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To subscribe/unsubscribe from the LCS Hockey mailing list contact zippy@lcshockey.com --------------------------------------------------------------- Stars Stretch Series to Seven --------------------------------------------------------------- by Michael Dell The Dallas Stars went into McNichols Arena Tuesday night and defeated the Colorado Avalanche 4-1, evening the Western Conference Finals at three games apiece and setting the stage for a dramatic Game Seven at Reunion Arena on Friday night. Jamie Langenbrunner was the offensive star for Dallas, connecting for two third-period goals that broke a 1-1 tie and lifted his team to victory. Jere Lehtinen and Richard Matvichuk had the other goals for Dallas, while Claude Lemieux did the honors for Colorado. "I think you've just got two great hockey teams," said Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock following the game. "You've got two wonderful hockey teams who are giving everything they've got to try to get to the dance. I feel that neither team will leave anything in the bag. I'm sure they feel confident playing on the road because they beat us twice in our own building. We feel good because we get an extra days rest which will really help us. We feel like we've played well in our building all year. I just think you've got two great hockey teams going at it. I just think it's going to be a great game again. I don't see any reason to think that it won't be as well played as the other six have been." Colorado was clearly the better team in the first period of Game Six. The Avalanche forced the Stars into an up-tempo style of play that was very reminiscent of the Game Five shootout. Both clubs exchanged scoring chances at will, with Patrick Roy denying Mike Keane and Mike Modano on two separate occasions in tight. Colorado's pressure was more sustained, stringing together several flurries of action around the Dallas cage in large part due to the fearless gambling of Sandis Ozolinsh. The Latvian blueliner spent most of the first period below the hash marks in the offensive zone, just missing wide from in front on a power play and then later ringing a slap shot off the left post. The Avalanche eventually broke through at 19:25 of the first period when Claude Lemieux redirected an Adam Foote point shot between Ed Belfour's pads for a 1-0 lead. Peter Forsberg made the play by outmuscling Richard Matvichuk along the right wing boards and pushing the puck back to Foote at the right point. Foote's slapper appeared to be going wide of the left post, but Lemieux, who was skating left to right in front to create a screen, somehow managed to reach behind and flag the puck down, deflecting it through the five-hole of a helpless Belfour. Usually late goals like that will kill a team. But there's one sure way to recover: score early in the next period. And that's precisely what the Stars did. The play was very similar to the one that produced Lemieux's goal. Except this time it was Mike Modano who worked the right wing and slid the puck back to Sergei Zubov at the right point. The slick Russian hammered a shot over a sliding defender that would have missed the cage wide left had it not struck Foote. The puck bounced free in front to Jere Lehtinen, who quickly turned it to his forehand and piped a shot over the catching glove of a startled Roy to even the game at 1:55 of the middle frame. The goal seemed to give the Stars a tremendous boost of confidence. Dallas didn't exactly come out flying in the first period. In fact, the Stars looked tentative and a bit scared in the early going. But Lehtinen's goal snapped the Stars to life and they slowly began to take control. As the period wore on, Colorado's chances off the rush all but dried up. The two teams fell into a more Dallas-friendly forechecking game. The score was still tied at 1-1 at the end of the second period, but it was obvious that the Stars were in command. The third period opened with the Dallas penalty killers stifling the potent Colorado power play after Matvichuk was whistled for roughing up Forsberg. The kill seemed to drain even more life from the Avs. Surprisingly, it was Colorado, and not the elderly Stars, that appeared tired and sluggish in the third period. The younger, faster Avalanche were supposed to be able to use their youth and speed to swing tight games in their favor come the third period. But that just hasn't been the case in the series. Dallas has more times than not dominated the third, and Game Six would be more of the same. At 6:49, Dallas took the lead. Dave Reid, who is replacing the injured Benoit Hogue on the second line, dug a puck free in the left wing corner and whipped a pass in front that Ozolinsh failed to cut. Joey Nieuwendyk made a marvelous play in the slot to reach out and snag the less than perfect pass on his backhand, pull it to his forehand, and whistle a low wrister on net. It took everything Roy had to get his right pad on the shot, but he couldn't control the rebound. Ozolinsh, still upset that he didn't prevent the pass from getting through in the first place, only compounded the problem by going down to block the shot and affectively removing himself from the play. That allowed Jamie Langenbrunner to fight through a check and stuff the loose rebound between Roy's outstretched legs to put Dallas in front to stay, 2-1. Colorado almost drew even thanks to a pinching defenseman, and it wasn't Ozolinsh. Forsberg, Lemieux, and Valeri Kamensky were cycling the puck low when Alexei Gusarov made a late dash down the slot. Kamensky found him with a sweet pass and Gusarov cut to the cage and lifted a shot into Belfour's chest. A scramble ensued but the rebound was eventually cleared to safety. It seems the Avs were shooting a lot of pucks into Belfour's chest. Now that can be a sign that the goaltender is on his angle and playing extremely well, but in this case I think it was more of the Avs just flat out missing their shots. Roy kept his club in it by stopping Langenbrunner on a clean breakaway with about four minutes left in regulation. Gusarov misplayed the puck at the left point and Langenbrunner swiped it and was home free for a good 140 feet. He tried to deke Roy and pull the puck to his forehand, but St. Patrick booted it into the right win corner with his left skate before a shot could even be taken. Things got worse for Langenbrunner. After turning in the corner to try and find the puck, he was greeted by a crushing shoulder check from Forsberg that should ensure that his kids will be born dizzy. The Avs went the other way and got a scoring chance of their own, but Belfour was once again there to shut the door. Lemieux, showing some frustration, rewarded Belfour's save by skating by the Dallas netminder and elbowing him in the side of the head. Naturally, Belfour fell to the ice and acted like he was dead until the Stripes called a penalty. Then he hopped to his skates and everything was fine and dandy. What a... well, there's a word for players that fake injuries to draw penalties, but since it's a family show I won't come right out and say it. But it's five letters, and there's a couple s's involved and maybe a p. Anyway, Lemieux got hit for goaltender interference at 16:19. Whether it was a legitimate call or not isn't really a concern, it was foolish of Lemieux to even put himself in the situation by making contact with the goaltender. The Stars made the penalty look even worse by converting the power play. Once again it was Reid that acted as the set-up man, collecting a rebound near the bottom of the right wing circle and blindly wheeling a pass through the low slot that avoided Nieuwendyk and the Colorado defense before finding Langenbrunner buck naked at the bottom of the left circle for an easy one-timer into an open cage. Game over. "I had a couple of goals tonight and it was just a great team effort," said Langenbrunner. "I was the fortunate one to get the most at the end. We played hard all night and battled hard and got to live another day." Richard Matvichuk ran the score to 4-1 at 17:24 with a rather meaningless goal. The teams were four aside. Guy Carbonneau beat Adam Deadmarsh on a draw in the left faceoff circle, setting the table for Matvichuk to blister a slap shot high short-side behind an uninterested Roy. The Stars were simply the better team on this night. Colorado owned a distinct advantage in the first period, but could only build a 1-0 lead because of the goaltending of Belfour and a few missed opportunities. Dallas controlled play from the second period on, and took the game away from Colorado in the third. "Let us be honest, we played a very solid first period, but the second and third I thought they (Dallas) played extremely well," said Patrick Roy. "I hope nobody is surprised on our team. We knew that they would be desperate and they will not quit. Let's give them credit for that game. They played well." The way this series has gone, it's only fitting that it'll go the distance. Game Seven should prove to be damn entertaining. If Dallas hopes to win, Belfour must outplay Roy in net. For Colorado, Joe Sakic and Theo Fleury have to produce some offense. They've combined for only one goal in the series. That's pathetic. If these guys don't score, Colorado won't win. "We knew that it wasn't going to be easy," admitted Fleury. "They are a great hockey team. They showed it through the regular season. They showed it through the playoffs. I think we have all been here before. It is just a matter of coming out real strong in the first period in the next game and see what happens." IMPRESSIVE PERFORMANCES DALLAS Jamie Langenbrunner (2-0-2): Could have easily scored three or four goals in the third had it not been for Roy. Langenbrunner, as lame as he is, showed up when the Dallas season was on the line. That's more than one can say for a few of the Colorado superstars. Sakic and Fleury, I'm looking in your direction. Joe Nieuwendyk (0-1-1): Nieuwendyk remains a threat to score every shift. He still has tremendous jump in his legs and his wrist shot is lethal. Roy has had trouble handling it all series. Dave Reid (0-2-2): The veteran checker looked right at home on the second line, drawing assists on both of Langenbrunner's goals. Sure, both passes were blind prayers, but at least he put the puck into an area where good things could happen. "What's good for us is Reider's really cast as a fourth line player most of the year and in a checking role and when he first came to us we viewed him as a fill second line left wing or a third line left wing," said Hitchcock. "He scored twenty goals that year and had a good offensive year and he looks like that player right now. He's being very effective. He's had the benefit of not playing very many minutes so he has a lot of energy and it's just a good line, good chemistry." Blake Sloan: That's right, Blake Sloan deserves a mention. Plugged in on the fourth line alongside Brian Skrudland and Grant Marshall, Sloan forechecked hard all night and pressured the Avalanche defense into more than one mistake. COLORADO Peter Forsberg (0-1-1): He couldn't do enough to carry his team to the win, but Forsberg continues to dominate whenever he's on the ice. He's the best player in the world. No doubt. Securing a Game Seven win, though, would go a long way to solidifying that opinion with others. Sandis Ozolinsh: Ozo was amazing in the first period. He was on the ice for Langenbrunner's game-winner, but Ozolinsh still made it fun. He was up on the play at every opportunity. Ozolinsh even tried to beat out an icing call in the second period. What more could you want? Make it fun, Sandis. Make it fun. Claude Lemieux (1-0-1): Taking the interference penalty late was brutal, but Claude had a real strong game. He put the puck to the net every chance he had. More of his teammates need to do the same. Shjon Podein: Podein was one of the few Avalanche players to skate hard and hit all three periods. Outside of Forsberg, who is of course the best player in the world, Podein was probably the best Colorado forward. WACKY GAME FACTS * Colorado fell to 3-6 on home ice in this year's playoffs. The 1987 Philadelphia Flyers and the 1998 Washington Capitals are the only other teams in history to record six losses at home in a single playoff year. Both of those clubs eventually lost in the Stanley Cup Finals; Philadelphia to Edmonton and Washington to Detroit. * Colorado is, however, 8-1 on the road. They won three road games in each of the first two series. A win in Game Seven would be their third road victory against Dallas. The Stars' only two losses at home this postseason have come against the Avalanche. LINES Dallas: Dallas rolled four for the most part, getting an especially strong performance from the Skrudland line. "We got a lot of effort from a lot of great people tonight," said Hitchcock. "I thought one of the things that really helped us was Skrudland's line with Marshall and Sloan. They really gave us the energy that was needed. By being able to keep the game close, we were able to play a lot of people tonight and keep the energy pretty high." OFFENSE (lw-c-rw) Lehtinen - Modano - Hull Reid - Nieuwendyk - Langenbrunner Keane - Carbonneau - Verbeek Sloan - Skrudland - Marshall DEFENSE Matvichuk - Hatcher Sydor - Zubov Ludwig - Chambers POWER PLAY Lehtinen - Modano - Hull - Sydor - Zubov Langenbrunner - Nieuwendyk - Verbeek (Reid) - Chambers - Zubov SHORT-HANDED Keane - Carbonneau - Matvichuk - Hatcher Lehtinen - Modano - Ludwig - Zubov Colorado: The fourth line didn't play all that much as the game progressed. Coach Bob Hartley put Forsberg, Sakic, and Fleury together with about eight minutes left in regulation. I'm of the school that you either play them together for a full 60 minutes or not at all. They may be your three best players, but they have no chance to generate any chemistry so late in the game and it's almost like wasting a shift. Especially since the Forsberg- Kamensky-Lemieux line was playing quite well to begin with and didn't need to be split. OFFENSE (lw-c-rw) Drury - Sakic - Fleury Kamensky - Forsberg - Lemieux Podein - Yelle - Deadmarsh Klemm - Hunter - Donovan DEFENSE Gusarov - Foote Ozolinsh - Miller Lefebvre - de Vries POWER PLAY Sakic - Forsberg - Fleury - Lemieux - Ozolinsh Kamensky - Drury - Deadmarsh - Foote - Ozolinsh SHORT-HANDED Yelle - Podein - Gusarov - Foote Sakic - Deadmarsh - Miller - Lefebvre ---------------------------------------------------------------- CREDITS ----------------------------------------------------------------- Michael Dell..................................Editor-in-Chief Zippy............................................Computer Boy Jim Iovino.......................................Ace Reporter Matthew Secosky..............New Voice of the Lost Generation Nicole Agostino....Don't Know Nothin' Bout Birthin' No Babies Matt Barr...............................Buffalo Correspondent Greg D'Avis............................Colorado Correspondent Jim Panenka..............................Dallas Correspondent Jonah Sigel.............................Toronto Correspondent Tricia McMillan.............................AHL Correspondent ----------------------------------------------------------------- LCS Hockey - Issue 123 - June 2, 1999. All rights reserved because we, like, called ahead and stuff. Email address: info@lcshockey.com Street Address: 406 Sheffield Drive, Greensburg, PA 15601. Web Address: www.lcshockey.com Direct Address: Something from the meat case, Linda? ----------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- A Little Help From My Friends --------------------------------------------------------------- by Jim Iovino Taking a look back at the box scores from the Toronto-Buffalo series might open up a few people's eyes. For those expecting to see the names Satan, Peca, Juneau and Grosek among the consistent goal-scorers for Buffalo, well, you would be disappointed. While those bigger names usually would be found in a winning box score for the Sabres, they didn't show up often against the Leafs. Satan, the team's leading scorer during the regular season, scored once. Juneau lit the lamp just once. Peca and Grosek couldn't find the back of the net. So how in the heck did the Sabres win? They did it with a little help from their friends. When the big guys couldn't put the puck in the net, Buffalo looked elsewhere. The Sabres looked to guys a lot of people have never heard of - guys like Curtis Brown, Vaclav Varada, Eric Rasmussen and Dixon Ward. They also looked to a couple players people haven't heard from in a long time - Geoff Sanderson and Stu Barnes. Sanderson and Barnes had become the Tito Jackson to the Sabres' Michael. The team knew they were somewhere, but they hadn't surfaced for what seemed like years. That is until the Leafs series. Barnes, who failed to score a goal in 17 regular season games and two entire playoff series after being acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins, finally found his scoring touch against the Leafs. He scored a goal in Game 1 and added two more in a loss in Game 2. Then, with chants of "Stuuuuuuuu" emanating from the home crowd every time he touched the puck in Game 3, Barnes notched the fourth of his career as a Sabre. Sanderson had scored goals as a member of the Sabres before this series - just not very many of them. The pride of the Northwest Territories hasn't been able to find the back of the net with much consistency since he scored 34 or more goals four times as a member of the Whale. Why has he struggled so much? No one knows for sure. He's still got incredible wheels. He can stickhandle like a champ. And he can fire the puck with the best of them. But Geoff hasn't been able to score. Luckily for the Sabres, Sanderson's touch came back to him, at least for a little while, against the Leafs. He scored his first playoff goal of the year in Game 1. Then he added two more in Game 4, including a sweet, one-handed effort against Curtis Joseph with a defenseman draped on his back. Sanderson and Barnes have been a big part of the Sabres success recently, but so have some unknowns like Brown, Varada and Ward. Brown is a speedy forward who displayed an incredible backhand shot in Game 5. He's also very capable in his own end. The final two guys on that list play on the Sabres' checking line with Peca. While the label "checking line" might mean "can't score" on a number of teams in the post-expansion era, that's not the case in Buffalo. All three can put the puck in the net. Varada is a skilled player who has shown he can play a defensive role, as well. During his brief time in the league, Varada has pulled off some dazzling moves with the puck. He's creative with the puck and has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. But with the Sabres Varada has been forced more into a defensive role. And in accordance with the rule that checking line players at least must look boring, Varada dropped his shiny Nike skates before this season in favor of a pair of lame black ones. But don't let the skates fool ya: Vaclav has some moves. So does his fellow winger on the checking line, Dixon Ward. Ward has been known to put together strong playoffs in the past. With the Rochester Americans in 1995-96, Ward led the league in playoff scoring with 35 points in 19 games. Last season he picked up 11 points in 15 playoff games with the Sabres. Ward has equaled that number this season. He has six goals and five assists in 15 games. Three of his goals came in wins against the Maple Leafs. He scored in games 1, 4 and 5 while Varada picked up goals in games 1 and 5. With scoring coming from so many places, it's no wonder the Sabres are in the Stanley Cup finals. And with so much help from their friends, it's no wonder this year will be one to remember in Buffalo. -------------------------------------------------------------- The Phantom Sabres -------------------------------------------------------------- by Jim Iovino Ok, so with the opening of the new Star Wars movie a few weeks back, I'm sure a lot of people missed some of the action in the Stanley Cup playoffs. I mean, who could resist the temptation of spending an average of nine bucks to see one of the most talked about movies of all time? Well, besides our Editor-in-Chief, Michael Dell, that is. When asked when he was going to see The Phantom Menace, he replied, "When hell freezes over." While Delly waits for the temperature to drop in his future home, the rest of the known world probably went to see the movie. That means we missed some of the Eastern Conference finals between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres. So here's a run-down of what we missed in the series, but with lots of references to the movie to keep us entertained. *Dwayne Roloson proves he's a capable apprentice to Dominik Hasek. The Dominator missed the first two games of the series with a groin injury. That meant his backup had to come in and try his luck against the Dark Side. Doing his best Obi-Wan Kenobi impersonation, Roloson showed he has learned much from his time of training under the Dominator. He won Game 1. Unfortunately in Game 2, Rollie found out he has a lot to learn before become a Jedi Master. After being bombed in Game 2, Roloson never saw the light of day in the rest of the series. *Rob Ray scores goal, Yoda warns of impending doom. Rob Ray scored his first goal of the season in the team's win in Game 4 of the series. The game was the first Ray played against the Leafs in the postseason. The nifty deflection that bounced between the legs of goalie Curtis Joseph inspired hope among fans and the Sabres coaching staff that Ray could be "The One," as in the one that would lead Buffalo to the Stanley Cup. Head coach Lindy Ruff even went so far as to insert Ray into the lineup again in Game 5. The Sabres won again, but Yoda warns that there's evil in Ray, and he is not the savior of the franchise. *Darth Satan make brief appearance, but impressive one. Miroslav Satan came back to action in Game 3 after missing much time due to injury. And what did he do? Score a goal and set up another, thank you very much. The more I watch this guy, the more he impresses me. Of course, that could be due to the fact that his last name is Satan, and that he's the evil lord of darkness. Speaking of evil lords, did you see that Darth Maul character? Did he give ya the willies or what? He really didn't talk much, he had no deep ties to the movie, yet he's still the big marketing tool for the movie. What's up with that? All he did was get cut in half by my main man Obi-Wan. I mean, we don't know where he comes from, what he is or even what his favorite color is. And then he's gone without much fanfare after one light saber battle. That's not cool. They kept saying he was a Cyth or something, but I don't know what that means. Should I? I mean, I paid attention during the movie and all. Perhaps I missed something... *Jar Jar is annoying. Ok, so this has nothing to do with hockey, but I just had to vent about this Jar Jar Binks character. If you haven't seen him, he's kind of a cross between a Jamaican and an amphibian. Oh yeah, and he's really annoying. Obviously a ploy to get kids to buy merchandise, Jar Jar constantly repeats this "Me so" phrase that kids will just love annoying their parents with. You know, parents will try to teach their kids the right way to speak English, and then the little brat will see Star Wars and his language skills will be corrupted forever. Eventually, journalists will have to start writing hockey articles in a Jar Jar- Rastafarian language or something. I'm sure it's a sign of the apocalypse... By the end of the movie, people really wanted to take a light saber to Jar Jar's neck. Ironically, Maple Leafs fans wanted to do the same thing to Mats Sundin, who had trouble scoring throughout the series. As a matter of fact, after the Sabres eliminated Toronto, Sundin could be heard talking to himself in the Maple Leaf locker room. "Me so underachieving." ------------------------------------------------------------------- More Stuff... ------------------------------------------------------------------- by Michael Dell THIS IS FUN Okay, I'm just going to say it. Colorado-Dallas is the best playoff series I've ever seen. Both teams are so talented that basically we've got ourselves an All-Star game with hitting. Lots and lots of hitting. Each game has been an intense battle of wills, with Colorado trying to impress its brand of high- flying offense and skill while Dallas does its best to cling to an aggressive forechecking scheme predicated on forcing turnovers. Momentum has changed more often than LCS Hockey's mailing address on government forms. And there's a Game Seven yet to be played. Enjoy it while you can. Even though the entire series has been incredible, Game Five was a modern day classic. Some will argue that the 7-5 Colorado win was plagued by weak goaltending, defensive mistakes, and tired bodies, but they're missing the big picture. Game Five was entertaining from start to finish, featuring four lead changes and some once-in-a-lifetime moments. The two clubs just went at it with all they had. Any time you get a 7-5 score in the conference finals, it's something special. I would have written a detailed recap of the game, but well, I didn't feel like it. But even a few days later, certain memories stick with me... * Derian Hatcher belting Adam Deadmarsh behind the Dallas cage on his very first shift of the game, dropping the Colorado winger to the ice with bad intentions and setting a tone for the game. * Valeri Kamensky returning from an injured wrist and displaying his usual all-world talent in scoring a pair of goals. * Joey Nieuwendyk racing around the ice and testing Roy with his mighty wrist shot. Lemme tell ya, Nieuwendyk is a remarkable player. I always knew he was a bad man, but I didn't know how bad until I had the chance to watch him play on a regular basis this postseason. He looks faster than he did during his glory days in Calgary. They must have given him some of them there bionic knees during one of his many surgeries. * Chris Drury showing the determination of a grizzled vet in crashing the net hard and scoring two goals. The cross-checks only hurt if you don't score. * Brett Hull drilling a perfect one-timer from high in the right circle off the post and behind Patrick Roy, bringing back memories of his old 80-goal self. If you squinted you could almost see the Blue Note on his chest. * Sandis Ozolinsh darting here and there and everywhere. The term "defenseman" is just a suggestion to Ozolinsh. His goal at the end of the first period, when he helped lead the rush and then perplexed Ed Belfour with a nifty wrister five-hole, was a thing of beauty. No other defensemen in hockey could have made that play. * Mike Keane beating his good buddy Patrick Roy with a wrist shot that was very reminiscent of the overtime goal he scored against the Detroit Red Wings in 1996 while helping the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup. * Adam Deadmarsh hustling back to break up a two-on-one just moments after the Stars had taken a 2-1 lead on a similar rush. Deadmarsh chased Jere Lehtinen down from behind and rode him off the puck without allowing a shot or even taking a penalty. It was a real wizard effort. * Patrick Roy skating out of the crease to get a whistle and then dropping Pat Verbeek with a stiff shoulder check. Verbeek, keep your head up buddy. * The one memory of Game Six that stands out above all others is simply the dominance of Peter Forsberg. He put everything on display: speed, finesse, power. He overwhelmed the Stars for the full sixty minutes, but two plays in particular demonstrated his brilliance. He showed his speed and hands in blowing wide around Richard Matvichuk, pulling Hatcher to him, and then slipping a perfect pass to Kamensky for a 5-3 Colorado lead. And he showed his power by beating Hatcher to a loose puck in the corner and then blasting the mammoth Dallas captain in the chest with his shoulder, knocking Hatcher to the ice while still controlling the puck. There aren't three other people in the NHL that could even knock Hatcher down, let alone do it with the puck. Forsberg's unbelievable. SABRE BANDWAGON It's so obvious that the winner of Colorado-Dallas will claim the Cup that suddenly there's a backlash forming, with many observers jumping on Buffalo. Well, um, feel free, but it's not gonna happen. Buffalo is a very good hockey team. Buffalo is not a great hockey team. Colorado and Dallas are great hockey teams. See how that works? Do you really think guys like Joe Juneau, Geoff Sanderson, and Stu Barnes are going to get their names on the Cup? I actually think there might be federal legislation preventing it. Listen, scoring by committee is great until the committee quits scoring. Then what? Miroslav Satan is awesome, but he's not exactly the type of superstar that's going to score night after night. Remember, this is the same Buffalo team that struggled to score goals near the end of the regular season. The scoring will eventually disappear. When it does, even Dominik Hasek won't be enough. The Sabres could have a chance if they play Dallas. The Stars like to compete in low-scoring, defensive games that could play into the hands of Hasek. Buffalo has a shot at winning every time out because of the Dominator, especially if the score is 1-0 or 2-1. The Stars would be content to play such a style, meaning a few timely goals could decide the series. Dallas is also going to be bruised and battered after getting through the Avalanche. Their age could show. Colorado just has too much for Buffalo to handle. Michael Peca might be able to limit Forsberg's line somewhat, but what about Joe Sakic? The Colorado captain has been quiet for far too long and, provided his team gets there, could be due for a breakout series. And even though he's stated in the past that Hasek is the hardest goaltender to beat, Sakic has had success against him. He seems to be one of the few shooters in the league that realizes you have to be patient, wait for Hasek's gloves to drop, and then go upstairs. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have the best wrist shot in the league, either. And if Hasek thought Toronto was tough on him around the net, wait until he gets a load of Claude Lemieux, Theo Fleury, Adam Deadmarsh, and Dale Hunter. HASEK'S A GOOF Does Hasek have to fall down every time someone touches him? Isn't he embarrassed at all by his gutlessness? He's a big boy now, it's time to suck it up and come to play. And what about after Mats Sundin used him on the penalty shot in Game Four? For those of you that missed it, the Big Swede casually skated in and piped a wrist shot over Hasek's glove with shocking ease. The Sabres were leading 5-0 at the time of the goal. Afterwards, Hasek said he might have tried to make a different save had the score been different? A different save? So what are you trying to say, Dominik, that you don't read the play but instead just flop in a predetermined manner? Who would have guessed? ALL HAIL STUMPY Steve Thomas deserves some serious recognition. Stumpy played the Buffalo series with banged up ribs and a bruised collar bone. And he played mean. It looked bleak in Game Five when Vaclav Varada nearly KO'd Thomas with a devastating open-ice check. Stumpy staggered back to the dressing room, nearly falling in the runway, yet returned later in the game to try and help his team to a desperation win. Now that's a hockey player. Way to go, Stumpy. DETROIT? Hey, what happened to the Red Wings? Oh, that's right. Never mind. STAR WARS BLOWS I noticed that Ace Reporter Jim Iovino made some Star Wars references in his one article this issue. So I feel it's my duty to remind everyone that Star Wars blows. I got your light sabre right here. Instead of throwing away your nine bucks with the mindless masses, get your learn on and find the re-release of "The Third Man" starring Joseph Cotton and Orson Welles. It's a true classic. And would it kill you to watch a movie that doesn't have a corresponding cup at Taco Bell? C'mon, people, work with me here... ------------------------------------------------------------------ AHL News ------------------------------------------------------------------ by Tricia McMillan WESTERN CONFERENCE Game 1: May 20 Philadelphia 3, Rochester 2 (OT) Game 2: May 22 Philadelphia 5, Rochester 2 Game 3: May 26 Rochester 3, Philadelphia 0 Game 4: May 28 Rochester 6, Philadelphia 1 Game 5: May 30 Rochester 2, Philadelphia 1 (OT) Game 6: June 1 Rochester 4, Philadelphia 2 (I predicted: Rochester in seven.) Right team, a touch easier than expected. And having attended Game Two, I'm shocked. Game Three Well, Brian McCutcheon fibbed about one thing - Martin Biron started the game, not Tom Draper. He wasn't fibbing when he said Peter Vandermeer would get a regular shift, or that Domenic Pittis really needed to get going. All three things happened, as Biron not only started but pitched a 29-save shutout, and Pittis and Vandermeer scored goals 11 seconds apart midway through the first period en route to a 3-0 win over the Phantoms. Dean Sylvester, returned by Buffalo earlier in the day, potted an empty-netter late in the game to finish the scoring. Rochester returned to their hard-hitting, defensive ways for the first time in the series. Game Four Ooh, ouch. It's not a good idea to get the league's leading scorer going again, as the Phantoms found out. Domenic Pittis scored two goals and amassed five points as the Amerks routed the Phantoms to even up the series. Pittis and longtime linemate Craig Fisher received a new linemate in the ageless Randy Cunneyworth, and the combination clicked as Cunneyworth had what he believes to be the first five-point night of his lengthy pro career and Fisher turned in a two-goal, four-point performance as well. Making his first performance was Jean-Marc Pelletier, who saw his first action in a long time when Brian Boucher was mercifully yanked in the second period. Boucher gave up all six goals. Game Five Now the two teams decided to really get serious and not score. Really. Francis Belanger's power-play goal some five minutes into the third period was the first goal of the game and the only one the Phantoms would score. But Domenic Pittis needed just 99 seconds to tie the game up, and so we went to overtime. The overtime didn't last overly long, only about three minutes, when Craig Fisher may or may not have kicked the puck into the net. But there's no instant replay in the AHL, unlike in baseball (however, baseball doesn't have crying.) The referees thought Fisher touched the puck with his stick prior to it going in the net and no film indicates with certainty that he didn't, so the game ended. Brian Boucher returned to stop 35 shots, while Martin Biron kept on truckin' with 38 saves. Game Six The Rochester Americans returned to the scene of their earlier crimes, but found redemption. Alexander Boikov scored his first professional playoff goal less than two minutes into the third period and he and his teammates made the lead stand up as the Amerks came all the way back from a 2-0 games deficit. Craig Fisher and Dean Sylvester staked the Amerks to a 2-0 lead, but Paul Healey scored twice in 1:45 to tie the game in the second before Boikov gave Rochester a permanent lead. Domenic Pittis had three points, including an insurance goal. The Amerks not only protected their lead, they did it with four defensemen - Dean Melanson was lost earlier in the game to injury. Not only did Martin Biron shut the door on Philadelphia, he set up Sylvester's goal. Multi-talented, that guy. EASTERN CONFERENCE Game 1: May 19 Providence 6, Fredericton 3 Game 2: May 21 Providence 6, Fredericton 3 Game 3: May 23 Providence 5, Fredericton 3 Game 4: May 25 Fredericton 4, Providence 1 Game 5: May 27 Fredericton 4, Providence 0 Game 6: May 29 Providence 6, Fredericton 1 (I predicted: Providence in five.) Right team, a touch harder than I thought. Underestimated a team playing its last ever home game. Game Four Fredericton is doomed. They know it. And moving to Quebec City is only half the problem. The Bruins, of course, are the other half. But unlike the Hartford Cub Pack (hey, the way they rolled over and died I'm not sure Wolf is appropriate) the young Habs have enough pride in them to salvage one more game for the home crowd. This was it. Providence's Cameron Mann opened the scoring in the second period, but it was just minutes later that the kiddie connection, Montreal's last two No. 1 picks, tied up the game as Jason Ward fed Eric Chouinard in front of the net. Then it turned into the Martin Gendron show, as the Habs captain turned in a nice natural hat trick to round out a home win. Jose Theodore was back in the net for Fredericton after resting his sore groin and stopped 34 shots. Game Five For only the second time in this entire season, the Providence Bruins were shut out. Jose Theodore stopped 49 shots, many of the difficult variety, as the Canadiens staved off elimination in front of their home crowd. Jason Ward scored the only goal that mattered on the power play for Fredericton, followed by Martin Gendron, Jonathan Delisle and Aris Brimanis with less meaningful markers. The game also ended in mucho-ugly fashion, with Providence's Peter Laviolette and Joel Prpic picking up gross misconducts and Fredericton's Gerry Fleming attacking the Providence equipment manager with a stick. Too bad there were no adults in the building. Game Six And the Bruins, who didn't want to come home for Game Six, made sure they didn't have to play Game Seven. Peter Ferraro scored just 12 seconds into the game and scored again later in the period, then the P-Bruins launched their patented second period onslaught against Jose Theodore and sent him to an early shower. Ferraro finished the night with three points, and Randy Robitaille had a pair. Recently unretired Steve King also scored a goal for Providence, while John Grahame faced only 17 shots from the young Habs, who withdrew from the series a little more gracefully than one would have thought given their recent history. Other Notes... Hamilton Bulldogs Director of Marketing Chris Kaplan was named the winner of the Ken McKenzie Award, given each year to the person deemed to have produced the best promotional/advertising/marketing campaign for their team. Kaplan had already won numerous local and regional awards for his work with the Bulldogs and gives seminars and counselling to the AHL teams on how to promote their teams. The Montreal Canadiens decided to retain Michel Therrien and Gerry Fleming as coaches for the Quebec Citadelles. Oh, joy... And now, for the big kahuna, the finals. An irresistible force meets an unmovable object. The best offensive team in the league meets the best defensive team in the league. The best home team in the league meets the best road team in the league. Wow, how to choose, how to choose? Both Rochester and Providence were unbeaten at home during the playoffs and were pretty darn good there in the regular season to boot. And both teams are pretty good offensively and defensively. So this comes down to two things - can you play on the road, and goaltending. Rochester clinched their series on the road and won in Hamilton as well as Philadelphia. Providence struggled in Fredericton and dropped one in Worcester. So, the Amerks have a slight edge there. But the net is the difference. Martin Biron is back to being the league's best, while John Grahame, who is by no means a slouch, still needs his teammates to score often. So... Rochester in seven. Hey, I haven't been wrong about them yet. CALDER CUP FINALS Game 1: Saturday, June 5 at Providence Game 2: Sunday, June 6 at Providence Game 3: TBD at Rochester Game 4: TBD at Rochester *Game 5: TBD at Providence *Game 6: TBD at Rochester *Game 7: TBD at Providence ================================================================ TEAM REPORTS ================================================================ EASTERN CONFERENCE ----------------------------------------------------------------- TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS ----------------------------------------------------------------- Head Coach: Pat Quinn Roster: C - Mats Sundin, Steve Sullivan, Alyn McCauley. LW - Fredrik Modin, Steve Thomas, Todd Warriner, Derek King, Kris King, Igor Korolev, Garry Valk, Ladislav Kohn, Lonny Bohonos. RW - Sergei Berezin, Tie Domi, Mike Johnson, David Nemirovsky. D - Bryan Berard, Sylvain Cote, Dimitri Yushkevich, Alexander Karpovtsev, Jason Smith, Daniil Markov, Glen Featherstone, Tomas Kaberle, Yanick Tremblay, Chris McAllister, Dallas Eakins. G - Curtis Joseph, Glenn Healy. Injuries: It doesn't matter. Transactions: None. Game Results First Round vs Philadelphia: Leafs won 4-2 4/22 Philadelphia L 3-0 4/24 Philadelphia W 2-1 4/26 at Philadelphia W 2-1 4/28 at Philadelphia L 5-2 4/30 Philadelphia W 2-1 OT 5/02 at Philadelphia W 1-0 Second Round vs Pittsburgh: Leafs won 4-2 5/07 Pittsburgh L 2-0 5/09 Pittsburgh W 4-2 5/11 at Pittsburgh L 4-3 5/13 at Pittsburgh W 3-2 OT 5/15 Pittsburgh W 4-1 5/17 at Pittsburgh W 4-1 OT Third Round vs Buffalo: Sabres won series 4-1 5/23 Buffalo L 5-4 5/25 Buffalo W 6-3 5/27 at Buffalo L 4-2 5/29 at Buffalo L 5-2 5/31 Buffalo L 4-2 TEAM NEWS by Michael Dell They lost. Get over it. ----------------------------------------------------------------- BUFFALO SABRES ----------------------------------------------------------------- Head Coach: Lindy Ruff Roster: C - Michael Peca, Curtis Brown, Brian Holzinger, Stu Barnes, Wayne Primeau. LW - Dixon Ward, Joe Juneau, Michal Grosek, Paul Kruse, Erik Rasmussen. RW - Miroslav Satan, Vaclav Varada, Geoff Sanderson, Rob Ray, Dean Sylvester. D - Jay McKee, Rhett Warrener, Alexei Zhitnik, Richard Smehlik, James Patrick, Jason Woolley, Darryl Shannon, Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre, . G - Dominik Hasek, Dwayne Roloson. INJURIES: None. TRANSACTIONS: Reassigned Martin Biron, g, to Rochester (AHL). GAME RESULTS First Round vs Ottawa: Sabres won 4-0 04/21 at Ottawa W 2-1 04/23 at Ottawa W 3-2 2OT 04/25 Ottawa W 3-0 04/27 Ottawa W 4-3 Second Round vs Boston: Sabres won 4-2 05/06 at Boston L 4-2 05/09 at Boston W 3-1 05/12 Boston W 3-2 05/14 Boston W 3-0 05/16 at Boston L 5-3 05/18 Boston W 3-2 Third Round vs Toronto: Sabres won series 4-1 05/23 at Toronto W 5-4 05/25 at Toronto L 6-3 05/27 Toronto W 4-2 05/29 Toronto W 5-2 05/31 at Toronto W 4-2 TEAM NEWS by Matt Barr Final-ly! 3-2 Sabres, a tick or two over a minute to go in game five. Alexei Zhitnik in the penalty box for obstruction-holding. Conceptually, no, they shouldn't call obstruction penalties with two minutes to go in a one-goal Stanley Cup game, but this particular "obstruction" on Mats Sundin would have impressed Sam Cowart. Leafs jostling with Sabre penalty killers in the corner to the right of Dominik Hasek. Curtis Joseph has left the net at the other end, but we ESPN viewers don't know this, whether because Steve Levy doesn't tell us or because we're on the verge of cardiac arrest, we can't say. Owing, we think, to the Disney-fication of the NHL in recent years, we cut to super slo-mo. Dixon Ward lofts the puck from the corner out of the Sabres zone. Four and a half minutes later or so, it trickles just inside the right post into the empty net at the other end. "You talk about driving the nail into the coffin," Leafs veteran Kris King would say. "That was hit with a slow hammer." The Buffalo Sabres are in the Stanley Cup final. You get a trophy for that. Here in the Eastern Conference, they call it the Prince of Wales Trophy. Maybe you remember Dale Hunter, the guy who knocked a bunch of Mike Ramsey's teeth out while he (Ramsey) was on his knees in overtime of a Nordiques-Sabres playoff game in the 80s, holding it over his head last year and beaming like he'd just won... well, something. We mention this because to watch the post-game festivities Monday night, you might not know this. What is this Prince of Wales Trophy you speak of, LCS Boy? Michael Peca was presented the trophy at center ice by beloved 50s television star Soupy Sales. Peca politely shook hands, got a big hug from Rob Ray, and left the ice. "You don't grow up as a kid working hard to hold the conference trophy over your head," Peca would say later. Other than Hasek and Dwayne Roloson sporting Eastern Conference Champions ball caps before even the handshakes, you'd hardly know the Sabres are Stanley Cup finalists for the first time in 24 years. Oh, yes. Dominik Hasek, his groin making it impossible to get up from a crouch last week, came back to play in game three. He was not a factor. Erik Rasmussen, now he was a Factor. Jason Woolley sprung Brian Holzinger in the middle of the third period of game five and in the middle of a 2-2 game. Holzinger's shot rebounded to Rasmussen, who zinged a backhander past Joseph for the second Stanley Cup semifinal-winning goal in Buffalo history. Rasmussen, who wonders aloud that he's even in the NHL playoffs after expecting to compete for the AHL Calder Cup this spring, has been a Factor, capital F, since game one of the Bruins series. Much as you might think the Sabres match up better against the Dallas Stars, wouldn't you love to see Rasmussen and Claude Lemieux lined up against one another for seven games? How about Peca and Forsberg? Hasek and Roy? For the Stanley Cup? That's the prize that matters, right? "A Bunch of Other Guys and Dominik" Coach Lindy Ruff, what do you say to people who still call the Sabres Dominik Hasek and a bunch of other guys? Ruff thinks the presumptive supporting cast should get top billing. The evidence supports him. Peca, who may still be the Sabres' nominee for the Conn Smythe if they win the next series, didn't exactly squash Mats Sundin the way he had Alexei Yashin and Jason Allison. Sundin's eight points in the five games led all scorers. But hats off to Rasmussen, Ward, Vaclav Varada, Geoff Sanderson, Stu Barnes, and a host of others whose performances contributed as much to the Sabres' success as Peca and Hasek ever have. (Well, okay, maybe not Hasek.) Thanks to the Bunch of Other Guys, the Sabres are 7-0 this playoff season at home. The team record is eight straight home wins, a streak which ended in game six of the 1974-75 Stanley Cup final. Interestingly, if nothing more, with Colorado's loss Tuesday night, the Avalanche are 3-6 at home, tying the NHL record for most home losses in a single playoff season. Owner John Rigas has had a good time in the owner's suite the last few weeks, hasn't he? "I can't find the words," Rigas said after the Sabres eliminated the Leafs. "I just got into hockey three or four years ago. I didn't know what icing was. I would have to wait for the red light to go on for a goal. "And now this." On the chance the Sabres do pull of the upset in the final, is there any way we can get Rigas to give Ralph Wilson a stake in the team? Just wondering. Sold Out Tickets for the general public for the final went on sale Tuesday morning, and were sold out in eight minutes. 590 were sold in the first minute. That left an awful lot of people high and dry -- or wet, as the case may be, since it rained on many of them as they stood in line for over 12 hours. After the team announced that tickets were sold out, unrequited fans outside Marine Midland Arena began chanting "hell, no, we won't go!" Two fans rammed a metal barricade into the locked glass doors at the Marena. Game one is Sunday. ================================================================= ================================================================= TEAM REPORTS ================================================================= WESTERN CONFERENCE ================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------- DALLAS STARS ----------------------------------------------------------------- Head coach: Ken Hitchcock Roster: C-Mike Modano, Guy Carbonneau, Joe Nieuwendyk, Tony Hrkac, Brian Skrudland, Derek Plante. LW- Benoit Hogue, Jamie Langenbrunner, Jason Botterill, Dave Reid, Brent Severyn, Jere Lehtinen. RW- Blake Sloan, Brett Hull, Mike Keane, Grant Marshall, Pat Verbeek. D-Derian Hatcher, Craig Ludwig, Darryl Sydor, Shawn Chambers, Richard Matvichuk, Sergei Zubov, Doug Lidster, Brad Lukowich. G-Ed Belfour, Roman Turek. "I-Word": Benoit Hogue, lw (torn ACL of knee, out for remainder of playoffs). Tony Hrkac, c (fractured ribs, indefinitely). Transactions: None. Game Results First Round vs Edmonton: Stars wins 4-0 4/21 Edmonton W 2-1 4/23 Edmonton W 3-2 4/25 at Edmonton W 3-2 4/27 at Edmonton W 3-2 3 OT Second Round vs St. Louis: Stars win 4-2 5/07 St. Louis W 3-0 5/09 St. Louis W 5-4 OT 5/11 at St. Louis L 3-2 OT 5/13 at St. Louis L 3-2 OT 5/15 St. Louis W 3-1 5/17 at St. Louis W 4-3 OT Third Round vs Colorado: Series tied 3-3 5/22 Colorado L 2-1 5/24 Colorado W 4-2 5/26 at Colorado W 3-0 5/28 at Colorado L 3-2 OT 5/30 Colorado L 7-5 6/01 at Colorado W 4-1 Team News by Jim Panenka, Dallas Correspondent There wasn't enough time to come up with a cool-ass story like last column, so let's just leave the second installment of The Tale of Evil St. Patrick for next issue. We now join our regular program in progress... Well, it's been four games since last column - and there's only really one thing to say: (Sunshine) You, Detroit! Aw, you know I'm just kidding. We're only havin' a little fun here. Besides, I loves me some Red Wings! [clears throat unassumingly, removes tongue from cheek] OK, so Dallas lives to fight another day - barely. This series has been nothing short of incredible. If you haven't been on the edge of your seat and in awe of all the majorly cool hockey goin' on here, you must not have been watching. Strap yourself in for a quick recap of all the fun antics to this point. Game One The Stars got a wake-up call from the Avs' Forsberg and Kamensky during Game 1. Dallas failed in containing Peter Forsberg, and he burned them for the first goal. Kamensky had returned triumphantly from mending a broken arm by scoring a goal that was called back. Scoring a non-goal wasn't the issue- it was that the frustration from losing the goal sparked the Avalanche into a frenzy, and Kamensky scored again. That last goal proved to be the game-winner, as Patrick Roy was able to hold the fort while his team put the clamps on the Stars with the lead. Game Two Containing Peter Forsberg and denying Valeri Kamensky has proven to be recurring themes in this series thus far. During the second game, the Stars were a little more successful by holding Kamensky off the board and Forsberg to a single assist. The Avalanche struck first, but Dave Reid tied it. The Avs bounced back, and then Dallas scored two more to put away the victory. Joe Nieuwendyk, who had ten points in the previous ten playoff games up to that point, netted the game-winner for the Stars. Dallas outshot Colorado 15-1 in the third period. Patrick Roy was peppered with 45 shots! Game Three Eddie Belfour took over and personally assured Dallas would not lose Game 3. The Eagle pitched his first shutout of the series, and after turning away a furious Avalanche onslaught in the first period, made the statement to his team that he would give them the chance to win this one. Dallas opened the scoring with a freak bounce-off-the-skate-and-into-the-net goal by who else? Joe Nieuwendyk. Yes, this goal was the game-winner. Hey, he'll take 'em any way they'll come right about now! Nieuwy's the man. Mike who? The Stars pretty much owned the rest of the game, and sealed the lid on the Avs' coffin with great goals by Langenbrunner and Reid. Jamie Langenbrunner put away a sweet pass by Joe Nieuwendyk (he da mission-man) top-shelf to beat Roy as the two came in on a breakaway. Langenbrunner may prove to be the eventual hero of the series, but more on that later. Dave Reid scored his second goal in as many games, proving Dallas' roster was deep enough to allow them to rebound from losing Benoit Hogue to the RAIR Syndrome. Belfour was seriously challenged by the Avs late in the third period, but protected his shutout by denying the Avs 2-3 times straight during a flurry in front of his net. Eddie's clearly out to ram the criticism he's faced this season down the critics' proverbial throats. Game Four "You've got two teams that are maxing out," coach Ken Hitchcock said. "There's nothing left in the tank for anybody. That's what you hope for at this stage. It was just a tremendous hockey game. I don't know what else to say." Well, there wasn't much else to say. The Avs came out with purpose, and vowed not to let their first victory go to waste by scoring two quick goals early. Dallas answered back by playing a furious, hard-hitting game. Richard Matvichuk leveled Milan Hejduk, who is out of the series with a broken collarbone. Matvichuk was later felled by a groin strain in the third period. He would return within a few games. The Stars were boosted by their previous two straight wins, but the Avalanche would not be denied, and both teams played full-throttle playoff hockey. The Stars tied the game with goals from Langenbrunner and Hull to send it into overtime, but Colorado won with a goal from the rookie Drury. Enough said. Game Five Oh, baby - what a game! The fans got their dreams answered when the Avs suckered the Stars into playing a wide-open, run-and-gun scoring clinic. Dallas is a great team, but great is not a word usually associated with their offensive output this year. Especially on the power play. (something like 6-for-60, pretty bad) It didn't help that both goalies had terrible nights. But then, Dallas did leave Belfour hung out to dry during much of the game, and there's only so much magic in the bag. The Avalanche commanded the game in the last few minutes, and Forsberg capped off a three-point night with the empty-netter to put the Avs up by two goals. Avs win 7-5, put the Stars in the brink of elimination. Dallas must win two straight. Game Six Do or die time. You have to come out pumped, and ready for battle. What does Dallas do? Play their absolute worst period of the series, that's all. The Stars came out flatter than Brooke Shields during the first period of game six. It was almost embarrassing. Well, not as embarrassing as the way the Avs folded during last year's playoffs. Now THAT was embarrassing. But, Colorado is obviously serious this time. And they were clearly playing like a team with superior skill. The only trouble with skill is, it doesn't take the intangibles like heart and determination into account. And those intangibles are what have defined the Dallas Stars all season long. Dallas pulled what hopefully isn't its last trick out of the book, and slammed the door shut on their elimination with a rocking 4-1 victory over the somewhat-disinterested Avs. Now Colorado did have interest, and had scored the first goal late in the first period, but when Dallas went up by two goals, it was almost as if Colorado began folding the tents - again. It had been said that Dallas needed a hero to emerge to rescue their season. A hero from the shadows, not a marquee player like Modano or Hull. Jamie Langenbrunner more-than-gladly accepted this challenge, and scored twice - as well as being denied on a clean one-on-none breakaway. "I thought we came close to a perfect game," Nieuwendyk said. "We gave them opportunities, but not like we did the last couple of games. That helped us to play disciplined while we were able to maintain some offense at their end." Yeah, Joe. Some offense. How about Jere Lehtinen's first goal of the playoffs, Langenbrunner's first goal (that Joe assisted on, also the game-winner), Jamie's second goal, and a gravy goal from a sweet rising slapshot by d-man Richard Matvichuk, only fourteen seconds later. Belfour worked his usual magic. "I don't see any advantage between these two teams," Stars' coach Hitchcock said. "Every game goes down to the last 10 minutes. It's unbelievable. It's up for grabs." Epilogue Yep. That pretty well sums it up. It's totally up for grabs for game seven. Will Dallas stifle the Avs with another defensive materpiece? Or will the Avalanche light up the afterburners and torch Belfour with five or more goals? Who knows. One thing's for sure - this is a classic battle of a contrast of styles - Dallas' defense to Colorado's skilled offense. And you have two world-class netminders to provide plenty of suspense. Dallas never likes to do anything easy. But as mentioned before, sometimes you have to have faith. The Stars usually find their way out of the dark. Other Notes * Joe Nieuwendyk is amongst the league leaders with 9 goals, 8 assists for 17 points. Nieuwendyk leads the league in game-winning goals with 5. Nieuwendyk's 9 goals leads all remaining players. Joe's second line has been carrying this team throughout the series. * Hull and Lehtinen have joined Modano with very meager points totals in this series. Lehtinen scored only his first goal of the series in game six. Modano is still amongst the leaders with 16 points, but how many came during this series? Maybe he can still redeem himself in game seven. * Jamie Langenbrunner is only one goal behind Nieuwendyk with 8. He also has scored 3 game-winning goals, and 4 power-play goals - that even leads Nieuwy's power-play goal total of 3. Jamie has accounted for 4 of Dallas' 19 goals in this series. All of this from a guy that was in and out of the lineup during the regular season, and only managed 12 goals all season long. It's no surprise, really. The Stars have always had someone step up from the shadows to be the rescuing hero. Recognize the name of Carbonneau? * Speaking of Carbonneau (GUUYYY!), he and teammates Mike Keane and Brian Skrudland have played like men who know what it takes to win. Keane, especially, has taken it to his former Avalanche team, being one of the most effective players for Dallas at any given time during this series. ----------------------------------------------------------------- COLORADO AVALANCHE ----------------------------------------------------------------- Head Coach: Bob Hartley ROSTER: C - Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Stephane Yelle, Chris Drury, Dale Hunter. LW - Valeri Kamensky, Milan Hejduk, Shean Donovan, Warren Rychel, Chris Dingman. RW - Theoren Fleury, Claude Lemieux, Adam Deadmarsh, Shjon Podein, Jeff Odgers, Scott Parker. D - Sandis Ozolinsh, Sylvain Lefebvre, Adam Foote, Alexei Gusarov, Jon Klemm, Aaron Miller, Greg deVries, Cam Russell, Eric Messier. G - Patrick Roy, Craig Billington. INJURIES: Milan Hejduk, lw (shoulder, out for season); Cam Russell, d (shoulder, out for season). TRANSACTIONS : None. RESULTS: First Round vs San Jose: Avalanche won 4-2 4/24 at San Jose W 3-1 4/26 at San Jose W 2-1 OT 4/28 San Jose L 4-2 4/30 San Jose L 7-3 5/01 San Jose W 6-2 5/03 at San Jose W 3-2 OT Second Round vs Detroit: Avalanche wins series 4-2 5/07 Detroit L 3-2 OT 5/09 Detroit L 4-0 5/11 at Detroit W 5-3 5/13 at Detroit W 6-2 5/16 Detroit W 3-0 5/18 at Detroit W 5-2 Third Round vs Dallas: Series tied 3-3 5/22 at Dallas W 2-1 5/24 at Dallas L 4-2 5/26 Dallas L 3-0 5/28 Dallas W 3-2 OT 5/30 at Dallas W 7-5 6/01 Dallas L 4-1 Team News by Greg D'Avis Whoever said the Avalanche play best with their backs against the wall wasn't paying attention. True, down 2-1 after two commanding victories by Dallas, they rallied to win two and take the series lead. But the Avalanche have been far from flawless; ironically, in their botched loss that sends the series to a Game Seven, they often looked better than in the previous two wins. Defense has often been an afterthought for Colorado this series. Adam Foote, Aaron Miller and Sylvain Lefebvre have had to do it all, and it's wearing them down - they're obviously tired, and all three made some hideous mistakes in the first two losses. The normally smart and careful Alexei Gusarov has been sloppy. At times, Sandis Ozolinsh has been the best DEFENSIVE defenseman out there. That's scary. Not helping matters is the slumps of some key personnel. Theo Fleury has yet to pick up a goal in this series. Joe Sakic has one. Solid performances by Chris Drury, Valeri Kamensky and Adam Deadmarsh have been great, but the stars need to be stars. If the Avalanche could ever play with a full lineup . when Stephane Yelle and Gusarov came back, Kamensky and Milan Hejduk went down. When Kamensky came back, Fleury went down. The result? If everyone was healthy, the Avs would have a fourth line that could log significant ice time. As it is, Bob Hartley doesn't have enough faith in the fourth line to put it out much, and Sakic and Peter Forsberg are exhausted. It's at least improved - Dale Hunter, Jon Klemm and Shean Donovan is far better than the Hunter/Jeff Odgers/Warren Rychel combo - but if Hejduk hadn't gone down, Yelle could move to the fourth line, doubling its talent. Ah, yes, Hejduk. The rookie star went down in Game Four when Richard Matvichuk - who is rapidly taking on an "Agent of Satan" pose a la Detroit's Kirk Maltby -- checked him into the boards. Hejduk fell awkwardly, broke his collarbone, and that's it for the Czech's hot playoffs. Matvichuk drew plenty of ire for that hit in the Denver press, but it wasn't that dirty, more unfortunate. What was dirty was his hit later in the game on Peter Forsberg, another check into the boards. Without Hejduk, the Avs turned to Rookie #2. Chris Drury started slowly in the playoffs, but has come on strong since the Detroit series. After the Avs scored two goals in the first couple minutes, they sat on the lead for the rest of the game. Didn't work. The Stars gutted their way back into it, tying in early in the third. Fortunately, Brett Hull's tying goal woke the Avs up. For the rest of the game they were flying, and in overtime, never really gave the Stars a chance to get into it. When Drury took a beautiful Ozolinsh pass and put it home, it seemed almost preordained. The next game was the polar opposite of the tight checking of Game Four. I'd try to recap all the lead changes and momentum shifts, but it's all foggy now. Suffice to say: Kamensky scored a couple goals; Deadmarsh did too; Peter Forsberg was astounding; the goalies were not astounding; and Drury picked up his second straight game winner, doing the dirty work and crashing the net. It was Drury's fourth game-winner of the playoffs, tying the rookie record set by Avalanche teammate Claude Lemieux. And the Avs started strong in Game Six, too, looking to end the series there. Unfortunately, the team was obviously exhausted, and after the first period, the Stars dominated, and after the Stars went up 2-1 early in the third, the Avs came completely unglued and played sloppy, not-all-there hockey. So, it's Game Seven, in Dallas, to decide who faces the Sabres. Not what the Avalanche wanted. Concentrating on the positives: * Peter Forsberg has been the best player in the world during this series. He's turned it up a notch or three, and his poor play early in the Detroit series is a distant memory. * Shjon Podein and Stephane Yelle are inspiring. The penalty-killing duo is scrappy, fearless and always at the top of their game. * Kamensky again came back from an injury and shone. If the Avalanche are smart, they'll find way to give him some minor injury between now and Game Seven. ================================================================ ------------------------------------------------------------------ Playoff Stats - Players - thru May 30 ------------------------------------------------------------------ TEAM P NO PLAYER GP G A PTS +/- PIM PP SH GW GT S PCTG ANA R 8 Selanne, Teemu 4 2 2 4 -1 2 1 0 0 0 7 28.6 ANA L 9 Kariya, Paul 3 1 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 9.1 ANA C 20 Rucchin, Steve 4 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 ANA C 16 McInnis, Marty 4 2 0 2 -1 2 2 0 0 0 12 16.7 ANA D 2 Olausson, Fredrik 4 0 2 2 -4 4 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 ANA D 23 Marshall, Jason 4 1 0 1 -1 10 1 0 0 0 5 20.0 ANA C 39 Green, Travis 4 0 1 1 -4 4 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 ANA D 7 Trnka, Pavel 4 0 1 1 -3 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 ANA C 22 *Davidsson, Johan 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 ANA L 12 *LeClerc, Mike 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 ANA D 34 Trebil, Dan 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 ANA L 32 Grimson, Stu 3 0 0 0 0 30 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 ANA D 24 Salei, Ruslan 3 0 0 0 -4 4 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 ANA C 18 Drury, Ted 4 0 0 0 -6 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 ANA R 17 Sandstrom, Tomas 4 0 0 0 -2 4 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 ANA R 19 Nielsen, Jeff 4 0 0 0 -6 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 ANA D 5 Haller, Kevin 4 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 ANA C 14 *Aalto, Antti 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 ANA L 33 McKenzie, Jim 4 0 0 0 -2 4 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 ANA C 11 Cullen, Matt 4 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 ANA D 4 Pushor, Jamie 4 0 0 0 -3 6 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 BOS C 41 Allison, Jason 12 2 9 11 1 6 1 0 0 0 28 7.1 BOS D 77 Bourque, Ray 12 1 9 10 1 14 0 0 0 0 44 2.3 BOS C 6 Thornton, Joe 11 3 6 9 1 4 2 0 2 0 15 20.0 BOS C 33 Carter, Anson 12 4 3 7 -3 0 1 0 1 1 27 14.8 BOS R 23 Heinze, Steve 12 4 3 7 -1 0 2 0 0 0 23 17.4 BOS L 12 Khristich, Dmitri 12 3 4 7 1 6 0 0 1 0 19 15.8 BOS L 14 Samsonov, Sergei 11 3 1 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 21 14.3 BOS D 32 Sweeney, Don 11 3 0 3 2 6 1 0 0 0 16 18.8 BOS D 20 Van Impe, Darren 11 1 2 3 -3 4 1 0 0 0 18 5.6 BOS D 18 McLaren, Kyle 12 0 3 3 4 10 0 0 0 0 21 0.0 BOS C 26 Taylor, Tim 12 0 3 3 1 8 0 0 0 0 11 0.0 BOS C 19 DiMaio, Rob 12 2 0 2 2 8 0 0 1 0 21 9.5 BOS D 37 Timander, Mattias 4 1 1 2 3 2 0 0 0 0 3 33.3 BOS R 27 Wilson, Landon 8 1 1 2 -2 8 1 0 1 0 14 7.1 BOS L 11 Axelsson, P.J. 12 1 1 2 -1 4 0 0 0 0 20 5.0 BOS L 16 Belanger, Ken 12 1 0 1 2 16 0 0 0 0 7 14.3 BOS R 10 *Mann, Cameron 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 BOS C 21 *Robitaille, Randy 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 BOS C 72 *Nickulas, Eric 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 BOS D 36 Ledyard, Grant 2 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 BOS L 22 Baumgartner, Ken 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 BOS D 44 Ellett, Dave 8 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 BOS D 25 Gill, Hal 12 0 0 0 -1 14 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 BOS C 17 *Bates, Shawn 12 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 11 0.0 BUF C 27 Peca, Michael 14 4 8 12 4 14 1 1 0 0 25 16.0 BUF D 5 Woolley, Jason 14 3 9 12 0 4 2 0 0 0 32 9.4 BUF C 37 Brown, Curtis 14 6 5 11 5 8 3 0 3 0 23 26.1 BUF D 44 Zhitnik, Alexei 14 3 8 11 -2 30 3 0 2 0 40 7.5 BUF R 15 Ward, Dixon 14 5 5 10 7 20 0 1 2 0 30 16.7 BUF C 90 Juneau, Joe 13 3 7 10 -3 10 0 1 0 0 19 15.8 BUF L 80 Sanderson, Geoff 12 3 6 9 5 10 0 0 1 0 33 9.1 BUF R 25 Varada, Vaclav 14 4 4 8 4 8 0 0 0 0 30 13.3 BUF C 41 Barnes, Stu 14 4 3 7 -5 6 4 0 1 0 17 23.5 BUF L 81 Satan, Miroslav 5 3 4 7 6 0 1 0 1 1 15 20.0 BUF C 19 Holzinger, Brian 14 3 2 5 -1 22 1 0 0 0 21 14.3 BUF C 22 Primeau, Wayne 13 2 3 5 1 2 0 0 0 0 15 13.3 BUF C 9 *Rasmussen, Erik 14 1 4 5 3 16 0 0 0 0 16 6.3 BUF L 18 Grosek, Michal 11 0 3 3 0 28 0 0 0 0 20 0.0 BUF D 74 McKee, Jay 14 0 3 3 13 22 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 BUF D 4 Warrener, Rhett 14 1 1 2 10 26 0 0 0 0 16 6.3 BUF R 32 Ray, Rob 3 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 100.0 BUF D 3 Patrick, James 13 0 1 1 4 8 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 BUF D 8 Shannon, Darryl 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 BUF R 46 *Sylvester, Dean 4 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 BUF L 24 Kruse, Paul 9 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 BUF D 42 Smehlik, Richard 14 0 0 0 -1 6 0 0 0 0 15 0.0 CAR R 26 Sheppard, Ray 6 5 1 6 -2 2 1 0 1 1 23 21.7 CAR D 3 Chiasson, Steve 6 1 2 3 1 2 1 0 0 0 17 5.9 CAR L 13 Battaglia, Bates 6 0 3 3 3 8 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 CAR L 23 Gelinas, Martin 6 0 3 3 -4 2 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 CAR C 55 Primeau, Keith 6 0 3 3 -3 6 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 CAR L 18 Kron, Robert 5 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 0 10 20.0 CAR L 24 Kapanen, Sami 5 1 1 2 -2 0 0 0 0 0 8 12.5 CAR L 10 Roberts, Gary 6 1 1 2 -3 8 0 0 0 0 13 7.7 CAR R 51 Kovalenko, Andrei 4 0 2 2 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 CAR C 21 Francis, Ron 3 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 CAR D 77 Coffey, Paul 5 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 CAR C 92 O'Neill, Jeff 6 0 1 1 -5 0 0 0 0 0 11 0.0 CAR C 31 *MacDonald, Craig 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 CAR D 33 Karpa, David 2 0 0 0 -2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 CAR D 4 Pratt, Nolan 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 CAR D 5 Malik, Marek 4 0 0 0 -2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 CAR D 14 *Halko, Steve 4 0 0 0 -2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 CAR L 28 Ranheim, Paul 6 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 CAR R 11 Dineen, Kevin 6 0 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 CAR D 2 Wesley, Glen 6 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 15 0.0 CAR D 7 Leschyshyn, Curtis 6 0 0 0 -3 6 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 CAR L 44 Manderville, Kent 6 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 COL C 21 Forsberg, Peter 17 8 15 23 8 29 1 1 0 0 47 17.0 COL C 19 Sakic, Joe 17 5 13 18 0 6 1 1 1 0 51 9.8 COL R 14 Fleury, Theo 16 5 11 16 0 20 2 0 0 0 49 10.2 COL R 22 Lemieux, Claude 17 2 11 13 5 24 1 0 0 0 64 3.1 COL R 18 Deadmarsh, Adam 17 8 4 12 6 20 3 0 0 0 42 19.0 COL R 23 *Hejduk, Milan 16 6 6 12 3 4 1 0 3 2 38 15.8 COL D 8 Ozolinsh, Sandis 17 4 8 12 -1 20 3 0 1 0 55 7.3 COL L 13 Kamensky, Valeri 8 4 5 9 6 4 1 0 1 0 13 30.8 COL C 37 *Drury, Chris 17 6 2 8 4 4 0 0 4 1 39 15.4 COL D 3 Miller, Aaron 17 1 5 6 11 10 0 0 0 0 21 4.8 COL D 52 Foote, Adam 17 2 2 4 6 24 1 0 0 0 27 7.4 COL C 32 Hunter, Dale 17 1 3 4 0 38 0 0 0 0 10 10.0 COL L 25 Podein, Shjon 17 1 1 2 0 12 0 0 0 0 29 3.4 COL D 7 de Vries, Greg 17 0 2 2 2 22 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 COL R 36 Odgers, Jeff 15 1 0 1 0 14 0 0 1 0 3 33.3 COL L 16 Rychel, Warren 12 0 1 1 -1 14 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 COL D 2 Lefebvre, Sylvain 17 0 1 1 6 12 0 0 0 0 15 0.0 COL D 24 Klemm, Jon 17 0 1 1 1 8 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 COL D 29 Messier, Eric 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 COL D 5 Gusarov, Alexei 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 COL R 12 Donovan, Shean 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 COL C 26 Yelle, Stephane 8 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 16 0.0 DAL C 25 Nieuwendyk, Joe 15 9 7 16 2 10 3 0 5 2 47 19.1 DAL C 9 Modano, Mike 15 5 11 16 2 6 1 1 1 1 54 9.3 DAL C 15 Langenbrunner, Jamie 15 6 5 11 3 12 3 0 2 0 30 20.0 DAL R 22 Hull, Brett 15 5 6 11 0 4 2 0 0 0 59 8.5 DAL D 5 Sydor, Darryl 15 2 8 10 6 8 0 0 0 0 33 6.1 DAL D 56 Zubov, Sergei 15 1 8 9 7 2 0 0 0 0 25 4.0 DAL R 26 Lehtinen, Jere 15 5 1 6 4 2 0 1 0 0 35 14.3 DAL R 16 Verbeek, Pat 10 2 3 5 3 6 0 0 1 0 16 12.5 DAL L 14 Reid, Dave 15 2 3 5 0 12 0 0 0 0 20 10.0 DAL D 2 Hatcher, Derian 10 0 5 5 0 14 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 DAL R 12 Keane, Mike 15 3 1 4 -1 6 0 1 0 0 24 12.5 DAL C 21 Carbonneau, Guy 9 2 2 4 0 4 0 0 1 0 17 11.8 DAL R 29 Marshall, Grant 12 0 3 3 1 20 0 0 0 0 21 0.0 DAL D 3 Ludwig, Craig 15 0 3 3 0 10 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 DAL R 11 *Sloan, Blake 11 0 2 2 0 8 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 DAL C 33 Hogue, Benoit 12 0 2 2 -1 14 0 0 0 0 19 0.0 DAL D 24 Matvichuk, Richard 14 0 2 2 -1 12 0 0 0 0 13 0.0 DAL C 18 Plante, Derek 6 1 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 8 12.5 DAL C 41 Hrkac, Tony 2 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 DAL D 37 *Lukowich, Brad 8 0 1 1 3 4 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 DAL D 27 Chambers, Shawn 9 0 1 1 -2 14 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 DAL C 10 Skrudland, Brian 11 0 1 1 0 8 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 DAL C 49 *Sim, Jon 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 DAL D 6 Lidster, Doug 4 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 DET C 19 Yzerman, Steve 10 9 4 13 2 0 4 0 2 0 41 22.0 DET D 5 Lidstrom, Nicklas 10 2 9 11 0 4 2 0 0 0 29 6.9 DET L 14 Shanahan, Brendan 10 3 7 10 2 6 1 0 1 0 31 9.7 DET C 91 Fedorov, Sergei 10 1 8 9 3 8 0 0 0 0 38 2.6 DET C 13 Kozlov, Vyacheslav 10 6 1 7 -3 4 3 0 0 0 28 21.4 DET L 96 Holmstrom, Tomas 10 4 3 7 2 4 2 0 1 0 26 15.4 DET L 71 Clark, Wendel 10 2 3 5 -1 10 1 0 0 0 29 6.9 DET R 17 Brown, Doug 10 2 2 4 0 4 1 0 1 0 15 13.3 DET D 24 Chelios, Chris 10 0 4 4 -6 14 0 0 0 0 21 0.0 DET D 2 Samuelsson, Ulf 9 0 3 3 1 10 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 DET R 25 McCarty, Darren 10 1 1 2 -1 23 0 0 0 0 15 6.7 DET C 8 Larionov, Igor 7 0 2 2 -1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 DET D 55 Murphy, Larry 10 0 2 2 2 8 0 0 0 0 14 0.0 DET R 20 Lapointe, Martin 10 0 2 2 0 20 0 0 0 0 14 0.0 DET R 18 Maltby, Kirk 10 1 0 1 -2 8 0 0 1 1 13 7.7 DET D 15 Gill, Todd 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 DET D 27 Ward, Aaron 8 0 1 1 2 8 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 DET D 11 Dandenault, Mathieu 10 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 0.0 DET C 33 Draper, Kris 10 0 1 1 -1 6 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 DET D 34 Macoun, Jamie 1 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 DET L 41 Gilchrist, Brent 3 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 EDM L 94 Smyth, Ryan 3 3 0 3 -1 0 2 0 0 0 7 42.9 EDM L 18 Moreau, Ethan 4 0 3 3 3 6 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 EDM R 25 Grier, Mike 4 1 1 2 3 6 0 0 0 0 9 11.1 EDM C 26 Marchant, Todd 4 1 1 2 2 12 0 0 0 0 10 10.0 EDM L 17 Murray, Rem 4 1 1 2 -1 2 0 0 0 0 6 16.7 EDM C 39 Weight, Doug 4 1 1 2 -3 15 0 0 0 0 4 25.0 EDM R 9 Guerin, Bill 3 0 2 2 -4 2 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 EDM R 28 Selivanov, Alexander AL 2 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 EDM D 21 Smith, Jason 4 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 EDM D 24 Laflamme, Christian 4 0 1 1 -4 2 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 EDM R 10 Falloon, Pat 4 0 1 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 EDM D 5 *Poti, Tom 4 0 1 1 -3 2 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 EDM C 19 Devereaux, Boyd 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 EDM R 34 Vorobiev, Vladimir 1 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 EDM D 8 Musil, Frank 1 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 EDM D 23 *Brown, Sean 1 0 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 EDM L 20 Beranek, Josef 2 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 EDM D 22 Hamrlik, Roman 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 EDM D 33 McSorley, Marty 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 EDM R 16 Buchberger, Kelly 4 0 0 0 -4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 EDM D 44 Niinimaa, Janne 4 0 0 0 -2 2 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 EDM R 27 *Laraque, Georges 4 0 0 0 -2 2 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 EDM C 15 Kilger, Chad 4 0 0 0 -2 4 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 NJD L 16 Holik, Bobby 7 0 7 7 -1 6 0 0 0 0 21 0.0 NJD C 17 Sykora, Petr 7 3 3 6 -3 4 0 0 1 0 12 25.0 NJD R 21 McKay, Randy 7 3 2 5 1 2 0 0 1 0 16 18.8 NJD L 26 Elias, Patrik 7 0 5 5 0 6 0 0 0 0 14 0.0 NJD C 18 Brylin, Sergei 5 3 1 4 2 4 1 0 1 0 12 25.0 NJD C 25 Arnott, Jason 7 2 2 4 -3 4 1 0 0 0 12 16.7 NJD D 27 Niedermayer, Scott 7 1 3 4 -5 18 1 0 0 0 13 7.7 NJD D 4 Stevens, Scott 7 2 1 3 -2 10 2 0 0 0 14 14.3 NJD D 24 Odelein, Lyle 7 0 3 3 -1 10 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 NJD L 23 Andreychuk, Dave 4 2 0 2 0 4 0 0 0 0 7 28.6 NJD C 9 *Morrison, Brendan 7 0 2 2 -1 0 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 NJD C 14 Rolston, Brian 7 1 0 1 -1 2 0 1 0 0 15 6.7 NJD L 20 Pandolfo, Jay 7 1 0 1 -5 0 0 0 0 0 10 10.0 NJD D 2 Souray, Sheldon 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 NJD C 10 Pederson, Denis 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 NJD L 29 Oliwa, Krzysztof 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 NJD C 12 Nemchinov, Sergei 4 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 NJD R 8 *Sharifijanov, Vadim 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 NJD D 6 Bombardir, Brad 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 NJD C 19 Carpenter, Bob 7 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 NJD D 3 Daneyko, Ken 7 0 0 0 3 8 0 0 0 0 5 0.0 NJD D 28 Dean, Kevin 7 0 0 0 -4 0 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 OTW R 7 Emerson, Nelson 4 1 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 8.3 OTW R 11 Alfredsson, Daniel 4 1 2 3 -1 4 1 0 0 0 13 7.7 OTW D 6 Redden, Wade 4 1 2 3 -1 2 1 0 0 0 11 9.1 OTW L 15 McEachern, Shawn 4 2 0 2 1 6 1 0 0 0 11 18.2 OTW D 33 York, Jason 4 1 1 2 -1 4 0 0 0 0 12 8.3 OTW L 18 *Hossa, Marian 4 0 2 2 1 4 0 0 0 0 11 0.0 OTW L 20 Arvedson, Magnus 3 0 1 1 -1 2 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 OTW R 10 Dackell, Andreas 4 0 1 1 -3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 OTW L 28 Donato, Ted 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 OTW C 21 Johansson, Andreas 2 0 0 0 -3 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 OTW L 9 Berg, Bill 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 OTW D 2 Pitlick, Lance 2 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 OTW D 4 Phillips, Chris 3 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 OTW C 25 Gardiner, Bruce 3 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 OTW D 29 Kravchuk, Igor 4 0 0 0 -5 0 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 OTW C 19 Yashin, Alexei 4 0 0 0 -4 10 0 0 0 0 24 0.0 OTW C 22 Van Allen, Shaun 4 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 OTW C 14 Bonk, Radek 4 0 0 0 -1 6 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 OTW D 5 *Salo, Sami 4 0 0 0 -3 0 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 OTW C 13 Prospal, Vaclav 4 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 OTW D 27 Laukkanen, Janne 4 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 PHI D 37 Desjardins, Eric 6 2 2 4 1 4 1 0 1 0 21 9.5 PHI C 17 Brind'Amour, Rod 6 1 3 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 19 5.3 PHI L 10 LeClair, John 6 3 0 3 0 12 2 0 0 0 15 20.0 PHI R 20 Jones, Keith 6 2 1 3 4 14 0 0 0 0 11 18.2 PHI D 25 Duchesne, Steve 6 0 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 PHI C 28 Bureau, Marc 6 0 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 PHI C 18 Langkow, Daymond 6 0 2 2 3 2 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 PHI L 26 Zelepukin, Valeri 4 1 0 1 1 4 0 0 1 0 5 20.0 PHI D 24 Dykhuis, Karl 5 1 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 0 12 8.3 PHI L 32 Berube, Craig 6 1 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 0 7 14.3 PHI R 9 Greig, Mark 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 PHI R 14 Andersson, Mikael 6 0 1 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 PHI R 21 McCarthy, Sandy 6 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 PHI R 19 Renberg, Mikael 6 0 1 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 18 0.0 PHI R 11 Recchi, Mark 6 0 1 1 -1 2 0 0 0 0 18 0.0 PHI D 3 McGillis, Dan 6 0 1 1 2 12 0 0 0 0 15 0.0 PHI D 5 *Tertyshny, Dimitri 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 PHI D 2 Burt, Adam 6 0 0 0 1 4 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 PHI R 8 Hull, Jody 6 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 PHI D 6 Therien, Chris 6 0 0 0 1 6 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 PHO R 11 Drake, Dallas 7 4 3 7 3 4 2 0 1 0 18 22.2 PHO R 19 Doan, Shane 7 2 2 4 4 6 0 0 2 1 17 11.8 PHO C 16 Reichel, Robert 7 1 3 4 -2 2 0 0 0 0 16 6.3 PHO L 7 Tkachuk, Keith 7 1 3 4 -4 13 1 0 0 0 22 4.5 PHO D 27 Numminen, Teppo 7 2 1 3 -5 4 2 0 0 0 18 11.1 PHO D 3 Carney, Keith 7 1 2 3 5 10 0 0 0 0 5 20.0 PHO R 22 Tocchet, Rick 7 0 3 3 -3 8 0 0 0 0 14 0.0 PHO L 29 DeBrusk, Louie 6 2 0 2 -1 6 0 0 0 0 5 40.0 PHO R 23 Leach, Steve 7 1 1 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 25.0 PHO C 36 Ylonen, Juha 2 0 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 PHO R 18 Noonan, Brian 5 0 2 2 2 4 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 PHO D 10 Tverdovsky, Oleg 6 0 2 2 3 6 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 PHO L 17 Adams, Greg 3 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 9 11.1 PHO C 14 Stapleton, Mike 7 1 0 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 3 33.3 PHO R 15 Cummins, Jim 3 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PHO D 24 Neckar, Stan 6 0 1 1 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PHO C 21 Corkum, Bob 7 0 1 1 1 4 0 0 0 0 6 0.0 PHO D 20 Lumme, Jyrki 7 0 1 1 -2 6 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 PHO C 97 Roenick, Jeremy 1 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 PHO D 39 Tiley, Brad 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PHO C 47 *Hansen, Tavis 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 PHO D 4 Diduck, Gerald 3 0 0 0 -1 2 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 PHO C 26 Sullivan, Mike 5 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 PHO D 33 Daigneault, J.J. 6 0 0 0 -1 8 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 PIT C 82 Straka, Martin 13 6 9 15 0 6 1 0 0 0 27 22.2 PIT R 68 Jagr, Jaromir 9 5 7 12 1 16 1 0 1 1 32 15.6 PIT R 27 Kovalev, Alexei 10 5 7 12 0 14 0 0 1 0 24 20.8 PIT C 37 Miller, Kip 13 2 7 9 -1 19 1 0 0 0 18 11.1 PIT C 9 Titov, German 11 3 5 8 4 4 0 0 0 0 15 20.0 PIT R 44 Brown, Rob 13 2 5 7 -2 8 2 0 0 0 14 14.3 PIT C 38 *Hrdina, Jan 13 4 1 5 -1 12 1 0 1 0 14 28.6 PIT D 4 Hatcher, Kevin 13 2 3 5 1 4 1 0 0 0 22 9.1 PIT D 71 Slegr, Jiri 13 1 3 4 1 12 0 0 1 0 17 5.9 PIT R 95 Morozov, Aleksey 10 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 13 7.7 PIT D 5 Werenka, Brad 13 1 1 2 0 6 0 0 0 0 10 10.0 PIT C 20 Lang, Robert 12 0 2 2 -3 0 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 PIT R 24 Moran, Ian 13 0 2 2 -3 8 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 PIT D 49 Andrusak, Greg 12 1 0 1 -1 6 0 0 1 0 9 11.1 PIT D 8 Dollas, Bobby 13 1 0 1 -4 6 0 0 0 0 6 16.7 PIT R 25 Kesa, Dan 13 1 0 1 -2 0 1 0 1 0 5 20.0 PIT D 23 Ignatjev, Victor 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PIT D 47 *Galanov, Maxim 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PIT C 28 Hlushko, Todd 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.0 PIT C 17 *Bonin, Brian 3 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 PIT L 12 *Sonnenberg, Martin 7 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 PIT R 36 Barnaby, Matthew 13 0 0 0 -2 35 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 PIT C 29 Wright, Tyler 13 0 0 0 -2 19 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 SJS D 5 Norton, Jeff 6 0 7 7 5 10 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 SJS C 25 Damphousse, Vincent 6 3 2 5 1 6 0 2 0 0 22 13.6 SJS C 18 Ricci, Mike 6 2 3 5 1 10 1 0 0 0 9 22.2 SJS L 39 Friesen, Jeff 6 2 2 4 -1 14 1 0 0 0 20 10.0 SJS C 19 Sturm, Marco 6 2 2 4 1 4 0 0 1 0 15 13.3 SJS R 15 *Korolyuk, Alex 6 1 3 4 -3 2 0 0 1 0 7 14.3 SJS D 2 Houlder, Bill 6 3 0 3 2 4 3 0 0 0 8 37.5 SJS C 14 Marleau, Patrick 6 2 1 3 -1 4 2 0 0 0 7 28.6 SJS R 17 Murphy, Joe 6 0 3 3 0 4 0 0 0 0 21 0.0 SJS R 11 Nolan, Owen 6 1 1 2 0 6 0 0 0 0 26 3.8 SJS R 21 Granato, Tony 6 1 1 2 -1 2 0 0 0 0 5 20.0 SJS D 10 Ragnarsson, Marcus 6 0 1 1 -4 6 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 SJS L 26 Lowry, Dave 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 SJS L 37 Matteau, Stephane 5 0 0 0 -3 6 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 SJS D 27 Marchment, Bryan 6 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 SJS C 12 Sutter, Ron 6 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 SJS D 3 Rouse, Bob 6 0 0 0 -1 6 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 SJS D 40 Rathje, Mike 6 0 0 0 -6 4 0 0 0 0 4 0.0 SJS R 22 Stern, Ronnie 6 0 0 0 -1 6 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 STL C 77 Turgeon, Pierre 13 4 9 13 3 6 0 0 2 2 42 9.5 STL D 2 MacInnis, Al 13 4 8 12 -2 20 2 0 0 0 66 6.1 STL R 48 Young, Scott 13 4 7 11 2 10 1 0 1 1 40 10.0 STL L 38 Demitra, Pavol 13 5 4 9 -5 4 3 0 1 1 31 16.1 STL L 14 Courtnall, Geoff 13 2 4 6 -4 10 2 0 0 0 18 11.1 STL D 44 Pronger, Chris 13 1 4 5 -2 28 1 0 0 0 43 2.3 STL R 23 Atcheynum, Blair 13 1 3 4 2 6 0 0 0 0 19 5.3 STL C 22 Conroy, Craig 13 2 1 3 -3 6 0 0 0 0 20 10.0 STL D 37 Finley, Jeff 13 1 2 3 -4 8 0 0 1 0 5 20.0 STL R 27 Yake, Terry 13 1 2 3 -3 14 1 0 0 0 13 7.7 STL D 7 Persson, Ricard 13 0 3 3 -1 17 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 STL C 55 *Hecht, Jochen 5 2 0 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 20 10.0 STL D 6 Rivers, Jamie 9 1 1 2 -2 2 1 0 1 0 4 25.0 STL C 32 Eastwood, Mike 13 1 1 2 2 6 0 0 0 0 8 12.5 STL C 26 *Handzus, Michal 11 0 2 2 0 8 0 0 0 0 16 0.0 STL C 25 Rheaume, Pascal 5 1 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 0 10 10.0 STL L 33 Pellerin, Scott 8 1 0 1 -2 4 0 0 0 0 11 9.1 STL C 21 *Mayers, Jamal 11 0 1 1 -2 8 0 0 0 0 9 0.0 STL L 18 Twist, Tony 1 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 STL L 9 *Nash, Tyson 1 0 0 0 -3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 STL D 28 Shaw, Brad 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 3 0.0 STL L 34 Picard, Michel 5 0 0 0 -3 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 STL L 56 *Bartecko, Lubos 5 0 0 0 -3 2 0 0 0 0 8 0.0 STL D 19 McAlpine, Chris 13 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 TOR C 13 Sundin, Mats 16 8 7 15 3 16 3 0 2 0 43 18.6 TOR R 94 Berezin, Sergei 16 6 6 12 0 4 2 0 2 1 62 9.7 TOR L 32 Thomas, Steve 16 6 3 9 0 12 2 0 1 0 39 15.4 TOR R 16 Bohonos, Lonny 9 3 6 9 3 2 0 0 0 0 26 11.5 TOR C 44 Perreault, Yanic 16 3 6 9 -5 6 0 0 2 1 14 21.4 TOR D 34 Berard, Bryan 16 1 7 8 -10 8 1 0 0 0 26 3.8 TOR L 10 Valk, Garry 16 3 4 7 0 18 0 0 1 1 14 21.4 TOR D 55 *Markov, Daniil 16 0 6 6 10 18 0 0 0 0 10 0.0 TOR R 20 Johnson, Mike 16 3 2 5 0 4 0 0 1 0 26 11.5 TOR C 11 Sullivan, Steve 12 2 3 5 -2 14 1 0 0 0 18 11.1 TOR D 36 Yushkevich, Dimitri 16 1 4 5 7 22 1 0 0 0 17 5.9 TOR L 7 King, Derek 15 1 3 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 26 3.8 TOR D 3 Cote, Sylvain 16 2 1 3 -2 10 0 0 0 0 18 11.1 TOR D 52 Karpovtsev, Alexander A13 1 2 3 -7 12 1 0 0 0 12 8.3 TOR D 15 *Kaberle, Tomas 13 0 3 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 TOR C 42 *Adams, Kevyn 6 0 2 2 -2 14 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 TOR R 28 Domi, Tie 13 0 2 2 -2 24 0 0 0 0 7 0.0 TOR C 21 *Mair, Adam 5 1 0 1 -1 14 0 0 0 0 3 33.3 TOR D 33 McAllister, Chris 6 0 1 1 -1 4 0 0 0 0 2 0.0 TOR L 12 King, Kris 16 0 1 1 -2 25 0 0 0 0 13 0.0 TOR R 22 Korolev, Igor 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 TOR D 2 Eakins, Dallas 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 TOR R 39 *Kohn, Ladislav 2 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 TOR L 19 Modin, Fredrik 7 0 0 0 -1 4 0 0 0 0 11 0.0 TOR L 8 Warriner, Todd 9 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 12 0.0 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Playoff Stats - Goaltenders - thru May 30 ------------------------------------------------------------------ TM NO GOALTENDER GPI MINS AVG W L T EN SO GA SA SPCT G A PIM ANA 31 Hebert, Guy 4 208 4.33 0 3 0 0 0 15 124 .879 0 0 0 BOS 34 Dafoe, Byron 12 768 2.03 6 6 0 1 2 26 330 .921 0 0 2 BUF 39 Hasek, Dominik 12 730 1.81 10 2 0 1 2 22 367 .940 0 1 6 BUF 30 Roloson, Dwayne 4 139 4.32 1 1 0 1 0 10 67 .851 0 0 0 CAR 1 Irbe, Arturs 6 408 2.21 2 4 0 1 0 15 181 .917 0 0 0 COL 33 Roy, Patrick 17 1054 2.50 11 6 0 1 1 44 585 .925 0 2 4 COL 1 Billington, Craig 1 9 6.67 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 .833 0 0 0 DAL 20 Belfour, Ed 15 995 1.93 10 5 0 1 2 32 419 .924 0 0 4 DET 30 Osgood, Chris 6 358 2.35 4 2 0 0 1 14 172 .919 0 0 0 DET 38*Maracle, Norm 2 58 3.10 0 0 0 0 0 3 22 .864 0 0 0 DET 40 Ranford, Bill 4 183 3.28 2 2 0 0 1 10 105 .905 0 0 0 EDM 35 Salo, Tommy 4 296 2.23 0 4 0 0 0 11 149 .926 0 0 0 NJD 30 Brodeur, Martin 7 425 2.82 3 4 0 1 0 20 139 .856 0 2 2 OTW 1 Rhodes, Damian 2 150 2.40 0 2 0 0 0 6 65 .908 0 0 0 OTW 31 Tugnutt, Ron 2 118 3.05 0 2 0 0 0 6 41 .854 0 0 0 PHI 34 Vanbiesbrouck, John 6 369 1.46 2 4 0 0 1 9 146 .938 0 0 2 PHO 35 Khabibulin, Nikolai 7 449 2.41 3 4 0 1 0 18 236 .924 0 0 2 PIT 35 Barrasso, Tom 13 787 2.67 6 7 0 1 1 35 350 .900 0 0 4 SJS 29 Vernon, Mike 5 321 2.43 2 3 0 0 0 13 172 .924 0 1 0 SJS 31 Shields, Steve 1 60 6.00 0 1 0 0 0 6 36 .833 0 0 0 STL 29 McLennan, Jamie 1 37 0.00 0 1 0 1 0 0 7 1.000 0 0 6 STL 31 Fuhr, Grant 13 790 2.35 6 6 0 1 1 31 305 .898 0 1 2 TOR 30 Healy, Glenn 1 20 0.00 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 1.000 0 0 0 TOR 31 Joseph, Curtis 16 951 2.40 9 7 0 4 1 38 417 .909 0 0 2 Stats provided by Brad Murray. 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