d_jedi
Oct 2nd, 2005, 10:39 PM
source: http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1128204610807&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154&t=TS_Home&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes
The dream is dead for Steve Thomas, but life as an NHLer is just beginning for Alexander Steen.
Just after the Maple Leafs put the finishing touches on a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in their pre-season finale, the 42-year-old Thomas was told by team management that his spirited bid to end his career a Maple Leaf had ended. A large reason for that was the play of 21-year-old Steen, who started camp with high hopes and lived up to them by getting better as camp progressed.
Steen will be in the lineup Wednesday night when the Leafs host Ottawa in their first game of the season and if last night was any indication, it will be on the left side in a what could be an interesting third line with Matt Stajan at centre and Jeff O'Neill on the right.
Thomas, meanwhile, will likely be at home in Markham either looking for an NHL job or making plans to coach his son's minor hockey team.
Maple Leafs coach Pat Quinn said the prospect of departing for a mini-camp in Gravenhurst this morning without Thomas was a difficult one for him to endure.
"In a way, it plays on your heart a little bit," Quinn said, "because I don't even know if it's the right (decision).
"He's a high-quality guy who I know can help a team and maybe it's us. Maybe it's a decision that a week from now, if he goes somewhere else we'll be saying, `Geez, I wish we had him,' and if he's still out there maybe we'll be saying, `Steve, come on in.'"
Don't count on it. The Leafs management was reticent about the possibility of Thomas coming into camp in the first place, but was reportedly overruled by team ownership on the issue. Had Thomas scored four or five goals in the pre-season, he would have made the decision very difficult for the Leafs, but with Steen playing as well as he has, the choice had become quite clear.
There was speculation at the Air Canada Centre last night that Thomas might be offered an off-ice role in the organization and GM John Ferguson has already said he'll be hiring another pro scout for North America, but Ferguson said last night he would, "not comment on speculation and innuendo."
While Thomas's NHL playing career might be over, it's looking as though Steen is on his way to a long career as a two-way player and penalty killer.
He and Stajan were a large reason why the Wings went 0-for-7 on the power play last night.
On one penalty kill, Stajan stripped Pavel Datsyuk of the puck and set Steen up for a terrific chance, then drew a penalty that sent Datsyuk off the ice.
"As the week has gone on here, I thought I've gotten better and better," Steen said.
"You know what you're capable of and you want to put it all out there and show your stuff and I feel I've done a pretty good job of that."
The Leafs were relieved to see Jason Allison in the lineup and were probably even more pleased with the way he played. Although he and Mats Sundin did not score on the power play, they both created a number of good chances and with O'Neill on the right point, there's an offensive thrust with the extra man that the Leafs have not had in a number of years.
"I think with the two of us out there both right shots, it will be real hard to stop us on that right side," Allison said.
"We're both big guys and we can both play low and high and that helps."
And you might as well get used to referring to Eric Lindros as a fourth-line centre, the role he played last night between Tie Domi and Chad Kilger. That unit did the large bulk of the defensive work against Datsyuk and Brendan Shanahan last night and that will likely spell the minors for Kyle Wellwood because he simply can't play that role.
Maybe it's just the nostalgic Leaf fan within me, but I don't think this was a good idea.. Steve Thomas is the kind of guy you want on your bench, especially at playoff time. Then again, the Leafs have a pretty old lineup as it is (still), and Steen will inject some much needed young blood into the mix.
The dream is dead for Steve Thomas, but life as an NHLer is just beginning for Alexander Steen.
Just after the Maple Leafs put the finishing touches on a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in their pre-season finale, the 42-year-old Thomas was told by team management that his spirited bid to end his career a Maple Leaf had ended. A large reason for that was the play of 21-year-old Steen, who started camp with high hopes and lived up to them by getting better as camp progressed.
Steen will be in the lineup Wednesday night when the Leafs host Ottawa in their first game of the season and if last night was any indication, it will be on the left side in a what could be an interesting third line with Matt Stajan at centre and Jeff O'Neill on the right.
Thomas, meanwhile, will likely be at home in Markham either looking for an NHL job or making plans to coach his son's minor hockey team.
Maple Leafs coach Pat Quinn said the prospect of departing for a mini-camp in Gravenhurst this morning without Thomas was a difficult one for him to endure.
"In a way, it plays on your heart a little bit," Quinn said, "because I don't even know if it's the right (decision).
"He's a high-quality guy who I know can help a team and maybe it's us. Maybe it's a decision that a week from now, if he goes somewhere else we'll be saying, `Geez, I wish we had him,' and if he's still out there maybe we'll be saying, `Steve, come on in.'"
Don't count on it. The Leafs management was reticent about the possibility of Thomas coming into camp in the first place, but was reportedly overruled by team ownership on the issue. Had Thomas scored four or five goals in the pre-season, he would have made the decision very difficult for the Leafs, but with Steen playing as well as he has, the choice had become quite clear.
There was speculation at the Air Canada Centre last night that Thomas might be offered an off-ice role in the organization and GM John Ferguson has already said he'll be hiring another pro scout for North America, but Ferguson said last night he would, "not comment on speculation and innuendo."
While Thomas's NHL playing career might be over, it's looking as though Steen is on his way to a long career as a two-way player and penalty killer.
He and Stajan were a large reason why the Wings went 0-for-7 on the power play last night.
On one penalty kill, Stajan stripped Pavel Datsyuk of the puck and set Steen up for a terrific chance, then drew a penalty that sent Datsyuk off the ice.
"As the week has gone on here, I thought I've gotten better and better," Steen said.
"You know what you're capable of and you want to put it all out there and show your stuff and I feel I've done a pretty good job of that."
The Leafs were relieved to see Jason Allison in the lineup and were probably even more pleased with the way he played. Although he and Mats Sundin did not score on the power play, they both created a number of good chances and with O'Neill on the right point, there's an offensive thrust with the extra man that the Leafs have not had in a number of years.
"I think with the two of us out there both right shots, it will be real hard to stop us on that right side," Allison said.
"We're both big guys and we can both play low and high and that helps."
And you might as well get used to referring to Eric Lindros as a fourth-line centre, the role he played last night between Tie Domi and Chad Kilger. That unit did the large bulk of the defensive work against Datsyuk and Brendan Shanahan last night and that will likely spell the minors for Kyle Wellwood because he simply can't play that role.
Maybe it's just the nostalgic Leaf fan within me, but I don't think this was a good idea.. Steve Thomas is the kind of guy you want on your bench, especially at playoff time. Then again, the Leafs have a pretty old lineup as it is (still), and Steen will inject some much needed young blood into the mix.