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.

November 2, 2001

The Hockey News November 2, 2001

<div class="byline">By Tim Campbell</div>A way from the bright spotlight of an NHL aining camp, Mikael Tellqvist finally has is skates firmly on North American ice.The 22-year-old Swede, the third-round 300 draft pick and projected goalie of the uture for the Toronto Maple Leafs, is stoping the puck for the St. John&rsquo;s Maple Leafs as he adjusts to foreign elements.&ldquo;It takes a little time to adapt to the game over here,&rdquo; said Tellqvist after solid efforts in his first two American League starts. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a bit quicker, quicker shots and smaller rinks. It&rsquo;s going to take some time.&rdquo;Time, of course, was not Tellqvist&rsquo;s ally in the NHL pre-season, where he underwhelmed with a high goals-against average (5.45) and low save percentage (.810). The hype that preceded him to Toronto included everything from Curtis Joseph&rsquo;s eventual replacement to a busy back-up.The hype was not the problem.&ldquo;No, no, I&rsquo;m used to that,&rdquo; said Tellqvist, who led Djurgarden to the Swedish league title last year. &ldquo;It was like that back home. On the ice, everyone&rsquo;s closer. Here, all shots are dangerous. The toughest part so far has been the angles. Often it feels like you&rsquo;re standing in the middle of the goal but you&rsquo;re not.&rdquo;Leafs&rsquo; director of player personnel Mike Penny said Tellqvist&rsquo;s five pre-season appearances were no cause for alarm.&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to throw him to the wolves, but the attention was pretty intense,&rdquo; Penny said. &ldquo;A couple of teams were pretty rough on him in pre-season.&rdquo;Tellqvist, who won last spring&rsquo;s World Championship bronze medal game, 3-2 over the U.S., will share time in St. John&rsquo;s with veteran Mike Minard.&ldquo;(Tellqvist) is a very technical goalie, with quick reflexes to boot,&rdquo; said St. John&rsquo;s coach Lou Crawford. &ldquo;He thinks things out well&hellip; and I&rsquo;m sure he&rsquo;s got a third arm there somewhere.&rdquo; &#9632;

IN THIS ISSUE

Tellqvist learns the angles in St. John’s

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0025-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01896/7195334-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg"></div>NHL depth charts are latest line combinations and defense pairings.Included are restricted free agents (**).Rookies are denoted on team scoring page. &#9632;

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DEPARTMENTS

NHL DEPTH CHARTS

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Dave Fay</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02681/7195303-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="220" height="254"></div>The Capitals will have to do without one of their grittiest players for the next three to four months after left winger Steve Konowalchuk underwent surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder.The good news is that, according to GM George McPhee, the operation went &ldquo;very, very well.&rdquo; Like many players who earn their living mucking and grinding, Konowalchuk is not known as well as some of his teammates, but is among the most respected players on the team.He recently was named a co-captain, was The Hockey News&rsquo; recommendation for the Selke Trophy last season and was on the club&rsquo;s highly regarded checking line with Jeff Halpern and Ulf Dahlen.The injury occurred during training camp and grew progressively worse.&ldquo;There was one episode where it just kind of came out and then it came out in bed one night,&rdquo; McPhee said. &ldquo;When that happened we knew he probably would be ineffective for the rest of the season. We thought if he had surgery now we could certainly count on him in February and March.&rdquo;Konowalchuk had played in 169 consecutive games before being forced to the sidelines.POWER PLAY Even with some injuries and miscues, the power play (8-for-32 after six games) has shown early promise with swift movement and lots of patience. It can only get better once Jaromir Jagr learns his teammates&rsquo; moves and vice-versa.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;We told (GM George McPhee) to figure out how to do it and Jaromir was very reasonable&hellip; he is the highest-paid player in the league right now&rdquo;-Caps&rsquo; owner Ted Leonsis, announcing that right winger Jaromir Jagr had signed a seven-year deal worth a, minimum of $78 million.NOTEBOOK The Caps and right winger Jaromir Jagr agreed to the seven-year contract plus option Oct. 18. It eliminates the two-year deal the five-time NHL scoring champion was working on and averages $11 million a season, including the option year which the player can control by making what are described as &ldquo;very easily attainable performance criteria.&rdquo; If the option is not picked up, Jagr gets a $1-million going away gift&hellip; Jagr missed three games with a knee injury after being slew-footed by New York Rangers&rsquo; defenseman Igor Ulanov. Defenseman Brendan Witt missed two games after being injured the same way in the same game. Jagr will wear a knee brace for the first time in his career&hellip; Left winger Steve Konowalchuk and center Adam Oates both recorded their 300th points as Caps recently. &#9632;

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NHL TEAM REPORTS

Capitals’ gritty co-captain Konowalchuk forced to sidelines until late in season

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Eric Duhatschek</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011682/7194507-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="222" height="252"></div>Scott Nichol came to Calgary Flames&rsquo; training camp as the longest of longshots, a seven goal-scorer in the International League last season.Nichol, 26, signed with Calgary because the Flames traded away so many minor pro veterans in the off-season.So how did he catch on as a regular? And for that matter, how did he end up as the No. 2 center?Because, according to coach Greg Gilbert, Nichol&rsquo;s agitating enthusiasm for the game is contagious. And following injuries to centers Marc Savard and Rob Niedermayer, Nichol moved up.&ldquo;I see a guy who hates to lose,&rdquo; Gilbert said. &ldquo;He gives whatever it takes. He&rsquo;s competitive, he&rsquo;s fearless.&rdquo;Nichol is a 5-foot-8,173-pound center who played his amateur hockey in Calgary and was drafted by Buffalo 272nd overall in 1993. He played five NHL games in five seasons for the Sabres, but hadn&rsquo;t seen any action since 1997-98.Nichol signed with Calgary as a free agent in July and tested as the team&rsquo;s fittest player. He scored his first NHL goal against Detroit&rsquo;s Dominik Hasek.&ldquo;They weren&rsquo;t as deep as they were in past years, with (Daniel) Tkaczuk and (Sergei) Varlamov gone,&rdquo; Nichol said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be a bubble guy forever. I can&rsquo;t take any days off. I can&rsquo;t relax.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING The Flames&rsquo; penalty killing was a respectable 15th overall (5-for-33) through seven games, not bad considering they&rsquo;d finished in the bottom five for three years running.Assistants Brad McCrimmon and Brian Skrudland made improved penalty killing an off-season priority.&ldquo;They&rsquo;re stressing taking away the best ice and top options and giving (the opposition) lesser options,&rdquo; Gilbert said.NOTEBOOK A sign interest in the Flames may be rising? After five years of closing off the 3,200 seats in the upper loges of the Saddledome, the Flames have opened up a section of the third tier as part of a promotion with a sporting goods company The idea is to attract amateur teams or groups of 15 or more with a low price point. Vouchers sold in blocks of 15 cost $199 or $13.27 per seat. Even before the promotion, the Flames had the NHL&rsquo;s lowest average ticket price. &#9632;

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Unsung free agent Nichol winning fans and ice time

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011747/7193893-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"></div>Former Oilers&rsquo; great Jari Kurri acknowledges the Edmonton fans as his No. 17 gets raised to the rafters alongside Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s No. 99. &#9632;

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Kudos for Kurri

<div class="byline">Jason Kay Managing Editor</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021397/7193924-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="296" height="354"></div>Four years ago in Nagano, the hot-topic drug was Sudafed. Now it&rsquo;s anthrax. The biggest concern about flying was jetlag. Now it&rsquo;s suicidal religious fanatics bent on destruction. And the security breach on everyone&rsquo;s lips was the frat-house style slaying of dorm furniture. Now it&rsquo;s the threat of terrorist attacks.To recycle a line more tired than Vladimir Krutov after a three-minute shift, Sept. 11 and the ensuing escalation of fear have &ldquo;put things in perspective.&rdquo; Several players have voiced concerns about attending the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake, though none is saying he or she won&rsquo;t go. And until one of the governing bodies reverses its field-all are on-side to go forward&ndash;the decision to compete will be a personal one. (See Mike Brophy&rsquo;s story on pg. 5 for more) Should a player opt to stay home, it will be understood. The specter of violence and risk of tragedy, no matter how small you may believe it is, is real. And when stripped of their extravagances, the Olympics are, after all, just Games.That international hockey is simply another form of entertainment is a perspective that has been skewed. In particular, Ray Bourque was routinely chastised for choosing to spend time with his family instead of wearing the maple leaf at world events. But Bourque or Mario Lemieux or Mike Modano don&rsquo;t owe it to us or the flag to bring back gold. They are not extensions of us and their on-ice successes or failures don&rsquo;t make us better or worse people.Don&rsquo;t get me wrong. I&rsquo;ll be as glassy-eyed as the next hockey zealot watching hours of coverage of the best game on the global stage. But it will just be a wonderful diversion. The game is not part of our moral fabric. It&rsquo;s the frilly lace on a puffy shirt.A few other thoughts:The NHL&rsquo;s European invaders aren&rsquo;t traveling coach class. Ivan &lsquo;The Terrible&rsquo; Hlinka couldn&rsquo;t bridge the language gap in Pittsburgh, while last season&rsquo;s Blackhawks resembled a dog&rsquo;s breakfast under Alpo Suhonen.&#9633; If the NHL wants its MBNA Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award to be taken seriously, it should rethink the eligibility criteria (not to mention the name). Nothing against 2000-01 winner Marty Turco of Dallas (.925 save percentage), but 26 games isn&rsquo;t enough of a measuring stick.&#9633; Possible pre-season nickname for Jacques Lemaire, coach of the fiscally responsible Minnesota Wild: &lsquo;Jacques Strapped.&rsquo; Possible post-season (though highly unlikely) nickname for Lemaire, based on Minnesota&rsquo;s surprising start: &lsquo;Jacques Cup.&rsquo; &#9632;

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Olympics wonderful event, but they’re still just Games

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Denis Gibbons</div>With Jean Beliveau and Henri Richard ahead of him at center on the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; depth chart, Phil Goyette didn&rsquo;t get much ice time to shine until he was traded in 1963.Following six productive seasons with the New York Rangers, he joined St. Louis in 1969-70 and finished fourth in NHL scoring with 29 goals and 78 points in 72 games. Only Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito and Stan Mikita had more points. The Blues reached the Stanley Cup final that year and Goyette won the Lady Byng Trophy.&ldquo;We made more money losing the Cup than I ever made winning it in Montreal,&rdquo; said Goyette, whose Blues lost four straight to the Boston Bruins. Player salaries had soared.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011714/7193955-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="244" height="291"><figcaption class="caption-body">Phil Goyette</figcaption></div>Goyette won four Stanley Cup rings with the Canadiens (1957-60), also played for Buffalo and finished his NHL career with 207 goals and 674 points in 941 games.He was the first coach of the New York Islanders in 1972-73.Goyette, who turns 68 Oct. 31, is retired and living in Lachine, Que. He was involved in the City of Lachine&rsquo;s successful bid to host the 2001 Quebec Games. &#9632;

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Talented Goyette blossomed after leaving Habs

<div class="byline">By Mike Brophy Senior Writer</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-011681/7194010-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jeremy Roenick Team USA</figcaption></div>The events of Sept. 11 shocked and shook Curtis Joseph just as it did everybody else.But time has a way of allowing people to slip back into a comfort zone and as the weeks passed, the Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; goalie turned his attention to the start of the regular season and, down the road a little, the 2002 Winter Olympics. Now he&rsquo;s wondering if there will even be an Olympics.First it was hijacked planes crashing into buildings. Then anthrax. What&rsquo;s next?&ldquo;I&rsquo;m nervous,&rdquo; Joseph said, &ldquo;especially now with the anthrax problem. Who doesn&rsquo;t pick up a paper or magazine? Not to mention your mail. This is a very nervous time.&rdquo;There are no plans to cancel the 2002 Winter Games and none of the governing bodies is considering withdrawing its team from the hockey tournament. The men&rsquo;s event is scheduled for Feb. 9-24 and the women&rsquo;s from Feb. 11-21. The show must go on, but it has lost much of its luster.Like Joseph, Cammi Granato is rattled by the potential of terror. The captain of the U.S. women&rsquo;s team is psyched to help defend the gold her country won in 1998 in Nagano, but admits the events of Sept. 11 and afterward have altered her focus.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not only concerned about myself, but my family, too,&rdquo; Granato said. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s a natural reaction. All of a sudden the Olympics becomes a natural target. It makes you a little uneasy. It also makes me mad. Instead of thinking about the gold medal, you&rsquo;re thinking about your safety. There&rsquo;s no doubt they&rsquo;ll do everything they can to keep us safe; you just don&rsquo;t know if that&rsquo;s enough.&rdquo;Those involved in organizing the hockey tournament remain unfazed in their determination to make the event a success.Doug Palazzari, executive director of USA Hockey, said: &ldquo;USA Hockey fully expects to participate when the 2002 Games are held. We are continuing in our preparation undaunted. We have the utmost confidence in the organizing committee to provide a safe environment for our players, staff and families.&rdquo;Asked about the potential for terrorist attacks at the Games, Canadian assistant coach Wayne Fleming, who is also a vicepresident the Canadian Hockey Association, said: &ldquo;We&rsquo;re all sensitive to that and there&rsquo;s no question the powers that be are very sensitive to it. I am convinced that at no time would they ever put anybody in a situation that isn&rsquo;t safe.&rdquo;Ted Saskin, senior director of business affairs and licensing for the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, attended meetings in Sweden with the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation to review security and has also talked with NHLers who will attend the Games. He&rsquo;s convinced there&rsquo;s no need to panic. However, he acknowledges the need to exercise caution.&ldquo;One of the biggest problem security faces is it doesn&rsquo;t know who, when or how,&rdquo; Saskin said. &ldquo;At the Olympics, two of those things are eliminated, the who and the when. The only thing they have to worry about is the how.&rdquo; Commissioner Gary Bettman had a simple answer when asked if the NHL is considering pulling out: &ldquo;No.&rdquo;So what would have to happen to make the league withdraw its support for the Games? &ldquo;There is no reason to speculate on that,&rdquo; Bettman said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been in communication with the Salt Lake Organizing Committee and they are moving forward with confidence.&rdquo;Regardless, center Jeremy Roenick is having second thoughts in Philadelphia, where his NHL club has responded to the anthrax scare by having someone in rubber gloves open all incoming mail.&ldquo;This (Osama) bin Laden guy is saying America will never be at peace,&rdquo; Roenick said. &ldquo;You have to wonder what kind of statement could be made the first time the world will be together in the U.S.&rdquo;San Jose right winger Teemu Selanne said the combination of Finnish center Saku Koivu&rsquo;s cancer and the escalating terrorism &ldquo;are crushing my keenness towards the Olympics.&rdquo;For now, most players who will participate in the Games are talking tough. They refuse to be intimidated by the enemy.&ldquo;Everybody has a different view,&rdquo; Eric Lindros of the Rangers told The Hockey News&rsquo; TV show Oct. 15. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m looking forward to it. I want to play in the Olympics.&rdquo;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think it will reach that point, but we&rsquo;ll see what bin Laden does,&rdquo; said St. Louis defenseman Chris Pronger when asked about players possibly staying home. &ldquo;As of right now, I don&rsquo;t think the risk is as high as some people think it is. But who knows? We&rsquo;ll have to wait and see.&rdquo;Added Philadelphia&rsquo;s John LeClair, who has been named to Team USA: &ldquo;As an athlete, I&rsquo;ll go. But I wouldn&rsquo;t subject my family to that.&rdquo;With the Games still a few months away, much could change to alter perspectives. For now, though, most of the athletes are continuing to prepare with their focus on gold, not destruction.&ldquo;For me, this is my calling,&rdquo; Granato said. &ldquo;This is what I do. It&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ve worked my whole life for. If there&rsquo;s an Olympics, I&rsquo;m going. If it was that unsafe, I&rsquo;m sure the Games wouldn&rsquo;t be held.&rdquo;Olympic WatchFifteen of 23 berths for Team Canada are still open, while eight of 23 are still up for grabs for Team USA. Here&rsquo;s a progress report on some of the North American candidates vying for spots.CanadaBrendan Shanahan, Det, LWKey Stat 8 goalsScored three while shorthandedMarfin Brodeur, NJ, GKey Stat. 874 save percentagePoor playoff spills into new seasonRoberto Luongo, Fla, GKey Stat. 944 save percentageBoasts sparkling 1.46 GAAUnited StatesBrian Rolston, Bos, CKey Stat 9 pointsAlso plays wing, strong on PKCraig Conroy, Cgy, CKey Stat 2 game-winners&nbsp;Respected checker can score, tooMark Parrish, NYI, RWKey Stat 9 goalsThree PP goals in seven games &#9632;

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Players voice Olympic fears

<div class="byline">By Alan Adams</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011873/7194048-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hawk Talk Tony Amonte says trade rumors are keeping him focused. A potential unrestricted free agent next summer, Amonte could be dealt by Chicago if he doesn&rsquo;t sign a new contract. (Jim Mclsaac/BBS)</figcaption></div>Twelve months in a year is a given. A dozen donuts in a box looks just right. But 12 pro scouts at a Chicago Blackhawks&rsquo; game? Now that&rsquo;s unusual&hellip; unless, of course, a player such as Tony Amonte is on the trading block.It&rsquo;s no secret negotiations with Amonte have stalled and unless there&rsquo;s a thaw in relations between GM Mike Smith and Amonte&rsquo;s agent, Mike Gillis, the Hawks&rsquo; captain could be dealt at some point this season. Suitors are said to include the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings.Chicago has offered Amonte a two-year extension worth $12.6 million and is prepared to give him a five-year deal that could pay him about $33 million. But Smith says no team has contacted him about Amonte, who is one of a handful of top-drawer play ers who can become unrestricted free agents in July.If Amonte chooses to offer his services on an open market, he will attract plenty of attention, as will Bill Guerin of the Boston Bruins and New Jersey&rsquo;s Bobby Holik.Both players can become unrestricted July 1.As for Amonte, he&rsquo;s trying to have some fun with the speculation and not let it become a distraction.&ldquo;You&rsquo;d think it&rsquo;s so early this (all the speculation) wouldn&rsquo;t happen right away,&rdquo; said Amonte, who has averaged 38 goals the past six seasons. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s actually good. I love when you guys print the rumors. It keeps the games interesting and keeps your focus on hockey.&rdquo;The UFA class of 2002 could also include goaltenders Curtis Joseph of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ed Belfour of Dallas, Byron Dafoe of Boston and Roman Turek of the Calgary Flames. The blueline group of potential UFAs includes Darius Kasparaitis of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings. Up front, Teemu Selanne of the San Jose Sharks, Brian Savage of the Montreal Canadiens and Tie Domi of Toronto are facing similar situations.Some players will re-sign over the coming months, while others will be moved by the March 19 trade deadline. It would be a complete shocker if the Red Wings didn&rsquo;t keep Lidstrom in the fold, for example.Amonte ($3.4 million this season), Guerin ($5.1 million) and Holik ($3.5 million) are different matters.Guerin went to arbitration last summer and came away with an impressive award, which set him up perfectly for next summer&rsquo;s open market. He has said he&rsquo;s looking forward to the free agent season. He should be-he&rsquo;ll command a hefty salary. Same for Holik, who was sour at the Devils after his arbitration hearing and has said he&rsquo;ll test the free agent waters.Another potential UFA of note is Kasparaitis, who took the lesser amount in salary arbitration so he could peddle his services July 1. Kasparaitis is a 10-year pro making less than the NHL&rsquo;s average salary (about $1.5 million), which qualifies him for unrestricted free agency. There will be a market for the chippy blueliner.There is the usual offering of high-end restricted free agents, but since these players virtually never change teams, there is little intrigue surrounding their situations.No, it&rsquo;s all about the UFAs. Teams such as Chicago, Boston and New Jersey can&rsquo;t permit talent like Amonte, Guerin and Holik to walk out the door for little or nothing in return. The trend the past couple of years has been for the trading period to start in earnest in mid-February.In Chicago, Smith said he will give the Amonte camp until early November, but then the Hawks&rsquo; offer likely will come off the table.&ldquo;We need to get on with our season,&rdquo; Smith said. &ldquo;I expect I&rsquo;ll be hearing from clubs if we don&rsquo;t have a deal done. There are teams who might not be interested now who may well be in March.&rdquo;Gillis, who also represents Holik, hasn&rsquo;t ruled out Amonte&rsquo;s signing with Chicago this season or next summer.&ldquo;On July 1, every team in the league has a chance to sign a player and whether Chicago decides between now and then that they will pay him what the market dictates, well, that is their choice,&rdquo; Gillis said.<h2>Looking for net gains</h2>Four high-profile goaltenders-Curtis Joseph, Ed Belfour, Byron Dafoe and Roman Turek-could be available as unrestricted free agents next summer. Here are some of the potential UFAs playing for contracts, listed in order of 2001-02 compensation.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021265/7194041-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="633" height="644"></div> &#9632;

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Let the UFA games begin

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-03755/7194100-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg"></div><h2>Best of the Hockey World Worst of the Hockey World</h2>SHAWN BATES With 10 points in seven games, the Islanders&rsquo; center is two shy of his career high and already has doubled his output in Boston last year.IN JACQUES WE TRUST Veteran coach Jacques Lemaire&rsquo;s Minnesota Wild are the NHL&rsquo;s final undefeated team, streaking to 3-0-3-0 in its first six games.WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM HIS FRIEND Pittsburgh rookie Toby Petersen is promoted to Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s line and responds with his first NHL hat trick.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-04461/7194093-1-eng-US/f0006-042.jpg" title="f0006-04" width="362" height="618"><figcaption class="caption-body">Shawn Bates</figcaption></div>WHEN HELPING HURTS Vancouver&rsquo;s Todd Bertuzzi leaves the bench to aid a teammate in a fight and earns a 10-game suspension for his troubles.PK FROM HELL New Jersey struggles in the early days of 2001-02 and its measly 64 per-cent penaltykilling efficiency is a big reason why.LAME DUCK Look, we know Paul Kariya gets little help from his not-so-Mighty teammates in Anaheim, but one goal in eight games?<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-05364/7194086-1-eng-US/f0006-052.jpg" title="f0006-05" width="1100" height="637"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-06257/7194079-1-eng-US/f0006-062.jpg" title="f0006-06" width="357" height="621"><figcaption class="caption-body">Paul Kariya</figcaption></div>For Mike Brophy&rsquo;s daily Cheers & Jeers visit <a href="https://www.thehockeynews.com">thehockeynews.com</a> &#9632;

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PLUS MINUS

How could columnist Elliott Pap suggest the Canucks are overrated? While I understand his skepticism as a result of Vancouver&rsquo;s poor showing in the early stages of the season, I think he overreacted. (THN, Oct. 19) Granted, the Canucks performed badly in the pre-season. But their lineup was predominantly made up of non-NHLers in most of those games. So it&rsquo;s rather difficult to accurately assess a team featuring many junior and minor league players.Secondly, all teams, good and bad, have poor performances over the course of a season. The Canucks just happened to have theirs at the beginning of the year.Thirdly, what&rsquo;s wrong with maintaining a status-quo lineup? Considering the Coyotes and Oilers lost their leading scorers and the Kings lost Luc Robitaille, I&rsquo;d say bringing back a young and improving core is a positive.Wade Usborne, Port Coquitlam, B.C.<h2>Improved clubs will contend</h2>Why do all the hockey analysts have a problem with teams such as Calgary, Montreal, the Islanders and Minnesota doing so well?These so-called experts all say these are bad teams and that their fine play in the early season won&rsquo;t last. Well, I say give these teams some credit. These are the teams playing hockey the way it&rsquo;s supposed to be played: all-out and hardnosed. All the &ldquo;powerhouses&rdquo; signed players to big new contracts and we all know players slack off the year after they cash in. So I expect Calgary or Edmonton to beat out Colorado in the Western Conference.Mike Pontin, Calgary<h2>Great start, Wild finish?</h2>It&rsquo;s great to see the Wild in the top five for team rankings. Of course, Minnesota fans don&rsquo;t expect them to remain atop the league, but the players are working their tails off every game and the coaching staff is paying dividends.Fans would love to see a Stanley Cup bid, a la the 1995-96 Florida Panthers. But, for now, moving up the rankings is good enough.Stephen Swenson, Minneapolis<h2>Penalty crackdown long overdue</h2>I would like to compliment the NHL for finally cracking down on stick infractions. Suspensions handed down to Dale Purinton and Igor Ulanov set a precedent: neither player seriously injured their opponent, but the intent was there.Scott Randall, Peace River, Alta.The NHL is becoming very efficient in suspending players for infractions and that&rsquo;s a step in the right direction. My question is, when will the league start suspending officials?John Keitz, Fallon, N.YBan the trap. Fans want goals and excitement, not constant defensive battles and clogged neutral zones. The trap doesn&rsquo;t bring people to games, it drives them away.Joe Goldstein, East Rutherford, N.J.New Jersey GM Lou Lamoriello may be a hockey &ldquo;genius,&rdquo; but he still makes mistakes. The Devils&rsquo; blueline has three 37-year-olds, but no young studs as the likes of Sheldon Souray and Willie Mitchell were traded to bolster Stanley Cup drives.Michael Morgese, Roselle Park, N.J.Todd Bertuzzi is one of the dirtiest players in the league and got off lucky with a 10-game suspension. He&rsquo;s too talented of a player to pull stunts like that. What good is he to the team now?Joe Caron, Campbell River, B.C.READERS&rsquo; ONE-TIMERSThis is your place for quick comments on current hockey events. Reader&rsquo;s One-Timers accepts opinions of 60 words or less, so please be concise.<h2>Fallen fan followed Rangers</h2>In light of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, I wanted to mention a friend, Walter. You may ask, what does this have to do with hockey? And who&rsquo;s Walter?Walter Baran was the biggest Ranger fan I ever knew and he was also my best friend. It was through hockey that we became close friends. We shared Ranger season tickets and at every game Walter would entertain me with old-time hockey anecdotes.Sadly, Walter is among the missing at the World Trade Center, as are 343 of my fellow firefighters. Those buildings were a big part of our lives. It was in front of the WTC that we would meet before Ranger games.While the events of Sept. 11 are overwhelming and unbelievable, losing a best friend is even more so. So, I just wanted to say farewell to Walter in a manner I know he would appreciate. I&rsquo;ll miss you, buddy.Tom Gainey, Staten Island, N.Y.<h2>Bure&rsquo;s play hurts Panthers</h2>Pavel Bure has been described as a &ldquo;selfish&rdquo; player. I&rsquo;ve watched him play-live-many, many times in the last few years and I agree with that assessment.While Bure&rsquo;s speed and talent have amazed me, I&rsquo;ve been disgusted by his positioning on the ice. For those who disagree, it&rsquo;s important to see him live. On TV, it&rsquo;s impossible to fully appreciate his disdain for the defensive end.On the rare occasions when he is in the defensive zone, he&rsquo;s not playing defense, but hoping the puck comes to him for a breakaway. The Panthers are virtually killing a penalty when Bure is on the ice. Are you wondering why the Panthers have struggled lately? I&rsquo;ve seen the reason.Tim Elam, Wood River, III.<h2>Grow up, Spezza</h2>I was shocked by Jason Spezza&rsquo;s comments after the Ottawa Senators sent him back to junior.His quotes indicate he might have the skill to play in the NHL, but lacks the maturity Being returned to junior at the age of 18 is no insult. In 30 years, if Spezza can still call getting sent back to junior &ldquo;the worst day of my life,&rdquo; he&rsquo;ll have led a charmed one.Jason Roy, Hamilton, Ont.Got something to say?MAIL: U.S.A.: Letters, THN, P.O. Box 904, Buffalo, N.Y, 14240-9947.Canada: Letters, THN, 25 Sheppard Ave. W, Suite 100, Toronto, Ont., M2N 6S7E-MAIL: <a href="mailto:mccaigs@transcontinental.ca">mccaigs@transcontinental.ca</a> or visit <a href="https://www.thehockeynews.com">thehockeynews.com</a>. Include name, hometown, province/state and phone number. Submissions will be edited. &#9632;

Young Canucks on way up

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011704/7194155-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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ELSTON

<div class="byline">Peter Botte&nbsp;Columnist</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011766/7194193-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="386" height="360"></div>Coaches often ask their players to show some heart, but Peter Laviolette&rsquo;s idea of what that means might be more graphic than the norm.Laviolette stood in the center of the Islanders&rsquo; dressing room before the home opener and implored his players &ldquo;to rip your hearts out of your chests and show them&rdquo; to the fans.Laviolette&rsquo;s first head coaching job in the NHL has begun improbably for any team, but particularly for one that had flatlined into irrelevance more than a half-decade ago. The laughingstock Islanders haven&rsquo;t made the playoffs since Bill Clinton&rsquo;s first term in office and not at all in Mike Milbury&rsquo;s term in his.Yet somehow, they were the worst-to-first talk of the NHL in October, the first team in more than 30 years to open the season with five straight road victories.While there probably are 1,994 reasons to believe the alarm clock will sound to ruin this dream, here are five reasons why we believe the Islanders are for real:&#9633; Ownership Self-made computer-software tycoons Charles Wang and Sanjay Kumar promised big things upon arrival.Unlike their predecessors, some negligent, others fraudulent, they have delivered. The team&rsquo;s payroll is up from barely $15 million in 1999-2000 to nearly $34 million this season.&ldquo;Our fans should thank their lucky stars every day for these guys,&rdquo; Milbury said. &ldquo;I know I do.&rdquo; Authorizing Milbury to translate the team&rsquo;s perpetual rebuilding program into Alexei Yashin, Michael Peca, Adrian Aucoin, Chris Osgood and others showed the ownership was serious about icing a team capable of competing for the post-season and doing some damage once it gets there.&#9633; Talent base This isn&rsquo;t Bossy, Potvin, Trottier, Smith, Gillies and Nystrom from the Stanley Cup years, but it&rsquo;s a quantum leap over recent editions of the team. Yashin represents the Isles&rsquo; first legitimate No. 1 center in years. You also could do worse than a defense led by Roman Hamrlik, Kenny Jonsson and Aucoin. And Garth Snow looks a lot better as a backup to Osgood, a two-time Stanley Cup winner, than as a wet nurse for Rick DiPietro.&#9633; The numbers game Surely, there is a gaping chasm to bridge from last year&rsquo;s 52-point finish to the 80-something points it will take to leap into the top eight in the Eastern Conference. But with Pittsburgh (Jaromir Jagr), Buffalo (Dominik Hasek), Ottawa (Yashin) and possibly Boston (Jason Allison) all moving on without their best players, why not the Islanders?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021347/7194186-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="665" height="1054"><figcaption class="caption-body">Chris Osgood</figcaption></div>&#9633; Leadership Peca&rsquo;s expected designation as captain made him the fourth player to wear the &lsquo;C&rsquo; on Long Island since 1997. In Peca, the Islanders obtained a proven leader, the former captain of the Sabres who goes to the wall for his team.Yashin, a former captain in Ottawa, sparkplug Claude Lapointe, an Islander through six straight losing seasons whom Laviolette has called &ldquo;the heart and soul of this franchise&rdquo; and emerging leader Dave Scatchard, who learned how to patrol a dressing room from Mark Messier in Vancouver, serve as Peca&rsquo;s alternates.&#9633; Coaching When asked for the difference between the aggressive forecheck system Laviolette has installed and the one the Isles employed under Butch Goring last season, one player shrugged and asked &ldquo;what system did we even play last year?&rdquo;Former Islander Dennis Vaske, the captain of Laviolette&rsquo;s Calder Cup champion Providence team in 1999, likened Laviolette&rsquo;s personality and coaching style to that of Isles&rsquo; legend Al Arbour. To which Laviolette quipped, &ldquo;Yeah, I&rsquo;ll make sure the next time someone asks me about Dennis Vaske to compare him to Bobby Orr.&rdquo;The reserved Laviolette hasn&rsquo;t always been as quick with the one-liners, but he frequently provides insights to his thought process. Asked after the Isles won their third consecutive road game to start the season, in Pittsburgh, if he was surprised by his team&rsquo;s 3-0 start, Laviolette issued a brief, but telling response: &ldquo;No.&rdquo;A few days later, Laviolette was asked if winning against the likes of Carolina and Pittsburgh were important because the Isles likely would compete with those teams for a playoff spot.&ldquo;No,&rdquo; he said again, before expounding, &ldquo;that would suggest I expect to compete for those spots. I expect my team to compete for nothing less than the Stanley Cup.&rdquo; &#9632;

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COLUMN

Why Islanders finally for real

<div class="byline">By TEN staff</div>The Philadelphia Flyers have changed their policy on the opening of fan mail in light of the ongoing threat of anthrax through the mail.Until Oct. 17, players operied some of their fan mail, mostly pieces addressed to them at the Flyers&rsquo; Skate Zone practice rink in Voorhees, N.J.The majority of the mail, which comes to the First Union Center in Philadelphia, was opened by Flyers&rsquo; staff.Under the new policy, all fan mail will be opened by staff personnel taking proper precautions. The players agreed with the policy change.Jeremy Roenick already had somebody opening his mail for him.&ldquo;It gives you a scare,&rdquo; Roenick said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s to the point where they have to take precautions, whether it&rsquo;s wearing gloves, in a closed room or even opening it at all.&rdquo;Coach Bill Barber still gets mail from fans who watched him star for the Flyers in the 1970s and 1980s. He said caution must be taken, but that he wasn&rsquo;t going to take that carefulness to the extreme.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know where all this is going to lead,&rdquo; Barber said. &ldquo;If we start looking over our shoulder, you might as well stay home and lock yourself in the closet.&rdquo;Mark Recchi gets about as much fan mail as anyone on the Flyers. &ldquo;You have some concern for the people who are opening the mail for us,&rdquo; he said.WAR VERSUS HOCKEY A roundtable discussion at York University in Toronto deduced there is a correlation between violence in society and sports aggression.The LaMarsh Centre for Research on Violence and Conflict Resolution had a seminar examining ways to reduce violence in sports.Sports psychologist Norman Morra pointed out there is a rise in the number of NHL fighting majors this season, but wouldn&rsquo;t say it&rsquo;s directly related to the terrorist attacks in the U.S.&ldquo;The cultural spillover theory says when there is a violent war, there is an increase in violence in society,&rdquo; Morra said.PLAYER DIES John Guirestante, a first round Ontario League draft pick in 1992 and New Jersey&rsquo;s fifth-rounder in 1993, died of pneumonia at age 26.Guirestante made hockey headlines in 1992 when he overcame deafness to get drafted in the first round by the OHL London Knights.The 6-foot-2,185-pound right winger was taken 110th overall by New Jersey, but never played in the NHL. He did, however, play minor pro hockey and last season had a goal and five points in 24 games with Flint in the United League.Guirestante joined Humber College in Etobicoke, Ont., this season and had four points in his only game Oct. 13. He pulled himself from the game because he didn&rsquo;t feel well and died the next day.&ndash;with a file from Wayne Fish<h2>Orr steps down</h2>Hall of Famer Bobby Orr will not be behind the bench when the Canadian Hockey League has its Top Prospects game Jan. 31 in Saskatoon. Orr and commentator Don Cherry served as coaches in the annual game which showcases draft eligible prospects. Orr, now an agent, held a 4-2 lead over Cherry in six years. Cherry has taken over coaching duties for Mississauga of the Ontario League, which he owns. It&rsquo;s not certain if he&rsquo;ll be back.<h2>Sharks for sale</h2>The San Jose Sharks are for sale according to Silicon Valley Business Ink. George and Gordon Gund are co-owners of the 11-year-old team and are shopping the team to a group of investors. The publication reports the Gunds have an asking price of $60 million. It was reported agent Brian Lawton, president of Octagon Hockey, confirmed the deal was taking place, but is unsure how the ownership arrangement will unfold.<h2>Full spectrum</h2>NHL demographics reveal there&rsquo;s 15 inches and 101 pounds difference between the NHL tallest and heaviest player and the shortest and lightest. There are 32 players listed 6-foot-5 or taller led by Ottawa&rsquo;s Zdeno Chara at 6-foot-9. There are 26 players 5-foot-9 or shorter, the shortest being Theo Fleury of the Rangers at 5-foot-6. The heaviest player is Chara at 255 pounds. The lightest player is Buffalo goalie Martin Biron at 154 pounds.<h2>Celebrity assist</h2>Hollywood celebrities are registering an assist with the NHL&rsquo;s Hockey Fights Cancer initiative by designing and painting NHL-licensed goalie masks. The masks will be auctioned during an on-line charity auction Feb. 1-2 in Los Angeles at the all-star weekend. Celebrities include Drew Barrymore, Pierce Brosnan, Calista Flockhart, Mel Gibson, Gene Hackman, Jay Leno, Rob Lowe, Ricky Martin, Alyssa Milano and Britney Spears.<h2>U.S. women rule</h2>The U.S. women&rsquo;s national team improved to 3-0 on its Skate to Salt Lake tour with a one-sided 16-0 victory over the Eastern College Athletic Conference All-Stars. The Americans outshot the AllStar 74-15 and have now outscored the opposition 25-1 in three games. Laurie Baker led the U.S. women with three goals while goalie Sara DeCosta stopped 15 shots for the shutout and added an assist. &#9632;

Flyers change mail policy in light of anthrax scare

<div class="byline">By Denis Gibbons</div>Hockey fans are getting a rare inside look at what really happens during an NHL team&rsquo;s training camp, courtesy of former NHL goalie Kelly Hrudey and CBC&rsquo;s Hockey Night In Canada.&lsquo;Basic Training&rsquo;, part of HNICs Labatt Saturday Night pre-game show, takes viewers inside the inner sanctum of the Calgary Flames&rsquo; September camp, which was held in Banff, Alta.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011669/7194248-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="388" height="552"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kelly Hrudey</figcaption></div>Hrudey, 40, strapped on the pads and participated in the camp just like he was trying out for the team. He had not faced shots since retiring in 1998, but didn&rsquo;t exclude himself from anything and was exposed to the same risks as other goalies in intra-squad games.He took the team bus to Banff and roomed with goalies Roman Turek and Brent Krahn. HNICs cameras were granted unlimited behind-the-scenes accessHrudey, who compiled a record of 271265-88 with a 3.43 goals-against average in his 15-year NHL career with the New York Islanders, Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks, said he first met with Flames&rsquo; strength coach Rick Hesketh in early June and underwent his first fitness test June 11.Then in late August he attended an offseason conditioning camp for pros and junior players at Father David Bauer Arena in Calgary.&ldquo;I was in lousy shape when I started, but I ended up in decent shape through a lot of hard work with my personal trainer Dave Brown,&rdquo; Hrudey said. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t just do about a mile a day and about 20 pushups, it&rsquo;s just not enough.&rdquo; &ldquo;I took it seriously I didn&rsquo;t want to look out of place when facing 100 mph slapshots.&rdquo; Hrudey said he saw the attitude towards off-season training change in the NHL about the mid-to-late eighties, then in the early 1990s proper physical preparation really caught on.He approached the CBC and Calgary GM Craig Button with the idea following a discussion with his wife and a friend.Button said he welcomed the invitation for the Flames to participate.&ldquo;It is important to bring our fans closer to the game and provide them with a better understanding of the requirements necessary to compete in the NHL,&rdquo; Button said. &ldquo;Kelly&rsquo;s insight is an ideal window for fans to further enjoy the game.&rdquo;The first three sessions of the five-part series aired Oct. 6, 13 and 20. The last two parts will be shown Oct. 27 and Nov. 3. &#9632;

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FEATURES

Hrudey put on pads again, invites audience to camp

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0011-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011563/7194279-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg"></div>THN So, let&rsquo;s get right to the really important stuff. You&rsquo;re now plus-1 for your career. Did you know that at the end of the season?Sakic&nbsp;At the end of the year I knew it, yeah&hellip; I had it counted. I knew 44 was the break-even point. I was bragging. I was telling everybody now I&rsquo;m a plus player, all those guys that are minus now.THN Anybody give you a hard time about that?Sakic&nbsp;The guys were just laughing. They just couldn&rsquo;t believe you could get that low in that short a time.THN Compared to the Quebec days it&rsquo;s such a transformation you&rsquo;ve gone through. I was told in the early days guys were out late at night, breaking curfew&hellip;Sakic&nbsp;You&rsquo;re not writing that!THN Sometimes when guys came back and (coach) Pierre Page would be lurking behind the plants in the hotel lobby and they&rsquo;d send Joe Sakic&hellip;Sakic&nbsp;Footer (Adam Foote) told you that, didn&rsquo;t he?THN No.Sakic&nbsp;Tugger (Ron Tugnutt)?THN No.Sakic (Long pause) Ricci?THN No.Sakic&nbsp;Who?THN Tony Twist.Sakic&nbsp;Twister? Yeah, that&rsquo;s true. There&rsquo;s a couple&hellip; ah, only one time we remember. I don&rsquo;t know if we had curfew or if (Page) just kind of wanted to make sure. Well, maybe, we must have (had a curfew). I didn&rsquo;t see him, but a few guys reported that. You know me, I was in already, of course. I don&rsquo;t know if he was hiding behind there behind the plants or if that&rsquo;s just kind of where he was sitting. But it was pretty funny. We were laughing. Well, I guess we&rsquo;re still laughing because the story is still being told.THN And would they ever send Joe Sakic in to scout the place out? Because if anybody&rsquo;s going to get in trouble it&rsquo;s not going to be you.Sakic&nbsp;No, no. You know what, back then we were all young and when you &lsquo;re young you don&rsquo;t have a care in the world, so you just go. You just did it.THN Now you&rsquo;ve got a Conn Smythe, you&rsquo;ve got the Pearson, a Hart, you&rsquo;ve got everything. Do you look back and say, &ldquo;Man, I&rsquo;m on top of the world?&rdquo;Sakic&nbsp;No. I mean, it was a great year, we won the Cup and that&rsquo;s all you play for, but on top of the world? Not really. I never get too high or too low. It&rsquo;s just kind of an even keel type thing.THN Do you find other people get upset or angry that they don&rsquo;t get more out of you? The whole &ldquo;No-Quote Joe&rdquo; deal?Sakic&nbsp;That&rsquo;s just one guy in Denver who keeps saying that. But I tell them everything they need to know about the game. I just play hockey. And I have fun and I try to win and try to play well. I&rsquo;ve never liked to talk about myself. That&rsquo;s just the way it is. But I talk to them every day about anything else. Just don&rsquo;t ask me about myself. It&rsquo;s not up to me to talk about what I do out there. I just try and do it and have fun.THN Does that side of you come from your parents?Sakic&nbsp;Pretty much. They &lsquo;re quiet and laid back and just want to work hard and that&rsquo;s it. Don&rsquo;t really want to read in the paper all the dumb things I&rsquo;m going to say one night. When I see interviews and things like that&ndash;and it&rsquo;s not really our sport &lsquo;cause guys are real good in our sport-but they talk about themselves, it just doesn&rsquo;t sound right to me. I mean, we&rsquo;re not playing golf. It&rsquo;s not an individual sport, it&rsquo;s a team sport, so let&rsquo;s talk about the team.THN Can we talk about your family?Sakic&nbsp;Yeah.THN You and Debbie met when you were 17.Sakic:&nbsp;I was 17, she was 15.THN If you see a 17-year-old kid now, and he meets a 15-year-old, and that kid says, &lsquo;Well, this is going to be it,&rsquo; you&rsquo;d laugh at them.Sakic&nbsp;Pretty much.THN Why did it work?Sakic&nbsp;I don&rsquo;t know what she was thinking. I think just because we love being together. We&rsquo;re not only husband and wife, we&rsquo;re best friends, too. Everything that we do, we share&hellip; She&rsquo;s real laid back, go with the flow, don&rsquo;t get too bothered about anything. That&rsquo;s how you &lsquo;ve got to be, I think.THN Golf. Five handicap, I&rsquo;m told.Sakic&nbsp;No, I&rsquo;d say six to eight, usually. I got down to about a six. I haven&rsquo;t really played all winter, but when I was at my best last year I was about a six.THN What&rsquo;s your best shot? You a chip-and-run guy?Sakic&nbsp;No, no. I&rsquo;m getting better at that. I&rsquo;m usually pretty straight off the tee and around the green and with the iron shots. It&rsquo;s just the chipping and putting. Sometimes they&rsquo;re there and other times it&rsquo;s way off. Putting is the hardest thing for me.THN It&rsquo;s the finishing.Sakic&nbsp;That&rsquo;s it. I&rsquo;ll have those days where you can&rsquo;t miss a putt, but then you just think too much, try and read too much into it. And I&rsquo;m always wrong.THN Do you ever think too much in hockey?Sakic&nbsp;No. I just play. That&rsquo;s what someone told me, too. I had a golf lesson, a guy out of Dallas. That&rsquo;s what he said to me: &lsquo;Do you think when you shoot?&rsquo; No. &lsquo;Then what are you thinking for now?&rsquo; I don&rsquo;t know. So it has started to pay off a bit.THN: Everybody talks about Joe Sakic, the quiet leader. But there&rsquo;s another side that people don&rsquo;t see. That&rsquo;s when the yapping is going on in the room, you jump in, then pull back and watch what happens.Sakic:&nbsp;Who told you that, Twister too? Yeah, well, you&rsquo;ve got to keep the guys loose. I don&rsquo;t think you can be serious before a game. I&rsquo;ve always been like that.I learned from the best, though: Steven Finn. I drove to the rink with him for two years there in Quebec. You learn a lot there driving with one of those types of guys. I stir the pot a little bit, get guys riled up.THN Any favorite lines?Sakic&nbsp;I don&rsquo;t say jokes, I just get in there and get guys going.THN You&rsquo;ve said that no one taught you to shoot. The wrist shot, it&rsquo;s just natural. Was there a time when you realized this was your weapon?Sakic&nbsp;No one really told me I had a shot until I was playing a few years in Quebec. But growing up, I mean, now if I go home and I see my friends, they &lsquo;ll say yeah, you had a good shot then. But I never really thought of it. I don&rsquo;t use just wrists. You look at a guy like Milan (Hejduk), who can really shoot the puck, he&rsquo;s all wrists. I kind of lean into it. If I get a good shot it&rsquo;s because I&rsquo;m leaning into it and using my whole body. I never really practised it&hellip; I think it&rsquo;s more as a kid when you &lsquo;re on the ice all the time and you&rsquo;re stickhandling. You shoot the puck enough, you&rsquo;re not necessarily practising shooting, but you get that. Not to mention when you &lsquo;re stickhandling in the basement (as a kid)., All that stuff&rsquo; helps.THN And as far as the skating? The knock on you early in your career was your skating.,Sakic&nbsp;It has always been there. Not now, but it was like that in junior and in minor hockey. They always said I couldn&rsquo;t skate, but I got by.THN And now everybody says Sakic is so quick, he jumps into holes, the defensemen have to give him so much room. Is it because you&rsquo;ve tasted success?Sakic&nbsp;That&rsquo;s more because when I got cut from the &rsquo;91 Canada Cup I was told that I didn&rsquo;t have any leg strength. After that year, (conditioning coach) Lome Goldenberg came to Quebec. I asked him to give me some strength workout for my legs. Then we did that, a lot of leg work. Now I barely do any upper body work, just your token, whatever you need to do. But it&rsquo;s mostly all for explosive stuff, legs and plyo-metrics, things like that. And that helped me. After that summer I came back and felt so much better and stronger on the ice.THN In Colorado you&rsquo;ve been on the cover of the phone book, the cover of TV Guide. When it got to the point when you started seeing yourself in these places&hellip;Sakic&nbsp;Honestly, I thought, &ldquo;That&rsquo;s great, look, you&rsquo;re on the book.&rdquo; I just took it like anything else, went with the flow with it. Didn&rsquo;t change me or anything. I didn&rsquo;t think any different. It was great to see the cover of the phone book. Hey, give it to your friends and your family. They think more of it than I do.THN Having kids, how did that change things? (Sakic has a five-year-old son, Mitchell, and one-year-old twins Kamryn and Chase).Sakic&nbsp;Kids are great. It just takes all the hockey out of the equation. It&rsquo;s just a game now, a game you have fun with. It&rsquo;s your career, you make your living off it obviously, but when you go home it&rsquo;s great when you don&rsquo;t even have to think about the game. It&rsquo;s all family, you raise your kids, summers you spend time with your whole family. I just love that&hellip; You realize this is what life is about, this is your life, you want to raise your kids, take care of them.THN Is there anything you have left to accomplish?Sakic&nbsp;All I want to do is have fun and play and try and win Stanley Cups&hellip;! want to play while I&rsquo;m still helping the team, but once I start slipping a bit I want to walk away. And I&rsquo;ve told a few people, once I start slipping, just tell me&hellip; Once you start going down you won&rsquo;t be scoring any more and that won&rsquo;t be fun. Playing defense isn&rsquo;t the most fun in the world.THN Are you more excited inside than you show everybody? Tony Twist said he watched you talking after the Stanley Cup this year and he remembers watching you in Quebec. Outside of the smile on your face, the words are exactly the same.Sakic&nbsp;That&rsquo;s good, though. You haven&rsquo;t changed then. There goes that &ldquo;you&rsquo;ve got to stay on an even keel&rdquo; thing. You don&rsquo;t need a roller-coaster ride. Just keep everything in perspective. Am I happy to win the Cup? As a hockey player, there&rsquo;s nothing better.THN Your next career: radio talk show host?Sakic&nbsp;Not a chance.<h2>BETTER WITH AGE</h2>Like fine wines and battered baseball gloves, Joe Sakic has matured wonderfully over the years. He was in his 13th NHL campaign last season when he captured his first Hart Trophy as league MVP, becoming the latest inspiration for a greying generation. At 31, Sakic was the second-oldest first-time Hart winner in the 34 years since NHL expansion in 1967-68. The only older player to be named NHL MVP for the first time was 32-year-old Dominik Hasek in 1996-97. Here are the five oldest first-time Hart winners since 1967-68. &#9632;

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‘You don’t need a roller-coaster ride. Just keep everything in perspective’

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021346/7194338-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="273" height="396"><figcaption class="caption-body">Yanic Perreault</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011695/7194345-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="218" height="216"></div>You need the puck to score. So when Montreal signed free agent center Yanic Perreault during the off-season, it figured to help kick-start the Canadiens&rsquo; offense, which ranked 22nd in the league last season.Perreault was the most effective player on the draw last year, winning 63 per cent with Toronto. Listed are each NHL team&rsquo;s best faceoff man and the player&rsquo;s winning percentage through Oct. 18.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03869/7194331-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="272" height="396"><figcaption class="caption-body">Craig Conroy</figcaption></div><h2>Tod Faceoff Men</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-04507/7194324-1-eng-US/f0012-042.jpg" title="f0012-04" width="587" height="1434"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-05363/7194317-1-eng-US/f0012-052.jpg" title="f0012-05" width="273" height="394"><figcaption class="caption-body">Eric Belanger</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-06295/7194310-1-eng-US/f0012-062.jpg" title="f0012-06" width="277" height="396"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dave Scatchard</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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TEAM THEME

Faceoffs critical win, lose or draw

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Dan Wood</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-07255/7194376-1-eng-US/f0012-072.jpg" title="f0012-07" width="220" height="256"></div>After gaining just two victories and a tie during a season-opening, seven-game stretch against Eastern Conference opponents, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were ready to take on the West.&ldquo;We got some preparation time,&rdquo; said coach Bryan Murray. &ldquo;Certainly, we&rsquo;re a lot better than the first night we played in Boston or the game we played in Toronto. We&rsquo;ve improved and we&rsquo;re figuring out how to play a little bit better.&rdquo;The Ducks were shaky during a four-game road trip to begin the season, but made some progress during a three-game homestand against Washington, Tampa Bay and Boston that resulted in a 1-1-1-0 record.&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t matter who you play,&rdquo; Murray said. &ldquo;If you don&rsquo;t show respect and don&rsquo;t play well, you&rsquo;re not going to win. Every game seems like it&rsquo;s 2-1 or 3-2. The whole key is you have to play well and play hard every night.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING After finishing 23rd in the NHL with a penalty-killing efficiency of 81.8 per cent last season, Anaheim surrendered only five power play goals in 34 shorthanded situations through eight games this year to rank 18th. The offseason additions of veteran defensemen Keith Carney and Jason York have helped.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;That felt unbelievable. Now that we got the two points, I can honestly say I&rsquo;m real happy I got it. &ldquo;Center Steve Rucchin, whose goal in a 2-1 victory Oct. 12 over Washington was his first in nearly a year, since Oct. 29, 2000. Rucchin was injured most of last season.NOTEBOOK After drawing the smallest opening-night crowd, 16,219, in franchise history for the Oct. 12 win over Washington, Anaheim&rsquo;s next two home games netted the two smallest home gatherings in the team&rsquo;s nine seasons. Only 9,579 turned out for a 3-2 loss to Tampa Bay on Oct. 14, followed three nights later by 10,348 to see a 2-2 tie with Boston. &#9632;

f0012-07

Mighty Ducks show slight improvement

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Jeff Schultz</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-11150/7194407-1-eng-US/f0012-112.jpg" title="f0012-11" width="670" height="933"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-08219/7194414-1-eng-US/f0012-082.jpg" title="f0012-08" width="218" height="258"></div>Damian Rhodes played better as a No. 2 goalie than he did as a No. 1.After sitting behind Atlanta starter Milan Hnilicka for the first three games, Rhodes got his first start against Philadelphia Oct. 16 and looked sharp, making 34 saves in a 3-3 tie.&ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t as nervous as I thought I&rsquo;d be,&rdquo; Rhodes said. &ldquo;When I took my (pre-game) nap, I didn&rsquo;t wake up at all. Usually when I&rsquo;m nervous, I do that a lot.&rdquo;Rhodes has had some strong performances in Atlanta, but the last two years have been marked mostly by injuries and failure. He seems to have benefited from the team&rsquo;s hiring of a full-time goaltending coach, Steve Weeks, who has worked with both netminders on constant movement and following the puck.&ldquo;Everyone kind of forgot about Damian for a while,&rdquo; said center Ray Ferraro. &ldquo;But what some people may not know is he&rsquo;s a pretty competitive guy. He wants to play. When Milan was playing for the first three games, Damian kept his mouth shut and just worked hard. That second period (against Philadelphia) was about as good as I&rsquo;ve seen him play since he has been here.&rdquo;POWER PLAY Atlanta was only 1-for-20 on the power play after four games for a league-worst 5.0 per-cent success rate. Play at the point has been erratic, with shots often getting blocked or going wide and the team needs a big veteran forward to park in front of the net.NOTEBOOK Defenseman Petr Buzek, who played in the 2000 All-Star Game as a rookie and missed most of last year with post-concussion syndrome, was a healthy scratch Oct. 16 against Philadelphia. Coach Curt Fraser wants him to improve his foot speed&hellip; When the Thrashers lost their home opener to Carolina Oct. 13, it &lsquo;dropped them to 0-10-1-2 against the Hurricanes.THRASHED After two injury-ravaged seasons, ex-starter Damian Rhodes is backing up Milan Hnilicka. &#9632;

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Rhodes makes mark in first appearance

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Nancy Marrapese-Burrell</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-09178/7194445-1-eng-US/f0012-092.jpg" title="f0012-09" width="217" height="249"></div>A year ago, the position the Boston Bruins were most frantic about was goaltender.Byron Dafoe was on the shelf because of a hamstring injury and backup John Grahame was sidelined indefinitely because of a broken ankle. The club entrusted much of the workload to 20-year-old Andrew Raycroft, who did the best he could, and journeyman Peter Skudra.This season, the crease is a much more stable place in Boston. Dafoe is healthy after spending the off-season rehabbing his surgically repaired right knee and increasing the strength and flexibility of his hamstrings.And Grahame came back strong at the end of last year, giving a terrific showing in the American League playoffs with Providence. Dafoe, after playing the first six games of 2001-02, gave way to Grahame, who made 29 saves in a 2-2 tie against Anaheim Oct. 18.&ldquo;We wish we could win to get those two points, we need those two points, but overall I think I&rsquo;m pretty happy with the way I played,&rdquo; Grahame said.PENALTY KILLING In games against San Jose, Phoenix and Anaheim, the Bruins surrendered a whopping 23 power plays, but just two power play goals. Their penalty killing has been terrific, but that doesn&rsquo;t mean the team should continue taking penalties.&ldquo;We obviously can&rsquo;t take that many penalties and expect to come out with a tie or a win,&rdquo; said center Brian Rolston.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;You miss Billy all over the place. When you don&rsquo;t have Billy in there, the puck isn&rsquo;t going to be in the offensive zone as much. If it&rsquo;s not in the offensive zone as much, guess where it is? It&rsquo;s in the neutral zone or in our zone. If it&rsquo;s in our zone, that&rsquo;s not a good thing. Coach Robbie Ftorek, on Boston&rsquo;s performance without Bill Guerin, who was suspended for three games.NOTEBOOK When the Bruins&rsquo; grabbed Jamie Rivers off waivers from Ottawa Oct. 13, the 26-year-old defenseman was thrilled because it meant going from a team where he was a spare part to a team where he&rsquo;d have a real opportunity to be in the everyday lineup. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just looking for, I&rsquo;m not going to say a fresh start, but it&rsquo;s a great young team,&rdquo; Rivers said. &#9632;

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Goaltenders give Bruins confidence

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Bucky Gleason</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-10162/7194476-1-eng-US/f0012-102.jpg" title="f0012-10" width="218" height="259"><figcaption class="caption-body">(Jim Leary/BBS)</figcaption></div>Defenseman James Patrick thought he was coming to Buffalo for one season.Four years later, he finds himself still with the Sabres and in elite company Patrick became the 14th defenseman in NHL history to record 600 points and appear in 1,100 career games. The 38-year-old reached the points milestone with a goal against Pittsburgh Oct. 14 in his 1,101st game.&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s a reflection that I&rsquo;ve been able to play for a long time,&rdquo; said Patrick of his points total. &ldquo;Whether that&rsquo;s because defensemen are hard to come by or because I keep myself in shape or the fact that since expansion it has created a lot more jobs, I&rsquo;ve been able to stay in the league.&rdquo;The Sabres have one of the more underrated defense corps in the league and Patrick often gets lost in the mix. But he has been one of Sabres&rsquo; most reliable players despite his spotduty role as their No. 7 defenseman.PENALTY KILLING Buffalo had the NHL&rsquo;s best penalty-killing unit last season, a major reason they won the Jennings Trophy for lowest goals-against average. But they were mired in 20th Oct. 18, mainly because they&rsquo;ve coughed up the puck much more often in the defensive zone.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have enough guys to call up to bench everybody. We didn&rsquo;t skate very well, we didn&rsquo;t think very well. We may have seen some of the dumbest all-time plays, Coach Lindy Ruff, after watching his team fall behind two goals in an eventual 3-3 tie with Nashville.NOTEBOOK Speedy wingers Slava Kozlov and Maxim Afinogenov failed to score at even strength in the first five games, prompting coach Lindy Ruff to insert captain Stu Barnes in place of center Chris Gratton. The two wingers combined for two goals and one assist while shutting down Pittsburgh center Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s line in a 4-1 win over Pittsburgh&hellip; The Sabres had two leads before losing 4-2 in their duel with former goalie Dominik Hasek in the first meeting since Hasek was traded to the Red Wings Oct. 12&hellip; The Sabres&rsquo; 3-3 tie with Nashville Oct. 16 extended to five games the streak between the two teams in which the host has failed to win. &#9632;

f0012-10

Veteran Patrick reaches milestones

<div class="byline">&#x2014;Luke DpCock</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021263/7194538-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="226" height="227"></div>After he broke through to score 41 goals last season, the Carolina Hurricanes moved Jeff O&rsquo;Neill from right wing to left in training camp.It was a risky move, tinkering with a player who finally found his scoring groove. But so far it has worked.O&rsquo;Neill had four goals and eight points in seven games combining with Ron Francis and Sami Kapanen to provide a potent first line.Half of O&rsquo;Neill&rsquo;s production came in a 5-2 win against Atlanta Oct. 13. O&rsquo;Neill had four points thanks to inspired play by Kapanen, who struggled last season.When that line has played well, the Canes have won. When it hasn&rsquo;t, they&rsquo;ve lost&ndash;and badly, 6-2 to Ottawa and 4-0 to the Islanders.&ldquo;Ronnie&rsquo;s line has great movement right now,&rdquo; said coach Paul Maurice. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve created offense.&rdquo;The Francis-O&rsquo;Neill-Kapanen combination accounted for half of Carolina&rsquo;s scoring-eight goals-in seven games.PENALTY KILUNG The Hurricanes had the second-best penalty killing efficiency last season and despite some turnover in personnel it&rsquo;s still a strength.Bates Battaglia and Craig Adams are getting their first shots at killing penalties, replacing the departed Rob DiMaio and Scott Pellerin.&ldquo;I give Bates and Craig a lot of credit,&rdquo; Maurice said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve stepped in and don&rsquo;t look like they&rsquo;re feeling their way into it. They&rsquo;ve got a great handle on it.&rdquo;LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve informed the penalty killing units that lunch is on me next practice. Whatever they want to eat is definitely on me because they saved my bacon. &ldquo;-Jeff O&rsquo;Neill after the Hurricanes killed off his double-minor in Atlanta. O&rsquo;Neill was called for hooking, then smashed his stick on the ice to pick up an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.NOTEBOOK Coach Paul Maurice has nothing but praise for left winger Darren Langdon, who came to camp in great shape and has proven to be a useful player on the fourth line&hellip; Goalie Tom Barrasso shined his second start Oct. 18 against the New York Islanders. He made 35 saves in a 2-1 overtime loss. He held off the Islanders as the Canes were outshot 19-2 in the first period. &#9632;

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O’Neill keeps winging it; goals from both sides

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Tim Sassone</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03868/7194569-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="220" height="249"></div>Let the Tony Amonte trade talk begin.It only took seven games into the season for the trade speculation to start involving Amonte, who is headed for unrestricted free agency next summer.Amonte laughed at a report that Mario Lemieux might be interested in bringing him to Pittsburgh.&ldquo;Mario? What am I going to do, carry his equipment?&rdquo; Amonte joked. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s nice to be wanted, but I&rsquo;m still a Blackhawk.&rdquo; There was also talk the Colorado Avalanche might be interested.With contract talks going nowhere, it&rsquo;s possible Amonte will be dealt before the March 19 trade deadline-especially if the Hawks are out of the playoff picture.GM Mike Smith wasn&rsquo;t getting anywhere with Mike Gillis, Amonte&rsquo;s agent. The Hawks offered Amonte a two-year extension at $6.2 million per year. He wants a four-year extension for between $7 million and $8 million a season.(See pg. 6 for more on Amonte and the 2002 unrestricted free agent class.)POWER PLAY Not even the addition of Phil Housley was helping the power play, which was 2-for-33 through seven games.Coach Brian Sutter felt the power play was already costing the Hawks points in the standings. The power play went 0-for-8 in a 1-0 loss to Edmonton and 0-for-5 in a 2-2 tie with Columbus.&ldquo;We have to get more people in front of the net,&rdquo; Sutter said. &ldquo;A lot of times our point men don&rsquo;t want to shoot because there&rsquo;s nobody in front. We&rsquo;ve got a lot of forwards that for whatever reason think it&rsquo;s cool to play around on the outside.&rdquo;LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;That&rsquo;s why the Chicago Blackhawks haven&rsquo;t won in five years, right there. &ldquo;- Coach Brian Sutter after the Hawks took countless dumb penalties and allowed four power play goals in a 6-4 loss at Minnesota Oct. 12.NOTEBOOK Coach Brian Sutter sent an early message to his top forwards that it was time to stop going for the highlightreel goals. &ldquo;If we&rsquo;ve got a major problem besides defense, it&rsquo;s we&rsquo;re too fancy on offense,&rdquo; Sutter said&hellip; Despite a banged up shoulder, right winger Tony Amonte played in his 335th consecutive game Oct. 18 at Nashville. He is the NHL&rsquo;s reigning iron man. &#9632;

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Trade speculation begins, but Amonte likes Chicago

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Jim Benton</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04588/7194600-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="220" height="239"></div>Coach Bob Hartley has been looking for a spark to snap the Colorado Avalanche out of its early-season doldrums.Dan Hinote, a speedy, high-energy forward, has been one of the players to step up while the Avalanche started the season 3-3-0-0.In one game, Hinote started on Colorado&rsquo;s top line with Joe Sakic, played on the second line centered by Chris Drury and picked up an assist playing on the checking line.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been fortunate enough to play on a bunch of different lines and a bunch of different roles,&rdquo; Hinote said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m used to it. I&rsquo;m trying to bring energy. That&rsquo;s what they are looking for.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think they want me to change my role when I move lines. It&rsquo;s more to try to bring a little room, use my energy and speed for each line.&rdquo;Hartley loves versatile players as he attempts to mix the team&rsquo;s newcomers into his line combinations.&ldquo;If you are in the NHL you should be able to switch positions especially forwards,&rdquo; Hartley said. &ldquo;I never make a fuss out of my lines. You look at who is playing well, you look at who you are trying to show confidence in and who you are trying to give a little experience.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING Colorado has struggled to find consistency in penalty killing situations this season. The Avalanche allowed seven power play goals in six games. It allowed 59 last season to rank middle of the league. The loss of Ray Bourque, Jon Klemm and Adam Foote (shoulder surgery) has hurt.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I saw him briefly and he still thinks he scored three goals even though we lost four-zip, Coach Bob Hartley, when asked how winger Ville Nieminen was doing two days after he sustained a concussion in Vancouver.NOTEBOOK Coach Bob Hartley could get a second job as a spokesman for the NHL. &ldquo;Freebies are starting to get tougher and tougher to get,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The line is so fine from winning and losing a game right now in the NHL that just one second that you lack focus or discipline and you can be at the wrong end. The parity in this league is unbelievable.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0014-04

Versatility of Hinote makes him a favorite

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Aaron Portzline</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011547/7194631-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="224" height="256"></div>Want to play a little 1-on-1 with Dave King? Not if you&rsquo;re a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets you don&rsquo;t.Following a 4-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings Oct. 16, the Blue Jackets&rsquo; coach invited a few players to meet with him behind closed doors to discuss the problems of a team that was 0-2-4-0 to start the season. While King would not specify what exactly he had to say to his players, it was abundantly clear he was upset at being winless after six games.&ldquo;There are a few people who aren&rsquo;t giving us enough effort,&rdquo; King said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t tell you that every night all 20 guys are going to be giving us their best effort. We&rsquo;ve had a few passengers on every night and that&rsquo;s all the difference it takes.&rdquo;The fact their coach was upset did not come as a surprise to the players.&ldquo;You have to agree with Kinger,&rdquo; said center Tyler Wright. &ldquo;I think everybody can go harder and play better. Look, until we win a game, there&rsquo;s no way anybody can be satisfied with the way we&rsquo;re playing. Guys know that.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING After finishing 27th last season in penalty killing with an 80.7 per-cent success rate, the Blue Jackets were off to a better start this season, allowing just three goals in 24 chances for the opposition, a 87.5 per-cent success rate good for 10th in the NHL.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;We&rsquo;re close. It&rsquo;s not like we&rsquo;re playing horrible hockey. But close doesn&rsquo;t count.&rdquo;-center Tyler Wright after the Blue Jackets failed to get a win in their first six games.NOTEBOOK Through five games, the Blue Jackets ranked first in the NHL in power play efficiency on the road (5-for-13), but were dead last at home (0-for-18)&hellip; Columbus signed goaltender Shane Bendera, a sixth round pick in 2000, to a longterm deal&hellip; Right winger David Vyborny earned his fifth assist of the season in a 4-3 loss to Detroit Oct. 16. He didn&rsquo;t get No. 5 last season until Nov. 22&hellip; Left winger Ray Whitney suffered a bruise to his sterno clavicular joints (the bones just below the neck) when checked into the boards by Montreal&rsquo;s Oleg Petrov Oct. 12. Whitney was hoping to return by the end of October. Center Sean Pronger was recalled from Syracuse (AHL) to take Whitney&rsquo;s roster spot. &#9632;

f0015-01

King royally ticked at winless start

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Chuck Carlton</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-021086/7194662-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="241" height="244"></div>He was the biggest name the Dallas Stars signed during the summer and he&rsquo;s the most important player for how the team develops this fall.The Stars are just now beginning to figure out everything Pierre Turgeon can do and what he can mean to a team. And he&rsquo;s just beginning to discover what he&rsquo;s supposed to do in a new system.Turgeon scored his first two goals as a Star seven games into the regular season in a 3-1 win over Phoenix, a day after his return to St. Louis where he spent five seasons.&ldquo;As far as St. Louis, I did what I&rsquo;ve been doing the last 15 years, just go and out play and do it,&rdquo; Turgeon said. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t ask me to be a (Wayne) Gretzky or a (Mario) Lemieux. I won&rsquo;t be. That&rsquo;s the way I am. I&rsquo;m Pierre. That&rsquo;s my game.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING The Stars have been one of the NHL&rsquo;s best at killing penalties and the start of this season is no exception. Dallas killed the first 26 penalties this season, after finishing fourth in the NHL last year and first in 1999-2000. Even the loss of Mike Keane, considered to bed one of the best penalty killers in the NHL, has been overcome. Modano and Jere Lehtinen are dangerous two-way forwards, Rob DiMaio has been a smart player and Shaun Van Allen has been a plus.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;Was he a horse&rsquo;s ass? Yes. I don&rsquo;t think that&rsquo;s a big mystery. Does he win games? Yes. Does he demand the best from his players? Yes. As far as the way he handled the team and his coaching staff, I didn&rsquo;t agree with it. It&rsquo;s well documented that he wasn&rsquo;t a players&rsquo; coach, but he&rsquo;s been successful, and I guess that&rsquo;s the bottom line. former Star Mike Keane on Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock.NOTEBOOK Center Mike Modano went the first four games of the season without a point, his longest drought ever opening a season. Three goals and four points followed in the next two games&hellip; The Stars managed the first goal in just two of their first seven games this season. How important is the statistic? Dallas was a league-best 36-4-5 last season when scoring the first goal of the game. &#9632;

f0015-02

Turgeon searching for role on Stars

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Nicholas J.Cotsonika</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-05391/7194693-1-eng-US/f0015-052.jpg" title="f0015-05" width="722" height="978"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-03770/7194700-1-eng-US/f0015-032.jpg" title="f0015-03" width="224" height="240"></div>Sure, the Detroit Red Wings are old. Still, can&rsquo;t we call them the Comeback Kids?They fall behind by a goal and come back-sometimes multiple times&ndash;and win. They did it at San Jose. At Vancouver.Against Buffalo.At New York against the Islanders: Four times, they fell behind by a goal to the upstart Islanders. Four times, they came back. The final time, Luc Robitaille scored with 10 seconds remaining in regulation. Steve Yzerman won the game in overtime.Against Philadelphia Oct. 18: Fell behind. Came back. Fell behind. Came back and won in the final minute, in 23 thrilling seconds. With goaltender Dominik Hasek pulled, Sergei Fedorov scored with 40.1 seconds left. After coach Scotty Bowman called time out, Brett Hull scored with 17.8 seconds left.&ldquo;Those comebacks, they build confidence,&rdquo; Hull said. &ldquo;They build great team morale. I think it shows other teams the Red Wings are never out of a game because of the people that are here.&rdquo;POWER PLAY The biggest disappointment has been the power play. With all their firepower, the Wings should be one of the best in the league. But they were only 5-for-36 through seven games.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if I could have made the team that much better than Dominik has. So maybe it worked out better for them. &ldquo;- Philadelphia center Jeremy Roenick, who was close to signing with Detroit this past summer, but elected to leave the Phoenix Coyotes for the Flyers instead.NOTEBOOK Left winger Brendan Shanahan led the Red Wings in goals (eight), points (12) and penalty minutes (32)&hellip; Defenseman Chris Chelios had three assists in 24 games last season and had five assists in seven games this year.LEADING MAN Red Wings&rsquo; captain Steve Yzerman was among the key contributors in Detroit&rsquo;s amazing string of comeback wins. &#9632;

f0015-05

Red Wings fueled by comeback power

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Rob Tychkowski</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-04566/7194731-1-eng-US/f0015-042.jpg" title="f0015-04" width="224" height="245"></div>Tom Poti&rsquo;s nickname is Potsi because ex-teammate Bill Guerin tagged him with it three years ago, not because GM Kevin Lowe took a look at his contract demands last summer and told him to sit on it.Now that Poti finally struck a new deal with the Oilers, though, the defenseman is looking forward to some happy days in Edmonton. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m looking forward to getting back and being with the guys again,&rdquo; Poti said after signing a one-year, $925,000 contract. &ldquo;This is probably one of the toughest things I&rsquo;ve ever had to go through.&rdquo;The two sides started out nearly $1 million apart last summer. After making $850,000 last year ($500,000 in base salary, $350,000 signing bonus), Poti shot for the moon ($1.5 million) and the Oilers threw him a lowball in response (a 10 per-cent raise on his base salary).Three weeks into the season they finally met in the middle.&ldquo;It was about getting what was fair, about getting some respect,&rdquo; said the six-foot-three, 215-pounder, who had 32 points last season.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been working out hard and I&rsquo;m in unbelievable shape. I&rsquo;m probably the strongest I&rsquo;ve ever been. I&rsquo;m not going to let anyone or anything get in my way this year.&rdquo;Poti becomes eligible for salary arbitration next summer.POWER PLAY The Oiler power play remains the team&rsquo;s weak link in the early going. They scored on just four of their first 41 power plays (9.7 per cent) to rank 26th in the NHL.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;That was humiliating for all of us. This game has a way of humbling you in a hurry and we all had our pants pulled down tonight. &ldquo;-coach Craig MacTavish, calling a 4-1 home ice loss to Toronto Edmonton&rsquo;s worst game in three years.NOTEBOOK Bruce Saville, one of the key investors in the Oilers&rsquo; ownership group, flew eight-year-old heart-transplant recipient Anthony Wilander to Denver to watch the Oilers play Colorado. Wilander posed for pictures, watched practice from the bench and rode in the back of the bus with the veterans following the morning skate. &#9632;

f0015-04

Freshly signed Poti psyched to be back

<div class="byline">-David J. Neal</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011466/7194762-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="221" height="233"></div>The day after the Florida Panthers acquired center Jason Wiemer in a trade with Calgary, his former Flames&rsquo; coach Brian Sutter said Wiemer was so tough, &ldquo;He hunts bears with whiskey bottles.&rdquo; Wiemer laughed, &ldquo;I saw that quote. It was an interesting quote.&rdquo;Sutter was exaggerating on Wiemer&rsquo;s choice of weapon when bear hunting, but not on the bear hunter&rsquo;s hockey toughness.Wiemer&rsquo;s willingness to put his 6-foot-1, 220-pound body into his game, whether finishing a check, winning a faceoff or playing in the ugly areas has made him the best Panther early this season.When the other two players in that trade, Calgary center Rob Niedermayer and Panthers&rsquo; right winger Valeri Bure, came up too lame to play in this season&rsquo;s first PanthersCalgary game Oct. 18, it left spotlight room for Wiemer.He deserved it. The previous game, against Vancouver, Wiemer had a game-high nine hits, two of which drew retaliation penalties-one of which turned into a Panthers&rsquo; power play goal.Wiemer, 25, is off to a great start offensively, too, with two goals and five points in seven games.POWER PLAY Florida&rsquo;s power play, 5-for-39 after seven games, struggled early because it was a perimeter power play with nobody willing to go to the net. Once Wiemer was inserted, it struggled because nobody aside from Pavel Bure was willing to shoot the puck.LOUD & CLEAR &ldquo;I just don&rsquo;t care about those bitter people. They have to live with it, not me. &ldquo;- Right winger Pavel Bure, who was booed every time he touched the puck in Vancouver.NOTEBOOK The 53 shots the Panthers allowed at home in a 5-2 loss to the Flyers Oct. 13 were a franchise record for shots allowed in a game at home and one shot off the franchise record for shots allowed in any game. Captain Paul Laus said, &ldquo;(Goalie) Trevor Kidd should smack us all on the head.&rdquo;&hellip; Right winger Valeri Bure said the pain in his knee that took him out of the lineup for the final period of the Oct. 16 game in Vancouver and the next two games has been bothering him since the start of the season. &#9632;

f0016-01

Wiemer delivering gusto and offense

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Matt McHale</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-021131/7194793-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="221" height="243"></div>The Los Angeles Kings finally played three minutes of solid hockey that made them and their fans smile.It came midway through their sixth game Oct. 18 at Staples Center when Glen Murray and Steve Heinze scored late in the third period of a 4-1 victory over Anaheim. It was the Kings&rsquo; first win in five home games, though it was played before a sparse crowd of 13,916.It improved Los Angeles&rsquo; record to a ho-hum 2-3-1-1 with the team about to embark on a grueling six-game, 12-day road trip.The Kings did it the way coach Andy Murray had been drawing it up in practice, with pressure in front of the opponent&rsquo;s net.&ldquo;This was big,&rdquo; said Glen Murray, who was tied with Steve Heinze for the team lead with four goals in seven games this season. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been struggling. We&rsquo;ve been working, we just haven&rsquo;t been working very hard. We need to go out there and show that we can score some goals.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING The Kings penalty killing unit has improved to 10th from 24th last season.The top unit is Kelly Buchberger, Ian Laperriere, Jaroslav Modry and Aaron Miller. Against Anaheim Oct. 18, the Kings killed off a pair of double minors in a 4-1 win. During those eight minutes of penalties, the Kings allowed just three shots.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;This game is only the start. We have to keep working hard. We thought we turned the corner when we beat St. Louis (Oct. 11). Turns out we just ran into another wall. &ldquo;- Center Bryan Smolinski after the Kings beat Anaheim 4-1 Oct. 18, their first home victory.NOTEBOOK Left winger Steve Heinze&rsquo;s third period goal against Anaheim Oct. 18 was the 300th point of his career. It also came two days after his wife Lori gave birth to the couple&rsquo;s first child. He played that night too, a 3-2 overtime loss to Washington&hellip; The Kings are trying to jump start rookie right winger Jaroslav Bednar by putting him on the first line with Ziggy Palffy and Jozef Stumpel. Bednar does not have a point in the Kings&rsquo; first seven games&hellip; Center Randy Robitaille had five goals in his first four American League games after getting assigned to Manchester. &#9632;

f0016-02

Kings finally win one for home fans

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Tom Jones</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03845/7194824-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="233" height="228"></div>Minnesota&rsquo;s fast start didn&rsquo;t come without a cost. The Wild lost one of its top defensemen and leaders when alternate captain Brad Bombardir was sidelined until at least Christmas with a broken right ankle.The injury occurred during Minnesota&rsquo;s 3-3 tie with Edmonton Oct. 14 when Bombardir was driven into the boards by Ethan Moreau of the Oilers. Dazed by the clean hit, Bombardir broke the ankle when he slumped awkwardly to the ice.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s always very steady, very solid,&rdquo; said Wild coach Jacques Lemaire. &ldquo;We use him in every situation-you can use him on the (power play), the (penalty kill), against the other team&rsquo;s top players.The Minnesota defense sorely misses Sean O&rsquo;Donnell and Curtis Leschyshyn, a pair of veterans who were traded at the end of last season. Without them, the Wild still has a talented, but young blueline brigade, in terms of NHL experience.The Wild carried eight defensemen to start the season. Of the eight, five-including rookie Nick Schultz-have played fewer than 100 games in the NHL.POWER PLAY Six games into the season, the Wild was leading the league with a power play that clicked at 28 per cent. Assistant coach Mike Ramsey, who runs the unit, attributed the improvement over last year&rsquo;s NHL-worst nine per cent to the off-season additions of Andrew Brunette and Sergei Zholtok and the further development of Marian Gaborik and Filip Kuba.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;Last year, we were a bunch of guys who wanted to prove we could play in the NHL. This year, we have a bunch of guys who not only want to prove they can play in the NHL, but that they can play well. &ldquo;-Captain Jim Dowd talking about the Wild&rsquo;s excellent 3-0-3-0 start.NOTEBOOK Right winger Cam Stewart, out since Sept. 17 with a concussion, is discouraged by his slow progress. Stewart is looking forward to getting back on the ice, but added, &ldquo;I just need to take time-there are a lot more things to do in life than hockey and I&rsquo;m trying to make some serious decisions&hellip; Defenseman Filip Kuba will wear the alternate captain&rsquo;s A&rsquo; on his sweater, with blueliner Brad Bombardir out of the lineup. &#9632;

f0016-03

Loss of Bombardir huge blow to Wild

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Herb Zurkowsky</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04627/7194855-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="220" height="225"></div>Benoit Brunet wasn&rsquo;t sure there was a future for him in Montreal in late September. But suddenly he has become an integral part of the Canadiens&rsquo; checking line.&ldquo;I try not to worry about things that are out of my control and concentrate on doing my best when I get the chance,&rdquo; said the veteran left winger.Brunet, 33, was left unprotected by Montreal in this year&rsquo;s waiver draft but wasn&rsquo;t claimed, likely because he has missed an average of 35 games a season over the last six years. He wasn&rsquo;t dressed for the Canadiens&rsquo; season opener at Ottawa, but has become a regular on the team&rsquo;s third line, with center Joe Juneau and right winger Andreas Dackell.While Brunet continues to be recognized as one of the NHL&rsquo;s top defensive forwards, he believes he can score 20 goals, too.&ldquo;My ability has never been the problem,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t had the chance to play much in the past two years because of injuries.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING The Can adiens&rsquo; penalty-killing unit has been truly impressive through the first six games. Montreal has killed off all 32 manpower advantages for its opponents.The unit, led by Juneau and Dackell, performed the same duties earlier for Ottawa. The assistant coach in charge of the Senators&rsquo; penalty killers, at that time, was Andre Savard, now the Canadiens&rsquo; GM. Nine days after acquiring Juneau last summer, Savard signed Dackell as a free agent.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to bulls&hellip; you. Since the night I met with (coach) Michel Therrien and Andre Savard, I thought something good would happen here. You could see it in their eyes. After the awful year they had, they still felt they could turn it around in a hurry. Joe Juneau, following the Canadiens&rsquo; 3-1 win over New Jersey Oct. 13.NOTEBOOK Center Doug Gilmour was expected to make his debut Oct. 19, at Washington. He had been practising on a line between left winger Chad Kilger and right winger Gino Odjick. &#9632;

f0016-04

Healthy Brunet aims to score 20

<div class="byline">&#x2013;David Boclair</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06383/7194886-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="768" height="917"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05455/7194893-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="231" height="226"></div>Through the first six games of the season it was the young players who produced consistently for the Nashville Predators while the veterans failed to pull their own weight.Both center Greg Johnson and right winger Scott Walker were at least a minus-1 in four games and no better than even in any of the six. Left winger Vitali Yachmenev was a minus in three and had not registered a plus performance. Overall, Walker was minus-8, Johnson minus-5 and Yachmenev minus-4.Also, in a 5-3 loss to Chicago on Oct. 18 left winger Cliff Ronning was minus-4.Those four all were among the top six scorers from last season, but had a combined nine points (three goals) as Nashville opened 1-3-2-0 for its worst start since its inaugural season.&ldquo;Some guys are getting two or three minuses every game, and that can&rsquo;t happen,&rdquo; said coach Barry Trotz. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe in stats all the time, but they are an indication of how guys are going.&rdquo;PENALTY KILUNG The penal ty killing unit picked up where it left off last season. Nashville finished 2000-01 tied for eighth in the NHL at 85.2 per-cent and successfully killed off 26 of the first 29 penalties this season.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;Our mindset had better change. Everyone wants to score goals, but that&rsquo;s not how we&rsquo;re going to win games. lam angered by our mindset right now. We go over this&hellip; over, over, over, over. If we have to go back to basics on how to play defense, that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ll do. (This) is unacceptable.&rdquo;- Coach Barry Trotz venting after the Predators allowed 40 shots in a 5-3 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks Oct. 18.NOTEBOOK The Predators allowed two third period goals in three consecutive games in which they held a lead or were tied after two. They ended up with one tie and two losses.SLOW START After posting a career-best 25-goal season, Nashville&rsquo;s Scott Walker had one goal and a minus-8 rating through six games. &#9632;

f0016-06

Predator veterans struggle out of gate

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Rich Chere</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011317/7194924-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="224" height="261"></div>The pressure was on rookie right winger Pierre Dagenais right from the start.As the player counted upon most to help replace departed 43-goal scorer Alexander Mogilny in the New Jersey Devils&rsquo; lineup, Dagenais was facing a mighty task. But when the highly regarded prospect found himself scratched early in the season as the struggling Devils decided to go with veteran Sergei Nemchinov, Dagenais wondered when he would truly get an opportunity to show what he could do.&ldquo;For sure it&rsquo;s tough,&rdquo; Dagenais said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough mentally. I can&rsquo;t say anything. I&rsquo;m a young guy (23) and Jersey gave me a chance to be here. I can&rsquo;t complain. I&rsquo;m going to work every day to be in the lineup.&rdquo;After sitting out two of the first four games, Dagenais seized an opportunity when he scored the game-winning goal against the San Jose Sharks Oct. 18 for the Devils&rsquo; first victory of the season following an 0-3-0-1 start.&ldquo;It felt so good because I want to be part of the team,&rdquo; Dagenais said. &ldquo;I want to be in the lineup every night. I didn&rsquo;t make as many mistakes as I did in the first game. I can&rsquo;t make so many mistakes on defense.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING The Devils didn&rsquo;t have to look far to see one major reason for their 0-30-1 start. They ranked last in the NHL in penalty-killing (71.9 per cent) and weren&rsquo;t much better (29th overall) on the power play.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;No. I was in L.A., remember? We didn&rsquo;t have very good teams. &ldquo;-Coach Larry Robinson after being asked if this was the first time one of his teams started the season with three losses.NOTEBOOK Coach Larry Robinson benched Scott Gomez for the third period and overtime against the Rangers Oct. 17 after the center&rsquo;s double-minor cost the Devils two power play goals late in the second period. Gomez vowed it would be the last time he put himself in that position&hellip; When defenseman Scott Stevens suggested a lack of discipline cost the Devils in their quest for the Stanley Cup last spring, center Bobby Holik agreed: &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t mince words. It did cost us.&rdquo;&hellip; The plan to periodically rest veteran defenseman Ken Daneyko began Oct. 18 against San Jose in the first of 19 back-tp-back games. &#9632;

f0017-01

Dagenais returns with game winner

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Peter Botte</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-021004/7194955-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="224" height="245"></div>The red-hot New York Islanders and their red-clad goaltender were the talk of the NHL through the first two weeks of the season.Chris Osgood was still wearing his red goalie pads and pants from his previous hockey life in Detroit as the revamped Isles stormed to the NHL&rsquo;s best record and the fastest start in team history by securing 13 points (6-0-0-1) in their first seven games.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m trying to get rid of (the old equipment), but I just can&rsquo;t,&rdquo; Osgood said with a smile after his 20-save shutout win over Carolina Oct. 17.More than two weeks after being acquired in the waiver draft from the Red Wings, Osgood claimed his new equipment was still being broken in. A couple losses may make the new gear seem more attractive.Osgood started the season with five wins in his first six starts, including two shutouts and a 1.81 goals-against average. The only blemish on his ledger was a 5-4 overtime loss to the Red Wings Oct. 14, a game which the Isles led with 10 seconds remaining in regulation.POWER PLAY Led by three goals apiece by Alexei Yashin and Mark Parrish&ndash;and calm quarterbacking by Yashin, Roman Hamrlik and Adrian Aucoin&ndash;the Isles&rsquo; potent power play unit stood atop the NHL with a 27.3 per-cent success rate.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to criticize the referees. It&rsquo;s not an excuse, don&rsquo;t get me wrong. If we lose a game, it&rsquo;s because of us. But I think we don&rsquo;t get enough respect. I tell you, that&rsquo;s the bottom line. We&rsquo;ve got to earn our respect and I think we do earn it. We work so hard. But right now, it&rsquo;s just like they live in the past. &ldquo;-Center Claude Lapointe, suggesting referees are not giving the Islanders the respect they deserve.NOTEBOOK Center Michael Peca missed two games with a concussion suffered when Pittsburgh defenseman Mike Wilson leveled him Oct 12. Peca said it was the first concussion of his career. &ldquo;It was difficult to sit out, but I think you have to step back and look at the big picture,&rdquo; Peca said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a long season and something I don&rsquo;t want to risk.&rdquo;&hellip; Left winger Brad Isbister was dropped to the third line after being held without a goal through five games. Isbister then scored his first of the season Oct. 17 at Carolina. &#9632;

f0017-02

Osgood pads stats with Detroit gear

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Rick Carpiniello</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03721/7194986-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="227" height="249"></div>The New York Rangers&rsquo; most glaring question has begun to be answered in the positive.&ldquo;The goaltending, which is what we were really worried about walking into the season, has been stellar,&rdquo; said coach Ron Low. &ldquo;To me, if you get the kind of goaltending we&rsquo;ve gotten, you can win hockey games.&rdquo;A big part of the answer has been 18-year-old rookie Dan Blackburn, who has become the fourth-youngest goalie to start an NHL game and the third youngest to win one, got his first NHL win in the town. of his birth, Montreal. Blackburn beat the previously unbeaten Canadiens 2-1 Oct. 15.&ldquo;It was 10 minutes after I got off the ice until the smile went off my face for a second,&rdquo; said Blackburn, his uniform and pads still on.Blackburn&rsquo;s mom and a handful of other friends and relatives were in attendance. The victory was a rarity for the Rangers in that they were 3-62-10 the last two seasons when scoring two goals or fewer.&ldquo;He was excellent,&rdquo; Low said of Blackburn.PENALTY KILLING The Rangers&rsquo; penalty killers, who were 29th in the league last season, were back at 29th after six games this year. Their aggressive style, particularly when the puck goes behind the net or to the corners and sideboards, has repeatedly given opponents wide-open chances in front.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;m the one with the concussion problems. I can&rsquo;t go back that far. &ldquo;&mdash;Eric Lindros, when asked to compare a goal he scored against Martin Brodeur to a playoff goal he scored years ago.NOTEBOOK Center Mark Messier suffered an odd rib injury on an innocent collision with Ottawa center Mike Fisher Oct. 13. The injury occurred high on the left side of Messier&rsquo;s chest and he was short of breath and feeling stabbing pain. An MRI showed no break, however, and Messier was expected to miss only a few games&hellip; The Rangers waived right winger Michal Grosek for the second time, in order to activate defenseman Tomas Kloucek earlier than anticipated. Kloucek returned Oct. 17 from ACL surgery and a torn MCL suffered April 1&hellip; Grosek said he hoped to be picked up on waivers or to be traded and said if he wasn&rsquo;t moved he would consider playing in Europe next season. &#9632;

f0017-03

Blackburn proving he belongs in NHL

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Bruce Garrioch</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011350/7195017-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="222" height="245"></div>In a season he is supposed to be the man, Patrick Lalime has struggled.The Ottawa Senators&rsquo; No. 1 goalie didn&rsquo;t get off to the kind of start anybody expected and the result was the club&rsquo;s first record under. 500 after eight games since 1994-95.With their 3-0 loss to Pittsburgh Oct. 18, the Senators&rsquo; record fell to 3-5-0-0. Lalime isn&rsquo;t the only one to blame, but his early-season numbers (3.49 goals-against average., 874 save percentage) speak volumes.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough right now. That&rsquo;s for sure,&rdquo; Lalime said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s any time for panic. Things will turn around. You have to look at yourself in these types of situations. I know that I can play better than I have up to this point.&rdquo;One of Lalime&rsquo;s strengths is his ability to remain calm under pressure and he&rsquo;ll have to call on that trait now.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m trying not to worry about this right now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;This happens. I think I&rsquo;m just going through a rough stretch. Hopefully, I can get out of this and get back to doing my job for the team.&rdquo;Coach Jacques Martin would like to see improved play from Lalime, but isn&rsquo;t holding his goalie responsible for the team&rsquo;s poor start.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you can blame Lalime,&rdquo; Martin said. It&rsquo;s a team game and right now we&rsquo;re giving up more scoring chances than we usually give up.&rdquo;PENALTY KILLING Ranked third in penalty killing last season, the Senators were 25th overall in the league after the first eight games. &ldquo;I think what we&rsquo;re having right now is a problem with communication,&rdquo; said coach Jacques Martin. &ldquo;If we would have communicated a little better then we may have been able to prevent some of those goals against us.&rdquo;NOTEBOOK Defenseman Wade Redden breathed a sigh of relief when he learned his left foot wasn&rsquo;t broken after taking a shot from Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Stephane Richer Oct. 17. Though he left the arena on crutches, Redden was back on the ice the next day and suited up Oct. 18 against the Penguins at home&hellip; The Senators lost center Chris Herperger until at least late October with a groin injury&hellip; Rumors persist the Senators are going to trade left winger Magnus Arvedson to the Dallas Stars for center Joe Nieuwendyk. &#9632;

f0018-01

Goalie sings blues as Sens struggle

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Wayne Fish</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-021005/7195048-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="222" height="226"></div>Jeremy Roenick already felt bad enough his team had kicked away a 2-1 lead in the last 40 seconds.But when a veteran follower of Flyers&rsquo; history informed the newcomer an opportunity to win a game at Detroit for the first time in 13 years had been missed, he looked downright dejected.&ldquo;That just makes me feel sicker,&rdquo; he said after the game Oct. 18 at Joe Louis Arena.With two of the Flyers&rsquo; top three centers-Keith Primeau (strained knee) and Jiri Dopita (sprained knee)-sidelined, Roenick needed to step up. And he did, scoring one goal and assisting on another to give the Flyers the lead.But last-minute goals by Sergei Fedorov and Brett Hull ruined the bid. The last time the Flyers won in the Motor City, George Bush was just about to be elected U.S. president.Not George W. Just plain George.The date was Nov. 4,1988. Since then, the Flyers have gone 0-11-2, their longest active winless streak in an opponent&rsquo;s building. Toss in two losses in the 1997 Stanley Cup final and you can see why long-time Flyers are frustrated.&ldquo;We worked so hard and then with 40 seconds left, I don&rsquo;t know how much you want to call it a letdown, those two shots go in,&rdquo; Roenick said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s very, very frustrating.&rdquo;POWER PLAY With the addition of Roenick, Kim Johnsson and Eric Weinrich, the Flyers&rsquo; power play is supposed to be upgraded from last year&rsquo;s 19th-ranked unit. But Philadelphia was 0-for-15 with the man advantage on an early season road trip at one point and didn&rsquo;t snap out of it until a broken play wound up in a goal by journeyman center Marty Murray in Detroit. The Flyers&rsquo; biggest problem is their inability to maintain good puck movement and accurate passing once they set up in the offensive zone.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;Sixty-minute hockey game, we played great for 59:20. We just didn&rsquo;t get it done. That stings. It&rsquo;s tough to give up two in the last minute like that. &ldquo;-Goalie Brian Boucher, after the Flyers lost to the Red Wings in Detroit Oct. 18.NOTEBOOK In the Oct. 18 game at Detroit, center Marty Murray scored his first goal as a Flyer and first in the NHL since 1995 when he played for Calgary. &#9632;

f0018-02

Detroit hex still has hold on Flyers

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Bob McManaman</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03701/7195079-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="216" height="265"></div>Just two sweater numbers have been retired in the history of the Phoenix Coyotes&rsquo; franchise and both were hung up for good during the Winnipeg Jets&rsquo; era. One was Bobby Hull&rsquo;s No. 9, the 8 other Thomas Steen&rsquo;s No. 25.Neither jersey is visible at America West Arena and they probably won&rsquo;t be displayed at the team&rsquo;s new building when it opens in another three years, either. &ldquo;No. 27 will be up there someday, though,&rdquo; said Coyotes&rsquo; right winger Shane Doan, referring to the club&rsquo;s longtime defenseman and new captain Teppo Numminen.Numminen belongs, if not for his uncanny consistency, then certainly for his length of service. Now in his 14th season, the three-time All Star Game participant became the club&rsquo;s all-time, games played leader, passing the Swedish-born Steen by appearing in his 951st game Oct.17 in Dallas.&ldquo;I never thought I&rsquo;d stick around this long,&rdquo; said Numminen, 33. &ldquo;Back then, I think most Europeans thought that way, because a lot of them came over and (went) back home. But as the years went by, I knew I was going to make a career out of it.&ldquo;It would have been easy to leave, but I couldn&rsquo;t look myself in the mirror if I didn&rsquo;t finish what I started.&rdquo;POWER PLAY After six games, the Coyotes&rsquo; power play ranked fifth in the league at 19.4 percent, connecting seven times on 36 chances. Centers Daniel Briere (three goals) and Michal Handzus (four assists) were leading the way.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s frustrating. You can&rsquo;t put yourself in that position. You&rsquo;ve got to know that if (the refs) give them a four-minute penalty in overtime, (the refs) are going to be looking for something, anything, even if they have to make something up. That&rsquo;s just the way it is in this league. They even things up. You&rsquo;ve got to expect it, even if you don&rsquo;t like it. Right winger Shane Doan after being called for roughing in overtime against Boston moments after Phoenix was awarded a four-minute power play.NOTEBOOK Center Daymond Langkow scored his first career hat trick in Phoenix&rsquo;s 52 home opener against Washington Oct. 13&hellip; A day after taking five stitches in the lip during practice, left winger Todd Warriner suffered a stretched MCL in his right knee Oct. 9. &#9632;

f0018-03

Numminen sets games played mark

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Joe Starkey</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01922/7195110-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="224" height="251"></div>The Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; coaching change-Rick Kehoe replacing Ivan Hlinka-was hardly a traumatic one for the players.&ldquo;(Kehoe) was running the team anyway,&rdquo; said defenseman Darius Kasparaitis. &ldquo;He still does the same thing. It&rsquo;s not a big change.&rdquo;Indeed, Kehoe had been conducting the team meetings, running the practices and speaking to the team before games since last season. Hlinka, however, had the final say on lineup changes and systems. Nothing he did worked very well this season, as the Penguins matched their worst start ever at 0-4-0-0.&ldquo;Something had to be done,&rdquo; said GM Craig Patrick.One of Hlinka&rsquo;s main problems was his failure to communicate adequately with his team. He ignored management&rsquo;s request to take English classes over the summer and used videos and books-while living back in the Czech Republic-instead.Kehoe, 50, is the 20th head coach in Penguin history and the only man Patrick considered for the job. He was one of the best players in team history and still ranks third on the all-time Penguins&rsquo; list with 636 points.The Penguins started 2-0-0-0 under Kehoe. One of his main goals was to use more players and accentuate the defensive end. &ldquo;The rest will take care of itself,&rdquo; he said.POWER PLAY The power play got off to a dreadful 0-for-21 start before scoring twice in a victory over Ottawa Oct. 16. The main factor was Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s absence for two games with a hip flexor injury. Besides that, the Penguins, who continued to use five forwards until Alexei Kovalev got hurt, weren&rsquo;t getting enough point shots or traffic in front.NOTEBOOK Right winger Alexei Kovalev was expected to be out until at least early November following arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Kovalev had surgery for a torn ACL in the same knee in 1997 when he played for the Rangers. This surgery was designed to clean out the knee&hellip; Right winger Toby Petersen notched a hat trick in his first game next to center Mario Lemieux, a 5-2 win over Ottawa. That also was Rick Kehoe&rsquo;s first game as coach and Petersen was wearing Kehoe&rsquo;s old No. 17. &#9632;

f0023-01

Kehoe takes over I for fired Hlinka

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Ross McKeon</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02602/7195141-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="223" height="258"></div>Ever since Bob Suter won a gold medal as a member of the 1980 U.S. Miracle On Ice team, younger brother Gary Suter hasn&rsquo;t been able to hold a torch to the accomplishment.That is about to change-literally.Suter is set to carry the Olympic torch through San Jose&rsquo;s city streets Jan. 18, as the ceremonial flame makes its journey from the site of the last Olympics on American soil (Atlanta, 1996) to Salt Lake City.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great honor,&rdquo; said Suter, who appeared for the U.S. at the 1998 Games in Nagano. &ldquo;The torch is the symbol of the Olympics.&rdquo;From Dec. 4 until it reaches its destination during the opening ceremonies 65 days later on Feb. 8, the torch will be passed among approximately 11,500 American bearers and it will travel through 46 different states. The torchbearers will run, walk or choose some other mode of transportation to advance the flame two-tenths of a mile at a time.Suter is counting on sons Jacob and Jared to lend a hand.&ldquo;Hopefully my kids can help set the pace for two-tenths of a mile,&rdquo; Suter joked.POWER PLAY When the Sharks failed to score a power play goal in their first round playoff series loss to St. Louis, they knew something had to change this season. Through their first six games, the Sharks showed modest improvement, connecting 12.8 per cent of the time, but more importantly, they scored one power play goal in five of the games. Coach Darryl Sutter would like to see that pace maintained for the entire season. &ldquo;If we do that, we&rsquo;re going to have a great power play,&rdquo; Sutter said.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;m having a mid-life crisis. &ldquo;- Center Mike Ricci, on why he got an early-season haircut.NOTEBOOK Rookie defenseman Jeff Jillson had a four-game point-scoring streak (all assists) snapped in his sixth NHL game, Oct. 18 at New Jersey&hellip; The game-tying power play goal scored late in Minnesota Oct. 16, originally credited to center Mike Ricci, was changed the following day and given to defenseman Gary Suter. The goal left Suter three short of 200 for his career&hellip; After six games, right winger Owen Nolan was five points shy of Jeff Friesen&rsquo;s franchise-record 350 points. &#9632;

f0023-02

Olympian Suter to carry torch

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Derrick Goold</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-03424/7195172-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="222" height="234"></div>St. Louis locked up another piece of the power play with a long-term contract and made it possible for Al MacInnis-who has become synonymous with the team since coming over from Calgary in 1994- to finish his career with the Blues.MacInnis and the Blues finalized a two-year extension the weekend before Oct. 15, when they announced the veteran blueliner will remain in St. Louis through 2003-04. He will be approaching his 41st birthday when the contract expires.&ldquo;I believe in my heart I can do it,&rdquo; MacInnis said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m playing a lot of minutes, a lot of important minutes and I expect to do that in the next three years as well.&rdquo;The extension is worth a total of $14 million-$6 million the first year, $7 million the second, plus a $1-million signing bonus.&ldquo;Al is a much more complete player than people want to give him credit for,&rdquo; said GM Larry Pleau.POWER PLAY The Blues&rsquo; vaunted power play had gone through an 0-for-16 stretch when usual right winger Scott Young suffered back spasms in the first period against Toronto Oct. 13. No problem. Pavol Demitra came in and the power took flight. Over the next three periods, the power play was 3-for-8. Demitra had a goal and two assists in that stretch, including two points on the first two power plays against Dallas Oct. 17, to give him eight points in his first five games.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;Either let him score a goal or bury him? Guess you know what the answer is. &ldquo;- Defenseman Chris Pronger, on facing former teammate Pierre Turgeon, now with the Stars.NOTEBOOK Agitating wingers Tyson Nash and Jamal Mayers returned to the lineup in a 2-2 tie Oct. 17 against Dallas. Both Nash (abdominal and knee surgeries) and Mayers (groin) admitted to being rusty. &ldquo;It was one of those game where my timing wasn&rsquo;t there,&rdquo; Nash said. &ldquo;I would go to hit someone and I would be a few seconds early or a few seconds late.&rdquo; Both played just over 10 minutes&hellip; In St. Louis&rsquo; first five games, left winger Keith Tkachuk, center Doug Weight and center Pavol Demitra combined for 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists). The rest of the team, meanwhile, also combined for 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists). &#9632;

f0023-03

Maclnnis signs on for two more years

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Damian Cristodero</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-04299/7195203-1-eng-US/f0023-042.jpg" title="f0023-04" width="222" height="253"></div>The Tampa Bay Lightning will apparently be without prized draft choice Alexander Svitov until at least December, 2002.Assistant GM Jay Feaster said the team&rsquo;s attorneys in Russia have determined the No. 3 pick in the 2001 draft took the oath to join the army last December.&ldquo;If he&rsquo;s legally in the military, the two-year obligation must be served,&rdquo; Feaster said.However, Feaster said the situation has &ldquo;irregularities.&rdquo; He said it&rsquo;s not clear whether Svitov is playing for a military team or for a team in his hometown of Omsk, Siberia.Feaster questioned why, if Svitov was in the army, he did not serve before the International Ice Hockey Federation initially ruled he was eligible to play in the NHL.According to the IIHF&rsquo;s agreement with the NHL on player transfers from Europe, the only thing that trumps a signed contract is military service.Tampa Bay signed Svitov to a three-year, $3.6-million deal over the summer. The-Lightning have been trying to determine the validity of documents that show Svitov is in the service. Feaster said the IMF was rebuffed numerous times before the Russian federation provided the documents.POWER PLAY Through its first six games, the Lightning power play was 4-for-30 (13.3 per cent). That&rsquo;s better than the 12.5 per-cent mark of last season, but nowhere near what is expected from this year&rsquo;s group. The main problems are a lack of urgency and a tendency to overpass, trying to make the per-feet play, rather than just shooting the puck.NOTEBOOK When goalie Kevin Weekes shut out Los Angeles 1-0 Oct. 13, he became the first Tampa Bay net minder to get a shutout in his season debut&hellip; Tampa Bay won two straight games against Los Angeles and Anaheim-during the same road trip for the first time in nearly five years. &#9632;

f0023-04

Top selection Svitov owes army two years

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Ken Camnbell</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-06185/7195234-1-eng-US/f0023-062.jpg" title="f0023-06" width="774" height="1248"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-05228/7195241-1-eng-US/f0023-052.jpg" title="f0023-05" width="220" height="248"></div>The Toronto Maple Leafs have failed to re-sign goalie Curtis Joseph, but they did secure the man who will ultimately decide Joseph&rsquo;s fate.coach-GM Pat Quinn denied it, he has reached an agreement on a four-year contract extension that continues to make him the NHL&rsquo;s only coach-GM.The Toronto Sun reported Quinn and the team agreed on a three-year deal with an option for a fourth, which would take Quinn through 2005-06. Quinn is in the final year of a pact that pays him $1.5 million (U.S.). His new deal will reportedly pay him $2 million the first two years and $2.5 in the third and fourth years.POWER PLAY The Leafs&rsquo; power play was languishing near the bottom of the league with just three goals on 34 chances for an 8.8 per-cent success rate.Toronto boasts plenty of talent on the first and second units, but doesn&rsquo;t have a consistent threat on the point and tends to pass the puck around the perimeter too much.In a recent 5-on-3 power play that lasted 1:01, the Leafs made 24 passes and shot just twice.LOUD & CLEAR&nbsp;&ldquo;I&rsquo;d wake up in the middle of the night panicking-my heart pounding, tears in my eyes. I wouldn&rsquo;t know what to do. Left winger Shayne Corson, who disclosed that last season he suffered panic attacks brought on by colitis and ulcers.NOTEBOOK Left winger Shayne Corson, who talked of his panic attacks last season, had four goals in seven games, half last season&rsquo;s total&hellip; Restricted free agent defenseman Tomas Kaberle is threatening to spend the season in Europe. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got offers from Czech and other European teams. I still have hopes to be in Toronto soon, but they&rsquo;d better call I can&rsquo;t wait much longer.&rdquo; Leafs&rsquo; executive Bill Watters vowed the team would not move off its offer of $1.6 million per year for three years. Kaberle is looking for $2 million per season.IN THE ZONE Shayne Corson scored four goals in his first seven games this year after A netting just eight all of last season. &#9632;

f0023-06

Quinn wrapped up for the long-term

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Elliott Pap</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01999/7195272-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="223" height="257"></div>Canucks&rsquo; right winger Todd Bertuzzi always has carried around the label of being an undisciplined player, one who often acts before he thinks, one who lets emotion cloud his judgment.Bertuzzi gave his critics more ammo by jumping off the bench to join an altercation against the Colorado Avalanche Oct. 13, thus incurring an automatic 10-game suspension.Bertuzzi said he was coming to the aid of distressed teammate Ed Jovanovski as the latter was trading punches with Colorado enforcer Scott Parker during a wild melee.Referee Terry Gregson correctly noted Bertuzzi&rsquo;s sudden appearance and invoked Rule 72(c). The hulking winger will be on the sidelines until Nov. 6 and will forfeit almost $120,000 in salary. The Canucks also were fined $10,000.&ldquo;It was just a reaction, I didn&rsquo;t think about anything,&rdquo; Bertuzzi said. &ldquo;I reacted to seeing what was going on with Eddie Jo. I just wanted to get in there and correct it.&rdquo;The incident occurred with Vancouver leading 4-0 and less than seven minutes remaining in the third period. The Canucks&rsquo; Jarkko Ruutu sparked the near riot by kneeing Stephane Yelle. Earlier, Donald Brashear taunted Colorado after scoring on a breakaway and Bertuzzi gave Ville Nieminen a concussion with a high hit.PENALTY KILLING The Canucks continue to be haunted by poor penalty killing, their Achilles heel last season when they finished 25th in the league. In their first seven games this season, they surrendered six power play goals. For the most part the problem is up front, where Vancouver does not have one or two true defensive specialists who can win faceoffs, block shots and help deny entry into the offensive zone.LOUD & CLEAR &ldquo;I hope Peter has an excellent TV set so he can enjoy watching our games from wherever he is playing. Canucks&rsquo; GM Brian Burke bids farewell to restricted free agent Peter Schaefer, who signed with TPS Turku in Finland.NOTEBOOK Goalie Dan Cloutier recorded his first shutout as a Canuck when he stopped 22 shots in the 4-0 win over Colorado. It was just the second of his career&hellip; Defenseman Murray Baron&rsquo;s bruised left ankle turned out to have a small fracture and he will be out until November. Jason Strudwick has taken Baron&rsquo;s spot alongside Mattias Ohlund&hellip; Right winger Steve Kariya, who had eight points in four games with the AHL&rsquo;s Manitoba Moose, was called up to replace suspended right winger Todd Bertuzzi. &#9632;

f0024-01

Bertuzzi perpetuates ‘undisciplined’ label by coming off bench, getting 10-game ban

<div class="byline">By Kevin Oklobzija</div>If hockey ever decides to outlaw performance-enhancing supplements, Norm Maracle won&rsquo;t ever need to worry about a positive test.Running five miles a day or pumping iron is not on his daily itinerary. His summer fitness routine consists of calling the pro shop to make a tee time, then playing an 18-hole round of golf almost daily.Which is why his 5-foot-9,190-pound frame balloons by training camp. It&rsquo;s also why he briefly retired in August, thinking it would be better to get on with life instead of hearing Atlanta Thrashers&rsquo; management tell him he wasn&rsquo;t in shape to play goal in the NHL.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s my own fault, but I didn&rsquo;t want to come to camp and go out and prove I wasn&rsquo;t in the best shape,&rdquo; said Maracle, who has a 14-32-8 NHL record for Detroit and Atlanta. &ldquo;I just do a lot of golfing. It&rsquo;s a poor excuse, but I love golf.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01991/7195365-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="280" height="352"><figcaption class="caption-body">Norm Maracle</figcaption></div>That&rsquo;s why he told Atlanta GM Don Waddell he was finished and wasn&rsquo;t coming to camp. &ldquo;I thought I&rsquo;d go back to school and maybe become a cop,&rdquo; he said.Except he knew he was too good to quit, at 27, and coming off a Turner Cup championship for now-defunct Orlando of the IHL. He was the regular season and playoff MVP.&ldquo;I give credit to Waddell and I&rsquo;m thankful he was willing to let me come back and give it a go,&rdquo; said Maracle, who was his unbeatable self at the AHL level. He started 3-0-0 with a 1.33 GAA., 953 save percentage for Chicago with an opening-night shutout.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want to quit and I know I should be working out more,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;In the NHL, fitness is important and I realize I have to sacrifice my summer. Guys are trying to take my job and I&rsquo;m not young, I have to get my head out of my butt.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0026-01

Maracle in fine form, if not ship shape

<div class="byline">By Kevin Oklobzija</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02668/7195403-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="246" height="241"></div>Milwaukee Admirals&rsquo; goalie Chris Mason entered the American League record book without really doing anything.Mason was given credit for a goal when Utah center Jim Montgomery inadvertently shot the puck 170 feet down the ice into the Grizzlies&rsquo; vacated net during a delayed penalty.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d have preferred the (Ron) Hextall (method) where the net&rsquo;s empty and you saucer one over the defense,&rdquo; said Mason, a fifth-year pro. &ldquo;But when I get home this summer, that&rsquo;s what the story&rsquo;s going to be.&rdquo;Montgomery was trying to pass to point man Jon Sim, but was slashed at the time of his pass, causing the puck to zip between the point men and directly to his own net.&ldquo;I remember seeing it on (ESPN&rsquo;s) SportsCenter once and thinking, &lsquo;What kind of donkey puts it in his own net,&rsquo; &ldquo;Montgomery told the Salt Lake Tribune after Utah&rsquo;s 5-3 win. &ldquo;Now I&rsquo;m the jackass.&rdquo;Mason is the sixth goalie in AHL history credited with a goal and the second in three seasons to benefit from an opponent&rsquo;s errant pass. Christian Bronsard of Syracuse was the other in 1999-2000.GRAND CAREER To research the life and times of Philadelphia Phantoms&rsquo; center Mark Freer, do not consult the NHL&rsquo;s Official Guide & Record Book 2002.Seemingly every player in the NHL, AHL and much of the East Coast and major junior is listed, but Freer was omitted.&ldquo;They figured I must have retired,&rdquo; said Freer, 33.Retire? Not a chance.Freer was set to play his 1,000th pro regular season game Oct. 20, which includes 120 in the NHL with Philadelphia, Ottawa and Calgary; 409 in the AHL for Hershey and Philadelphia; and 469 in the International League for Houston.&ldquo;I played with Scott Arniel six &lsquo;years ago in Houston and he hit 1,000 and I thought, &rsquo;1,000 games, that&rsquo;s amazing,&rsquo; &ldquo;Freer said.Two AHLers are nearing 1,000 games: Rochester defenseman Doug Houda (979) and Chicago winger Steve Maltais (950).EASY SHUTOUT Mathieu Chouinard will never have an easier time in goal than he did Oct. 13. He faced just 12 shots from the travel-weary Hershey Bears as Grand Rapids won 2-0. The 12 shots were the fewest in a game in the 64-year history of Bears. Hershey spent 10 hours on the bus from Rochester after a 3-2 loss the night before.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03530/7195396-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="1324" height="1885"><figcaption class="caption-body">Philadelphia defenseman Jason Beckett is back for his second year with the Phantoms. He missed the first five games of the AHL season.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0026-02

Goalie gets gift goal with help of Monkey’

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04376/7195441-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="462" height="433"></div>CLEVELAND BARONS<h2>NHL AFFILIATION</h2>San Jose Sharks<h2>ARENA</h2>Gund Arena, cap. 10,231 Cleveland, Ohio.Tickets: 216-420-0000<h2>HISTORY</h2>Cleveland operated for 36 years in the AHL until joining the IHL in 1971-72. Cleveland returns to the AHL having won nine Calder Cups as the Barons.<h2>COACH</h2>Roy Sommer, 4th year<h2>GENERAL MANAGER</h2>Wayne Thomas, 6th year<h2>NOTABLE PROSPECTS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05275/7195434-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="442" height="192"></div><h2>2001-02</h2>Cheechoo is the young gunner, but Hyvonen and Prpic offer veteran depth for emergency recall. &#9632;

f0026-04

AHL TEAM PROFILE 2 of 27

<div class="byline">By Rob Mueller</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-06226/7195472-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="202" height="212"></div>The Charlotte Checkers are poised to relo cate after this season, but East Coast League officials vow the league&rsquo;s largest market will not go without hockey.Owners Ray Woolridge and George Shinn, who also are part owners of the city&rsquo;s NBA and WNBA franchises, backed out of a five-year lease to play at Cricket Arena. The partners are posturing to relo cate all three teams, possibly to Norfolk, Va., or Louisville, Ky., after this season.The Checkers continue to draw well after nine seasons in the ECHL. Their home opener drew 7,407 and they had nine crowds of more than 6,000 last season&ndash;the most in four years.Greenville Grrrowl owner Carl Scheer told the Charlotte Observer he&rsquo;d be interested in placing a team in Charlotte if the Checkers leave.CLEAN SLATE Former Ottawa 67&rsquo;s grinder Lance Galbraith hopes to get his career and life back on track in Augusta.The 21-year-old Brampton, Ont., native is standing trial in an Ottawa court for sexual assault involving a 21-year-old woman in April, 2000. He joined the Lynx Oct. 12 when the trial was adjourned after three days. The case is slated to resume Nov. 15.&ldquo;It has been tough to put a smile on my face and the toughest thing is there is no truth to the story,&rdquo; Galbraith said.EN FUEGO The expansion Columbia Inferno got off to a 30-0 start, including a 3-2 win over Kelly Cup champion South Carolina in their Oct. 12 franchise home opener.Atlantic City&rsquo;s return to pro hockey after 49 years also was successful, as the Boardwalk Bullies beat Wheeling 3-2 before 6,127 fans at Boardwalk Hall Oct. 12.COAST LINES Mississippi goalie Chuck Thuss retired Oct. 9 after six pro seasons and will serve as the team&rsquo;s director of player development. Thuss, 29, also owns a successful hockey equipment company, Southern Sports Supply, in Mobile&hellip; The Baton Rouge Kingfish released 35-year-old forward Bill McDougall. McDougall, the ECHL MVP in 1989-90 after an 80-goal season for Erie, was attempting a comeback. &#9632;

f0026-06

Charlotte owners aspire to move Checkers

<div class="byline">By Tim Campbell</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01940/7195534-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="252" height="251"></div>With the Ottawa Senators&rsquo; acknowledgment that they are seeking to unload their dormant American League franchise, AHL president Dave Andrews said he&rsquo;s ready for the next round of expansion.&ldquo;The league is ready and: apable of (being) a 30-team league,&rdquo; Andrews said. &ldquo;I think our board of governors sees that as the logical conclusion of expansion, that 30 makes sense.&rdquo;Andrews said he expects interest in the subject to rise in the new year and that Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Anaheim and Detroit-NHL teams in sharing situations in the AHL-would have to commit to exclusive affiliations for any changes to start. Ideally, each of the 30 NHL teams would have an exclusive farm team in the AHL.Expansion would be focused on the west, where the AHL this year moved into markets in Salt Lake City, Chicago, Milwaukee, Houston and Winnipeg.&ldquo;We need to be in the right markets,&rdquo; Andrews said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re lot jumping to 30 for the sake of jumping to 30. Further expansion prioritizes the west, with the idea of providing strong markets, strong rivals and some assistance with respect to travel for teams in the west in order to get some of the same advantages the teams in the east have.&rdquo;Las Vegas, Omaha, Kansas City and Indianapolis are possible new cities according to media reports.The Senators, meanwhile, hired former IHL president Doug Moss to explore their options for a sale of the former P.E.I. franchise.Ottawa is affiliated with Grand Rapids, but that deal ends after next season.DANDY RANDY Center Randy Robitaille continues to show he&rsquo;s an elite player at the minor-pro level.A late demotion from the Los Angeles Kings, the 1998-99 AHL scoring champ with Providence had five points in two games with expansion Manchester.Robitaille spent half of last season with Nashville.NOTEBOOK Bridgeport goalie Dusan Salficky shut out Albany 2-0 Oct. 14 in his first North American start. Salficky, 29, is from the Czech Republic&hellip; Albany defenseman Josef Boumedienne scored on his first NHL shot, Oct 6 for New Jersey against Washington, but was back with the River Rats when Brian Rafalski returned to the Devils&rsquo; lineup.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02600/7195527-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="1331" height="1899"><figcaption class="caption-body">Defenseman Josef Boumedienne scored the first goal of the season for New Jersey, but was assigned to Albany before the next Devils&rsquo; game.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0027-01

Expansion to 30 next logical move

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03398/7195572-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="350" height="472"><figcaption class="caption-body">Artem Chubarov</figcaption></div><h2>VITAL STATISTICS</h2>Bom: Gorky, Russia Age: 21. Size: 6-1,189<h2>LAST AMATEUR CLUB</h2>Torpedo Nizhny (Rus.)<h2>POSITION</h2>Center<h2>2001-02 SEASON</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-04271/7195565-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="368" height="113"></div>Manitoba MOOSE<h2>NHL AFFILIATION</h2>Vancouver Canucks<h2>NOTEWORTHY</h2>Drafted 31st overall by Vancouver in 1998&hellip; Scored one goal in 49 games as a 19-year-old NHL rookie in 1999-2000&hellip; Has battled various injuries past two seasons, playing just 74 games.<h2>BOTTOM LINE</h2>Chubarov is a solid citizen with good all-around skills and a willingness to learn. He doesn&rsquo;t excel in any one facet of the game, so he&rsquo;s best suited as a third or fourth-line role player. Durability and offense are his NHL shortcomings. &#9632;

f0027-03

AHL SCOUTING REPORT

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Brendan Savage</div>The Flint Generals pulled a United League shocker when they released forwards Kevin Kerr and Kahlil Thomas two days before the season. The Generals had seven veterans and UHL rules permit teams to dress only six per game. By releasing Kerr and Thomas, the Generals opened a spot to sign defenseman Nick Stajduhar. Kerr, 34, was entering his 15th season. Thomas, who has played in Flint for five seasons, was Flint&rsquo;s MVP last season. The 25-year-old reportedly will sign with Memphis of the Central League. Kerr, who is 77 goals shy of breaking Scott Gruhl&rsquo;s all-time record for goals by a minor-leaguer (663), was still mulling his options. Kerr is one of 10 minor leaguers with at least 500 goals and 1,000 points. &#9632;

UNITED LEAGUE

<div class="byline">&#x2013;Don Ruiz</div>The West Coast League has signed a deal with the NHL that will see NHL-contracted officials working five to seven WCHL games per month this season. Under the agreement, some senior WCHL officials also will be assigned to work games in the American League to gain experience at a higher level of professional hockey. &ldquo;We are very enthusiastic to work with the NHL this season,&rdquo; said Adam Keller, WCHL vice-president of hockey operations. &ldquo;These officials bring their experience from the AHL and that combined with the experienced officials we currently have in the WCHL, will add to the overall quality of officiating.&rdquo;&hellip; The WCHL is the last of the secondary pro leagues to end the regular season: April 7. &#9632;

WEST COAST LEAGUE

<div class="byline">&#x2013;David Henry</div>Jesus Aleman is the first Mexican trained player to sign a hockey training camp agreement. The 5-foot-8, 165-pounder signed a tryout deal with the Central League&rsquo;s El Paso Buzzards. Aleman was discovered by Cory Herman, a sales executive and former player for the Buzzards, who conducts annual camps in El Paso and Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. Herman spotted the 21-year-old right winger in Ciudad Juarez and offered him a CHL tryout. El Paso coach Trent Eigner deemed Aleman a project. &ldquo;One way or the other, he&rsquo;ll be a better player for it,&rdquo; Eigner said. Aleman started skating at 14 at a local mall rink, one-third the size of arena ice. He once scored eight goals in an amateur game in El Paso, but has never skated against pro players. &#9632;

CENTRAL LEAGUE

<div class="byline">By Jim Cressman</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01980/7195675-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="399" height="220"></div>The Kitchener Rangers have won the first battle to keep Petr Kanko in North America.The Rangers received a ruling in a Toronto court Oct. 12 squashing an injunc tion Sparta Prague was seeking against the Ontario League team. The Rangers selected the highly rated 17-year-old right winger in the Canadian Hockey League import draft in the off-season.Rangers coach-GM Peter DeBoer said the Czech Federation, through the International Ice Hockey Federation, granted two 15-day tryout releases for Kanko while the team worked out final details of his transfer. But, during the second 15-day release, Sparta Prague went to court in Toronto asking that Kanko be returned because he&rsquo;s under contract there.The Rangers countered with their own legal action.&ldquo;The court granted the kid an injunction, denying anyone from stopping him from playing until the matter is taken fur ther,&rdquo; DeBoer said. &ldquo;The Toronto judge said the validity of the contract would have to be decided in a Kitchener court.&rdquo;The second 15-day release expired, but OHL director of hockey operations Ted Baker said Kanko will be allowed to continue playing because of the court&rsquo;s ruling.&ldquo;The OHL cannot intervene. It&rsquo;s out of our hands,&rdquo; Baker said.The Czech Federation said it will continue to pursue the matter through the IIHF and the Canadian Hockey Association.&ldquo;We acknowledge Sparta&rsquo;s request to defend against Kanko&rsquo;s departure using legal means,&rdquo; said Czech Extraleague executive director Stanislav Sulc to Faceoff, com. &ldquo;Kanko&rsquo;s contract with the club is still valid and he left for overseas without the club&rsquo;s agreement.&rdquo;Kanko was leading the Rangers with two goals and 11 points in 10 games.HANDS-ON OWNER Belleville Bulls&rsquo; owner Dr. Robert Vaughan was pressed into action when Barrie Colts&rsquo; goalie David Chant collapsed during the third period of game in Belleville Oct. 10. Vaughan went on the ice to check out Chant, who was removed on a stretcher and later examined at hospital and released. He underwent further testing in Barrie, but doctors were not able to determine what caused his collapse.Team spokesman Jason Ford said doctors said it could have been dehydration Chant, 20, doesn&rsquo;t drink water before or during games. Chant, who was 4-1-1 wit 2.16 goals-against average and. 930 save percentage, said it was one of his super tions not to drink water. &ldquo;I guess I&rsquo;ll ha to change that,&rdquo; he said.GENERAL DISCONTENT The Oshawa Generals are threatening to leave town i the city doesn&rsquo;t proceed with proposed upgrades to the Civic Auditorium. City manager John Brown issued a reporter ommending the city scrap plans for a $2 million arena expansion, instead spendi only $6 million.&ldquo;I realize I&rsquo;m asking for tax dollars for improvements for a private business, but we need a new or improved facility to kee the team in Oshawa,&rdquo; said Generals&rsquo; own John Humphreys. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been dancing for a long time. I&rsquo;d like a clear &lsquo;yes&rsquo; or &lsquo;no and then I can plan my own fate.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0028-01

Rangers claim first round of court battle

<div class="byline">By Willy Palov</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02654/7195706-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="399" height="291"></div>Norm Gosselin felt like he had no other choice.The Sherbrooke Castors&rsquo; GM fired coach Joe Canale after the team won just one of its first 11 games and fell to last place overall in the Quebec League standings.&ldquo;The situation was that we were 1-9-1 and something had to be done,&rdquo; Gosselin said. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t play well the last three games so I didn&rsquo;t see any solution coming directly from the players, so I had to fire my coach. It wasn&rsquo;t because he wasn&rsquo;t a good coach because he proved lots of times before what he could do.&rdquo;Canale is fifth in league history in career games coached with 682 and sixth overall in victories with 318. His other QMJHL stops were in Shawinigan, Chicoutimi, Beauport and Laval. He has also coached Sarnia of the Ontario League and Medicine Hat of the Western League.In 1993-94, Canale coached Team Canada to a gold medal at the world junior championship in the Czech Republic.But despite his impressive resume, Canale no longer had the attention of the Sherbrooke players.&ldquo;They don&rsquo;t believe in themselves right now so we had to do something about those doubts,&rdquo; Gosselin said. &ldquo;Every time they touched the puck you could see they were too nervous to be able to do good things.&rdquo;The Castors desperately need a winning season to win over the lukewarm Sherbrooke fans and the brutal start was unacceptable.Assistant coach Pierre Cliche takes over from Canale on an interim basis, but Gosselin said he plans to bring in a new coach from outside the organization.HEADED FOR THE HALL. Ray Bourque leads the latest class of inductees into the QMJHL Hall of Fame. The former NHL star with Boston and Colorado will join former players Jacques Locas Jr. and Sylvain Locas and coach Ghislain Delage at induction ceremonies in February.Bourque played with Sorel and Verdun from 1976 to 1979, collecting 220 points in 204 games before the Bruins took him eighth overall in the 1979 NHL draft.Locas Jr. played for the St-Jerome Alouettes (1969-70) and the Quebec Remparts (1970-74), winning the Memorial Cup in 1971. He led the league in scoring in 1972-73 with 68 goals and boosted that total to 99 in 1973-74.He finished his QMJHL career with 269 goals. Only Mike Bossy (309), Stephan Lebeau (281) and Normand Dupont (278) scored more.Sylvain Locas played for the Chicoutimi Sagueneens (1974-77) and the Sherbrooke Castors (1977-78.)Delage had a distinguished coaching career with St-Jerome (1969-70), Sorel (19701972) and Sherbrooke (1972-81).DOUBLE DEFEAT The Shawinigan Cataractes lost two games in a row for the first time in almost two years.The Cataractes suffered back-to-back 3-2 setbacks at the hands of the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and Halifax Mooseheads Oct. 13 and 14, ending their streak at 103 games.The last time Shawinigan lost two games in a row was Jan. 2021, 2000. &#9632;

f0028-02

Castors axe Canale after horrible start

The Canadian Hockey League has adopted the fast faceoff rule for the remainder of the regular season.Ted Baker, the Ontario League&rsquo;s director of hockey operations and referee-in-chief, said the OHL saw the average length of games decrease by 17 minutes, from two hours and 37 minutes to two hours and 20 minutes during a trial period.In the OHL and Quebec League, the visiting team has five seconds to make its line change during a stoppage in play. The home team has eight seconds to respond. The linesman then signals the players they have five seconds to prepare for the faceoff. The puck is then dropped, ready or not.The home team will also be allowed one 45-second in-arena promotional activity timeout per period.The Western League will only give the home team five seconds to make its change and hasn&rsquo;t adopted the 45-second promotional timeout. &#9632;

Quick on the draw

<div class="byline">By Rob Vanstone</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03468/7195761-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="371" height="276"></div>Chuck Kobasew is happy to be in the Western League, even though he could have played in the NHL this year.The right winger was poised to begin the season with the Calgary Flames, only to join the Kelowna Rockets when NHL contract talks stalled.&ldquo;I was disappointed at first, because it&rsquo;s everybody&rsquo;s dream to play in the NHL,&rdquo; said the 19-year-old Kobasew, whom Calgary picked 14th overall in the 2001 draft. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s still a lot of time left.&rdquo;Kobasew had five goals in six NHL preseason games. He kept on scoring in the WHL, notching seven goals in his first five games with Kelowna.He spent last season at Boston College, recording 27 goals and 49 points in 43Hockey East games, but decided to leave Boston College during the summer.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a lot closer to home than I was last year,&rdquo; said Kobasew, who hails from Osoyoos, B.C. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s nice to be here. I wanted to play more games and play a different style of hockey and have a chance at Calgary&rsquo;s camp.&rdquo;STILL WAITING The Saskatoon Blades were exercising patience as they awaited the arrival of center Adrian Foster. Foster, 19, remained with the New Jersey Devils to begin the NHL season.Foster has been recovering from torn abdominal muscles, which restricted him to 12 points and 12 games over the past two WHL seasons. Undeterred, New Jersey picked Foster in the first round (28th overall) of the 2001 draft.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s signed and they&rsquo;re going to kee him there until they deem him to be 10 (per cent,&rdquo; said Blades&rsquo; GM Brent McEwen. &ldquo;That could be anywhere from two weeks to two months.&ldquo;From our standpoint, that&rsquo;s fine. He&rsquo; practising with them and he&rsquo;s feeling really good.&rdquo;FINE TIME The Seattle Thunderbirds received most of the punishment following an Oct. 7 brawl against the host Lethbridge Hurricanes.The T-Birds were fined $1,000 by the WHL, which suspended left winger Robin Gomez for four games for coming on to the ice during a line change to start the melee.Seattle right winger Stephen Goertzen got two games for instigating and T Birds&rsquo; defenseman Craig Olynick received one game for taking an elbowing major. Seattle coach Dean Chynoweth was suspended one game for the actions of his players.Lethbridge was fined $500 and lost defenseman Simon Ferguson for one game due to his participation in the fracas.NOTEBOOK The Moose Jaw Warriors and Medicine Hat Tigers swapped third year WHL goaltenders Oct. 12. Moose Jaw obtained Kyle Kettles, 20, for Sean Connors, 19. Kettles had a 5.03 goals-against average at the time of the deal. Connors had a 4.32 GAA and one shutou Kettles made 28 saves to blank Saskatoo 1-0 in his Moose Jaw debut Oct. 14&hellip; Ken Davis&rsquo; first five-goal game in the WHL led the Prince George Cougars to a 10-4 win over the host Calgary Hitmen Oct. 14. The outburst gave the Calgary-born Davis seven goals-along with one assis-in 11 games this season. &#9632;

f0028-03

Near-Flame Kobasev top sniper in Kelowiu

<div class="byline">By Paul Harris</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01867/7195792-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="380" height="230"></div>Picked to finish last by the media in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks were off to a surprising 3-1-0 start.Alaska-Fairbanks swept Air Force to open the season, then split a pair of frames with Western Michigan.I Much of the production has come from a sophomore class that coach Guy Gadowsky said gained plenty of experience last season. The Nanooks vere 7-14-7 and tied for ninth.&ldquo;We made strides last year,&rdquo; Gadowsky said.Six-foot, three 225-pound sophomore left winger Cam Keith had two goals and seven points through four games, while sophomore center Ryan Lang had three goals and six points and freshman defenseman Felipe Larranaga a goal and five points.Other contributors were senior defenseman Daniel Carriere, who had two goals and seven points, along with junior center Blaine Bablitz and freshman center Jared Sylvestre, each with three goals and five points.Junior goalie Lance. Mayes was 2-1) with a 2.98 goals-against average and 883 save percentage.DRAFT WATCH Though slightly built at 6-feet and 175 pounds, Michigan State freshman center Jim Slater mows his way in heavy traffic.Slater demonstrated his skills by scoring two goals and six points in his first three games. The native of Lapeer, Mich., showed great poise in scoring the game-tying goal in the last minute of his collegiate debut against Michigan Oct. 6.The game was played outdoors before a crowd of more than 74,000 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing and an international television audience. It was the largest crowd ever to attend a hockey game.Not bad for a young man who doesn&rsquo;t turn 19 until Dec. 9. Slater is the 44th-rated prospect for the 2002 NHL entry draft by Red Line Report.SPOTLIGHT Selected the fourth best team in U.S. college hockey by The Hockey News, Michigan was only 1-1-1 after losing the championship game of the Maverick Stampede, which was held in Omaha, Neb., 3-2 to Minnesota-Duluth. The Wolverines defeated Providence 6-3 in the semifinal game.NOTEBOOK Michigan State coach Ron Mason will be the first college coach to reach 900 wins. He had 899 entering Oct. 19-20 games&hellip; After being bombed by a total of 11-1 by Michigan State in two losses, Lake Superior State has been outscored 23-1 in five games at Munn Arena dating back to March 12,1999. &#9632;

f0029-01

Nanooks making media ‘experts’ look like novices

<div class="byline">By Larry Mahoney</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02559/7195823-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="395" height="233"></div>Returning to Hockey East action was a welcome return to the routine for the Maine Black Bears and coach Tim Whitehead.Whitehead, 40, made his debut as interim coach at Maine during the IceBreaker Cup tournament at home in Orono Oct. 12-13. He&rsquo;s replacing Shawn Walsh, who died of complications from kidney cancer Sept. 24. Walsh coached at Maine for 17 years.&ldquo;Friday night felt fantastic,&rdquo; said Whitehead, who was an assistant at Maine in 1990-91. &ldquo;It was exciting to start playing hockey again. The ovation I received was great.&rdquo;Whitehead compiled a 76-95-12 coaching record at UMass-Lowell.The Bears beat Bowling Green 9-1 before losing 6-2 to St. Cloud State.A bright spot for Maine was British national team right winger Colin Shields, who had three goals and four points to earn all-tournament team honors as well as Hockey East rookie of the week accolades.The Glasgow, Scotland native is a sophomore, who had to redshirt a year ago because he took a full class load for the first semester at a community college in Cleveland the previous year. That made him a transfer student in the eyes of the NCAA, so he had to sit out one season.ANALYSIS One of the primary factors in Boston University&rsquo;s uncharacteristic 14-20-3 season in 2000-01 was the poor health of defenseman Freddy Meyer. Meyer had off-season back surgery in 2000, which hampered him early in the season, then sustained a knee injury The 5-foot-10,190-pounder is highly skilled, fearless and inspirational. He had 19 points in 28 games last season and will be a key to a Terrier resurgence, if he reduces his penalty minutes.SPOTLIGHT Merrimack sophomore defenseman Greg Lauze notched his first three career goals in a season-opening 7-5 win over Miami-Ohio Oct. 12. The Warriors have plenty of weapons up front and production from the defense corps could make them even more dangerous. Lauze had just three assists in 31 games last season.NOTEBOOK New Hampshire coach Dick Umile reached the 250-win plateau when his team beat Vermont 7-1 Oct. 13. Boston University&rsquo;s Jack Parker and Boston College&rsquo;s Jerry York are the other Hockey East coaches with at least 250 wins&hellip; Boston College&rsquo;s power play went 8-for-17 in the first three games. &#9632;

f0029-02

British national team star helps Maine win opener with new coach Whitehead

<div class="byline">By Tom Boggie</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03364/7195854-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="393" height="230"></div>Union coach Kevin Sneddon is a nonconformist.While everyone else in the league is looking for bigger players, Sneddon is heading in the other direction.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve moving toward guys who can skate and move around out there,&rdquo; said Sneddon, in his fourth season at Union. &ldquo;We might run into trouble against some of the bigger and stronger teams, but speed can be a dangerous thing out there.&rdquo;Nowhere is Sneddon&rsquo;s new philosophy more apparent than on defense. Only one of Union&rsquo;s regular defensemen is more than 6-feet tall. In fact, one of the most promising rookie blueliners, Matt Vagvolgyi, is just 5-foot-9 and weighs 175 pounds.But what the Skating Dutchmen lack in size, they make up in experience. The defense is led by senior Charlie Simard and junior Randy Dagenais, who tied for the team lead in assists, with 14, last season.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve added a couple of dynamic freshmen, but you&rsquo;ve got to have experience, especially back there,&rdquo; Sneddon said.Dagenais could be in for a breakthrough season. After scoring three goals in 31 games last year, he had two-including the winner in the second game-as Union opened its season with a two-game sweep at Notre Dame.SPOTLIGHT St. Lawrence freshman goalie Mike McKenna is among the best puck-handling netminders ever to play in the Eastern College Athletic Conference.McKenna, a 6-foot-4, 210-pounder from Manchester, Mo., actually scored a goal and added three assists last season in 48 games with the St. Louis Junior Blues.He made his debut with the Saints Oct. 13, making 38 saves in a 4-1 loss to Michigan Tech.ANALYSIS If the first weekend of the season is any indication, Union&rsquo;s penalty-killing unit is vastly improved. Last year, the Dutchmen had only a 78 per cent success rate killing penalties. But in the two-game series against Notre Dame, Union blanked the Irish on 15 of 16 power-play opportunities.NOTEBOOK Highly touted freshman Jay LaTulippe scored his first career goal for Clarkson in the Golden Knights&rsquo; 2-1 shootout loss to Bowling Green in the consolation game of the IceBreaker tournament&hellip; RPI junior left winger Marc Cavosie opened the season with a hat trick in a 6-5 loss to Boston University&hellip; On the first weekend of the season, ECAC teams went 2-5-1, with Union getting the only victories. &#9632;

f0029-03

Sneddon puts priority on team speed as Union aims at ECAC championship

<div class="byline">By Andy Baggot</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04251/7195885-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="393" height="233"></div>Most sequels tend to disappoint, but Wisconsin coach Jeff Sauer believes he could make a mega-hit production even better.Sauer was on hand Oct. 6 when 74,554 fans crammed into Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich., to see Central Collegiate Hockey Association rivals Michigan and Michigan State skate to a 3-3 tie. The unique outdoor affair set a world record for the largest crowd ever to attend a hockey game.&ldquo;I just wish I would have had the idea,&rdquo; Sauer said.The Badgers&rsquo; mentor thinks he can reprise the concept and break the attendance record in the process.&ldquo;It certainly could be done in Camp Randall Stadium,&rdquo; he said, referring the 76,634-seat facility where the football Badgers play.Sauer said he has broached the idea with Minnesota coach Don Lucia, but the earliest such an event could be held is 2003-2004 because the WCHA schedule for next year already has been drawn up. The schools are set to meet in December.It probably would take more than a hockey game to push the attendance to 75,000 and beyond-like a concert in conjunction with the event-but Sauer is willing to give it a try.SPOTLIGHT WCHA teams opened the season with a bang Oct. 12-13, compiling a cumulative record of 10-1-1 against some premier programs.St. Cloud State beat Clarkson and Maine to win the Icebreaker Cup in Orono, Me., Minnesota-Duluth won the Maverick Stampede title by knocking off host Nebraska-Omaha and Michigan, while Denver defeated defending NCAA champion Boston College and Northeastern in the Frontier Classic at Anchorage, Alaska.Also, Michigan Tech swept a seasonopening series for the first time since 1994 by taking two games from St. Lawrence.DRAFT WATCH Minnesota freshman goalie Travis Weber, ranked 133rd for the 2002 NHL entry draft by the Red Line Report, got his first collegiate win despite not getting the start. Weber replaced Adam Hauser to start the second period and stopped 13 of 14 shots as the Gophers handed North Dakota a 7-5 loss in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame game Oct. 5.NOTEBOOK St. Cloud State goalies Dean Weasler and Jake Moreland both recorded wins and assists as the Huskies claimed the Icebreaker title&hellip; Before erasing a two-goal, third-period deficit against North Dakota Oct. 5 and claiming a 7-5 win, Minnesota had only one victory in the last 46 games (1-40-5) in which it trailed entering the final period. &#9632;

f0029-04

Wisconsin coach eager to smash attendance mark

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0030-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01979/7195937-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01900/7195930-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="3159" height="3643"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01962/7195923-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="3149" height="3653"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01869/7195916-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="3144" height="3658"></div> &#9632;

f0030-01

HOCKEY’S BEST STATS

2001-02 NHL STATISTICS

NOTEUnofficial game summaries provided by National Hockey League; (shots on goal/plus-minus); SA-shots against; GA-goals against; ENG-empty net goals; Dec-decision, charges to goaltenders of record when winning goal is scored. Oct. 4 summaries appear because they were unavailable until this week.<h2>THURSDAY, OCT. 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01979/7196129-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="539" height="3174"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02671/7196122-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="543" height="3547"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03525/7196115-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="537" height="2851"></div><h2>FRIDAY, OCT. 12</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04408/7196108-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="509" height="624"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-05329/7196101-1-eng-US/f0034-052.jpg" title="f0034-05" width="543" height="3543"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-06293/7196094-1-eng-US/f0034-062.jpg" title="f0034-06" width="507" height="217"></div><h2>SATURDAY, OCT. 13</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-07268/7196087-1-eng-US/f0034-072.jpg" title="f0034-07" width="534" height="3264"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-08244/7196080-1-eng-US/f0034-082.jpg" title="f0034-08" width="532" height="3551"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01923/7196073-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="553" height="3556"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02650/7196066-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="547" height="3242"></div><h2>SUNDAY, OCT. 14</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03529/7196059-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="506" height="241"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04423/7196052-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="545" height="3553"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05355/7196045-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="515" height="780"></div><h2>MONDAY, OCT. 15</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06323/7196038-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="510" height="1014"></div><h2>TUESDAY, OCT. 16</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07298/7196031-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="518" height="1608"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-08267/7196024-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="541" height="3548"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-09242/7196017-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="553" height="3553"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01886/7196010-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="535" height="2613"></div><h2>WEDNESDAY, OCT. 17</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02594/7196003-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="528" height="2528"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03489/7195996-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="519" height="1991"></div><h2>THURSDAY, OCT. 18</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04371/7195989-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="505" height="548"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05312/7195982-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="528" height="2611"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-06270/7195975-1-eng-US/f0036-062.jpg" title="f0036-06" width="534" height="2616"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-07248/7195968-1-eng-US/f0036-072.jpg" title="f0036-07" width="532" height="2615"></div> &#9632;

f0034-01

NHL GAME SUMMARIES

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01792/7196160-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0037-01

NHL TRANSACTIONS & SCOREBOARD

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01814/7196198-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="250" height="378"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Brophy&nbsp;Senior Writer</figcaption></div>The goalie of the future for the St. Louis Blues sits in his dressing room stall, dripping sweat after a game-day skate in Toronto.Brent Johnson has been given the night off. The 24-year-old sophomore is coming off a couple of stinkers, a pair of games in which the Blues lost after surrendering third period leads. St.Louis, in fact, won just once in their first five games, a slow start by the team many have picked to win the Stanley Cup.The Blues gave up four goals in the final 20 minutes of an embarrassing 6-5 loss to Los Angeles Oct. 11. Johnson, the man expected to grab the No. 1 job after Roman Turek was traded to Calgary in the off-season, allowed four goals on 20 shots in the third. So Fred Brathwaite gets to play while Johnson is relegated to door duty on the bench.But that doesn&rsquo;t deter the Farmington, Mich., native. Nor does the fact Turek opened the year with back-to-back shutouts with Calgary. Nor do Johnson&rsquo;s inflated 4.35 goals-against average or deflated. 842 save percentage.&ldquo;Everybody wants us to do poorly so they can say the Blues made the wrong decision (trading Turek),&rdquo; Johnson says. &ldquo;But you know what, that doesn&rsquo;t bother us. It doesn&rsquo;t bother me. A lot of people have doubts about our goaltending and about what I can do. I want to do well so I can stick it in those people&rsquo;s faces. The worst thing I can do at this point in the season is put undue pressure on myself.&rdquo; That won&rsquo;t be necessary. The pressure of playing goal for a team that is expected to challenge for the championship is inherent. Johnson knows if he doesn&rsquo;t make his mark in a hurry, there will be huge pressure on Blues&rsquo; management to get somebody who can.St. Louis has spent a bundle the past few years, adding veteran skaters such as Dallas Drake, Sean Hill, Doug Weight, Keith Tkachuk, Scott Mellanby and Mike Keane. It doesn&rsquo;t make sense&ndash;or cents&ndash;to allow goaltending to undermine the club&rsquo;s Stanley Cup chances.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02536/7196191-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="1500" height="1339"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brent Johnson says he&rsquo;s up to the challenge, but won&rsquo;t put undue pressure on himself.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;I think when people look at our team, they say&hellip; if you&rsquo;re looking for a weakness, an area where you can exploit the Blues, it&rsquo;s their goaltending,&rdquo; said defenseman Al MacInnis. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s other people&rsquo;s opinion. It&rsquo;s not how we feel. Obviously people are skeptical about our goaltending, but if Johnson can prove he&rsquo;s the guy, or if it&rsquo;s Freddie, then we&rsquo;re fine.&rdquo;Goaltending has been the Blues&rsquo; Achilles&rsquo; heel the past two years. St. Louis won the Presidents&rsquo; Trophy two years ago, but were bounced in the first round largely because of Turek&rsquo;s inept play. Last year, the Blues won a pair of playoff rounds on the strength of Turek&rsquo;s brilliance, especially in the second round against Dallas, but he struggled in the Western Conference final against Colorado and ultimately asked to be traded.The Blues elected to go with Johnson and Brathwaite, 29, after failing to land Dominik Hasek from Buffalo this summer. Brathwaite has decent credentials, including a. 500 record (51-51-24) with a Calgary team that was 24 games under. 500 in his three years there. But it&rsquo;s still a long shot to believe he can win the No. 1 job and lead the Blues to success.No, the starting job is Johnson&rsquo;s to lose. Following three years in the American League, he put up an impressive 19-9-2 record in St. Louis last season. His 2.17 GAA was fifth-best in the NHL. At 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, Johnson is a physical presence in goal. Not only has he shown himself to be a capable stopper, his puckhandling ability puts him in the same category as New Jersey&rsquo;s Martin Brodeur.The rest of the NHL&rsquo;s other top contenders, Detroit (Hasek), Colorado (Patrick Roy), Dallas (Ed Belfour), New Jersey (Brodeur) and Washington (Olaf Kolzig) have established netminders. Even Philadelphia, THN&rsquo;s preseason pick to win it all, has Roman Cechmanek, who is in only his second NHL season, but has considerable international experience and is 30 years old.Blues&rsquo; defenseman Chris Pronger says it&rsquo;s important to be patient with Johnson.&ldquo;People seem to always want proven goalies,&rdquo; Pronger says, &ldquo;but that means nobody new would ever get a chance. Unless your name is Patrick Roy or Martin Brodeur, guys who have won Cups, you&rsquo;ll never get a chance. Only one team wins it each year and to the best of my knowledge, nobody wins it in October.&rdquo;Johnson is ready for just about anything. If the Blues end up making a trade for a more experienced goalie, it won&rsquo;t be the end of his world.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a good scenario,&rdquo; Johnson says. &ldquo;I think I have a great opportunity On the other hand, there&rsquo;s no sense rushing things. I know I can play at this level. I can be a No. 1 goalie at this level. If it&rsquo;s not now, that doesn&rsquo;t mean I&rsquo;m going to quit trying. I&rsquo;ll just keep working.&rdquo;I want to do well so I can stick it in those people&rsquo;s faces.St. Louis goalie Brent Johnson on his doubters &#9632;

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November 2, 2001

Tellqvist learns the angles in St. John’s

NHL DEPTH CHARTS

Capitals’ gritty co-captain Konowalchuk forced to sidelines until late in season

Unsung free agent Nichol winning fans and ice time