Stoll Making Huge Contributions as a Role Player

By Larry Wigge

Jarret Stoll used to occupy one of the positions on the top two line for the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings. He was effective and productive. Terrific shot. Always a very dangerous player ... one who used on the point of the power play.

His biggest output came in 2005-06, when he scored 22 goals and 46 assists and scored another four goals and six assists in the playoffs as the Edmonton Oilers made it all the ways to the Stanley Cup finals.

But on June 23 things changed, when the Kings obtained center Mike Richards -- all-star from the Philadelphia Flyers and Stoll was demoted to third or fourth-line center behind Anze Kopitar and Richards.

The demotion didn't agree with Jarret Stoll.

Somehow he fell into disfavor with Los Angeles coach Terry Murray. Stoll was moved around and the Kings experimented to boost their anemic offense. He didn't really climb in to his role as a two-way center. Being strapped with different linemates and his scoring dropped from 20 goals last season to six goals and 15 assists -- his poorest season ever in eight season with Edmonton and Los Angeles.

But fast-forward 11 months and Jarret has never played better hockey in his career. When Darryl Sutter replaced Murray as coach in late December, Stoll began to gather more and more ice time. More important minutes, from Sutter, formerly the Calgary Flames GM, remembering Stoll from his prominent days with the Oilers and Kings.

Late in the season, he started to play more third line duty with Trevor Lewise and rookie Dwight King, after King and Jordan Nolan were recalled from Manchester of the American Hockey League on February 11.

And what a line it has become for the Kings in the playoffs ... producing as much as the Kopitar and Richards lines.

Stoll turned in one of the finest playoff performances Thursday night in a 2-1 victory against the Phoenix Coyotes that gave Los Angeles a 3-0 series lead in the Western Conference Finals. The highlight was his steal from defenseman Michael Stone that led to Dwight King's game-winning goal early in the third period. 

"When he's slotted right where he is, he's awesome," Sutter explained. But ...

Sutter wanted to finish the thought, but he was at a loss for superlatives.

"He had a strong powerful game tonight," continued Sutter. "I thought he was outstanding."

"Everybody's got to play well to win," Stoll explained. "It doesn't matter where you are in the lineup. Whether you're playing five to six minutes a night or 18 to 19 minutes a night -- it doesn't really matter. As long as you're playing your role and contributing and doing the things you do well for the team. Right now we've got everybody on that same page."

Fewer minutes and fewer points, a more defensive role.

"He's an awesome two-way center," teammate Matt Greene said, who came to Los Angeles with Stoll in a June 29, 2008 trade for defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky. "I've had the pleasure of playing with him for a long time now. And he's a stud. I think he does a lot of things he doesn't get credit for."

Captain Dustin Brown added, "Stoll really stood out to me with his jump -- he jumped by two guys, drawing a penalty on one. He had opportunities left and right. Again, that's part of the reason we're a successful team right now is we have everyone going. On different nights, we have different players elevate their games."

Stoll's veteran savvy has been a key role in King's scoring goals in three straight games ... and five in the last five games.

It didn't start out that way for Stoll.

Settling into a defensive role was never Jarret Stoll's intent. He wanted more when he made the step up from the Western Hockey League Stoll had a strong junior career with the Kootenay Ice and put himself in good position for the Entry Draft by scoring 40 goals and adding 66 assists in 2000-01.

The 6-1, 201-pound had a great foundation, growing up in and around Melville, Saskatchewan. His dad was a good all-around athlete and became a local sports coach. Tim Stoll is a big, rugged defenseman who played with childhood friend, Brian Propp, on the Melville Millionaires, a top Saskatchewan youth-hockey organization. 

"They were teammates on the Melvin Millionaires and they played ball together. They pretty much grew up together," Stoll said. "Yeah, Dad is bigger than me. He was always my coach until Midgets. He was definitely a hard coach. Dad was one of those guys who didn't take too much lip out there, he worked you hard and he was a very disciplined guy, a really driven guy. I learned a lot that way. He helped me a lot to get where I am today. We had fun and we had great teams. When you dad is your coach, you want to do well for him. That's just the way it was." 

Stoll wasn't even supposed to be an Oiler, let alone an impact player. Jarret was selected in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, second round, 46th overall. The Flames elected to ship him to Toronto for a draft pick. But that paperwork wasn't completed in time, nixing the deal. Stoll re-entered the 2002 and the Oilers made him a second-round selection, 36th overall. 

To win a championship, you need players who sacrifice. Jarret Stoll, who once was a 40-goal scorer in junior, had a career-high 68 points with the Oilers in 2005-06 and he's capable of being a No. 2 center in this league, no question. But he also wants to win.

He didn't complain one bit when Richards was brought in. He saw the bigger picture. He knew he still had an important place on this team.

"It's two months of hard work, but it could be the best two months of your life," Stoll said, showing he wants to win. "We went right to the end in 2006 and lost ..."

Stoll, trying to complete a thought said, "But we definitely learned a lot from that experience of how hard it is to get there and just that little extra that you have to push yourself. Maybe you don't think it's there some nights, but you keep pushing and pushing and hopefully it'll work out."

Parise Easily Fits In with the Captain 'C' for the Devils

By Larry Wigge

To some he just where the captain's 'C' for the New Jersey Devils. To others Zach Parise is built of relentless hard work ... something he says he gained a little insight into that from his dad.

"My dad wasn't flashy as a player, he wasn't a superstar, he just played hard every night and I think I kind of inherited that trait from him," Zach said. "He always told me you have to work harder than the next guy ... and then show how hard you work the next time and the next time."

J.P. Parise was a pretty smart man, who for starred for 14 seasons in the NHL and played a gritty, hard-working style. 

"If you see the way he deflects pucks and picks up garbage goals, these are all things he practices on his own and it really pays off for him," the elder Parise said. "But I did tell him, 'One of the things you can always control is to be one of the hardest-working players on the team.' "

Blood and sweat are keynotes to Zach Parise's game. When he isn't a good night, he works harder. Something his New Jersey Devils teammates pick up on. 

On Wednesday night Parise had only one assist on the scoreboard. But it was a perfect setup of Ilya Kovalchuk ... and he was his relentless self, checking the New York Rangers into submission 3-2 to even their Eastern Conference title series at one game apiece.

"That's what he is doing. He is the hardest-working guy, and that's just him being himself,"

Kovalchuk explained. "His game is courage," Kovalchuk said. "He's got a great shot, but he's always in those spots where you score the goals. He's our leader all the way."

"He’s the heartbeat of our team, I’ve said that all year," first-year New Jersey coach Peter DeBoer said. "He sets the tone for us. He leads and everyone follows. When your captain is your hardest-working player, he drags people with him and it’s a great situation to be in as a coach."

Now, you clearly get the picture of this left winger from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is more than just a run-of-the-mill player. He has topped out at 45 goals and 49 assists for 94 points in 2008-09. In his seven-year NHL career, Parise had also scored 30 goals or more four times, including this year when he had 31 goals and 38 assists.

But in his first extended stay in the playoffs, Zach has had four goals and five assists in 14 games -- and he lead the playoffs in shots with 56.

He is a graduate of the famous Shattuck St. Mary's program in Minnesota and two years at North Dakota before he was chosen with the 17th overall selection in the first round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

Don't let the fact that he is just 5-ll, 195 pounds fool you -- he is a true NHL power forward by any sense of the word. Just like his father, he is a gritty heart and soul player.

Former Toronto coach and U.S. Olympic coach Ron Wilson was asked recently what he like about Parise.

Ron Wilson was asked this morning what he likes about Devils' star forward Zach Parise.

"An American passport," was his quick retort.

He went on to talk about the 27-year-old Parise, thusly, "He's got a real hunger and drive for the net. He doesn't appear to be a really big guy yet he goes to the net as hard as any forward I know in the game. He's got great hands."

Parise says patience with the puck and maturity have come along with experience.

"Year by year, I think I'm a little more patient with the puck," he said. "I think I'm making better decisions, and that goes with being more comfortable. Your first couple of years, you don't want to make mistakes, but then you get more comfortable, want to try different things, different moves."

Tip-ins, redirects, poke-ins, wrist shots from close in -- Parise has spent hundreds of hours before and after practice working on just these things. That describes Zach to a 'T.' 

"He's a coach's player," former New Jersey and Calgary coach Brent Sutter said. "He's someone you love to coach because, every day, he does what's asked of him. He leaves it all out there. He works his tail off game in, game out, practice in, practice out. He's the first on the ice, the last one off.

"He's just one of those guys that you love to coach because you know what you're going to get from him every day."

Like the Sutters, Zach has a true bloodline to live up to. Even though he wasn't a star, J.P. played a key role in the 1972 Summit Series against the Russians. There's always a role to play.

"I grew up in Niagara Falls and watched his dad play," said David Conte, the executive vice president of hockey operations and director of scouting for the Devils. "I really admired him as a player. I remember when [Canada] took him for the '72 Summit Series team over more higher-profile guys because of his ability to win. I think he's bred that into Zach.

"I think hockey-playing fathers are usually very good because they understand how precarious the game is and how you're only as good as yesterday, and they usually keep a level footing. I think J.P. does that for Zach."

Conte continues, "With Zach, what you see today is what you always see -- 100 percent tenacity with an exceptional skill level. That's a tough combination not to succeed with."

You see, Zach Parise is a chip off the old block in every way.

Goal scorer Carter Find the Touch in the Playoffs

By Larry Wigge

Count em. Six feet. Eight feet. Ten feet. It just matters that the shots go in.

No matter what the distance ... it was right in the goal crease area -- right in the red zone, the traffic area directly in front of the opponent's net where the best power forward's make their home. And that it where Jeff Carter does best work.

One he scored on a pass from Dustin Penner, a twister-wrister by Carter. The second one went in off Carter's skate, courtesy of a close-in shot by Anze Kopitar. And the natural hat trick was completed on a rebound goal by Kopitar.

The Los Angeles Kings rode the hat trick by Carter to a 4-0 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes for a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference finals matchup. It was the first hat trick by a Kings player in nearly 20 years, since Wayne Gretzky scored three goals against Toronto on May 29, 1993 -- en route to the Stanley Cup finals.

"He's been playing hard for this team," said Kopitar. "There's people that are probably criticizing him for not scoring but he's brought to the table a lot more than just goal scoring. He's working hard and he's a big part of this team. He got rewarded with three time and it's really good for him because he's been around the net for quite a lot of time and just hasn't got the bounces. This time they bounced for him."

Carter has been hobbled by an ankle injury of late. No excuses.

"I hope so," Carter said of the long-awaited goal. "Yeah, I mean, obviously I'd love to be scoring every game. They haven't come that easily for me the last little while here. It's something that I've been working on in practice, trying to get to the net during the game, get a couple greasy ones. I was lucky enough."

Getting to the net. Getting in that heavy traffic. It takes a lot of work to take a pounding ... sometimes. Such is the life of a power forward.

It was historic for Carter because the three goals were his first in the playoffs since he got the game-winner against St. Louis April 30. In fact, just six of his 21 goals this season were scored since he came to the Kings. He had 15 goals in 39 games with Columbus.

In his last three seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers he had 36, 33 and 46 goals -- pretty heady company.

When he was acquired the the Blue Jackets for defenseman Jack Johnson and a first-round pick, Los Angeles Kings GM Dean Lombardi was asked whether Carter was capable of hitting the 46-goal mark again, Lombardi laughed, saying: "Right now I'd take 20."

More to the point, Carter was able to lock into the top two lines a power forward ... with pizzazz.

You see, the Kings have been mysteriously short on offense since the season began.

"I always felt we were still a top forward away," Lombardi said. "That said, I certainly didn't think we were 30th in the league in scoring."

Lombardi cautioned against assuming that Carter would be panacea for a scoring drought. But, in fact, his presence in the lineup gave a boost to the Kings offense.

"Jeff Carter is not going to come in and be the cavalry," Lombardi said. "It's not easy to go out in the marketplace and find a guy with the potential to score 40 goals who is 27 and a cap number ($5.2 million per season) that's very favorable in terms of me keeping this nucleus together."

Carter arrived with plenty of baggage and a sizable contract. The Flyers signed him to an 11-year, $58-million contract, rewarding his 33-goal, 61-point output from the 2009-10 season when Philadelphia reached the Stanley Cup finals. Carter had a three-season run with the Flyers in which he had at least 60 points. And in the four years before this season, Carter scored 144 goals for the Flyers.

Since the start of the 2007-08 season, only Alex Ovechkin (203), Ilya Kovalchuk (167), Jarome Iginla (160) and Dany Heatley (145) have scored more goals than Carter (144).

Pure goal scorers are hard to find, and this guy is a pure goal scorer. He's a guy who, when it's on his stick, it's going on net.

In the NHL Entry draft of 2003, the Flyers took two of the best players available in that first round -- Carter was taken with Phoenix' pick, 11th overall and Mike Richards was taken in the 24th spot with the Flyers pick. Now, both are with the Kings.

When you are drafted as high as he was, people expect you to be the same player, but it's not the same game here. Only a few players like Sidney Crosby can continue on without a hitch in the pro game. Carter is a pure goal scorer. He just needed some time. He's big, he has a long reach and a good shot and he's using it.

Part of Carter's upbringing was his father's influence. 

Jim Carter's claim to fame was being selected between Mike Gartner and Dino Ciccarelli in the 1976 Ontario Hockey League draft. Gartner and Ciccarelli went on to become NHL superstars, combining for more than 1,300 goals and 2,500 points. Jim Carter, a 5-8, 145-pound forward, endured the worst season in Oshawa Generals history, hung up his skates, and went to work at a local copper mill.

"He coached me from the time I could skate until I was 16," said Jeff. "It was awesome.

"He was never one of those dads who just pushes, pushes, pushes. With him, you go play, you go home and you leave the game at the rink. He just wanted me to go out and have fun and it all worked out."

"He'd score 75 or 100 goals in a season," Jim Carter said. "You could tell he was a natural because things came to him fairly easy."

As a coach, Jim Carter said he stressed the fundamentals of the game with an emphasis on skating and positioning.

"If you can't skate," he said, "you can't play."

It's a lot like the 2010 playoffs, when the Flyers made it on the final day -- in a shootout, if fact. Philadelphia went all the way to the Finals before finally being taken out by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Life for Jeff Carter is looking up. He's scoring and the Kings have won 11 straight games on the road -- an NHL playoff record. But ...

"It's pretty crazy," Carter said. "I never thought I'd end up here ... especially this quick after the trade of Mike Richards. Obviously I'm happy with how it turned out. I love the beach, so it's a perfect fit."

Playoff hockey and some free time to go to the beach. What could be nicer.

Undrafted Girardi Does it with Guts and Determination

By Larry Wigge

Athletes are always looking for a defining moment. One which the turns the tide ... of a game ... a season ... or even a career around. 

Rarely does it involve an undrafted free agent defenseman coming off the bench like a free train, calling for the puck and stepping right into a slap shot that raised up over Martin Brodeur's blocker to snap a scoreless tie.

But it does for Dan Girardi.

He did it 53 seconds into the third period and that spark raised the roof of Madison Square Garden en route to a 3-0 New York Rangers victory over the New Jersey Devils in the opener of their Eastern Conference playoff matchup. 

A defining moment. You better believe it. 

"I came out there flying off the bench," Girardi said. "I saw Chris Kreider coming up the wall there and I was delaying to see what he was going to do. I saw no one got to the point and I kind of stepped into the shot and got it through.

"This is the best time of year, man. You want to be on the ice, you want to be a difference- maker. This is the time of year you want to be out there."

Late bloomer. A success story. A feel-good moment. Best chance to succeed. All of the above for the 6-1, 206-pound defenseman from Welland, Ontario. This is the fifth season for Girardi on the Rangers defense, but this is his best and biggest chance in the playoffs.

He had one goal and assisted on Kreider's second goal in Game 1, after finishing the season with five goals and 24 assists in the regular season. But he also three hits, five blocked shots (he leads the NHL in that category in the playoffs with 47), played a whopping 25 minutes 11 seconds and was a plus 2.

"You know he's going to do his job in front, take the hits and block the shots that need to be blocked," goaltender Henrik Lundqvist observed. "He's definitely a good guy to have in front of you."

It wasn't pretty for the Rangers for a while. If not for two plays by Girardi's defense partner, Ryan McDonagh, chasing down Zach Parise and Ilya Kovalchuk on potential breakaways, the Blueshirts might have fallen behind in the first period.

"He's a heck of a warrior and a competitor," said McDonagh. "He's going to bounce back, he's a big-time player, he's an All-Star for us this year ... and it's no coincidence he gets that goal and a big play on the assist and just finishes the game hard defensively."

"He's the backbone of our defense," said captain Ryan Callahan.

Girardi has a storybook background. He is the only child of Mark and Carol Girardi. His father works for General Motors on the assembly line, he builds engines. And his mother is a registered nurse at Welland Hospital.

"Big guy," Girardi said of his father. "Hard-working guy."

Girardi had to work at his game, too. He was a star forward. He was a goal-scorer ... when he was 10.

"I was a real high-skilled player in Atom and Tyke," Girardi said. "I scored 50 one year in Atom -- still got the puck at home. After a while they started coming less and less. By the time I was a Pee-Wee they said, 'Um, why don't you play defense?' "

But it should be noted that NONE of the 30 first-round picks in 2002 were selected for the All-Star Game in 2012 a decade later and Girardi was. He also went undrafted two more times, even after he helped the London Knights win the Ontario Hockey League title and Memorial Cup in 2005. But Rangers amateur scout Rich Brown had closely followed Girardi throughout his junior career and finally suggested the Blueshirts bring him to training camp that fall.

So Brown called his friend Mark Hunter, co-owner and general manager of the Knights, to find out what Girardi was like off the ice; if his character was as steady as his play.

Hunter relayed a simple anecdote.

Early in the 2005 OHL playoffs, Girardi had casually mentioned some soreness in his right hand after he blocked a shot. Not much was made of it -- Girardi simply taped it up and carried his team throughout the next three rounds of the playoffs. In the afterglow of the Knights' first Memorial Cup Championship, Girardi's hand was X-rayed.

It was broken.

That told Brown all he needed to know. The Rangers signed Girardi to their ECHL team at Charlotte. He quickly graduated to Hartford of the AHL -- and the rest is history.

Girardi said he was not always a shot-blocking fiend. He developed during his years under Jim Schoenfeld with Hartford of the AHL. Schoenfeld was a top shot blocker on the Buffalo blue line during the 1970s.

When he got to the NHL, he started blocking even more. Some people will tell you there is an art to it ... and there is, to a certain extent. You need good timing. You need proper technique. But more than anything, you need toughness and desire.

Girardi is with the Rangers because of his heart -- and he's not taking this for granted.

"It's kind of almost surreal to actually be here and be part of something like this,' Girardi said. "I'm just grateful someone picked me to be here. I'm just loving every minute of it."

Isn't a little of your faith restored, too?

"That was my motivation for a while, to prove everyone wrong and show a lot of teams that they missed out," Girardi said. "That's still in my head, but it's not a main concern anymore."

It's not talent, it's pedigree. No first- or second-round pick.

"It's because he's not pedigree. There's no pedigree there. Our league is so backwards when it comes to that," Rangers coach John Tortorella said. "That restores a little faith in me, that the league stepped up and where credit was deserved gave it to him. It's not just pedigree. It's what Dan's done on the ice."

Undrafted three straight years, Dan Girardi never took it personally -- although seeing several of his teammates gave him hope. "If they can do it, why can't I."

The mental toughness is what made Girardi never give up.

"It's quite the journey, coming from the East Coast League and not being drafted to being at the All-Star Game with all these elite players," Girardi said. "It's almost surreal."

For Eric Staal it's all About Moving on in the Playoffs

By Larry Wigge

They were glued to the TV set at the Henry and Linda Staal's house in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The same was true at the Raleigh, N.C., house of Eric Staal, where brother Jordan was enjoying the game. That's just the way it is when one of the Staal boys is in action.

When hockey is being played ... you wouldn't dare talk about changing the channel. The house, let's just say, was rockin.

The New York Rangers and the Washington Capitals were in a tight Game 5. Actually, it had gotten to nail biting time for the Staal -- the Capitals leading 2-1 with time, tick, tick, ticking down.

On a power-play with time becoming essential, Brad Richards rallied for the tying goal with 6.6 second left to play -- sending the game into overtime. The four-minute penalty to Washington was still in force in the overtime. And ...

John Mitchell won an important faceoff deep in the Capitals zone -- and the puck ended up back on Marc Staal's stick. A shot rifled low through traffic hit the back of the net behind Washington goalie Braden Holtby 1:35 into sudden death and Staal's drive went in.

"It was like a play every kid dreams about growing up," said a surprised Staal. "It wasn't a set play or anything off the draw, just a good clean draw and guys went to the net and he Holtby couldn't see it. There were two Capitals players coming out at me ... so I just wanted to get between them and hit it as hard as I could. I think it deflected off one of them one of them. It had eyes going into the back of the net."

"He's a big piece to our team right now and to the future," John Tortorella said as the coach met the media on the eve of camp. "From a coach's point of view, to have one of your top players, and a big part of your core, not miss anything that's a big thing."

"No one understands that injury unless you go through it," said Richards, who battled a concussion of his own while playing in Dallas last season. "He's enjoying this fresh start in the playoffs.

"He's playing so much better ... and I'm sure he'll continue to get better."

Marc Staal is an excellent skater and defender. Defensively, he is an adept shot blocker, and penalty killer. Offensively, he is a smart passer who makes the intelligent plays to his teammates. On this night, Marc put an exclamation point on this game -- he had one goal and one assists and also broke up a Capitals' 3-on-1 rush in the third period to keep the Rangers within striking distance. 

"Marc had always been a shutdown defenseman," Eric Staal explained by phone. "He's been more than that ... he's been a big game performer. A big game player with much more to give."

Then two games later, the Rangers were in the same predicament Game 7, with Staal playing 26 minutes and 55 seconds -- contributing two shots, three hits, five blocked shots -- as the New York won 2-1.

This time, all of the non-playing members of the Staal household were in Thunder Bay.

"Jordan (Pittsburgh in 2009) and I (with Carolina in 2006) have won the Stanley Cup," said Eric. "Now, it's Marc's turn. We would love nothing better to have Marc get his name of the Cup ..."

Eric Staal thought long and hard about the sentence he failed to complete. He claims he didn't know it was his kid brother, Marc, there along the boards with his head down, fighting another Carolina Hurricane player for the puck in the February 22, 2010 game against the New York Rangers.

Things happen fast in a hockey game, everyone later sighed heavily and agreed. Eric just saw a player in a white shirt. And he hit him. Hard. The raw force of the collision is clear even from still images of that February 22 check, not just the gasp of the crowd that comes across loud and clear. The impact lifted Rangers defenseman off his feet, snapped back his head and sent him pinwheeling to the ice face down, with his helmet askew.

"It's tough for him; it's tough for me; it's tough for everyone in the family," Eric explained. "But ..."

He said he wasn't haunted or paralyzed by regrets.

"Has nothing to do with it," Staal said emphatically. "I've ... just not being able to find the groove offensively.

"As far as that being on my mind, it's not even close. Hopefully for me, I'll stay with it, get it turned around and help us win games."

Henry Staal has seen his sons do wondrous things in hockey: captain NHL all-star teams, win Stanley Cups, win a world championship and an Olympic gold medal for Canada.

But in late February, when Staal watched his oldest son, Eric, steamroll younger brother Marc, knocking him out of a game and into uncertainty, that was a first – and not a good one, the father said.

Concussion: the hidden injury. Concussions front and centre as new season begins. Marc was out of the lineup until January 2. He missed 36 games. 

Since that hit, Marc has experienced post-concussion symptoms and seen limited action. While his New York Rangers travelled to Sweden and through Western Canada to open the 2011-12 NHL season, he stayed behind, still bothered by the headaches brought on through exertion.

In Thunder Bay, where parents reside, they've gotten past the angst of seeing one son rattle another in hockey and are hoping for a full recovery.

"Eric really isn't pleased about it," Henry insisted. "He's not happy."

As for Marc, he joked with reporters his dad "probably wasn't as mad about the hit as my mom was."

But a concerned Henry replied: "It wasn't good seeing him hit ... Marc doesn't say a lot, even to us. He never complains much."

"I wouldn't say it has kept me awake at night, but it's tough," Eric Staal said. "If I could take it back I probably wouldn't hit him knowing where we've gone and what has gone on since then. But it was one of those plays, bang-bang, happens so quickly, and I hit him hard."

Still, the familial feelings remain. The DNA is intact.

"I'm certainly feeling better and better," Staal said of his progress since making his long-awaited season debut. "As the year has gone on, I've felt better and better. Playoffs are a lot of fun and I'm having fun with it." 

Sitting out has given the Rangers every opportunity to pursue everything they have as a team. It used to be Dan Girardi and Staal as a shutdown duo. Since ... Ryan McDonagh has stepped in the place, leaving Staal to play with Michael Del Zotto. A top four that has worked -- and has given Staal the opportunity to show off his stuff.

"Marc has always had the offensive ability," said his brother Eric. "Now, he showing it."

"Having watched him in junior there were things there that would suggest that he could play a power play. He may not quarterback it, but he could be a flanker on it or a shooter," Edmonton coach Tom Renney said. "Having said that, I think you've seen his ability to move the puck, hang people on the net, skate it up the ice, join the attack, and lead the attack in some cases. There is obviously a level of comfort there for him with that."

"The coaching staff has never told me not to be aggressive offensively," Staal said. "If I'm not, it's a mindset that I've had to play it safe. I don't want to give anything up defensively, but I know I can do more on the offensive end.

"The more I understand, the more I think I can contribute."

Now, Staal and his teammates will move on to another team they are all too familiar with in the New Jersey Devils. 

"Every win and every round you go, it's that much better," he said. "I think I'd feel the same way if I played the whole season ... It's just a great feeling to keep moving on in the playoffs, and we want to keep it going."

Moving on ... it's just the way thing are for Marc Staal right now.

The Jury's Still Out on Bryzgalov -- Stay Tuned

By Larry Wigge

The jury's still out on Ilya Bryzgalov in Philadelphia.

You can call the first year of the nine-year, $51-million contract the Flyers gave to the Russian goalie an abject failure. But ...

There's always next year for the 6-3, 213-pounds netminder from Togliatta. His 33-16-7 record and 2.40 goals against average with six shutouts -- at times outstanding -- other times very, very average. But his 5-6-1 record and 3.46 average in the playoffs was less than good.

"I don't think there is going to be any question that Ilya will play better next year." Flyers GM Paul Holmgren explained. "Did he play as good as I expect this year? I would say, 'No.'

"His job is to stop pucks and help us win games. It is not Comedy Central. There is probably a middle of the road scenario somewhere in there. He is a funny guy to talk to, I don't think there is any question about that. He has got some interesting concepts of life."

In other words, the 31-year-old puckstopper needs to shut up. Holmgren would prefer his goalie to stop the pucks ... and focus more on hockey rather than making jokes.

Going from a small market to a big media market where his game was scrutinized on a daily basis had to be a big obstacle to overcome. The Flyers should have seen it coming, but they didn't.

"He had a lot of things to adjust to and adopt to ... from playing in Philadelphia and the scrutiny of the media as compared to what he came from, the scrutiny of the fans from what he came from and a different style of play," Holmgren continued. "We all learn lessons in life, and I think Ilya, for one year in Philadelphia, he has learned a lot of things."

The one big issue is that Flyers castoffs Mike Richards and Jeff Carter are succeeding into the Conference Finals with Los Angeles and castoff goaltender Mike Smith is alive still pitching shutouts for Phoenix.

There were no exit interviews for Bryzgalov. He said nothing. No jokes. Good start to his future in Philadelphia.

Jaromir Jagr played devil's advocate for Bryzgalov.

"Any time you change a team and sign a big contract, it is not easy for anyone," Jagr said. "It doesn't matter what kind of player you are or how strong you are. It is tough.

"Look at Albert Pujols. To me, he is the best baseball player in the world. He had a tough time in the first two months (this season with Anaheim) because he signed a big contract and changed teams. No one would probably think of that before the season, but that is what it is. You have to get used to the new team and coaches. Everything is totally new and I know Bryz is going to get better."

When he's on his game, Bryzgalov covers a lot of that 4 x 6 foot net. He makes the job of stopping shots coming at him at 100 mph or more look easy on most nights.

"It was frantic out there the last couple of minutes with the game on the line," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. "There were a lot of pucks bouncing around, but Bryz made some great reactionary saves around the goal line. He's shown the rest of the league how athletic he can be the last few years. Now, all we're asking is that he be consistent and give us a chance to win.

"We're a team that is offensively challenged. The identity of our team is score by committee and be hard to play against defensively. We can succeed playing that way when we get the kind of goaltending Ilya's been giving us. He's been huge."

Said Bryzgalov, "I feel strong. I feel consistent. Some nights, like tonight, I just know I'm going to stop everything. But it's a long season and I don't like to run in front of the train ... because the train at some point can run over you."

A couple of years ago, Bryzgalov became a great story in Phoenix, when on an early morning in November of 2007, then-coach Wayne Gretzky and GM Don Maloney noticed that the defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks had placed Ilya on waivers. They noticed the waiver notation at 10 a.m. Gretzky looked at Maloney and they both nodded and put in a claim for the netminder at 10:01. But they had to wait, because they were third on the waiver list behind Buffalo and Washington.

Waiver-wire pickups don't generally make headlines ... but this one has. In fact, he might be the best goaltender waiver acquisition since 1969 when the Chicago Blackhawks claimed Tony Esposito from Montreal in the waiver draft.

Difference-maker? You bet.

"It's all about confidence," Coyotes captain Shane Doan said. "It's funny how confidence breeds expectations and how it can change everything from how you think, even the kind of energy you have when you come to the rink.

"We knew Bryzzy hadn't been a No. 1 goalie in the NHL before. But we also knew how good he could be, because he was something like 8-1 or 9-1 against us over the years. Now, he's a big part of the team. A funny guy. Great in the locker room. And, this season, he's been phenomenal. He's letting the puck come to him and using that great athletic ability get in front of shots."

Patience paid off then as it is now with Bryzgalov, who was a late-bloomer as far as prospects go. He was selected in the second round, 44th overall, in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. Playing behind J.S. Giguere for several seasons in Anaheim, his biggest claim to fame came in the 2006 playoffs when he became was the first rookie to record three consecutive shutouts in the playoffs since 1945, when Frank McCool of Toronto blanked Detroit three games in a row. Twice Ilya stepped in for Giguere in the playoffs, posting a 9-5 record with a microscopic 1.68 GAA. But he didn't get his chance to be a No. 1 goalie until he arrived in Phoenix.

Late bloomer?

Bryzgalov had to overcome a major setback in 1994, when he was hit by a motorcycle while walking across a road. Seizures followed -- and some said his career was in doubt. But Ilya persevered.

Alain Chaney, the Ducks director of amateur scouting, spotted Bryzgalov in 1998 at the World Juniors in Helsinki. Though Ilya was the backup goalie, Chaney remembers seeing how outgoing the big goaltender was. That emotion is something most Russian goalies rarely display, so Chaney sent another member of his scouting staff to Togliatti to watch him play. Bryzgalov was playing so well that he displaced former NHL goalie Vincent Riendeau as the No. 1 goalie for Lada, which is about 1,000 miles southeast of Moscow.

And in the 2000 World Junior Tournament in Sweden, Bryz posted a .971 save percentage, prompting then-GM Pierre Gauthier to trade Montreal third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks in 2001 for a second-rounder so that they could take the quirky goalie.

Coming into this season, the Yotes knew how much they would be counting on Bryzgalov. Goalie coach Grant Fuhr swapped jobs with Sean Burke, with Burke taking over the daily goaltending chores. It's been like a match made in heaven for Bryzgalov.

Fuhr is more of a teacher of the mental approach to the game. Burke, a believer in the same teachings of Francois and Benoit Allaire, is more into structure and the technical part of the game.

When Bryzgalov came to Phoenix, he took on a big workload. Nothing wrong with that, but ...

"To me, Ilya can play 60 or more games. No problem," added former Ducks GM Brian Burke. "But there were times last season when the stretches he played were too long. No goalie should have to go through that. My feeling is that we want our goaltender to be fresh and have a chance to be sharp every night. This year, we feel we can do that with Jason LaBarbera."

Simple game. Big impact.

Ilya Bryzgalov is quickly showing how those two actions work pretty well for him.

"It's good to have a coach to talk to who faced a lot of the same questions I have had about playing this game in goal," said Bryzgalov. "Burkie preaches the Allaire way of playing in the nets. At times last season, I found myself playing all over the goal crease. That's not the way Francois taught me and it's a more comfortable and simple game for me."

Next stop Philadelphia and the mucho-bucks contract. Too much for Ilya Bryzgalov. 

Stay tuned for Part Two.

Ovechkin Playoff Player -- Does it with fewer Minutes

By Larry Wigge

They call it Tough Love.

For his first five seasons, Alex Ovechkin skated up a storm, putting up statistics that were incomparable -- four times more than 50 goals and he was even named league Most Valuable Player in 2008 and '09.

But something was missing for the Washington Capitals. The team went home early -- too early -- from the playoffs each spring.

That led to the hiring of Dale Hunter as coach, an honest, hard-working, give-it-all type of player during his 19 years in the NHL. The Hunter law of the jungle meant when the playoffs rolled around you only played as many minutes as you deserved. 

And, believe it or not, the Capitals were one game short of reaching the Conference playoffs. Game 7 was on the horizon against the New York Rangers.

"We don't want to stop playing," Ovechkin said, thinking within the lines. "We don't want to finish the season now. We want to continue on. I want to play my best, but it's not about me. It's about everyone."

Ovechkin, whose performance has slumped to 32 and 38 goals the last two season, became a cause celebre. He wound up with one goal, three shots, five hits and three blocked shots in playing 15 minutes and 14 seconds of Washington 2-1 victory over the Rangers. He was all-in, giving it his all.

Thinking of statistics had ended. Thinking of team was considerable.

"He's our leader," forward Troy Brouwer said. "He's our captain. That's what he should be doing out there, leading by example, and he did tonight."

Hunter's rules may seem constricted to anyone who has achieved so much individual success. Yet, it has clicked with Ovechkin, who would gladly give up the minutes to play smart -- for the team.

"He's a team guy," Hunter explained. "The one thing about that is that he has been real fresh for the power play. The power play was good tonight. He actually got the winner on it ... and he was fresh to work on the offensive game."

The idea that Ovechkin needs to be "fresh" for the power play is a new one. In 2007-08, when Ovechkin averaged a career high 23:06 of ice time per game, all he did was lead the NHL with 22 power-play goals.

But times have changed. And the idea of teamwork seems to be entangled within Hunter's rules -- and, after a period of consternation, that is OK with the stubborn super star. The strategy is working.

Ovechkin has thrived in the past by being a volume shooter, with high ice time, meaning that he did not have to worry much about missed opportunities. This was the first season in his career that he did not lead the NHL in shots on goal, and he wound up with 65 points, 20 fewer than his previous career low. Not coincidentally, this was the first time in Ovechkin's career that he averaged less than 20 minutes per game.

"I feel good," Ovechkin said. "You have to suck it up and use the time that Dale gives you."

High-octane speed, his breathtaking moves, his love for contact, plus that marvelous inner drive and wonderfully brilliant creativity and imagination have characterized the 26-year-old from Moscow.

Ovechkin has said, "I play fast. ... Fast track. ... Fast lane. ... Fast forward."

The need for speed is clear to Ovechkin ... when it counts.

 

"I'm not like all of those .200 hitters who hit the ball 500-feet in batting practice. Or those 4.3 sprinters who can't catch a long pass in a game. I play fast," Ovechkin said, confidently, showing what a quick study he is when it comes to other North American sports like baseball and football.

Confident. Cocky. A regular quote machine, while stilling learning English. Amazing. Alex Ovechkin has gone out there and backed up his bravado at every step.

"He's Pavel Bure in Mark Messier's body," said Capitals GM George McPhee proudly, after taking Ovechkin with the first overall pick in the 2004 Entry Draft.

Others have also praised the wunderkind.

"I don’t know if I’ve seen a player like him," Wayne Gretzky said. "He's a combination of Mike Bossy's scoring ability and Mark Messier's power, with a bit of Kenny Linseman's speed thrown in. You can't knock him over and you can't out-skate him."

"Its like there's a motor inside that drives me to work harder and a voice in my brain (he pauses and points to his head to laugh at this point) that has me thinking a couple of moves ahead," Ovechkin laughed at the All-Star Game recently. "When you're born from great athletes, I think you have kind of a sixth sense when you play. I have my mom and dad to thank for that."

That athletic genes we often talk about is alive and well and boiling over in "Alex the Great" from his parents -- his mom, Tatiana, won Olympic gold medals playing for the Russian women's basketball team in 1976 and 1980 and dad, Mikhail, was a professional soccer player.

"He creates chances by himself ... out of nothing," said Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo.

"He's like the shark in the movie Jaws, circling in the water waiting for blood," said St. Louis Blues President John Davidson.

Ovechkin, the All-Star who is living out his boyhood dream, is usually all smiles. 

A big smile erupted on this blue-eyed virtuoso's face. He leaped into the boards and threw a kiss to the Hockey Gods who have blessed him so much.

"When I was younger, this was my dream playing in the NHL, playing with superstars," said Ovechkin. "It's an unbelievable feeling. I'm always smiling because this is my dream."

He likes hip-hop, including Eminem and 50 Cent. He loves filet mignon and green beans. He drives a BMW M6 and plays like a Ferrari, at high speeds and with flair.

"He has that engine inside. He's very, very driven," McPhee said. "He wants to be great. He wants to be that elite guy. Some talented players wilt. He's comfortable with it."

"When you see Ovechkin, you can just tell he loves to play the game," said Gretzky. "So many times you get a player with that much ability and they're shy and they don't feel a responsibility to sell the game, but he's taken it to another level."

Ovechkin didn't grow up playing on a backyard hockey rink like Gretzky did, but nonetheless, he fell in love with the game at a young age while growing up in Moscow. "I was watching TV when I was five, maybe six-years-old, and I had a stick and puck in my hands. When I heard the guy on TV say, 'They score,' I started screaming. I was young, but I remember this moment."

And Ovechkin has already given us plenty of moments to savor in his eight short seasons in the NHL.

"If I had to script what our team needed, it was a charismatic, offensive player who loved life and loved the game," Capitals owner Ted Leonsis told me shortly after Ovechkin won Rookie of the Year honors last June over Sidney Crosby. "When he walks through the door to our locker room, he lights up the room.

"He's a quick study. He learned that scoring goals wasn't the only thing to winning and now he's showing that team maturity.

"This year, he's saying, 'If I score 60 goals and we don't make the playoffs, I've failed.' "

Alex Ovechkin has shown through the years he can do anything in the game with flair. Now, in a more limited amount of ice time, he mental well being is being taxed. 

He digging it, sucking it up, whatever you call it. And he's succeeded at doing his best for the Washington Capitals ... with flair.