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The shadows know
The most surprising apparition in the first playoff round was the return of the old-fashioned shadow, not seen in the playoffs in nearly 10 years. In the 1990 Stanley Cup final Edmonton's Esa Tikkanen shut down the Bruins' Craig Janney. Two years later, Boston used Bob Sweeney against Pittsburgh's Mario Lemieux to no noticeable effect. This year, the shadow returned when the Oilers played Todd Marchant against Dallas' Mike Modano. But the most successful shadowing was done by Toronto's Shayne Corson against Ottawa's easily-discouraged Alexei Yashin. Yashin had just one assist as the Senators were swept by the Leafs. Don't look for Corson to reprise his role against New Jersey. The Devils' top center, Jason Arnott, has an injured knee but even if Arnott goes, the Devils' scoring is simply too balanced.
Admiring the little thingsThe best play of the first round you didn't see replayed by goal-obsessed highlight shows occurred in the second period of Game 6 between Carolina and New Jersey. With the Devils clinging to a one-goal lead and facing more than a minute of a five-on-three disadvantage, ace penalty killer John Madden cleanly won a defensive-zone faceoff on his forehand, forcing the puck over the blue line. The Hurricanes wasted more than 15 seconds regrouping and never did get in sync, failing to get off a shot during the power play. Madden's win is yet another reminder that faceoffs aren't one of the so-called little things that help you win games, but one of the big things.
Weighty issue in EdmontonFirst-year Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe has been a quick study but his sternest test comes this summer with Doug Weight. In an effort to short-circuit payroll problems on a small-market team, Lowe deftly moved Roman Hamrlik at the 2000 draft and reluctantly traded Bill Guerin to Boston for Anson Carter early in the season. Now Lowe must decide whether to sign his best player and captain, a restricted free agent who will command about 20 percent of his anticipated payroll of $30 million. Given the plucky Oilers' inability to win a playoff round, Lowe might again be preemptive. Sports Illustrated senior writer Michael Farber covers the NHL for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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