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Boston cashes in Three players, No. 1 pick was quite a haul for Bourque
Posted: Tuesday March 07, 2000 12:35 AM
The deal that sent Ray Bourque and Dave Andreychuk to the Colorado Avalanche will certainly enable Colorado to do so some damage in the Stanley Cup playoffs this spring. Even if neither Bourque nor Andreychuk saw it coming. Sources in Boston claim Bourque was fully expecting to be traded to either Philadelphia or Detroit when he gave general manger Harry Sinden the OK to make a deadline deal that would end his 21-year run with the Bruins. Andreychuk, signed as a free-agent at the start of the season had an inkling he might go. But neither expected it to be to Colorado. That Sinden opted to deal with the Avs surprised everyone. Everyone, of course, except Sinden. First off, the crafty general manager got a pretty good deal for his aging Defenseman, picking up forward Brian Rolston, defenseman Martin Grenier, center Sami Pahlsson and Boston's choice of a first-round pick in either 2000 or 2001. Rolston can play right now for the Bruins and Grenier and Pahlsson are considered real prospects ... even if neither is close to being ready for the NHL. The key to the deal for Boston, however, is that first-round pick. Pulling a No. 1 out of the hat for a player whose best days are clearly behind him was a nifty piece of negotiating by Sinden, and it was something neither Detroit nor Philadelphia (and quite likely St. Louis) were willing to offer. Sinden acknowledged that the deal might not fly well with Bourque. "It may not be his first choice," was the quote. But then Sinden's obligation is first and foremost to the Bruins, not Bourque ... no matter how many years the player gave in good service. In fact, the very idea that Bourque opted to have his name thrown into the trade ring may have worked against him. The Bruins likely would have been just as happy to have Bourque retire as a Bruin, but since he opted to get out, Sinden clearly felt his hands were no longer tied. Insiders also suggest that Sinden had an inkling that if he did trade Bourque to a contender that the 18-time All-Star likely wouldn't retire. There's reason to believe that the Avalanche, led by general manager Pierre Lacroix, has a plan for re-signing Bourque beyond this season and that Bourque, content to play a lesser role (and with considerably less ice time) would readily agree. Colorado also was willing to pay the price because it had real needs. The Avs needed a defenseman to replace the injured Alexei Gusarov, who will miss the rest of the season with a fractured kneecap that needs surgery. Gusarov already had missed 30 games because of injuries, illness and suspension. He was averaging 20 minutes of ice time per game and usually was paired with Adam Foote to play against the opponent's top line. "(Gusarov's absence) is going to put an extra five minutes on every other guy," defenseman Aaron Miller said before the trade was announced. "I think we're deep. I don't think it's going to be too much of a problem. 'Goose' is a good player, but it's just going to allow another player to step in. We've got plenty of guys who can do the job." Don't bet the farm. Until Bourque arrives, the Avalanche's top six defensemen are Adam Foote, Miller, Joe Klemm, Sandis Ozolinsh, Martin Skoula and Greg de Vries. None of them have anywhere near the experience Bourque can provide. In addition, Klemm has been having back problems and Ozolinsh has struggled with the weight of additional expectations. In getting Andreychuk, the Avalanche also get an immediate power-play boost. Andreychuk is by no means fast, and his best days are well behind him, but he still has remarkable skill in his hands. As long at the Avs have big shooters like Bourque, Ozolinsh, Sakic and Peter Forsberg, Andreychuk will have plenty of opportunities for his trademark deflections and rebound goals. That's important because the Avs recently went 5 for 56 on the power play over 15 games. Both Sakic and Forsberg have been taking a physical beating in front of the net, something Andreychuk has relished throughout his career. The Avalanche scored two or fewer goals in 10 of 19 games from Jan. 17 until the middle of last week. They posted a 4-10-5 record until erupting against the Devils for five goals. Simply put: That wasn't good enough for a team that was thought to be a Stanley Cup contender this season. With Detroit, St. Louis and Dallas in the conference, the Avalanche simply had to make this move.
What a difference a Weekes makesGoalie Kevin Weekes, who came to the Islanders from Vancouver in the Felix Potvin deal, has pushed boy wonder Roberto Luongo to the sidelines and now to the minors.While Luongo will likely finish the season with the Lowell Lock Monsters, Weekes appears to have found a home in Long Island. He was initially the property of the Florida Panthers, but they threw him in as a part of the deal to get Pavel Bure. Heady issuesThe Florida Panthers were quick to give forward Rob Niedermayer a rest after he was knocked a little silly Friday in a game against the New York Rangers. Niedermayer has a history of concussions and was said to be feeling woozy the day after the hit, which is why he did not dress Saturday against St. Louis. Niedermayer missed 26 games during the 1997-98 season with concussion-related problems. "It was Robbie's call on this," Florida coach Terry Murray said. "Tied all together with the situation a couple of years ago, this is just to be on the safe side." Things were a little uglier in Washington, where Sabres forward Michael Peca was felled in a last-second fight with Steve Konowalchuk. Peca separated a shoulder and will be out four to six weeks. The game was essentially over (with the Sabres on the short end) when it appeared payback time was at hand. Peca had knocked Sergei Gonchar out of the game with a borderline hit that was not penalized. The Caps claimed they would send a tape of the incident to league headquarters noting that Peca left his feet to jump into Gonchar, who himself was just coming back to play after a series of problems with concussions. "[Peca] was two feet in the air when he hit Gonch right in the nose," Capitals coach Ron Wilson said. "Maybe the ref is out of position, but we have a league [office], we have video, we're in the modern age. "I hope something [disciplinary] happens to Mike Peca. He went for the head and he left his feet. How many guys have to be hurt with head shots? All I can hope for is the league reviews it ... This has got to stop." Peca, however, downplayed the event as did his coach, Lindy Ruff. Ruff said Peca is a smallish player and sometimes will appear to leave his feet to get the leverage he needs to make a hit. Peca said the hit was clean and that Wilson's claims were largely a smokescreen to cover what Konowalchuk did. That may or may not be true, but expect the league to make the final call. Peca's injury works in his favor, however. There was no penalty on the play and Peca will likely be out longer than Gonchar. So it's possible the league will look the other way thinking that justice has already been served. Jim Kelley covers the NHL -- and the Sabres -- for the Buffalo News. His notebook and Rumor Mill appear weekly on CNNSI.com. The opinions expressed here are solely those of the writer.
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