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Role of NHL players in Games is still a sore spot
By Tim Buckley
Deseret News Olympic specialist
PROVO — Controversy over the participation of NHL players in the 2002 Winter Games festers by the day.
On Monday, the International Ice Hockey Federation called a news conference for 6 p.m. Tuesday to discuss "the release process of National Hockey League players and the Olympic tournament format for men's hockey."
IIHF president Rene Fasel and general secretary Jan-Ake Edvinsson are scheduled to attend.
The NHL won't break its schedule until after Wednesday night's games, after which NHLers are free to participate in final-round Olympic play that gets under way Friday.
With one exception (Swiss goalie David Aebischer, Patrick Roy's backup in Colorado), the league refuses to allows its players to miss NHL games for the preliminary round of the Olympic tourney.
Some NHL general managers were going to allow various other players to participate, but at least one unidentified GM reportedly complained, forcing the league to take a hard-line stance. That only caused problems for various countries attempting to shuffle players in and out of Salt Lake.
A few cases:
- Carolina goalie Arturs Irbe missed Latvia's 6-6 Sunday tie with Slovakia because the Hurricanes were playing San Jose. Irbe didn't even appear in a 4-0 Carolina loss, but he had to be there anyway.
"Disappointing doesn't describe how I feel," Irbe said. "I feel devastated."
Added Carolina coach Paul Maurice: "He shouldn't be here sitting on the bench. He should be in the goal for them. It doesn't make sense."
Irbe, scheduled to play tonight vs. Germany, was livid.
"It's especially disappointing that with all the talk of 9/11 (terrorist attacks on America) and how (the United States) has rallied that it's kind of sad for them not to allow me to support my country," Irbe said. "The coaches and players (in Carolina) did everything they could to accommodate my dream, but then the league stepped in."
- Ziggy Palffy of the Los Angeles Kings was supposed to play Sunday for Slovakia, not Saturday vs. Germany. He was on hand anyway Saturday, and when the Slovaks got down 2-0, he was inserted into the game.
Kings officials were furious, but, on Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported Palffy will not face any repercussions: "We're not upset with Ziggy, not at all," Kings coach Andy Murray told the Times. "He's there with his country. . . . He knew he was going to play (only) one game. I guess they took the chance (Saturday). . . . (Slovak team manager) Peter Stastny should have been the one to say, 'He doesn't dress.' Peter Stastny has to be the one to take the blame for it, not the coach (Jan Filc). You can't blame the coach when you're trying to win and you've got Ziggy Palffy sitting on the bench."
- The Ottawa Senators are upset that Zdeno Chara traveled, via charter, from Ottawa to Salt Lake, then didn't even play Sunday vs. Latvia. The reason: Slovakia was saving roster space so Washington Capitals star Peter Bondra, unavailable earlier, could play his country's third prelim game.
"I appreciate that our goals don't necessarily match with those of Slovakia's Olympic hockey team, but I am truly disappointed and dismayed for Zdeno," Sens GM Marshall Johnston said.
MISC.: Russia reportedly has lost Florida Panthers center Viktor Kozlov for the Games. Kozlov sustained an abdominal strain in Florida's 4-1 loss to Boston on Saturday and is expected out at least through the Olympic break. . . . Less than a week after learning his stomach cancer is in full remission, would-be Finnish Olympian Saku Koivu actually skated Sunday with the Montreal Canadiens. Koivu, though, remains out for the Games and is nowhere close to being ready to return. . . . Quote of the day, from Team USA coach Herb Brooks, during a Monday news conference: "They all want to play on the power play," Brooks said of his American stars. "This is part of the team-building thing with all-star teams. Sometimes all-star teams self-destruct, with their egos, with their narcissism."
E-MAIL: tbuckley@desnews.com
Information from wire-service reports was used in this story.
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February 12, 2002
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