Stanley Cup Notebook
Hunter can't help but be a pest
Posted: Thursday June 11, 1998 03:24 PM
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Checks and balances: Hunter (32) sent Steve Yzerman to the ice after a Game 1 check (AP) |
DETROIT (AP) -- As expected, Washington's Dale Hunter was an
irritant to the Detroit
Red Wings in Game 1. Hunter, known for his in-your-face style, gave a
particularly nasty time to Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman.
"We didn't have any particular assignments, but I think Hunter can get
under anybody's skin," Capitals coach Ron Wilson said. "In particular, I
think he irritated Steve. But Dale is not going to let this opportunity
pass by. At 38-years old, I don't think he expects to play the next four
years in the Finals."
Wilson said there was no way he couldn't use Hunter, anyway.
"All I had to do was turn around and who is over my right shoulder but
Dale Hunter's dad," Wilson said. "So, if I did not put Dale in, I might
have had a beer thrown on me." Lineup change
Washington left wing Todd Krygier, who
has been sidelined with a groin injury suffered in the Buffalo series, will
probably return to the lineup on Thursday night, coach Ron Wilson said.
Krygier skated on Tuesday and Wednesday and he said he feels good.
It will be a homecoming of sorts. Krygier's parents, Roman and Charlene,
live in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He spent the early part of his youth in
Novi, Michigan before his parents moved to Buffalo.
"We had season tickets to the Sabres, but I still like coming back here
because my parents live here," Krygier said. "It's good. All of our parents
have sacrificed a lot and to let them have a chance to see us play is
great." Bellows birth
Washington Capitals
forward Brian
Bellows took a jet home to Minnesota after Game 1 to be with his wife,
Tracy, when she delivered a son. The 7 pound, 1/2 ounce boy was born
Wednesday afternoon in Edina, Minnesota.
Bellows returned to Detroit Wednesday night. Zzzz time
Ron Wilson could not say enough good things about rookie Richard Zednik,
who scored the Caps lone goal in Game 1.
"He is just a fun loving kid and he goes out there and he is very
relaxed," Wilson said. "He is not intimidated by this atmosphere at all. He
is a new breed of European player, who comes over as a youngster and plays
junior hockey and isn't intimidated by any stretch of the imagination with
the surroundings."
Zednik's seven goals are tied for the team lead in the playoffs with
defenseman Sergei
Gonchar. Reputation
Joe Kocur, who made his NHL reputation mostly with his fists, was out of
hockey but living in Detroit when the Red Wings signed him as a free agent
a year ago. Detroit coach Scotty Bowman admits he didn't know what he was
getting.
"I didn't know much about Joey," Bowman said. "I never knew what kind of
player he was, just sort of the reputation that goes around. He is really a
smart player. He knows how to play hockey.
"That sounds strange, but he has really got a big sense for the game."
Stay relaxed
Capitals goalie Olaf
Kolzig looks like a posterboy for cool. But looks can be deceiving.
Kolzig says he has to work hard to stay relaxed.
"I'm always going to get nervous, but as long as I can vent, I'll be
fine," said Kolzig, who faced 31 shots in a 2-1 loss in Game 1. "My venting
takes different forms. Sometimes it's yelling an obscenity. Sometimes it's
breaking a stick.
"I don't take anything home with me. It all stays at the rink."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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