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Monday, June 24, 2002

By Dejan Kovacevic, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

TORONTO -- Enforcer Krzysztof Oliwa demanded three times last season that the Penguins trade him.

It took a few months, but he finally got his wish minutes before the end of the NHL Entry Draft yesterday, when General Manager Craig Patrick dealt him to the New York Rangers for future considerations.

The Penguins' return probably will amount to little. They were not likely to make a qualifying contract offer to Oliwa by the league's Saturday deadline, which would have made him an unrestricted free agent. Oliwa, 29, had no goals, two assists and 150 penalty minutes in 57 games last season, and the Penguins had decided that level of production wasn't worth the $990,000 salary they would have been required to pay to retain his rights.

Rangers General Manager Glen Sather wanted to add toughness to a team that has missed the Stanley Cup playoffs the past five years.

"Oliwa's a tough guy who can do a lot of interesting things," he said.

The Penguins acquired Oliwa from the Columbus Blue Jackets Jan. 14, 2001, for a third-round pick in the 2001 draft. He scored one goal in 83 games in Pittsburgh.

Local hat trick

Three Pittsburgh-area players were chosen in one draft for the first time.

Defenseman Nathan Guenin of Aliquippa went in the fourth round, 127th overall, to the Rangers. He had four goals and 11 assists in 56 games for Green Bay of the United States Hockey League last season and will attend Ohio State University.

Left winger John Zeiler of Pleasant Hills went in the fifth round, five picks later, to the Phoenix Coyotes. He had 23 goals and 27 assists in 60 games for Sioux City of the USHL and will attend St. Lawrence University.

Finally, goaltender Dwight LaBrosse of McMurray went in the ninth round, 265th overall, to the Penguins. He had a 3.22 goals-against average for Guelph of the Ontario Hockey League and will play there again next season.

It marked the fourth consecutive year Pittsburgh-area players had been drafted and brought the total number to 10.

"When I was a kid or even in high school, I never thought about stuff like that," said Zeiler, who helped Thomas Jefferson win three Class AA state championships. "I'm happy for all the kids in Pittsburgh that we could get drafted. I know there have been other local guys drafted lately, so it's nice to keep it going for the youngsters. We show them that they can do it, too."

Pittsburgh coincidence

Head scout Greg Malone said the Penguins did not select LaBrosse because of his Pittsburgh roots.

"We don't draft kids just because they're local. Look back at the guys we've taken and, at the right place and time, we're going to take them. With this guy, we had him rated a lot higher."

LaBrosse is the Penguins' third Pittsburgh-born draftee, following Upper St. Clair's Ryan Malone in 1999 and Mars' Jim Abbott in 2000.

Little change with Lang

Patrick spoke Friday with Petr Svoboda, agent for center Robert Lang, but said no progress was made and Lang still intends to become an unrestricted free agent Sunday.

"Nothing's changed. They want to wait until July 1 to see what the market is," Patrick said. "We didn't talk a lot about Robert. We talked about other stuff."

Fernholm knows city

Daniel Fernholm, the Penguins' fourth-round pick, spent six weeks training with other draft prospects on the South Side last summer and liked what he saw.

"Great place," he said. "It's a small city, not like New York or Stockholm, and there is so much green everywhere you go."

He admired the Penguins, too, well before he watched two games at Mellon Arena last year.

"They were my favorite team from when they won the Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992. Mario Lemieux was my big idol."

Fernholm, a 6-foot-4, 218-pound defenseman, had been viewed by many scouts as a potential first-rounder before last season. But his stock fell dramatically after he had major surgery on his right knee in October, the result of a hit in 2000, and was limited to eight games in a Swedish junior league. He returned to play four games in the World Under-20 Championships in Moscow in April, but he had not regained full speed and did not impress scouts.

"Now, it's 100 percent," Fernholm said. "It feels stronger than before it was hurt."

Fernholm will play next season for Djurgarden in the Swedish Elite League and expects it will take "two or three years" to be ready for the NHL.

Asked to describe his game, he replied, "I'm like Nicklas Lidstrom. I make the first pass, have a good sense for the play. But I have to be more physical."

Patrick liked Fernholm's size.

"It was nice just to see him when he was walking down the steps."

Patience pays off

The number of draftees in attendance was visibly lower than in previous years. Among the Penguins' choices, only four of 11 were there to don a sweater.

One who sat through both days and heard the names of 233 other players called before his was eighth-rounder Maxime Talbot, a 60-point center from Hull of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

"That was long," Talbot said. "My parents sat there with me, and nobody knew what to expect. For sure, I'm happy. I was wondering if anybody would draft me."

Talbot had reason to believe he would go higher. He was rated 86th among North American skaters by the Central Scouting Bureau, and was one of four draft-eligible players invited to Canada's training camp for the next World Junior Championships.

"Yeah, and the other three were taken in the first round."

Talbot blamed his Central Scouting listing, which had his size at 5-11, 165 pounds. He said he weighs 182.

How the No. 1 unfolded

More details emerged on how the unusual top-three shakeup went down Saturday.

The Blue Jackets were slated to pick at No. 3 but were uncertain left winger Rick Nash would be available there. Thus, Columbus swapped picks with No. 1 Florida and gave the Panthers the right to swap first-rounders again in 2003. Trouble was, the Panthers still wanted defenseman Jay Bouwmeester, the player they had pegged for the top spot, and they were nervous that the No. 2 Atlanta Thrashers would take him. Thus, Florida handed Atlanta a third-round pick this year and a fourth-rounder next year to keep its hands off Bouwmeester. The Thrashers, who had been fielding major offers from the Buffalo Sabres and Washington Capitals, still took the player they wanted, goaltender Kari Lehtonen.

Blue Jackets General Manager Doug MacLean shook his head when asked about the mess yesterday.

"I don't care," he said. "All I know is that I got the guy I wanted. That's all I care about."

Icy chips

Washington is believed to be considering Penguins scout Herb Brooks for its head coaching vacancy, but Patrick said the Capitals have not asked permission to speak with him. ... Patrick still has not had discussions with left winger Kevin Stevens about his future. ... Patrick said he anticipates no changes to the Penguins' scouting staff for the foreseeable future. ... The Edmonton Oilers' fourth-round pick, Czech center Robin Kovar, was voided because he did not opt into the draft. The NHL computers on the draft floor showed that he had, but the league ruled that it was the Oilers' responsibility to know. ... How shallow was this draft? The Carolina Hurricanes traded all of their final four picks except their seventh-rounder to the Tampa Bay Lightning for a fourth-rounder in 2003, saying they already had everyone they wanted. The Philadelphia Flyers' table was empty before the end of the seventh round. ... Zeiler on having his picture taken with Coyotes owner Wayne Gretzky: "That was nice. I'd never met him before. Good guy."