Moody Eddy matures into Mr. Calm

Ed Belfour’s hockey philosophy hasn’t changed all that much at its base. “Numbers don’t mean a thing,” the Dallas Stars’ goalie said. “t’s all about how you feel about yourself and how you’re playing.” But while that confidence remains the core for Belfour, 33, he has certainly changed the application of his inner psyche to the game. Now, instead of getting flustered by fluke goals and strange hops, Belfour is showing maturity in his second season with the Stars. “As you get older, think you have to get more mature,” Belfour said. “I’ve seen a lot of things in this league and I’ve learned from them. “Hey, there are good shooters in this league and sometime you’re going to get beat. The key is to not let the last goal affect the next one.” That…

EAST COAST LEAGUE

Adams finally puts end to early-season drought

Greg Adams kept telling himself it was only a matter of time, but after going 14 games from the start of the season without a goal, time was running out. So was coach Jim Schoenfeld’s patience. Though satisfied with Adams’ play away from the puck and the fact he was getting decent scoring chances, Schoenfeld briefly moved Adams from the second line to the fourth. But all is now well. Adams, back as the Phoenix Coyotes’ No. 2 left winger, scored three goals in a three-game stretch, including two during a clutch 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils Nov. 26 that pushed the club’s winning streak to seven games and its undefeated streak to 13, tying a franchise record. “I’m sure was squeezing my stick a little too hard,” Adams said. “When…

GM Poile’s ingenuity gave claws to Predators

The Nashville Predators appointed David Poile as their first-ever GM in July, 1997. For the next 11 months, until the day of the NHL expansion draft, he spent his time poring over the rules and regulations, trying to find every little loophole in the expansion agreement that he could work to his advantage. After all, it is a time-honored NHL tradition to extort huge fees from new expansion teams and then make the process so onerous that you need a five-year plan just to achieve mediocrity. The only time the league ever felt the first twinge of sympathy for their newest lodge members-the 1993-94 expansion to stock Florida and Anaheim-those teams became too competitive too fast. Couldn’t let that happen again. As a result, NHL teams were given a window of opportunity,…