Shining in shadowy role
ATLANTA -- Bruins defenseman Hal Gill came into the league in 1997-98, the same season left wing P.J. Axelsson started his NHL career. Understandably, the fanfare was all about the No. 1 and No. 8 overall picks at the time -- Joe Thornton and Sergei Samsonov -- but Gill and Axelsson have shown a knack for being able to frustrate other clubs' best players.
Gill was never better than when he was in Jaromir Jagr's face, and Axelsson, though an offensive force in international play for his native Sweden, has been thought of as a defensive forward in the NHL.
Axelsson was assigned to shadow Jagr in last Saturday's game against the Rangers, and Jagr was off the scoreboard until the shootout. Then Axelsson shut down Capitals rookie phenom Alexander Ovechkin Monday night.
Last night, he and linemates Brad Isbister and Wayne Primeau slowed down Atlanta's top combination of center Marc Savard and wings Ilya Kovalchuk and Peter Bondra.
Savard potted Atlanta's second goal, assisted by Kovalchuk, but Axelsson trumped them by scoring at 12:58 of the third to give the Bruins the 3-2 win. Axelsson had five shots on net -- tied for the game high with teammate Patrice Bergeron and Thrashers forward Marian Hossa.
''He's been doing what coach called the thankless jobs and doing a heck of a job for us," said Isbister. ''It's nice for him to get on the scoresheet."
Axelsson's effectiveness is coming as no surprise to Gill.
''Playing in the World Championships and everything, when he's playing back home, he always gets tons of points," said Gill. ''You see his offensive abilities, but when he came here, the first thing was he was on a checking line with [Tim] Taylor and [Rob] DiMaio. That's where he kind of got slotted. He's kind of defined himself as a checker and lately, of course, he's been the White Shadow.
''He means tons to the team. He seems like he's always in the right position. He's tough to play against. In the NHL you have to sacrifice yourself for wins and he's sacrificed himself a lot to cover a guy like Ovechkin."
Gill said it's much easier for him, as a stay-at-home defenseman, to shadow a star player than it is for someone like Axelsson, who is so good at the transition game. In that role, offense is completely secondary and you have to stifle the urge to go on the attack.
''Sometimes when you're a forward, you have that mentality that if you see the puck and you can go on the offense, you go for it," said Gill. ''I think it's real hard for him.
''For me, I'm not really looking at offense. I have a job to do and that's what I'm doing. As a forward, to look at an opportunity and not jump on it, that's tough. We get control of the puck and he's still looking around to see where guys are. That's tough to do."
Coach Mike Sullivan acknowledged that it was ''a grind," but said Axelsson could handle whatever was asked of him.
''It's just a testament to his intelligence," said the coach. ''He's really one of the smarter players I've certainly had the opportunity to coach. No matter what role we cast him in, he's able to adapt.
''We've had him on different lines, we have used him on the power play sometimes. He's obviously one of our top penalty killers. He knows where to be. He's working at it. He's setting an example with his work ethic. He's really kind of emerged as one of the leaders on our team."
''P.J. has done a great job," said goalie Tim Thomas. ''For every ounce of energy you put into offense, it's twice as hard on defense."
Time to go
Gill wasn't surprised to hear that Penguins great Mario Lemieux was retiring. ''He's gone through a lot with health issues," said Gill. ''There comes a time when you have to cash it in. He's got so much invested in that organization; he wanted to do whatever he could do, but it's a tough situation. When it's your time, it's your time." . . . Bondra returned to the Thrashers lineup after missing 22 games with an abdominal injury. Coach Bob Hartley elevated Bondra to the No. 1 line, dropping Ronald Petrovicky out of the lineup as a healthy scratch . . . The scratches for Boston were defenseman Jiri Slegr and forward Ben Walter . . . The Bruins are scheduled to practice today and will have a rematch tomorrow night with the Capitals at the TD Banknorth Garden.
