LOOKING TO FILL THE VOID

Can a great team remain so without hockey’s greatest player? That’s the question the 1988-89 NHL season will answer as the Edmonton Oilers attempt to win their third straight Stanley Cup, and fifth in six years—without Wayne Gretzky. In the short term, the Oilers were weakened when No. 99 was traded to the Los Angeles Kings on Aug. 9. No matter how many quality players and draft picks Edmonton received, The Great One is unique. How the Oilers—and their opposition—react to his absence will determine their success. Edmonton coped fairly well—7-5-4—during Gretzky’s 16-game absence due to eye and knee injuries last season. But… “It can’t help but affect them in a negative way,” said Calgary Flame defenseman Paul Reinhart. “No matter how many guys you bring in, you don’t replace Wayne Gretzky. I’d go…

International Hockey League

HAB-NOTS IN PLAYOFFS

Finishing with 102 points and second overall in the NHL standings was not good enough for the Montreal Canadiens. Good performances in the regular season are fine, but it’s the playoffs that matter most in Montreal and Jean Perron’s inability to get the Canadiens out of their division cost him his job. In fact, the Canadiens brass was embarrassed by the lack of team discipline against the Bruins and to a lesser extent Hartford. Pat Bums, who coached in the Quebec League with Hull Olympiques and was a novice pro coach with Sherbrooke of the American League last season, takes over. He promises a disciplined team that will do things his way. Goalies Brian Hayward and Patrick Roy finished with the best overall goals-against average for the second consecutive year and took the…

OUT ON A THIN LIMB

By their own admission, the Philadelphia Flyers fired one of the best coaches in the NHL at the end of the 1987-88 season. Now, with Mike Keenan bounced and picked up by Chicago on the rebound, the Flyers are perched on a very thin limb. In place of Keenan, the Flyers will be coached by Paul Holmgren, a popular former player with no bench-coaching experience. However, general manager Bob Clarke believes his team will respond to the changeover, and return to its near championship levels of 1985-86-87. Last year, the Flyers limped to an 85-point finish in 80 games—their worst mark since 1971-72—and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Washington. Although much attention will be directed at the new coach, there will be two other significant “newcomers” at the…