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July 1, 2001
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.
Kings won’t rush 2001 draft picks
The Los Angeles Kings built for the future during the first round of this year’s NHL entry draft. Far into the future. The team had two selections in the opening round-Swedish left winger Jens Karlsson and Ohio State center Dave Steckel. Both are teenagers and there is a good chance neither will play in L.A. for at least several years. “‘We are very pleased with the first day,” said Kings’ GM Dave Taylor. “I’d be surprised if any of the youngsters we drafted would be in the NHL next year. We think they are better served playing with their current teams. They will be potential Kings two, three or four years down the road.” But after getting within a game of the Western Conference final following a stirring late-season rally, expectations have risen.…
Hawks glad to get feisty Finnish pivot
Blackhawks’ GM Mike Smith accomplished much of what he set out to do at the 2001 draft. Smith got one of the players he wanted in the first round, Finnish center Tuomo Ruutu; he drafted two goaltenders early; and he came home with some immediate help, acquiring versatile winger Igor Korolev from Toronto. With the ninth pick overall the Hawks grabbed Ruutu, a 6-foot-2,196-pound dynamo who patterns his in-your-face game after hero Esa Tikkanen. “I think I’m a pain in the ass to play against,” Ruutu said. Smith said the Finn is a tenacious player. “We had people come up to us and say we got maybe the third-best player in the draft and that they were trying to trade up to get him,” he said. Ruutu’s older brothers, Jarkko and Mikko, were drafted in previous…
Season of smiles thanks to French Connection
From 33 to 66 to 77, the NHL season went from hell to heaven. The first campaign of the new millennium had an ominous here-we-go-again feel when Marty McSorley (No. 33 in our programs, but No. 1 on the most wanted list) was found guilty by a British Columbia court of assaulting Donald Brashear. The scab that had formed during the summer of 2000, following a 1999-2000 season that had far too many bloody messes, was ripped open as the game went on trial in Vancouver. By the time the Colorado Avalanche won the Stanley Cup, however, it had become clear the season belonged to a French Connection, not a criminal conviction. Montreal-born legends Mario Lemieux and Ray Bourque galvanized the hockey community with their riveting tales, stories that generated more warm and…
AND THE 2000-01 NHL AWARD WINNERS ARE…
HART TROPHY (Most Valuable Player, selected by PHWA) Joe Sakic, Colorado Second in NHL scoring with 118 points and led league with 12 game-winners and a plus-45 rating. Had second-best output of his 13-year career. VEZINA TROPHY (Best Goaltender, selected by GMs) Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Won sixth Vezina with strong second-half performance. Led league with 11 shutouts and his.921 save percentage ranked fourth. NORRIS TROPHY (Best Defenseman, selected by PHWA) Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Norris runner-up each of the last three years, Lidstrom’s margin of victory over second-place Ray Bourque was the most among award winners. CALDER TROPHY (Best Rookie, selected by PHWA) Evgeni Nabokov, San Jose Ankle injury to Steve Shields thrust Nabokov in spotlight. He set team records in several categories and played in NHL All-Star Game. SELKE TROPHY (Best Defensive Forward, selected by PHWA) John Madden, New Jersey Had fewer first-place Seike…
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