Hyttynen kirjoitti:http://www.latimes.com/sports/hocke...y?coll=la-headlines-sports&ctrack=1&cset=true
... Ainoa ongelma on vain se, ettei häneltä löydy juurikaan käsiä, syöttötaitoa tai yleensä mitään millä hyökkäyspäässä todella jotain tekisi.
On the right side, you can start with Joffrey Lupul and Teemu Selanne. On the left side, there’s Petr Sykora and Jonathan Hedstrom.
Thawing the ice
The Ducks' best defense might be the offense provided by Ozolinsh and Niedermayer under the league's new rules.
ANAHEIM–Opposing players and coaches are likely to have plenty to talk about before games against the Mighty Ducks this season.
They will undoubtedly discuss strategy for defending against talented forwards Sergei Fedorov, Teemu Selanne and Petr Sykora, how best to attack goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere and the importance of avoiding the devastating body checks that are defenseman Vitaly Vishnevski's specialty.
The most attention in pregame scouting meetings, however, might well be paid to what is arguably the NHL's best tandem of offensive-minded defensemen. Especially with new league rules designed to boost offense, former New Jersey Devils star Scott Niedermayer and Sandis Ozolinsh could create nightmares for Ducks opponents.
"The key to offense is the great defenseman who's going to beat the first guy or who's going to make that first great pass to create an odd-man situation," said Sykora, a teammate of Niedermayer's in New Jersey from 1995-2002. "Those two guys are great at doing that, and Nieder is one of the best skaters in the league, so he can really join the rush, too.
"I don't think offense is going to be a problem for us, especially with those two guys on the back."
With new General Manager Brian Burke and first-year Coach Randy Carlyle promising a wide-open, offensive-oriented style, the Ducks will count heavily on Niedermayer and Ozolinsh to ignite the attack. Both boast impressive credentials.
Niedermayer, 32, is the reigning Norris Trophy winner, having captured the award as the NHL's top defenseman with the Devils in 2003-04. A three-time Stanley Cup champion in New Jersey, Niedermayer tied for second among league defensemen with 54 points, three shy of his career-high set in 1997-98, and matched a personal-best with 14 goals.
The Ducks thought so highly of Niedermayer that they gave the unrestricted free agent a four-year, $27million contract Aug.4, less than a week after they had retained Ozolinsh with a two-year, $5.5million deal.
A seven-time NHL All-Star Game participant and a key member of the 1996 Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche and the 2003 runner-up Ducks, Ozolinsh almost certainly could have made more money on the free-agent market.
"I just wanted to be in the same place, with the same core of players I enjoy being with," Ozolinsh said.
Ozolinsh, 33, played 36 games for the Ducks in 2003-04 because of a shoulder injury, but he has produced 26 goals in a season, with the San Jose Sharks in 1993-94, and 68 points, with Colorado in 1996-97.
"I honestly don't know if there are many better offensively than Sandis," Niedermayer said. "He's a smart guy with the puck. He knows what to do with it, and he knows how to make plays."
With the possible exception of the power play, which could be of huge significance, Niedermayer and Ozolinsh probably won't skate together often. The fact that one is likely to be on the ice much of the time, however, will force foes to divide their defensive attention accordingly.
"I'm so used to playing against basically the best checking line that it's going to probably be weird playing against a different line," Ozolinsh said.
The NHL's commitment to eliminating obstruction, as well as the removal of the red line for purposes of the two-line pass, should make players such as Niedermayer and Ozolinsh more dangerous. The thought of headman feeds sending the likes of Fedorov, Selanne and Sykora in alone certainly won't thrill opposing goaltenders.
"You're going to have a little more opportunity to make some plays, long plays, and find guys way down the ice," Niedermayer said. "It's going to be new to all of us, but the guys who can adjust and make use of that play, whether that's the play or it opens up something underneath, it's going to give you more options. If you can pick your head up and figure it all out, it will help the team."
Ducks fans aren't the only ones salivating at the thought of Niedermayer and Ozolinsh doing their thing.
"It's going to be exciting," Selanne said. "It's a different feeling when you know that if you find the open spots, somebody is going to see you. If you don't have that talent in the back, you try to find the holes and they don't find you, then you don't even try to do it anymore. You tend to be a lot more passive, and that's not good.
"It's a good feeling to know that there are good quarterbacks who can get you the puck."
NOTES
Defenseman Jason Marshall missed practice Monday after needing four stitches beneath his right eye in Saturday night's 4-2 exhibition loss to the Kings. X-rays and a CT Scan on Marshall revealed no facial fractures, and he hoped to return to practice today. ... Defense prospect Jordan Smith, who took a stick in the eye in Saturday's prospects game against the Kings, is expected to be out at least a week, Carlyle said. ... The Ducks trimmed their training-camp roster to 41, sending centers Igor Pohanka and Joel Stepp, right wings Shane Hynes and Joel Perrault, and goalie Nathan Marsters to Portland of the American League, and returning junior players Brendan Mikkelson to Portland of the Western League, Gabriel Bouthillette to Acadie-Bathurst of the Quebec League and Bobby Bolt to Kingston of the Ontario League.
ozo kirjoitti:Itse asiassa koko ketju Fedoruk-Fedorov-Selänne-Ozolinsh-Niedermayer on saanut toistaiseksi vain yhden maalin kasaan ja sen teki Fedoruk...
Toivottavasti ketju vielä parantaa.
ozo kirjoitti:Itse asiassa koko ketju Fedoruk-Fedorov-Selänne-Ozolinsh-Niedermayer on saanut toistaiseksi vain yhden maalin kasaan ja sen teki Fedoruk...
Toivottavasti ketju vielä parantaa.
Parker27 kirjoitti:Fedoruk pelaa tuolla paikalla vain näissä treenipeleissä. Niin olen lukenut. Ei miehen taidot ihan tuolle tasolle riitä kuitenkaan :-) Erittäin hyvä gooni kuitenkin ja tulee pelaamaan nelosessa Kip Brennanin kanssa.
repe_joke kirjoitti:Itse en muista ainakaan, että otteluraporteissa Fedorukista olisi sanottu mitään pahaa. Tuon maalin jälkeen tuli jopa varovaisen myönteinsiä kommentteja.
Ducks seek fun for their money with Fedorov
The team's most expensive player says he's happy again and ready to produce.
By DAN WOOD
The Orange County Register
ANAHEIM – Among the first orders of business for Brian Burke after he became general manager of the Mighty Ducks in June was a conversation with Sergei Fedorov.
Media speculation emanating from Vancouver suggested Burke would quickly jettison Fedorov, the superstar center whom, in 2003, former Ducks general manager Bryan Murray lured from the Detroit Red Wings with a five-year contract potentially worth more than $40 million.
"That's why I called him, right after I got the job," Burke said. "There was all this talk about a compliance buyout. I said 'Sergei, I'm not buying you out. I want you on my team. I'm excited about having you here.'
"I think he's crucial for our success."
The basis for the Burke-Fedorov conjecture stemmed from Burke's days as general manager of the Canucks, who drafted Fedorov's younger brother, Fedor, in 2001. Asked later about Vancouver pursuing Sergei Fedorov when he was a free agent, the outspoken Burke responded negatively, expressing his frustration with Fedor Fedorov's slow development and proclaiming "One Fedorov is enough."
Upon being introduced by new Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli at a June 20 news conference, Burke downplayed the remark.
"It's not a problem for me," Fedorov said. "If it was an issue, we would address it privately and personally, and see if we could work it out."
No such fireside chat has been necessary, Fedorov said. In fact, Fedorov is comfortable enough with the new Ducks regime, which includes first-year coach Randy Carlyle, that he gave up options to void his contract with the team before this season and again next summer.
"I basically secured my future with this organization," Fedorov said. "I think when things like that are stable, people work harder and more together, and they achieve great results. I like the changes in the organization. The most important thing is I want to be here."
With the 24 percent salary rollback that is part of the NHL's new collective bargaining agreement, Fedorov is guaranteed $6.08million instead of $8million each of the next three seasons. Still, it is likely more than Fedorov could have commanded on the open market.
At 35, Fedorov has become something of an enigma.
During 13 seasons with talent-laden teams in Detroit, he won the Hart Trophy as league most valuable player in 1993-94, was a huge contributor on Red Wings Stanley Cup champions in 1997, '98 and 2002, and averaged more than a point a game in 908 regular-season and 162 playoff contests.
In his only season with the Ducks, Fedorov scored a team-high 31 goals and 65 points in 80 games, but failed to prevent the defending Western Conference champions from crashing to 29-35-10-8 and 12th place.
A common belief was Fedorov could have done more.
"I think people forget he had 30-plus goals and 60-plus points on a low-scoring team," Burke said. "Some people would say he didn't bring his 'A' game every night, but I think that's a burden of a big contract. People second-guess and nit-pick guys that make big money. I think he had a good year, and I think he's going to have a good year this year."
With the exception of a 10-game, European charity tour in December, Fedorov did not play hockey during last season's lockout. Instead, he moved into a new home in Miami Beach while "experiencing life a little bit."
"I took a year off on purpose because I wanted to heal," he said. "I hope the year off helped me to rejuvenate. All these years, I've been waiting for (another) '93-94 season, when I won MVP, but obviously it's hard to repeat because circumstances change. If not that, I just want to play up to that level. I think I can be a very, very dangerous player for this club."
The new up-tempo, attacking style favored by Burke and Carlyle appears to be a better fit for Fedorov than the defense-minded system employed by former Ducks coach Mike Babcock. Fedorov should benefit from NHL rules changes designed to boost scoring, as well as the addition of former New Jersey Devils defenseman Scott Niedermayer, an offensive catalyst who figures to deflect attention from Fedorov on and off the ice.
Given that the Ducks' biggest question mark appears to be a shortage of proven top-six forwards, a happy and productive Fedorov is vital.
"I guess you'd have to look at Sergei as our go-to guy," Carlyle said. "He's going to play a tremendous amount of hockey. A player like that thrives on a lot of ice time. Sergei Fedorov is a very talented player. We have to find and create as many situations as possible for him to have success.
"On the other hand, he has to continue to display the work ethic that he's provided through the first week of training camp. It's a give-and-take situation, one that I think hopefully can develop into a strong, positive relationship for him and us."
NOTES
Fedorov is scheduled to be in the lineup for the third consecutive game when the Ducks continue their exhibition season against the Wayne Gretzky-coached Phoenix Coyotes at 7:30 tonight at The Pond. ... Goaltender Steve Shields, in camp on a tryout basis, missed practice Thursday because of a strained upper-body muscle, Carlyle said. ... Defenseman Jason Marshall (bruised eye) and 2005 first-round draft pick Bobby Ryan (strained shoulder) practiced Thursday but neither will play tonight.
Maaginen mailavirtuoosi kirjoitti:Ihan puskista mulle tuli tämä Perry. Kaksi tosi upeaa maalia Canuckseja vastaan ja melko hienolla veivillä yritti kolmattakin. Ykköskierroksen varaus näytti olevan. Te jotka paremmin tiedätte Anaheimin organisaatiosta, niin kertokaapa onko kyseessä pelaaja, josta odotellaan ykkösketjun pelaajaa vai jotakin muuta? Ainakin mahtavia ja luovia juttuja osasi tehdä kiekon kanssa.
ozo kirjoitti:- Eka peli Chicagoa vastaan. Lupulin ja Getzlafin unelmakaudet alkakoon!
TML kirjoitti:Samoin Perryn. ;)