The ever important steadying veteran defenseman

Summer usually signifies the time of rampant free-agency in the NHL, and I am always curious to see which teams will land a veteran defenseman to help bolster their blueline and provide ample tutelage to their younger players. I guess that I have always been impressed by the impact that a 10-year plus veteran is able to have upon a younger kid who is maybe only in his first couple of years in the League.

My favorite example of that presence that a steadying veteran defenseman is able to provide would be the late, great Tim Horton and the time that he spent with the Buffalo Sabres. When Horton first arrived in Buffalo for the 1972-73 season he was 42-years old and had already been a stalwart defenseman in the League since 1950. By that time he had already won four Stanley Cups with the Toronto Maple Leafs and was regarded as one of the greatest defensemen of all-time, not to mention one of the most imposing as well (though not abundantly big in size by today's standards, Horton is still regarded by many as the strongest player to ever play the game). At the time, the Sabres were laden with youngster defensemen; rookies Jim Schoenfeld and Larry "The Hawk" Carriere were both just 20-years of age, Mike Robitaille was 24, and Paul Terbenche was 26. To sum it up, Tim Horton was the same age as Carriere's father during their first season together in Buffalo. Not only did Horton provide priceless tutelage to these youngsters that they would carry with them for the rest of their careers (and lives), but he helped to garner a solid defense-corps that would lead Buffalo into the Stanley Cup playoffs for the very first time in only their third year of existence. The work ethic and character on and off the ice that Horton exuded rubbed off on all of these youngsters and taught them to become both better players and better people.

Looking at the free-agent signings throughout the summer of 2011 I can see a number of movements that teams have made that echo the same impact that Horton had in Buffalo. Take for instance 33-year old Colin White being signed to a 1-year contract by the San Jose Sharks after 11-years with the New Jersey Devils. Not only does White bring 743 regular season games of NHL experience, plus 111 more in the playoffs, but he has two Stanley Cup championships to his credit that he won with the New Jersey ('00 and '03). Though the Sharks are perennially one of the most powerful teams in the Western Conference and are routine Stanley Cup contenders, they have had a habit of falling short over and over again in the playoffs. By signing a defenseman like Colin White who knows what it takes to win and become a champion, the Sharks have brought in a player who can impart that experience and that knowledge to younger players who have not reached that apex. Despite already having savvy veterans like Dan Boyle and Douglas Murray, White helps round-out the top-six defensemen for the Sharks and personifies the "lunch-pail" mentality; he shows up, does his job and each night strives to win despite not being known as a talented defenseman. White makes up for any lack of skill with hard-work and effort. The Sharks' young blueliners Jason Demers (23-years old), Marc-Edouard Vlasic (24), Brent Burns (26) and Justin Braun (24) will only benefit from what Colin White brings to the table.

I also look at the Columbus Blue Jackets signing 10-year veteran defenseman Radek Martinek to a one-year contract. Martinek is 34-years old and had spent his entire career with the New York Islanders before being signed by the Blue Jackets. After making the playoffs only once(!) during their 10-seasons of existence in the NHL, the Blue Jackets are desperate to get back into the post season and anything short of making the playoffs this season will be deemed a failure. Columbus hopes that the veteran Martinek will be an addition that can help them solidify a playoff position. Columbus, not known as a hockey hot-bed, possesses a relatively unknown group on defense. Grant Clitsome, Kris Russell, and Marc Methot aren't necessarily household names outside of Columbus and well-learned hockey fans. Martinek is presently their only blueliner over the age of 30. The Blue Jackets are hoping that by adding that same "steadying presence" with Radek Martinek that they will be able to be a contender this season and will no longer be on the outside looking in come the month of May.

The Washington Capitals, who are likely as frustrated as the San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks for having such outstanding regular seasons and yet not being able to keep it together once the playoffs begin, sought out long-time NHL veteran Roman Hamrlik. The Capitals, arguably the team in the NHL with the most amount of talent and firepower when you look at the likes of Alexander Ovechkin, Mike Green, Alexander Semin, Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Knuble, Brooks Laich, All-Star netminder Tomas Vokoun and newcomer Joel Ward have suffered disappointing playoff exits in each of the past four seasons. One way that the Caps are endeavoring to turn that tale around is by bringing in the 37-year old Hamrlik, who played his first NHL game way back in 1992 as an 18-year old. Hamrlik , who was with Montreal last season, brings along 1,311 regular season games to his name, and with 624-points during his career he still has some offensive touch at his age and can help out on the powerplay which is normally quaterbacked by Mike Green. Perhaps Harmlik's skill and experience-level are just what Washington needs to go the distance in the playoffs.

Garnet Exelby (Detroit), Kent Huskins (St. Louis), Ian White (Detroit), Jim Vandermeer (San Jose), Sheldon Souray (Dallas) and 2011 Stanley Cup champion Tomas Kaberle (Carolina), who was maybe the most lucrative player of the bunch are all veteran defensemen who found a new home this upcoming season with teams looking to strengthen and solidify their bluelines. And with still some time left before the 2011-12 regular season begins, we may in fact see other teams snatch up a veteran defenseman such as the likes of Bryan McCabe, Steve Staios, Nick Boynton or Paul Mara.

Do or die for Ponikarovsky

Carolina Hurricanes forward Alexei Ponikarovsky has a lot to prove this year. Last season, his lone year with the Los Angeles Kings, was absolutely abysmal compared to normal Ponikarovsky-standards. After five straight seasons of posting double-digits in the goal column, including four in which he surpassed the 20-mark, Alexei dropped to an embarrassing mere 5-goals in 61-games last season.

Was it an off-year for the 6-foot, 4-inch Ukrainian power-forward? Arguably so. But the concern comes from the fact that not only did Ponikarovsky not live up to expectations in Los Angeles after signing a one-year $3-million contract with a $200,000 signing bonus, but Alexei is also getting older now. At 31-years of age, Ponikarovsky is moving out of his prime and with such a drop stastically as he had last year, some will be wondering whether "Poni" is able to rebound from such an poor year.

Ponikarovsky will have every opportunity in Carolina to prove that last season was a fluke and that he still possesses a scoring-touch and the ability to be an effective top-six forward offensively. With the Hurricanes he will be surrounded by plenty of offensive talent which should only help to bolster his abilities as well. With such starstudded forwards as Eric Staal, Jussi Jokinen, Tuomo Ruutu, Brandon Sutter and exciting Calder Trophy winner Jeff Skinner, Alexei will not likely be a primary focus of the opposition. With more focus by opposing teams on the rest of the Hurricanes star players, Ponikarovsky should be able to get the opportunities he needs to produce and put the puck into the net.

If Ponikarovsky can rebound and regain his knack for scoring 20-plus goals every year, then the Hurricanes have only further added to their offensive fire-power. At $1.5-million for one-year, that may in fact be considered a bargain depending upon how Ponikarovsky performs. Regardless, being back in the Eastern Conference and with a new team will give Alexei a fresh start that he may really need.

Five players who need to go into the Hockey Hall of Fame

Every year an 18-person committee made up of former players, coaches, referees, sports writers and other esteemed hockey officiandos meet in June to vote upon new honourees for induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame. These committee members are some of the most respected names in the game. Former great players who have been enshrined themselves like Lanny McDonald, "The Professor" Igor Larionov, Peter Stastny, Mike Gartner and Serge Savard. Some of the brightest coaching minds the game has ever known; Scotty Bowman, Pat Quinn and Harry Sinden. And though these gentlemen are all regarded at the most elite level in terms of their skill, knowledge, experience and authority on the game, it is rather surprising that certain names have yet to have made the cut for induction into the Hall. I present a list of five players whom I personally deem worthy in every respect for induction and to whom I am surprised to some extent that they haven't been inducted already.

 

1) Guy Carbonneau (Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, Dallas Stars): Carbonneau is a 3-time winner of the Stanley Cup; with Montreal in '86 and '93, and then again with Dallas in '99. Arguably the greatest checking-forward and defensive-minded forward of his generation; some might suggest of all-time. Carbonneau won the Frank J. Selke Trophy for the League's best defensive-forward in 1988, 1989 and 1992, and served as team captain for the Canadiens' championship run in 1993. Despite being a defensive specialist, he scored 260-goals in his career along with 663-points. It should be a "no-brainer" that Guy Carbonneau be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

 

2) Richard Martin (Buffalo Sabres, Los Angeles Kings): One-third of the famous "French Connection line", I admit a bias when it comes to selecting Rick Martin due to the fact that I am a native Buffalonian, but I also believe that the numbers speak for themselves. I cannot believe that a player who scored 384-goals in his NHL career in just 685-games, including breaking the 50-goal mark in back-to-back seasons (1973-74 and 1974-75), would be not be considered on a perennial basis for induction. Besides the two seasons in which he broke 50, Rick Martin also broke the 40-goal mark on three other occasions as well, including his rookie campaign. He averaged over a point-per-game in his career (701-points in 685-games), and was a First Team All-Star in 1973-74 and 1974-75 and a Second Team All-Star in 1975-76 and 1976-77. Were it not for a career-ending knee-injury, I believe that Martin would have easily passed the 500-goal and 1,000-point plateaus. Martin's goals-per-game numbers and point-per-game numbers are better than Boston-great Cam Neely's numbers, and yet Neely is in the Hall of Fame and Martin is not. I think that it is a travesty that each year he is passed up for induction.

3) Alexander Mogilny (Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks, New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs): Mogilny is certainly one of the most talented forwards ever to play the game. His sheer speed and scoring ability made him one of the most feared and one of the most dynamic players in the game during the 1990s and into the 2000s. A phenomenal goal-scorer, Mogilny exploded during the 1992-93 season in Buffalo when he tallied 76-goals, tying for the NHL-lead that season with Teemu Selanne. Mogilny would go on to score 473-goals in his career, as he had eight seasons in total where he broke the 30-goal mark. "Magic" tallied over a point-per-game, as he scored 1032-points in 990-games. Were it not for some nagging injuries later on in his career, Mogilny would have easily reached the 500-goal mark for his career and would have added to his point production. If the numbers were not enough, Alexander Mogilny is also a very highly decorated player as well; he won the Stanley Cup with New Jersey in 2000, won the Lady Byng Trophy in 2003 while with Toronto, helped lead the Soviet Union to the Olympic Gold Medal in 1988 at the Calgary Olympics, won a Silver Medal and a Gold Medal with the Soviet Union at the 1988 and 1989 World Junior Championships respectively, and won another Gold Medal with the Soviets in the 1989 World Championships. Yet another obvious choice for the Committee to make.

4) Pavel Bure (Vancouver Canucks, Florida Panthers, New York Rangers): The second Russian to make my list; Pavel Bure was arguably the most exciting, most pure goal-scorer of his generation in the game. During the 1990s and into the early 2000s, there was no better goal-scorer that "The Russian Rocket". Bure not only had back-to-back 60-goal seasons in 1992-93 and 1993-94, he also put 51-goals in his last season with Vancouver in 1997-98, then thrilled them all in Florida with 58-goal and 59-goal seasons in 1999-00 and 2000-01. Bure was simply a goal-scoring machine, who ranks up there with the likes of Maurice "The Rocket" Richard, Mike Bossy and Brett Hull when it comes to being the best pure goal scorers the game has ever seen. His other accolades include winning the Calder Trophy in 1992 as the NHL Rookie of the Year, and NHL First Team All-Star in 1994 and a Second Team All-Star in 2000 and 2001, the NHL All-Star Game MVP in 2000, The Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy Winner in 2000 and 2001 for scoring the most goals in the NHL during those seasons, Silver and Bronze Medals at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics respectively, a Gold Medal in '89, Silver in '90 and Silver in '91 at the World Junior Championships, and Gold and Bronze Medals at the '90 and '91 World Championships of Hockey. That resume is so profound that it outshines numerous resumes of players who have already been inducted in the Hall of Fame.

5) Andy Moog (Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Dallas Stars, Montreal Canadiens): Moog is one of the most underrated goaltenders to ever play the game despite his many accomplishments. Perhaps that is due to sharing the netminding duties with Grant Fuhr, a Hall inductee, during all those years when the Edmonton Oilers were winning Stanley Cups. But regardless of possibly being overshadowed, Andy Moog was a top-notch netminder. Moog won three Stanley Cup championships with the Oilers in 1984, 1985 and 1987. Furthermore, he played in four All-Star games; in '85 and '86 with Edmonton, in '91 with Bruins and again in '97 with the Dallas Stars. For the 1989-90, Moog teamed with goaltending partner Rejean Lemelin to win the William M. Jennings Trophy for allowing the fewest goals against when they were with Boston together. But perhaps what is most impressive of Moog's career, along with of course the three Stanley Cups, are his 372-wins in net during the regular season; ranking him 14th all-time amongst goaltenders. Those are more wins than goaltenders Billy Smith, Gump Worsley, Gerry Cheevers and Eddie Giacomin; all of whom are already inducted into the Hall of Fame.

I know that there are numerous other players who are likely deserving to be considered for Hall of Fame induction as well. Were I a member of the selection committee, these five players would be my nominees for induction (NOTE: a committee member is only able to nominate one player at each year's voting), not only for their outstanding accomplishments but also because I find it rather surprising that none of them have been inducted already. Though none of the players that I have selected could be considered a Gretzky or a Lemieux or a Howe or a Sawchuk, it is my sincere hope that some day the selection committee will remember these players for how good they truly were and choose them to be put in their rightful place, alongside players of similar calibre who have already been enshrined.

Mental health of players, both during and after their careers

Derek Boogaard

With the recent untimely passing of Winnipeg Jets' forward Rick Rypien, I am pleased to see that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has adamantly stated that the League will review its programs for handling both substance abuse and behavioral health programs which are utilized to promote and foster overall strong mental health among the NHL's players accompanied by positive decision making. With the passing of both Rypien and New York Rangers forward Derek Boogaard only months apart, there is obvious cause for concern that the players, just like all people, may need assistance in coping with and handling the strains of everyday life, along with the inherent stress of fame and fortune.

Tom Cavanagh

Sadly, Rypien and Boogaard are not the only hockey players to have been lost to us too young and too soon at the hands of substance abuse or bouts with depression and mental health. Perhaps lesser publicized than Rypien's and Boogard's passings, was the death of former San Jose Sharks forward and Harvard University graduate, Tom Cavanagh, who apparently took his own life in January 2011.

Cavanagh had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and had been insitutionalized several times during the last months of his life.

Former NHL enforcer and Stanley Cup champion John Kordic died of a drug overdose in the summer of 1992 at the young age of 27. Kordic, one of the most feared enforcers of his time, recorded 997 penalty minutes in only 244 career regular season games. Kordic was one of the many youngsters that contributed to the Montreal Canadiens run to the Cup in 1986, appearing in 18 playoff games that year including all 5 games of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Former New York Rangers' and Dallas Stars' forward Roman Lyashenko took his own life during the summer of 2003 while vacationing with his mother and sister in Antalya, Turkey. Many feel that he had difficulty coping with life in North America, far away from home in his native Russia.

And a handful of other players lost their lives in car accidents where large amounts of alcohol had been involved, including superstar goaltender Pelle Lindbergh, defenseman Steve Chiasson and former St. Louis Blues player Bob Gassoff.

Bob Gassoff

The deaths of all of the aforementioned players stand from Gassoff's passing in the late-1970s until this summer with the deaths of Rypien and Boogaard, so there is an obvious ongoing need to supply NHL players with the proper support and counseling on making wise decisions in life and providing medical support and treatment to the players who may be battling mental illness and depression. But my concern comes in for the players who have retired and have put their playing days behind them. I fear that maybe once a player retires, which in and of itself is a major life-decision and major career-decision that may bring about large amounts of stress and anxiety, that there may not be that support that a person, whether a hockey player or not, would need in life when taking such a major step. For there have been numerous retired hockey players to have either taken their own lives or lost their lives to substance abuse long AFTER their playing days have ended.

Larry Mickey

For example, former NHL journeyman Larry Mickey committed suicide at the age of 38 in July 1982; 7-years after his last game in the NHL. Mickey had lost his first wife in a fatal car-accident in which he was behind the wheel in 1967. In 1982, with his second marriage on the rocks and his career over with having been shortened by injuries and a lack of natural talent, Mickey took his own life. Those close to Mickey believed that he simply could not cope with life after hockey.

A former 50-goal scorer in the NHL while with the Quebec Nordiques, Jacques Richard, played a troubled career and had lived a troubled life. Though Richard had great potential and was slated to be a premier player, he faced injuries during his career which was further marred by bouts with alcoholism, gambling and even cocaine. Having played with the Atlanta Flames, Buffalo Sabres and Quebec, Richard's career was over in 1983. 6-years later, Richard would be arrested for attempted cocaine smuggling and sentenced to 7-years in prison. Richard would eventually die in a car-crash on his 50th birthday after a day of drinking.

Theoren Fleury

As documented in his 2009 book Playing with Fire former NHL superstar Theoren Fleury battled alcohol abuse, drug abuse and depression throughout his playing career and in the years following (not to mention the sexual abuse that he fell victim to at a young age). Fleury, who doesn't receive the accolades he truly deserves in my opinion for being the phenomenal hockey player that he was, has turned his life around for the better and even attempted a comeback with the Calgary Flames.

Considering the tragic lives of these players after their playing days were over, not to mention numerous other players who faced similar problems post-hockey, I think that the League also needs to consider including treatment plans and programs for retired players after they decide to retire in order to help acclimate them to life after hockey. I give full props to the NHL for wanting to better help their present young players in leading healthier lives both mentally and physically, but there also should be options for players who have retired and are having difficulty with moving on with life once they have left hockey. Perhaps some type of grief and loss counseling or programs, open to players who have retired and need to seek help in living life once they have left the game. The NHL should not forget their players of past seasons, and should look out for them with the same care and concern that they do with their present day players. For it would appear that individuals troubled with substance abuse and mental health concerns during their playing days are maybe even more susceptible to troubled personal lives when their playing days are over.