Kukla's Korner

A Great Man, A Roll Model

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:33 PM ET | Comments (0)

from the Stockton Record,

At 23, Derek Campbell had to do a thesis during his senior year in college on anything he wanted. As a Black hockey player who wants to play in the National Hockey League someday soon, finding a topic back then was easy: He wrote about his hero, Willie O'Ree. The same Willie O'Ree many consider the Jackie Robinson of hockey. After spending several weeks studying the life and career of the man who broke the NHL's color barrier 47 years ago, Campbell found himself filled with admiration. "Willie O'Ree is a great man," said Campbell, now a member of the Stockton Thunder. "If you understand what he did, you can't help but admire the man."

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Changes Likely For Team USA

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:28 PM ET | Comments (0)

from the Salt Lake Tribune,

The yearlong lockout in the National Hockey League not only deprived many nations of a season to evaluate players for their Olympic teams, but it also resulted in rule changes that emphasize skating and finesse, and might help players better prepare for the international style of play at the Olympics. And, perhaps most important, the Americans seem poised to head in a different direction under new coach Peter Laviolette and general manager Don Waddell, turning to younger, less-heralded players rather than some of the big-name veterans who played in the past two Olympics. "When you get to the Olympic Games, the future is now," said Dave Ogren, the executive director for USA Hockey. "The margin for error is very, very thin."

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Jiri Fischer Visits With Teammates

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:25 PM ET | Comments (0)

from the Detroit News,

He was glad to see them, and they were thrilled to see him. Defenseman Jiri Fischer, recovering from two heart-related incidents the last few weeks, visited with his Red Wings teammates Saturday morning at Joe Louis Arena. Judging by his comments to coach Mike Babcock and teammates, Fischer doesn't sound as if he is through playing, either. "He said for sure he wants to be a hockey player," Babcock said. Fischer spent approximately 90 minutes talking with players and coaches before the media showed up, and the Wings dressed and carpooled to City Rink.

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AO Drawing Attention

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:23 PM ET | Comments (0)

from the Journal News,

Everything about Alexander Ovechkin, from his shaded visor to his spectacular rushes up the wing, demands attention. And that's exactly how the Washington Capitals' 20-year-old Russian rookie likes it. "I don't want to be like everybody," said Ovechkin, who had a goal and three assists last night in a 5-1 win over the Rangers. "I want to be like it's me." Being himself is what differentiates Ovechkin from fellow phenom Sidney Crosby. So while the NHL desperately tries to spark a rivalry between its two young superstars, the only real link between them is their prodigal ability for points. "Everybody's talking about me and Sidney," Ovechkin said. "It's pressure."

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NHL Talk

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:10 PM ET | Comments (0)

drom the Ottawa Citizen,

-Philadelphia coach Ken Hitchcock played both parts in an Abbott and Costello routine this week, denying that the Flyers have been playing the dreaded neutral-zone trap. "We don't trap," Hitchcock said. "It might look like we do, but we don't." Er, so what do you call that 1-2-2 setup in the neutral zone? That, Hitchcock replied, was "by accident. It just sort of happens that way at times. It (the trap) doesn't work because there's no one to trap. It might look like it's working, but it doesn't work." -The entire crowd in Edmonton winced on Tuesday, when defenceman Igor Ulanov dropped after catching a shot in the privates, but his sense of humour didn't get dented. "When Kenny (Lowe, the trainer) came out to see me, I wasn't that worried," said Ulanov. "I told him I already have my three kids."

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Rangers Just Doing Their Jobs

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 12:04 PM ET | Comments (0)

from the NY Daily News,

One of the more stunning lockout aftermaths has been the transformation of the Rangers from a directionless franchise into a first-place team and model for the way an NHL club in the salary-cap era should be run. The question is whether that transformation was the result of intelligent design or just the unplanned consequence of cosmic coincidences. As former Ranger Bobby Holik recently said: "I don't know if it was an accident - that's for others to judge - but they have a team now that seems perfectly suited for what the new NHL will be."

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Goose Loonies Remembered

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 11:54 AM ET | Comments (0)

Detroit fans will never forget the Goose Loonie incident... from the Detroit News,

...and that segues back to Demers, and the infamous Goose Loonies incident which he details in his new book, "Jacques Demers: A to Z." The date was May 10, 1988. The place: Edmonton, Alberta. The principals: Bob Probert and Petr Klima. The scene: On the eve of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against Edmonton. A group of Red Wings, led by Probert and Klima, who was injured and would not play in Game 5, were discovered at Goose Loonies, a strip club and bar.

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According To Garrioch

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 11:49 AM ET | Comments (0)

from Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun,

-The Penguins have given coach Ed Olczyk a second vote of confidence. That can't be good news. -Former Leafs winger Owen Nolan is continuing to work out in California and is preparing to come back late this month. First, he has to get his situation with Toronto sorted out. -The Canucks are listening to offers for RW Todd Bertuzzi. -There's a strong belief that Boston F Glen Murray will seek a trade, although he insisted that's not the case.

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Crosby Happy With HNIC Appearance

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 11:46 AM ET | Comments (0)

from the Calgary Sun,

After all those Saturday nights watching Hockey Night in Canada, Sidney Crosby was finally on the other side. The teenage Penguins phenom made his small screen debut in the national tradition last night, seen by all those wide-eyed youngsters from his hometown. "Showing it in Nova Scotia, it's pretty nice," Crosby said after yesterday's morning skate.

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No Pity For Thornton

Blog: KK Hockey By Paul

12/04/05 at 11:32 AM ET | Comments (0)

from Larry Brooks of the NY Post

, Understand this. Jeremy Jacobs spent nearly two full years vilifying, demeaning and degrading NHL players — not simply the NHLPA in the abstract, but the players, themselves — in enthusiastically assuming the role of Gary Bettman's co-pilot for the lockout. Jacobs would have been willing to shut down the league forever, if that's as long as it would have taken to get to 54 percent. And yet, when the lockout ended, players with options to go elsewhere, they went to Boston. The PA could have made a statement. They could have boycotted the Bruins. They could have sent a message to Jacobs. Even in collective bargaining defeat, they could have chosen to stand for something.

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