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.

October 1, 2001

The Hockey News October 1, 2001

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011700/7221373-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Joe Sakic&rsquo;s superb 2000-01 makes him the center of attention among the NHL&rsquo;s pivot stars.</figcaption></div><h2>TOP 20 NHL CENTERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021350/7221366-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="251" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">1. Sakic</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03872/7221359-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="256" height="318"><figcaption class="caption-body">2. Lemieux</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-04510/7221352-1-eng-US/f0012-042.jpg" title="f0012-04" width="254" height="318"><figcaption class="caption-body">3. Forsberg</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-05364/7221345-1-eng-US/f0012-052.jpg" title="f0012-05" width="254" height="319"><figcaption class="caption-body">4. Modano</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-06296/7221338-1-eng-US/f0012-062.jpg" title="f0012-06" width="251" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">5. Yzerman</figcaption></div><h2>Sakic sits at top of class</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-07256/7221331-1-eng-US/f0012-072.jpg" title="f0012-07" width="1499" height="963"></div> &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">By Tom Jones</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01526/7223201-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg" title="f0040-01" width="268" height="241"></div>It didn&rsquo;t take a lot for Minnesota Wild GM Doug Risebrough to identify his team&rsquo;s biggest weakness from a season ago. In fact, it took very little - as in goals. No team scored fewer times than the Wild last season. No team was shut out more often.Minnesota&rsquo;s offense last season literally was offensive.That&rsquo;s why Andrew Brunette will be wearing a Wild uniform this year.&ldquo;Obviously, one of our top priorities during the off-season was to improve the offense of the team,&rdquo; Risebrough said. &ldquo;We were looking for offensive players.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s why the Wild had no problems making Brunette, an unrestricted free agent, the team&rsquo;s highest-paid player, signing him-tO a three-year deal that could pay him up to $3,825 million, depending on performance bonuses.Brunette, 27, brings immediate scoring punch to a club that struggled mightily to find the net in its inaugural season.Two years ago for the Atlanta Thrashers, Brunette had a team-leading 50 points - 23 goals, 27 assists. Last season he was second in scoring with 15 goals and 59 points, a total that easily would&rsquo;ve led the Wild. Brunette had points in 44 of 77 games. He has 43 power play points in the past two seasons.By comparison, the Wild&rsquo;s goal leaders were rookie Marian Gaborik, Wes Walz and Darby Hendrickson with 18 each. First-year defenseman Lubomir Sekeras led in assists with 23 and Gaborik in scoring with 36 points.Brunette already is being looked at as the Wild&rsquo;s go-tO guy.&ldquo;There will be some pressure, but I feel confident,&rdquo; said Brunette when he signed. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve done it for a couple years and I think I can produce opportunities and produce points.&rdquo;Brunette became a free agent when the Thrashers didn&rsquo;t make him a qualifying contract offer. If they had, Brunette would probably have gone to salary arbitration.&ldquo;It would have been quite possible for an arbitrator to award him more than Atlanta might have been willing to pay,&rdquo; said Brunette&rsquo;s agent, Don Reynolds.Brunette, who was paid $475,000 last season, talked with several other teams, including the Tampa Bay Lightning and Thrashers, but settled on the Wild. In part, that decision was made when the Thrashers and Brunette made their initial visit to Minnesota last season. When he saw the building and heard the passion of the fans, he thought, &ldquo;This is a place where I definitely would like to play.&rdquo;He also likes the organization&rsquo;s attitude.&ldquo;The Wild basically said they don&rsquo;t consider themselves an expansion team and&rsquo;I think their record (2539-13-5) sold me,&rdquo; Brunette said. &ldquo;I know they play a defensive style of game and they&rsquo;re in every game. That&rsquo;s appealing. And the amount of points they had for a first-year team, that&rsquo;s appealing. Just being a significant part of a growing process is important to me.&rdquo;This won&rsquo;t be Brunette&rsquo;s first go with an expansion team. He played for the 199899 expansion Predators, scoring the first goal in Nashville history Then he was traded to the Thrashers before their debut in 1999-2000 and scored that franchise&rsquo;s first power play goal. Drafted by Washington in 1993, he has played 297 NHL games in six seasons, registering 67 goals, 180 points and 106 penalty minutes.&ldquo;It was a chance to get an offensive guy and there are never enough of them out there,&rdquo; Risebrough said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a goal-scorer, a playmaker and he has good stick skills. He&rsquo;s a top-two-line kind of guy.&ldquo;At the end of last season we made a commitment to make this team younger and more skilled. Andrew is a step towards achieving both of those goals.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-03240/7223194-1-eng-US/f0040-032.jpg" title="f0040-03" width="946" height="1355"><figcaption class="caption-body">Andrew Brunette can&rsquo;t get enough of expansion teams.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-04189/7223187-1-eng-US/f0040-042.jpg" title="f0040-04" width="204" height="287"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brunette</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-05163/7223180-1-eng-US/f0040-052.jpg" title="f0040-05" width="191" height="110"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-06144/7223173-1-eng-US/f0040-062.jpg" title="f0040-06" width="202" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Fernandez</figcaption></div>Is he as good as .920 SP suggests?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-07130/7223166-1-eng-US/f0040-072.jpg" title="f0040-07" width="197" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Zholtok</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-08118/7223159-1-eng-US/f0040-082.jpg" title="f0040-08" width="186" height="104"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Minnesota&rsquo;s top 26 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-0995/7223152-1-eng-US/f0040-092.jpg" title="f0040-09" width="626" height="770"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-1088/7223145-1-eng-US/f0040-102.jpg" title="f0040-10" width="594" height="116"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-1179/7223138-1-eng-US/f0040-112.jpg" title="f0040-11" width="630" height="340"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Manny Fernandez2. Jamie McLennan3. Dwayne Roloson4. Derek GustafsonDEFENSEMEN1. Filip Kuba2. Lubomir Sekeras3. Willie Mitchell*4. Brad Bombardir5. Andy Sutton6. Ladislav Benysek7. Jason Marshall8. Mike Crowley9. Brad Brown10. Travis RocheLEFT WINGERS1. Andrew Brunette2. Aaron Gavey3. Antti Laaksonen4. Sergei Zboltok5 Matt Johnson*6. Cam StewartCENTERS1. Wes Walz2. Darby Hendrickson3. Pavel Patera4. Jim Dowd5. Tony Virta6. Pascal DupuisRIGHT WINGERS1. Marian Gaborik2StacyRoest*3. SergeiKnvokrasov4. Roman Simicek5. Sylvain Blouin6. KyleWanvig* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-02336/7223131-1-eng-US/f0040-022.jpg" title="f0040-02" width="343" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stacy Roest</figcaption></div>Roest didn&rsquo;t find a groove until late in the season and had disappointing totals. Seven goals is unacceptable. &#9632;

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NHL PLAYER PROFILES

Wild add Mr. Offense

<div class="byline">By Robert Tychkowski</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01797/7222905-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="268" height="246"></div>For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. In the case of the Edmonton Oilers, the action was an off-season trade that sent Doug Weight to St. Louis. Unfortunately for Tommy Salo, a large part of the reaction rests on his slender shoulders.Weight&rsquo;s departure leaves a huge vacuum - 90 points worth - and the Oilers didn&rsquo;t replace him with anyone who can pick up that kind of offensive slack. In other words, if they don&rsquo;t slash their goals against significantly, they&rsquo;re in trouble.Coach Craig MacTavish says it has to be a total team effort, but there&rsquo;s no denying the Swedish keeper&rsquo;s significance in all this. If Salo isn&rsquo;t sensational, it&rsquo;s going to be a very long year.&ldquo;Everybody has really bought into that (tight checking) philosophy and hopefully that will manifest itself in less opportunities at Tommy,&rdquo; MacTavish said. &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s also no secret that Tommy is going to have to be a big factor in our success.&rdquo;Bigger, even, than last year, when he was arguably a coMVP with the former captain.Salo will have to be sharp &ldquo;especially at the beginning of the year when everybody is getting adjusted to their new roles,&rdquo; said right winger Mike Grier, who is still on the mend from shoulder surgery and might not be ready for the start of the season. &ldquo;I think we might rely on him a bit. But at the same time we&rsquo;re going to have to have a solid group defensive effort. We can&rsquo;t hang him out to dry for 35 shots a night and have him worn down before December.&rdquo;It&rsquo;ll be tough for Salo to top last year&rsquo;s act - 36 wins, eight shutouts and a. 904 save percentage - but it&rsquo;s going to take those kinds of numbers again if Edmonton hopes to be competitive.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been playing really good defense the last two years,&rdquo; Salo said.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03417/7222898-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="922" height="1285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Burnout is a concern for Oilers&rsquo; starter Tommy Salo.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;But it&rsquo;s more important now because we&rsquo;re going to miss Doug. I hope I can be better than last year. At the start of every year you hope to be better than the year before.&rdquo;The Oilers say what they need to do is provide Salo with the same kind of help Ed Belfour gets in Dallas and Martin Brodeur gets in Jersey.&ldquo;We have to make sure we&rsquo;re doing the things (MacTavish) wants us to do defensively,&rdquo; Grier said. &ldquo;We need everyone to be responsible in our own end. We definitely can&rsquo;t get away with being poor defensively this year.&rdquo;They know Salo will hold up his end of the bargain. &ldquo;There were nights last year when the team didn&rsquo;t play as well as we could have, but Tommy kept us in the game and gave us a chance,&rdquo; said defenseman Jason Smith.&ldquo;So we know what Tommy is going to give us, he&rsquo;s going to play well and give us an opportunity to win every night.&rdquo;Well, not every night. The Oilers don&rsquo;t want Salo playing 82 games. Nor do they want him again playing 73 games - a career high last season - or even 70 like the year before. But with such little room for error in what promises to be another tight fight for playoff spots, it&rsquo;s imperative they find him a competent reliever.&ldquo;He can&rsquo;t play any more than he played last year,&rdquo; said MacTavish, who has watched the Oilers struggle with backup problems the last two seasons.This year they&rsquo;re counting on unproven Finnish Elite League veteran Jussi Mark-kanen to do what Bill Ranford, Joaquin Gage and Dominic Roussel couldn&rsquo;t do before him - step in and play well enough that the coaches aren&rsquo;t afraid to give Salo the odd day off.&ldquo;The one consistent thing I hear from our guys who were watching the (conditioning) camp at the university is they like Markkanen and that&rsquo;s a positive,&rdquo; said MacTavish, well aware the 26-year-old hasn&rsquo;t played an NHL minute.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a tough role, though. You want to get him enough games to let him develop, but you also don&rsquo;t want to take your best player out of the lineup on too many nights.&rdquo;The simple reality is, they can&rsquo;t afford to.<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04343/7222891-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="202" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brewer</figcaption></div>Level of expectation has risen dramatically<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-05307/7222884-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Carter</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-06270/7222877-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="189" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-07241/7222870-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="199" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hecht</figcaption></div>Can he handle bigger role in Edmonton?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Edmonton&rsquo;s top 24 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropnate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-08202/7222863-1-eng-US/f0037-082.jpg" title="f0037-08" width="624" height="824"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-09173/7222856-1-eng-US/f0037-092.jpg" title="f0037-09" width="621" height="87"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-10154/7222849-1-eng-US/f0037-102.jpg" title="f0037-10" width="625" height="340"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Tommy Salo2. Jussi Markanen3. Ty Conklin4. Marc LamotheDEFENSEMEN1. Janne Niinimaa2. Jason Smith3. Enc Brewer4. Tom Poti*5. Steve Staors6. Sean Brown7. Sven Butenschon8. Scott Ferguson9. Kan Haakana10. Chris HajtLEFT WINGERS1. Ryan Smyth2. Jochen Hecht3. Ethan Moreau4. Josh Green5. Shawn Horcoff6. Jason ChimeraCENTERS1. Mike Comne2. Todd Marchant3.Rem Murray4. Marty Reasoner5. Domemc Pittis6. Peter SamoRIGHTWINGERS1. Anson Carter2. MikeGner3. Georges Laraque4. Dan Cleary5. Brian Urick6. Michael Henrich* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02540/7222842-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="341" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tom Poti</figcaption></div>1998-99 NHL all-rookie team member struggled for much of last season and had worst plusminus on Edmonton. &#9632;

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Spotlight still on Salo

<div class="byline">By Bucky Gleason</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01946/7222146-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="269" height="245"></div>Tim Connolly recently bought a condominium along Buffalo&rsquo;s waterfront. It&rsquo;s a few blocks from HSBC Arena and just a short drive away from his grandmother&rsquo;s house. It&rsquo;s not quite home yet, but this is as close as he&rsquo;s going to get.Connolly was born in suburban Syracuse, N.Y, but he always felt he had a home in Buffalo. His father was raised just outside the city and still has relatives in the area. Connolly grew up a Sabres&rsquo; fan, some 150 miles east.So it seems the perfect fit.&ldquo;If there was a team in the NHL I could pick to play for, it would be the Sabres,&rdquo; Connolly said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t believe I&rsquo;m here. I&rsquo;m really happy about it. I&rsquo;m hoping to stay here for a long time. The organization is going in the right direction. It&rsquo;s going to be a great situation here in Buffalo.&rdquo;The Sabres also are convinced they&rsquo;ll benefit from the trade that sent Michael Peca to the Islanders for Connolly and big winger Taylor Pyatt. The deal ended Peca&rsquo;s contract dispute and gives the two youngsters a fresh start in a new organization.Pyatt will challenge for an NHL job in camp, but he could start the season in Rochester (AHL). The Sabres have much higher expectations for Connolly, a gifted skater and puckhandler.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a great passer and sees the ice really well,&rdquo; said center Chris Gratton. &ldquo;When you get a guy with that kind of vision, someone who can move the puck and find guys open, it&rsquo;s going to help our shooters.&rsquo;Coach Lindy Ruff will decide on Connolly&rsquo;s linemates over the next few weeks. He could wind up between right winger Miroslav Satan and left winger J-P Dumont, giving Buffalo its first true scoring line in years.Connolly&rsquo;s development will require patience. The 20-year-old scored 10 goals and 41 points for the Isles last season and 14 goals and 34 points in 1999-2000, his rookie year after the Islanders grabbed him fifth overall in the 1999 draft.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m happy to play with anybody on this team,&rdquo; Connolly said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just hoping I can make the players around me better. I&rsquo;ve been more of a passer. I&rsquo;d like to pick up on my goal-scoring. I don&rsquo;t shoot the puck as much I should.&rdquo;The Sabres consider him among the most creative young players in the league, which will allow them to become more aggressive offensively this season. He should at least help a power play that finished 17th last year.The Sabres aren&rsquo;t about to junk their defense-first philosophy. They allowed the fewest goals (184) in the league last season and helped Dominik Hasek win his sixth Vezina Trophy. With Hasek traded to Detroit, the Sabres will make sure things remain tight in their own end. But there&rsquo;s also no ignoring their strength in the middle.&ldquo;The guy can handle the puck,&rdquo; said defenseman Rhett Warrener of Connolly. &ldquo;You see some of the replays of the goals he has scored and the plays he has made. It&rsquo;s amazing stuff. When you&rsquo;re that type of player, maybe it takes a little longer before everything settles and you find your niche. It&rsquo;s only a matter of time before everything comes together and he really becomes a player to watch.&rdquo;Curtis Brown is among the better checking centers in the league. Gratton emerged as a scorer in the playoffs last season, almost single-handedly beating Philadelphia in the first round. Stu Barnes played center last season and was, Buffalo&rsquo;s best all-around player.All three should help take pressure off Connolly, who was criticized on Long Island for the Isles&rsquo; failure to make the playoffs during his first two NHL seasons. He should have that chance in Buffalo.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s something to play for here,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough when you&rsquo;re out of the playoffs with a couple months left. Now I&rsquo;m not in that situation. I&rsquo;m on a very strong team, a contending team. I love watching playoff hockey and now I&rsquo;ll have a chance to play in it. I can&rsquo;t wait for the season to start. I wish it would start today.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03400/7222139-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="924" height="1289"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tim Connolly could be the playmaker Buffalo needs.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-04273/7222132-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Afinogenov</figcaption></div>Didn&rsquo;t make I step forward I last season<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-05181/7222125-1-eng-US/f0027-052.jpg" title="f0027-05" width="202" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Biron</figcaption></div>No pressure. He&rsquo;s only replacing Hasek<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-06137/7222118-1-eng-US/f0027-062.jpg" title="f0027-06" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kozlov</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-07115/7222111-1-eng-US/f0027-072.jpg" title="f0027-07" width="196" height="102"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Buffalo&rsquo;s top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-08100/7222104-1-eng-US/f0027-082.jpg" title="f0027-08" width="631" height="784"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0992/7222097-1-eng-US/f0027-092.jpg" title="f0027-09" width="622" height="114"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1084/7222090-1-eng-US/f0027-102.jpg" title="f0027-10" width="624" height="339"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Martin Bron2. Bob Essensa3. Mika Noronen4. Tori Asx.eyDEFENSEMEN1. Alexei Zhitnik2. Rhett Warrener3. Jay McKee4. Richard Smehlik5. Dmitn Kalinin6. Jason Woolley7.James Patrick8. Brian Campbell9.Doug Janik1CL Mario LarbcqueLEFT WINGERS1. J-P Dumont2. Slava Kozlov3. Erik Rasmussen&rdquo;4. Denis Hamel5. Taylor Pyatt6. Enc BoultonCENTERS1. Stu Barnes2.Curts Brown3. Tim Connolly4. Chns Gratton5.Chris Taylor6. Artem KryukovRIGHT WINGERS1. Miroslav Satan2. Maxim Afmogenov3. Vaclav Varada4. Rob Ray5. Norm Miney6. Christian Matte* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02602/7222083-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="345" height="402"><figcaption class="caption-body">Curtis Brown</figcaption></div>Will give Sabres a major boost if he can come back after scoring just 10 goals and 32 points last season. &#9632;

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Connolly right at home

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011753/7220905-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="338" height="344"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021401/7220898-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="3072" height="1792"></div>It is with a heavy heart that The Hockey News produces our annual Season Opener issue. On Sept. 11, thousands were killed in a terrorist attack focused on New York City and Washington.The hockey world was not spared.Two members of the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; scouting staff, Garnet &lsquo;Ace&rsquo; Bailey and Mark Bavis, were on one of two flights that crashed into the World Trade Center. Bailey, 53, and Bavis, 31, were en route from Boston to Los Angeles for the Kings&rsquo; training camp.Bailey is survived by his wife, Kathy, and his son, Todd, 22. Bavis is survived by his mother, two brothers and three sisters. They are also survived by those whose lives their spirits touched.We offer our condolences to the Bailey and Bavis families. &#9632;

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SEPT. 11, 2001

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011721/7220943-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Garnet Ace&rsquo;Bailey, below, and Mark Bavis were among 74 victims when United Airlines Flight 175 was commandeered by terrorists and flown into the South Tower of New York&rsquo;s World Trade Center on Sept. 11.</figcaption></div>The NHL suffered alongside millions of others Sept. 11 when it lost two family members.While the death toll from the worst terrorist attack ever committed on U.S. soil remained uncertain - climbing horribly toward 5,000 - the names of two victims struck at the heart of the NHL.Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; scouts Garnet &lsquo;Ace&rsquo; Bailey and Mark Bavis were aboard United Airlines Flight 175 when it was steered into the World Trade Center in New York shortly after another plane had been crashed into the world&rsquo;s financial center.Bailey, 53, was the Kings&rsquo; director of pro scouting and Bavis, 31, a Kings&rsquo; amateur scout. It was a stunning blow for the hockey community which had long known and loved Bailey and was just getting to know Bavis. (See pg. 6 for story on Bavis and NHL reaction to the tragedy.)Bailey, who was entering his 31st year in the NHL as a player or scout, was one of the game&rsquo;s beloved personalities.&ldquo;There are thousands of stories about Ace and I feel very lucky (to have known him),&rdquo; said Wayne Cashman, Bailey&rsquo;s teammate on two Stanley Cup championship teams with the Boston Bruins. &ldquo;My family knew Ace and he was our friend and I feel sorry for the people who never got to know him. He was one of those guys who, no matter what, was going to make you smile. He was one of those special people in life. He was a guy you wanted as a friend.&rdquo;Added former Bruins&rsquo; goalie Gerry Cheevers: &ldquo;He just had a great feeling for kids and for people. That&rsquo;s what I think when I think of Ace, how fun-loving he was and how he treated people. There isn&rsquo;t anyone who met Ace that didn&rsquo;t love him.&rdquo;Bailey, a left winger, played 10 years (1968-69 through 1977-78) in the NHL, with stops in Boston, Detroit, St. Louis and Washington before playing a single season with Edmonton and Wayne Gretzky in the World Hockey Association. He was a journeyman player, scoring 107 goals and 278 points in 568 NHL games, but one whose contribution far surpassed his statistics.&ldquo;He played a tough, industrious game,&rdquo; Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; executive Bill Watters told the National Post, &ldquo;and I think he scouted the same way.&rdquo;Edmonton scout Lome Davis said, &ldquo;His evaluation of players was a lot like the way he played. If you were a wimp, he didn&rsquo;t like you.&rdquo;&ldquo;He embodied the spirit of the time,&rdquo; said Peter McNab, another former Bruin, who got to know Bailey through alumni softball games. &ldquo;His love of hockey was exceeded only by his love of life. He was one of those Bruin guys. It was all for the team. You stood up when you were called.&rdquo;That very attitude led many to say that Bailey would not have accepted his fate sitting down had he known what was happening: &ldquo;I have a hard time believing that the hijackers apparently had knives that would only cut cardboard boxes,&rdquo; Davis said. &ldquo;That would not have stopped Ace. He would have been up fighting with them.&rdquo;Bailey, a native of Lloyd-minster, Sask., and Bavis were on their way to the Kings&rsquo; training camp when tragedy struck. Bailey had overslept at his home in Lynnfield, Mass., but made it to the gate shortly before the gate closed.&ldquo;In another five minutes, he would have missed it,&rdquo; said Bruins&rsquo; president Harry Sinden, Bailey&rsquo;s coach on the Stanley Cup teams in 1970 and 1972. &ldquo;He was a role player, but to me he was the ideal role player. In some games he would get a lot of ice time and in other games he would not get any at all. And his value and his interests and his attitude never seemed to change. He was the teammate of all teammates.&rdquo;Cashman was at the Bruins&rsquo; practice facility outside Boston Sept. 11 when Sinden motioned him to join him in his office. The day before, Cashman and Bailey had a long talk about the upcoming season and as soon as Sinden closed the door, Cashman feared the worst. Cashman and Cheevers went directly to Bailey&rsquo;s house to be with his wife, Kathy, and son, Todd, 22.&ldquo;We were talking to his wife,&rdquo; Cashman recounted, &ldquo;and she said, &lsquo;You know, I could be so damned mad at him and he had that little smile on his face and sometime during the day, he would look at me and smile and I wasn&rsquo;t mad anymore. I knew I loved him too much.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021483/7220936-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="750" height="1141"></div>Bailey jumped to the WHA in 1978, joining the Oilers, where he was Gretzky&rsquo;s linemate. (He also played for the junior Edmonton Oil Kings and was a member of the 1966 Memorial Cup-winning squad.) Bailey spent 13 years with the Oilers&rsquo; organization as a coach and scout, sharing in five Stanley Cup championships. This was Bailey&rsquo;s eighth year with the Kings after following Gretzky to Los Angeles.&ldquo;Ace Bailey always used to laugh at me on the plane,&rdquo; Gretzky told the Edmonton Sun. &ldquo;We became great friends. We travelled to Europe together. He was always making fun of me on the planes. My biggest night-mare just came true. To him.&rdquo;Kings&rsquo; GM Dave Taylor met with the team on the night of the tragedy and issued a statement: &ldquo;First and foremost, we are shocked by the tragedies that have occurred today and the tremendous loss of life that has taken place&hellip;Our entire organization is deeply saddened and shaken by the loss of (Bailey and Bavis).&rdquo;The Kings skated Sept. 12 and players were assigned to black and white teams for a scrimmage. Skaters with white jerseys wore black armbands on their left arms to honor their fallen colleagues.&ldquo;It hits home when you have two guys that are on their way and you can actually see the plane going into that building,&rdquo; said forward Bryan Smolinski. &ldquo;It is devastating.&rdquo;Said Kings&rsquo; defenseman Mathieu Schneider: &ldquo;The world got a little smaller and we&rsquo;re all at risk.&rdquo;The family of Ace Bailey has requested that, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to: The Neely Foundation 30 Winter St., 2nd Floor, Boston, Mass. 02108 <a href="http://www.camneelyfoundation.com">www.camneelyfoundation.com</a>The family of Mark Bavis has requested that, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to: The Mark Bavis Scholarship Foundation c/o Catholic Memorial High School 235 Baker St., West Roxbury, Mass. 02132 617-323-7333<div class="sidebar">&lsquo;He was one of those special people in life. He was a guy you wanted as a friend&rsquo; &#9632;</div>

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SPECIAL FEATURES

VICTIMS OF TERROR

<div class="byline">By Kevin Allen</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011880/7220998-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mark Bavis, second from right, is pictured with assistant GM Kevin Gilmore, Kings&rsquo; first pick David Steckel and director of amateur scouting Al Murray at the 2001 draft.</figcaption></div>When college scout Mark Bavis campaigned for the Los Angeles Kings to select Ohio State center Dave Steckel in the first round in June, it was as if he were championing a revered political nominee.Bavis had fire. He had conviction. He had determination.&ldquo;Bavo really liked (Steckel&rsquo;s) work ethic,&rdquo; remembered Kings&rsquo; GM Dave Taylor. &ldquo;He loved him as a prospect. He did a personal interview with (Steckel) toward the end of the season and came away with him high on his list. That&rsquo;s the way Bavo was: He had great passion for this game and the players.&rdquo;As Bavis campaigned for Steckel and other college players at the Kings&rsquo; scout meetings, no one could have foreseen that less than three months later the two college players the Kings selected at Bavis&rsquo; urging early in the 2001 NHL entry draft would become his legacy. The 31-year-old former Boston University player was aboard United Airlines Flight 175 - the second jet to slam into the World Trade Center Sept. 11. He was with director of pro scouting Garnet Ace&rsquo; Bailey en route to Los Angeles for the Kings&rsquo; training camp.Almost everyone in hockey knew Bailey, who had been involved in the NHL for more than three decades. But the hockey world was just discovering Bavis, who was starting his second season with the Kings. He had previously served as an assistant coach at Harvard and in the North American League.&ldquo;Without any question, he had a chance for a great future in this game,&rdquo; said Taylor, who broke down when he told the Kings&rsquo; players about the loss of Bailey and Bavis. &ldquo;He took a lot of pride and a lot of responsibility in what he was doing. You could just tell by the game reports he filed &ndash; how thorough they were and how indepth.&rdquo;Just as he lobbied aggressively for Steckel, Bavis had fervor in convincing the Kings to draft undersized University of Michigan center Mike Cammalleri. It certainly made sense for Bavis to fight for an underdog because he had been one himself when he was drafted by the New York Rangers with the 181st pick in 1989. He never made the NHL, but not for lack of effort, remembered Mighty Ducks of Anaheim assistant GM David McNab, who joined the Rangers shortly after Bavis was selected.&ldquo;He was one of those guys that you thought probably wouldn&rsquo;t make the NHL, but he was such a good guy that you cheered for him to make it,&rdquo; McNab said.Bavis was a 175-pound grinding forward at Boston University, scoring 34 goals in 159 college games. He played in the East Coast League and American League before retiring in 1996.&ldquo;You always knew that he would always do well in life because he was such an honest, hardworking individual,&rdquo; McNab said. &ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t surprised he ended up as a scout because he loved the game. When you went to a game at BU, you knew he was always going to be a good player. As a scout you always had players that you hoped pure desire might carry them to the NHL. When he became a scout, I was happy to see him in the league, because good people deserve a chance.&rdquo;News of Bavis&rsquo; death has hit hard at Boston University, where his twin brother, Mike, is an assistant coach. Former BU swimmer Tom McGinnis was a co-pilot on one of the ill-fated airliners and Brian Sweeney, another passenger on one of the crashed jets, had played BU football.Bavis is survived by his mother, two brothers and three sisters. &#9632;

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Passion marked life

<div class="byline">-Kevin Oklobzija</div>The fates were alternately cruel and kind for two former Boston University team-mates amidst the carnage of Sept. 11.While Mark Bavis died when his United Airlines flight plowed into the south tower of the World Trade Center, Mark Krys escaped unhurt.Bavis and Krys were BU teammates in 1989-90. Krys, now a bond trader with Morgan Stanley, fled to safety after hearing the first explosion in the north tower.&ldquo;I saw paper and fireballs flying through the air and I just hopped on the elevator and got to the ground,&rdquo; said the former defenseman from his home in Midland Park, N.J.&ldquo;I went outside and waited for a couple guys who took the stairs,&rdquo; said Krys, 32. &ldquo;We went across the street and then it was panic time. Stuff was flying everywhere; I looked up and there were people hanging off the building. I just took off running. I was thinking, &lsquo;This thing&rsquo;s going to topple.&rdquo;Bavis&rsquo; twin brother, Mike, was Krys&rsquo; teammate with the Rochester Americans in 1993-94 and 1994-95. &#9632;

Bavis teammate survives attack

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div>The NHL was rocked by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, prompting the league to push back the start of the exhibition schedule by two days and recommend extra security precautions be taken to protect its 30 teams.Minutes after the second jet smashed into the World Trade Center, the NHL sent an e-mail to its teams, warning them to be vigilant in these uncertain times.&ldquo;We told them if they wanted to continue with their activities, they should heighten security measures,&rdquo; said Bill Daly, the NHL&rsquo;s senior vice-president who was in his midtown Manhattan office when terror rained down from the skies.In the wake of the tragedy, the league cancelled or postponed 22 of 23 exhibition games Sept. 15 and 16.The Stanley Cup-champion Colorado Avalanche was set to play the first pre-season game of the year Sept. 16 in Stockholm as part of an NHL Challenge tournament.Sept. 11 was the day most NHL teams were scheduled to open camp. But the attacks paralyzed air travel in North America and teams were directly affected.The Carolina Hurricanes delayed the start of camp because players were stranded. The Toronto Maple Leafs were to fly to St. John&rsquo;s, Nfld., for training camp, but their plans were put on hold because of grounded flights. They still hoped to play the Montreal Canadiens in St. John&rsquo;s Sept. 17.Scheduled to open camp in St. Catharines, Ont., the Buffalo Sabres switched to Amherst, N.Y., because of traffic jams caused by tightened security at the Canada-U.S. border.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021270/7221053-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="288" height="303"></div>The New York Rangers were scheduled to book into a hotel located in the World Trade Center complex, but changed plans in May. &ldquo;My God, we would&rsquo;ve been right in the middle of it,&rdquo; said Rangers&rsquo; spokesman John Rosasco.The Rangers were set to hold camp at Madison Square Garden for the first time, but moved to their training facility in Rye, N.Y., as the city began the recovery process.Inside the NHL offices after the twin strikes on the morning of Sept. 11, people were frantic. Staff who had family or friends working at or near the World Trade Center were desperately trying to contact them. Phone lines were either down or clogged.&ldquo;One of the immediate things we thought about was whether we were at risk,&rdquo; Daly said, &ldquo;and this was early on when the news was reporting there could be more planes.&rdquo;Vice-president of communications Bernadette Mansur said, &ldquo;It became surreal. It was like watching a movie, Armageddon.&rdquo;Several NHL teams - including Los Angeles, Vancouver and Calgary - announced they would be donating proceeds from exhibition games to organizations supporting victims of the attack.Meanwhile, the Ontario League delayed the start of its regular season from Sept. 13 to Sept. 15. The Western League cancelled exhibition games in Seattle and Spokane and postponed another in Tri-Cities, Wash. The Quebec League, already in the regular season, didn&rsquo;t alter its schedule.Games also were rescheduled in the Czech and German Leagues. &#9632;

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Pre-season pushed back by tragedy

<div class="byline">by Mike Brophy Senior Writer</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0008-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011773/7221084-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rocket man&nbsp;Florida&rsquo;s Pavel Bure will be gunning for his third straight Rocket Richard Trophy as the NHL&rsquo;s top sniper.</figcaption></div>He&rsquo;s not No. 1, and frankly, he could care less. St. Louis Blues&rsquo; defenseman Chris Pronger slipped in The Hockey News&rsquo; preseason rankings of the top 20 players at each position, all the way to No. 2, but the 1999-2000 Hart Trophy winner as the NHL&rsquo;s most valuable player - and Norris Trophy winner as top defenseman - has other things on his mind.&ldquo;You know what, I really don&rsquo;t care if I&rsquo;m No. 1,&rdquo; Pronger said. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t start the year saying, &lsquo;I want to win such-and-such trophy&rsquo; you want to win the Stanley Cup. When you enjoy team success, that&rsquo;s when individual success comes.&rdquo;Detroit defender Nicklas Lidstrom stole Pronger&rsquo;s crown, not to mention the Norris Trophy.Pronger&rsquo;s Blues enter the year as one of four teams in a dogfight for the Western Conference championship. One wonders if there will be anything left of the survivor to better the Eastern Conference champ in the Stanley Cup final?Starting on pg. 9, we&rsquo;ve ranked the top 20 players at each position. The rankings reflect a combination of how the players performed last season and how we feel they&rsquo;ll do this year.Here is a position-by position synopsis of our choices for the top 20:GOALIE The usual suspects crowd the top of the list. Dominik Hasek was healthy last season and assumes his customary spot at No. 1, while Patrick Roy used a Conn Smythe performance to go from No. 7 to No. 2.DEFENSE Lidstrom has been the NHL&rsquo;s most consistent blueliner the past six years and was finally rewarded with the Norris. It&rsquo;s worth mention, though, Pronger&rsquo;s points-per-game rose from. 78 two years ago to. 92 last year when he supposedly slumped.LEFT WING Paul Kariya holds on to his No. 1 ranking despite a slip in performance. Grizzled veterans Brendan Shanahan, Luc Robitaille and Gary Roberts are still making their mark in the league. Watch for Minnesota Wild teenager Marian Gaborik to step forward this year.CENTER It would be wrong to say Colorado&rsquo;s Joe Sakic Is underrated. But did anybody really know the depth of his talent that was unleashed when Peter Forsberg went down in the playoffs? With Forsberg healthy, no team has a better one-two punch in the middle.RIGHT WING This is the NHL&rsquo;s red light district. The top pointgetter (four years running), Jaromir Jagr, resides here, as does Pavel Bure, the top goalscorer the past two seasons.Then factor in Alexei Kovalev, Jarome Iginla, Bill Guerin, Milan Hejduk, Petr Sykora and Jeff O&rsquo;Neill, all of whom enjoyed their best scoring seasons ever last year.<h2>The Fab 50</h2>Here are the top 50 players in the NHL as ranked in THN&rsquo;s 2001-02 Yearbook. The rankings reflect players&rsquo; status and performance expectations entering 2001-02Player1. Jaromir Jagr, Wsh2. Joe Sakic, Col3. Mario Lemieux, Pit4. Peter Forsberg, Col5. Nicklas Lidstrom, Det6. Chris Pronger, StL7. Mike Modano, Dal8. Paul Kariya, Ana9. Dominik Hasek, Det10. Pavel Bure, Fla11. Patrick Roy, Col12. Rob Blake, Col13. Steve Yzerman, Det14. Brian Leetch, NYR15. Owen Nolan SJ16. Doug Weight, StL17. Patrik Elias, NJ18. Alexei Kovalev, Pit19. Curtis Joseph, Tor20. Sergei Fedorov. Det21. EricUndros, NYR22. Mats Sundir, Tor23. Al Maclnnis, StL24. Pierro Turgeon, Dal25. Alexei Yashin, NYI26. Keith Tkachuk, StL27. Martin Brodeur. NJ28. Keith Primeau, Phi29. John LeClair, Phi30. Jason Allison, Bos31. Ziggy Palffy, NYI32. Ed Belfour, Dal33. Mark Recchi, Phi34. Peter Bondra, Wish35. Adam Foote, Col36. Teemu Selanne, SJ37. Alexander Mogilny, Tor38. Marian Hossa, Ott39. Bill Guerin, Bos40. Tony Amonte, Chi41. Sergei Zubov, Dal42. Joe Thornton. Bos43. Milan Hejduk, Col44. Jeremy Roenick, Phi45. Markus Nasljjnd, Van46. Scott Niedermayer, NJ47. Chris Drury, Col48. Petr Sykora, NJ49. Martin Strake, Pit50. Theo Fleury, NYR &#9632;

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Cream of NHL’s crop

<h2>TOP 20 NHL GOALIES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011674/7221192-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="255" height="321"><figcaption class="caption-body">1. Hasek</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-021167/7221185-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="255" height="321"><figcaption class="caption-body">2. Roy</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-03716/7221178-1-eng-US/f0009-032.jpg" title="f0009-03" width="255" height="321"><figcaption class="caption-body">3.Joseph</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-04551/7221171-1-eng-US/f0009-042.jpg" title="f0009-04" width="255" height="321"><figcaption class="caption-body">4. Brodeur</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-05414/7221164-1-eng-US/f0009-052.jpg" title="f0009-05" width="255" height="321"><figcaption class="caption-body">5. Belfour</figcaption></div><h2>Dominator back on top</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-06351/7221157-1-eng-US/f0009-062.jpg" title="f0009-06" width="1504" height="964"></div><h2>TOP 20 NHL DEFENSEMEN</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-07306/7221150-1-eng-US/f0009-072.jpg" title="f0009-07" width="249" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">1. Lidstrom</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-08277/7221143-1-eng-US/f0009-082.jpg" title="f0009-08" width="249" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">2. Pronger</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-09265/7221136-1-eng-US/f0009-092.jpg" title="f0009-09" width="249" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">3. Blake</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-10243/7221129-1-eng-US/f0009-102.jpg" title="f0009-10" width="249" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">4. Leetch</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-11212/7221122-1-eng-US/f0009-112.jpg" title="f0009-11" width="249" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">5. Maclnnis</figcaption></div><h2>Lidstrom out of shadow</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-12174/7221115-1-eng-US/f0009-122.jpg" title="f0009-12" width="1507" height="962"></div> &#9632;

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<h2>TOP 20 NHL LEFT WINGERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011745/7221300-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="253" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">1. Kariya</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021277/7221293-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="253" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">2. Elias</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-03796/7221286-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="253" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">3. Tkachuk</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04542/7221279-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="253" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">4. LeClair</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-05402/7221272-1-eng-US/f0010-052.jpg" title="f0010-05" width="253" height="317"><figcaption class="caption-body">5. Hossa</figcaption></div><h2>Lone star Kariya holds on</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-06308/7221265-1-eng-US/f0010-062.jpg" title="f0010-06" width="1511" height="958"></div><h2>TOP 20 NHL RIGHT WINGERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-07222/7221258-1-eng-US/f0010-072.jpg" title="f0010-07" width="252" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">1. Jagr</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-08166/7221251-1-eng-US/f0010-082.jpg" title="f0010-08" width="252" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">2. Bure</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-09125/7221244-1-eng-US/f0010-092.jpg" title="f0010-09" width="252" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">3. Nolan</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-10103/7221237-1-eng-US/f0010-102.jpg" title="f0010-10" width="252" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">4. Kovalev</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1182/7221230-1-eng-US/f0010-112.jpg" title="f0010-11" width="252" height="315"><figcaption class="caption-body">5. Palffy</figcaption></div><h2>Jagr still rules right side</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1262/7221223-1-eng-US/f0010-122.jpg" title="f0010-12" width="1517" height="966"></div> &#9632;

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<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0013-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011578/7221404-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg"></div>It&rsquo;s time to dust off those little grey cells inside your head - that is, if you are not suffering from post-concussion syndrome - and put them to work.Has there ever been a season in NHL history that will see so many big stars on new teams?Players have switched jerseys as fast as an Al Maclnnis slapshot since Ray Bourque called it quits after winning his one and only Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in June.Jaromir Jagr, the four-time defending scoring champion, took his offensive tal-ents to Washington, while Eric Lindros moved to Broadway with the New York Rangers. Brett Hull jetted to Detroit, where he joined new Wings Dominik Hasek and Luc Robitaille. Pierre Turgeon is a Dallas Star, Doug Weight is a St. Louis Blue and Jeremy Roenick is a Philadelphia Flyer. Even the New York Islanders went star-crazy, trading for Alexei. Yashin and Michael Peca.The Western Conference figures to be as much of a battleground as ever, with Colorado, Dallas, Detroit, and St. Louis all capable of qualifying for the Stanley Cup final.&ldquo;Saying it and doing it are two different things and we realize we have a lot to prove,&rdquo; said Blues&rsquo; GM Larry Pleau about living up to the expectations.The Flyers, meanwhile, have bolstered their lineup to the point that they are the top contenders for the Eastern Conference title - and our pick to win it all.Besides keeping track of who&rsquo;s who and who&rsquo;s where, there are other things to note on the eve of the 2001-02 season:&#9633; The regular season opens Oct. 3.&#9633; For the first time in years, there are no significant rule changes. The nets are in the same place and the two-referee system is here to stay. But what remains to be seen is how referees interpret obstruction rules and whether they stick to the standard throughout the season.&#9633; The deadline for Canada, Finland, Russia, Sweden, the Czech Republic and the United States to submit Olympic rosters is Dec. 22; substitutions will only be allowed if a player is injured.&#9633; The NHL breaks for the Winter Olympics from Feb. 14 to Feb. 25. The first game of the final round in Salt Lake City, involving the six seeded nations and two survivors of the preliminary round, is Feb. 15. The medal round begins Feb. 20, with the bronze medal game set for Feb. 23 and the gold medal game goes Feb. 24.&#9633; The NHL trade deadline is 3 p.m. (EST) on March 19.&#9633; The playoffs begin April 17 and the last possible date for the Stanley Cup final to start is June 4.&#9633; The NHL Awards are slated for June 20 in Toronto, while the two-day entry draft begins June 22 at the Air Canada Centre.&#9633; The annual shop-til-you-drop free agent season, as always, opens July 1.&#9633; The deadline for players to file for salary arbitration is July 15 and Aug. 17 is the final date for arbitration decisions to be handed down.&#9633; Toronto&rsquo;s Tie Domi starts the season serving an eight-game suspension for his cheap-shot elbow on Scott Niedermayer in Round 2 last spring.&#9633; Dave Andreychuk of the Tampa Bay Lightning has replaced Bourque as the active player who has played the most regular season games (1,361) without winning the Stanley Cup. Phil Housley (1,357 games) is a close second.&#9633; There are new coaches in Anaheim (Bryan Murray), Boston (Robbie Ftorek), Chicago (Brian Sutter) and New York (the Islanders&rsquo; Peter Laviolette).&#9633; Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s former agent, Mike Barnett, is the only new GM after joining No. 99 in Phoenix. GMs whose jobs are in peril include Anaheim&rsquo;s Pierre Gauthier and Chicago&rsquo;s Mike Smith.&#9633; The top two picks in the June draft, Atlanta left winge: Ilya Kovalchuk and Ottawa center Jason Spezza, are, expected to start the season with their NHL clubs.&#9633; There could be as many as 50 players without contracts when the season opens, including Boston&rsquo;s scoring leader Jason Allison, Tomas Kaberle of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning.&#9633; The Red Wings will be called the Old Things more often than not. Oxygen will be waiting for Robitaille (35), Steve Duchesne (36), Hasek (36), Steve Yzerman (36), Hull (37), Chris Chelios (40) and Igor Larionov (41 in December), if and when they need it.&#9633; Finally, you can expect more groundwork to be laid over player salaries, salary caps and the economics of the NHL allegedly being out of whack. The collective bargaining agreement doesn&rsquo;t expire until September, 2004, but it sometimes feels like the jockeying for position has already entered the back stretch.As the late &lsquo;Badger&rsquo; Bob Johnson used to say: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great day for hockey.&rdquo;Now drop the puck, get the games started. &#9632;

f0013-01

Realigning the stars

Training camp is an adjustment from routine for everybody. Coaches, players, especially trainers and equipment men. They aren&rsquo;t dealing with 23 guys, they&rsquo;re often dealing with 73. They&rsquo;re often working in rinks they don&rsquo;t usually work in. Faces are just faces. Trying to put names to big bodies is tougher than looking down the stick rack.Vancouver equipment manager Pat O&rsquo;Neill has been through two different kinds of camps the last two years. &ldquo;We packed up and flew to Sweden, to Stockholm, last fall to the Globe Arena,&rdquo; said O&rsquo;Neill. That&rsquo;s a long road trip. Vancouver to Chicago to Stockholm. Not exactly, Vancouver to Victoria for camp.&ldquo;It was neat because we had such a Swedish presence on the team with the Sedins, our captain Markus Naslund, Mattias Ohlund. We had so many people there watching (practice). And I ran into Swedes like Bengt Lundholm, from when I worked for the Jets in the (early) 80s.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-021104/7221442-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="278" height="323"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pat O&rsquo;Neill Equipment Manager</figcaption></div>&ldquo;This year we&rsquo;re staying in the city at the Burnaby 8 ice rinks. So many times, we&rsquo;ve had camps outside of Vancouver, in Whistler, Kamloops, on the island in Duncan, in Victoria. It&rsquo;s kind of nice to be in the city.&rdquo;The Burnaby rink is where the Canucks usually practice during the season when GM Place is booked for a concert or some other show. Visiting teams use it, too. It&rsquo;s one of the best practice facilities in the league. It&rsquo;s comfortable, a place O&rsquo;Neill doesn&rsquo;t have to worry about. He knows the dressing rooms, the routine. But this year the Canucks split their camp up to a degree, with three days of rookie workouts first, and only NHL-type players in another group. Some of the kids may graduate to the big group, like Sergei Fedorov&rsquo;s baby brother Fedor, who&rsquo;s nothing like his famous sibling. &ldquo;This one is big 6&rsquo;4&rdquo;, 6&rsquo;5&rdquo;. We had to get extra long pants for him,&rdquo; said O&rsquo;Neill.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-03816/7221435-1-eng-US/f0013-032.jpg" title="f0013-03" width="1962" height="316"></div>THE CHOICE OF PROFESSIONALSBlademaster&trade; skate sharpening systems are used extensively by NHL. teams, Team Canada and Team USA.GUSPRO INC. Chatham. Ontario. Canada N7M 5L5 Tel: (519) 352-4550 Fax: (519) 352-7676 Toll-Free: 1-888-648-7776 website: <a href="http://www.guspro.com">www.guspro.com</a> &#9632;

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FROM THE VANCOVER CANUCKS LOCKER ROOM:

<div class="byline">by Joe Starkey</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0014-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011688/7221487-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mario Lemieux says trying to please too many people last year got him into trouble.</figcaption></div>Everybody wants a piece of Mario Lemieux. Reporters want him to lend his time. Canada wants him to win a gold medal. The NHL wants him to sell its game. Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; opponents want him to sell their tickets.The Carolina Hurricanes, for example, used Lemieux&rsquo;s likeness on a billboard to market two of their games against the Penguins last season. Around the same time, Tampa Bay Lightning ownership called Lemieux to ask if he could please play at the Ice Palace March 17.Lemieux fulfilled the Lightning&rsquo;s request and many others upon returning to the NHL after a 3-1/2-year absence. And he paid for it. He played the second game in back-to-back sets several times and regretted his participation in such games at Minnesota, Columbus and Tampa Bay. He also didn&rsquo;t play well in those games.The travel and pounding took a toll on Lemieux&rsquo;s bothersome back. He was spent by the time the Eastern Conference final began. He did not score a goal in a five-game loss to the New Jersey Devils.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s when I get in trouble, when I play back-to-back,&rdquo; Lemieux said. &ldquo;I tried to please everybody and paid for it in the long run.&rdquo;In order to avoid a similar meltdown, Lemieux has announced an informal plan to play about 65 games this season. He plans to skate in all of Pittsburgh&rsquo;s home games and sit out several road games in back-to-back sets. The Pens have 15 back-to-backers this season that feature a home and road game.Lemieux&rsquo;s plan, however, is not carved in stone. It&rsquo;s possible he could play several more games than expected - and you can bet he won&rsquo;t be sitting out all the road games in those back-to-back sets. That would mean missing both games in Washington (Dec. 11, Dec. 22) against former teammate Jaromir Jagr and two games against the arch-rival Philadelphia Flyers (Oct. 31, Jan. 29). It&rsquo;s hard to imagine the competitor in Lemieux allowing him to sit all four of those contests.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m leaving it open,&rdquo; he said of his schedule.At the start of camp, Lemieux&rsquo;s back was pain-free. If it stays that way, might he play in as many as 70-75 games?&ldquo;Yeah, absolutely,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If I feel good and my back&rsquo;s in good shape, of course, I&rsquo;d love to play everywhere. But I have to take care of my franchise first and the people who support us.&rdquo;People tend to forget the severity of Lemieux&rsquo;s back problems. Disease and injury have ravaged his back, causing him to miss nearly 200 games - or 2-1/2 seasons - in his 13-year NHL career. He has suffered from spinal stenosis (a narrowing of the spinal canal), spondylolysis (small stress fractures of the vertebrae) and arthritis. Twice he underwent surgery.Hence, the caution. Lemieux, who turns 36 Oct. 5, knows it&rsquo;s only good marketing strategy for teams to use his name to sell tickets. But he isn&rsquo;t making any promises, no matter how often opposing clubs badger him. The Nashville Predators already have expressed their disappointment Lemieux might sit out a Nov. 23 game at the Gaylord Entertainment Center.Predators&rsquo; fans shouldn&rsquo;t lose hope. Lemieux is perhaps in the best shape of his career and, unlike last year, will have the benefit of a training camp to prepare for the season. A Montreal-based company called Biotonix detected an imbalance in Lemieux&rsquo;s hips last season and prescribed a stretching regimen. That, along with continued work with back therapist Tom Plasko, has Lemieux&rsquo;s back in excellent shape. Workouts with Plasko and former teammate Jay Caufield have the rest of Lemieux&rsquo;s body in pretty good shape, too. He&rsquo;s down to a svelte 227 pounds.&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t been 227 since probably my second year in the league,&rdquo; Lemieux said. &ldquo;Last year, I started at 247 my first game and finished (the season) at 235.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m watching my diet a little more, working out more. I tried to cut the fat and eat the good stuff; veggies, protein, not too much pasta or carbs. Keep slim.&rdquo;Many factors could play into Lemieux&rsquo;s schedule. If the Penguins start poorly, for example, he might feel compelled to play more. If they start quickly, he will be in a position to be more cautious. The NHL&rsquo;s scoring race could play a role down the stretch, as will the Penguins&rsquo; position in the playoff race. The tight schedule at the Olympics in February could affect him.The bottom line is, he wants to get his team into the playoffs and be healthy for the post-season. That would be the best news for Penguin fans - and the NHL.<h2>Route 66: Lemieux&rsquo;s game plan</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021268/7221480-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="265" height="310"></div>If Mario Lemieux sticks to a plan of sitting out the road portion of games on back-to-back nights, he&rsquo;ll miss at least 15 contests in 2001-02. That said, the Penguins&rsquo; owner/superstar isn&rsquo;t ruling out appearing as many as 75 games this season. Factors that will be weighed include his health and the importance of the game to Pittsburgh&rsquo;s season. Lemieux&rsquo;s competitiveness could also be an issue. Will he want to miss two road games against the Washington Capitals and ex-teammate Jaromir Jagr? The accompanying table lists the games Lemieux could sit out. Games with asterisks are ones in which he may consider playing.<h2>POTENTIAL MISSED GAMES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03873/7221473-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="547" height="654"></div> &#9632;

f0014-01

Lemieux: Rest assured

<div class="byline">By Wayne Fish</div>Roman Cechmanek might not be able to duplicate his surprising first season in the NHL, but he might not have to.The 30-year-old goalie from the Czech Republic stood the hockey world on its ear with an opening campaign that featured a 2.01 goals-against average - lowest among starters - and 10 shutouts.Maybe he was too good. Many of the Flyers seem to think so.Almost to a man, they say they relied too much on Cechmanek while putting together an unlikely 100-point campaign for the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Without Cechmanek, they claim, they probably would not even have made the playoffs.The wonder of it all was that Cechmanek didn&rsquo;t even start last season with the Flyers, but rather with the American League&rsquo;s Philadelphia Phantoms, third on the organization&rsquo;s depth chart behind incumbent starter Brian Boucher and junior sensation Maxime Ouellet.When Cechmanek finally did arrive, he baffled NHL sharpshooters with a combi-nation of Dominik Hasek-like acrobatic moves, soccer-style saves off the top of his helmet and a knack for getting some part of his body on nearly every shot that came his way.All this resulted in Vezina Trophy finalist status for the first-year NHLer.But when. the playoffs rolled around, the Flyers really hung him out to dry. Cechmanek had dominated Hasek during the regular season, winning all four head-to-head encounters and recording two shutouts in the process.But in the first round, the Buffalo Sabres took it to the Flyers and Cechmanek, scoring 18 goals in their four wins. That includes an 8-0 blowout in the deciding Game 6 that brought the skeptics out of the woodwork.Uh-oh, the cynics whispered, maybe he comes up small when it&rsquo;s all on the line. Maybe he&rsquo;s just a regular season wonder.So, this season offers a new challenge for Cechmanek. Despite last season&rsquo;s accomplishments, as well as those World Championship and Olympic gold medals, Cechmanek pretty much will have to prove all over again that he&rsquo;s the real deal.Of course, the rest of the Flyers don&rsquo;t see it that way. With off-season additions Jeremy Roenick, Jiri Dopita, Eric Weinrich, Jan Hlavac and Kim Johnsson (not to mention the re-signing of John LeClair), the Flyers should be in better position to offer Cechmanek more protection and more scoring.&ldquo;We as a team can play better in front of him,&rdquo; said coach Bill Barber. &ldquo;Cechmanek was the major reason for us putting the numbers up that we did and making the playoffs. We can&rsquo;t. fool ourselves. All we have to do is watch the video.&ldquo;The bottom line is now we&rsquo;re an improved team. We have to play that way, run along with our expectations. And let&rsquo;s not lean on our goaltending to save everything all the time.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011552/7221518-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="601" height="942"><figcaption class="caption-body">Roman Cechmanek</figcaption></div>Cechmanek enters the new season with several other factors also weighing in his favor. He has a better command of the English language; he has a year of experience playing on NHL-size rinks; and two countrymen - including Dopita, a close friend - standing next to him in the practice-facility dressing room.&ldquo;That last game, I didn&rsquo;t play well,&rdquo; said Cechmanek of the 8-0 whipping. &ldquo;It was a downer, for the season to end that way. I must think about a new season.&rdquo;Would he mind a little extra help? The addition of defensemen Weinrich and Johnsson should provide a big boost.&ldquo;I had a good first season and I think the second season will be hard, so I must keep working and be prepared,&rdquo; Cechmanek said. &ldquo;I think we have a strong team, a good chance to win the Stanley Cup.&rdquo;Teammates believe a stronger lineup will take some of the pressure off Cechmanek.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard not to have faith in him,&rdquo; said veteran right winger Rick Tocchet. &ldquo;He has all the tools. This year, Roman isn&rsquo;t going to have the pressure like last year, where, if he didn&rsquo;t stop four point-blankers, we lost the game.&ldquo;Here, I think he knows we have a good team. If he lets in a bad goal, we can get it back for him. Grant Fuhr had that in Edmonton, Patrick Roy has that in Colorado. Hopefully, we can give that to Roman.&rdquo;Dan McGillis is certain Cechmanek&rsquo;s first season was not a fluke.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s any question that he&rsquo;ll do it again,&rdquo; McGillis said. &ldquo;He played a lot of games last year. Hopefully, with the team we have and the skill level we have, we&rsquo;ll go in as a much more rested team by the end of the season.&ldquo;I think we have the team where the ice times aren&rsquo;t too disproportionate, including goalie. That will make us a much better club. It should relieve the pressure. We have a strong defense corps and we have three big centers. It should take some of the pressure off our goalies.&rdquo;<div class="sidebar">&lsquo;it&rsquo;s hard not to have faith in him. He has all the tools&rsquo; &#9632;</div>

f0015-01

Cechmanek has to prove himself all over again

<div class="byline">by Paul Hunter</div>For the Toronto Maple Leafs, it is definitely the road less travelled.They are hoping the path to the Stanley Cup, one on which they haven&rsquo;t tread since 1967, follows the middle ground between high-end entertainment and low-brow brawn.But whether that route will be smooth or fraught with potholes is difficult to predict. Toronto&rsquo;s season clearly has a potential for both.With key summertime acquisitions Alexander Mogilny, Robert Reichel and Mikael Renberg, the Leafs have added considerable skill to a lineup that ultimately proved too hamhanded when it mattered most last season.It&rsquo;s a strategy that represents yet another befuddling pendulum swing for a team that just can&rsquo;t seem to make up its mind.Two seasons ago, the Leafs dazzled the NHL with a slick transition game and explosive attack before losing to New Jersey in the second playoff round. They weren&rsquo;t, decided management, tough enough.Enter Gary Roberts, Shayne Corson and Dave Manson as Toronto bulked up its game with a little muscle before losing to the Devils again, once more in the second round. They weren&rsquo;t, decided the brain trust, slick enough.&ldquo;Now I think we&rsquo;ve found the balance,&rdquo; said veteran defenseman Dmitry Yushkevich. &ldquo;When we had too much offense, it didn&rsquo;t work well for us. Then we got lots of grit last year. That definitely didn&rsquo;t work for us. There has to be a golden middle. I hope we&rsquo;ve found it.&rdquo;The Leafs and their ever-hopeful fans should be permitted to dream a little. If - and never have those two letters deserved more emphasis - everything goes right, Toronto&rsquo;s golden season could include a silver chalice.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011473/7221563-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="600" height="822"><figcaption class="caption-body">Alexander Mogilny</figcaption></div>But such fantasies involve a tremendous leap of faith. The Leafs have put their trust in Renberg and Reichel, two forwards who are both coming off stints in Europe, and Mogilny, who&rsquo;s commitment has historically waned after signing a new contact.The Leafs have penciled in Renberg to play on the right wing of their No. 1 line with center Mats Sundin and left winger Gary Roberts. While the ageless Roberts shows no signs of slowing down and Sundin is coming off a dominant spring playoff run, Renberg is not such a sure thing.Once a force on Philadelphia&rsquo;s Legion of Doom line, Renberg had just 10 goals in his last NHL season in 1999-2000, a campaign split between the Flyers and Coyotes.Toronto&rsquo;s potential second line is one that should provide the team with the additional offensive thrust it lacked last season. Reichel gives the Leafs the No. 2 center they&rsquo;ve sorely needed behind Sundin and coach-GM Pat Quinn will likely flank the Czech with right winger Mogilny and portsider Shayne Corson.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&ldquo;The ultimate goal is to score more in the playoffs than we give up&rdquo;-Tucker</blockquote>Those two lines could produce - remember we&rsquo;ve taken a leap of faith here - four 30-goal scorers. That&rsquo;s not even something the Devils could boast last season.The Leafs could then ice a line of agitators consisting of center Travis Green and left winger Darcy Tucker with either Tie Domi or Garry Valk on the right side. A fourth line will be built around either Nik Antropov or Alyn McCauley, the most intriguing battle at training camp. The Leafs also have veteran Jonas Hoglund and, since several Toronto forwards play both wing and center, Quinn can do some creative line juggling behind his top two units.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011324/7221556-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="594" height="824"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mikael Renberg</figcaption></div>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re definitely going to score a lot more than we did last year in the regular season,&rdquo; Tucker said. &ldquo;But the ultimate goal is to score more in the play-offs then we give up. Hopefully, that gives us a chance to get to where we want to go.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-021011/7221549-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="598" height="820"><figcaption class="caption-body">Robert Reichel</figcaption></div>Toronto&rsquo;s downfall, apart from those forwards failing to live up to their potential, could be its defense. The Leafs failed in their bid to get Rob Blake from Los Angeles at the trade deadline. Then, instead off adding a star like Blake who was a free agent in the off-season, the club lost a heart-and-soul player in Danny Markov who was dealt to Phoenix.Another blueliner, Tomas Kaberle, was involved in a nasty contract dispute and if that carried into the regular season, the Leafs could open in October with a six-man defensive unit consisting of Yushkevich, Bryan McCabe, Aki Berg, Cory Cross, Manson and, another free agent arrival, Anders Eriksson. Toronto still lacks a power play quarterback, a need Quinn in his GM role has never addressed. The team hopes Kaberle, who is very skilled with the puck grows into that role, but look for Reichel to get some time on the point as he has in the past for the Czech Republic.Fortunately for the Leafs, they have the often spectacular Curtis Joseph in goal. The 34-year-old, born three days before the Leafs last won the Stanley Cup, often covers up those glaring defensive miscues. &#9632;

f0016-01

Maple Leafs try to strike perfect goal/grit balance

<div class="byline">by Mark Brender</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011357/7221594-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Standing Firm&nbsp;You can add tough to the list of attributes Rostislav Klesla brings to the table. The talented teen says he won&rsquo;t be intimidated by older opponents.</figcaption></div>Last February, Columbus GM Doug MacLeau invited his prized prospect, Brampton Battalion defenseman Rostislav Klesla, to sit with him in the visiting team&rsquo;s media box at the Air Canada Centre for a game against Toronto. MacLean figured it would be a good time to reinforce that despite Klesla&rsquo;s many successes, his full-time ticket to the show in the fall of 2001 was no sure thing.By this time, Klesla had made quite a name for himself. He scored two highlight reel goals and played well in an eight-game stint in Columbus at the start of the season and endeared himself to teammates there with his outgoing, fun-loving nature. Back in the Ontario League, he was on his way to being named a first-team allstar in just his second season, averaging better than a point per game. He had recently returned from his gold medal, first-team allstar performance at the World Junior Championship where he gained notoriety for suggesting the Czechs won gold because they played &ldquo;smarter&rdquo; than the Canadians, who were coached by none other than Stan Butler, his own coach in Brampton.So perhaps MacLean just wanted to bring the fourth overall pick in the 2000 entry draft, the first pick in Blue Jackets&rsquo; history, back down to earth. He failed.&ldquo;You know, Rusty,&rdquo; MacLean said to his prized pupil, &ldquo;there are no guarantees. You&rsquo;re going to have to bust your butt to be in Columbus next year.&rdquo;&ldquo;Doug,&rdquo; Klesla replied coolly - and not many 18-year-olds call him Doug - &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in Columbus next year.&rdquo;Silence in the press box. One of the NHL&rsquo;s chattiest executives had no comeback to a kid who three years earlier couldn&rsquo;t speak a word of English. It wasn&rsquo;t that MacLean resented his bluff being called, or even his first name being called for that matter. He liked it, actually. He simply couldn&rsquo;t think of anything else to say. Klesla, too, turned his attention to the action below, surely thinking as he watched: As if the Blue Jackets didn&rsquo;t need him as badly as he needed them.He is sitting in a Brampton, Ont., roadhouse restaurant on a steamy July afternoon, gold highlight streaks in his shortly spiked hair, a gold cross hanging around his neck. He looks and acts the part of somebody who knows what he wants.&ldquo;I always had confidence,&rdquo; Klesla says between spoonfuls of vegetable soup. &ldquo;You can see a lot of players who are not as good, but they have so much confidence in themselves that they can play ip the NHL. This is the player that stays in the league, just because of the confidence.&rdquo;No worries on either the talent or confidence fronts here. MacLean likes to say the 6-foot-2 1/2,208-pounder isn&rsquo;t as tough physically as Chris Pronger nor as gifted offensively as Nicklas Lidstrom, but has the potential to fall somewhere in between.The Hockey News rated Klesla the No. 1 hockey prospect in Future Watch 2001. He had 18 goals and 54 points in 45 games with Brampton last year and, in a stat Klesla watches closely, finished a team-high plus-22. &ldquo;I score a goal and get scored on two times, I&rsquo;m not happy,&rdquo; he says.During Klesla&rsquo;s short stay in Columbus, he impressed many, coach Dave King among them, with his poise. He&rsquo;s a big hitter who doesn&rsquo;t run around looking for it and a strong skater with great puck skills who rarely gets caught trying to do too much.&ldquo;It was a tough call to send him back because he probably deserved to be on our team,&rdquo; MacLean said, &ldquo;but he went back and was a star. It gives our fans and organization some excitement to start the year with this potential superstar.&rdquo;Born in the small Czech town of Novy Jicin, Klesla left home at 13 to live at a teammate&rsquo;s house an hour away so he could play a higher level of hockey. Three years later, he left his country for the same reason. He landed in Sioux City, Iowa, where he played in the United States League as a 16-year-old. In his first game, there were fights in his first two shifts. He had never seen a hockey fight live. His stomach turned when he saw blood pool on the ice, wondered what he had done with his life. But then he&rsquo;d go to his billet&rsquo;s house and the NHL would be on TV, live, every night. That must mean he was closer to his goal, he told himself. The NHL was all he ever wanted. Soon he had a fight of his own and came off the ice laughing.Now, he&rsquo;ll have to watch out for the NHL enemies he has made. Against Detroit, Klesla stood up one Wing in open ice and had Darren McCarty and Martin Lapointe out for his scalp. &ldquo;Keep your head up, kid, this isn&rsquo;t junior,&rdquo; McCarty warned. And Klesla yapped back, &ldquo;because I&rsquo;m not taking anything from any-body.&rdquo;He was on the ice against the likes of Jaromir Jagr and Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg and never felt as if he was in over his head. Klesla faced Jagr on a 2-on-1 and thought he had him figured out. Jagr faked the shot, went outside and then tried to feather a pass across to a teammate, just as Klesla was expecting, &ldquo;because he always does it.&rdquo; Klesla slid to block the pass. He missed, regaining his feet in time to see the Penguins&rsquo; goal-line group hug. Next time he vows to be quicker.Don&rsquo;t look now, but next time starts soon. In July, Klesla was chatting with veteran Blue Jackets&rsquo; winger Kevin Dineen, full of questions. He wanted to know about finding a place to live in Columbus, but he worried about people thinking he was taking his place on the team for granted.&ldquo;I just told him, &lsquo;Hey, go for it,&rdquo; Dineen says.King says an expansion team has to have great chemistry and team spirit to make up for what it lacks in talent. Klesla felt that from Day 1 last fall.There was no one trying to beat him down or prop themselves at his expense. He&rsquo;s amazed that vets including Dineen and Lyle Odelein bothered to keep in touch with him and he considers himself fortunate to be in Columbus.&ldquo;Maybe they have been told by the GM or coach, I don&rsquo;t know, but I just felt so good there,&rdquo; Klesla says. &ldquo;Just the smell in the dressing room, it was so good.&rdquo;That&rsquo;ll change over an 82-game season, Rusty The wise-cracking vets you get along with so well will see to it. Watch out for the perfume in your locker now: One of these days you&rsquo;re going to come out smelling like roses.<blockquote class="pullQuote">It gives our fans and organization some real excitement to star the year with this potential superstar.</blockquote>Columbus GM Doug MacLean &#9632;

f0018-01

Klesla a ‘sure’ thing

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-011146/7221625-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Oil Crisis&nbsp;Anson</figcaption></div>History shows defending the Stanley Cup is not so difficult. Since Lord Stanley of Preston donated the Cup in 1893, it has been successfully defended 37 times.However, most of those occurred in a six-or-fewer team era. For the Colorado Avalanche to defend, they have 29 other teams to stifle. The Cup has been defended just twice in 12 years.The Hockey News calls for the Avalanche to win the Western Conference this season. Here&rsquo;s how THN sees order shaking down in each of the three western divisions.<h2>CENTRAL DIVISION</h2>1. DETROITKey arrivals: Dominik Hasek, Luc Robitaille and Brett Hull.Key departures: Martin Lapointe, Slava Kozlov, Larry Murphy, Pat Verbeek, Aaron Ward, Doug Brown and Todd Gill.Off-season development: Uwe Krupp received medical clearance to resume playing.Burning question: Will the NHL&rsquo;s oldest team run out of gas in the play-offs?2. ST. LOUISKey arrivals: Doug Weight, Fred Brathwaite and Mike Keane.Key departures: Pierre Turgeon, Lubos Bartecko, Jochen Hecht, Marty Reasoner and Roman Turek.Off-season development: Management&rsquo;s failure to land Hasek, leaving the Blues with iffy goaltending.Burning question: What will GM Larry Pleau give up to get a proven No. 1 goalie if Brent Johnson and Fred Brathwaite buckle?3. NASHVILLEKey arrivals: Andy Delmore and Stu Grimson.Key departures: Randy Robitaille and Rob Valicevic.Off-season development: The Predators, who scored the third fewest goals last year, need scorers, but management didn&rsquo;t do anything about it.Burning question: Will Mike Dunham emerge as the best U.S.-born goalie in the NHL?4. CHICAGOKey arrivals: Steve Thomas, Igor Korolev and Jon Klemm.Key departure: Stephane Quintal.Off-season development: GM Mike Smith didn&rsquo;t get the coach he wanted when vice-president Bob Pulford hired Brian Sutter.Burning question: Can Chicago fans be patient with Smith&rsquo;s long-term rebuilding plan?5. COLUMBUSKey arrival: Mike Sitlinger.Key departure: Bruce Gardiner. Off-season development: GM Doug MacLean&rsquo;s decision to build through the draft didn&rsquo;t lead to panic signings of free agents.Carter and the Edmonton Oilers will be in a season-long battle to make the playoffs.Burning question: If the Blue Jackets get off to a 1-7-1-0 start like last season, will the honeymoon be over in college football country?PACIFIC DIVISION1. DALLASKey arrivals: Pierre Turgeon, Donald Audette, Valeri Kamensky and Jyrki Lumme.Key departures: Brett Hull and Mike Keane.Off-season development: Coach Ken Hitchcock vows to be a better communicator with his players.Burning question: Did the Stars bulk up enough to topple St. Louis, Detroit and Colorado in the Wild West?2. SAN JOSEKey arrival: Adam Graves.Key departures: Jeff Norton and Bill LindsayOff-season development: Management&rsquo;s decision to stay the course and not get involved in the free agent market.Burning question: Can Teemu Selanne find the touch which abandoned him last season?3. LOS ANGELESKey arrival: Steve Heinze.Key departure: Luc Robitaille.Off-season development: The tragic deaths of scouts Ace Bailey and Mark Bavis (See pgs. 4-6 for more.)Burning question: Can the Kings pick up from where they left off last season when they took Colorado to seven games?4. PHOENIXKey arrivals: Sergei Berezin, Daymond Langkow, Todd Warriner and Danny Markov.Key departures: Jeremy Roenick, Joe Juneau. Travis Green and Jyrki Lumme.Off-season development: Hockey fans are anxious to see whether Mike Barnett will be as astute as a GM as he was as a cutting-edge player agent.Burning question: Will the Barnett/Wayne Gretzky approach to running a team work?5. ANAHEIMKey arrivals: Jason York and Keith Carney.Key departures: Tony Hrkac and Antti Aalto.Off-season development: Hiring Bryan Murray solidifies the coaching ranks.Burning question: Will GM Pierre Gauthier last the season?<h2>NORTHWEST DIVISION</h2>1. COLORADOKey arrival: Todd Gill.Key departure: Ray Bourque.Off-season development: Resigning key free agents Joe Sakic, Rob Blake and playoff MVP Patrick Roy.Burning question: Will the Avalanche be complacent?2.VANCOUVERKey arrival: Mark Fitzpatrick.Key departure: Bob Essensa.Off-season development: The decision by GM Brian Burke to maintain the status quo, then criticize his peers who spent millions.Burning question: Is goalie Dan Cloutier ready for prime time?3. EDMONTONKey arrival: Jochen Hecht and Marty ReasonerKey departure: Doug Weight, Igor Ulanov.Off-season development: Budget constraints are making the Oilers the Montreal Expos of the NHL. They&rsquo;re developing talent for the more affluent teams.Burning question: Can the Oilers expect second year center Mike Comrie to be the go-tO guy?4. MINNESOTAKey arrival: Andrew Brunette.Key departures: None.Off-season development: Top prospect Marian Gaborik had hernia surgery in July and is still recovering.Burning question: Will coach Jacques Lemaire let his players to take chances on offense?5. CALGARYKey arrivals: Rob Nieder-mayer, Dean McAmmond, Bob Boughner and Roman Turek.Key departures: Valeri Bure, Jason Wiemer and Fred Brathwaite.Off-season development: Team president Ron Bremner&rsquo;s sudden resignation because ownership lost faith in him.Burning question: Has Craig Button learned from his rookie mistakes as a GM?<h2>Western Conference Overall Standings</h2>THN&rsquo;s predicts a close battle at the top between Colorado, Detroit, St. Louis and Dallas1. Colorado Avalanche2. Detroit Red Wings3. St. Louis Blues4. Dallas Stars5. San Jose Sharks6. Vancouver Canucks7. Los Angeles Kings8. Edmonton Oilers<h2>Non-Playoff Teams</h2>9. Nashville Predators10. Phoenix Coyotes11. Chicago Blackhawks12. Anaheim Mighty Ducks13. Columbus Blue Jackets14. Minnesota Wild15. Calgary Flames &#9632;

f0020-01

Defending the Cup

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0021-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01909/7221656-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Cup champs?&nbsp;Keith Primeau&rsquo;s Philadelphia Flyers are The Hockey News&rsquo;favorites to capture the Stanley Cup this season.</figcaption></div>Pennsylvania lost two of the game&rsquo;s biggest names this summer when Jaromir Jagr and Eric Lindros were dealt to the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers.While the Pittsburgh Penguins will suffer by the loss of the fourtime Art Ross Trophy winner, the Philadelphia Flyers parlayed the wayward Lindros into a solid forward, defenseman and prospect.The Hockey News calls for the Flyers to win the Stanley Cup this season. Here&rsquo;s how THN sees the order shaking down in each of the three eastern divisions.<h2>NORTHEAST DIVISION</h2>1. TORONTOKey arrivals: Travis Green, Robert Reichel, Mikael Renberg and Alexander Mogilny.Key departures: Danny Markov, Sergei Berezin, Steve Thomas and Yanic Perreault.Off-season development: The Leafs retooled by adding more skill and changed the character of the team (See pg. 16 for more.)Burning question: Will the changes work or are they simply window-dressing for an organization with deep pockets?2. BOSTONKey arrivals: Martin Lapointe, Sean O&rsquo;Donnell and Rob Zamuner.Key departure: Peter Popovik, Eric Weinrich.Off-season development: Lapointe&rsquo;s salary upset the apple cart inside the Bruins&rsquo; room and it played a part in the contract standoff between management and center Jason Allison.Burning question: Will the Bruins cave on Allison&rsquo;s contract demands or trade him?3. BUFFALOKey arrivals: Tim Connolly, Taylor Pyatt and Slava Kozlov.Key departures: Dominik Hasek, Michael Peca, Doug Gilmour, Donald Audette, Steve Heinze and Dave Andreychuk.Off-season development: Trading Peca and Hasek creates room for young players such as Connolly and Pyatt.Burning question: If Martin Biron can&rsquo;t handle the pressure of being a No. 1 goalie, is Bob Essensa a good enough Plan B?4. OTTAWAKey arrivals: Jason Spezza, Zdeno Chara and Bill Muckalt.Key departures: Alexei Yashin, Jason York, Rob Zamuner and Mike Sillinger.Off-season development: The crash of Ottawa&rsquo;s internet-based economy hurt the financially tight Senators.Burning question: Is Spezza ready to become Ottawa&rsquo;s go-tO guy in the middle?5. MONTREALKey arrivals: Joe Juneau, Yanic Perreault and Andreas Dackell, Stephane Quintal.Key departure: Saku Koivu is lost indefinitely while he fights cancer.Off-season development: Koivu&rsquo;s illness shook the team; the Habs were unable to attract any top free agents.Burning question: Can the Habs get out from under the black cloud that is following them?<h2>ATLANTIC DIVISION</h2>1. PHILADELPHIAKey arrivals: Jeremy Roenick, Jiri Dopita and Eric Weinrich.Key departures: Eric Lindros, Jody Hull, Andy Delmore, P. J. Stock and Michal Sykora.Off-season development: Trading Lindros to the New York Rangers rids the Flyers of a long-running distraction.Burning question: If goalie Roman Cechmanek suffers the sophomore jinx, can Brian Boucher rebound?2. NEW JERSEYKey arrival: Tommy Albelin.Key departure: Sean O&rsquo;Donnell, Alexander Mogilny, Bob Corkum.Off-season development: GM Lou Lamoriello has some fences to mend after he alienated Bobby Holik in arbitration hearings.Burning question: How much longer can the aging Devils defense keep going?3. PITTSBURGHKey arrivals: No established NHLers, but Josef Melichar, Brooks Orpik, Toby Petersen and Kris Beech have a chance to crack the roster.Key departures: Jaromir Jagr, Bob Boughner, Marc Bergevin and Frantisek Kucera.Off-season development: It&rsquo;s hard to imagine anybody trading the NHL&rsquo;s four-time leading scorer, but the Pens did it without getting an NHLer in return.<h2>Eastern Conference Overall Standings</h2>THN&rsquo;s predicted order of finish has Pittsburgh and the Rangers in a battle for a playoff berth.1. Philadelphia Flyers2. New Jersey Devils3. Toronto Maple Leafs4. Washington Capitals5. Boston Bruins6. Buffalo Sabres7. Ottawa Senators8. Pittsburgh Penguins<h2>Non-Playoff Teams</h2>9. New York Rangers10. Carolina Hurricanes11. New York Islanders12. Montreal Canadiens13. Florida Panthers14. Atlanta Thrashers15. Tampa Bay LightningBurning question: Will Mario Lemieux stick with his plan to miss up to 15 road games or play as many as pos-sible when he sees Pittsburgh fighting for the playoffs?4. NEW YORK RANGERSKey arrivals: Eric Lindros, David Karpa and Igor Ulanov.Key departures: Jan Havlat, Kim Johnsson, Valeri Kamensky and Adam Graves.Off-season development: Trading for Lindros was a bold move.Burning question: Can Lindros and veteran goalie Mike Richter stay injury-free?5. NEW YORK ISLANDERSKey arrivals: Alexei Yashin, Michael Peca, Garth Snow, and Adrian Aucoin.Key departures: Zdeno Chara, Tim Connolly, Taylor Pyatt and Bill Muckalt.Off-season development: GM Mike Milbury&rsquo;s $90-million contract to Alexei Yashin raised eyebrows around the NHL.Burning question: How long will it take the unchallenged Isles to jell and will Milbury be around to see it happen?<h2>SOUTHEAST DIVISION</h2>1. WASHINGTONKey arrival: Jaromir Jagr.Key departures: None, though Adam Oates has requested a trade.Off-season development: Jagr&rsquo;s arrival takes the heat off Petr Bondra.Burning question: Will Jagr show a more mature side than a year ago in Pittsburgh where his sulking became a distraction?2. CAROLINAKey arrivals: Tom Barrasso and Aaron Ward.Key departures: Kevin Hatcher and David Karpa.Off-season development: Failure to attract any free agents.Burning question: Will Barrasso get along with Arturs Irbe?3. FLORIDAKey arrivals: Valeri Bure and Jason Wiemer.Key departures: Rob Nieder-mayer, Greg Adams, Vaclav Prospal and Anders Eriksson.Off-season development: New owner Bernie Kosar&rsquo;s arrival has made for new hope.Burning question: How long before Pavel Bure tires of losing and demands a trade?4. ATLANTAKey arrivals: Dany Heatley, Bob Corkum and Ilya Kovalchuk.Key departures: Andrew Brunette and Gord Murphy.Off-season development: Thrashers&rsquo; GM Don Waddell was unable to address his goaltending woes.Burning question: Will Heatley and Kovalchuk produce immediately?5. TAMPA BAYKey arrivals: Dave Andreychuk, Vaclav Prospal, Nolan Pratt and Mathieu Biron.Key departures: Adrian Aucoin and Ryan Johnson.Off-season development: Did GM Rick Dudley take the summer off?Burning question: Can Vincent Lecavalier regain his status as a budding superstar? &#9633; &#9632;

f0021-01

Flyers surge to top

<div class="byline">by Tim Sassone</div>It wouldn&rsquo;t be a hockey season without the Sutters. While for the first time in more than two decades there won&rsquo;t be one of the six brothers playing in the NHL - Ron retired after appearing in 21 games with the Calgary Flames last season - the Sutters all remain a part of the game they love so deeply in various capacities.There are three Sutters serving as NHL head coaches. Darryl begins Year 5 in San Jose, where the Sharks are inching closer and closer to contending for the Stanley Cup. Duane starts his first full season with Florida after finishing 2000-01 as the Panthers&rsquo; interim coach, while Brian has been bestowed the job of trying to restore the down-and-out Chicago Blackhawks to respectability.Brent is back for another season as owner, GM and coach of the Western League&rsquo;s Red Deer Rebels, a club that captured the Memorial Cup last season. Rich, meanwhile, is scouting for the Minnesota Wild and twin Ron is the new pro scout for the Flames.A seventh brother, Gary, the oldest, never played pro hockey.&ldquo;I guess we&rsquo;re fortunate enough to be needed somewhere,&rdquo; Brian said. &ldquo;One thing I know - all of us feel we can be the difference in a situation.&rdquo;The Sutters were never ones to back down from challenges as players and none of the brothers has a bigger challenge awaiting him as Brian does in Chicago. He takes over a Hawks&rsquo; team that has missed the playoffs four straight years in a city where apathy toward the franchise is at an all-time high.Brian was hired by owner Bill Wirtz to bring back the kind of in-your-face hockey the Hawks haven&rsquo;t played since, well, Darryl left in 1995.&ldquo;Players have got to fear what&rsquo;s going to happen if we&rsquo;re not successful,&rdquo; said Brian, making his fourth coaching stop after stints in St. Louis, Boston and Calgary. &ldquo;The first thing that has to change is the mentality that everybody has got to come and compete at a higher level and compete for each other. It simply hasn&rsquo;t been good enough here the last few years.&rdquo; Duane steps into a similar situation in South Florida where the Panthers have been a team in turmoil the past three seasons. Sutter went 16-20-6-4 as interim coach last year after replacing Terry Murray and impressed GM Bill Torrey enough to get the job full time. The Panthers showed a grittier side and a willingness to compete under Sutter.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-011037/7221701-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="394" height="519"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brian Sutter</figcaption></div>&ldquo;Duane has worked for Florida pretty much since they came in the league and has done basically everything with the organization so he knows their players,&rdquo; Brian said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re trying to build something.&rdquo;The Sharks have been building for four years under Darryl and now appear ready to make the jump to serious contender. The Sharks remain one of the most physical teams in the league, solid on defense, and now will have a legitimate gamebreaker in Teemu Selanne from the start of the year to complement the all-around talents of Owen Nolan.When the Sutters played, their trademark was hard work and giving an honest effort. As coaches, that&rsquo;s exactly what they ask of their players. Both Brian and Darryl have the successful track record to back up their disciplinarian methods. With Brent winning the Memorial Cup in just his second season as a coach, there might soon be four Sutters standing behind NHL benches as head men.Brian and Darryl have been coaching against each other for years. Brian admits going head-to-head with his brothers from behind the bench is nothing like it was on the ice as players.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s different (coaching),&rdquo; Brian said. &ldquo;I think we played with a little bit more intensity against each other as players. I know I never wanted a teammate to say one of them got any extra inches because of who they were and I know they were the same way against me.&rdquo;<h2>Little change to NHL braintrusts</h2>Chicago&rsquo;s Brian Sutter is one of four new faces behind NHL benches this season. The others are Bryan Murray (Anaheim), Bobbie Ftorek (Boston) and Peter Laviolette (Islanders). Phoenix&rsquo;s Mike Barnett is the only first-year GM. Each club&rsquo;s coach and GM is listed below. Included is the number of years with his team for each man.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02726/7221694-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="885" height="1468"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03517/7221687-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="883" height="1465"></div> &#9632;

f0022-01

Sutters alive, well in NHL

<div class="byline">By Herb Zurkowsky</div>The melancholy hanging over the Montreal Canadiens heading into a new season has been lifted, at least temporarily, with news the cancer Saku Koivu is suffering from is treatable and beatable.Koivu, the Canadiens&rsquo; captain, best player and inspirational leader, has been diagnosed with intra-abdominal non-Hodgkin&rsquo;s lymphoma and will begin an aggressive series of systemic multi-drug chemotherapy, the team announced Sept. 12.The diagnosis rules out pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of the disease that&rsquo;s rarely survived and strikes in a short period of time.The players learned the news from team president Pierre Boivin on the first day of camp and immediately expressed optimism for the Finnish-born center.&ldquo;A week ago it was a little more sombre,&rdquo; said defenseman Sheldon Souray. &ldquo;But today, after hearing that news, you could just see there was a little bit of a pickup in everyone&rsquo;s spirits.&rdquo;Brian Savage, Koivu&rsquo;s neigh bor in Montreal and one of his closest friends, said his teammate is in good spirits.&ldquo;The unknown really bothered Saku,&rdquo; Savage said. &ldquo;Now that he knows what type of cancer it is and knows what he has to do, I think he has a better focus.&rdquo;Many cases of lymphoma, if detected early enough, are curable. The survival rate for non-Hodgkin&rsquo;s lymphoma is slightly more than 50 per cent, according to the Cure for Lymphoma Foundation&rsquo;s website.Koivu&rsquo;s cancer hasn&rsquo;t spread from his abdomen.The 26-year-old Koivu began feeling extremely ill on a flight in. early September from Amsterdam to. Montreal, vomiting for more than 24 hours. He complained of abdominal pain to team physician David Mulder and was admitted to a hospital for tests. Those tests revealed a large amount of abnormal fluid in Koivu&rsquo;s stomach containing malignant cells. Biopsy surgery was performed that same day.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01928/7221732-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="430" height="518"><figcaption class="caption-body">Saku Koivu</figcaption></div>Koivu, who has battled injuries throughout most of his career, faces months of treatment and will miss the entire season. But goalie Jeff Hackett believes his team-mate is up to the challenge.&ldquo;I know what kind of strong character Saku has and I know if there&rsquo;s anyone in this dressing room who could deal with something like this it&rsquo;s Saku, because he has been through so much,&rdquo; Hackett said.Even without Koivu, Hackett believes the Canadiens, who have missed the play-offs three straight seasons, can remain competitive.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s the leader of this team and to not go out and be professionals would be a discredit to what he brings to this room.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0023-01

Koivu begins cancer treatment

<div class="byline">By THN staff</div>The president of the International Ice Hockey Federation is concerned about the number of players leaving Europe for the NHL.Rene Fasel says the European hockey invasion of North America is a no-win situation for everyone.&ldquo;The NHL is losing its North American identity,&rdquo; Fasel said. &ldquo;Almost half of the NHL is composed of European players. And at the same time, Europe is losing all its great talent. If it doesn&rsquo;t slow down, it won&rsquo;t be able to label itself a North American League anymore.&rdquo;While Fasel exaggerated the numbers a bit (The Hockey News reported last year 31.8 per cent of the NHL is comprised of non-North Americans), there is a growing trend towards more European players. Just 10 years ago, 11.2 per cent of NHLers were European.Moreover, about half of the players selected in the first round of the past two NHL drafts are Europeans. And in THN&rsquo;s Future Watch, 26 of the top 50 prospects and 14 of 30 team No. 1 prospects are Europeans. That prompted forecasts of the NHL one day becoming a 50-50 league.&ldquo;If the trend continues,&rdquo; Fasel wrote in his IIHF editorial, &ldquo;the NHL will soon be a 50-50 league with Europeans maybe outnumbering Americans and Canadians in the future.&rdquo;Fasel said the downside to this trend is a greater number of Europeans are having to play fringe roles on NHL teams or are sent to the minor leagues, where they compete for jobs with North Americans. That weakens the workforce on European teams and creates dissension because of inadequate financial compensation.The IIHF, NHL and NHL Players&rsquo; Association recently agreed to a three-year $28.8-million transfer agreement, with the money to be divided up among European federations and teams.&ldquo;That isn&rsquo;t much,&rdquo; Fasel said. The IIHF released a list of 75 players leaving European teams for the NHL this season. Estimates are that the NHL will have 330-to-340 European players this seasonHITCHCOCK SIGNS Dallas Stars&rsquo; coach Ken Hitchcock became the seventh million-dollar coach in the NHL, signing a three-year contract extension worth $3.2 million.Hitchcock, who signed the deal Sept. 9 just before training camp, will make $1 million this season. He has led the Stars to five consecutive division titles with a demanding system.&ldquo;Two things fuel a coach&rsquo;s fire,&rdquo; Hitchcock said. &ldquo;No. l, you want to lead and the second part is you want to feel wanted.Those are two things that mean everything to a coach and those two things are here.&rdquo;Other members of the coaching million dollar club are Toronto&rsquo;s Pat Quinn, Detroit&rsquo;s Scotty Bowman, Minnesota&rsquo;s Jacques Lemaire, Vancouver&rsquo;s Marc Crawford, New Jersey&rsquo;s Larry Robinson and St. Louis&rsquo; Joel Quenneville.Hitchcock made $900,000 last season.PIONEER DIES Stan &lsquo;Chook&rsquo; Maxwell, one of the first blacks to play pro hockey, died after a battle with cancer. He was 66.The Truro, N.S., native signed a contract with Punch Imlach at age 20 to play with the Quebec Aces of the Quebec League for $3,000 per season.Maxwell also played with Los Angeles in the Western League and Toledo in the International League. His best season was 1966-67 with Toledo when he had 44 goals and 97 points in 71 games. The 5-foot-9,170-pounder retired in 1971.The second oldest of a family of 15, Maxwell got his first skates at a rummage sale and often said he scored his first 500 goals on a frozen pond between goal posts made of rocks.In an interview just three weeks before his death, Maxwell recalled going into the corners with the likes of Henri Richard, Jean Beliveau and Gordie Howe.&ldquo;They were great times. There was some racism and name-calling, but I learned to tune it out. I got even by scoring goals,&rdquo; he said with a laugh.&ldquo;Stan was one of the greats,&rdquo; said Willie O&rsquo;Ree, a lifelong friend and the first African-American to play in the NHL.FAGERLUND TO RETIRERickard Fagerlund, the outspoken chairman of the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation, is retiring. Fagerlund said he will step down from the post he has held since 1983 after the 2002 World Championship in Sweden.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m leaving the federation in good shape financially,&rdquo; he said.Fagerlund has never been afraid to speak his mind on issues and has been highly critical of the transfer fee arrangement between the NHL and European federations. His likely successor is Peter Forsberg, an executive with a Swedish club.-With files from Alan Adams and Chuck Carlton &#9632;

IIHF sounds alarm

<div class="byline">By Dan Wood</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-011005/7221857-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="265" height="242"></div>Jeff Friesen is baffled. He knows he has become a better hockey player over the past three seasons, but the numbers suggest otherwise.Friesen appeared to be a budding offensive star when he produced 28 goals and 62 points for San Jose in 1996-97, then followed up that effort with a career-high 31 goals and 63 points the following season.Somehow, though, en route to rounding out his overall game, Friesen lost his scoring touch. After he generated just 12 goals and 36 points in 64 games last season, the Sharks packaged Friesen and goaltender Steve Shields for sniper Teemu Selanne. Friesen managed 12 points in 15 games with his new club, but finished with only 14 goals, the lowest total in his seven-year NHL career.&ldquo;A lot of negative things went on last year,&rdquo; Friesen said. &ldquo;Everything kind of snowballed in a hurry and I couldn&rsquo;t really stop it. It just turned into, obviously, a disappointing year, point-wise.&rdquo;Friesen, 25, also struggled initially to come to terms with the trade. San Jose, after all, had been his NHL home since he was the 11th overall pick in the 1994 draft. It didn&rsquo;t help, either, the Sharks were vying for the Pacific Division championship and destined to finish fifth in the Western Conference, while Anaheim wound up last. Friesen, after all, had been down that path twice previously in San Jose.The Ducks, however, would appeal to be significantly farther along in their building process than the Sharks were in 1996 and 1997. A series of injuries to key players doomed Anaheim last season, but the combination of better luck on the health front, a seemingly solid netminding tandem of Shields and youngster Jean-Sebastien Giguere and the addition of veteran defensemen Keith Carney and Jason York provides reason for optimism.&ldquo;At the end of last year, we were playing without Mike Leclerc, Steve Rucchin, (Niclas) Havelid,&rdquo; Friesen said. &ldquo;Now, you add York and Carney and Stevie Shields. That&rsquo;s huge.&rdquo;Of course, it would be just as big if Friesen rediscovered his knack for putting the puck in the net.&ldquo;I just want to get back to skating, shooting and just playing my best hockey,&rdquo; he said; &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve gotten better as an athlete and yet my points haven&rsquo;t gone up. It was funny last year. I had maybe 20 games where I felt unbelievable and I came out with maybe one assist, or not even a point. In previous years, I&rsquo;d come out with a couple or three. It was just a weird year that way.&ldquo;This year, it&rsquo;s time to get back to that little bit of selfishness on the ice. I kind of lost that last year. I just kind of worried about my overall game instead of realizing that yeah, you worry about your overall game, but you don&rsquo;t lose that selfishness to score. That doesn&rsquo;t mean you&rsquo;re cocky away from the rink, but once the puck drops, you need that edge that top players have.&rdquo;New coach Bryan Murray made it a point to enter training camp with an open mind. While not counting on anything, Murray expressed hope Friesen can become the complement to Paul Kariya that offensively challenged Anaheim so desperately needs.&ldquo;Jeff is the type of guy who will create some offense, just because of his speed and hands,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not sure what level of goal-scorer he&rsquo;s going to be&hellip;We have to find out if he can take the next step now, as a finisher.&rdquo;Friesen and Kariya certainly displayed the potential for some dynamic chemistry late last season, combining on the scoresheet 10 times, including on seven Kariya goals. While Friesen and Kariya might not ever be as electric as the former Selanne-Kariya duo, the Ducks are looking for more varied contributions from Friesen than the one-dimensional Selanne provided.&ldquo;It would be unfair to put Jeff in that situation,&rdquo; said Anaheim GM Pierre Gauthier, deflecting any comparison to Selanne. &ldquo;Jeff is a good player in his own right. I think that already, last year, fans started appreciating what Jeff Friesen can do for a hockey club. I&rsquo;m sure he&rsquo;ll be able to fill his own shoes very well. He doesn&rsquo;t need to fill anyone else&rsquo;s.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-03452/7221850-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="918" height="1299"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jeff Friesen says he needs to be a little more selfish.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-04293/7221843-1-eng-US/f0024-042.jpg" title="f0024-04" width="200" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Friesen</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-05196/7221836-1-eng-US/f0024-052.jpg" title="f0024-05" width="188" height="103"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-06161/7221829-1-eng-US/f0024-062.jpg" title="f0024-06" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Giguere</figcaption></div>Starred after 2001 all-star break.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-07136/7221822-1-eng-US/f0024-072.jpg" title="f0024-07" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rucchm</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-08114/7221815-1-eng-US/f0024-082.jpg" title="f0024-08" width="186" height="103"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Anaheim&rsquo;s top 25 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-09103/7221808-1-eng-US/f0024-092.jpg" title="f0024-09" width="623" height="804"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1095/7221801-1-eng-US/f0024-102.jpg" title="f0024-10" width="614" height="121"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1193/7221794-1-eng-US/f0024-112.jpg" title="f0024-11" width="619" height="341"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. J-S Giguere2. Steve Shields3. Gregg Naumenko4. Ilya BryzgalovDEFENSEMEN1. Oleg Tverdovsky2. Ruslan Sa lei3. Jason&rsquo;fork4, Keith Carney5. Vitaly Vtshnevski6. Niclas Havelid7. Pavel Tinka8. Anui-Juss Niemi9. Drew Bannister10. Aris BnmanisLEFTWINGERS1. Jeff Friesen2. Mike Leclerc3. German Titov&rsquo;4. Dan Byisma5 Denny Lamtei6. Maxim BalmochnykhCENTERS1. Steve Rucchin2. Matt Cullen3. Sami Pahlsson4. Marc Chouinard5. Andy McDonald6. Jonas RonnqvtstRIGHTWINGERS1. Paul Kariya2. Marty McInnis3. PetrTenkrat4. Jim Cummins5. Timo Parssinen6. Jonathan Hedstrom<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02684/7221787-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="340" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">German Titov</figcaption></div>Burdened by the deaths of his father and brother, Titov suffered through a miserable nine-goal, 20-point 2000-01 season. &#9632;

f0024-01

Friesen better, but worse

<div class="byline">By Jeff Schultz</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01901/7221951-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="265" height="242"></div>The last two seasons have put to rest any doubts skeptics may have had about his health or his ability to fill the net well into his 30s. Ray Ferraro not only led the Atlanta Thrashers in points last season, he had his most productive season since scoring 40 goals for the New York Islanders nine years earlier.Now at 37, the doubts aren&rsquo;t about Ferraro as much as the cast around him.When the Thrashers open their third season, Ferraro will be missing the two line-mates who helped him reach 29 goals and 76 points last season: right winger Donald Audette - who was traded to Buffalo late in the season, then signed with Dallas as a free agent over the summer - and left winger Andrew Brunette.Surprisingly, Brunette was not given a qualifying offer from the team. He signed with Minnesota as an unrestricted free agent.The Brunette decision punctuated a frustrating off-season for Ferraro, who wants to see a post-season again before he retires, which could be after this season. His comment, in June that,&rdquo;We&rsquo;re a long way from the team we were when we were over. 500 (last December)&rdquo; was not met with smiles in the team&rsquo;s front office.Ferraro is hopeful the team&rsquo;s youthful forwards can evolve quickly, but he is uncertain. The play of potential linemates such as Tomi Kallio, Patrik Stefan and rookies Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk will directly affect the center&rsquo;s season.&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t really set any (offensive) goals for this year,&rdquo; Ferraro said.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough to say how things go without Bruno or Donald. In order for me to have a good season, whether it&rsquo;s Tomi or Heatley or Patrik, there&rsquo;s going to be adjustments and how I play with those adjustments will determine that.&ldquo;I guess like a lot of guys, I&rsquo;m uncertain right now how everybody will fit in and how long it will take for everybody to gel and get comfortable with each other. Donald and Bruno had great years last year and that helped me out. If it&rsquo;s Tomi on one side of me and a rookie on the other, it&rsquo;s not like any of the candidates are going to have much experience. I&rsquo;ve never been good enough to carry the play. I need support to be successful.&rdquo;Ferraro, who re-signed with the Thrashers for one season, evolved last season into more of a team leader than he had been considered for most of his career.He is now a candidate to be named the team&rsquo;s third captain, following Kelly Buchberger in year one and Steve Staios last year.Off the ice, he was a finalist for the Masterton Trophy recognizing perseverance and dedication to the game.Prior to last season, Ferraro wasn&rsquo;t specific about statistical goals.&ldquo;If I.said I wanted to get 30 goals and then got off to a bad start, I didn&rsquo;t want to fall into a panic,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Five-game segments worked best for me. If I had a bad five games, I could re-focus on the next five games.&rdquo;A key to Ferraro&rsquo;s longevity is his off-season conditioning program and his resolve. He missed only one game last season, because of a neck strain.That&rsquo;s a particularly remarkable achievement considering he played on a team that again ranked among NHL leaders with 449 man games lost to injury.&ldquo;The way I train gives me the best chance to succeed,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If I didn&rsquo;t train like I did, or do, I wouldn&rsquo;t be anywhere near as strong.&rdquo;When asked if he expected a 76-point season last year, Ferraro said, &ldquo;I certainly didn&rsquo;t want to have my production fall off the table. But to have a year like that at 36 is a little surprising and gratifying.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03373/7221944-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="927" height="1369"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ray Ferraro is back, unhappy his linemates are not.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-04233/7221937-1-eng-US/f0025-042.jpg" title="f0025-04" width="200" height="283"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-05170/7221930-1-eng-US/f0025-052.jpg" title="f0025-05" width="191" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-06140/7221923-1-eng-US/f0025-062.jpg" title="f0025-06" width="200" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rhodes</figcaption></div>Doesn&rsquo;t instill confidence in teammates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-07127/7221916-1-eng-US/f0025-072.jpg" title="f0025-07" width="199" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stefan</figcaption></div>Will this be breakout year for No. 1 pick?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Atlanta&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season sconng. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-08110/7221909-1-eng-US/f0025-082.jpg" title="f0025-08" width="626" height="763"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0994/7221902-1-eng-US/f0025-092.jpg" title="f0025-09" width="617" height="113"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-1076/7221895-1-eng-US/f0025-102.jpg" title="f0025-10" width="619" height="354"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Damian Rhodes2. Milan Hnilicka3. Norm Maracle4. Past NurminenDEFENSEMEN1. Frantisek Kaberle2. Jiri Slegr3. Daniel Tjamqvist4. Chns Tamer5. Petr Buzek6. &lsquo;fannick Tremblay7. Adam Burt8. Todd Retrden9. Brian Pothier10 David HartockLEFT WINGERS1. Ilya Kovalchuk2. Patrik Stefan3. Hnat Domeniciielli4. Darcy Hordichuk5. Zdenek Blatny6. Bryan AdamsCENTERS1. Ray Ferraro2. Per Svartvadet3. Tony Hrkac4. BobCorkum5. Andreas Karlsson6. Kamil PirosRIGHT WINGERS1. Tomi Kallio2. Dany Heatley3. Lubos Bartecko4. Shean Donovan5. JeffOdgers6. Brad Tappet<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02580/7221888-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="342" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Petr Buzek</figcaption></div>All-Star Game participant in rookie season missed all but five games last year with post-concussion syndrome. &#9632;

f0025-01

Will Ray rise again?

<div class="byline">By Nancy Marrapese-Burrell</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01998/7222052-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="268" height="244"></div>Boston Bruins&rsquo; left winger Sergei Samsonov achieved career highs in goals with 29, assists with 46 and points with 75 while playing all 82 games in 2000-01. But the 22-year-old, who is entering his fifth NHL season, believes he still can get a whole lot better.&ldquo;I cdn get stronger and faster and that&rsquo;s what you try to do every summer,&rdquo; Samsonov said. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a lot of room to improve in all aspects of the game. I&rsquo;ve been here four years now and I&rsquo;ve got my experience. I know the players I play against better and I think that&rsquo;s a big advantage to me right now.&ldquo;I think last year I had a good season. I&rsquo;d be happy to get better this year in terms of points and goals. I usually never set big goals for myself. I just try to go out and do better than last year.&rdquo;Samsonov, who won the Calder Trophy as the NHL rookie of the year in 1997-98 and is almost certain to be named to Russia&rsquo;s 2002 Olympic team, was hampered by torn cartilage in his hip during the final month of last season and it appeared the joint would need an operation during the off-season. But Samsonov was able to avoid surgery by undergoing rehabilitation.&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t know what was wrong and we were in a playoff run,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There wasn&rsquo;t too much time to decide if I needed to stop playing. Everything was kind of on the bubble so we pushed through it&hellip;But after the season, I was surprised when one doctor told me I was going to need surgery. We got a couple of different opinions and I&rsquo;m just rehabbing it. It feels a lot better now. I have no problems. It has felt great for about three months now.&rdquo;From a team standpoint, Samsonov said it has been difficult the last two years because when the playoffs rolled around, the Bruins were on the outside looking in. He has played in 319 regular season games in his career, but only 17 post-season contests.&ldquo;First of all, the goal is to make the playoffs,&rdquo; Samsonov said. &ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t been able to make it for a couple of years and it has been frustrating. That&rsquo;s the main goal for the whole team.&rdquo;To that end, it was an eventful summer in Boston. Samsonov watched with interest as management added forwards Martin Lapointe from Detroit, Scott Pellerin from Carolina, Rob Zamuner from Ottawa and defenseman Sean O&rsquo;Donnell from New Jersey and believes the extra depth will help propel the Bruins into contending status. The one hitch in the plan, though, is captain Jason Allison still is unsigned.&ldquo;I think we have a good team now,&rdquo; Samsonov said. &ldquo;We added a lot of quality free agents. With a new coach (Robbie Ftorek), I think the main part will be getting everybody on the same page. He&rsquo;s going to bring in a new system and we&rsquo;re going to have two or three weeks to get ready for the season with a new coach and a new situation.&ldquo;The question is about Jason. Whatever happens is hard to tell. Of course every-one wishes he&rsquo;d be on the team, but if he&rsquo;s not, we have to go out and try to make the best of it.&rdquo;Samsonov said the most difficult part of enduring the second long summer in a row was how close the Bruins came to making the playoffs. Boston and Carolina both finished the regular season with 88 points, tied for the final berth in the Eastern Conference, but the Hurricanes had two more victories (38-36), which is the first tiebreaker.&ldquo;Last year was a tough season,&rdquo; Samsonov said. &ldquo;We tied with Carolina and missed the playoffs. We look back at the games we should&rsquo;ve won. Everyone says &lsquo;could&rsquo;ve&rsquo; or &lsquo;should&rsquo;ve,&rsquo; but it&rsquo;s true. We were right there and ended up not making it. I think right now we have a better team with the acquisition of some free agents and we&rsquo;re ready to go.&rdquo;If Allison isn&rsquo;t re-signed until deep into the season, much of the offensive burden will fall to Samsonov. But he&rsquo;s ready to do whatever it takes to make the playoffs.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03531/7222045-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="919" height="1292"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sergei Samsonov says he still has room to improve.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04377/7222038-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="205" height="287"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dafoe</figcaption></div>Bruins different team with starter in net.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05276/7222031-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="198" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lapointe</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-06227/7222024-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="188" height="104"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-07198/7222017-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Zamuner</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-08168/7222010-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="187" height="102"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Boston&rsquo;s top 24 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-09151/7222003-1-eng-US/f0026-092.jpg" title="f0026-09" width="626" height="807"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-10144/7221996-1-eng-US/f0026-102.jpg" title="f0026-10" width="626" height="124"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-11139/7221989-1-eng-US/f0026-112.jpg" title="f0026-11" width="623" height="347"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Byron Dafoe2. John Grahame3. Andrew Raycroft4. Jeff MaundDEFENSEMEN1. Kyte McLaren2. Hal Gill3. Don Sweeney4. Jarno Kurtanen5. Sean O&rsquo;Donnell6. Richard Jackman7. Jonathan Grard8. Nick Boynton9. Pavel Kolank*10. Bobby AllenLEFTWWGERS1. Sergei Samsonov2. Bnan Rolston3. RJ. Axelsson4. Andrei Nazarov5. Mikko Eloranta6. Jay HendersonCENTERS1. Jason Allison*2. Joe Thornton3. RobZamuner4. Scott Pellerin5. John Emmons6. Andy HilbertRIGHT WINGERS1. Bill Guerin2. Martin Lapomte3. MkeKnubte4. Lee Goren5. Eric Nickolas6. Ivan Huml* Restarted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02671/7221982-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="341" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kyle McLarei</figcaption></div>Knee problems hampered tug blueliner, who was far from the heavy hitter he has been since breaking into NHL at 18. &#9632;

f0026-01

Samsonov’s star search

<div class="byline">By Eric Duhatschek</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01986/7222240-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="267" height="243"></div>It was two years ago that Roman Turek turned up in St. Louis, then a 29-year-old who&rsquo;d spent much of his NHL career riding the bench in Dallas.Turek&rsquo;s new teammates knew little about this quiet Czech, except that, at 6-foot-3, he represented a massive physical presence between the pipes.It didn&rsquo;t take long for the Blues to warm up to him.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t know who Roman Turek was when he first arrived,&rdquo; confessed Calgary Flames&rsquo; center Craig Conroy, who played in St. Louis until last March.&ldquo;He got there and in the first few games, it was like, &lsquo;Wow, he&rsquo;s good.&rsquo; He made big saves. He made things happen. If he comes in here and plays well, they&rsquo;re going to say, &lsquo;This is our guy&rdquo;&ldquo;Here,&rdquo; of course, is Calgary, and &ldquo;they&rdquo; are Turek&rsquo;s new teammates with the Flames.Turek&rsquo;s fall from grace in St. Louis has been well-documented: How he won the Jennings Trophy in his inaugural year as a starter, by recording 42 wins and a sparkling 1.95 goals-against average; how the Blues, the President&rsquo;s Trophy winners, were upset in the opening round by the San Jose Sharks, with Turek absorbing a large share of the blame; how he helped the Blues get to the third round last season, only to falter in the conference final to the Colorado Avalanche.For the fifth game of the series, coach Joel Quenneville switched to Brent Johnson, a goaltender who hadn&rsquo;t played in more than two months. From that moment on, Turek sensed his career in St. Louis was over. It is why the Flames were able to get him for what appears to be a bargain-basement price - theft-own No. 1 goaltender, Fred Brathwaite, plus a pair of prospects (Daniel Tkaczuk and Sergei Varlamov) who were buried in their system.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03469/7222233-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="919" height="1251"><figcaption class="caption-body">Roman Turek can expect to see more pucks in Calgary.</figcaption></div>In Turek, their most important off-season acquisition, the Flames believe they have stabilized a position that has seen a revolving cast of players over the past few seasons - from Ken Wregget and Grant Fuhr to Brathwaite and Mike Vernon. For now, the Flames enter the season with Turek and Vernon as their goaltending tandem, with Turek expected to get most of the work.Playing for the Flames will be a lot different than playing in St. Louis for a lot of reasons. In St. Louis, the Blues believe they are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders.For Calgary, a team that has missed the playoffs for five consecutive years, just qualifying for postseason play would be considered a success.A second major change for Turek will be the workload. The Blues were the only team in the league to surrender fewer than 2,000 shots in each of the past two seasons, something that can be a mixed blessing for a goaltender. On one hand, the fewer the shots, the fewer potential goals. On the other, it can be a difficult game for some goaltenders to play, getting so little work, because it can negatively affect their focus.Turek says he doesn&rsquo;t mind the extra shots he can expect to see or the notion of playing for a Flames&rsquo; team whose top four defensemen are under 25.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard to keep focus all 20 minutes, just being in net when nothing happens around you,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I am a goaltender who likes more shots.&rdquo;Conroy joined the Flames at the trade deadline last season, but monitored his former team&rsquo;s fortunes until the end of last season.Of the criticism directed towards Turek, Conroy says: &ldquo;I felt it was unfair, but hopefully, that&rsquo;ll light a fire in him and he&rsquo;!! respond.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s definitely one of the top goalies in the league, so I was surprised that he took such a hard rap. They did get to the third round. The year before? He was just unlucky. I think we had something like six goals go in off a defenseman. He won 40-some games and had the best goals-against average in the league. I know we had a good defense, but he made the big saves when we needed them.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-04320/7222226-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="200" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Iginla</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05246/7222219-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="188" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-06212/7222212-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="200" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kravchuk</figcaption></div>Bust of epic proportions after joining Flames<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-07191/7222205-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="201" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">lurek</figcaption></div>Hugely disappointinglast season.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Calgary&rsquo;s top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-08169/7222198-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="630" height="795"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-09157/7222191-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="621" height="118"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-10149/7222184-1-eng-US/f0028-102.jpg" title="f0028-10" width="625" height="351"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Roman Turek2. Mike Vernon3. Kay Whitmore4. Levente Szi.perDEFENSEMEN1. Derek Moms2. Robin Regehr3. Bob Boughner4. Igor Kravchuk5. Tom Lydman6. Denis Gauthier7. Phil Housley8. BradWerenka9. Mike Martin10. Aian LetangLEFT WINGERS1. OlegSaprykin2. Dave Lowry3. Ronald Retrovicky4. Dean McAmmond5. Steve Begin6. Burke HenryCENTERS1. Marc Savard2. Rob Niedermayer3. Craig Conroy4. Oerk^m5. JeffShantz6. Rob MurrayRIGHT WINGERS1. Jaromelginla2. Jeff Cowan3. Dwayne Hay4. ChrsClar-5. Jukka Hentunen<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02658/7222177-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="339" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Derek Morris</figcaption></div>Missed two months in a contract dispute and never got going. With Housley on the way out, he&rsquo;s No. 1 now. &#9632;

f0028-01

Rise of Roman empire?

<div class="byline">By Luke DeCock</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01873/7222341-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="267" height="243"></div>There&rsquo;s still a fleshy pink scar at the base of Glen Wesley&rsquo;s neck to remind him. That&rsquo;s where doctors went in and fused two vertebrae together in an operation that could have ended his career.More than a year after the surgery, the scar hasn&rsquo;t faded much. Neither has the one that starts at his right ear and curves down toward his mouth, the last remnant of a horrific collision with an open penalty box door last March.What has faded is the memory of a season plagued by injuries as Wesley begins the 2001-02 campaign healthy and hopes to stay that way.&ldquo;Feels great,&rdquo; he said on the eve of training camp.Wesley, 33, only missed 11 games last season, playing with a special mask to protect his fragile jaw in the playoffs and eating his meals through a straw for a month.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s so determined and that was just proof of what he brings to our team,&rdquo; said GM Jim Rutherford.That&rsquo;s why, as the Hurricanes prepare for a season when much is expected of them, much is expected of a healthy Wesley.Things started badly for him last season and it all began in camp. Despite not taking part in contact drills due to surgery, Wesley didn&rsquo;t make it out of camp before breaking bones in his hand and foot.And then, in March, the worst of all - Wesley was carrying the puck up the right side of the ice when Chicago&rsquo;s Steve Dubinsky checked him into the boards at the same time the penalty box opened to release Steve Poapst.Wesley went head-first into the doorway, breaking his jaw and opening up a gash on his right cheek from ear to mouth. Standing over him, Dubinsky waved frantically at the Carolina bench.Yet there Wesley was, skating off the ice under his own power 10 minutes later as a trainer held a blood-soaked towel to Wesley&rsquo;s face. And there he was, less than a month later, taking the ice in Ottawa with a shield covering his jaw.He couldn&rsquo;t eat solid food, but he also couldn&rsquo;t stay off the ice.Things are different already for Wesley. This summer, there were no surgeries. There are no nagging injuries.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03367/7222334-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="924" height="1369"><figcaption class="caption-body">Glen Wesley is the anchor on Carolina&rsquo;s defense.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;Strength-wise, I feel so much better this year than I did last year,&rdquo; Wesley said. &ldquo;Being able to work out gives you that much more confidence in your ability and knowing what you have to do and the mental toughness you have to have.&rdquo;Despite all the pain and suffering, Wesley was still the Canes&rsquo; most dependable defender - as he has been since joining the franchise in 1994.Wesley was also nominated for the Masterton Trophy, for &ldquo;perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey,&rdquo; by the Carolina chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers&rsquo; Association.While he doesn&rsquo;t put up the big offensive numbers he did with the Boston Bruins - the days of the 58-point season are long behind him - his value now is as a stabilizing force and as a leader.In particular, Carolina thinks he can play a key role mentoring first round pick Igor Knyazev, who may crack the roster as an 18-year-old.Veteran defenseman Alexander Godynyuk was brought in as Knyazev&rsquo;s trans-lator and camp roommate, but it&rsquo;s players like Wesley who know what it takes to become a star in the NHL.As the third overall pick in 1987, Wesley put up 37 points as a 19-year-old rookie with veterans Ray Bourque, Gord Kluzak and Reed Larson smoothing his path.&ldquo;I ended up breaking in with a team that had a lot of experience, so they were able to break me in slowly,&rdquo; Wesley said. &ldquo;I think when you come in as a defenseman with a younger club and you don&rsquo;t have the surroundings of the guys who I ended up playing with, you need someone to talk to on a day-to-day basis that you can be comfortable with.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04253/7222327-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="202" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gelinas</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-05216/7222320-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="197" height="105"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-06178/7222313-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="200" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">O&rsquo;Neill</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-07148/7222306-1-eng-US/f0029-072.jpg" title="f0029-07" width="199" height="103"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-08127/7222299-1-eng-US/f0029-082.jpg" title="f0029-08" width="200" height="285"></div>Most exciting youngster you don&rsquo;t know<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Carolina&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-09117/7222292-1-eng-US/f0029-092.jpg" title="f0029-09" width="628" height="732"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-10108/7222285-1-eng-US/f0029-102.jpg" title="f0029-10" width="619" height="115"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-1199/7222278-1-eng-US/f0029-112.jpg" title="f0029-11" width="616" height="340"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Arturs Irbe2. Tom Barrasso3. Jean-Marc Pelletier4. Tyler MossDEFENSEMEN1. Sarxlts Ozolinsh2. Glen Wesley3. David Tanabe4. Marek Malik5. Aaron Ward6. Niclas Wollin7. Steve Halko8. Igor Knyazev9. Nikos Tselios10. Mike RucinskiLEFTWINGERS1. Martin Gelinas2. Bates Battaglia3. Chris Dingman4. Erik Cole5. Darren Langdon6 Brae DeFauwCENTERS1. Rod BrindjAmour2. Ron Franas3. Josef Vasicek4. Tommy Wcstlund5. Jeff Daniels6. Greg KoehlerRIGHT WINGERS1. Jeff O&rsquo;Neill2. Sami Kapanen3. Shane Willis4. Craig Adams5. JeffHcerema6. Mike Zigomanis<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02563/7222271-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="344" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sandis Oznlinsh</figcaption></div>After playing almost half of last season on a injured knee, a healthy Ozolinsh could be a dangerous force again. &#9632;

f0029-01

Wesley’s ship shape

<div class="byline">By Tim Sassone</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01969/7222428-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="266" height="244"></div>So much has changed for Steve Sullivan. Two years ago, he reported to training camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs not knowing how much he would play or even if there was a job for him. It turned out there wasn&rsquo;t. He was placed on waivers less than a month into the season and claimed by the Chicago Blackhawks.Turn the clock ahead to September, 2001. Brian Sutter is the new coach of the Hawks and among the veterans he is counting on most is Sullivan, who now has some serious expectations to live up to following the two best seasons of his NHL career.Sullivan led the Hawks in scoring in 2000-01 with 75 points. His 34 goals were one shy of Tony Amonte&rsquo;s club-high 35 and his eight shorthanded goals led the league.To illustrate Sullivan&rsquo;s value to the Hawks, GM Mike Smith signed him to a three-year, $9-million contract extension prior to the end of last season - a deal that raised some eyebrows around the NHL. But Smith is confident he did the right thing.&ldquo;Steve Sullivan has taken on some star-level characteristics and our fans recognize that,&rdquo; Smith said. &ldquo;Right or wrong, certainly we know a lot of people disagreed with us, but these are the decisions we have made and are going to stick with them.&rdquo;Sullivan expects just as much from himself as the men signing his checks. And to those who doubt he can continue to string together seasons like a year ago? Well, the 5-foot-9,160-pounder has heard it all before.&ldquo;I find I&rsquo;m more successful when I have odds or obstacles to overcome,&rdquo; Sullivan said.&ldquo;You&rsquo;ll never see me content knowing I have a job. I&rsquo;m always trying to improve my position in hockey. There are going to be people saying you can&rsquo;t do it three years in a row, or you can&rsquo;t get any more out of him, that&rsquo;s the most you&rsquo;re going to get. Those are the people I want to try to prove wrong. That&rsquo;s what keeps me going every day. One false step and it&rsquo;s, &lsquo;I told you so.&rdquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s size will always be an issue. He was the 233rd player selected in the 1994 draft by the New Jersey Devils despite racking up 51 goals and 113 points during the 1993-94 Ontario League season for the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03461/7222421-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="978" height="1329"><figcaption class="caption-body">Shifty Steve Sullivan was a waiver pickup from Toronto.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s strictly my size,&rdquo; said Sullivan about all those who still doubt or have doubted his ability. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not a small man&rsquo;s game. It&rsquo;s a big man&rsquo;s game and small people aren&rsquo;t supposed to succeed. Every night it&rsquo;s a battle for me. Every night&rsquo;s a test. When you play well, it&rsquo;s your skill and when you play bad, it&rsquo;s your size.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t have off nights. I just can&rsquo;t go out there, bang a few bodies around, make some noise and that&rsquo;s it. I&rsquo;ve got to perform every night and if I don&rsquo;t do that people are going to question my endurance because of my size. It always comes back to that factor.&rdquo;Having another new coach in Sutter, who hates living in the past, is forcing Sullivan not to take anything for granted.&ldquo;I came to camp in the same frame of mind because I didn&rsquo;t know what to expect,&rdquo; Sullivan said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s almost like having to make a first impression all over again and they say you never get a second chance to make a first impression. We have a new coach and you want to show him everything you can do and how well you can do it.&rdquo;Sullivan won&rsquo;t say it, but it&rsquo;s quite obvious he believes there is even more inside him to give.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like to set goals because I don&rsquo;t know the situation with a new coach,&rdquo; Sullivan Said.&ldquo;If you told me, Steve, you&rsquo;re going to average 20 minutes of ice time, get so many minutes on the power play, so many minutes penalty killing, then I could try to tell you what I expect. Right now, I&rsquo;m not sure.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-04316/7222414-1-eng-US/f0032-042.jpg" title="f0032-04" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Spacek</figcaption></div>Is he as good as Mike Smith believes?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-05237/7222407-1-eng-US/f0032-052.jpg" title="f0032-05" width="200" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Thibault</figcaption></div>Save percentage dipped below .900<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-06197/7222400-1-eng-US/f0032-062.jpg" title="f0032-06" width="199" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Zhamnov</figcaption></div>Can he regain point-per-game status?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Chicago&rsquo;s top 28 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-07168/7222393-1-eng-US/f0032-072.jpg" title="f0032-07" width="628" height="802"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-08146/7222386-1-eng-US/f0032-082.jpg" title="f0032-08" width="622" height="106"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-09119/7222379-1-eng-US/f0032-092.jpg" title="f0032-09" width="620" height="336"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Jocelyn Thibault2. Steve Passmore3.Craig Andersson4. Michael LeightonDEFENSEMEN1. Boris Mironov2. Alexander Karpovtsev3. Jaroslav Spacek4. Jon Klemm5. Steve McCarthy6. Jamie Allison7. Kevin Dean8. Steve Poapst9. Chris McAlpine10. Nolan BaumgartnerLEFT WINGERS1. Eric Daze2. Kyle Calder3. Jean-Yves Leroux4. Bob Prooeit5. Valeri Zelepukin6. Reto Von ArxCENTERS1. Alexa Zhamnov2. Michael Nyiander3. Igor Korolev4.Steve Dubinsky5. Peter White6. Mark BellRIGHT WINGERS1. TonyAmonte2. Steve Sullivan3. Steve Thomas4. Ryan VandenBussche5. Pascal Kneaume6. Aaron Downey<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02655/7222372-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="341" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Boris Mironov</figcaption></div>Coach Brian Sutter has his hands full trying to get the most out of Mironov, who was out of shape and uninspired last year. &#9632;

f0032-01

Small frame, big hopes

<div class="byline">By Jim Benton</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01876/7222522-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="269" height="245"></div>Colorado Avalanche center Peter Forsberg is one of the best all-around players in the world. And the world will be watching this season to see if Forsberg plays with the same grittiness, determination and artistic skill after having his ruptured spleen removed May 10.It happened following Colorado&rsquo;s Game 7 victory over Los Angeles in the second round of last season&rsquo;s playoffs. He complained of feeling ill while having a post-game meal at a restaurant and was rushed to hospital.Forsberg, who has never shied away from contact, is confident about his ability to play as well as he ever has.&ldquo;No doubt about it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I feel good on the ice and nothing bothers me so I&rsquo;m not worried about that at all. I think it&rsquo;s going to be fine.&rdquo;Coach Bob Hartley won&rsquo;t baby his two-time all-star, but said he and the Avs&rsquo; medical staff will monitor Forsberg closely.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to see how Peter feels after every session,&rdquo; Hartley said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to make sure that we don&rsquo;t only make the best decisions for Peter, but we also make the best decisions for the organization, because Peter is such a big part of this club.&ldquo;We feel that Peter will not only have a great camp, but also a tremendous season. I really believe that the best is yet to come.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s saying plenty Forsberg, 28, finished last season with his fourth highest point total (89) and third highest career goal total (27), and led the NHL in takeaways with 106.Colorado was 18-0-1-2 in games in which Forsberg scored a goal. At one time during the season, Hartley put him on the third line to encourage one of the game&rsquo;s top playmakers to shoot more.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s an amazing player,&rdquo; said Chris Drury, who played on a line with Forsberg most of last year. &ldquo;It is his strength, his hands, his vision and his shot. Anything he puts his mind to doing, he is going to be great at. I don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s a flip of a switch for him. He works hard.&ldquo;He does take things to another level. That&rsquo;s one of his biggest assets. He always seem to be getting better at something.&rdquo;In six NHL seasons, he has 169 goals, and 580 points in 466 games. That&rsquo;s an average of 1.2 points per game, 12th best all-time and sixth highest among active players.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03445/7222515-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="860" height="1245"><figcaption class="caption-body">Peter Forsberg is confident he&rsquo;s fully recovered.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;I definitely consider myself very fortunate to be on a team with him and get to see him play and perform up close every day,&rdquo; Drury said.&ldquo;And on the other hand, it has been great just to know him personally. He&rsquo;s just a great guy&rdquo;.Forsberg definitely has been great for the Avalanche in the playoffs. He was Colorado&rsquo;s leading scorer with 14 points, including two game-winning goals, in the team&rsquo;s first 11 playoff games last spring before he underwent the splenectomy.&ldquo;It was so tough,&rdquo; Forsberg said. &ldquo;I tried to see the positives. I felt like I did what I could until I got hurt. That was not my fault that I couldn&rsquo;t play. I wanted to play, but they wouldn&rsquo;t let me.&rdquo;In 95 playoff games over the past six seasons, Forsberg has 42 goals and 108 points. He has 19 goals and 53 points in 46 games in the playoffs over the past three years.Most hockey observers and medical people expect Forsberg to be back and good as new, despite having only one spleen. Besides trying to help the Avalanche win its third Stanley Cup in seven seasons, he was one of the first players named to Sweden&rsquo;s 2002 Olympic team and the Swedes could be hard-pressed to challenge for a gold medal in February at Salt Lake City without him.Former Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; winger Nikolai Borschevsky ruptured his spleen in 1993 and came back to play parts of three more seasons, although he never regained top form. Miami Dolphins&rsquo; safety Arturo Freeman had a splenectomy in 1999 and also returned to play.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s what you expect from him,&rdquo; Drury said. &ldquo;He gives all he has every time out. I don&rsquo;t expect anything different this year.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-04345/7222508-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="199" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Blake</figcaption></div>This may be his first Norns season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-05286/7222501-1-eng-US/f0033-052.jpg" title="f0033-05" width="200" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Foote</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-06249/7222494-1-eng-US/f0033-062.jpg" title="f0033-06" width="187" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-07225/7222487-1-eng-US/f0033-072.jpg" title="f0033-07" width="200" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Skoula</figcaption></div>Projected to have breakout year.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Colorado&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season sconng. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed&rsquo;among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-08186/7222480-1-eng-US/f0033-082.jpg" title="f0033-08" width="630" height="773"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-09160/7222473-1-eng-US/f0033-092.jpg" title="f0033-09" width="620" height="112"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-10139/7222466-1-eng-US/f0033-102.jpg" title="f0033-10" width="627" height="338"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. PatnckRoy2. David Aebischef3. Philippe Sauve4. Frederic CassiuDEFENSEMEN1. Rob Blake2. Adam Foote3. Martin Skoda4. Gregde Vnes5. Todd &II6. Rick Beny7. Bryan Muir8. Alex Riazantsev9. Darryl Shannon10. Brent ThompsonLEFTWINGERS1. Chris Drury2. Alex Tanguay3. Dan Hinote4. Enc Messier5. Brad Larsen6. Jordan KrestanovichCENTERS1. JoeSakic2. Peter Forsberg3. Steve Reinprecnt4. Stephane Yeie5. Vaclav Nedorost6. Yun BabenkoRIGHT WINGERS1. Milan Hejduk2. Shjon Podem3. Ville Nieminen4. Scott Parker5. BnanWillsieS. Mikhail Kuleshov<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02593/7222459-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="341" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Steven Reinprecht</figcaption></div>Points production fell off following his trade from Los Angeles, but should contribute more in his second pro season. &#9632;

f0033-01

Forsberg raring to go

<div class="byline">By Aaron Portzline</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01986/7222623-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="265" height="246"></div>The Columbus Blue Jackets were desperate for skill forwards and Espen Knutsen was desperate for another shot in the NHL.Thankfully for the two of them, they found each other five months before the 2000-01 season began. Since then, the marriage has been mostly a honeymoon.Heading into its second year, Columbus views Knutsen as one of its top offensive threats, perhaps the point guard of its offense. Knutsen, meanwhile, has proved to himself, the Blue Jackets and others that he&rsquo;s good enough to be an impact player at hockey&rsquo;s highest level.&ldquo;Whatever questions there were about Espen Knutsen,&rdquo; said Blue Jackets&rsquo; coach Dave King, &ldquo;I&rsquo;d say he answered a lot of them with the way he played last season.&rdquo;Knutsen had 11 goals and 53 points in 66 games last year, numbers that exceeded anything he or the Blue Jackets expected when they acquired him from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for a fourth round draft pick on May 25,2000.&ldquo;Never did I dream that high,&rdquo; Knutsen said. &ldquo;I thought 30 points would be a good season for me, but they just kept coming. It was great fun.&rdquo;Columbus knew all about Knutsen and the knocks on his game. He was too small, too soft and too lazy on defense to be the focal point of an offense. Still, the Blue Jacket scouts - including president-GM Doug MacLean - loved what they saw in Knutsen during their scouting ventures to Sweden and decided to take a flyer on the native Norwegian.&ldquo;There were some games in which he just blew us away,&rdquo; MacLean said, around the time of his signing. &ldquo;I knew I really wanted this guy&rdquo;Anaheim was eager to accommodate, since Knutsen&rsquo;s 19-game stint with the Mighty Ducks in 1997-98 didn&rsquo;t go well. He finished that season in the minors, then headed back to Sweden for the next two seasons before Columbus came calling.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03529/7222616-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="912" height="1365"><figcaption class="caption-body">Espen Knutsen surprised with his offense and mettle.</figcaption></div>Once he became a Blue Jacket, Knutsen flourished.&ldquo;In Anaheim, my confidence was under the ground,&rdquo; Knutsen said. &ldquo;Last year, it was way high. I enjoyed myself. I liked the team, I liked the town and I liked every-thing around me. It was just so much better all around.&ldquo;The coaching staff gave me the confidence and the chance to keep playing. I didn&rsquo;t play very well my first five or six games, but they kept giving me time, even on the power play. They stuck by me, and that helped me along quite a bit.&rdquo;King said Knutsen settled in once he was acclimated to the NHL style.&ldquo;The fact that he&rsquo;d been over here before and had little success, it brought him to our team really hungry to prove he could play,&rdquo; King said. &ldquo;It was a major adjustment for him, too. It&rsquo;s a different style than he&rsquo;s used to. Plus, we tell him late in training camp that he&rsquo;s playing center instead of wing, which is what he played over (in Sweden). That&rsquo;s a lot on his plate, but Espen adapted very well - and then some.&rdquo;Knutsen even played better defense than anyone expected, but it was his toughness that really impressed.Over the course of the season, he had a pinky finger nearly severed by a slash, a gruesome puck-to-the-mouth injury that broke his jaw and knocked free several teeth, a severe neck strain and at least two bouts with the flu.&ldquo;Nothing scared me,&rdquo; Knutsen said. &ldquo;It hurt a lot, but it didn&rsquo;t scare me. I figured they were just accidents, not something I was doing wrong.&rdquo; Still, the Blue Jackets marveled how he continually sprung back on his skates after all of the thunderous checks he absorbed.Now, he&rsquo;s looking forward to what his second season in the NHL might bring.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be the same player, but hopefully I&rsquo;ll be better,&rdquo; Knutsen said, j<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04411/7222609-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="197" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Quint</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-05331/7222602-1-eng-US/f0034-052.jpg" title="f0034-05" width="193" height="107"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-06295/7222595-1-eng-US/f0034-062.jpg" title="f0034-06" width="198" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sanderson</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-07270/7222588-1-eng-US/f0034-072.jpg" title="f0034-07" width="187" height="105"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-08246/7222581-1-eng-US/f0034-082.jpg" title="f0034-08" width="199" height="284"></div>Ninth in save percentage last season (.917).<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Columbus&rsquo; top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season sconng. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-09217/7222574-1-eng-US/f0034-092.jpg" title="f0034-09" width="617" height="776"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-10205/7222567-1-eng-US/f0034-102.jpg" title="f0034-10" width="614" height="112"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-11192/7222560-1-eng-US/f0034-112.jpg" title="f0034-11" width="618" height="339"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Ron Tugnutt2. Marc Denis3. Jean-Francois LabbeI 4. Kart GoehringDEFENSEMEN1. Deron Quint*2. Jamie Pushor3.LyleOdelein4. Rostislav Kiesla5. Mattias Timandef6. Jean-Luc Grand Pierre7. Raoim Bicanek8.Paul Manning9. Jeff Ware10 Dan WatsonLEFTWINGERS1. Geoff Sanderson2. Ray Whitney3. Chris Nielsen4. Blake Sloan5. Martin Spanhel6. DarcrieCENTERS1. Espcn Knutson2. Mike Sillinger3.Tyler Wngff4. Serge Aubin5. Sean Pronger6. Brett HarkinsRIGHT WINGERS1. Grant Marshall2. David VytxxTiy3. Robert Kron4. Kevin Dineen5. Jarme Howard6. Jody Shelley* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02675/7222553-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="337" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marc Denis</figcaption></div>Denis gets a bigger role as Tugnutt&rsquo;s backup. Columbus would love to see him push Tugnutt toward the trading block. &#9632;

f0034-01

Second time a charm

<div class="byline">By Chuck Carlton</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01930/7222717-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="268" height="246"></div>Dallas Stars&rsquo; captain Derian Hatcher wants to remember last season as motivation to make sure this one is different.Hatcher was only occasionally the feared physical force that keeps opposing forwards away from the goal like an invisible fence. He hoped for a breakout offensive season, but finished with two goals in 80 games. When the Stars were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs, Hatcher was a disappointing minus-7. Curiously, he hasn&rsquo;t yet been named to the United States Olympic team.&ldquo;I think last year I had one of my most up-and-down years in a long time,&rdquo; Hatcher said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to have that&hellip;(I want to) get back to my consistent play.&rdquo;He&rsquo;s coming off arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, done just before training camp, which will limit him to just a couple pre-season appearances.The knee wasn&rsquo;t the culprit last season. Even though Hatcher bit his lip and strug-gled through it, a deeply lacerated calf muscle he suffered during the 1999-2000 season caused him to miss 24 games. He was playing some of the best hockey of his career when he was hurt.Since then, things haven&rsquo;t been the same.&ldquo;I want to get back to the form I had before I got hurt, before I cut my calf muscle,&rdquo; Hatcher said. &ldquo;I feel I&rsquo;m ready to do it. I want to have the best year personally that I&rsquo;ve ever had.&ldquo;I talked to (assistant coach) Rick Wilson at the end of last season. I don&rsquo;t know if there was a carryover, but I never got back to the form I had. I&rsquo;m not sure what the reason is and I&rsquo;m not sure anybody does.&rdquo;Hatcher&rsquo;s resurgence is important to a team whose new motto - &ldquo;The Climb Begins&rdquo; - illustrates how much work needs to be done.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03533/7222710-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="928" height="1369"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Stars need Derian Hatcher to be a physical force.</figcaption></div>For all the talk about added skill up front and a possible change in style, Hatcher&rsquo;s heavy hitting sets a tone defensively as much as Mike Modano&rsquo;s flash and dash does offensively. The lasting image of the 1999 Stanley Cup isn&rsquo;t pretty goals, but of Hatcher and Richard Matvichuk and others making opponents pay a price.Hatcher had his moments in 200001, dominating Phoenix in an early-season matchup when he was challenged physically. In a similar situation late in the season against St. Louis, he administered five big hits - on one shift.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s one of the premier presences on defense in the NHL,&rdquo; Wilson said. &ldquo;There are people who can do different things with a high level of presence offensively, but there&rsquo;s only a handful who have the presence he has in that position.&rdquo;Hatcher had other problems that conspired against him last season. The team split him from longtime partner Matvichuk and tried him on the left side. He was paired with prospect Richard Jackman, which might have tried Doug Harvey. Toss in the nagging calf injury and things become more clear.&ldquo;It didn&rsquo;t help the cause,&rdquo; Wilson said.Hatcher faces different challenges this year. Even though he&rsquo;ll likely be named to Team USA, he was hurt by the oversight and wants to leave nothing to chance.&ldquo;Sure, it&rsquo;s disappointing,&rdquo; Hatcher said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s very disappointing, but on the other hand it&rsquo;s disappointing to the other guys who weren&rsquo;t named, either. I think they&rsquo;re supposed to be disappointed.&rdquo;The loss of free agents Brett Hull and Mike Keane deprived the Stars of two key dressing room voices. As captain, the 29-year-old Hatcher will be responsible for blending the old with the new.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just a matter of getting the guys together,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It might take us a little time. I don&rsquo;t feel any pressure. I feel confident I can handle it. We still have guys in the room that are going to be able to handle it.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04425/7222703-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hatcher</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05356/7222696-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="186" height="99"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06324/7222689-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="203" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kamensky</figcaption></div>Results, effort don&rsquo;t match talent level.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07299/7222682-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Turgeon</figcaption></div>Can he excel in shadow of Modano?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Dallas&rsquo; top 25 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-08268/7222675-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="631" height="779"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-09243/7222668-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="620" height="113"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-10212/7222661-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="623" height="334"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Ed Beffour2. Marty Turco3.Chad Alban4. Jason BacashihuaDEFENSEMEN1. Sergei Zubov2. Dedan Hatcher3. Richard Matvichuk4.Danyt Sydor5. Jyrki Lummc6. Brad Lukowich7. Sami Helen ius8. Greg Hawgood9. John Erskine10. Jeff MacMillanLEFTWINGERS1. Brenden Morrow2. vaien Kamensky3. Benoit Hogue4. Shaun Van AUen5. Jon Sim6. Steve GaineyCENTERS1. MikeModano2. Pierre Turgeon3. Joe Nieuwendyk4 Roman Lyashenko5. Kirk Muller6. Niko KapanenRIGHT WINGERS1. Jere Lehtinen2. Donald Audette3. Jamie Langenbrunner4. Pat Terbeek5. Rob DiMaio6. Cameron Mann<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02654/7222654-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="343" height="400"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jamie Langenbrunner</figcaption></div>Limited to 53 games due to an abdominal injury, Langenbrunner could provide much-needed scoring from the wing. &#9632;

f0035-01

Hatching a new plan

<div class="byline">By Nicholas J. Cotsonika</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01891/7222811-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="267" height="242"></div>The Detroit Red Wings are a constellation of stars, but one - Sergei Fedorov - has the pure talent to shine brighter than the rest.&ldquo;He is kind of the ace up our sleeve,&rdquo; said captain Steve Yzerman.Despite a poor playoff, one that attracted criticism from within the team and without, Fedorov played better than he had in a long time last season. He had 32 goals and 69 points, and was selected to play in the All-Star Game for the first time since 1996.In doing so, he might have built a foundation for the future, changing his training regimen, equipment and mental approach.After the 1999-2000 season, Fedorov noticed he needed more time to recover after games. He studied himself and figured out why.&ldquo;Conditioning is a very important part of my game these days,&rdquo; Fedorov said. &ldquo;In the past, I was paying attention to my wrists, my stomach, my sides. These days I&rsquo;m looking at overall my body and take care of it on regular basis.&rdquo;After looking at his body, Fedorov looked at his stick. He now uses one of the new graphite stick blades and has ratcheted up the stiffness of the shaft he uses. At the AllStar Game skills competition, his shot was timed at more than 100 mph.Coach Scotty Bowman has noticed the difference.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s able to beat goalies from a distance,&rdquo; Bowman said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s shooting more and that comes from the confidence he can beat goalies from a ways out. His shot is in the upper echelon of players in this league now.&rdquo;After looking at his stick, Fedorov looked at himself again. But this time, he looked at his mind, not his body. He used to swear he could play his best only when he spent at least 28 minutes on the ice. Given less, he appeared to sulk and float. Now, he says he&rsquo;s willing to cram as much as he can into about 21 minutes, close to his average last season.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m more cautious out there of what I&rsquo;m doing,&rdquo; Fedorov said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m thinking why coaches think I&rsquo;m not doing what they like to see me do. So I think I learn that and that makes my game a little more disciplined, more aggressive.&rdquo;Fedorov, now 31, was 25 when he shot to the top of the league. In 1994 he was the first European to win the Hart Trophy as the NHL&rsquo;s most valuable player. He also won the Selke Award as the best defensive forward.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03490/7222804-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="916" height="1365"><figcaption class="caption-body">Center Sergei Fedorov has learned to react and adapt.</figcaption></div>He thrived as Yzerman missed a large chunk of the season because of a knee injury and Yzerman&rsquo;s return to the lineup was bound to affect how much Fedorov played. But few, including Fedorov himself, could have predicted the downswing in the ensuing seasons. Or understood it.&ldquo;I think people had reasonable expectations to think I could do it again,&rdquo; Fedorov said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s why I was very frustrated and very disappointed in myself when next season, next season, next season, I didn&rsquo;t do anything except just have low points in my career every season I play.&ldquo;I played so much that year and I was really pumped up for myself to play again. I&rsquo;ve done it and I think I can do it again and again. But hockey is a team game, period. We have quite a few great players on this team and it&rsquo;s never going to be designed for one player. It sounds like I&rsquo;m talking about me, me, me, but I&rsquo;m trying to explain and tell you what I&rsquo;ve realized.&ldquo;I was sad I cannot do it again. But then I settle down, settle down and look inside of me and realize, &lsquo;Hey, things may not go that way; we can try something new.&rsquo; It took me a while to adjust and play well again.&rdquo;No, Fedorov might never win the Hart again. He might never be the dominating player Wings&rsquo; fans want him to be. But with teammates like Yzerman, Brett Hull, Igor Larionov, Luc Robitaille and Brendan Shanahan up front this season, as long as he plays hard and the Wings win, he won&rsquo;t have to.<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04372/7222797-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hull</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05313/7222790-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="199" height="105"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-06271/7222783-1-eng-US/f0036-062.jpg" title="f0036-06" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Larionov</figcaption></div>He&rsquo;s 40; will he begin to act his age?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-07249/7222776-1-eng-US/f0036-072.jpg" title="f0036-07" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">McCarty</figcaption></div>Points per game on steady decline.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Detroit&rsquo;s top 21 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-08225/7222769-1-eng-US/f0036-082.jpg" title="f0036-08" width="629" height="759"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-09208/7222762-1-eng-US/f0036-092.jpg" title="f0036-09" width="620" height="115"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-10195/7222755-1-eng-US/f0036-102.jpg" title="f0036-10" width="623" height="338"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Dominik Hasek2. Chris Osgood3. Manny Legace4. Jason ElliotDEFENSEMEN1. Nicklas Lidstrom2. Chris Chelios3. Jiri Fischer4. Fredrik Olausson5. Mathieu Dandenault6. Steve Duchesne7. Maxim Kuznetsov8. Uwe Krupp9. Jesse Wallin10. Dwayne ZwingefLIFT WINGERS1. Brendan Shanahan2. Luc Robitaille3. Kirk Maltby4. Boyd Devereaux5. Yuri Butsayev6. Jason Baird,CENTERS1. Steve Yzerman2. Sergei Fedorov3. Igor Larionov4. Kns Draper5. Brent Gilchrist6. Pavel DatsyukRIGHT WINGERS1. Brett Hull2. Tomas Holmstrom3. Darren McCarty4. Jason WHhams5. B.J. &lsquo;rtxjng6. Aaron Van Leusen<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02596/7222748-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="342" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Chris Chelios</figcaption></div>After missing 58 games last season due to injury, the 39-year-old is out to prove he&rsquo;s an old warrior, not old. &#9632;

f0036-01

A Russian’s evolution

<div class="byline">By David J. Neal</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01871/7222999-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="268" height="240"></div>There&rsquo;s an old saying that a prophet isn&rsquo;t without honor, save in his own country.Florida Panthers&rsquo; defenseman Robert Svehla wouldn&rsquo;t presume to prophesy, but he does prove a corollary: A shepherd isn&rsquo;t without honor, save in his own city.He isn&rsquo;t the Panthers&rsquo; captain and won&rsquo;t be once one is named. He might be an alternate. But Svehla is the Panthers&rsquo; shepherd. So goeth the shepherd, so goeth the flock.When Svehla, 32, plays up to the level of an All-Star Game defenseman for more than half a season, the Panthers make the playoffs. When he doesn&rsquo;t, they don&rsquo;t. It&rsquo;s that simple. The last seven seasons are clear about this.Look at last season. Svehla ended his first shift of the season by making a breakout pass up the middle that was intercepted and turned into a Vancouver goal. In overtime, he tried to make a home run pass past every Vancouver Canuck since Jocelyn Guevre-mont and saw that picked off for the game-winning goal.Mistakes stay with Svehla longer than relatives. His 19992000 season sank in late January after he served up a last-second, game-winning goal to New Jersey&rsquo;s Patrik Elias. By the time Svehla finished beating himself up about the 2000-01 season opener, his season - and the Panthers&rsquo; - was flushed.The team&rsquo;s horrible record of just six wins in its first 36 games led to the twin firings of coach Terry Murray and GM Bryan Murray, his brother.&ldquo;After that fresh start (under coach Duane Sutter), I think I played well,&rdquo; Svehla said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always tough when you feel good, but the team is losing. It&rsquo;s not fun playing after that.&rdquo;He finished with a mere six goals, 28 points and a minus-8 rating, seeing action in all 82 games. That was three fewer goals, 21 fewer points and 31 plus/minus rating points below his 1999-2000 season totals. The Panthers finished 32 points below their 1999-2000 point total.Svehla hates to admit just how much he&rsquo;s a barometer for the Panthers, no matter how many times the trend is pointed out to him.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t think about that, it would be more pressure on me again,&rdquo; Svehla laughs. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t feel that way I just want to play my style and help the team. We have other good players who can help the team. Now we have some new young guys. If everybody plays well, we can win.&rdquo;Even if that happens, don&rsquo;t expect Svehla to get much credit for it in South Florida. With center Rob Niedermayer traded to Calgary, Svehla might have assumed the mantle of &ldquo;most disliked Panther&rdquo; from a fan standpoint.They gnash their teeth each time Svehla hesitates to use his powerful point shot, which is often. They scream insults at him each time one of his turnovers is teleported into the Panthers&rsquo; goal. They wish he was the offensive force that many other No. 1 defensemen are.It doesn&rsquo;t matter to them that he&rsquo;ll play through almost any pain as long as the body part can function. It doesn&rsquo;t matter to them that he was 12th in the NHL in ice time last season and his late-game mistakes often are a result of his being mentally and physically pooped.It doesn&rsquo;t matter to them that he holds the franchise record for consecutive games (221), assists (207), games as a defenseman (491) and is considered one of the best defensemen on a good Slovak Olympic team for 2002.It doesn&rsquo;t matter to them that Svehla, his wife and two sons consider South Florida home. He heads back to Europe in the off-season, but that doesn&rsquo;t make him much different than the many South Floridians who head for fishing cabins and beach houses up north.&ldquo;I played three years in Sweden, but I never felt good like I do here,&rdquo; Svehla said.&ldquo;My kids have grown up here. The older one is 10 years old, so almost his whole life has been here. It&rsquo;s nice. They always want to come back here.&rdquo;He chuckled, &ldquo;That&rsquo;s why I have to play well so I can stay here as long as possible.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03488/7222992-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="928" height="1163"><figcaption class="caption-body">Robert Svehla is the Florida Panthers&rsquo; barometer.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-04382/7222985-1-eng-US/f0038-042.jpg" title="f0038-04" width="202" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">V. Bure</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-05294/7222978-1-eng-US/f0038-052.jpg" title="f0038-05" width="188" height="102"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-06251/7222971-1-eng-US/f0038-062.jpg" title="f0038-06" width="201" height="281"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kozlov</figcaption></div>Health bigger concern than performance<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-07230/7222964-1-eng-US/f0038-072.jpg" title="f0038-07" width="201" height="281"><figcaption class="caption-body">Luongo</figcaption></div>Will Luongo be NHL&rsquo;s next great goalie?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Florida&rsquo;s top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-08196/7222957-1-eng-US/f0038-082.jpg" title="f0038-08" width="627" height="801"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-09177/7222950-1-eng-US/f0038-092.jpg" title="f0038-09" width="625" height="109"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-10156/7222943-1-eng-US/f0038-102.jpg" title="f0038-10" width="627" height="331"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Roberto Luongo2.Trevor Kidd3. Wade Flaherty4. Davis ParleyDEFENSEMEN1. Robert Svehla2. BretHedican3.Paul Laus4. Lance Ward5. Jeff Norton6.Laoce Pttick7. Dan Boyle&rsquo;8.John Jakopin9. Brad Ference10. Kyle RossiterLEFT WINGERS1. Marcus Nilson2. Knstian Husehus3. Niklas Hainan4.Bill Lindsay5. ReterWorrell6. Ryan JanineCENTERS1. Viktor Kozlov2. Jason Wiemcr3. Kevyn Adams4. Ryan Johnson*5. Olli Jokmen6. Stephen WeissRIGHTWINGERS1. Pavel Bure2. Valeri Bure*3. Denis Shvidki4. Ivan Novoscltscv5. Joey Tetarcnko6. David Morissct* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02605/7222936-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="344" height="394"><figcaption class="caption-body">Olli Jokinen</figcaption></div>Make-or-break year for center, who has loads more talent than his 16 points in 78 games last season would indicate. &#9632;

f0038-01

Svehla key to playoffs

<div class="byline">By Matt McHale</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01819/7223100-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="266" height="243"></div>For Adam Deadmarsh, the best part about leaving for this year&rsquo;s training camp is knowing that home is only five minutes away.After workouts at the Kings&rsquo; facility in El Segundo, Calif., it&rsquo;s just a quick drive to be with his wife Krista and twin infant daughters. Just five months ago, seeing his family meant anxiously flying to Denver for a few hours on an off-day, then meeting his new club on the road.Now, Deadmarsh has settled in nearby Manhattan Beach, playing with a team he helped get within a game of the Western Conference final. Although he admits he cried the day last March when he was traded from Colorado as part of the Rob Blake deal, Deadmarsh was a playoff hero for the Kings and hopes to keep that going.&ldquo;The biggest thing I learned last year was really something I already knew, that family was the most important thing,&rdquo; Deadmarsh said. &ldquo;Without them this really doesn&rsquo;t mean much.&rdquo;Not only was Deadmarsh traded from a team that eventually went on to win the Stanley Cup, but it came just after his daughters were born two months premature. Every time he went on the road with the Avs last season, he was filled with uncertainty, first about his wife&rsquo;s difficult pregnancy, then the health of his newborn children.&ldquo;My wife and I had a really tough time, some scary times,&rdquo; Deadmarsh said. &ldquo;Mostly before the babies were born. Now they&rsquo;re fine and things are really going well.&rdquo;The experience taught Deadmarsh, 26, not to sweat the small stuff, like where he will be playing in the system of coach Andy Murray, who has taken the Kings to the playoffs in his first two seasons. This year, Murray is looking for someone to fill the scoring void left when Luc Robitaille signed with Detroit.&ldquo;We have 37 goals to fill,&rdquo; said Murray, who has Deadmarsh penciled in on the first line with Ziggy Palffy and Jozef Stumpel. &ldquo;Adam can help with that. So can a few other players.&rdquo;Deadmarsh, who missed nearly one-third of last season with a variety of injuries, scored a career-high 33 goals in 1997-98. After last season&rsquo;s trade he had four goals in the final three weeks of the regular season. But it was during the Kings&rsquo; first round victory over Detroit that he cemented his season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03408/7223093-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="924" height="1372"><figcaption class="caption-body">Leaving Denver was difficult for Adam Deadmarsh.</figcaption></div>He scored the winner in Game 5 and came back in Game 6 with his first career playoff overtime-goal. The Kings, who were swept by the Red Wings the year before, were headed to the second round for the first time since 1993.&ldquo;Playing his whole career in Colorado, Adam brought playoff experience to the team and a lot of credibility,&rdquo; said Kings&rsquo; goalie Felix Potvin. &ldquo;You could just see how much the guys responded to his style of play. They watched and their confidence grew.&rdquo;Deadmarsh impressed Murray with not just his scoring touch, but with the way he took the opponent&rsquo;s top players into the corners. His grit was legendary in Colorado and something the Kings desperately needed to get to the next level.But during the Detroit series, Deadmarsh found himself staying up late, tuning into the first round matchup between the Colorado and Vancouver. He had been with the Avs since they were the Quebec Nordiques. Peter Forsberg is his best friend. League MVP Joe Sakic was more than just a linemate on the power play.Now he had to face them in the second round. And losing in seven games hurt.&ldquo;It was hard, I&rsquo;ll be honest,&rdquo; Deadmarsh said. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t enjoy watching after we were knocked out. I didn&rsquo;t watch too much. I have a little bit of a jealous bone, that&rsquo;s for sure. As close as we were it was difficult knowing we didn&rsquo;t get there. But we regrouped and the one great thing about hockey is there is always next year.&rdquo;<h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04329/7223086-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Heinze</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-05276/7223079-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="184" height="101"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-06235/7223072-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="200" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Potvin</figcaption></div>.919 SP with Los Angeles aberrational<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-07212/7223065-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="200" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Schneider</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-08189/7223058-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="186" height="101"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Los Angeles&rsquo; top 26 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 200001 rookies are included where appropriate and mav be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-09161/7223051-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="615" height="767"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-10140/7223044-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="615" height="115"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-11123/7223037-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="619" height="336"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Felix Potvin2. Stephane Ftset3. Jamie Storr4. Marcel CousmeauDEFENSEMEN1. Mathieu Schnader2. Mattias Norstrom3. Aaron Miller4. LuDomir Visnovsky5. Jaroslav Modry6. Jere Karalahti7. Philippe Boucher8. Andreas Lilja9. Brett Hauer10.Jason HollandLEFT WINGERS1. Adam Deadmarsh2. Steve Heinze3. Jaroslav Beer ar4. Ken Belanger5. Qalg Johnson6. Scott ThomasCENTERS1. Jozef Stumpel2 Bryan Smolinski3. Eric Belanger4. Ian Lapemere5. Steve Kelly6. Randy RobitaileRIGHT WINGERS1. Zig&Palfty2. Glen Murray3. Nelson Emerson4. Kelly Buchberger5. Adam Mair6, Rob Vahcevic<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02540/7223030-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="342" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Glen Murray</figcaption></div>Went to training camp in best shape of career following disappointing 18-goal, injury-hampered season. &#9632;

f0039-01

Warming up to LA.

<div class="byline">By Herb Zurkowsky</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01437/7223295-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg" title="f0041-01" width="269" height="243"></div>Maybe this is precisely what Yanic Perreault needs at this stage of his career. As a Quebecker, Perreault was aware of the cauldron he was stepping into when he signed a three-year, $8.4-million free agent contract with the Montreal Canadiens in Jul.But the expectations placed upon the native of Sherbrooke, Que., were magnified when team captain Saku Koivu was diagnosed with abdominal cancer one week before the start of training camp.Suddenly, the on-ice spotlight shifted to the 30-year-old Perreault. He might be small, at 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds, and he won&rsquo;t be the fastest guy on the ice. But he&rsquo;ll likely enter the 2001-02 season centering the Habs&rsquo; first line, which speaks volumes about the plight of this once-storied franchise.Not that Perreault doesn&rsquo;t believe he&rsquo;s up to the task.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m 30. I&rsquo;ve played many years in this league. It&rsquo;s time for me to do more,&rdquo; said Perreault, a late-bloomer who&rsquo;s now in his seventh full NHL season. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s a good challenge for me. I&rsquo;m probably playing my best hockey now.&rdquo;Perreault has proven capable of scoring at every level of the game he has played. He was named the Canadian Hockey League&rsquo;s rookie of the year in 1989, when he scored 53 goals and 108 points for Trois-Rivieres of the Quebec League. Two seasons later he set the league on fire, scoring 87 goals and 185 points in 67 games with the Draveurs.Toronto&rsquo;s first choice (47th overall) in the 1991 entry draft, he continued his torrid pace in the American League, producing 49- and 45-goal seasons with St. John&rsquo;s.Even following a trade to Los Angeles, Perreault was impressive with Phoenix of the International League, scoring 51 goals one season.He scored 25 and 28 goals for the Kings and is coming off a career season with the Maple Leafs that saw him score 24 goals and 52 points in 76 games.Although Perreault has gained a reputation as one of the league&rsquo;s best at winning faceoffs, the Canadiens were looking to improve their depth and management believes he can fill an offensive void.&ldquo;We signed him because we need more scoring,&rdquo; said GM Andre Savard. &ldquo;We feel he can help us. We like his creativity and his ability to see the ice.&rdquo;Coach Michel Therrien wasted little time anointing Perreault one of the team&rsquo;s top two centers, placing him on a line with Brian Savage and Oleg Petrov early in training camp.&ldquo;We need centers who can get the puck from the defensive to the offensive zone,&rdquo; Savage said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got the shooters. It&rsquo;ll help when we get the puck first and you can go on the offensive. With the speed that me and Petrov have, if (Perreault) gets us the puck, we&rsquo;ll get chances.&rdquo;Perreault was negotiating with other teams - St. Louis, Chicago, Anaheim and Atlanta - after being declared a free agent, but chose the Canadiens for a number of reasons, including the proximity to home and his desire to play in a city with a great hockey tradition.He understands there will be pressure, but believes the timing is right.&ldquo;If there&rsquo;s a time to do it, it&rsquo;s now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve played a few years in this league and I&rsquo;ve got experience.&rdquo;The odds of making the playoffs, which were already daunting heading into the season, became longer when. Koivu got sick. But Perreault retains his optimism.&ldquo;Everybody understands hockey&rsquo;s a business,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard to change a team from one year to the next unless you spend a lot of money in the free agent market. But the Canadiens showed they want to get better by signing some players and trying to get others. If we stay away from injuries we can make the playoffs.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-03199/7223288-1-eng-US/f0041-032.jpg" title="f0041-03" width="928" height="1377"><figcaption class="caption-body">New Hab Yanic Perreault inherits the No. 1 center job.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-04167/7223281-1-eng-US/f0041-042.jpg" title="f0041-04" width="200" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brisebois</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-05150/7223274-1-eng-US/f0041-052.jpg" title="f0041-05" width="192" height="102"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-06140/7223267-1-eng-US/f0041-062.jpg" title="f0041-06" width="205" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Theodore</figcaption></div>Yet to establish himself as legit No. 1 goalie.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-07126/7223260-1-eng-US/f0041-072.jpg" title="f0041-07" width="205" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Zednik</figcaption></div>Can he improve on one goal every 4 games?<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Montreal&rsquo;s top 29 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-08105/7223253-1-eng-US/f0041-082.jpg" title="f0041-08" width="629" height="795"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-0979/7223246-1-eng-US/f0041-092.jpg" title="f0041-09" width="628" height="112"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-1063/7223239-1-eng-US/f0041-102.jpg" title="f0041-10" width="629" height="341"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Jose Theodore2. Jeff Hackett3. Mathieu Garon4. Vadim TarasovDEFENSEMEN1. Patnce Brisebots2. Stephane Quintal3. Patnck Traverse4. Stephane Robidas5. Karl Dykhuis6. Andrei Markov7. sneidon souray8. Francis Bouillon9. Ron Harnsey10. Mathieu DescoteauxLEFTWINGERS1. Martin Rucinsky2. Bnan Savage3. Chad Kilger4. Benoit Brunet5. Patrick Poulin6. Reid&rsquo;SimpsonCENTERS1. Yaric Perreault2. Joe Juneau3. Jan Bute4. Craig Darby5. Enc Landry6. Eric ChouinardRIGHT WINGERS1. Richard Zedrak2 Oleg Petrov3. Andreas Dackell4. Gino Odjick5. Arron Asham6. Jason Ward<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-02264/7223232-1-eng-US/f0041-022.jpg" title="f0041-02" width="344" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jeff Hackett</figcaption></div>With hand injury, slumped to 4-10-2 record, 3.25 GAA and. 887 SR But capable of much more when healthy. &#9632;

f0041-01

All eyes on Perreault

<div class="byline">By David Boclair</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-01448/7223396-1-eng-US/f0042-012.jpg" title="f0042-01" width="269" height="244"></div>Mike Dunham made a conscientious effort in the past year to live for the moment. With the help of family members and others, he has learned to forget previous performances quickly and to not look too far ahead to upcoming opportunities.In other words, he has become a living example of the classic sports cliche&hellip;he takes it one game at a time.As he prepares for the 200102 season, though, the Nashville Predators&rsquo; goalie is eager to take on more games than ever. &ldquo;I want to play as much as possible,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been working hard all summer.&rdquo;When the Preds made him the primary pick in their expansion draft three years ago, plucking him off New Jersey&rsquo;s roster, Dunham knew how to stop the puck. What he has had to learn was how to prepare himself to do so on a nightly basis - the hard way.Recurring groin injuries limited him to 44 games in his first season with Nashville. A knee injury kept his workload down to 48 contests last season.In between, he played a career-high 52 in 1999-2000, a campaign that started slowly when he missed nearly all of camp because of contract negotiations and then was sidelined at mid-season by illness.During his three seasons with Nashville, Dunham has earned praise from coach Barry Trotz for the manner in which he develops work habits that have enhanced his conditioning and flexibility.At the end of last season, he thoroughly whet the appetite of teammates, coaches and management with his performance down the stretch - a 14-14-1 record with a 2.07 goals-against average and a. 928 save percentage over the second half of the season - as he held down the position alone when Tomas Vokoun was out with a knee injury. He allowed two or fewer goals in 33 of his 48 games and in 28 of the last 38. Ultimately, he set career-highs with a. 923 save percentage (first among goaltenders who played in a minimum of 41 games), 21 victories, four shutouts and a 2.28 GAA.His play helped earn him a longterm contract extension that made him Nashville&rsquo;s highest-paid player, as well as a spot on the 2002 U.S. Olympic team.&ldquo;He has really given us a chance to win almost every night,&rdquo; said GM David Poile. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re really invested in him. If we&rsquo;re going to be successful, Mike Dunham is going to be a big part of the team.&rdquo;A bigger part than he ever has been. Not that he has not been successful in other stops.At the University of Maine, where we won an NCAA championship, he split time with Garth Snow, now with the New York Islanders. In the American League he shared the Harry &lsquo;Hap&rsquo; Holmes Trophy with Corey Schwab, with whom he shared the crease in Albany As Martin Brodeur&rsquo;s backup with the Devils, he had a hand in the William Jennings Trophy.Dunham has admitted the burden of being a team&rsquo;s primary netminder had an effect on him during his first two sea sons with the Predators. There were incidents where he blew off the media following sub-par performances and dwelled on those games for days.But he got married prior to last season and extensive conversations with his wife Kate Merrill, a TV news anchor, teammates and anyone else he considered helpful, allowed him to adopt a different mindset that was as obvious when he was on the ice as it was in the dressing room.&ldquo;I just try to worry about the game at hand,&rdquo; Dunham said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s better if you just go with the first one. When that&rsquo;s over, then you worry about the next.&ldquo;I know every year we&rsquo;re getting better and better. There&rsquo;s no reason we shouldn&rsquo;t improve this year.&rdquo;Not as long as Dunham is able to stay on the ice.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-03217/7223389-1-eng-US/f0042-032.jpg" title="f0042-03" width="926" height="1366"><figcaption class="caption-body">Preds&rsquo;goalie Mike Dunham is learning to stay calm.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-04169/7223382-1-eng-US/f0042-042.jpg" title="f0042-04" width="202" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dunham</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-05151/7223375-1-eng-US/f0042-052.jpg" title="f0042-05" width="189" height="102"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-06137/7223368-1-eng-US/f0042-062.jpg" title="f0042-06" width="203" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ronning</figcaption></div>Model of consistency now 36 years old.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-07121/7223361-1-eng-US/f0042-072.jpg" title="f0042-07" width="201" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Walker</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-08106/7223354-1-eng-US/f0042-082.jpg" title="f0042-08" width="193" height="106"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Nashville&rsquo;s top 25 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parer theses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-0994/7223347-1-eng-US/f0042-092.jpg" title="f0042-09" width="630" height="781"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-1079/7223340-1-eng-US/f0042-102.jpg" title="f0042-10" width="624" height="109"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-1163/7223333-1-eng-US/f0042-112.jpg" title="f0042-11" width="625" height="284"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Mike Dunham2. Tomas Vokoun3. Bnan Finley4. Jan LgsakDEFENSEMEN1. Kimmo Timonen2. CaleHufee3. Kartts Skrastms4. Bill Hodder5. Mark Eaton6. Andy Belmore7. Pavel Skrtrek8. Richard Lintner9. Bubba Berenzweig10. Alexandre BoikovLEFT WINGERS1. Cliff Ron rang2. Vrtali Yachmenev3. Tom Fitzgerald4. Stu Grimson5. Jeremy Stevenson6. Yves SarauttCENTERS1. David Legwand2. Denis Arkhipov3. Greg Johnson4, Greg Classen5 Mark Mowers6. B~a BowlerRIGHTWINGERS1. Scott Walter j2. Patnc Kjellberg3. Scott Hartnell4. Marian Osar5. Vladimir Orszagh6. Jonas Andersson<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0042-02277/7223326-1-eng-US/f0042-022.jpg" title="f0042-02" width="342" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">David Legwand</figcaption></div>Stalled at 13 goals in sophomore year and must start meeting expectations of a seconc overall draft pick (1998). &#9632;

f0042-01

Nice and easy does it

<div class="byline">By Rich Chere</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-01464/7223483-1-eng-US/f0043-012.jpg" title="f0043-01" width="268" height="244"></div>Just when Petr Sykora had perfected his sulk and turned dressing room moping into an art form, the New Jersey Devils&rsquo; right winger had to face the happiest training camp of his NHL career. What a bummer.Perennially unhappy about being one of the game&rsquo;s most underpaid players, that all changed for Sykora in the off-season when an arbitrator awarded him $6.8 million over two seasons. His $3.3-million salary for this year represents a 389 per-cent raise over last year&rsquo;s $675,000.That put the smile back on Sykora&rsquo;s face. And his newfound maturity, the belief that his days of battling a variety of injuries and illnesses are over and the first-time appearance of Sykora along with linemates Jason Arnott and Patrik Elias right from the first day of camp, figure to keep the smile there.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m so much more relaxed. Finally, I&rsquo;m very happy,&rdquo; said Sykora on the eve of his sixth NHL season. &ldquo;The last three years I was waiting for this (pay increase). I&rsquo;m also finally going to be in shape. The last few years I was sick (tonsillitis) or hurt (groin) in training camp. Now, I&rsquo;m in shape and our line is playing together from the beginning for the first time.&rdquo;Big money can sweeten even the most dour sourpuss, but the Devils believe Sykora&rsquo;s new outlook and the promise of his best season yet has as much to do with maturity as financial security. He will turn 25 in November and probably hasn&rsquo;t even approached his prime as an offensive force.GM Lou Lamoriello, who made sure the team didn&rsquo;t conduct a character assault on Sykora during the Aug. 14 arbitration hearing, said he doesn&rsquo;t think the new contract places undue pressure on the speedy Czech.&ldquo;I might have thought that if I hadn&rsquo;t seen his maturity at the end of last season,&rdquo; Lamoriello said. &ldquo;Petr is competing against himself to be the best he can be. Every player should do that. He has been given some natural talents and I feel he wants to explore them, to get his abilities to the highest level, whereas in the past he didn&rsquo;t know how. Or he was immature and things happened that shouldn&rsquo;t have happened. We tried to push him and, at times, he might not have understood that pushing. Now he realizes why we did it.&rdquo;Sykora pondered the question of maturity.&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;m a little older. I went through some tough times and learned a lot. I surrounded myself with people who tried to help me,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t really say myself that I&rsquo;m more mature, but hopefully I am.&rdquo; Among those people he has relied on is his agent, Rich Winter, who also had handled Elias. But when Elias became unhappy and abandoned Winter last summer for Mark Gandler, Sykora also decided to cut ties and hooked on with Jay Grossman.It was Sykora&rsquo;s father, Vladimir, who suggested his son give Winter another chance.&ldquo;My father reminded me that Rich was the guy who helped me get to the U.S. I&rsquo;ve been with Rich a long time,&rdquo; Sykora said. &ldquo;I felt I should give him that chance to get me the deal I wanted. I felt he was really well-prepared in the arbitration.&rdquo; Sykora has always been a steal for the Devils. They got him 18th overall in the 1995 draft because 17 other teams worried about his history of injuries. He developed into a promising two-way player and has flourished since he was united with Arnott and Elias during the 1998-99 season.His 35 goals and 81 points last season were career highs, while the line combined for 96 goals and 232 points and was plus-104.The club&rsquo;s top trio will be asked to pick up much of the slack for departed free agent Alexander Mogilny and his 43 goals. &ldquo;The onus is on (Scott Gomez) to have a big season and for Pierre Dagenais to fill some of the void,&rdquo; said coach Larry Robinson. &ldquo;And on the Sykora-Arnott-Elias line. It&rsquo;s a huge challenge for them.&rdquo;Sykora said he is motivated to secure the Stanley Cup that eluded the Devils last spring. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll never forget what happened in the playoffs (losing in Game 7 to Colorado),&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If you have two games to win the Stanley Cup and you don&rsquo;t, that&rsquo;s disappointing. I&rsquo;m still hurt.&rdquo;Hurting, but with a smile.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-03252/7223476-1-eng-US/f0043-032.jpg" title="f0043-03" width="863" height="1258"><figcaption class="caption-body">Expect Petr Sykora to build on a career best season.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-04173/7223469-1-eng-US/f0043-042.jpg" title="f0043-04" width="201" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Arnott</figcaption></div>Can he repeat first-ever pointper-game year?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-05149/7223462-1-eng-US/f0043-052.jpg" title="f0043-05" width="201" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gomez</figcaption></div>Potential to be big-time NHL playmaker<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-06120/7223455-1-eng-US/f0043-062.jpg" title="f0043-06" width="201" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Madden</figcaption></div>Likely to score more if ice time increases<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are New Jersey&rsquo;s top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-07107/7223448-1-eng-US/f0043-072.jpg" title="f0043-07" width="632" height="739"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0894/7223441-1-eng-US/f0043-082.jpg" title="f0043-08" width="620" height="91"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0986/7223434-1-eng-US/f0043-092.jpg" title="f0043-09" width="625" height="338"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Martin Brodeur2. J-F Damphousse3. Frederic Henry4.An AhonenDEFENSEMEN1. Scott Stevens2. Scott Niedermayer3. Brian Rafalski4. Colin White5. Ken Oancyko6. Tommy Albelin7. Mike Commodore8. Josef Boumedienne9. SaschaGoc10. David HaleLEFT WINGERS1. Patrik Elias2. Sergpi Brylin3. JayPandoifo4. Jim McKenzie5. Jiri Bicek6. Andreas SatomonssonCENTERS1. Jason Arnott2. Bobby Holik3. Scott Gomez4. John Madden5. Sergei Nemchinov6. Ted DruryRIGHT WINGERS1. Petr Sykora2. Randy McKay3. Turner Stevenson*4. Pierre Dagenais*5 Brian Gionta6. Michael Rupp* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-02311/7223427-1-eng-US/f0043-022.jpg" title="f0043-02" width="346" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Scott Niedermayer</figcaption></div>Looking for happy, healthy year after missing 19 games as unsigned free agent and absorbing Tie Domi cheap shot. &#9632;

f0043-01

Have smile, will score

<div class="byline">By Peter Botte</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01360/7223584-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg" title="f0044-01" width="271" height="248"></div>There wasn&rsquo;t much pool lounging for Roman Hamrlik this summer. That&rsquo;s because the Islanders&rsquo; sudden willingness to spend enough money to at least be in the running for a playoff berth for the first time since 1993-94 went beyond the major acquisitions of star centers Alexei Yashin and Michael Peca.Their plan included sending personal trainers to Europe to spend the final two months of the summer working with Hamrlik and others to ensure the team&rsquo;s top players were in peak physical condition when training camp opened in September.&ldquo;Believe me, it was no vacation,&rdquo; said Hamrlik, shortly after arriving in Lake Placid, N.Y. for training camp. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never worked like that in a summer and hopefully it pays off.&rdquo;Hamrlik, 27, actually posted the second-highest point total (46) of his nine-year NHL career last season, his first since the Islanders acquired him from Edmonton. His 16 goals tied a career best.Still, Hamrlik&rsquo;s season was mired in inconsistency, mostly brought about by a nagging groin injury that occasionally zapped him of his power-skating ability.Steve Kiefer, a personal trainer hired by Islander strength and conditioning coach Sean Donnellan, arrived at Hamrlik&rsquo;s home in the Czech Republic in early July. Kiefer provided a strenuous regimen of mountain biking, flexibility training and ice skating that left the player &ldquo;totally sculpted&rdquo; by summer&rsquo;s end, according to GM Mike Milbury.&ldquo;The biggest problem with Rom-. an&rsquo;s season was he played at far less than 100 per cent,&rdquo; Milbury said. &ldquo;He came in with some groin problems and even though he had a ridiculously hot start, those problems caught up with him eventually&rdquo;The Isles finished with an NHL-worst 52 points, missing the playoffs for a seventh straight season. Authorized by owner Charles Wang to boost payroll to competitive NHL levels, however, Milbury did an about-face on the team&rsquo;s perennial rebuilding/austerity program by trading for Yashin and Peca at the June draft.&ldquo;It seems to me like they&rsquo;re serious about putting a winning team on the ice,&rdquo; Hamrlik said. &ldquo;We went out and got some good players. This team reminds me of the teams I played on in Edmonton, a young and talented team coming together.&rdquo;The Islanders know one of the biggest improvements must come on the power play, which ranked 26th in the league last season with a 13.2 per-cent efficiency.To that end, Milbury also acquired hard-shooting blueliner Adrian Aucoin from Tampa Bay to relieve some of the burden from Hamrlik, who logged more than 25 minutes of ice time per game. Milbury, who called the pairing &ldquo;a double-barrelled shotgun at the point,&rdquo; envisions up to 35 goals this season between the two of them.&ldquo;We have to be better on the power play,&rdquo; said Hamrlik, who scored five of his 16 goals with the man advantage. &ldquo;There are so many opportunities to win games there. Aucoin is a good skater and has a great shot. I think Alexei should help there, too.&ldquo;Alexei&rsquo;s probably one of the top 10 players in the league and Peca is one of the best at his job of a two-way center.&rdquo;The Isles lost veteran defenseman Garry Galley to retirement and big Zdeno Chara in the Yashin trade, but still boast a solid corps that includes Kenny Jonsson, Branislav Mezei, Kevin Haller, Eric Cairns and Ken Sutton.Milbury, who authorized similar training programs for European-based players such as Jonsson and sniping right winger Mariusz Czerkawski, believes the expenditure will pay dividends both for the players and team.&ldquo;We had to absorb the cost of it, but hopefully it was worth it,&rdquo; Milbury said. &ldquo;If something so simple as maximizing conditioning is the answer, then we&rsquo;d be fools not to try to facilitate that avenue.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-03142/7223577-1-eng-US/f0044-032.jpg" title="f0044-03" width="920" height="1365"><figcaption class="caption-body">Roman Hamrlik is in the best condition of his career.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-04108/7223570-1-eng-US/f0044-042.jpg" title="f0044-04" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Aucoin</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0591/7223563-1-eng-US/f0044-052.jpg" title="f0044-05" width="193" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0682/7223556-1-eng-US/f0044-062.jpg" title="f0044-06" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jonsson</figcaption></div>Hasn&rsquo;t played full season since &lsquo;97-98.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0776/7223549-1-eng-US/f0044-072.jpg" title="f0044-07" width="198" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Peca</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0864/7223542-1-eng-US/f0044-082.jpg" title="f0044-08" width="192" height="103"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are the Islanders&rsquo; top 24 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0960/7223535-1-eng-US/f0044-092.jpg" title="f0044-09" width="628" height="822"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-1052/7223528-1-eng-US/f0044-102.jpg" title="f0044-10" width="622" height="110"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-1144/7223521-1-eng-US/f0044-112.jpg" title="f0044-11" width="622" height="339"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Rick DiPietro2. Garth Snow3. Dusan Salficky4. Stephen ValiquetteDEFENSEMEN1. Roman Hamtlik2. Kenny Jonsson3. Branislav Mezei4. Adrian Aucoin5. Kevin Haller6. EricCaims7. Ken Sutton8. Evgeny Korolev9.Ray Schute10. Ray GirouxLEFTWINGERS1.Brad Isbister2. Oteg Kvasha3. Mats b-xJgren4. Jason Blake5. Raff Torres6. JurajKoinikCENTERS1. Alexei Yashin2. MfcePeca3. Dave Scatchard4. Claude Lapointe5. Shawn Bates5. Jason KrogRIGHT WINGERS1. Mariusz Czerkawski2. Mark Pamsh3. Alexander Kharitonov4. Steve Webb5 Marko Tuomainen6. Jason Podollan<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-02197/7223514-1-eng-US/f0044-022.jpg" title="f0044-02" width="348" height="400"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mark Parrish</figcaption></div>Scored just 16 goals, after averaging 25 in two seasons with Aorida. Playmaking of Yashin and Peca should help. &#9632;

f0044-01

Isles will try shotgun

<div class="byline">By Rick Carpiniello</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-01293/7223685-1-eng-US/f0045-012.jpg" title="f0045-01" width="268" height="244"></div>Eric Lindros only has to do one thing for the New York Rangers. It is, however, the one thing he has been unable to do throughout his career: Stay healthy.If Lindros can remain relatively injury-free, the Rangers and GM-president Glen Sather will have pulled off an enormous trade for this floundering franchise.If he can&rsquo;t, Sather and the Rangers will have goofed on their big-time gamble and the organization will suffer the effects for years to come.If you ask Lindros, the 28-year-old who, when able to play, is the ultimate power forward in the NHL, health won&rsquo;t be an issue.&ldquo;I was completely healed in November,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I was free as a bird then. But I look at it as anything else. The more time you have away from the nature of the beast, the better off you&rsquo;re going to be when it&rsquo;s time to play again.&rdquo;Time not only heals all wounds, but Lindros thinks it may have made him a better player.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I&rsquo;ve really missed a beat,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Yeah, I haven&rsquo;t taken 3-on-2s and haven&rsquo;t worked on power play situations with NHL-caliber players (prior to Team Canada&rsquo;s Olympic orientation camp), but at the same time I don&rsquo;t think I&rsquo;m that far behind. If anything, I feel rested and ready to go.&rdquo;Lindros was being badgered about his least favorite subject (besides Bobby Clarke), learning to skate through the middle with his head up, a topic that normally brings a snarl.But Lindros pointed out it is just one of the skills he may have improved upon while skating on his own, or in informal workouts, during his year in exile.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s funny,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Somebody asked me about skating last year. As a player, when you&rsquo;re part of a team situation, you don&rsquo;t really have a whole lot of time to work on your skills. So much of practice is based around team formations, power plays, penalty killing. You know, you go to a practice, it&rsquo;s not so much based on a player&rsquo;s individual skills or what they have to work on. So maybe last year was real good for me I got to work on a number of things. I&rsquo;m really confident coming back.&rdquo;And, when asked what he&rsquo;ll do the next time he comes across the New Jersey Devils&rsquo; Scott Stevens, who delivered Lindros&rsquo; sixth and final concussion in Game 7 of the 2000 Eastern Conference final, No. 88 simply said: &ldquo;Keep my head up.&rdquo; The Rangers gave up three young players - Kim Johnsson, Jan Hlavac and top prospect Pavel Brendl - and a third round draft pick to get Lindros from Philadelphia in August.But Rangers&rsquo; coach Ron Low argues the trade is not a move away from having a young team. In fact, Low says, there is plenty of room for youth on the Rangers this season.&ldquo;Definitely,&rdquo; Low said. &ldquo;I can understand the fans and their thinking that we&rsquo;re giving it up. That&rsquo;s not the case. We ended up getting a guy who&rsquo;s 28 years old, who&rsquo;s got most likely six or seven years of hockey It&rsquo;s not a 33- or 34-year-old that we&rsquo;ve brought in. This guy&rsquo;s still young and he gives us youth.&rdquo;As long as Lindros&hellip;once again&hellip;stays healthy.He was even able to joke, while forgetting an order of events while answering a question about his 1992 trade from Quebec to Philadelphia: &ldquo;Maybe it&rsquo;s the con-cussion kicking in.&rdquo;New York certainly wasn&rsquo;t Lindros&rsquo; first choice; Toronto was. He said Sather talked him into going to the Big Apple and there was trepidation over the unknown.&ldquo;Not being real familiar with this city lent itself to a little hesitation on my part,&rdquo; Lindros said.&ldquo;The situations were different. In Toronto, I knew the team, I knew a lot of the players on the team, I knew the training staff, and the coaching staff. I was familiar with the city. So this is going to be an adjustment, but I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;ll be right up to speed when the season starts.&rdquo;Of greater interest to Ranger fans is whether Lindros will be up to speed - and still in uniform - when the season ends.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-03117/7223678-1-eng-US/f0045-032.jpg" title="f0045-03" width="830" height="1201"><figcaption class="caption-body">Eric Lindros is confident about his comeback.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0492/7223671-1-eng-US/f0045-042.jpg" title="f0045-04" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lindros</figcaption></div>Very impressive at Canadian Olympic camp<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0578/7223664-1-eng-US/f0045-052.jpg" title="f0045-05" width="201" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Richter</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0668/7223657-1-eng-US/f0045-062.jpg" title="f0045-06" width="191" height="102"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0761/7223650-1-eng-US/f0045-072.jpg" title="f0045-07" width="202" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Grosek</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0846/7223643-1-eng-US/f0045-082.jpg" title="f0045-08" width="198" height="105"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are the Rangers&rsquo; top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-0942/7223636-1-eng-US/f0045-092.jpg" title="f0045-09" width="629" height="795"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-1036/7223629-1-eng-US/f0045-102.jpg" title="f0045-10" width="629" height="112"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-1133/7223622-1-eng-US/f0045-112.jpg" title="f0045-11" width="626" height="283"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Mike Richter2. Johan Holmqvist3. Vitali Meremeyey4. Jason La BarberaDEFENSEMEN1. Bran Leetch2. Vladimir Malakhov3. Igor Ulanov4. Tomas Kloucek5. DaveKarpa6. Peter Smrek7. Sylvan Lefebvre8. Dale Purinton9. Darren Van Impe10. Mike MottauLEFT WINGERS1. Zdeno Ciger2. Nils Ekman3. Michal Grosek4. Jeff Toms5. Andreas Johansson6. Steve McKennaCENTERS1. Eric Lindros2. Petr Nedved* *3. Mark Messier4. Michael tork5. Manny Malhotra6. Jamie LandmarkRIGHT WINGERS1. fheoren Fleury2. Radek Dvorak3. Sandy McCarthy4. Mikael Samuelsson5. Brae Smyth6. Jason Dawe* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0045-02158/7223615-1-eng-US/f0045-022.jpg" title="f0045-02" width="336" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Vladimir Malakhov</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0045-01

No. 88 healthy, for now

<div class="byline">By Bruce Garrioch</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-01285/7223786-1-eng-US/f0046-012.jpg" title="f0046-01" width="270" height="240"></div>Instead of looking back, Patrick Lalime is staring straight ahead this season. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you have to worry about what has happened in the past,&rdquo; said the Ottawa Senators&rsquo; goaltender, on the eve of training camp at the Corel Centre.&ldquo;I think in our case we have to look at this as a chance to have a fresh start. Everybody has to come to camp excited about what we&rsquo;ve got going into the season and looking forward to challenging to get to the playoffs. I know I&rsquo;m excited and I think everybody is going to be as excited as me.&rdquo;Lalime, 27, went to camp last season as a player with a lot to prove. He had to show a whole hockey world full of doubters that he had what it takes to help the Senators contend for top spot in the Eastern Conference.With the March, 2000, trade of Ron Tugnutt to Pittsburgh for Tom Barrasso and the decision that summer to not re-sign Barrasso, Lalime and unproven backup Jani Hurme were forced to answer a lot of questions in last year&rsquo;s training camp about whether they were up to the task.And while he played a significant role in getting the Senators 109 points and first place in the Northeast Division last season, Lalime had to live with the fact the club failed horribly in the playoffs.No, Lalime can&rsquo;t be blamed for the Senators&rsquo; exit in four straight games in the first round against the seventh-place Toronto Maple Leafs, but he was part of the team and he&rsquo;s willing to take as much criticism as anyone deserves.&ldquo;We all know people were disappointed with what happened and we were disappointed as well,&rdquo; Lalime said. &ldquo;We had a long summer&hellip;a lot longer summer than anybody expected to have and that was hard on all of us.&ldquo;We had a good group here last year, a group of players who were close and wanted to get the job done. The way we finished the season, we all knew there were going to be changes. I thought we had a good group, but obviously we have to be better in the playoffs. We know it.&rdquo;Signed to a new three-year deal in the off-season, Lalime is armed with a contract that will allow him to prove that he&rsquo;s one of the top goaltenders in the league and can help his team get to the next level.The one thing Lalime gave the Senators last year was the big saves - especially when the team wasn&rsquo;t playing well in front of him.Unfortunately, he couldn&rsquo;t do anything about the complete collapse that took place in the post-season.&ldquo;The one area I really feel good about, going into the season, is our goaltending. I really believe that will be one of our strengths,&rdquo; said Senators&rsquo; coach Jacques Martin. &ldquo;I thought Patrick did an excellent job for us last season.&ldquo;A lot of people talked about our lack of playoff experience in net last season, but the only way you&rsquo;re going to get those players experience is to let them play. We feel he&rsquo;s going to be solid for us down the road. I remember when guys like Patrick Roy and Ed Belfour didn&rsquo;t have any playoff experience and they&rsquo;re top goalies in the league.&rdquo;Someday, Lalime would like to be considered among the top players. To get into that kind of company, though, he has to lead the club to a winning season and, more importantly, play deep into the springtime.&ldquo;I know that to get with Patrick Roy and Ed Belfour you have to win and get your team to the top,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;You look at those guys and they&rsquo;re never satisfied with their performance. They&rsquo;re always trying to be No. 1.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the one thing you can never do in this game: You can never rest on your laurels. You have to want more to make your team a winner. I&rsquo;m excited about the opportunity I&rsquo;ve got here and I&rsquo;m confident we can be a strong team.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-03117/7223779-1-eng-US/f0046-032.jpg" title="f0046-03" width="925" height="1361"><figcaption class="caption-body">Patrick Lalime was a pleasant surprise for Ottawa.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0495/7223772-1-eng-US/f0046-042.jpg" title="f0046-04" width="203" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bosk</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0574/7223765-1-eng-US/f0046-052.jpg" title="f0046-05" width="191" height="107"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0665/7223758-1-eng-US/f0046-062.jpg" title="f0046-06" width="205" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lalime</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0756/7223751-1-eng-US/f0046-072.jpg" title="f0046-07" width="189" height="103"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0842/7223744-1-eng-US/f0046-082.jpg" title="f0046-08" width="203" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Redden</figcaption></div>Needs to go to next level to meet hopes<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Ottawa&rsquo;s top 24 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-0940/7223737-1-eng-US/f0046-092.jpg" title="f0046-09" width="634" height="768"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-1032/7223730-1-eng-US/f0046-102.jpg" title="f0046-10" width="627" height="120"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-1131/7223723-1-eng-US/f0046-112.jpg" title="f0046-11" width="629" height="337"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Patrick Lalime2. Jani Hurme3. Mathieu Chouinard4. Simon LajeunesseDEFENSEMEN1. Wade Redden2. Zdeno Chara*3. Chris Phillips4. Karel Rachunek5. Sami Salo6. Curtis Leschyshyr7. Ricard Persson8. Shane Hnidy9. Jamie Rivers11. Jason DoigLEFT WINGERS1. Shawn McEachern2. Magnus Arvedson3. Petr Schastlivy4. Andre Roy5. Nan Ciemek6 Konstantin GorovikovCENTERS1. Radek Bonk2. Mike fisher3. Jason Spezza4. Chris Herperger5. Todd White6. Steve MartinsRIGHT WINGERS1. Daniel Alfredsson*2. Marian Hossa*3. Martin Havtat4. Bill Muckalt5. ChnsNeU6. Jeff Ulmer* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0046-02168/7223716-1-eng-US/f0046-022.jpg" title="f0046-02" width="345" height="396"><figcaption class="caption-body">Magnus Arvedson</figcaption></div>Has missed 66 games over the last two seasons. Senators need him healthy, with at least 50 points. &#9632;

f0046-01

Time to take next step

<div class="byline">By Wayne Fish</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-01319/7223880-1-eng-US/f0047-012.jpg" title="f0047-01" width="269" height="243"></div>The $45-million question is: Can the 2001 John LeClair be as good as the 1999 John LeClair?He might be two years older in human years, but, because of a back operation, he&rsquo;s only aged about one hockey year.So, at 32, LeClair does indeed have the challenge of some high expectations to meet.A three-time 50-goal scorer in the late 1990s, LeClair believes the mission isn&rsquo;t impossible. Although he managed to get into 16 regular season and six playoff games, last year was pretty much a lost one for LeClair, who, in June, eschewed unrestricted free agency to accept $9-million per-year from the Flyers.After a summer of strenuous workouts, with no major setbacks, he believes he can get back on the course that made him the NHL&rsquo;s leading goal-scorer between 1995 and 1999.&ldquo;Right now, the mindset I have, to be realistic, not playing most of last year and coming off the back - most people who had this thing say it was almost a year to the day until they felt normal,&rdquo; LeClair said.&ldquo;So I have to keep telling myself not to expect too much. On the other hand, I have to do my part. I have every intention of being the player I was two years ago and better. If people think they expect less out of myself, I&rsquo;don&rsquo;t.&rdquo;LeClair said his back, for the most part, is fine. It&rsquo;s his skills which need work.&ldquo;I was hoping I would be feeling a little bit better than I am,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;All things considered, with what&rsquo;s been going on the last year and stuff, I know where I&rsquo;m at and I know there&rsquo;s lots of room for improvement.&rdquo;The back surgery was complicated by a staph infection which sidelined the St. Albans, Vt., native for another eight weeks. There are still days when his back acts up. He calls it frustrating and the most difficult rehabilitation of his career.&ldquo;It is because when I did my knee, it never relapsed,&rdquo; LeClair said. &ldquo;No matter what you do, when you wake up one morning, it&rsquo;s not going to feel good every day. There&rsquo;s nothing you can do. Everybody has that. That&rsquo;s the only frustrating thing. So you just have to work harder. I know what&rsquo;s ahead of me. But it&rsquo;s not an excuse. Some days are harder than others.&rdquo;The contract does not weigh on his mind.&ldquo;You have to put it aside,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Bottom line is, everyone wants to earn their money. Nobody wants to feel like they&rsquo;re not pulling their weight. With my situation there&rsquo;s going to be a lot expected of me. But if you look around this team, it&rsquo;s not going to be one guy. I think it would be wrong for one guy to try to step up and do it.&rdquo;Coach Bill Barber is preaching patience.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s a good chance John might play more games than somebody else, but we&rsquo;ll monitor that,&rdquo; Barber said. &ldquo;The thing about camp is, you want to establish a good work ethic, get yourself comfortable.&rdquo;Rick Tocchet underwent back surgery in 1994 during the off-season. He said it takes time for a back to completely recover and to feel comfortable again.&ldquo;The first part that&rsquo;s tough is getting into a groove,&rdquo; Tocchet said. &ldquo;Your back might not be as flexible, you have to fight through the scar tissue. You can still play, but can you get in a situation where you feel strong on your skates?&ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to take a while. Even if it takes until Christmas, big deal. You don&rsquo;t care until the last 40 games and the playoffs. You just want to see him ready then.&rdquo;Added defenseman Dan McGillis: &ldquo;He&rsquo;s.a little hard on himself. He just has to play his game. I worked out with him this summer and he went at it pretty hard. I think he&rsquo;ll be fine.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-03161/7223873-1-eng-US/f0047-032.jpg" title="f0047-03" width="932" height="1367"><figcaption class="caption-body">John LeClair is trying to come back from back surgery.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-04114/7223866-1-eng-US/f0047-042.jpg" title="f0047-04" width="202" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Cechmanek</figcaption></div>Were playoffs indication of things to come?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-0587/7223859-1-eng-US/f0047-052.jpg" title="f0047-05" width="205" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Desjardins</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-0672/7223852-1-eng-US/f0047-062.jpg" title="f0047-06" width="188" height="100"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-0760/7223845-1-eng-US/f0047-072.jpg" title="f0047-07" width="203" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Roenick</figcaption></div>Pressure to perform will be intense.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Philadelphia&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in paren theses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and mav be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-0845/7223838-1-eng-US/f0047-082.jpg" title="f0047-08" width="633" height="788"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-0935/7223831-1-eng-US/f0047-092.jpg" title="f0047-09" width="628" height="112"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-1026/7223824-1-eng-US/f0047-102.jpg" title="f0047-10" width="629" height="337"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Roman Cechmanek2. Brian Boucher3. Maxime Oueliet4. Neil LittleDEFENSEMEN1. Eric Desjardins2. Dan McGills3. Eric Welnrich4. Luke Richardson5. Chris Therien6. Kim Johnsson7. Chris McAllister8. Francis Lessard9. Bruno St. Jacques1O. Joey DiPentaLEFT WINGERS1. John LeClair2. Simon Gagne3. Jan Hiavac4. Ruslan Fedotenko5. Todd Fedoruk6. Tomas DMsekCENTERS1. Keith Pnmeau2. Jeremy Roenick3. Jiri Dopita4. Kent Manderville5. Marty Murray6. Mike WattRIGHT WINGERS1. Mark Recchi2. Rick Tocchet3. Justin Williams4. Paul Ranheim5. Pavel Brand6. Vaclav Pietka<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0047-02211/7223817-1-eng-US/f0047-022.jpg" title="f0047-02" width="345" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brian Boucher</figcaption></div>After a brilliant rookie season, he slipped to 812-5 with a 3.27 GAA. The Flyers still have high hopes for him. &#9632;

f0047-01

On the comeback trail

<div class="byline">By Bob McManaman</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-01209/7223988-1-eng-US/f0048-012.jpg" title="f0048-01" width="267" height="240"></div>After authorizing the massive rebuilding of the Phoenix Coyotes, managing partner Wayne Gretzky reminded his critics he wasn&rsquo;t tearing apart a Stanley Cup championship team. It was a club with a payroll of nearly $40 million, he reiterated, that didn&rsquo;t even make the playoffs.&ldquo;We finished one point short, but let&rsquo;s face it,&rdquo; Gretzky said, &ldquo;if it wasn&rsquo;t for the play of Sean Burke, we would have finished at least 20 points out.&rdquo;During a season of uncertainty, one rampant with trade rumors, an ownership change and the real threat of a franchise relocation, Burke was one of the few rocks in Phoenix. The veteran goalie established his first back-to-back winning seasons, garnering 25 wins and finished third in the NHL with a. 922 save percentage.There was an All-Star Game appearance (he won a car) and THN picked him as its midseason Hart and Vezina Trophy winners. Burke earned himself a new contract and the Coyotes decided they could live without Nikolai Khabibulin, after all.Gretzky was right. If it wasn&rsquo;t for Burke, who appears to have found his second wind at age 34, the Coyotes wouldn&rsquo;t have come close.But can he do it again?&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s any doubt about it,&rdquo; said Coyotes&rsquo; coach Bobby Francis. &ldquo;Sean has been outstanding, not only last year, but when he arrived the previous year. He&rsquo;s been consistent since Day 1. There&rsquo;s no reason to think he&rsquo;s not going to perform at the same level.&rdquo;Burke said he is more prepared than any other season in recent memory. But 2001-02 could prove difficult. Of the 42 players invited to training camp, 29 are 25 or younger.Twelve of them are 21 or younger. With youth comes inexperience. With inexperience comes a lack of discipline on the ice.Burke faced an average of 29.1 shots per game last season, which kept him busy enough. In shorthanded situations, he could be a marked man.Opponents peppered the Coyotes with 432 shots on the power play. Only the New York Islanders (445) saw more.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really think a lot about it,&rdquo; Burke said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just excited to start the year, excited to get going. Whether you&rsquo;re an older team or a younger team, rebuilding, whatever you want to call what we have, there&rsquo;s always challenges that you have to meet.Whatever happens to the Coyotes, it all figures to revolve around Burke. Again. If he can duplicate much of last season&rsquo;s heroics, Gretzky said the Desert Dogs will be barking in the playoffs. If Burke falters, they could be baying at the moon instead.Burke will be relying on two relatively new assets. One is yoga, which he picked up a year ago, to help him stay a little more flexible. The other is goalie guru Benoit Allaire, the Coyotes&rsquo; full-time goaltending instructor.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always thought that I worked hard in the off-season, but felt maybe in the last couple years ago, I hadn&rsquo;t paid enough attention to some of the simpler things,&rdquo; Burke said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s how the yoga thing came about. It started off with stretching, but it&rsquo;s become a lot more than that. It&rsquo;s also about focusing, breathing, which may not be the most popular things to work on during the summer, but I&rsquo;ve found that it helps.&rdquo;Burke said he&rsquo;s been able to morph the meditation techniques into everything that Allaire preaches. And Allaire&rsquo;s methods have worked wonders with every goalie who has come to Phoenix.&ldquo;Bennie&rsquo;s approach to the game that we talk about involves a lot of focus, a lot of repetition,&rdquo; Burke said. &ldquo;And for me, the yoga was a way to be consistent with that every day so you&rsquo;re focused every time you go on the ice to work on the other things.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0392/7223981-1-eng-US/f0048-032.jpg" title="f0048-03" width="930" height="1365"><figcaption class="caption-body">Sean Burke can expect to see plenty of rubber this year.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0473/7223974-1-eng-US/f0048-042.jpg" title="f0048-04" width="201" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Berezin</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0555/7223967-1-eng-US/f0048-052.jpg" title="f0048-05" width="192" height="107"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0644/7223960-1-eng-US/f0048-062.jpg" title="f0048-06" width="201" height="282"><figcaption class="caption-body">Burke</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0734/7223953-1-eng-US/f0048-072.jpg" title="f0048-07" width="190" height="100"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0823/7223946-1-eng-US/f0048-082.jpg" title="f0048-08" width="196" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Handzus</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-0920/7223939-1-eng-US/f0048-092.jpg" title="f0048-09" width="193" height="97"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Phoenix&rsquo;s top 23 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-1014/7223932-1-eng-US/f0048-102.jpg" title="f0048-10" width="617" height="783"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-1111/7223925-1-eng-US/f0048-112.jpg" title="f0048-11" width="620" height="111"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-128/7223918-1-eng-US/f0048-122.jpg" title="f0048-12" width="621" height="335"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Sean Burke2. Robert Esche3. Patrick DesRochers4. Josh BlackbumDEFENSEMEN1. Teppo Numminen2. Ossi Vaananen3. Paul Mara4. Danny Markov5. Todd SimpsonG. Radoslav Suchy7. Joel Bouchard8. Goran Bezina9. Kirill Safronov10. David CullerLEFT WINGERS1. Sergei Berezin2. Brad May3. Ladislav Nagy4. ToddWanriner5. Tyler Bouck6. Ramzi AbidCENTERS1. Daymond Langkow2 Michal Handzus3. Trevor Letowski4. Mike Sullivan5. Daniel Briere6. KrysKolanosRIGHT WINGERS1. Shane Doan2. Mike Johnson3. Claude Lemieux4. Landon Wilson5. Jean-Guy Trudel6. Branko Radivojevic<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0048-02134/7223911-1-eng-US/f0048-022.jpg" title="f0048-02" width="345" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Trevor Letowski</figcaption></div>Contract dispute kept him out of camp last year and he fell from 19 goals to seven. Should be in top form again. &#9632;

f0048-01

Can Burke do it again?

<div class="byline">By Joe Starkey</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-01182/7224082-1-eng-US/f0049-012.jpg" title="f0049-01" width="268" height="246"></div>Of all the amazing things goaltender Johan Hedberg accomplished last season, none was more impressive than this: He won over Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; GM Craig Patrick in a matter of two months.Understand, Patrick doesn&rsquo;t put much stock in short-term success, especially with goalies. Just ask Patrick Lalime.Lalime set an NHL record for the longest unbeaten streak at the start of a career with a 14-02 run in 1996-97. That was also his last season in a Penguins&rsquo; sweater. Patrick didn&rsquo;t think Lalime, who slumped toward the end of the season, was worth the money he wanted.Next up was Jean-Sebastien Aubin, who missed nearly all of training camp last season in a contract dispute. Patrick refused to label Aubin the team&rsquo;s No. 1 goalie despite Aubin&rsquo;s success the previous year. Aubin has gained a pair of one-year contracts worth less than $800,000.Along came Hedberg, who&rsquo;d spent most Of the past nine years toiling in the minors and the Swedish Elite League before the Pens acquired him from San Jose at the trade deadline. He promptly unseated Aubin, went 7-1-1 down the stretch and starred in the playoffs.Nice story, but how would it translate to contract negotiations? Hedberg was a restricted free agent. People kept referring to Brian Boucher, the Philadelphia net-minder who had a similarly smashing debut in 1999-2000 only to fall on his face after signing a fat, new contract.Patrick surprised everybody by labeling Hedberg his No. 1 goalie during negotiations. Then he rewarded Hedberg with a three-year, $3.2-million deal. It was the length, more than the money, that raised eyebrows.&ldquo;We think Johan&rsquo;s the real thing,&rdquo; Patrick said.Hedberg&rsquo;s competitiveness, as much as anything, sold Patrick. &ldquo;The way Johan approaches each and every game, he&rsquo;d wear out by Christmas if he played every game,&rdquo; Patrick said.After years of wondering where his next paycheck would come from, Hedberg, 28, is thrilled to have security for his wife and two young daughters. &ldquo;It tells me (the Penguins) like what I did,&rdquo; Hedberg said. &ldquo;But the money is the last thing I&rsquo;m thinking about. I&rsquo;m going to have three years in the NHL.&rdquo;Hedberg nearly gave up his NHL dream after 1997-98, when the International League&rsquo;s Manitoba Moose didn&rsquo;t re-sign him. Hedberg returned to his home of Leksand, Swe., to play for a year before hooking up with the San Jose Sharks&rsquo; American League affiliate in Kentucky. He rejoined the Moose last season, but couldn&rsquo;t move up the Sharks&rsquo; depth chart, which was stocked with hot goaltending prospects.The Penguins came calling in March, sending defenseman Jeff Norton to the Sharks in exchange for defenseman Bobby Dollas and Hedberg.At first, Hedberg was thought to be a throw-in, but those who knew of him knew better, like Sharks&rsquo; goaltending consultant Warren Strelow. At Kentucky, Strelow worked with Hedberg and Miikka Kiprusoff. Hedberg had met Strelow years before, but this time made a deep impression A wiry 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, Hedberg had become, in Strelow&rsquo;s words, &ldquo;a craftsman.&rdquo; A competitive one, at that.&ldquo;Sometimes too competitive and he starts chasing pucks around,&rdquo; Strelow said. &ldquo;We worked on rebound control every day. That&rsquo;s the name of the game - play the angles, stay on your feet as much as possible and concentrate.&rdquo;Hedberg finished the playoffs with a sparkling. 911 save percentage and led Pittsburgh to the Eastern Conference final. Along the way, he captured the city&rsquo;s heart. His blue &ldquo;Moose&rdquo; mask - a remnant of his Manitoba days - was a hit. Fans wore styrofoam antlers to games.Hedberg&rsquo;s new mask has a moose on each side and is painted in the Penguins&rsquo; colors. But even if the old mask was a one-year wonder, Hedberg is intent on proving that he is not.&ldquo;I want to prove it was no fluke,&rdquo; he said.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0382/7224075-1-eng-US/f0049-032.jpg" title="f0049-03" width="920" height="1373"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Pens signed Johan Hedberg to a three-year deal.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0471/7224068-1-eng-US/f0049-042.jpg" title="f0049-04" width="201" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hedberg</figcaption></div>Playoff magic will be tough to duplicate.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0545/7224061-1-eng-US/f0049-052.jpg" title="f0049-05" width="201" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lang</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0634/7224054-1-eng-US/f0049-062.jpg" title="f0049-06" width="195" height="105"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0725/7224047-1-eng-US/f0049-072.jpg" title="f0049-07" width="200" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lemieux</figcaption></div>As magnificent Mario goes, so do Penguins.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Pittsburgh&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0815/7224040-1-eng-US/f0049-082.jpg" title="f0049-08" width="627" height="801"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-0914/7224033-1-eng-US/f0049-092.jpg" title="f0049-09" width="620" height="113"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-1011/7224026-1-eng-US/f0049-102.jpg" title="f0049-10" width="619" height="334"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Johan Hedberg2. Jean-Sebastien Aubin3. Rob Tates4. Sebastien CaronDEFENSEMEN1. Darius Kasparaitrs2. Janne Laukkanen3. Andrew Fcrence4. Hans Jonsson5. Mike Wilson6. Ian Moran7. Brooks Orpik8. Michal Rozsival9. Josef Melichar10. Peter RatchukLEFT WINGERS1. Martin Straka2. Jan Hrdina3. Kevin Stevens4. Dan LaCouture5. Toby Petersen6. Martin Sonnenberg*CENTERS1. Mario Lemieux2. Robert Lang3. Milan Kraft4. Wayne Primeau5. Billy Tibbetts6. Kris BeechRIGHT WINGERS1. Alexei Kovalev2. Aleksey Morozov3. Krzysztof Oltwa4. Stephane Richer5. Robert Dome6. Enc Melocho* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0049-02126/7224019-1-eng-US/f0049-022.jpg" title="f0049-02" width="341" height="401"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stephane Richer</figcaption></div>The 15-year NHL vet was in great shape at camp and may end up playing with Mario Lemieux after a year off the ice. &#9632;

f0049-01

Putting faith in Hedberg

<div class="byline">By Derrick Goold</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-01181/7224176-1-eng-US/f0050-012.jpg" title="f0050-01" width="266" height="243"></div>Amidst drinks andpicked-atfood was his cell phone, silent on a table as he and about 10 friends, mostly local hockey-playing buddies, sat at Pavol Demitra&rsquo;s restaurant at 2 a.m. in Slovakia and waited. And waited.Demitra had been warned sometime in that mid-August night his cell phone would beep and news of his arbitration hearing with the St. Louis Blues would come. It had been a grueling 48 hours - a flight to the U.S. and back, a couple days of steeling himself for what he was going to hear about himself and his playing and then the hours of the arbitration hearing.And then the waiting.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I could sleep that night,&rdquo; said the 26-year-old right winger. &ldquo;I was just waiting. Waiting for what could happen. I got a nervous energy and was very nervous of how it was going to be.&rdquo;Demitra would push his sleeplessness a few hours further to celebrate how good it was. The arbitrator doubled his salary, raising it from $1.8 million in 2000-01 to $3.7 million this season and $3,975 million in 2002-03. Blues&rsquo; GM Larry Pleau painted the decision as a win-win: Demitra would probably like $100,000 more, the Blues would probably like to pay a $100,000 less, Pleau said.But it could be a win-win one other way It could bring back the Demitra of a season past.Pleau called Demitra one of the players with something to prove on a team with something to prove. A skate slash across the back of the knee and a stick to the eye shredded Demitra&rsquo;s playing time last season. He played 44 games and scored 20 goals and 45 points. But he vanished in the playoffs.It has been a gradual disappearing act for Demitra since a year before winning the Lady Byng and fueling the Blues&rsquo; President&rsquo;s Trophy run. In 1998-99, Demitra scored 37 goals and had 89 points in 82 games. During the Byng and President&rsquo;s season, he scored 75 points in 71 games played.Injuries obscured last season.This was the Blues&rsquo; ammo going into arbitration. Demitra, who thrived when playing on a Slovakian line in past seasons and is now with-. out those countrymen, received a brief detailing what St. Lduis was going to say about him. Demitra said having it laid out there, in written form, gave him a goose. &ldquo;I know I have to become a complete hockey player,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m working at it.&rdquo; Going into training camp inAnchorage, Alaska, the No. 2 center spot is open. Demitra is skilled enough offensively to fill it. Yet, the Blues have worked to add &ldquo;more grit&rdquo; to the team, Pleau said.&ldquo;He has got a great offensive awareness,&rdquo; said Blues&rsquo; coach Joel Quenneville. &ldquo;Great shot. He senses holes. Very creative in and around the scoring arch. He will have an opportunity to see how he will do at (that position). If he can make that commitment, make that defensive commitment, he could be there.&rdquo;There is something Demitra wants to stop first.He has to figure out why he starts slowly. He doesn&rsquo;t want to be a slow-starter like he always has been. It takes a couple weeks into the season or longer, Demitra said, before he&rsquo;s swooshing and scoring at full speed. He figures jumpstarting the season begins in practice, so he started earlier.&ldquo;I had to build my confidence,&rdquo; Demitra said.After the nervousness passed at his restaurant that early August morning and he found out about his raise, there was a trickle of confidence.Followed by the weight of responsibility. He realizes there&rsquo;s pressure to earn the paycheck, to prove to his teammates what he&rsquo;s worth - not on paper, but on the ice.&ldquo;When Pavol&rsquo;s playing the way he can play, he has got to produce on offense,&rdquo; Pleau said.&ldquo;He can be one of the top 15 in the league. He has to be consistent. He has a lot to prove.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0366/7224169-1-eng-US/f0050-032.jpg" title="f0050-03" width="916" height="1519"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pavol Demitra is without his Slovakian linemates.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0454/7224162-1-eng-US/f0050-042.jpg" title="f0050-04" width="200" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hill</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0535/7224155-1-eng-US/f0050-052.jpg" title="f0050-05" width="195" height="101"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0628/7224148-1-eng-US/f0050-062.jpg" title="f0050-06" width="199" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Johnson</figcaption></div>Should have been No. 1 last spring.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0720/7224141-1-eng-US/f0050-072.jpg" title="f0050-07" width="199" height="285"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tkachuk</figcaption></div>Didn&rsquo;t come through in post-season.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are St. Louis&rsquo; top 26 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0813/7224134-1-eng-US/f0050-082.jpg" title="f0050-08" width="623" height="807"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-0911/7224127-1-eng-US/f0050-092.jpg" title="f0050-09" width="620" height="113"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-107/7224120-1-eng-US/f0050-102.jpg" title="f0050-10" width="624" height="340"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Brent Johnson2. Fred Brathwaite3. Cody Rudtowsky4. Reinhard DivtsDEFENSEMEN1. Chris Pronger2. Al Madnnis3. Alex Khavanov4 Bryce Salvador5. Sean Hi6. Jeff Finley7. Rich PMon8. Barret Jackman9. Chnstian Laflamme10. Mike Van RynLEFT WINGERS1. Keith Tkachuk2. Cory Stillman3. Dallas Drake4. Tyson Nash5. Sergei Varlamov*6. Eric BogunieckiCENTERS1. Doug Weight2. Jamal Mayers3. Mike Eastwood4. Daniel Corso*5. Sebasten Bordeieaj&rsquo;6. Daniel TkaczukRIGHT WINGERS1. Scott&rsquo;foung2. Pawl Demitra3. Scott MeHanby4. Mike Keane5. Reed Low6. Michel Riesen* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0050-02118/7224113-1-eng-US/f0050-022.jpg" title="f0050-02" width="338" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Chris Pronger</figcaption></div>His broken arm healed and team fully stocked, Pronger has to step it up to his award-winning form of.two years ago. &#9632;

f0050-01

Raise suits Demitra

<div class="byline">By Ross McKeon</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-01171/7224270-1-eng-US/f0051-012.jpg" title="f0051-01" width="268" height="245"></div>Not that the Sharks were ever seriously interested, but GM Dean Lombardi fantasized for a moment last year when asked what San Jose could do with Eric Lindros.&ldquo;Put him in the middle of Owen Nolan and Scott Thornton and reinvent hockey,&rdquo; the GM suggested.Coincidentally, when Nolan attended Team Canada&rsquo;s Olympic orientation camp in early September, he was put on a line with New York&rsquo;s Lindros and Philadelphia&rsquo;s Keith Primeau, similar in size to San Jose&rsquo;s 6-foot-3, 215-pound Thornton. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not often I&rsquo;m the smallest one on a line,&rdquo; Nolan cracked.The world will have to wait until February to see if Team Canada can reinvent the game at the Winter Olympics. In the meantime, Nolan will be living large as captain of his frisky little band of San Jose Sharks, who just might be ready to break into the Western Conference elite.The 29-year-old right winger, dealt by Colorado early in the 1995-96 season for Sandis Ozolinsh, has been part of a team which has increased its season point total for five straight years. The Sharks are on the verge of competing with the big boys and Nolan wouldn&rsquo;t want to be anywhere else.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a process. You can&rsquo;t build a championship team overnight,&rdquo; said Nolan, who was admittedly disappointed initially about leaving Colorado.&ldquo;You add pieces here and there. I think management has done a great job doing that.&rdquo;Nolan has been the blueprint for what the Sharks covet. Many of the veterans Lombardi has acquired are much in the mold of the gritty, determined, often nasty 6-foot-1, 210-pound native of Belfast, Ireland. And the hope is the organization&rsquo;s younger players develop Nolan&rsquo;s rough-and-tumble style.As for the captain himself, Nolan has some personal goals for 2001-02.He sees no reason why he can&rsquo;t return to his form in 1998-99, when he recorded career-high totals for goals (44), assists (40), points (84), had 110 penalty minutes and led the league with 18 power play markers.&ldquo;I want to at least match if not better my stats of a couple years ago,&rdquo; Nolan said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to have an average season. I want to excel each year over what I&rsquo;ve done in the past.&rdquo;Nolan&rsquo;s numbers slipped last year, but there was good reason for it. It wasn&rsquo;t discovered until late last summer that a stomach tear sustained the previous post-season hadn&rsquo;t healed.Exploratory surgery repaired the problem, but it cost Nolan a summer of training and he missed 10 of San Jose&rsquo;s first 13 games as he continued to rehabilitate.After scoring 17 goals in the next 35 games (he finished with 24), Nolan sat out 11 games due to a suspension for his blind-side forearm smash to the head of Dallas forward Grant Marshall.San Jose coach Darryl Sutter said Nolan&rsquo;s start to the season is key.&ldquo;His good year, he was unbelievable. Last year he never got going,&rdquo; Sutter said. &ldquo;If you watch video of him the last two years the difference is incredible.&rdquo;Nolan set out this past summer to get in tip-top shape. He added aerobics and a grueling mountain-bike regimen that included climbing the elevations near his San Jose home and employing 18-mile sprints as much as five or six times a week.&ldquo;Fitness-wise, he&rsquo;s in a lot better shape,&rdquo; Sutter said.And then there&rsquo;s the matter of being chosen for the Olympics, an honor that truly validates what others in the hockey world think about Owen Nolan.&ldquo;As the time gets closer I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;ll be more and more excited,&rdquo; Nolan said.&ldquo;Obviously my priorities are here with this team getting off to a good start.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0381/7224263-1-eng-US/f0051-032.jpg" title="f0051-03" width="920" height="1367"><figcaption class="caption-body">Owen Nolan&rsquo;s fitness regimen should pay dividends.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0462/7224256-1-eng-US/f0051-042.jpg" title="f0051-04" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marleau</figcaption></div>Marleau teases with extraordinary talent<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0543/7224249-1-eng-US/f0051-052.jpg" title="f0051-05" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Nabokov</figcaption></div>How will 2001 surprise do in second debut?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0636/7224242-1-eng-US/f0051-062.jpg" title="f0051-06" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Selanne</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0726/7224235-1-eng-US/f0051-072.jpg" title="f0051-07" width="192" height="105"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are San Jose&rsquo;s top 22 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0817/7224228-1-eng-US/f0051-082.jpg" title="f0051-08" width="628" height="773"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-0915/7224221-1-eng-US/f0051-092.jpg" title="f0051-09" width="619" height="117"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-1012/7224214-1-eng-US/f0051-102.jpg" title="f0051-10" width="628" height="336"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Evgeni Nabokov2. Miikka Kiprusoff3. VesaToskala4. Seamus KotykDEFENSEMEN1. Marcus Ragnarsson2 Gary Suter3 Mike Rathje* *4. Brad Stuart5. Bryan Marchmert6. Scott Hannan7. Shawn Heins8. Jeff Jillson9. Steve Bancroft10. Brandon SmithLEFTWINGERS1. Adam Graves2. Scott Thornton3. Alex Korolyuk4. Stephane Matteau5. Jarrett Dealing6. Lam CourvilleCENTERS1. Vincent Damphousse2. Patrick Marleau*3. Mike Ricci4. Marco Sturm5. Mark Smith6. Andy LundbohmRIGHT WINGERS1. Teemu Selanne2. Owen Nolan3. Niklas Sundstrom4. Todd Harvey5. Matt Bradlev6. Jonathan Chccchoo* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0051-02120/7224207-1-eng-US/f0051-022.jpg" title="f0051-02" width="342" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brad Stuart</figcaption></div>The highly touted sophomore struggled mightily at both ends of the ice and will be looking to regain his confidence. &#9632;

f0051-01

Fast start Nolan’s aim

<div class="byline">By Damian Cristodero</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-01166/7224364-1-eng-US/f0052-012.jpg" title="f0052-01" width="267" height="243"></div>Nikolai Khabibulin played two games for the Tampa Bay Lightning last season. Played pretty well, too. But that doesn&rsquo;t change the fact those are the only two NHL games he has played the past two seasons.Which begs the question. Can the 28-year-old goaltender, who earned the nickname &lsquo;The Bulin Wall,&rsquo; shake off the rust that came from a nearly two-year holdout with the Coyotes and help lead the Lightning to respectability.While Khabibulin said he has no doubt he will regain the form that earned a 2.13 goals-against average and. 923 save percentage in 1998-99, his last season with Phoenix, he admitted, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not going to be easy. I&rsquo;m not going to step right out there and be the best goalie in the league. That&rsquo;s very hard, but I&rsquo;m going to work hard to achieve that.&rdquo;Of the Lightning, he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m expecting us to fight for a playoff spot. Otherwise, why are you playing? If you expect to be fourth in your division, why do you even start playing?&rdquo;How do you reclaim a career?For Khabibulin, acquired in March for Mike Johnson, Paul Mara, Ruslan Zainullin and a draft pick, it started by reporting to training camp in the best shape of his career. Coach John Tortorella said the goalie has just nine per cent body fat and his stomach muscles are popping.Khabibulin could not have sent a better message to Tortorella, who is a stickler for fitness and who, as a Coyotes&rsquo; assistant, knew of the goalie&rsquo;s questionable training habits.But Khabibulin apparently is a new man. He said he has quit smoking and slamming cups of coffee between periods of games, which gave him a caffeine buzz, but also left him dehydrated.Tortorella isn&rsquo;t surprised by the changes.&ldquo;He has an inner fire that he is going to show people,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;He wants to go out there ready to go.&rdquo;Khabibulin will need every advantage. Tampa Bay gave him the richest contract in team history: Three-plus years at $14.75 million, in addition to incentives and an option year that could boost the total to $23.25 million.For that kind of loot, Tampa Bay will expect results. It also expects a tandem with backup Kevin Weekes that goaltenders&rsquo; coach Jeff Reese said could develop into &ldquo;the best 1-2 punch in the league.&rdquo;The way Khabibulin sees it, his layoff was one year, not two, because he played 33 games for Long Beach in 1999-2000 and was named the IHL&rsquo;s coMVP.If the Lightning had any worries, they were dispelled last season. Though not in game shape, Khabibulin earned a spectacular 4-2 victory over Florida in his first game and played well in a 4-3 loss to the Rangers, though the winning goal was soft.The biggest knock against Khabibulin is he has not won a playoff series in four attempts, despite a. 916 save percentage.Tortorella scoffed at that. He was in Phoenix in 1998-99, when Khabibulin lost a heartbreaking series to St. Louis, including a 1-0 overtime loss in Game 7.&ldquo;He was the main reason we won a few games,&rdquo; Tortorella said. &ldquo;We had no right to be there.&rdquo;&ldquo;At the time he was one of the best goalies in the league,&rdquo; said Tampa Bay for-ward Juha Ylonen, Khabibul-in&rsquo;s teammate in Phoenix. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think the (Lightning) guys realize how good he can be if he&rsquo;s on top of his game.&rdquo;The question now is, can he get it back?Whatever the answer, Khabibulin said he does not regret his nearly two-year holdout. And he has no hard feelings toward the Coyotes, who offered him a three-year, $9-million deal. Khabibulin and agent Jay Grossman were looking for up to $5 million per season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0356/7224357-1-eng-US/f0052-032.jpg" title="f0052-03" width="918" height="1367"><figcaption class="caption-body">Nikolai Khabibulin is in the best shape of his career.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0445/7224350-1-eng-US/f0052-042.jpg" title="f0052-04" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Khabibulin</figcaption></div>He&rsquo;s being counted on to be backbone.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0532/7224343-1-eng-US/f0052-052.jpg" title="f0052-05" width="201" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lecavalier</figcaption></div>Big disappointment in third season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0625/7224336-1-eng-US/f0052-062.jpg" title="f0052-06" width="199" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Modin</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0719/7224329-1-eng-US/f0052-072.jpg" title="f0052-07" width="183" height="102"></div><h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Tampa Bay&rsquo;s top 27 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 200Q-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0811/7224322-1-eng-US/f0052-082.jpg" title="f0052-08" width="622" height="795"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0910/7224315-1-eng-US/f0052-092.jpg" title="f0052-09" width="618" height="113"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-109/7224308-1-eng-US/f0052-102.jpg" title="f0052-10" width="618" height="340"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Nikolai Khabibulin2. Kevin Weekes3. Dieter Kochan4. Evgeny KonstantinovDEFENSEMEN1. Jassen Cullimore2. Pavel Kubina3. CorySarich4. Stan Neckar5. Petr Svoboda6. Andrei Zyuzin7. Nolan Pratt8. Grant Ledyard9. Kristian Kudroc10. Mathieu BironLEFT WINGERS1. Frednk Modin2. Dave Andreyev3. Juha Ylonen4. Sheldon Keefe5. Dmitry Afanasenkov6. Gordie DwyerCENTERS1. Vincent Lecavalier*2. Brad Richards3. Vaclav Prospal4. Brian Holzinger5. Tim Taylor6. Thomas ZiegerRIGHT WINGERS1. Martin St Louis2. Matthew Barnaby3. Nikita Alexeev4. Ben Clymer&rdquo;5. Jimmie Olvestad6. Matt EBch* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0052-0293/7224301-1-eng-US/f0052-022.jpg" title="f0052-02" width="342" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Andrei Zyuzin</figcaption></div>Plagued by injuries, has not lived up to billing as second pick overall (SJ-&lsquo;96), but in top shape after summer training. &#9632;

f0052-01

Time to shake the rust

<div class="byline">By Ken Campbell</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-01162/7224458-1-eng-US/f0053-012.jpg" title="f0053-01" width="268" height="248"></div>When the Toronto Maple Leafs opened this season&rsquo;s training camp, Bryan McCabe showed up a new man in both body and mind.First the body. It&rsquo;s ripped. After four months of working out on a program provided by teammate Gary Roberts&rsquo; personal trainer, the 26-year-old defenseman weighed in at 222 pounds with an astounding eight per cent body fat. NHLers with between eight and 10 percent body fat are considered to be in exceptional condition.Even though his upper body looks like Fabio&rsquo;s, McCabe claims most of the strength was gained in the trunk and legs, which will give him a more solid center of gravity and a more powerful stride.But more importantly, McCabe came to camp with a clear sense of purpose, both in terms of personal and team goals.It&rsquo;s the first time in his career that McCabe has entered a camp as a member of a team that is a legitimate playoff contender. In his six previous camps, McCabe was on teams whose idea of success was still being in mathematical contention by January. Playing for the Islanders, Vancouver and Chicago in the late-1990s certainly had a way of breaking a guy&rsquo;s spirit.Combine that with the fact McCabe had his contract situation cleared up early and cleanly for the first time in his career and it points to a possible breakthrough season in Year 7 of McCabe&rsquo;s NHL career.He certainly gave indication last season that he is a player on the rise when, after a slow start after his trade from the Blackhawks, he flourished in the second half and playoffs to the point where he was indisputably the Leafs&rsquo; most improved player.&ldquo;I think just coming to a team with a winning atmosphere and a winning attitude was the major step for me in my career,&rdquo; McCabe said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been on some struggling teams in my career, and just to come into an atmosphere like this and being around guys who have won really helped my game.&rdquo;There&rsquo;s little doubt McCabe has helped himself. Perhaps it&rsquo;s that sense there are others around him who are more capable, but those who observe McCabe&rsquo;s game insist he has adopted a much simpler attitude since coming to the Leafs. A game that was once plagued by bad decisions and giveaways now is much more methodical. McCabe has learned the benefits of banking the puck off the boards occasionally rather than stickhandling up the middle of the ice. And there is little doubt he is a key player on the power play. He is one of the few Leaf defensemen who actually can get the puck on net from the point with the extra man.When McCabe wanted to take his game to another level after last season, he wisely sought out Roberts, who has become something of a fitness guru for Leaf players. Roberts directed McCabe to Ottawa-based personal trainer Lorne Goldberg, who put McCabe on a strict workout and diet regimen. In fact, McCabe was not able to take to the ice for the first part of training camp because he sprained his left wrist lifting weights in late-August.The goal for McCabe was clear. He felt after last season he needed to get stronger, both in his skating stride and ability to clear opponents from in front of the net. He and Goldberg targeted the lower body.&ldquo;Our whole game revolves around skating and your skating comes from your legs, butt and stomach,&rdquo; McCabe said. &ldquo;Those were things I really wanted to work on this summer and strengthen. This game is getting a lot quicker and guys are getting a lot faster and stronger, so I figured that was what I had to improve on.&rdquo;McCabe, who posted a career-high 29 points last season, is looking to bump up his contribution and do more in the leadership area of the game. Leafs&rsquo; coach-GM Pat Quinn would like to see all of those things as well, but will be content if McCabe doesn&rsquo;t take a step back.&ldquo;What I&rsquo;d like, at least for the initial part of the season, is for him to come back in where he left off,&rdquo; Quinn said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll build from there.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0360/7224451-1-eng-US/f0053-032.jpg" title="f0053-03" width="866" height="1279"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bryan McCabe has matured playing with winners.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0451/7224444-1-eng-US/f0053-042.jpg" title="f0053-04" width="198" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">McCabe</figcaption></div>At 26, has he arrived as topflight biueliner?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0535/7224437-1-eng-US/f0053-052.jpg" title="f0053-05" width="198" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mogilny</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0628/7224430-1-eng-US/f0053-062.jpg" title="f0053-06" width="185" height="106"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0717/7224423-1-eng-US/f0053-072.jpg" title="f0053-07" width="200" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Roberts</figcaption></div>Equalling last year&rsquo;s impact will be challenge<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Toronto&rsquo;s top 25 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in paren theses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among 2000-01 rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0810/7224416-1-eng-US/f0053-082.jpg" title="f0053-08" width="618" height="789"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-099/7224409-1-eng-US/f0053-092.jpg" title="f0053-09" width="616" height="89"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-109/7224402-1-eng-US/f0053-102.jpg" title="f0053-10" width="617" height="344"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. Curtis Joseph2. Mikael Telqvist3. Mike Minard4. Corey SchwabDEFENSEMEN1. Dmitry Mjshkevich2. Bryan McCabe3. Tomas habere*4. Ata Berg5. Coy Cross6. Dave Manson7. Anders Eriksson8. Wade Belak9. Karel Pilar10. RetrSwbodaLEFT WINGERS1. Gary Roberts2. Jonas Hogiund3. Shayne Corson4. Darcy Tucker5. Alexei Ponikarovsky6. Mikael HakanssonCENTERS1. Mats Sundin2. Robert Reichel3. Travis Green4. Nik An&rsquo;j.5. Alyn McCauley6. Luca CeredaRIGHT WHGERS1. Alexander Mogjlny2. Mikael Rerberg3. Gary Vak4. Tie Domi5. Jeff Farkas6. Chris Murray* Restarted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0053-0299/7224395-1-eng-US/f0053-022.jpg" title="f0053-02" width="337" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dmitry Yushkevich</figcaption></div>Trying to do too much last season - especially while playing hurt - Yushkevich was the only Leaf regular to post a minus. &#9632;

f0053-01

McCabe muscles up

<div class="byline">By Elliott Pap</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-01166/7224545-1-eng-US/f0054-012.jpg" title="f0054-01" width="269" height="245"></div>Like any player in any sport, Ed Jovanovski hoped it would come one day The Vancouver Canuck defenseman thought he had it in him, the talent and desire, to become an elite performer.But there were some struggles after his marvellous 199596 rookie campaign in Florida and then there was the 1999 trade to Vancouver.Jovanovski was part of the package obtained by Canuck GM Brian Burke in exchange for superstar Pavel Bure. At the time, Burke suggested Jovanovski could become something special. It didn&rsquo;t happen immediately, however, and people again wondered if the 1994 first overall pick would ever emerge as an impact player.Then, about a year later, Jovanovski began to pick up his game. He carried that bit of success into 2000-01 and the league began to take notice. He was moved to the No. 1 power play unit and was mentioned as an early (although longshot) Norris Trophy candidate.In February, he was invited to play on the North American side at the NHL All-Star Game and, finally, in the summer he was selected to attend the Canadian Olympic team&rsquo;s four-day orientation camp.&ldquo;A lot has come in a short time,&rdquo; Jovanovski said proudly &ldquo;I feel great about it. I thinkI&rsquo;ve paid attention to detail and made some strides. I felt I was coming off a great second half in 1999-2000 and I wanted to start last year where I left off. Everything kind of snowballed from there. The team was winning and everyone was playing well, not just me.&rdquo;Canucks&rsquo; coach Marc Crawford has watched Jovanovski grow from a decent defenseman into a league stalwart. He thinks the 25-year-old Windsor native will benefit from the four days he spent in the Team Canada camp.&ldquo;Ed is becoming a much more mature star player and he&rsquo;s able to process all the thoughts and feelings that are coming from other players he used to view as superstars,&rdquo; Crawford said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s now starting to see himself somewhat as their peers.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s really delightful to see him progress to the point where he&rsquo;s going to start to take another step in terms of leadership and professionalism - and in all the commitment that separates the superstar players and star players from run-of-the-mill players.&rdquo; At 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, Jovanovski is a thoroughbred on skates. His long legs and nimble feet allow him to manoeuvre up the ice with great speed and quickness. His decision-making, long one of his shortcomings, is becoming a strong suit. He feels his stint at the Team Canada camp, where puck movement was at a premium, will make him that much better.&ldquo;It was a great four days,&rdquo; Jovanovski said. &ldquo;I feel great and I think the most beneficial thing was the timing. There was a lot of speed out there and you need quick eyes. Timing is everything and I felt I did well in that part of the game. My legs felt good, too.&ldquo;I feel I learned a lot and hopefully I can bring that to the upcoming season.&rdquo; Jovanovski is by no means assured of a spot on the Olympic team so he will, in a sense, be auditioning for executive director Wayne Gretzky every time he steps on the ice. He said he will try his best to pay attention to his Canuck duties and not let his mind wander to Salt Lake City.&ldquo;The Olympics would be an unbelievable thing to attend, but I&rsquo;m not going to put any added pressure on myself,&rdquo; Jovanovski remarked.&ldquo;Step 1 is done, I went to the orientation camp and I thought I did what I had to do. Now it&rsquo;s the start of the year and I have to focus on the regular season. I know the Olympics will be in the back of my mind, but you also want to excel and help your team any way you can.&ldquo;If everybody does well, everybody reaps the benefits.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0355/7224538-1-eng-US/f0054-032.jpg" title="f0054-03" width="950" height="1406"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ed Jovanovski is vying for a berth on Team Canada.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0437/7224531-1-eng-US/f0054-042.jpg" title="f0054-04" width="199" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Cloutier</figcaption></div>Would be shock if he earns No. 1 status.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0527/7224524-1-eng-US/f0054-052.jpg" title="f0054-05" width="199" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jovanovski</figcaption></div>Jovo-Cop has arrived as impact player.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0622/7224517-1-eng-US/f0054-062.jpg" title="f0054-06" width="198" height="283"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ohlund</figcaption></div>Power play status, production has fallen off.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Vancouver&rsquo;s top 26 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropnate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0712/7224510-1-eng-US/f0054-072.jpg" title="f0054-07" width="622" height="772"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-088/7224503-1-eng-US/f0054-082.jpg" title="f0054-08" width="619" height="120"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-096/7224496-1-eng-US/f0054-092.jpg" title="f0054-09" width="617" height="341"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEPTH CHART</figcaption></div>GOALTENDERS1. Dan Cloutier2. Alex Auld3. Alfie Michaud4. Kevin SwansonDEFENSEMEN1. Ed Jovanovski2. Mattias Ohlund3. Scott Lachance4. Murray Baron5. Drake Berehowsky6. Brent Sopel*7. Bryan Alien8. Jason Strudwick9. Zenith Komamiski10. Rene VydarenyLEFT WINGERS1. Markus Naslund&ldquo;2. Darnel Sedin3. Peter Schaefer*4. Donald Brashear5. Jarkko Ruutu6. Mike BrownCENTERS1. Andrew Cassels2. B&rsquo;erdar Momsor3. Hennk Sedin4. Harold Druken5. Artem Chubarov6. Josh HoldenRIGHTWINGERS1. Todd Bertuzzi2. Trent Matt3. Matt Cooke4. Denis Pederson5. Steve Kanya6. Pat Havanagh* Restricted tree agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0054-0286/7224489-1-eng-US/f0054-022.jpg" title="f0054-02" width="343" height="398"><figcaption class="caption-body">Denis Pederson</figcaption></div>Pederson had two hand injuries last season before returning in the playoffs as a grinding, checking forward. &#9632;

f0054-01

Growing into a force

<div class="byline">By Dave Fay</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-01161/7224646-1-eng-US/f0055-012.jpg" title="f0055-01" width="265" height="244"></div>Over the past three seasons, Sergei Gonchar of the Washington Capitals has scored more goals (58) than any other defenseman in the NHL. It&rsquo;s a nice statistic to think about, but it&rsquo;s not the aspect of the game about which he cares most.When the game is tight, the final minutes are ticking away and two points are on the line, sometimes Gonchar, 27, can be found sitting on the bench, hunched over, almost hiding. It&rsquo;s not where he wants to be.&ldquo;I want to be a more reliable player,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to be in the position toward the end of a game where I&rsquo;m sitting on the bench because I&rsquo;m just an offensive guy I want to play a more physical game in front of our net and I&rsquo;d like to be more patient, not just jump into things too quickly.&rdquo;A few months ago Gonchar was on the ice in overtime of Game 6 of the Caps&rsquo; first round series against Pittsburgh. Suddenly Martin Straka and a loose puck sped past him, the last defender, and the Caps were beaten again.&ldquo;I was thinking about it for a while, it was on my mind a lot at the beginning (of summer), but then I had to put it away,&rdquo; Gonchar said. &ldquo;Finally I told myself, &lsquo;Enough is enough, another season is starting, we have to look forward.&rdquo;Coach Ron Wilson agrees that as long as they learn from their mistakes, players should let bygones be bygones.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s something I&rsquo;m worried about, that last goal,&rdquo; Wilson said. &ldquo;Some guys are wise enough to realize it&rsquo;s a game of mistakes and quickly forget about it.&rdquo;Gonchar is starting his seventh season in the NHL in an unusual spot - training camp. It is not his favorite part of the game; holdouts, Olympic camps and World Cup games have resulted in his missing the autumn rituals in the past.In fact, he and his teammates appear to be more excited about the approaching season than at any time in the team&rsquo;s 28-year history. The reason is the presence of Jaromir Jagr, who so many times in the past has hammered final nails into Caps&rsquo; coffins.&ldquo;Finally we have a guy who can score besides (Peter) Bondra,&rdquo; Gonchar said. &ldquo;Everybody keeps saying the ice is going to open up because (defenders) will be paying so much attention to him. I hope it does open up some and I get a chance to jump in. I&rsquo;d like to play with him, but we have to see if any chemistry is there first.&rdquo;. If there is, it might ease a path toward a Norris Trophy, a category where Gonchar has been among the top 10 finishers for the past few years despite the club&rsquo;s lack of success in winning a conference title.&ldquo;If you go out there and think about Norris and things like that, you&rsquo;re going to be going after points and playing too much offense and forget about defense,&rdquo; Gonchar said. &ldquo;It would be nice but you&rsquo;ve got to be smart about it. You aim for something like that and it only interferes with your real job. I&rsquo;ve got to play both ways and then it&rsquo;s up to the writers to decide who&rsquo;s best.&rdquo;But it&rsquo;s almost a certainty Gonchar will be out on the ice on one point on the power play, Bondra on the other, Jagr up front and goals should follow quickly. The Washington power play was fourth in the league last season and the addition of Jagr, who can redirect some of Gonchar&rsquo;s powerful blasts from the point, can&rsquo;t hurt.&ldquo;He has a very hard, very deceptive shot,&rdquo; said goalie Olie Kolzig, &ldquo;and it&rsquo;s amazing how quick it comes. He picks a spot where he thinks there&rsquo;s going to be a hole, but that&rsquo;s not necessarily where the opening is when he shoots. He figures the goalie will go down and there will be a hole between his arm and body and he hits it. He can take the big windup when he gets time, but if there&rsquo;s a little traffic, he can get it off as quick as anybody.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0370/7224639-1-eng-US/f0055-032.jpg" title="f0055-03" width="851" height="1372"><figcaption class="caption-body">Improved two-way play is Sergei Gonchar&rsquo;s goal.</figcaption></div><h2>WHAT WILL THEY DELIVER?</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0447/7224632-1-eng-US/f0055-042.jpg" title="f0055-04" width="199" height="287"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bondra</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0529/7224625-1-eng-US/f0055-052.jpg" title="f0055-05" width="196" height="104"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0621/7224618-1-eng-US/f0055-062.jpg" title="f0055-06" width="202" height="284"><figcaption class="caption-body">Simon</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0714/7224611-1-eng-US/f0055-072.jpg" title="f0055-07" width="189" height="107"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0811/7224604-1-eng-US/f0055-082.jpg" title="f0055-08" width="202" height="286"><figcaption class="caption-body">Zubrus</figcaption></div>One goal in 12 games with Washington.<h2>2000-01 VETERANS&rsquo; SCORING</h2>Here are Washington&rsquo;s top 25 NHL veterans listed in order of 2000-01 regular season scoring. Veteran newcomers are included on the list; their previous teams are listed in parentheses. 2000-01 rookies are included where appropriate and may be listed among rookie candidates.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-0910/7224597-1-eng-US/f0055-092.jpg" title="f0055-09" width="626" height="783"></div><h2>2000-01 GOALIE RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-108/7224590-1-eng-US/f0055-102.jpg" title="f0055-10" width="627" height="109"></div><h2>ROOKIE CANDIDATES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-118/7224583-1-eng-US/f0055-112.jpg" title="f0055-11" width="627" height="309"></div><h2>DEPTH CHART</h2>GOALTENDERS1. OlafKobig2. Craig Bdhngton3. Corey Hrscn4. Sebastien CharpentierDEFENSEMEN1. Sergei Gonchar2. Calle Johansson3. Brendan Witt4 Joe Reekie5. Sylvain Cote6. RobZettler7 Ken Klee8. Frantisek Kucera9. JakubCutta10. Todd RohloffLEFT WINGERS1. Peter Bondra2. Steve Konowaichuk3. Damius Zubnjs4. Chris Simon5. Matt Pettinger6. Mark MurphyCENTERS1. Adam Oates2 Jeff Halpern*3. Andrei Nikolishin4. Trent Whitfield5? Glen Metropdit6. Brian SutherbyRIGHT WINGERS1. Jaromir Jagr2. Trevor Under3. Ulf Dahlen4. Dmitn Khnstich5. Joe Sacco6. Michael Farrell* Restricted free agent<h2>REBOUND PLAYER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0055-02106/7224576-1-eng-US/f0055-022.jpg" title="f0055-02" width="340" height="399"><figcaption class="caption-body">Trevor Linden</figcaption></div>Has scored 30 goals or more six times, but netted just 15 in 69 games last season. Is due to start producing again. &#9632;

f0055-01

Capital with a cause

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0056-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0056-01133/7224691-1-eng-US/f0056-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0057-01122/7224684-1-eng-US/f0057-012.jpg" title="f0057-01" width="3117" height="3562"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0058-01130/7224677-1-eng-US/f0058-012.jpg" title="f0058-01" width="3112" height="1729"></div> &#9632;

f0056-01

2001-02 NHL REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0058-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0058-0281/7224729-1-eng-US/f0058-022.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0059-01110/7224722-1-eng-US/f0059-012.jpg" title="f0059-01" width="3341" height="3842"></div> &#9632;

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October 1, 2001

The Hockey News

Wild add Mr. Offense

Spotlight still on Salo

Connolly right at home