HOCKEY NOTES

Some half-formed opinions

Break in the action good time to take stock

By Kevin Paul Dupont | January 21, 2007

The Bruins closed up shop last night for the All-Star Game, and won't be seen on frozen firma again until a Thursday afternoon practice in Wilmington. Despite a protracted stumble out of the gate, they at least are in the hunt for a playoff spot.

That's the good news. The bad news is, other than the Falstaffian Flyers, 14 of the Eastern Conference's 15 teams are in the hunt for a playoff spot.

"Someone's going to have to put on a run here," opined coach Dave Lewis. By his count, six of the seeds in the East are spoken for, which leaves the Bruins and seven other squads in a scrum for Seeds 7 and 8. Tight quarters.

In other words, welcome to parity, just one of the consequences (or contrivances?) of the salary cap. In the Western Conference, even the lowly Kings (38 points heading into last night) still have hopes of playing beyond the first week of April -- not bad for a club that won only 16 of its first 49 games. Other than those busted cousins of the Broad Street Bullies, everyone still has a shot, and none of the fans in those 29 cities are complaining about parity.

All in all, the second season of Life After Lockout has been a pretty good product. There remain the Neanderthals (see byline above) who wish donnybrooks remained part of the terrain, but that's never going to happen. Wednesday night's All-Star snoozeroo will be yet another lovefest, peace and harmony in all three zones, and no fewer than 14 goals total, which will be 14 more than the total hits registered by both sides.

A few things to ponder during hockey's hiatus:

If the Penguins and Capitals each miss the playoffs, then as good as they are, neither Sidney Crosby nor Alexander Ovechkin will finish with the Hart Trophy (MVP). Any of three goalies -- Marty Brodeur, Dominik Hasek, or Roberto Luongo -- could win it. Right now? Jarome Iginla (currently out with a sprained knee ligament). Way overdue.

Forget about introducing bigger nets. The problem in the NHL is not scoring. Bring back the contact, and amend the ridiculous "instigator" penalty, and there will be plenty of good 2-1 games. Bigger nets won't end what has become scrimmage hockey.

The potential for conference reconfiguration, and the formation of two divisions per conference, looks like a frightening invitation to expansion. Both conferences would have 15 teams, like today, but the two divisions would be imbalanced -- one with eight teams, the other with seven. Not good. This is a league that could stand a healthy dose of contraction, which obviously will never happen. But add two more teams, and the overall thinning of talent would be downright painful.

Nashville was second in the NHL with 69 points entering last night. GM David Poile is among the best guys in the game, and that's just one reason to feel good for the Predators. That said, I'm not sure even diehard Canadian fans could work up a froth for, say, a Nashville-East Rutherford best-of-seven Cup final in early June. Of course, we used to say similar things about Winnipeg, too. Even Canadians didn't want Winnipeg, eh?

As last night's play began, the Ducks had won only two of 10 games since a blocked shot fractured Chris Pronger's foot. There have been far too many guys sidelined this season with these kinds of injuries. Time for the Players Association to push skate manufacturers for higher-quality boots. Also time for the PA to do the right thing and mandate eye protection (even more overdue than that Iginla MVP).

The lack of trades, due in large part to salary cap considerations, diminishes fan interest, and certainly makes for less chatter in Sunday notes columns. The new CBA doesn't permit a club to dish a player and eat part of his salary. Makes no sense, and also leads to players getting mothballed in the minors. Provided a club remains under the cap, what's the harm in eating some of the dough?

Any Boston Baby Boomer who longs for what it was like here during the Big Bad Bruins era would be brought to tears by touring suburban Buffalo. The success of the Sabres has kids there flooding neighborhoods with nets, sticks, and tennis balls for street hockey. It's not part of the culture. It is the culture. The only visible link in Boston: trucks for Fred Stanfield's Office Furniture zipping around the streets.

No official word yet, but betting around the Penguins as the weekend approached was that they would stay put in Pittsburgh and not take the enticing offer to move to Kansas City. Once the KC offer was dropped into Mario Lemieux's lap, and presented true cause for the Penguins to bolt, Steel City fathers finally realized they would have to get their act in gear -- not unlike the Hartford offer that provided the Patriots' leverage to stay put in Foxborough. Oldest trick in the book, but effective.

New uniforms ready for coming-out party

Forget the tuck rule. That was the message NHL players relayed to Reebok when the sports apparel giant went about its grand makeover of the league's uniforms.

The sleek new look, unveiled in Thursday's USA Today, will officially go public this week when the NHL holds its All-Star bash in Dallas (the game is Wednesday night on Versus). Initially, plans for the threads had the sweater tucking inside the pants (no bow tie or cummerbund), but players feared they could overheat.

Ergo, the shirt remains out and the air will flow through, which certainly wouldn't be pleasing to the eye of an aerodynamic specialist in Motor City.

"They'll go from driving a Ford to a Ferrari," Matt O'Toole, Reebok-CCM Hockey's CEO, noted to USA Today. "They'll still be in a car -- but a car that's more sculpted and sleek."

Bruins defenseman Brad Stuart is among the underwhelmed.

"It's different, I guess, kind of tight," said the veteran defenseman. "I'm not really a big fan of them, but like everything else, I guess we'll get used to them."

All NHL teams are scheduled to be in the new models by the start of the 2007-08 season.

"They are different, for sure, and I like them," said Patrice Bergeron, one of Reebok-CCM's guys, rarely without a company ski cap on his head during the winter.

"Yeah, they are fitted tighter, but we've got elbow pads and shoulder pads -- it's not tight like a baseball player would wear."

Bieksa has been a knockout for surging Canucks

The Canucks, a blistering 10-2-0 despite Friday night's loss in Buffalo, are finally seeing the fruits of acquiring franchise goalie Roberto Luongo, whom the Panthers dropped on Vancouver's doorstep on the eve of last June's amateur draft.

Another key for the hard-charging Canucks has been the fast-forward development of blue liner Kevin Bieksa, drafted 151st in 2001. He played half the 2005-06 season and this year has developed into the squad's top point-getting defenseman (8-20--28 entering last night).

"Great kid," said Ducks general manager Brian Burke, who was Canucks GM when they drafted Bieksa. "And a great story."

Uncertain whether he wanted to sign Bieksa following the defenseman's senior season at Bowling Green, Burke invited him to the Manitoba Moose (AHL). His first night with the club, Burke recalled, the 6-foot-1-inch Bieksa didn't play, but that night he joined his new teammates at a local pub.

"He's in there, having a good time, and he bumps the table of another of our kids, Fedor Fedorov," said Burke. (Fedorov, brother of the better known Sergei, is now back in Russia, playing for Yaroslavl.) "Well, one thing leads to another, and Fedorov, a pretty good-sized kid [6 foot 3 inches, 230 pounds], asks Bieksa if he wants to take it outside. So, Bieksa's a willing kid, and says, 'Sure, let's go!' "

Out to the parking lot the two went, and according to Burke, Bieksa KO'd the bigger Fedorov with one punch.

"Down and out!" recalled Burke. "The next day, I'm talking to [assistant GM Steve Tambellini], and I guess Bieksa was all worried about it, saying to Tamby, "Oh, geez, I'm all done, Burkie's going to be really [steamed], I show up and knock out one of his own guys.' I listen to Tamby and I say, 'Are you kidding me? I love that. Sign him -- today!' "

Bieksa, 25, is on the books this year for a Kmart price of $500,000 and will jump to $550,000 next season.

Etc.

'Razor' not at his sharpest

Uncomfortable days in Toronto for ex-Bruins goalie Andrew Raycroft, who was booed at the Air Canada Centre last Saturday night when the Leafs fell to the red-hot Canucks, 6-1. "Heartbreaking for a guy who played his heart out, and had a pretty [expletive] solid first half of the season," said Leafs captain Mats Sundin. Five of Vancouver's strikes on the Razor came on the man advantage. "If you are going to boo someone, boo the refs," opined third-year pivot Matt Sajan. The even-keeled Raycroft suggested that mostly Canucks fans remained in the building at the end, along with some well-heeled Leafs fans who paid $500 a pop for their tickets. "They paid pretty good money to come watch us play and we didn't perform," said Raycroft. "So they can boo all they want." Raycroft entered last night's game with a 20-15-4 mark, his GAA at 3.02, and his save percentage .895.

Full circle for faceoff man

Slotted as a faceoff specialist virtually his entire career, Phoenix center Yanic Perreault didn't have a job when the season began. Now he'll be in Dallas for the All-Star Game. "One month into the season, we were looking for a center," said Phoenix GM Mike Barnett. "I wouldn't say it was a genius move on our part -- more like just good fortune for both sides." Perreault, who will be 36 in April, collected 57 points in 69 games with Nashville last season, but the Predators, looking to get bigger down the middle, went out and signed free agent Jason Arnott. A lingering groin injury led Perreault to surgery in August -- in part why he wasn't signed by training camp -- but an early-season injury to Steve Reinprecht left the Desert Dogs without their top puckhandling pivot. Voila, Perreault, who suited up Nov. 3. Perreault, with 28 points in 35 games entering last night, entered weekend play having won 330 of 530 faceoffs, the highest percentage (62.3) among players with 500-plus draws.

Do you know where you're going to?

Speculation persists that Brad Stuart, an unrestricted free agent as of July 1, will not agree to terms on a new deal in the Hub of Hockey, which could force GM Peter Chiarelli to trade him prior to the Feb. 27 deadline. "I haven't made up my mind yet, if that's what you are asking," said Stuart. According to Stuart, agent Pat Brisson had informal contract conversations with Chiarelli last month, and he believes the two chatted again recently. "But I'm not really sure -- truth is, I haven't heard anything," said the ex-Shark.

Error of omission

Hard to figure Marc Savard not making the Eastern Conference All-Star squad. The veteran pivot, perhaps the only Bruin to exceed expectations in the first half of the season, has been among the league's assist leaders from the start, and entering last night's games he was tied for sixth overall in points (62), following his 97-point campaign with the 2005-06 Thrashers. "So important to our team, night in and night out," said coach Dave Lewis. "Competes in all areas, and in all rinks. You look at what he brings every night, statistically and character-wise . . . I just don't get it."

Their kingdom for a goalie

The Kings, decimated by injuries to goalies, picked up veteran backstop Sean Burke on reentry waivers via Tampa Bay Thursday. Burke, who will turn 40 Jan. 29, had a bloated 4.52 GAA with Springfield (AHL) at the time of recall, and will be asked to fill the void left by Dan Cloutier (hip surgery) and Mathieu Garon (broken finger). The Kings had been trying to plug with the likes of Barry Brust and Yutaka Fukufuji, the latter of whom is one of the very few Japanese players ever drafted in the NHL (No. 238 in 2004). "It's not fair to Brust or Fukufuji," said GM Dean Lombardi, noting the hardship for rookie tenders stepping into NHL fire. "They're not ready for this. It's not their fault."

Loose pucks

The Rangers added a year to Martin Straka's deal, and he'll earn $3.3 million in 2007-08, a boost of some 6 percent over his $3.1 million this season. The salary cap will go up from $44 million, likely to no more than $47 million, or roughly 7 percent. All in all, it looks like Straka got himself a cost-of-living raise. Proof once more that everything is different in a cap world . . . Entering last night's game, ex-Bruin Joe Thornton was eighth in league scoring (60 points), but only 24 of those (40 percent) came at even strength -- the lowest rate among the top 25 scorers . . . Everett's Donald "Danny" Cafazzo, a fixture in the Boston Olympics dressing room as a stickboy in the 1940s, died Jan. 3 at age 79. A season ticket-holder of the Bruins and Whalers through the years, he was a veteran of both the Army and the Navy, and worked for Sportsworld (Everett/Saugus) in recent years.

Kevin Paul Dupont's e-mail address is dupont@globe.com; material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.

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