Jamming The Crease • HERE'S SOMETHING an offensively savvy coach like Phoenix's Wayne Gretzky will understand: Shootout scoring percentages will go up when teams mix in shooters who sweep wide right or left on the way in instead of simply going straight ahead from the center dot. Forcing the goalie to adjust his angles on each attempt will lead to points in the bank. • ONE MORE aspect of the shootout that players not manning the nets will love -- there's no such thing as an illegal stick in the tie-breaker. The Stan Mikita-style banana curves make it tougher to stickhandle, but also make the puck unpredictable when heading toward the net. Of course, the equipment managers will have to be verrrry careful that one of these shootout specials doesn't get handed to a player during regulation or OT. • THE NHL keeps a variety of statistics, from face-off wins to giveaways and takeaways, but two sets of stats that everyone will be talking about this season won't be officially maintained: goals scored and save percentage in the shootout. That leaves team PR departments on their own to keep locals up to date. Based on demand from the fans, that could change as early as mid-season, but count on these numbers being integrated into the stats package no later than 2006-07. • ANOTHER BET you can place: the NHL will make its latest effort to wipe out obstruction stick. New director of officiating Stephen Walkom has put the refs on watch -- make the calls or your job is in jeopardy. How serious is the league about eliminating obstruction? The term itself has been removed from the rules book. • SOMEONE SEND the Atlanta training staff a decent book on stretching exercises. Top goaltending prospect Kari Lehtonen suffered another groin pull last week, and coach Bob Hartley was quick to voice his displeasure with the youngster's conditioning. Groin pulls have plagued the franchise for years (where are you now, Byron Dafoe and Damian Rhodes?), and the injury is happening far too frequently with the young Finn. Although this latest injury is thought to be minor, it bears watching. Newly acquired veteran Mike Dunham may be forced into a larger role if it recurs. And if comes to that, the Phil Kessel watch is on in Hot-lanta.

I don't know much about poker -- I've managed to elude this craze as effectively as I did the Macarena and Mischa Barton -- but I do know this: You don't break up a hand before you know how useful your cards might be.

The Boston Bruins enter the 2005-06 season with one of those tricky hands, resting their hopes on Andrew Raycroft and Hannu Toivonen, two promising but relatively unproven goaltenders. At this point, the team can't be certain of what they have.

Forty years ago, the Bruins weren't sure what they had, either ... and quick moves ended up costing them.

Going into the 1965-66 season, the last-place Bruins were counting on two young stoppers: second-year man Bernie Parent and rookie Gerry Cheevers (with veteran Ed Johnston also on board) to get the ship righted in anticipation of the impending arrival of Bobby Orr.

So promising was the duo that the Bruins decided to part with another outstanding prospect before he ever suited up for the team. Kid's name was Ken Dryden.

Even without No. 29, the young B's should have matured into one of the greatest units in NHL history. Of course, it wasn't to be. Parent wore the black and gold for just 57 games before the Bruins opted to go with Cheevers and Johnston. They exposed Parent to the 1967 expansion draft, where he was snapped up by the Flyers.

In hindsight, both decisions still make Beantowners cringe only slightly less than another replay of Bill Buckner's miscue. Dryden single-handedly derailed possibly the greatest Bruins team ever, taking out the Orr-led squad in a thrilling seven-game first round series in 1971, then broke Boston hearts twice more in the 1977 and 1978 Cup finals.

Parent's revenge came as he won the Conn Smythe for leading the Flyers over the B's in the 1974 Cup finals, then stoned them again in the 1976 semis.

Not that the Bruins made a terrible choice in keeping Cheevers. He did, after all, backstop the B's to a pair of Stanley Cups himself (1970 and 1972), eventually winning 230 games and earning a stack of those free Hall of Fame passes that they give you when you're voted in.

But after that '72 title, Cheevers left Boston to join the WHA's Cleveland Crusaders. And instead of having Parent or Dryden to maintain the dynasty, the B's were forced to rely on Gilles Gilbert, Ross Brooks, Ken Broderick and the immortal Dave Reece (last seen applying aloe vera to the back of his neck after Darryl Sittler's legendary 10-point explosion).

That Parent and Dryden came back to haunt their former team is almost beside the point. What matters is that the Bruins didn't maximize their assets because they rushed to make a decision.