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December 17, 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.
Two pro teams in Little Rock equals little attendance
Two minor league teams in one city doesn’t equal success for either club. Dayton, Ohio and Jacksonville, Fla., have discovered that truism and now Little Rock, Ark., is finding out the same thing. The Arkansas RiverBlades of the East Coast League and the Arkansas GlacierCats of the Western Professional League are going head-to-head this season and the results so far are predictable. Neither club is drawing very well. After eight home dates, the expansion RiverBlades were averaging 4,404 in the new, ALLTEL Arena, which seats 16,377 for hockey. The GlacierCats, in their second year of operation, were averaging 3,199 after eight dates in the 8,000-seat Barton Coliseum. “We knew the situation in Little Rock would have some kind of impact on the attendance,” GlacierCats’ GM Derek Bundy told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The GlacierCats and RiverBlades…
Selivanov revives radar
The Edmonton Oilers couldn’t find a hole big enough in which to bury Alex Selivanov last season. This year, he’s the only thing keeping their heads above ground. In the NHL’s best rags-to-riches story of 1999-2000, Selivanov, a 28-year-old right winger, has played his way out of the press box and onto the first line. His 18 goals are second in the league-behind only Pittsburgh Penguin Jaromir Jagr’s 20-and are the most he has scored in any season except 1995-96, when he tallied 31. All this from a guy who was unprotected in last June’s expansion draft. “Every time he gets the puck he puts it in the net and he has been unbelievable,” said Oilers’ right winger Georges Laraque. “You watch him in practice and every time he shoots he wants to…
Druken makes NHL debut, hometown Rocks in pride
When the Vancouver Canucks summoned center Harold Druken from their American League affiliate in Syracuse, little did they know it would cause an all-night celebration in Shea Heights, Nfld. Druken, a 20-year-old native son, made his NHL debut Nov. 30 against the Colorado Avalanche. The game began at 7:30 p.m. in Vancouver, which was the stroke of midnight in Newfoundland. Not many among the 3,000 people in Shea Heights missed the event. “A lot of the kids didn’t go to school because they were up all night watching hockey,” said Harold Druken Sr., who had 50 friends and family over to watch the game. “The kids made no bones about it. They told their teachers they were watching Harold play in the NHL. That was okay with the teachers because half of them…
Sabres hoping Grosek’s play not another tease
The Buffalo Sabres have been fooled in the past, so they’re approaching this turn of events cautiously. Still, it’s difficult not to get excited about Michal Grosek’s play. Grosek scored his third goal in as many games in a 4-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers Dec. 2, providing the kind of consistency the Sabres need from the 24-year old left winger. “It’s fun,” Grosek said. “It would be better if we were winning, but I’m just trying to do something to help the team.” It has been an uphill climb for the rugged-but inconsistent-Grosek. A sixth round pick (145th overall) of the Winnipeg Jets in 1993, he has all the tools to become a premier power forward, but has been more of a tease than a steady performer. Even during his streak, coach Lindy…
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