Search for your favorite player or team
© The Hockey News. All rights reserved. Any and all material on this website cannot be used, reproduced, or distributed without prior written permission from Roustan Media Ltd. For more information, please see our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
October 1, 1999
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.
Riding high in desert
1999-2000 SCHEDULE If he had stuck with family tradition, Shane Doan probably could have become a national rodeo star just like his grandfather, uncles and cousins. Bull riding. Barebacks. Steer wrestling. You name it. All the Doans could do it. It’s in their blood. “When I was young, I rode everything,” Doan said, “I loved it, but I chose to stick with hockey. I’m not tough enough to be a cowboy.” That’s debatable. The 6-foot-2, 217-pound farmboy from Halkirk, Alta., is as tough as they come on the Phoenix Coyotes,. And the powerful 22-year-old right winger had to be plenty tough after what he went through last season. After never really proving his full worth since breaking into the league as a 19995 first round pick, Doan endured the slump of all slumps a…
Oleg’s back quacking
1999-2000 SCHEDULE Mighty Ducks of Anaheim defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky could not believe his ears. Fans cheering. For him. When No. 10 was introduced over the public address system Sept. 12 at Arrowhead Pond, most of the 11,000 in attendance applauded Tverdovsky as if the clock had been turned back to 1994, when he was a highly touted first round pick for the Ducks. And when he scored in the same game on a blazing slap shot, they cheered some more. “Absolutely, it’s nice to hear different sounds than last year,” said Tverdovsky with a grin. For the last two seasons, Tverdovsky was booed every time he touched the puck at The Pond. The animosity stemmed from his comments, made during the 1997 playoffs as a member of the Phoenix Coyotes, that he “hated Anaheim” and wanted…
Pratt climbs the ladder
1999-2000 SCHEDULE No Carolina Hurricanes’ player has made greater strides in the past year than Nolan Pratt. In 1998, the defenseman arrived at camp with back trouble and neither a roster spot nor a signed contract. Pratt, 24, arrived in Fort Myers, Fla., this year with a contract, a clean bill of health, a guaranteed job and the expectation of being a consistent NHLer after posting a team-best plus-15 in 1998-99. “I feel a lot more confident this year, coming in more fresh, no injuries to worry about and a full year under my belt,” said the native of Fort McMurray, Alta. “This is my time to go out there and play my game and just enjoy it.” The Southeast Division champions enjoyed Pratt’s contributions last season. He emerged as a dependable, stay-at-home defender.…
Rebel with a cause
1999-2000 SCHEDULE There was no ‘A’ on Petr Sykora’s sweater, but he surely earned a scarlet letter from New Jersey Devils’ management after the defiant left winger assumed the role of activist in a personal protest against team policies. Sykora arrived as a big-time player last season when he led the team in scoring and came within one goal of becoming the first Devil to score 30 goals since John MacLean did it in 1993-94. But by sitting out the first five days of training camp and standing up to GM Lou Lamoriello, Sykora, 22, took a risk few players his age would even consider. In doing so, he added rebel to his profile as a budding young sniper. “I don’t think you see too many young guys do that,” said center Jason Amott…
Made possible with the support of
