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Pre-deadline musings Random thoughts before the trade activity hitsPosted: Monday March 11, 2002 1:38 AM
With the trade deadline arriving next week, followed by the frantic finish of the regular season and then the playoff derby, this is the last chance to be whimsical. You know, gaze around the league and just go "hmmmmmm, that’s interesting." Here are some samplings of such musings. First, can anyone explain how the Philadelphia Flyers can score the most even-strength goals in the NHL, while their power play is fifth from the bottom? Granted, come the postseason, effectiveness at even strength is more desirable than an offense reliant on power-play production, but the Flyers have too much talent to languish near the bottom of the league when up a man. Improvement in this department would be a nice compliment to an already balanced attack. Second, stand up and take a bow if you foresaw the Phoenix Coyotes and St. Louis Blues tied in the Western Conference standings with less than 20 games remaining. Even if you predicted that the Blues weren’t as top notch as their preseason press clippings and you thought the Coyotes might be better than many suspected, how would you explain both with 73 points? The Coyotes are proof that four lines, solid defense and quality netminding still defines successful hockey. Yes, you need talent to win, but star names alone don’t guarantee success. The Coyotes already knew this, having opted out of the Jeremy Roenick-Keith Tkachuk era -- which yielded little -- and the Blues are finding out for themselves. Third, raise your hand if you thought the Minnesota Wild would have a better record at home than the Dallas Stars. The Wild presents a challenge every night, but at home they are three games over .500. Their special teams are a bit better at home, but mostly it is the atmosphere that is special. The facility is fabulous and the fans sell out to cheer the Wild. A boring, trapping brand of hockey? Not according to the smiling Minnesotans in attendance, who seem content watching a winning team on home ice. The Stars? Maybe they’ve just been slow to get comfortable in their new confines. Or, maybe they are simply slowing as they continue to age. Speaking of getting old (albeit gracefully), what do you make of the three geriatric gems in 2002, Patrick Roy, Chris Chelios and Adam Oates? Roy is a candidate for the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP, is leading the league with a sub-2.00 goals-against average and is apparently getting better despite having turned 36 in October. How about Chelios for the Red Wings? Already 40 years old, Chelios is plus-40, has over 30 points and plays over 25 minutes per game. With all due respect to teammate Nicklas Lidstrom, is it too far-fetched to say Chelios and Norris Trophy in the same sentence? And we’re talking present tense, not referring to his three previous Norris nods in 1989, ’93 and ’96. Up front, the 39-year-old Oates is again proving to be one of the best passing pivots in league lore. He has the most assists in the league -- as he did a season ago -- and is in the top five in scoring overall. Typically caustic and candid, Oates first said he didn’t want to play for the Caps because they wouldn’t add time to his contract. Now, he says rent-a-player status holds no appeal -- meaning he has no interest in going anywhere if a team dealt for him with no intention of giving him a contract extension. Oates, however, has always been able to separate off-ice business concerns from his on-ice obligation. He is doing it again this season and the Caps are making a late-season push towards the playoffs due in no small part to his passing proficiency. So, draw your own conclusions on these random observations. What do they all mean? Not much, especially by next week. Darren Eliot, a former NHL goaltender, is a hockey analyst for CNN/Sports Illustrated and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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