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Ice capade Bowman's defensive move a friendly reminderPosted: Tuesday January 22, 2002 3:14 PM
Every coach has to put up with Little League parents -- even the best coach in history. Through the pages of Sport Express in Moscow, Scotty Bowman has gotten an earful from Viktor Fedorov, who was unhappy the Detroit Red Wings' coach used his boy, 32-year-old Sergei, on defense for a stretch of seven games. Bowman, who had experimented with Fedorov on defense before, has since moved him back to center, his natural position. As always, there was a method to his madness. Detroit was short on the blue line with Fredrik Olausson on injured reserve at the time, but it was also a friendly reminder to general manager Ken Holland that the Wings need another defenseman for a Stanley Cup run. The switch seemed to help Fedorov, whose streak of 11 games without a goal as a forward ended in his second game on defense.
Blues' Johnson solid between pipesAfter squandering a solid chance to make the U.S. Olympic team, Brent Johnson has finally put together an excellent stretch to solidify his job as the Blues' No. 1 goalie. Some laughable goaltending by Roman Turek last spring against Colorado undermined St. Louis' Cup hopes, and despite a plethora of offseason moves by GM Larry Pleau, the Blues appeared to have taken a step backward until Johnson found his game. Johnson has played every minute during the team's nine-game winning streak, allowing 19 goals. The other key factor in the revival has been an excellent two weeks from franchise defenseman Chris Pronger, now teaming with rookie Mike Van Ryn. Pronger is again approaching his dominant Norris Trophy form.
Senators remain easily intimidatedThe Ottawa Senators rank in the top five in penalty minutes this season, but that still doesn't represent a genuine edge to their play. The Senators can out-skate and out-think two-thirds of NHL teams, but they are still too easily intimidated by big, tough clubs as losses last week to Boston and Philadelphia attest.Some of the Flyers were shocked at how meekly Ottawa capitulated in its home rink. Penalty numbers are up because Andre Roy and Chris Neil are willing to fight, but fighting majors don't accurately reflect team grit. Unless they find some fortitude, the Senators again look like first-round playoff fodder. Sports Illustrated senior writer Michael Farber covers the NHL beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.
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