Back To Business

By: Patrice L. Leonard

Now that the 2006 Winter Games have come to an end, the time has come for NHL teams to get back to the business at hand. With only two months left in the regular season, many teams are fighting tooth and nail for the few playoff spots available. No one team is emerging as a definite favorite this year. The standings show who is leading the league in wins and total points, but the intangibles are what will set great teams apart from the average ones.

For the Flyers, not that everyone has returned from their little European vacation, a sense of urgency should take hold. Those players with injuries had the time they needed to heal and rehab. Those who made the trip to Torino should be in game shape. The only noted loss is Simon Gagne. He suffered a knee injury at the hands of Darius Kasparitis of Russia in the Olympic tournament. Now, I know how Kasparaitis is when he plays in the NHL. He leans heavily in the dirtiest player category. I’d like to hope that he didn’t play that way an international tournament, but only he knows the answer to that.

The Flyers will be back practicing as a full squad this week. They have two huge games against division foes, one of which will be for first place in the Atlantic Division. Now, does that really mean a whole lot at this time of the year? Yes it does. To a team that was ahead in that very same division by eight points, only to watch that lead fade away, the chance to gain first place back is immense. One can only hope that Sami Kapanen, Branko Radivojevic, and Michal Handzus are healthy enough to contribute. We have already seen that Peter Forsberg is healthy and back to his old self on the ice. That will be the biggest boost of them all.

When they take the ice versus the NJ Devils on Wednesday night we will see a very hungry team. The only question will be who will be between the pipes. On the one hand you have Robert Esche. He is feisty and aggressive. When he is on top of his game he can be unstoppable. On the other hand you have Antero Niittymaki. He has just shown the world that he is going to be in this league and one of its best goaltenders, for a very long time. Which attribute do you feed off of? Whose coat tails will take your further into the playoffs? That will be something we will have to keep our eyes on. Neither player will give up his position without a fight, and it’ll be a good one. There could be worse problems on a team I suppose.

With Gagne out of the line-up for what could be two weeks, who do you put on that top line with Knuble and Forsberg? My guess would be to move Mike Richards over to left wing from center. Or maybe move Forsberg to the wing (He did it in the Olympics, and he did it well.) and let Richards play at center. The possibilities are endless. The smart move would be to move the veteran Forsberg and let Richards play at his natural position. Whatever Hitch decides to do, that first line will be exciting to watch.

These last two months of the season in the NHL will be full of battles of epic proportion in both conferences. This is the most exhilarating time for fans and players alike. We start to see the emergence of playoff beards and the crazy superstitions hockey players are so famous for. This is where the weak are weeded out and stomped on by the strong. This is where the pretenders are eaten for lunch. This is where only courage and heart matters. Gut-check time. Cowards need not apply. Teeth will be lost. Blood will be spilt. Sweat will be the nectar from which thirst will be quenched. There will be no sleep, but yet dreams will be obtained. Heroes? Titans? No, just hockey players giving their last breath for be crowned Stanley Cup Champions.