stewart said. &ldquo;Coaching in the AHL was a natural step.&rdquo;Stewart had one year remaining on his contract with the parent Calgary Flames so the Islanders gave up a seventh round draft pick in 1999 as compensation.OWNER IN TROUBLE: Embattled insurance executive Albert W. Lawrence may lose control of his majority interest in the Albany River Rats, a team he has owned since 1993.Lawrence&rsquo;s controlling stock in the River Rats was seized by a court-appointed bankruptcy trustee. It&rsquo;s likely the stock will be sold as part of Lawrence&rsquo;s personal bankruptcy re-organization plan. He had been reluctant to include his hockey team in the bankruptcy proceedings, listing debts of $26 million when he filed for protection from creditors last year. &#9632;

f0028-01

McVie told to ’take a hike’ as lowly Bruins fire coach

<div class="byline">By Kevin lole</div>The International League is on the verge of losing another franchise.San Antonio Dragons&rsquo; president Craig Jenkins said the club is considering a plan to jump from the IHL to a lower-level and less costly league, most likely the Central League. He said he hoped to come to a conclusion by Aug. 1.The Dragons moved to San Antonio from Peoria, DI., after the 1995-96 season, where they had operated as the Peoria Rivermen. In San Antonio, the results were mixed, with one division championship and one year out of the playoffs, but the financial ledger was equally gloomy both years.Jenkins would not say how much the Dragons lost in either season, but it was in excess of $1 million each year and more, likely closer to $4 million. He also said it is difficult for the western-based IHL teams to compete financially, considering the cost of air travel.Most of the teams in the east have the ability to bus to a large portion of the games, but that is not the case for those situated in the West.&ldquo;If we do decide (to leave the IHL), it would be an economic decision, plain and simple,&rdquo; Jenkins said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re talking about a $5.5 million budget in the IHL compared to a $2 million budget in the (CHL). You don&rsquo;t have to be a financial genius to understand the difference.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02613/6902623-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="424" height="473"></div>&ldquo;If you&rsquo;re in Cleveland, say, you can bus to a lot of those teams in that area like Detroit, Cincinnati, Kalamazoo, Indianapolis and cut down on your travel costs. Here, we have to fly everywhere. With what we pay the players in this league and those kinds of costs, we can&rsquo;t make it for what we sell the tickets for.&rdquo;As part of the league&rsquo;s collective bargaining agreement with the Professional Hockey Players&rsquo; Association, which was negotiated by former commissioner Bob Ufer, half of all tickets must average $10.Jenkins said the Dragons had 12 players under IHL contracts for the 1998-99 season and beyond, including stars such as right winger Daniel Shank and defenseman Darren Rumble. Jenkins said he was not sure how the players would be dispersed if the Dragons leave.CHARRON GETS NOD: The Grand Rapids Griffins hired former Canadian national team assistant coach Guy Charron as their new coach July 8. He replaces GM Bob McNamara, who served as interim coach after Dave Allison was fired.Charron, who coached Landshut, Germany last year, had been courted by several IHL teams.&ldquo;You&rsquo;re talking about a guy who has 15 years of professional coaching experience who has pretty much seen just about everything,&rdquo; McNamara said. &ldquo;We believe he has the entire package. His reputation in the industry is as one of the game&rsquo;s up and comers.&ldquo;He has worked a long time with Dave King, who&rsquo;s a very respected guy.&rdquo;Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay F Lightning announced it will keep &rsquo; Perry Ganchar as coach of the Cleveland Lumberjacks.r Ganchar was 35-37-10 in his first year as a head coach with Cleveland last season. Because the Lightning and Lumberjacks have a new affiliation this season, Ganchar&rsquo;s status was at the discretion of the Lightning.Former Lightning player Jock Callander was named player/assistant coach in Cleveland.IHL ADOPTS RULES CHANGES: The IHL&rsquo;s board of governors voted to adopt some of the rules changes adopted earlier by the NHL.The league will move the goal lines out two feet and the goal crease will be made smaller. In addition, if the goalie leaves the crease on a potential icing and doesn&rsquo;t play the puck, the icing will be waved off.The governors, who re-elected Cleveland owner Larry Gordon as their chairman and appointed Barry Kemp of the Long Beach Ice Dogs and Dan Devos of the Kansas City and Grand Rapids as vice-chairmen, also announced they would begin a program to select and manage their own officials. The league had previously gotten its referees from the NHL.I-OPENERS: Several top players signed with European teams. Center Stephane Morin of Long Beach and right winger Stan Drulia of the Detroit Vipers each signed with the Berlin Capitals in Germany&hellip;Petri Varis, who was an outstanding rookie for the Indianapolis Ice last season, signed with Cologne in Germany. &#9632;

f0028-02

Dragons consider Central in effort to stop bleeding

<div class="byline">By John Packett</div>The Hampton Roads Admirals are getting ready to set sail for the American League, but there may still be an East Coast League team in the Tidewater area of Virginia when they pull up the anchor.According to the Norfolk Virginian-Pi/of, the, Admirals have been admitted to the AHL for the 1999-2000 season, but their application was returned pending them ironing out lease problems. Before they can make the move, owners Page Johnson and Mark Garcea say they must (negotiate a suitable lease with the Norfolk Scope, where Hampton Roads has played its home games since joining the ECHL in 1989.The Admirals, who won the ECHL&rsquo;s Kelly Cup championship in May, signed a lease last October that requires them to move up to the AHL by 1999-2000, but they say they need about a $300,000 reduction in rent per year from the city to make the shift financially feasible. The owners were scheduled to get together with Norfolk officials sometime in July to iron out details of the lease.Johnson and Garcea also want to move their ECHL franchise to the nearby Hampton Coliseum, but the (city of Norfolk doesn&rsquo;t like the idea * of having two pro hockey teams operating in the same area. The city &rsquo; wants no ECHL franchise re-located within 50 miles of Norfolk.The Admirals have until the end of July to pay $2 million for an expansion franchise. After that, the price goes up to $3 million. Their application to the AHL was approved in late June.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03438/6902654-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="409" height="426"></div>EXPANSION DRAFT: The Greenville Grrrowl selected Toledo Storm defenseman Mike Kolenda with the first pick in the 1998 expansion draft conducted June 24. The ECHL&rsquo;s other expansion team, the Florida Everblades, chose left winger Jim Paradise of Hampton Roads with their opening pick.Each of the existing 25 ECHL teams had to submit one player for the draft.NEW MAN IN ROANOKE: For mer U.S. Olympic goaltender Scott Gordon was named coach and director of hockey operations for the Roanoke Express July 2, succeeding Frank Anzalone, who left to become coach of the AHL&rsquo;s Lowell Lock Monsters.Gordon, 35 and a native of South Easton, Mass., played four seasons at Boston College and spent eight years in the Quebec Nordiques&rsquo; system, mostly in the AHL. He backed up Ray LeBlanc on the 1992 U.S. team.COAST LINES: Three ECHL teams have been sold recently. Three Mobile-area businessmen, led by steel executive Toby Jeffreys, purchased the Mobile Mysticks from the New York-based United Sports Ventures for $2 million. USV had been dissatisfied with lagging attendance in the four-year-old franchise.Meanwhile, the owners of the Pensacola Pilots, led by majority owner David Berkman, have bought the Birmingham Bulls, and John Gagnon, owner of the Mississippi Sea Wolves, is planning to take over the Dayton Bombers. Both of the latter deals are contingent on approval by the ECHL&rsquo;s board of governors. &#9632;

f0028-03

Admirals looking for cut in rent to transfer to AHL

<div class="byline">By Jim Cressman</div>Former Ontario League player Jud Richards won a small claims lawsuit against the North Bay Centennials after the team failed to pay for his university education.Richards, who played in the OHL for a season, was awarded $6,000, the maximum amount allowable in Ontario small claims court.Richards was a third round pick of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1992. He was traded to the Centennials in November of that season and was cut from North Bay his second year.He played Jr. A in Oakville, Ont., and then attended Mount Allison University in New Brunswick for four years. Richards sued the Centennials after they failed to pay the university costs that were set out in his original contract with the Greyhounds. The Centennials felt their obligation ended when Richards was cut.Deputy Judge John Rossi said in his ruling: &ldquo;The contract makes no specific provision as to what would happen in the event the plaintiff is [para-merge-check] released, waived or, in effect, cut from the league. Further, this is not within the control of the plaintiff, but within control of the teams within the league.&rdquo;Richards, who acted on his own behalf during the five-hour hearing, told the Sault Star it cost him $14,000 to attend Mount Allison.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not fair that they promise you something and then they try and make you ineligible,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Is that fair to release or cut a guy so you don&rsquo;t have to pay for his education?&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01817/6902685-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="764" height="264"></div>OHL governors are looking at standardizing educational packages. At the moment, each team is responsible for the content of its own and there are some major differences in what is offered team by team.STAYING HOME: The expansion Brampton Battalion, picking second overall in the Canadian Hockey League import draft, went for Nikolai Antropov, the Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; first round[para-merge-check] selection in the NHL entry draft. But chances are the Battalion will never see Antropov, 18, who starred for Kazakhstan at the World Junior Championship.The player has said he&rsquo;d like to play in the OHL, but Leafs&rsquo; associate GM Mike Smith wants Antropov to remain in Europe. Smith is trying to place him with Moscow Dynamo.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s still a young kid and Moscow would be a lot closer to home for him,&rdquo; Smith said. &ldquo;Dynamo develops good players, so we&rsquo;re optimistic that will work out for him.&rdquo;Battalion coach-GM Stan Butler said it was a longshot, but he has been told by Antropov&rsquo;s agent, Don Meehan, the player wants to play in Canada.KEPT HIS WORD: Owner Don Cherry promised his expansion Mississauga IceDogs wouldn&rsquo;t participate in the import draft and they didn&rsquo;t.In fact, Cherry traded his first round pick to the Erie Otters for rugged overage right winger Adam Nittel, who spent 309 minutes in the penalty box in 48 games last season. Nittel, 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, had 11 goals and 28 points. He was a fifth round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 1997.NEW OWNERS: The Kingston Frontenacs are changing hands-again. Doug and Michael Springer, two Kingston developers, will purchase the team from Wren Blair and his partners, assuming 20 per cent each year over the next five years. Larry Mavety remains coach-GM.WHO&rsquo;S THE BOSS?: There&rsquo; s an interesting twist to Sarnia Sting right winger Jeff Heer-ema being drafted 11th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes.The Hurricanes are owned by Peter Karma-nos, who also owns the OHL&rsquo;s Plymouth Whalers. The Whalers and Sting are fierce rivals.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just going to call him up every time Sarnia is playing Plymouth,&rdquo; Hurricanes&rsquo; GM Jim Rutherford joked during the draft. &#9632;

f0029-01

Former player wins lawsuit over university money

<div class="byline">By Stuart Cowan</div>Quebec Remparts&rsquo; center Eric Chouinard will be one of the most-watched players in the Quebec League next season after being selected by the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; in the first round, 16th overall, at the NHL entry draft in June.There is always added pressure on French players in Montreal and Chouinard is the first Quebec League player to be selected in the first round by the Canadiens since Eric Charron in 1988. &rsquo;Minutes after Chouinard was selected, the Montreal media was already questioning his toughness. In 68 games last season as a rookie, the 6-foot-2, 195-pounder had only 18 penalty minutes, while scoring 41 goals and adding 42 assists. During his two seasons of midget hockey, he had 52 penalty minutes in 79 games.&rsquo;Tm an offensive player and know I have to work on my defensive skills, but I&rsquo;m not worried about the contact (in the NHL),&rdquo; Chouinard said.Chouinard&rsquo;s coach also isn&rsquo;t worried about his ability to work in traffic.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02525/6902716-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="638" height="320"></div>&ldquo;He scored 41 goals and he didn&rsquo;t score all of those from the blueline,&rdquo; said Remparts&rsquo; coach Guy Chouinard, who just happens to be Eric&rsquo;s father.The elder Chouinard, a former 50-goal scorer with the Atlanta Hames, added that as a French-Canadian he always dreamed of one day playing for the Canadiens. Now he hopes he can live that dream vicariously through his son.NO. 1 PRESSURE: Another player who will be under the microscope next season is Yanick Lehoux, the No. 1 pick at the June midget draft by the Baie Comeau Drakkar.The Drakkar is hoping the 6-foot-l, 154-pound playmaking center can help improve an offense that scored the second-fewest goals in the league last season as an expansion team.One of the many Drakkar players who struggled offensively last season was center Jonathan Gautier, the No. 1 pick at the 1997 midget draft. In 60 games, Gautier had only nine goals and 22 points.But Marcel Patenaude, the Quebec League&rsquo;s head scout, said it&rsquo;s unfair to compare the two No. 1 picks.&ldquo;Gautier is more a Bryan Trottier-type of player,&rdquo; Patenaude said. &ldquo;He plays good in the three zones and is as good defensively as he is offensively. It was tough for him with an expansion team.&ldquo;Lehoux is more spectacular&hellip;he&rsquo;s more like Mike Ribeiro.&rdquo;Ribeiro was named the league&rsquo;s rookie of the year after scoring 40 goals and adding 85 assists in 67 games with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies last season.LIVING IN THE SHADOW: Brad Richards can&rsquo;t seem to escape Vincent Lecava-lier&rsquo;s giant shadow, but he isn&rsquo;t complaining.Richards and Lecavalier, the No. 1 overall pick by the Tampa Bay Lightning at the NHL entry draft, were linemates in midget hockey at Notre Dame College in Saskatchewan. After Lecavalier was named the Quebec League rookie of the year for the 1996-97 season, he convinced Richards to join him again in Rimouski last season rather than play U.S. college hockey.Both players ended the season with 115 points, with Lecavalier scoring 44 goals and Richards 33. Now, Richards is following Lecavalier to Tampa after being selected in the third round (64th overall).&ldquo;Since the first day we played together we&rsquo;ve known where each other is going to be,&rdquo; Richards said. &ldquo;I know what he&rsquo;s thinking and he knows me. We get along great on and off the ice.&rdquo;MEETING HIS HEROES: Halifax Mooseheads&rsquo; center Alex Tanguay will get a chance to meet his childhood heroes when he attends the Colorado Avalanche training camp.Tanguay, Colorado&rsquo;s first pick (12th overall), grew up near Quebec City and was a huge Quebec Nordiques&rsquo; fan. His grandfather was a season-ticket holder and Tanguay&rsquo;s heroes included Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg. &#9632;

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Hab prospect Chouinard thrust under microscope

<div class="byline">By Rob Vanstone</div>Kevin McClelland&rsquo;s 36th birthday present arrived one day early.McClelland was named coach of the Western League&rsquo;s Prince Albert Raiders July 3.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m very excited about this opportunity,&rdquo; McClelland said. &ldquo;Hockey has been such a big part of my life for years. I feel good to be able to stay involved and look at new challenges in life.&rdquo;McClelland spent the previous two seasons as an assistant to Bert Templeton with the Ontario League&rsquo;s Barrie Colts.During a 12-season NHL career, McClelland had 68 goals, 180 points and 1,672 penalty minutes in 588 games. He saw big-league duty with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, Detroit Red Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets.&ldquo;Anyone who played the game at the NHL level knows what dedication it takes and what sacrifices it takes to be a successful hockey player,&rdquo; McClelland said.&ldquo;Playing as long as I did, there isn&rsquo;t one situation I didn&rsquo;t come across. I think I&rsquo;ll be able to relate to certain situations that the players face.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03339/6902747-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="397" height="397"></div>McClelland signed a two-year contract with Prince Albert, which was last in the six-team East Division with a 20-47-5 record last season.The Raiders&rsquo; coaching job became vacant April 20 when Don McGillivray was informed that his contract would not be renewed. McGillivray had succeeded Chris Stewart, who was fired Dec. 8.SMILING SABRE: Calgary Hitmen sniper Brad Moran was a seventh round pick in the NHL&rsquo;s June 27 draft, but he sounded like a first rounder after the Buffalo Sabres picked him 191st overall.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just so excited,&rdquo; said Moran, 19, who attended the draft in Buffalo. &ldquo;It finally happened. But I&rsquo;ve got to realize that it&rsquo;s just a small step, too.&rdquo;The Hitmen took a giant step forward last season, making the playoffs for the first time in their three-year history. Moran led the charge, recording 53 goals and 102 points.The 5-foot-ll, 180-pound Moran had something to prove after being bypassed in the 1997 draft.&ldquo;Last year was tough and disappointing, so it&rsquo;s kind of nice to get noticed,&rdquo; Moran said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a long day, but it&rsquo;s all worth it when you hear your name called. It went perfectly.&rdquo;A total of 44 WHL players-19 fewer than in 1997-were selected. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s cyclical,&rdquo; said WHL commissioner Dev Dley.KISIO IN CALGARY: Former NHLer Kelly Kisio has taken over from Carey Bracko as Hitmen GM.Kisio, who played for four teams over a 13-season NHL career, has spent the past three years as a scout with the Hit* men&rsquo;s owners, the Calgary Hames.The Hitmen posted a 40-28-4. record and finished atop the Central k Division in Bracko&rsquo;s one season as I GM. His contract expired at the end of July.NOTEBOOK: The WHL has determined its sites for the next three All-Star Games. They will be played in Lethbridge (1999), Kelowna (2000) and Kamloops (2001)&hellip;The WHL has adopted the NHL&rsquo;s rules regarding obstruction for next season. The WHL, Quebec League and Ontario League plan to adhere to the NHL&rsquo;s rule book as well in an effort to make a more level playing field at the Memorial Cup. In the past, teams have conformed to the rules of the league hosting the championship&hellip;Jamie Reeve has resigned as the Swift Current Broncos&rsquo; assistant coach and assistant GM. He is leaving to coach the Nippon Paper Cranes, a pro team in Japan. Swift Current replaced Reeve with Brad McEwen, who was coaching the Saskatchewan Junior League&rsquo;s Notre Dame Hounds&hellip;Ron Kraft resigned as the Regina Pats&rsquo; assistant coach and was replaced by former Swift Current star Tim Tisdale, who scored the winning goal for the Broncos in the 1989 Memorial Cup final. &#9632;

f0029-03

Raiders aim to rebound with McClelland at helm

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01749/6902823-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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NHL ROSTERS AND TRANSACTIONS STATISTICAL REPORT

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0038-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01813/6902854-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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1998-99 NHL SCHEDULE

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0041-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01402/6902958-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-01406/6902951-1-eng-US/f0042-012.jpg" title="f0042-01" width="3443" height="4076"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01324/6902944-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg" title="f0044-01" width="7103" height="4098"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-01252/6902937-1-eng-US/f0046-012.jpg" title="f0046-01" width="7095" height="4191"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-01195/6902930-1-eng-US/f0048-012.jpg" title="f0048-01" width="6977" height="4116"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-01166/6902923-1-eng-US/f0050-012.jpg" title="f0050-01" width="6986" height="4121"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-01152/6902916-1-eng-US/f0053-012.jpg" title="f0053-01" width="3465" height="4106"></div> &#9632;

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<div class="byline">By Jason Paul</div>You&rsquo;ve just entered poolie paradise after being awarded the No. 1 pick in your draft. Do you go with the only NHLer to crack the 100-point barrier in 1997-98 or a small forward ranked 181st in scoring with 31 points? The answer would be easy except those 31 points belonged to Mighty Ducks of Anaheim left wingerPaul Kariya.Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; right winger Jaromir Jagr skated away with the Art Ross Trophy, but his quest to repeat as scoring champion will be much tougher with the return of Kariya-should the Mighty Duck play a full season.So, who should you pick: Jagr or Kariya?The answer is in the Ultimate Pool Guide, a new publication brought to you by The Hockey News, the bible of hockey for more than 50 years.The full-color, 192-page Ultimate Pool Guide is available on newsstands as of Aug. 17.It&rsquo;s filled with shinny statistics and features and profiles on almost 500 NHLers, listed alphabetically from Greg Adams to Andrei Zyuzin among skaters and Tom Barrasso to Ken Wregget among goalies.No stat is left unturned from a league, team or individual perspective.&ldquo;This is a comprehensive and valuable resource for all fans,&rdquo; said THN Editor-in-Chief Steve Dryden. &ldquo;Our figures are fun and functional.&rdquo;Pool guru Murray Townsend provides point projections for each player and predicts only three of them will hit the century mark. (Hint: Two of them are Jagr and Kariya.)Each player&rsquo;s statistics are listed year by year for the past three seasons and 1997-98 production is broken down into quarters. Every bio is accompanied by the player&rsquo;s picture.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-01152/6902989-1-eng-US/f0052-012.jpg" title="f0052-01" width="612" height="781"><figcaption class="caption-body">Paul Kariya</figcaption></div>Also included is average ice time per game and you&rsquo;ll find a new statistic that measures how effectively players use their ice time. Which player had the lowest ratio of minutes played to points? Jagr? Kariya? Forsberg? No, no, and no. (Hint: He signed with the New York Rangers as a free agent.)What&rsquo;s more important-points or points per game? If you said points, then you would have passed in the early rounds on Kariya and other high scorers who were hurt last year, which is why we&rsquo;ve included the top 525 point-per-game players. Kariya, who only played 22 games, led the league at 1.41 PPG followed by Jagr at 1.32Looking for reliable scorers? We&rsquo;ve listed the top point producers over the past three years. Want to pick a few players who are intimidating and can score? We&rsquo;ve ranked the top point-getters who had at least 100 penalty minutes.There are also NHL team reports that include 1998-99 rosters, top prospects, our choices as the best and worst pool choices and sleeper picks. If you like to go deeper for your sleeper picks, you can check out points-pergame scoring leaders in the minor leagues and major junior hockey.&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t need anything more than this,&rdquo; Dryden said, &ldquo;to be the best GM in your pool.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0052-01

Jagr or Kariya? Who’s No. 1 in your pool?

<div class="byline">By Janet Del Tufo</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0280/6903027-1-eng-US/f0054-022.jpg" title="f0054-02" width="606" height="821"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gerry St. Cyr</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-01153/6903034-1-eng-US/f0054-012.jpg" title="f0054-01" width="188" height="128"></div>Gerry St. Cyr&rsquo;s favorite food is Italian, but he also loves munchies with a good old fashioned Spanish flair. So, where else would this high-scoring forward find himself during the Pro Beach Hockey season, but as captain of team Salsa, a squad dressed in the tournament&rsquo;s most colorful and by far brightest uniforms.The team with the most visible clothing at the beach features a jersey with a red hot pepper on the front side, flashing a sly smile, while donning a pair of black shades. This pepper puts you in a happy mood, which is what the team seems to portray.&ldquo;The Salsa is a team that likes to have a good time and we&rsquo;re having a lot of fun not only on the court, but off the court,&rdquo; St. Cyr said. &rsquo;The atmosphere has been great.&rdquo;But frivolity is not the only reason St. Cyr came to play. He&rsquo;s a competitor, as witnessed by his various scoring achievements in pro in-line hockey. St. Cyr has always been a goal-scorer and he has been able to capitalize frequently on a feature uniquely known to PBH.&rsquo;The two point-play is something that I&rsquo;ve adapted to very well, as a lot of guys have forgotten about this aspect,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And also, due to the quickness of the game, while players are making changes, they&rsquo;re expecting a whistle and faceoff, but instead, the game carries on. So, I would say that I have been able to take advantage of those two unique parts of the game as I&rsquo;ve just acted upon them.&rdquo;The two-point shot is not the only thing new to PBH. The bouncing ball is another aspect that has kept these players on their toes. It has been one of the more difficult adjustments, even for players like St. Cyr, who is known as a sharp-shooting scorer.&ldquo;Everything in PBH hockey is different. Playing in the hot sun and being outdoors means you have to be in good shape just to stay in the game, but the ball was the biggest difference. I&rsquo;ve never used a ball before and it has been very hard to get used. For some-one like me, I&rsquo;ve played with a puck my whole life and originally 1 was used to an ice hockey puck. Five years ago I had to adapt to a roller hockey puck which was a lot lighter, so, I&rsquo;d say that playing with a ball has been my greatest challenge in PBH.&rdquo;But even with these adjustments, St. Cyr believes this game will certainly be played on the streets, a place he feels it has already reached.&ldquo;This game is not something that is new, as far as playing pickup ball hockey. There are just new features added, like having live bands on the premises and the use of ramps. But I think it&rsquo;s something that will definitely grow in the future.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0350/6903020-1-eng-US/f0054-032.jpg" title="f0054-03" width="190" height="176"></div><h2>Player Profile: Gerry St. Cyr</h2>Occupation: Gerry is a professional hockey player who also tours world-wide as a hockey instructor for his own hockey schools.Age: 26Marital Status: Recently married to long-time girlfriend, Manon Rheaume. No children.Favorite Moment in In-line Hockey: The 1994 RHI season in Portland when he led the league in goal-scoring.Greatest Accomplishment in Life: Being able to play a game that he loves and make a living at it.Favorite Movie: Christmas VacationFavorite Athlete: Michael jordanFavorite Food: Chicken ParmesanHometown: Nanaimo, B.C.Hobby Besides Hockey: Coaching kidsGoal for the Future: To become a professional coach. &#9632;

f0054-02

Salsa’s St Cyr has ball at the Beach

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0055-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-01144/6903065-1-eng-US/f0055-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rob Harmer and the Dawq Pac cooled down going 2-2 in their last four games to drop to 6-2.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

Search for your favorite player or team

August 1, 1998

Milbury’s help keeps growing

NAGANO OLYMPICS 1998

1997-98 STATISTICAL REVIEW

Sharks look to Rouse for leadership