head coach: Jim Schoenfeld

roster: C - Jeremy Roenick, Craig Janney, Cliff Ronning, Bob Corkum, Mike Stapleton, Juha Ylonen. LW - Keith Tkachuk, Darrin Shannon, Jim McKenzie. RW - Rick Tocchet, Dallas Drake, Mike Gartner, Brad Isbister, Jocelyn Lemieux. D - Teppo Numminen, Oleg Tverdovsky, John Slaney, Norm Maciver, Jim Johnson, Murray Baron, Deron Quint, Jason Doig, Jay More, Michel Petit, Sean Gagnon. G - Nikolai Khabibulin, Jimmy Waite, Scott Langkow.

injuries: John Slaney, d (fractured thumb); Jimmy Waite, g (thumb, day-to-day); Murray Baron, d (torn triceps muscle Nov. 17, indefinite); Jim Johnson, d (concussion Nov. 11, day-to-day); Darcy Wakaluk, g (knee surgery Sept. 17, 2-3 months -- placed on injured reserve Sept. 30).

transactions: Rick Tocchet, rw, and his knees of terror were suspended five games and fined $1,000 by the NHL.

standings:

Western Conference - Central Division
Team         GP   W   L   T   PTS   GF   GA   
Dallas       57  36  13   8    80  174  115
Detroit      58  31  15  12    74  177  136
St Louis     59  30  21   8    68  173  145
Phoenix      57  24  22  11    59  162  159
Chicago      56  22  25   9    53  134  133
Toronto      55  19  29   7    45  129  162

game results:

1/28 at Detroit       T 4-4
1/30 at Buffalo       T 3-3
1/31 at Toronto       W 5-2
2/03 Chicago          L 4-2
2/05 Philadelphia     L 6-2
2/07 New York Rangers T 1-1

team news:

by Matthew Secosky, Phoenix Correspondent

Tocchet Suspended

After being suspended two games and fined for a knee-to-knee hit on Edmonton's Ryan Smith in late January, Tocchet went out and quickly earned himself another five games of watching from the press box. This time for a knee-to-knee collision with Detroit's Steve Yzerman on January 28.

Although Yzerman missed two games with sprained ligaments in his left knee and a charley horse, he did make comments to NHL executive vice president Brian Burke expressing how he hoped that Tocchet wouldn't be suspended for the hit. This of course led Burke, in a show of compassion not seen since the days of Hitler, to swiftly hand down an excessive five-game suspension and $1,000 fine.

In response to the decision, Tocchet had this to say: "I apologize for those guys getting hurt, they're good players, and Stevie's a friend of mine. But it wasn't intentional. It wasn't malicious. It was incidental contact. I accept the suspension, but I'd like to know what kind of message the league is sending. I've missed 200 games in my career for getting cross-checked in the back for so many years in front of the net. But hey, that's part of the game. Nobody got suspended for doing that to me every single night."

For those of you keeping track at home, Tocchet has been suspended seven games this season and has forfeited $183,536 in game salary and fines for the two incidents. This of course leads to the question of whether $1,000 fines are really worth handing out in such cases. Compared to $181,536 in lost salary, the $1,000 fine is not worth mention.

Tocchet has served all games of his suspension and will be eligible to play again on February 25th when the Coyotes return from the Great Olympic Break of '98 to face off against the Colorado Avalanche.

Gartner Gone?

Mike Gartner, fifth leading goal-scorer in NHL history and snappy dresser, was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career on Wednesday, January 28th as the Coyotes laced them up against the Detroit Red Wings. Being scratched is just another disappointment for Gartner in a season where he was exposed to waivers once and dropped to the fourth line for some games.

Gartner has been put back into the line-up due to the suspension of Rick Tocchet, but with Tocchet returning Gartner may once again be the odd man out. Why? Well, I'll tell you. Coyotes Coach Jim Schoenfeld thinks the team would have a better chance to win without Gartner, whom he considers a defensive liability. Schoenfeld never was that bright. Anyhow, if Gartner doesn't continue to play, a trade will happen soon.

Note: Gartner is 11 goals shy of tying Phil Esposito (717) for fourth place on the all-time goal-scoring list.

Tkachuk Likes it Rough

Last season, Tkachuk became the first player in history to lead the league in goals while accumulating more than 200 penalty minutes. While some may complain about the lofty PIM and question whether a U.S. air strike on Iraq will lead to the start of World War III, there is no doubt that a nuclear holocaust would be 'kinda annoying' and lead to cheating in spelling bees.

Khabibulin Oxide

Did you know that Nikolai Khabibulin was made of iron? No? Well don't feel bad, neither did I until I read all about it in the news. Ya see...Khabibulin is a Russian-made Cyborg sent to North America to start 49 consecutive contests in America West Arena before being forced to miss a game due to a sore knee. Them Russians are tricky like that.

Other Stuff

Rumor has it the Coyotes are interested in obtaining defenseman Jyrki Lumme from the Vancouver Canucks. No other details of the rumor have been made up as of yet.

Rumor also has it that life is the main cause of death.

As soon as that pesky No Trade rule ends after the Olympics, expect 21-year-old Phoenix center/wing Chad Kilger to become New York Rangers property. Both teams have apparently agreed to a swap that will send Kilger to New York for defenseman Alexander Karpovtsev, but details couldn't be finalized before the trade deadline.

Extremely Brief Game Recaps

01/28/98 at Detroit, Tie 4-4 - The Coyotes were outshot 32-24 (including 4-0 in OT) yet held on for a tie. Oleg Tverdovsky had two assists, one of which led to Keith Tkachuk's 33rd goal of the season. Tocchet knocks Yzerman out of game.

01/30/98 at Buffalo, Tie 3-3 - Tverdovsky continues to shine with two goals and an assist. This marks the first two goal game of his career. Phoenix goalie Scott Langkow made his first NHL start and allowed two goals on the first four shots. Tkachuk nets #34.

01/31/98 at Toronto, Won 5-2 - Khabibulin saves the day as Phoenix was outshot 40-22. Tverdovsky has two more points - 1 goal, 1 assist.

02/03/98 vs Chicago, Lost 4-2 - Tony Amonte breaks loose for two goals and an assist and also breaks Chicago's four game losing streak against Phoenix this season.

02/05/98 vs Philadelphia, Lost 6-2 - Ouch. Khabibulin rested an injured knee and rookie goaltender Scott Langkow struggled - allowing five goals on Philly's first 15 shots. Tkachuk scored his 35th for Phoenix while Lindros, LeClair and Daigle each had three points for the Flyers.

02/07/98 vs NY Rangers, Tie 1-1 - Brian Leetch and Dallas Drake exchange goals. Mike Gartner delivers a nice hit on Ulf Samuelsson and gets a boarding call.

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