Pained Panther

Pavel Bure break hand, could miss Olympics

Bure already has a silver medal from Russia's appearance in the 1998 Games in Nagano. AP

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida Panthers star Pavel Bure will miss at least several weeks because of a broken left hand, putting his chances of playing in the Winter Olympics in jeopardy.

The NHL's leading scorer the past two seasons, Bure was scheduled to join the Russian Olympic team in Salt Lake City for the games, which begin Feb. 8.

Bure, who scored 59 goals last season and 58 in 1999-00, was hurt in the first period of Wednesday night's 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars. He currently has 13 goals and a team-leading 18 assists and 31 points.

This will be Bure's second trip to the disabled list. Bure missed seven games with a concussion in November, suffered on a check by Toronto's Darcy Tucker.

Bure, a 30-year-old Moscow native, led Russia to the silver medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. He was selected the top forward, leading all players with nine goals.

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