March 01, 2004
NHL Weekend Roundup
On Friday night in Toronto, Ed Belfour returned to the Maple Leafs lineup after missing 11 of 12 games, and proceeded to shutout the New Jersey Devils, in a 3-0 win. Though it was a dramatic return, this is a back injury we're talking about, and recoveries aren't always uniform. If Belfour looks less than 100 percent over the next eight days, look for Toronto to make a move.
On Sunday evening in Detroit, Robert Lang had an impressive debut at center for the Red Wings, posting three assists in a 4-2 win over Philadelphia. Lang centered a line with Steve Yzerman and Ray Whitney on his wings, something that's going to go a long way toward saving some serious wear and tear on the Detroit captain. Kudos to head coach Dave Lewis for coming up with a solution that's not only best for the team, but one that's been performed with a minimum of disruption to the lineup.
With Lang departed from Washington, Tom Boswell of the Washington Post is turning his deck guns on Caps owner Ted Leonsis for his player fire sale:
Leonsis should at least offer token atonement. Remember last spring when [Washington Wizards owner Abe] Pollin, after firing Michael Jordan, gave Wizards fans a chance to back out of their ticket commitments if they didn't like the product? Give Caps fans the option of getting their money back, if they want it, for the last six home games after March 9. By then, the Caps will be a shell. How can you call yourself a "fan friendly" owner, or even ethical, if you pocket the proceeds from $70 tickets after you've given away every player you used to merchandize those sales in the first place?
Of course, those who still call themselves Caps fans may actually want to attend those final few games. In case there aren't any more.
I wonder if Boswell has actually been watching this season. Because the way I see it, the Caps have played horribly no matter how many stars were in the lineup. If anything, Leonsis' actions have been responsible, and made incredible sense in light of the fact that the league's fiscal house may be turned completely upside down whenever it resumes play after the end of this season.
As for Caps defenseman Sergei Gonchar, some folks already have him in a Maple Leafs uniform. Then again, someone else might be looking to swipe Gonchar off the table.
In Atlanta, head coach Bob Hartley had a little discipline problem to deal with.
The race in the Pacific Division remains tight, as both San Jose and Dallas posted back to back wins over the weekend. For San Jose, it was a 4-2 win over Pittsburgh on Friday, followed by a 1-0 victory over St. Louis on Sunday. For Dallas, a team most of us left for dead in the first third of the season, it was a 3-1 decision over Minnesota, and a 5-4 defeat of Edmonton. At the end of the weekend, San Jose still led Dallas by six points, 81 to 75.
Elsewhere out West, life is looking different in Colorado, as reports out of Sweden say Peter Forsberg has already made arrangements to play for MoDo in the Swedish Elite League next season -- and that's whether or not the NHL has a work stoppage next season.
And finally, here's an interesting tidbit from ESPN.com's Peter Gammons:
Memo to NHL scouts: go see Kirk Gibson's two sons, who are hockey rats. Their team finished second in the country last year -- losing to a team with Patrick Roy's son. The thought of a Gibson on skates is terrifying.
Anybody got any info on these two kids?
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Isn't it amusing how the Caps' fire sale is bringing out the opinions of people who don't understand the situation at all? And it's funny how everyone's an expert on the prospects the Caps have picked up, saying they got "nothing" for Kono, Bondra and Lang.
The optimistic reading is that while the league is shut down next year, the Caps' youngsters will be playing together in Portland, ready to storm the Southeast the year after that.
It will be amusing, though, if the Avs line up Kono, Olie and Gonchar against Bondra and the Sens in the Cup final. It does make you wonder how bad a job Cassidy really did.
Posted by:
at March 1, 2004 04:52 PM
Clarifying the "people who don't understand the situation" comment: In this case, it's Boswell.
Posted by:
at March 1, 2004 04:52 PM
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