This is the end, beautiful friend. This is the end, my only friend, the end of our elaborate plans, the end of everything that stands, the end, no safety or surprise, the end. I'll never look into your eyes again.
Though a two-line pass probably meant something different to Jim Morrison, the first verse of the Doors’ The End is a haunting lyric that will ring all too true to the 14 teams whose seasons will wrap up next Sunday well short of their goal of hoisting Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Twenty-seven weeks after the 2001-02 regular season kicked off, there are now just 52 games remaining. But what a week it will be. And what a two months it will be starting next Wednesday when the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin.
The Eastern Conference isn’t likely to see many changes between now and Sunday, with the Caps unlikely (barring a minor miracle) to catch the Habs for the eighth spot.
The Bruins are stumbling to the finish line but should secure the top seed barring a collapse. The bottom three teams in the conference (the Islanders, Devils and Habs) are all surging to close out the season and solidify their spots in the postseason party. Don’t be surprised to see at least two of these three teams pull off first-round upsets, though beating Carolina would hardly be considered an upset since the Hurricanes will only get the third seed by virtue of winning the weak Southeast. The ‘Canes will probably have the fewest points of any team in the postseason and look ripe for an upset despite having home ice against whichever team they play in the opening round.
Out West, the fun is just beginning. Detroit, Colorado and San Jose will get the top three seeds, though in which order the Avs and Sharks will finish is still anybody’s guess. The two teams have played a killer game of leapfrog over the past few weeks and look like they will take this right down the final day. Though both Colorado and San Jose have fared decently against Phoenix this season, each team would probably rather face Vancouver in a first-round series. The Avs are 3-1 against the Canucks this season while the Sharks are 4-0 and have outscored Vancouver 19-8. Colorado and San Jose have faced much tougher games against Phoenix, the Avs going 2-2 against the Coyotes and the Sharks winning three of five.
As far as a postseason prediction, we can’t change course now. Since the preseason, a Flyers-Avs Cup Final has been our pick and there is no sense altering that now. Though Philly has struggled in the past two weeks, Jeremy Roenick has enough playoff experience to lead the Flyers on a run if he returns to health. Boston has the horses to go deep in the postseason, but too few of its players have meaningful postseason experience. New Jersey could be a darkhorse candidate if Martin Brodeur and the defense get hot.
Detroit is still the odds-on favorite to win it all, but the Wings have shown their vulnerability with a couple of two-game funks in the past two weeks. And the Pacific Division teams have all played the Wings tough this year, meaning a tougher-than-expected first-round series for the Presidents’ Trophy winners. Colorado is likely to get a boost once Peter Forsberg gets back in the mix. His presence will just make Joe Sakic, Radim Vrbata, Chris Drury, Steven Reinprecht and Alex Tanguay more dangerous. The Avs aren’t counting on a healthy Milan Hejduk for the playoffs, so his return would just be another bonus to kick-start their offense. The difference for the Avs will be the best goaltender in NHL history backstopping what is the best defense in the franchise’s history. Colorado will be able to shut teams down like it hasn’t been able to in postseasons past. The darkhorse choice in the West is Los Angeles as the Kings have won nine of their past 15 and have played the top teams in the West well all season.
Our prediction: The Flyers will knock off the defending champion Avalanche in six games in June to bring the Cup back to Philly for the first time in 27 years.
That will be the end, beautiful friend.
Au revoir to the also-rans Pity the poor expansion teams like Atlanta, Columbus, Nashville and Minnesota who have yet to play in the postseason, but their day will come. But save your real pity for more experienced teams like Florida, Tampa Bay and Anaheim which still reside in the wrong end of the standings after nearly 30 combined seasons in the league. The five worst teams in the league are all eligible to get the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft lottery and these seven teams are battling it out for the five dubious spots. The lottery will essentially determine which team gets the right to select franchise defenseman Jay Bouwmeester of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers first overall.
Frozen Four College hockey still occupies just a very small niche in this country’s sports consciousness, but maybe it’s time people paid a bit more attention to it. Minnesota’s 4-3 overtime triumph over Maine on Saturday night had so many dramatic moments and storylines. The Gophers were playing in their hometown and hadn’t won a title in 23 years, while the Black Bears lost coach Shawn Walsh to cancer before the season and were supposed to have a down year. For the fifth time in the past seven seasons, the national championship game went into overtime. Compare that to last week’s snoozer between Maryland and Indiana for the college hoops title and the past seven years of the ultimate game of March Madness and it’s not even a contest. Only Arizona’s 84-79 win over Kentucky in 1997 and UConn’s 77-74 win over Duke in ’99 stack up. The Frozen Four has given us some thrilling moments in the past decade and deserves a place on every hockey fan’s must-see list from here forward.
Phoenix @ Edmonton -- Wednesday, 9 p.m. EDT The Coyotes and Oilers are fighting each other for the final few playoff spots in the West. Edmonton is 3-0 against Phoenix this season and has outscored the Coyotes 15-9. Skyreach Centre will be rocking at its playoff best for this one and the Oilers are 6-0-0-1 in their past seven at home as a result of their legendary home-ice advantage.
San Jose @ St. Louis -- Thursday, 7:30 p.m. EDT The Blues need some wins to avoid facing the Red Wings in the first round. St. Louis closes with a home-and-home against Detroit on Saturday and Sunday, and given the Blues’ 0-3 record (not to mention their 13-5 goal deficit vs. the Wings) against Detroit this season, a win against the Sharks would be huge to avoid facing the fearsome Wings.
Colorado @ Anaheim -- Friday, 10:30 p.m. EDT Peter Forsberg is likely to make his return to the Avs lineup either in this game on in Colorado’s season finale on Sunday against Dallas. The Ducks are becoming noted playoff spoilers with wins over the Oilers and Stars last week, so they will try to keep the Avs from securing the second spot in the West.
Toronto @ Ottawa -- Saturday, 7 p.m. EDT The Leafs and Sens are likely to meet in the first round and this game could determine who gets home-ice advantage in their matchup. Unfortunately for Toronto, noted playoff disappearing artist Alexei Yashin isn’t in Ottawa anymore, so it will have to find someone else to pick on.
Nashville @ Phoenix -- Sunday, 5 p.m. EDT The 1,230th and final game of the 2001-02 regular season likely will have seeding implications for the Western Conference. The only implications for the Predators in this game will be that a disappointing fourth season will be at a merciful end.
Plus: Saku Koivu Yes, he occupied this same spot in last week’s Glance, but not enough praise can be heaped on the Habs’ captain. Koivu is slated to return to action on Tuesday night against the Senators and the Molson Centre will be filled with teary-eyed, boisterous fans as Koivu skates wearing the C on his bleu, blanc et rogue Habs sweater for the first time since last April.
Minus: Pittsburgh Penguins No team has been decimated by injury in recent memory more than the 2001-02 Pens, but few teams have ever mailed it in this badly after getting eliminated from playoff contention either. Pittsburgh has just nine goals in its six-game losing streak. So if you have tickets to either of their last two home games, don’t go expect to see the red light whirling around or the horn blaring too often after goals by the home boys.
Minus: Bob Probert One of the best tough guys of the past 15 years might not even get the chance to go down swinging. Probert has been a healthy scratch for eight of the Blackhawks’ last 10 games and looks to be at the end of the line. Despite limited ice time this season, he managed to rack 176 penalty minutes, but his offense has tailed off dramatically with jus one goal and three assists in 61 games.
Plus: Jose Theodore Theodore won the Player of the Week award after posting a 4-0 record, a 0.75 GAA and a .972 save percentage as the Habs continue to push for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. For the season, the Vezina candidate has a 29-23-10 record, a 2.10 GAA (third best in the NHL) and a .931 save percentage (best in the league).
Minus: Greg Gilbert NHL teams change coaches more often than most sportswriters change their underwear, and Gilbert is at the top of the offseason chopping block. He yanked the captaincy from Dave Lowry, alienated Marc Savard and watched his team fizzle after a quick start. Without Iginla to save his team this season, Gilbert’s boys might have sunk to Blue Jackets or even Thrashers territory.
Plus: Patrick Marleau Skewered by the Glance as a big, fat minus in late November, Marleau has come on strong for the Sharks. Marleau has scored in six straight games, and a four-point game on March 30 in San Jose’s 10-2 win gave him momentum for a big week (five goals) which culminated with his first career hat trick on Saturday against the Wings.
"It's embarrassing. It matters. It's not that you lose. It's how you lose. [It's a] lack of effort, a lack of commitment to the system. Stupid plays that are not indicative of the attitude this organization has. We've got to show some pride, no matter what, and it's not there."
-- Red Wings right wing Brett Hull after San Jose beat Detroit 6-3 on Saturday for the Wings’ second consecutive defeat.
"When I came here, the guys didn't even blink an eye. I've got that 'M' tattooed on my chest, and I'm a Golden Gopher for the rest of my life."
-- Minnesota sophomore Grant Potulny, Grand Forks, N.D. native and the only non-Minnesotan on the Gophers’ national championship roster.
With the final week of the regular season upon us, it’s time to hand out some awards. In this week’s Puck Amok column Dave Wallace names his all bust fantasy team for the 2001-02 regular season, highlighted (or in this case lowlighted) by Avs forwards Chris Drury, Milan Hejduk and Alex Tanguay.
AP
With a big week personally, Eric Lindros looks as if he is going to finish the 2001-02 regular season with better than a one point-per-game average. It has been a very impressive comeback season to the NHL for Lindros, no doubt about it, but the Broadway Blues have fizzled and are going to miss the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season.
Lindros had two goals, four assists and was a plus-5 for the week to improve his season totals to 35 goals, 36 assists and plus-18 in 69 games.
The Rangers close out their disappointing season with games this week against Pittsburgh on Monday, Toronto on Wednesday and at Philadelphia on Saturday.
Thank you for following Lindros' progress all season long here in the Head Games section of the Glance.
Last week's topic: What was the biggest storyline of the 2001-02 regular season?
Jarome Iginla of the Flames went from a good player to the very best and almost carried a poor team with him to the playoffs. Neil MacDonald, Calgary, Alberta
I'd have to say the death of Brittanie Cecil. It was a tragic accident that occurred. But if the NHL decided to mandate that teams put nets up, that would be a complete distraction of the game. Fans need to be more aware of where the puck is, and if you can't follow it then find a nice safe seat behind your TV. Rick Grevatt, Laconia N.H.
The biggest storyline of the 2001-2002 season was Team Canada winning the gold medal in both men’s and women’s hockey. Way to go Canada! Andrew Platten, Edmonton, Alberta
Saku Koivu walking among the living, let alone skating for the Habs is incredible. It's inspiring for the team and a medical miracle. Tommie Foster, Durham, N.C.
"Devils head coach Robinson fired." And then a few weeks later: "Robinson rehired to Devils" Huh? What the *&^%?!?! Michael Smith, New Jersey
The lack of big name trades at the deadline. I thought for sure that Chicago would trade Tony Amonte to at least get something in return because he will not stay with the tight fisted Wirtz organization. Patrick Lane, Crown Point, Ind.
The lack of offense. You could have only one 50-goal scorer. Now 40 goals is not a good season, but outstanding. Kill the trap and call the interference penalties. Laughland Boyd, Richmond, British Columbia
The biggest storyline this year has to be Atlanta's Dynamic Duo. Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk are going to be two of the biggest stars in the NHL before to long. Chris Frischkorn, Macon, Ga.
Mario Lemieux. After cutting salaries and building hopes of Penguins fans, he put more effort into the Olympics than the NHL season. The Olympics are over, then Mario's season is. Nice commitment to your team, bud. Eric Ausley, St. Louis
”From the Cheap Seats” will return at the beginning of the 2002-03 regular season. Thank you for your participation and feedback throughout the 2001-02 season.
Jon A. Dolezar covers the NHL for CNNSI.com. "Week at a Glance" will return at the beginning of the 2002-03 regular season. Please check back with CNNSI.com often for the best online coverage of the 2002 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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