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Saturday, June 21, 2003

By Dejan Kovacevic, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- For the third time in five years, Rick Dudley, the Florida Panthers' general manager, is holding all the cards at the NHL Entry Draft.

And, once again, he plans to deal.

The Panthers are slated to pick first overall today, but Dudley said yesterday there is a 50 percent chance he will trade it away, just as he did in 1999 when running the Tampa Bay Lightning and last year with the Panthers. His reason this time is that several teams have expressed an intense interest in moving up to select goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Dudley has not ruled out taking Fleury, but the Panthers already have an exceptional young talent at that position in Roberto Luongo and would prefer to move down. They are seeking two young players who could step into their lineup immediately, along with a first-round pick that is not lower than No. 15.

"I haven't hidden the fact that we will trade the pick if the right deal comes along," Dudley said. "I've talked to a lot of people and ... nobody's insulted us, but nobody's offered us anything yet that we're ready to take."

The front-runners appear to be the Philadelphia Flyers, who are offering defense prospect Jeff Woywitka, another young forward and their No. 11 overall pick. But four other teams -- the Penguins, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders -- also are known to be in the running.

The Penguins have an apparent advantage over the rest in that they own the third pick, the highest one available below Florida's because the second-slotted Carolina Hurricanes have declared they will not trade up. Dudley declined to mention the Penguins by name, but he acknowledged he would prefer to remain in the top four of the draft when switching picks. The Columbus Blue Jackets are fourth. If Dudley moves lower in the order, he is sure to demand a greater return.

"We value four players in this draft incredibly highly," Dudley said. "Would we like to have one? Absolutely. But the whole goal is to get yourself to being an elite team, and we can accomplish it in different ways."

Penguins General Manager Craig Patrick declined to characterize the nature of his talks with Dudley, but he said he expected them to continue deep into last night and this morning.

No rule discussions

The NHL's general managers met for three hours at a downtown hotel, but they took no action to adjust rules in response to an unprecedented wave of criticism that the game has become too defensive.

In fact, several of them confirmed, the subject never was broached.

"We were just getting updates," Patrick said. "Nothing newsworthy."

Another meeting is scheduled for August, but no agenda has been set.

Games averaged only 5.23 goals, continuing a downward trend that has damaged attendance and television ratings around the league. That has prompted suggestions ranging from radical ones such as increasing the size of nets to more modest ones such as the elimination of the red line.

Patrick was noncommittal when asked if he would support change.

"I like the game the way it is," he said. "But anything we can do to make it better, I'd listen."

Dudley said that the closest the meeting came to touching on the topic was a brief discussion of the NHL's crackdown on obstruction last season.

"The point was that we liked a lot of things about the crackdown, and we don't want to let it slip," Dudley said. "We felt that, in general, it was very good. The message here was that we have to stringently enforce the rules that are in place, and I agree with that."

The general managers did agree to police goaltending equipment more closely next season, but they have no plan to diminish the most important pieces, the leg pads.

Molleken in line

The Penguins are believed to be close to hiring Lorne Molleken as the third and final assistant on Ed Olczyk's coaching staff.

Molleken, 47, is the general manager of the Moose Jaw Warriors in the Western Hockey League, and he has the head coaching and NHL experience the Penguins are seeking to help Olczyk in his first season behind a bench. His most recent coaching work was a two-year stint as an assistant with the San Jose Sharks, which ended in December.

Molleken, who is attending the draft, declined to comment on the Penguins' interest. But Barry Webster, the Warriors' director of hockey operations, told the Moose Jaw Times-Herald in yesterday's editions: "Lorne is evaluating all of his options, and he's a very valuable commodity in the hockey world. If everything is right for Lorne and his family, we would support any decision he would make."

Molleken is working on a six-month contract with Moose Jaw, which will extend to a four-year contract June 30.

Stumpel dealt to L.A.

In what could be the beginning of a busy trade weekend, the Los Angeles Kings reacquired center Jozef Stumpel from the Bruins last night. Boston sent Stumpel and a seventh-round pick in this draft to Los Angeles for a fourth-round pick this year and a second-round pick next year.

The blockbuster of today could be the trade of right winger Jaromir Jagr from the Washington Capitals to the New York Rangers. Jagr, dealt to the Capitals by the Penguins two years ago, has $55 million left on his contract for the next five years.

Many other high-profile players are on the block, as teams work to lower payroll looking toward a new Collective Bargaining Agreement in 2004.

Epilepsy shrugged off

Left winger Andrei Kostitsyn of Belarus might be the wild card in this draft, because he is talented and versatile enough that some team might claim him relatively early in the first round. Which is where he almost certainly would go if he did not have epilepsy.

Kostitsyn, speaking through a translator yesterday, said he was examined thoroughly by a specialist at a recent NHL scouting combine in Toronto and that his ailment is mild and easily controllable through medication, though he is not taking any now. He said teams assessing his potential should not make an issue of it.

"Most teams' questions are hockey-oriented," he said. "I'd prefer for people to talk about hockey rather than anything else."

Vanek goal-oriented

University of Minnesota left winger Thomas Vanek earned a reputation for scoring clutch goals while leading the Golden Gophers to the 2003 NCAA Division I title. His knack for producing under pressure makes him a virtual lock to go in the top 10 today.

And, after traveling from his native Austria to play for Minnesota, Vanek is not about to make an issue of where he will begin his professional career.

"I don't care," he said. "I don't care if I go to Canada, or down South or West or East. My goal is to play in the National Hockey League."

Although Vanek is on the Penguins' radar, there has been no indication he will get serious consideration from them unless they trade down in the order. Vanek said he is aware the Penguins are starting a rebuilding program and have major financial issues but added he would have no reservations about being drafted by them.

"I don't care if it's Pittsburgh, or anyone else," he said. "The team that drafts me is definitely the most interested in me and has the most faith in me."

Little local flavor

In each of the past four drafts, at least two and as many as four Western Pennsylvania players have been chosen. But the Penguins' scouts are expecting that number to diminish to one this year.

Dylan Reese, a senior at Upper St. Clair High School and a member of the Pittsburgh Forge in the North American Hockey League, is ranked 192nd among North American skaters by the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau. He is a 5-foot-11, 195-pound defenseman who ranked third in the league among players at his position with 11 goals and 30 assists in 56 games. He will play Division I hockey at Harvard next year.