The three most interesting events of an NHL hockey season (aside
from the eternal question when will Mike Keenan be fired this
year?) are opening night, the last game of the Stanley Cup
Finals, and the trading deadline.
Every year, there is a flurry (no pun intended) of activity. The
have-nots deal away the players who made them have-nots. The
contenders jockey for overpriced morsels that they each believe
will mean the difference between an early exit and a long Cup
run. The teams on the bubble are both afraid to trade, and afraid
not to. At least that seems to be how it looks to Mike O'Connell,
the assistant GM for the Boston Bruins, who seems content to sit
back, stay put, and chuckle at the riff-raff for young talent
bargains offered to him over the phone by the wheeler-dealers
from other clubs.
This year, Mike at least made a show of it by going on a
pre-deadline scouting trip. But that trip was described as a
combination skiing/scouting trip. Given that no deals have yet
resulted, one has to wonder how much time Mike spent at the rink,
and how much time was spent on the slopes, if not back at the
lodge? Will the Bruins end up with a new sniper for the second
line, or a new recipe for hot buttered rum in the luxury boxes?
The truth is, it is hard to blame Mike for this, as most of the
talent available looks like leftovers from a scratch and dent
sale at the used car lot - lots of older models, some with high
mileage, others barely used, and all with very limited
warranties. And unfortunately, the NHL doesn't have a lemon law.
It isn't helped by the fact that most of the dealers are looking
to steal next year's young phenom away in exchange for a
long-toothed, overpaid, albatross like Vincent Damphousse.
So as much as a Bruins fan might like to see a Tony Amonte or a
Wendel Clark dressed up in Black and Gold, sorry, not going to
happen.
Speaking of Wendel, here is this reporter's top ten list of
available players you can be glad the Bruins didn't acquire:
1. Vinny - Aside from the fact that the Bruins and Montreal are
most unlikely to be trading players anytime soon, this is one
trade the Habs might have been willing to make, if only for
revenge. Vincent Damphousse proved that it isn't enough to be
French. Vinny, in seven years with Montreal, hasn't exactly set
any records as Montreal's captain. Vinny apparently is heading
to San Jose, where he and Owen Nolan can form two thirds of the
Glass Jaw line. Too bad the Sharks traded away Craig Janney. So
much for the Sharks in the playoffs.
2. Speaking of Craig Janney, thankfully Harry Sinden didn't have
a soft spot for Mr. Softee. Craig had some great years with the
Bruins, but he has never been able to re-kindle the chemistry he
had with Cam Neely (not that he is alone in that category). A
great passer, but not a clutch guy. Minimal impact recently in
the playoffs. Deserves to be with the Islanders.
3. Dino Ciccarelli's name usually gets trotted out this time of
year when teams are looking to beef up for the playoffs, and
other teams are looking for ways to get rid of players who are
more trouble than they are worth. Dino would be great if you
could pull him off the shelf, dust him off, and throw him into a
playoff series. Unfortunately, you usually have to put up with
the guy all year. Granted he does drive opponents crazier than
teammates, but not by much. Dino is hurt this year, playing in
only 14 games, so Florida hasn't unloaded him.
4. Enrico Ciccone - Here is another guy who often gets paraded
around as just the enforcer a team needs. However, in Rico's
case, that sales pitch is getting stale. He has been on only
three playoff teams in an eight-year career, and he is starting
to average two trades a year, usually from one loser team to
another. Bad luck or bad player? Fortunately, Bruins fans won't
find out soon.
5. The aforementioned Wendel Clark. 101 of his 322 goals have
come on the power play. 34 goals in 79 playoff games. But he
hasn't played one full season in a 15-year career. He has gone
from tough to fragile, and making a trade for him only to have
him get injured would deflate his new team. By the way, he is -
125 for his career. He has only three playoff goals since 1995.
Pat Burns may like him, but Detroit can have him.
6. Joe Juneau - personally, this Bruin fan would love to have
Joe-way. But No-way Harry would bring him back. Juneau alienated
many of his teammates with Boston, and the locker room discord
that started with him did not dissipate until Adam Oates left and
Pat Burns arrived. Joe has never come close to the 102 points he
registered in Boston, and with him the Caps have been boom or
bust - out of the playoffs, in the finals, and out of the
playoffs again. Joe gets injured lots and doesn't shoot the puck
as much as he should. Buffalo got him for practically nothing.
They may have gotten their money's worth, or they may have stolen
a spot in the finals. It's a coin flip.
7. Speaking of Adam Oates - the guy is a Hall of Famer, arguably
the greatest assist man in NHL history (sure Wayne has more, but
Adam's are better), but he also seems to be a controversy magnet.
He was trouble in Detroit, and trouble in St. Louis, and trouble
in Boston, usually about contracts. In Washington his points
have steadily declined. Was outplayed considerably in the Finals
by Detroit's Steve Yzerman, which is hardly a disgrace, but
neither will Oates be looked at as some team's playoff savior.
8. Sergei Nemchinov - Why? He is 35, he had 16 points in 67
games for he Islanders this year. He was along for the ride when
the Rangers won the Cup. But the Devils traded for him. "Sergei
Nemchinov is a proven veteran who can play all three forward
positions," said Devils president and general manager Lou
Lamoriello. "He is familiar with the Eastern Conference and has
been a member of a Stanley Cup winner. We are confident he will
fit in well with our organization." Lou should sit down and have
that bump on his head looked at.
9. Doug Gilmour - the guy is 35, and even though he is always
trumpeted as a great leader, what has he got to show for it? A
Cup ten years ago with Calgary? Not much since. Hasn't provided
the spark in Toronto, New Jersey, or Chicago - all three have
missed the playoffs with him on the roster. Last playoff goal was
in 1996. It's over.
10. Number 10 with a bullet, who else but Owen Nolan. Yes, we're
pickin' on poor Owen. Sure he has had chronic injuries, and he
has played on horrible teams. It just is never clear whether that
is a cause or effect relationship. Colorado dropped him and won
a Stanley Cup. San Jose didn't get the message. Owen and Vinny
will be the San Jose equivalent of the two crash test dummies of
commercial fame. 15 goals in 66 games? Vinny with 12 goals in 65
games? What are these guys thinking?
It would be great to be proved wrong on any of these guys, not to
restore faith in humanity, but because if any one of the above
players who were traded turn out to be the difference in a
positive way in the playoffs, then maybe next year the Bruins
will have the guts to acquire a player at the deadline, and go
more than one round deep in the playoffs.
If asked to name a player who would have been an asset to the
Bruins, well there were several available. Chris Chelios, for
example, would help any team he joins, but there probably wasn't
room on the bench for Ray Bourque, Chris Chelios, and Chris
Chelios' ego. The player who might have best fit the profile for
helping the Bruins (durable, team player, versatile, and
reasonably priced) was old pal Bryan Smolinski, who surely could
have been had cheap from the Long Island fire sale. Was it a case
of burned bridges? We might never know. But Smoke would have
been a nice player to trot out with Thornton or Allison if the
regular guys started to slump in the postseason.
Then again, Harry and Mike could be 100% correct about this
Bruins team, when they say that they want to go with the current
club. There are, after all, several positives that can be drawn
from standing pat:
1. No clunkers -- Sometimes trades flop, and often a player is
brought in with expectations set too high. See Kevin Stevens and
Jim Carey, former Bruins. A clunker at playoff time is like
double indemnity.
2. No chemistry problem -- Sometimes a new player disrupts the
team, or the team anguishes over the player that was traded away.
Neither is a good situation to go into the playoffs with. Right
now the Bruins seem extremely devoid of discord and disruption,
and in fact the players are coming together and growing, Ain't
broke, don't fix.
3. Club morale -- Sometimes when trades are made, the team
players remaining feel like the coach or GM didn't have
confidence in them to win in the playoffs. Especially with young
players, confidence is a major factor, and sometimes a fragile
thing. Sticking with the team is a measure of Pat Burns' and
Harry's confidence in the team.
So much for sweetness and light. There are, coincidentally just
as many reasons why not making a deadline trade is bad news:
1. 8th place is good enough -- That's where this team looks to
land, facing the number one team in the East, away. Whatever
Harry is saying to the team, he is saying to the fans "Hey, we
made the playoffs. Stop complaining, and buy some nachos." This
gets into the argument about competing vs. striving for
championships, and most Bruins fans have had their fill of this
discussion.
2. No proven second line sniper -- Traditionally, the Bruins have
fared poorly when they did not have a scoring threat on the
second line. While Joe Thornton has made phenomenal progress, his
line still lacks a player who can park in front of the net and
make goals out of Joe's hard board work and his gorgeous passes.
Anson Carter doesn't have the hands, and Steve Heinze doesn't
have the strength. Sergei Samsonov is great, but he is a
playmaker, not a garbage collector. Take away Samsonov, or
Dimitri Khristich, who can play this role, and where does that
leave Jason Allison?
3. First round exit -- That is where the Bruins may well be
headed. Without that second line threat, and facing Ottawa, a
team that desperately wants to prove they belong in the NHL's
upper echelon, the Bruins may have a tough time getting through.
Fortunately, they play well at the Corel Center, they match up
decently with the Senators, and the Senators are just about as
inexperienced in the playoffs as the younger members of the
Bruins.
Well, enough about what might have been. We are only able to talk
this way, rather than about a Boston liquidation sale, because
the team Harry and Mike stuck with truly put in a clutch
performance in the past two weeks. The Bruins had four Eastern
teams hot on their tail for that eighth and final playoff spot,
and the Bruins responded by dismantling three of them, and in the
process, piling up enough points to sink the fourth. Florida,
the Rangers, Washington, and Montreal were all threatening to
send the Bruins home early. In response, the Bruins went
4-1-1, beating Florida, the Rangers, and the Capitals, and
outpointing the Canadiens to the degree that three of these teams
have essentially thrown in the towel at the trading deadline.
The Bruins shut out Florida 2-0, staged an amazing comeback
fueled by two Anson Carter goals within a minute in the third
period to drive a stake in the Rangers' heart, and mugged a
depressed and lethargic Capitals team 4-1, sticking a fork in
Washington's playoff hopes.
The Rangers, Capitals, and Canadiens have each dealt away players
for draft choices and prospects, more interesting in cutting
their losses than trying to overtake the Bruins. Florida has
decided to pin their hopes on the return of Pavel Bure from knee
surgery. Bure will be skating again soon, but it would be a shame
and a loss to hockey if he rushes back and is injured again.
Trailing Boston by four points in the standings and five wins if
they were tied in points, they have to measure the risk
carefully. They play the Rangers Wednesday, and a win their
coupled with a Bruin loss in Ottawa will leave the Panthers in
decent shape.
So there still is a two-team race. It would be too ironic for the
Bruins to go into a slump and be accidently overtaken by one of
the teams that has seemingly waved the white flag, so don't even
think about it.
Meanwhile, the Bruins game against the Sens should be a dandy,
since both teams will feel like they have something to prove.
Boston won in Ottawa, Ottawa won in Boston, Ron Tugnutt stoned
the Bruins in Boston, and Boston pummeled Tugnutt in Ottawa. All
in all, pretty even -- the difference between the two teams (nine
wins and 16 points) comes largely because Ottawa has beaten up on
the weaker teams in the conference and on the road better than
the Bruins, who keep choking on the Islanders and Tampa Bay.
That is not to belittle Ottawa one bit - they are just doing what
an elite NHL team is supposed to do. If they meet the Bruins
in the playoffs, the Bruins should be a good challenge for the
Senators to do the other thing elite teams must do -- handle
lesser opponents in the money rounds, where it counts, and the
losers go home.
This week's game should be a test, where both teams start staking
out their respective turf for that eventual meeting. "This is
playoff hockey" as the commentators like to say, even though it
isn't. Ottawa has to solve the Bruins penalty kill, and the
Bruins have to prove they can skate with three lines of young
talented Senators, and score a few power-play goals of their own.
Should be big fun.
