Denver Post sports writer Adrian Dater posts his Avs Mailbag each Wednesday during the 2006-07 NHL season on DenverPost.com.
To drop a question into the Avs Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
Adrian – If the Avs are able to squeak into the playoffs this year, there’s a good chance they will draw Nashville in the first round. What do you think of the prospect of seeing Peter Forsberg skating (and scoring) against his old team?
— Jared, Denver
Jared – It would be quite the event, for sure. Avs fans booing or cheering any big hits against Foppa would/will be a weird thing.
It’s always weird when a former, longtime player with one team plays against another in meaningful games. What was it like for Edmontonians the first year Wayne Gretzky was traded, and the Kings played the Oilers in the playoffs? How about Roger Clemens pitching against the Sawx in the postseason? What was it really like for Chicago Bulls fans to watch Michael Jordan play against them, as a Washington Wizard?
I can’t imagine that last one. Let me tell you this: if Larry Bird ever played against the Celtics, in any way, I seriously might have had a coronary at a teen age. I just know I would not have been able to handle watching the Legend come down on the right wing and bury some long, game-clinching jumper from the parquet – which he most surely would have done if he’d ever been let go by the team in Green. Really, I wouldn’t have been able to handle that.
It was bad enough when Dave Cowens – one of my big boyhood heroes – played against the C’s in the 1983 playoffs, with the Milwaukee Bucks. Cowens not only wore those ugly, several-different-shades-of-green uniforms of the Bucks, but they swept the Celts in four straight in the second round that year. This was the year the C’s had some chemistry problems, mostly with their coach, Bill Fitch. Captain Video’s routine had finally worn thin with some of his players, especially Kevin McHale and Cedric “Cornbread” Maxwell. Fitch wore out his players with his long practices and tedious video sessions, hence his nickname.
Anyway, Cowens came out of retirement to play for former teammate Don Nelson with the Bucks, and was a key contributor in Milwaukee’s sweep. It was a very, very tough thing to watch Cowens
play a major role off the bench in a sweep of the C’s. Bird, famously in Boston, at least, said he would “punish” himself as he’d never done before in his offseason workouts following the sweep, and he kept his word. He came back in better shape and led the C’s to probably the most thrilling championship I’ve ever been a party to as a fan – the Celts’ 1984 seven-game, comeback title win over the hated Lakers.
Yes, I’ll even put that title over the Red Sox’s 2004 Reverse of the Curse.
Here’s how big a fan I was then, and how superstitious: On the night of Game 7, I was slated to go over to my buddy Paul Carl’s apartment, on Mascoma Lake, Enfield, N.H. On the way over in my folks’ blue VW bug, I got too nerved out to actually think about walking in there and watching the game. Paul was a good fan, but not like I was. I sweated out every loose ball, screamed over every foul, cried out like the defendants in the Sacco and Venzetti case over every call that went against the C’s.
I worried that I’d be in too much of an “Oh well, it’s not whether you win or lose” kind of crowd for the game. I worried I’d make a jackass out of myself, in other words. This was Athens vs. Sparta – nothing less. It was heart-attack serious, and I couldn’t risk things going wrong by being around some half-hearted fans who would click on a Tom Petty cassette tape if they lost and say, “Oh well, crack me open a Bud Light.”
So, in the parking lot of the apartment building, I decided to just sit in the car, in the dark, and try to will on the Celts with some quiet prayer. Any serious fans of any team out there know they’ve
done this; you really do say something like, “Lord, listen, I know you’re busy. I mean, I know you’ve got some bigger things on your plate right now. But could you just maybe see to it that, well, that maybe my team could win this one game?”
You know you’ve done it.
Here’s the thing about that night, in that parking lot: I didn’t want to start attracting some unwanted attention by sitting there in a VW Bug at 10 at night, in a dimly lit lot. Some woman with kids might notice me and think I was Ted Bundy and call the cops. So, here’s what I did: I climbed in the back seat of the Bug and laid down. Do you know what it’s like as a 6-foot-5 person to scrunch in the backseat of a Volkswagen Bug – let alone for more than an hour? Now I know there’s a reason why I had back surgery 10 years ago.
I laid down against those hard, cold, plastic seats and started in on my prayer, knowing that Paul and Co. were inside, wondering where the heck I was. I couldn’t resist the temptation of turning on the car radio every 10 minutes or so and getting a score update, from Johnny Most – the late Celtics announcer and the most unbiased play-by-play man of all time.
I remember Johnny’s cigarette-stained voice saying the C’s had about a nine-point lead with about two minutes left, and that was my license to get my body out of its traction position. I could now safely get out of the car. I did so and bounded down the steps to Paul’s place, knowing that the Celtics WERE WORLD CHAMPIONS, AND HAD BEATEN THE LAKERS. It was one of the greatest walks of my life. I walked in and immediately started high-fiving Paul and cracking open a beer, as if I’d known all along this would happen.
I wonder if any Avs fans would do this should they play Foppa and the Preds in the first round?
What do you think of the job Francois Giguere has done for the Avs? The Alex Tanguay trade was horrible. However, the biggest shocker to me was he announcing, just before the trade deadline, that the Avs would be looking ahead to next season. The guy was giving up with 20 games left! If he doesn’t buy out Jose Theodore’s contract, Pierre Lacroix should return as GM.
— Chris, Vancouver, British Columbia
Chris – Dude, what’s up? Normally, the British Columbians are among the most intelligent of the lot in the Mailbag. But you’re wrong on both counts.
First, the Tanguay trade wasn’t horrible. Jordan Leopold is a good D-man (I know, he’s been hurt all year, how do we know? But, trust me, he is). And, everybody keeps forgetting about the two second-round picks that were part of the deal. The Avs got three players for Tanguay. Yes, he’s a very good player and has had a good year with the Flames. But I think the Avs got a fair price
for him, and they may laugh last over that deal.
After all, don’t forget, the Avs got a second-round pick in the deal that sent Keith Ballard and Derek Morris to Phoenix. That pick turned out to be Paul Stastny. Does anyone think that is a bad deal for the Avs now?
As for Giguere “giving up”, actually he did just the opposite at the deadline. He said he didn’t become a big seller because he had NOT given up on this season yet. He said he still had faith in this year’s team, and didn’t want to break them up. A five-game winning streak resulted after those words, and there is still a heartbeat for a playoff spot.
Adrian – I just finished reading your book “.” It was a great read. Can you please explain what they mean by “future considerations” in terms of a trade? How are these future considerations determined and what keeps these future considerations worth anything?
— Mathieu Lamoureux, Omaha
Mathieu – Thanks for reading the book. Incidentally, I’ll be at Braun’s on Thursday night, signing copies of the book. It’ll be from 6-7:30. Braun’s is right across from the Pepsi Center. This will be before a Nuggets game, but, hey, it’s the best we could do. Come on down, I’ll sign a book and let’s talk some hockey.
Future considerations is a nebulous sports term, usually pertaining to a trade with the proviso of “Hey, if this trade works out for you, our future considerations just got a lot better. If they don’t, we don’t expect much more than a bag of pucks in return.”
Does that explain things enough for you?
Hey, Adrian. I hate to live in past Avs glory, but I’ve been trying to recall a game in either ’99 or ’00 when the Avs came back from a four- or five-goal deficit in the third to win a game against some Eastern Conference team (the Panthers or Thrashers maybe?). It’s still the most unbelievable comeback I’ve ever seen. However, I keep describing this game to other fans but nobody seems to know what I’m talking about. Did this really happen, or did I dream it?
— Russ, Denver
Russ – The night in question was March 3, 1999, in Sunrise, Fla. I remember the night well, not only because of Forsberg’s feat, but also because Theo Fleury was up in the press box with us, injured, and getting into a verbal joust with a fan from the back row.
Forsberg had three goals and three assists that night, in a 7-5 Avs win. The Panthers led 5-0 late in the second period, when Forsberg went into another world. Believe me when I tell you it might have been the greatest 25 minutes of hockey anybody has ever played. Not only did he get six points in that time frame, but he also could have had about FIVE more. Literally, every shift, he did something dangerous with the puck. Avs coach Bob Hartley called him “Mr. Forsberg” after the game, and the newly-acquired Fleury shook his head in amazement outside the locker room for many minutes after the game.
Adrian – How does an NHL team choose an affiliate site – such as the San Diego Gulls last year (now not playing) or Cleveland this year? Do they help choose the players and/or have a say in how the affiliate is run?
— Jeff Ratliff, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Jeff – Well, a team chooses an affiliate based on a lot of factors, including the rent of being in the building of a certain city, other travel-cost factors, etc. Yes, they choose the players and help decide how the team is run, but usually the parent NHL club has a pretty hands-off approach when it comes to running day-to-day operations. The Avs are having their AHL affiliate in Cleveland next year, and will be the only parent club – unlike their arrangement now with the Albany
River Rats, where they share the player pool with Carolina.
Adrian: I enjoy listening to you on 560 AM every Wednesday. Anyways, I am fairly new to hockey, and I was checking out the bios of the Avs’ draft picks and came across the term “North American skater.” Could you explain what that means? Thanks.
— Jake, Brighton
Jake – Thanks for listening. My show on KLZ, 4-5 p.m. on Wednesday, is Denver’s only pure NHL hockey show on the radio.
Well, “North American skater” means just that – that he’s from North America. Canada or the U.S.
Hi, Adrian! The way Paul Stastny is playing right now, can he be in the final three for the Calder Trophy?
— Nick, Quebec City
Nick – Absolutely, he can, and if he isn’t, the NHL should bow its head in shame. Evgeni Malkin of Pittsburgh remains the favorite to win the trophy, but Stastny is just a few points behind him, and now he’s got an NHL rookie record for most consecutive games with a point (18). Stastny has a real shot now to win the Calder, not just be a finalist. He’s a better defensive player than Malkin, and now his offensive numbers are close to even. So, how does he not make it as a finalist?
Adrian Dater can be heard every Wednesday from 4-5 p.m. for “The Puck Stops Here” on KLZ 560 AM. Adrian has covered the Colorado Avalanche since the team moved to Denver in 1995. To drop a question into his Avs Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
