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Stanley Cup Notebook Westlund gets five stitches after cross-check from FischerPosted: Tuesday June 11, 2002 12:24 AMUpdated: Tuesday June 11, 2002 3:28 AM
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Jiri Fischer came out of Monday night's game with an assist. Tommy Westlund got five stitches. Fischer, a Detroit defensemen, and Westlund, a forward for Carolina, met behind the Hurricanes net with about 12 minutes to go in Detroit's 3-0 victory, and Fischer cross-checked Westlund in the face. No penalty was called, though a five-minute major might have been suitable as there was blood on the ice and the front of Westlund's sweater. Replays showed the hit but all the on-ice officials were looking away from the area where it happened. Carolina coach Paul Maurice confessed afterward that he hadn't seen the hit, but might make sure the league does. "We'll be looking into that tomorrow," he said. So will the league. An NHL spokesman said after the game that Fischer's hit will be reviewed by the league. 'Canes' weary defenders share the painThe Stanley Cup finals are beginning to grind down the Carolina Hurricanes' defense, and coach Paul Maurice is trying to spread the burden.
On Monday night, Hedican played just more than 25 minutes and Ward just less than 16. On the other hand, Marek Malik, who had averaged about 18 minutes of ice time in the playoffs, played 21:27, while Niclas Wallin played 17:28, up from his playoff average of 15:1. Maurice said he had no choice. "We can't run guys 28 minutes. We don't have them to do that," he said. "There's hard miles on those guys and we have never had that defenseman that plays 40 minutes and barely sweats." History's favoriteThe Carolina Hurricanes face more than the Red Wings' powerful offense and winning momentum. History is frowning on them as well. Of the 26 clubs that led 3-1 in the Stanley Cup finals, all but one have gone on to win the championship. The exception: the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, who had trailed Detroit 3-0. That lesson isn't lost on the Detroit players. "To eliminate a hockey club in the Stanley Cup finals is the toughest thing to do," center Kris Draper said. "The one thing that's dangerous for us right now is getting caught up in everything. We've worked so hard to put ourselves in this situation. ... We can't get caught up in it. We have a job to do." Scoring pointsThe Entertainment and Sports Arena, ordinarily a quiet place this time of year, has been a popular stop not only for hockey fans but for politicians and other celebrities. It's no surprise to see figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi. She's married to Carolina defenseman Bret Hedican and was there when he scored his only goal in the playoffs, in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals against Toronto. A skater of another sort, NHL great Ray Bourque, took in Monday night's game. U.S. Sen. John Edwards, a Democrat who's exploring a presidential bid, attended one of the conference final games -- and was booed by the crowd. Senate candidate Elizabeth Dole got a warmer reception Monday night as she sat rinkside with Hurricanes president Jim Cain. Dole stayed one period, but she was dressed for the occasion in a new red Carolina jersey. A gift? No, Cain said: "She bought it." Diplomatically, it had no number on the back. "She didn't want to play favorites," he said. Cut offThe Detroit Red Wings are getting a lot of shots blocked before they ever reach Arturs Irbe -- again. The Red Wings had a total of 133 shots blocked in the Western Conference finals against Colorado and have had 90 blocked in the four games of the Stanley Cup finals by the Carolina Hurricanes. Detroit has blocked only 61 of Carolina's shots. "I still think we have to keep shooting," Detroit coach Scotty Bowman said before Monday night's game. "If we slow down and think about not shooting it would be negative for us." The blocked shots haven't been all bad for the Red Wings. Detroit beat Colorado 2-1 in Game 3 after getting 34 shots blocked, and edged Carolina 3-2 in triple overtime Saturday night after seeing 38 blocked. "The more pucks that go to the net eventually some will get there and you might get a rebound or a deflection," Bowman said. "I don't think we want to change as far as taking the shots." Crowd appealA lot has been written about the Carolina crowd during the playoffs. They have been loud and wild. Detroit's Darren McCarty was stunned when he arrived for Game 3 and saw all the partying going on in the parking lot. Thousands of fans arrived at the Entertainment and Sports Arena four hours before game time to grill out and down a few cold ones. "Anytime you can bring tailgating into hockey that's a plus," McCarty said. "That's unbelievable. We were commenting on it after the national anthem. This place was rocking." McCarty remembered the lean years when the Hurricanes moved from Hartford, Conn., and had to play two seasons in Greensboro while the Raleigh arena was being built. "It's awesome to see now," McCarty said. "I remember going to the rink in Greensboro and they had 5,000 people there -- and most were Red Wings fans. But Carolina deserves this, they've played so well. I've always said that if you love NASCAR that hockey is like NASCAR. There are a lot of collisions, a lot of close calls." McCarty said the crowd helped keep both teams going in the triple overtime game Saturday night. "You are not going to fall to sleep, that's for sure," McCarty said. "Those people have to be dead tired from standing for three periods straight. That's all they do pretty much here, stand for most of the game. They're into it and you've got to be into it, too." Statman ScottyThe NHL is planning on doing away with the statistic on hits next season. As far as Scotty Bowman is concerned, the only stat worth keeping is goals scored. The Detroit coach said a lot of the statistics on games are not accurate and are arbitrary. "I never hang myself on all those stats," Bowman said. "It's an interpretation by the local person. Even in Detroit we keep stats of our own. Sometimes they're close and sometimes they are not." Bowman said the stats on zone time and faceoffs are often inaccurate. One stat that stood out from the triple overtime game on Saturday night were the hits, which Carolina was credited with 69. "I like stats, but I really don't think they are all gospel," Bowman said. Respecting IrbeArturs Irbe has never been mentioned in the same breath with goaltenders like Dominik Hasek and Patrick Roy. But Carolina's playoff run has earned the 5-foot-8 Latvian some major props from the opposition. "We haven't seen that much of him over the years but he's been outstanding," Detroit's Boyd Devereaux said. "He gets out and covers the angles. He's not a big guy, but he really has quick movements to cover all of the net. He's made some game-saving type of saves." Like against Steve Yzerman late in the second overtime Saturday night, sprawling across the crease for the save of the series. "It's frustrating to play against a guy like that," Devereaux said. "He was respected, but he is one of those quiet goalies. I am sure the league is taking notice now." Irbe was 10-6 in the postseason with a 1.56 goals against average and .941 save percentage heading into the middle portion of the Cup finals. Bowman has watched Irbe sine the mid-1980s when he played for the Soviet Union. "He has some very good success with the Russian teams so he's got some good credentials," Bowman said. "He's a very experienced goalie." |
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