Fantasy Fl Panthers

As a rule, NHL teams tend to avoid defensemen who are under six feet tall like the bubonic plague, or a panhandler on the street. With today's NHL forwards being ever bigger and stronger than in the past, the thinking among NHL GM's is that you need even bigger and stronger defenseman to handle these attackers.

Brian Rafalski and Dan Boyle, two offensive-minded defensemen who happen to be under six feet tall, were never drafted by NHL teams, for this very reason. Despite their offensive skills and collegiate success, not a single NHL team took a shot at these guys as draft picks.

Well, we know how they both ended up being stars, after finally getting a shot in the bigs. Same too, goes for Lubomir Visnovsky in La-La land.

The Florida Panthers, the team that originally took a shot at Dan Boyle, hope they have struck gold again in the form of Cory Murphy, another undersized defenseman with big potential.

As Chicago Blackhawks assistant GM Rick Dudley remembers it, he was watching Canada warm up for a game in the World Hockey Championships in Russia last spring when he stopped and asked himself, "Who's that little guy down there?"

Turns out that little guy can play.

Cory Murphy, a defenseman whose official stats are 5-feet-10 and 185 pounds but, like Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis, might need to be wearing both his skates and equipment to approach those numbers, is expected to do some things for a Panthers power play that's in need of help this season.

"He's got a good shot, a quick release, he's a smart player," said Jiri Kekalainen, Florida's European scout who estimates he saw Murphy play more than 25 times at HIFK Helsinki last season, where he was named MVP of the Finnish League.

"He's not the biggest guy or strongest guy, but he's smart enough to get by."

Now, Murphy is certainly a risk for the Panthers to take, knowing that for every Brian Rafalski in the world, there is a Petteri Nummelin, Andy Delmore, or John Slaney, who couldn't stop an offensive foray to save their lives.

Looking at the numbers, we can see that Rafalski had put up 53 points (19 goals!) in 53 Finnish League games as a 24-year old before being signed by the Devils. Murphy has been putting up similar numbers during his four years in Europe.

The problem? Murphy is already 29 years of age, well ahead of where Rafalski, Visnovsky, and Boyle were when they entered the league. Murphy is also not as strong as Rafalski (who is quite stocky), not as quick as Visnovsky.

That said, the Panthers Power Play can certainly use a boost, and Murphy will get lots of ice time to prove himself. If you are in need of an offensive d-man in your fantasy leagues, look for this guy late and hope you hit the jackpot.

Although it's one year too late -- and what former NHL player is going to give up a fishing trip for this? -- the Florida Panthers will celebrate their Cinderella run to the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals this weekend. Panthers alumni like John Vanbiesbrouck, Ray Sheppard and Bill Lindsay will join the majority of the players (sans schedule-conflicted Rob Niedermayer and Robert Svehla) who led Florida to the Finals in only the third year of the franchise, before being swept away by the Colorado Avalanche. There's a golf tournament, player appearances and an exhibition game at BankAtlantic Center on Saturday that will give hockey fans something they've long dreamed about: another chance to witness the majestic skating of Terry Carkner on NHL ice.

The Panthers, who will unveil their new uniforms at Saturday's game, have dubbed the celebration "Weekend of the Rat" after the single most significant memory from the team's Stanley Cup run. The Sun Sentinel remembers the fun:

In 1995-96, they finished third in their division (41-31-10, 92 points) and fourth in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, then beat in the Bruins 4 games to 1 in a seven-game series, the Flyers 4-2 and the Penguins 4-3 before losing to the Avalanche in four games in the finals.

Right winger Scott Mellanby killed a rat in the dressing room with his stick minutes before the home opener that season, then scored two goals that night, prompting Vanbiesbrouck to declare Mellanby's feat a "Rat Trick." Throwing plastic rats on the ice after goals soon became a phenomenon.

"We accomplished some pretty lofty things with a group of guys who were considered mediocre players at the time," Lindsay said.

"Mediocre players at the time?" Has history been that kind to Johan Garpenlov and Jody Hull? Florida Panthers fans have every right to celebrate this unexpected season of meteoric success, lest they fall deeper into the depressing reality that their franchise is now known more for losing Roberto Luongo and failing to make the playoffs in the Southeast Division than plastic rodents. But for the rest of us, this weekend begs the question:

Are the Florida Panthers the most mediocre Stanley Cup finalist of the last 25 years?

Before the lockout, Richard Zednik was one of the more dynamic players in the NHL. Delivering highlight reel goals, big hits, and playing like a ball of fire, Zednik was a fairly productive offensive-minded winger.

Inexplicably, Zednik's game faded after the lockout, in which the new standards of enforcement were supposed to benefit guys like him.

Now that Zednik has secured a new 2-year deal from the Panthers, can he regain his pre-lockout form? He certainly wants to put the past behind him.

"With the injuries, the personal stuff in my life, it was a bad year," said Zednik from his summer home in Slovakia. "But I'm looking forward to putting it all behind me. Last year there was just some stuff I had to go through. It wasn't the right one for me. But I'm focused on next season. I want to go forward and be ready for the new season. Everyone is hungry to make it to the playoffs."

After just 21 points in 42 games last year, Zednik will be off the radar of most fantasy players. Is he worth getting your hands on?

Ed Belfour, who managed to hold down the Florida Panthers #1 goaltending job at the age of 42, thinks he deserves a nice pay hike.

Florida Panthers goalie Ed Belfour said Friday that he wants more money. He would like to sign another one-year contract with the Panthers, but if it doesn't work out, Belfour, 42, is confident he can be a starter somewhere else in the NHL.

"I'm definitely a No 1 goalie," Belfour said. "I'm motivated to come back and be the No. 1 guy. I think my health is there."

Belfour believes he is worth considerably more now that he has proved his durability. He earned a base salary of $750,000 last season as part of an incentive-laden deal.

"My base was low because I had back surgery," Belfour said. "Throughout my career, my base was a lot higher. . . . I proved that I was durable and I'm not going to play for that kind of money this year, that's for sure."

Ahh, talk about living in the past. Of course he was worth more!! Eddie, you USED to be young, spry, and a great goaltending.

Now? Not so much ...

Yes, Belfour did better than Bald Alex Auld, putting up a 90.2SV% compared to Auld's cringe-inducing 88.8% mark. Yes, Belfour was a bargain at $750,000 for a 50+ game goaltender, but how does he think he'll get more elsewhere?

Fact: Belfour's SV% was still 31st among qualified goaltenders. Given that there are 30 NHL teams, Belfour is not going to be an improvement in many other places.

Fact: Belfour is 42, has a creaky back, and isn't getting any younger, more agile, or healthier.

Fact: Belfour is a belligerent drunk who parties way too often and gets himself in trouble with the police. Not many teams want to put up with the off-ice problems Eddie is bound to have.

If the Panthers aren't willing to give him a raise, Belfour will be very fortunate to get $750,000 and a position from any other NHL club. Whatever Belfour thinks of his self-worth, he'd be smart not to alienate himself from the Panthers, who might be the only club willing to give him a decent contract.

At least he didn't demand ONE BILLION DOLLARS!!! Although, that would have been much more interesting ...

Scott Mellanby, a folk hero to many Florida Panthers fans, and one of the league's senior citizens, is pretty much 99% certain that he's going to retire.

Atlanta Thrashers right wing Scott Mellanby said he'll probably retire after 21 seasons in the National Hockey League, a day after the team was eliminated from the playoffs by the New York Rangers.

"I'm 99 per cent there," Mellanby, 40, said yesterday.In 69 games this season, the Montreal native had 12 goals and 24 assists. He had 364 goals, 476 assists in 1,431 career games with Atlanta, St. Louis, Florida, Edmonton and Philadelphia.

Scott Mellanby has a special place in my heart, given that I used to cheer for the Florida Panthers and he's one of the players I remember from my early childhood of watching hockey. (The Flyers-Oilers series is my first hockey memory).

The "Rat Trick" - Remember when Panthers fans threw rats on the ice back during their run to the finals in 1996? Well, blame Mellanby for animal cruelty.

More under the cut ...