2003-04 NHL SEASON
WRAP-UP
As Richard Zednik goes, the Nashville Predators go. The winger has stepped up a lot this season, and has been the main player driving this squad to the top. Because, yes, despite an injury-plagued season, the Preds did very well for themselves, finishing with a 42-29-8-3 record, for 95 points, and almost overtaking the Blues for the Central Division lead.
The team got more bad news when Skrbek got injured again in February, missing one month of action. When Scott Hartnell finally came back later that month, GM Austin Killer decided to send rookie Boyd Long to the AHL, after he had played 30 games. ''We are pleased with Long's overall play and development as a part of the main team. With Hartnell back into the line-up, he would have seen his ice-time reduced, so we think it's better for him to go back down. Long represents the future of this franchise at wing, and we think he will be up with us full-time as soon as next season.''
Seeing his team winning games despite the injuries, Killer decided to pull the trigger on a very big deal, that saw Nashville's defense get upgraded. The team sent former 1st round pick Dmitri Mikhaylov, a 2nd rounder in 2004 and Karlis Skrastins to the Vancouver Canucks for Ed Jovanovski. Jovocop, a 27 years old on a solid contract, is widely considered a top-flight D in this league. ''Jovanovski's acquisition will mean a lot to Barry and the guys in the locker room. He will come in and be a true #1 for us, and will lighten the workload on Timonen's shoulders. We could afford to lose Mikhaylov with the recent development of Dan Hamhuis and Tomas Slovak on the farm.''
All in all, Legwand missed 71 games this year, Skrbek 42, Hartnell 32, Yachmenev 7, Zednik 4 and Tenkrat 4 as well.
Around the hockey world
Some trade deadline deals:
-MIN deals Matt Plaxton (former 6th overall pick) to CAR for Petr Schastlivy (a 24 years old 3rd liner)
-ATL deals Ilya Kovalchuk to BOS for Hal Gill and goalie Steve Belanger (20 yrs old, solid potential)
-FLA deals Kristian Huselius to VAN for prospects
-PHI deals Simon Gagne to CGY for Bret Hedican and Jarrett Stoll
-BUF deals Jan Hlavac to OTT for Tim Gleason
-BUF deals Max Afinogenov to MIN for Ian Moran, prospects
Baffling move in Atlanta, especially since they already have Ryan Miller, so no need for another goalie prospect...
Surprisingly, the Detroit Red Wings miss the playoffs, and just like that the dynasty is over; Hull, Robitaille and Hasek are all retring, Yzerman already did, and Fedorov is with the Blues. Only Lidstrom is left, with very few key youngsters to take over... Meanwhile, the Jackets finish dead last AGAIN. The good news is their young defenseman Lyapunov is widely considered to be the best young D in the game already.
EASTERN CONFERENCE:
1. New Jersey - 113
2. Tampa Bay - 108
3. Boston - 94
4. Pittsburgh - 103
5. Ottawa - 92
6. Washington - 91
7. Toronto - 90
8. Philadelphia - 85
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9. Montreal - 78
10. Buffalo - 71
11. Atlanta - 71
12. NY Islanders - 70
13. Carolina - 69
14. Florida - 64
15. NY Rangers - 63
WESTERN CONFERENCE:
1. Colorado - 120
2. Anaheim - 111
3. St.Louis - 96
4. Edmonton - 106
5. Dallas - 96
6. Nashville - 95
7. San Jose - 83
8. Chicago - 81
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9. Los Angeles - 80
10. Detroit - 77
11. Vancouver - 75
12. Phoenix - 72
13. Calgary - 65
14. Minnesota - 57
15. Columbus - 54
NHL STATS
TOP NHL GOALIES
1. Dominik Hasek (DET) 67 GP - 27 W - .922% - 2,69 - 5 SO
2. Patrick Roy (COL) 54 GP - 36 W - .912% - 2,15 - 4 SO
3. Martin Brodeur (NJ) 55 GP - 35 W - .908% - 2,18 - 6 SO
4. Olaf Kolzig (WSH) 68 GP - 37 W - .911% - 2,43 - 4 SO
5. Tomas Vokoun (NSH) 70 GP - 35 W - .910% - 2,55 - 3 SO
TOP NHL ROOKIES
1. Kalle Salle (TB) 22-35-57
2. Kamil Piros (ATL) 19-23-42
3. Zdenek Blatny (ATL) 14-18-32
4. Henrik Zetterberg (DET) 9-22-31
5. Grigori Lyapunov (CBJ) 8-20-28
TOP NHL DEFENSEMEN
1. Rob Blake (COL) 17-42-59
2. Brian Leetch (TOR) 17-41-58
3. Brian Rafalski (NJ) 14-42-56
4. Kim Johnsson (PHI) 15-40-55
5. Zdeno Chara (OTT) 16-38-54
2004 PLAYOFF MATCHUPS:
1. Colorado vs 8. Chicago
2. Anaheim vs 7. San Jose
3. St.Louis vs 6. Nashville
4. Edmonton vs 5. Dallas
1. New Jersey vs 8. Philadelphia
2. Tampa Bay vs 7. Toronto
3. Boston vs 6. Washington
4. Pittsburgh vs 5. Ottawa