SUNRISE, Fla. — Joe Sakic clearly is getting the itch to get back into the NHL — in the front office.
The Avalanche legend was in Florida for the NHL’s board of governors meetings, which concluded Tuesday in Palm Beach, and took in the Avs’ game with the Florida Panthers.
Sakic took his first real steps toward learning the business side of hockey on the trip, sitting in with Avs president Pierre Lacroix and GM Greg Sherman on the meetings.
“I’m a sponge, just absorbing it all,” Sakic said. “It was good. I want to learn the entire business, and do this the right way. So this was a good start.”
Sakic isn’t likely to step into a full-time management position this season, and wouldn’t speculate on when he would. But all signs point to something happening at some point, maybe next season.
Yip and Wilson sit.
Avs winger Brandon Yip was a healthy scratch, despite scoring a goal in Saturday’s game in Tampa. He was a minus-2 in the game with the Lightning, however. David Koci took his spot in the lineup, but played only 1:10 against Florida. Ryan Wilson was the other healthy scratch for Colorado.
Footnotes.
Despite losing a key faceoff leading to the OT winner, the Avs won 56 percent of the draws in the game. . . . Avs winger Milan Hejduk had a rough night, with a minus-2 and no shots on net. . . . NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was at the game. Despite the Avs coming into Tuesday ranked 26th in average home attendance (14,306), Bettman called Denver a strong hockey market. “Things go in cycles,” Bettman said. “I think four years ago Chicago was ranked 29th in the league. Now you can’t get a ticket to a game.” The salary cap is expected to rise about $3 million next season, to about $62 million.
Adrian Dater, The Denver Post
