Tom Askey

Goaltender Mikhail Shtalenkov became the first of the defeated World Cup players to appear at Mighty Duck camp, arriving Tuesday morning while Team USA and Canada were in Philadelphia readying for Game 1 of the finals. Shtalenkov was a member of the Russian team the Americans beat in the semifinals. Though he didn't see much of Ron Wilson--coach of Team USA and the Ducks--he smiled at one of their exchanges. "After the first U.S.

The Mighty Ducks are no longer available for tormenting to the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks completed a six-game season sweep of the Ducks with a physical 5-2 victory Thursday before 17,483 at San Jose Arena. San Jose defenseman Al Iafrate knocked Teemu Selanne out of the game with a rough check against the boards late in the first period. Selanne suffered a pulled muscle, according to a team spokesman.

The Mighty Ducks played without Guy Hebert, Paul Kariya, Steve Rucchin and Teemu Selanne. And for good measure, Coach Pierre Page started rookie goaltender Tom Askey instead of veteran Mikhail Shtalenkov. So what was the Colorado Avalanche's excuse? True, the Avalanche ended a six-game losing streak with a 2-2 tie against the Ducks before an announced sellout of 17,174 Monday at the Arrowhead Pond. But listless Colorado certainly didn't pick up any style points.

The Mighty Ducks played without Guy Hebert, Paul Kariya, Steve Rucchin and Teemu Selanne. And for good measure, Coach Pierre Page started rookie goaltender Tom Askey instead of veteran Mikhail Shtalenkov. So what was the Colorado Avalanche's excuse? True, the Avalanche ended a six-game losing streak with a 2-2 tie Monday against the Ducks in front of an announced sellout of 17,174 at the Arrowhead Pond. But listless Colorado certainly didn't pick up any style points.

Mikhail Shtalenkov has proved he can come through in games that count. Now the question the Mighty Ducks have to ask themselves is, can they count on him to get them to the games that count? Goaltender is one of the few areas where the Ducks have plenty of in-house options, and Shtalenkov hasn't made it any easier for them to determine whom they will protect in the expansion draft this summer.

One season ended with the Mighty Ducks' 5-3 loss Sunday against the St. Louis Blues at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim. Another more important one begins today. By now, Duck management should have a pretty good idea what needs to be done to avoid another season as embarrassing as the one just completed. There's little sense rehashing what went wrong. Coach Pierre Page did that back on March 11 when he hesitated precisely 37 seconds after being asked about the Ducks' vision for the future.

In the end, the gamble worked and the Mighty Ducks are far better off today than they were only two weeks ago. Pierre Gauthier, team president and general manager, made a risky move by leaving goalie Guy Hebert unprotected for Friday's expansion draft. However, just as Gauthier hoped, the Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild decided Hebert's no-trade clause and $3.6-million salary next season were too steep a price to pay.

The fire burned in Steve Yzerman's eyes, metaphorically speaking, well before the butt end of Steve Rucchin's stick, in an all too literal sense, was in Yzerman's left eye. "Was he different after that?" teammate and sometime linemate Brendan Shanahan said, repeating a question in incredulous tones that suggested the answer was obvious. "Well, he was uglier."

Coin flips. I am still seeing coin flips. In my sleep, in my soup, in my coffee, everywhere I look. I am seeing one now--little Gary Bettman, grinning that I-hope-Michael-Eisner-still-likes-me grin of his, buffing that specially minted Canadian silver dollar on his coat sleeve until it glows like uranium and then instructing Tony Tavares and Bill Torrey, once again, to call it in the air. The Mighty Ducks and Florida Panthers spent all weekend calling it in the air.

Tom Askey rejoined his Cincinnati teammates in time for Game 1 of their American Hockey League playoff series against the Philadelphia Phantoms. He was expected to start in goal Thursday. Dominic Roussel continued to battle flu, but he practiced for the first time in several days. Roussel is expected to be on the bench for Game 2 of the Mighty Ducks' first-round Stanley Cup playoff series against the Detroit Red Wings tonight at Joe Louis Arena.