UKRAINIAN PRO HOCKEY UPDATE
by Ihor Stelmach
PART I
A year ago, the National Hockey League unveiled new rules to open up the game and win back fans reeling from a lost full season due to a strike. Mission accomplished. Attendance and scoring were both up. A league-imposed salary cap created parity, keeping more teams in the playoff hunt. So much for 2005-2006. As the NHL's 89th season opens, commissioner Gary Bettman says the focus has changed. "This year is about looking forward, not focusing on how we could come back," he said in an official press release. The league has its work cut out to prove last year wasn't just about hockey-starved fans creating a post-strike bounce.
As pucks are dropped in NHL arenas, there is considerable news to report regarding Ukrainian player movement. DAVE ANDREYCHUK and STEVE KONOWALCHUK left the active player ranks due to aging and a medical condition, respectively. Look for Andreychuk to be feted in Tampa Bay later this season.
Rookies ALEXEI MIKHNOV and TRAVIS ZAJAC hope to add to the Ukrainian active ranks in Edmonton and New Jersey, respectively. For MIKHNOV it's been a six-year wait since he was drafted. Columbus waited until the last minute to re-sign future star NIKOLAI ZHERDEV. Whew!
Changing jerseys in the off-season were three Ukie defensemen: VITALY VISHNEVSKI went from Anaheim to Atlanta, DARRYL SYDOR returned to Dallas via Tampa Bay and OLEG TVERDOVSKY enters OC (Los Angeles), a victim of the salary cap and an overstocked blueline in Carolina. Journeyman GLEN METROPOLIT signed with Atlanta after posting impressive scoring totals in Europe for several seasons.
In all there were 48 players of some Ukrainian descent on training camp posters this year.
Below is the 2006-2007 NHL preview - the first of two parts - rating the 15 clubs of each conference from best to worst. We include the top three players from each organization (key ingredients) and strategize how they must perform if their team is to achieve its lofty goal of making the playoffs (recipe for success). As always there is a separate mention of each team's native contingent, which we refer to as our "Ukrainian flavor."
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1. Buffalo Sabres
Key ingredients: GT Ryan Miller, C Daniel Briere, C Chris Drury. Recipe for success: Fast, skilled and hard-working, these are the new Sabres who no longer rely on goaltending and defensive hockey. Five of six Sabres who scored 20+ goals return. Team payroll jumped from $29 million in 2005-2006 to $41 million plus. Very little personnel turnover makes them a Cup favorite out of the East. Ukrainian flavor: None
2. Carolina Hurricane
Key ingredients: GT Cam Ward, C Eric Staal, C Rod Brind Amour. Recipe for Success: Defending Stanley Cup champions must overcome major injury woes: wing Cory Stillman might miss first 40 games due to torn labrum, D Francisek Kaberle out four months with shoulder surgery and D Bret Hedican recovering from hip and hand surgery. GM Jim Rutherford worked hard to keep important members of his team together. Ukrainian flavor: Plentiful. LW RYAN BAYDA returned to Canes and was last cut in training camp. DANTON BABCHUK forced fellow Uke OLEG TVERDOVSKY'S trade to Los Angeles. Goalie KEVIN NASTIUK could be a future back-up to Cam Ward.
3. Ottawa Senators
Key ingredients: GT Martin Gerber, C Jason Spezza, RW Daniel Alfredsson, RW Dany Heatley. Recipe for success: Same old, same old for Sens. Five 100-point seasons in the last seven shows great regular-season achievement. This year's squad has less skill but more grit, with the hope a grinding team will go deeper into playoffs. Hasek out, Gerber in goal, Chara left for bucks in Boston, but Chris Phillips and Wade Redden remain. Team will score and win. Ukrainian flavor: Rookie CRYAN POTULNY just beginning his pro career.
4. New York Rangers
Key ingredients: GT Henrik Lundqvist, RW Jaromir Jagr, LW Brendan Shanahan, D Fedor Tyutin. Recipe for success: No more surprise factor as last year's unknowns are this year's well-knowns. 54-goal, 123-point scorer Jagr is healed from a separated shoulder, goalie Lundqvist is a proven commodity, and Shanahan was signed away from the Red Wings to provide grit plus leadership. Team built on young forward plus mobile defense must show last year was no fluke. Ukrainian flavor: Winger RICK KOZAK starts season with Charlotte (ECHL). Will be in Hartford (AHL) in 2007 half of season.
5. New Jersey Devils
Key ingredients: GT Martin Brodeur, RW Brian Gionta, C Scott Gomez. Recipe for success: New coach Claude Julien is fourth ex-Canadien coach appointed by GM Lou Lamoriello - the other three allied the team to Stanley Cups. Julien is believer in reverting a bit more to old Devils hockey: defense-first, long on discipline and short on risk. This approach must mesh with offensive attack preferred by Gionta, Gomez and Patrick Elias. Ukrainian flavor: Heavy. Two of top defensemen are RICHARD MATVICHUK and BRAD LUKOWICH. Rookie TRAVIS ZAJAC may see some time in Lowell (AHL), while journeyman minor league GT GREGG NAUMENKO made the training camp roster.
6. Philadelphia Flyers
Key ingredients: C Peter Forsberg, LW Simon Gagne, D Joni Pitkane. Recipe for success: When healthy, Forsberg is best all-round player in the game and has great impact on teammates (Gagne 39 goals in 51 games). A slow defense is Flyers Achilles' heel. Lost two key players to retirement: captain Keith Primeau and D Eric Desjardins. New left wings Kyle Calder and Geoff Sanderson must contribute. Ukrainian flavor: CRYAN POTULNY is a keeper probably a year or two away; D MICHAEL RATCHUK was the club's second-round pick in entry draft.
7. Boston Bruins
Key ingredients: D Zdeno Chara, C Marc Savard, GT's Hainnu Toivonen and Tim Thomas, RW Glen Murry. Recipe for success: "Getting to know you" is the theme in the Hub of Hockey. New faces in all places with a new GM, new coach and lots of new players, means time will tell. Club should be much improved with two scoring lines, two strong defense pairings and two No.1 goaltenders. Spent big bucks in creating extreme makeover. Ukrainian flavor: Young tough guy defenseman DUSTY DEMIANIUK got training camp invite by winning "Be a Bruin" contest.
8. Atlanta Thrashers
Key ingredients: GT Kari Lehtonen, LW Ilya Kovalchuk, RW Marian Hossa. Recipe for success: Franchise goaltender Lehtonen was rewarded for his dedicated off-season workout regimen with a two-year, $3.7 million contract extension. His good health is essential. Repeat performance of last year's near-playoff finish will be a challenge with loss of center Marc Savard. Winger Kovalchuk (he's Russian) is one of the league's most gifted scorers. Ukrainian fIavor: Welcome ex-Duck VITALY VISHNEVSKI to the defense corps and welcome back to the NHL center/wing GLEN METROPOLIT after a couple of strong seasons in Europe. DARREN HAYDAR signed with Thrashers after giving up on a promotion from Nashville.
9. Tampa Bay Lightning
Key ingredients: GT Marc Denis, C Brad Richards, C Vincent Lecavali. Recipe for success: Top five forwards can match any others in the league. Problems are in goal and on defense. New goalie Marc Denis must be an upgrade from exiled John Grahame and Sean Burke. New defender Filip Kuba will not make up for the loss of both Pavel Kubina and DARRYL SYDOR. Most pundits don't see the Bolts in the playoffs. Ukrainian flavor: Underrated left wing RUSLAN FEDOTENKO re-signed for one year to play on top line with Richards and Martin St. Louis.
10. Montreal Canadiens
Key ingredients: GT Cristobal Huet, C Saku Koivu, D Sheldon Souray. Recipe for success: Must figure out a way to score more goals and become less dependent on savior goalie Huet. Captain Koivu seems to have recovered from a serious eye injury. Sergei Samsonov signed as a free agent to join Chris Higgins and Michael Ryder as scorers. Watch for opponents to test Huet by shooting high. Ukrainian flavor: None
11. Toronto Maple Leafs
Key ingredients: GT Andrew Raycroft, C Mats Sundin, D Bryan McCab. Recipe for success: 2007 will be 40 years since the Leafs won a Stanley Cup. New coach Paul Maurice will try to instill discipline by running tougher practices. This, however, will not make up for lack of talent. Sundin only top-line forward. Free agent Michael Peca brings leadership and checking, but not much offense. Ukrainian flavor: Bountiful with two Ukes among top nine forwards: ALEXEI PONIKAROVSKY coming off his first 20-goal season and MATT STAJAN (15 goals) counted on for more scoring on third line.
12. Florida Panthers
Key ingredients: RW Todd Bertuzzi, C Olli Jokinene, D Jay Bouwmeester. Recipe for success: Team spun into disarray by front-office politics in two parts: All-Star goalie/face of franchise Roberto Luongo traded to Vancouver for troubled Todd Bertuzzi and three other Canucks. Then, 10 days before training camp, trader/GM Mike Keenan abruptly resigned, leaving coach Jacques Martin both jobs. Panthers have several good forwards and lots of question marks. Ukrainian flavor: Two youngsters still playing in Russian leagues: DMITRI TOLKUNOV, D, may make it to the States yet, while DENIS SHVIDKI, RW, may never return to South Florida.
13. New York lsanders
Key ingredients: GT Rick DiPietro, C Alexei Yashin, D ALEXEI ZHITNIK. Recipe for success: Stop resembling a three-ring circus operation, which they were this summer: hire new GM Neil Smith, fire him less than a month later; hire back-up goalie Garth Snow as Smith's GM replacement; sign GT DiPietro to 15-year, $67.5 million contract.
Isles fans prefer their entertainment on the ice, not off it. New coach Ted Nolan welcomes gritty Brendan Witt and Chris Simon. Ukrainian flavor: Top defenseman ALEXEI ZHITNIK back from an ankle problem, but must adapt to new NHL by eliminating illegal grabbing and stickwork.
14. Pittsburgh Penguins
Key ingredients: C Sidney Crosby, GT Marc-Andre Fleury, D Sergei Gonchar, C Evgeni Malki. Recipe for success: Russian, import Evgeni Malkin could be better than teammate Sidney Crosby, though he's out for the first four to six weeks with a dislocated shoulder. Pens' winning games will hinge on keeping the puck out of their net. This will be tough with same line-up returning on blue line. Coach Michel Therrien will have to coach the heck out of some improved backliners. Ukrainian flavor: Right wing JONATHAN FILEWICH skating in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).
15. Washington Capitals
Key ingredients: C Alexander Ovechkin, GT Olaf Kolzig, LW Alexander Semin, RW Chris Clark. Recipe for success: Fix the leaks on defense - last year Caps lost 11 games by more than three goals, allowing 300 goals (second in league). Best defender GM George McPhee could get on the market was Ottawa's ordinary Brian Pothier. RW Richard Zednik returns to Washington with one-on-one maestro Alexander Semin to join the electrifying Alexander "The Great" Ovechkin. Ukrainian flavor: Futuristic. defenseman SASHA POKULOK (first round, 2005), goaltender SIMEON V ARLAMOV (first round, 2006) and defender MATT STEFANISHION all potential future Capitals.
PART I
Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, November 19, 2006, No. 47, Vol. LXXIV
| Home Page |