NHL Playoff Preview : Looking for Team to Beat the Oilers? Take a Flyer on the Flyers

More than just the Stanley Cup was supposed to have changed hands last spring when the Edmonton Oilers dethroned the four-time defending champion New York Islanders in the National Hockey League championship series.

To many, it seemed that hockey itself would undergo a drastic change in style, as one dynasty gave way to another that was well under construction. Edmonton’s convincing victory was a triumph of speed and finesse over the bump-and-grind game that had made the Islanders and others so successful over the years.

The sleek, it appeared, were about to inherit the ice.

Yet, here it is, the start of the 1984-85 playoffs, and that hasn’t happened. The Oilers may not be the dynastic force they were reputed to be after last season, and most of their challengers have not really changed to the Oilers’ streamlined style of hockey.

Since the Oilers are the holders of the Cup and still have the prolific Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton is the logical, if not unanimous, choice to repeat. Unlike recent seasons, though, when the Islanders seemed to be the overwhelming favorites, there are several teams that could conceivably win the championship.

“What happens during the regular season is insignificant,” said Glen Sather, Edmonton coach and general manager. “We may have finished with the best record in the (Campbell) conference, but there are teams that could beat us. I wouldn’t count out anyone from the East. They all are tough.”

As Sather said, regular-season results mean little once the playoffs begin. Ask the Philadelphia Flyers, the team many view as the top contender. The Flyers have compiled the NHL’s fourth-best record over the last three seasons, but have been swept in the first round of the playoffs each year.

This season, the Flyers were the surprise champions of the Patrick Division, finishing with 113 points. That’s four more than Edmonton, which didn’t have much motivation since it had seemingly clinched the Smythe Division title before the first snowflake fell on that Alberta prairie town.

It doesn’t seem possible that the Flyers will continue their playoff drought--they are 0 for 9--going into Wednesday’s first-round opener against the New York Rangers.

In the past, the Flyers had never lived up to their nickname when it came to skating ability. They won by outmuscling, outworking and outpunching opponents. This season, under rookie Coach Mike Keenan, the Flyers have added youth and speed without abandoning their grinding style. The result is a 53-20-7 record that has surprised even themselves.

“As the season has gone along and we kept winning, I don’t think we continued to amaze ourselves like in the beginning,” Flyer defenseman Mark Howe said. “But if somebody told me in October that we’d be 20 points (27, actually) ahead of the Islanders, I would have said they were nuts.”

With an average age of only 24.5, Philadelphia has the youngest team in the league. Center Tim Kerr, 25, has become the star and leader the Flyers needed after Bobby Clarke retired to become general manager. Kerr scored more than 50 goals for the second straight season. Brian Propp, with 43 goals, and Dave Poulin, with 30, also supplied offensive strength.

Perhaps the biggest surprises have been three rookie forwards--Peter Zezel, Derrick Smith and Rick Tocchet--who have added speed and strength to the lineup. Goaltender Pelle Lindbergh, who won 40 games and had a 3.10 goals-against average, has headed a defense that gave up the third-fewest goals in the league. Howe has been steady as usual, but Keenan has somehow turned Brad Marsh and Brad McCrimmon into excellent defensemen.

“I was optimistic (at the start of the season), but there were some things that I couldn’t foresee,” Clarke said. “Poulin, Kerr and Propp, I didn’t have any doubts about at all. Pelle, we just looked at him as a good goalie who had a bad year (last season). But who knew McCrimmon would play like this? We were counting on Rick Tocchet, but we weren’t sure about Derrick or Peter.”

Still, the Flyers have that mental hump of playoffs past to scramble over. Clarke said his expectations aren’t high going into the playoffs.

“All that we have done so far isn’t much more than preparing for the playoffs,” he said. “That’s the way Keenan has approached it. We still have a lot to prove. It’s a lot to expect a team that hasn’t won a playoff round in three years to win four the very next year. But look at what we’re doing against what everybody else in the league has done. I really think we have a shot.”

Edmonton players are perhaps hoping that the Flyers don’t make it to the championship series. In the last eight games between those teams, the Flyers have posted a 7-0-1 record. But then, the Oilers had never beaten the Islanders in the regular season before last season’s championship series, which they won, four games to one.

“It doesn’t matter what we did against the Flyers during the regular season,” Edmonton defenseman Kevin Lowe said. “We hadn’t beaten the Islanders at all, and you saw what happened in the finals.”

If the Flyers fail again this spring, others are capable of challenging Edmonton.

The Washington Capitals finished with the league’s third-best record but slumped in the final quarter of the regular season. At one point in February, the Capitals had a 17-point lead over the Flyers but that lead--and their offense--dwindled as the season wore down.

Any of three Adams Division teams could challenge. Montreal, which won the division by three points, appears to be the favorite, but the Canadiens’ young defense may be vulnerable. Quebec has the best offense but maybe the worst defense and goaltending among Wales Conference playoff teams. The opposite is true with Buffalo. Led by goalie Tom Barrasso, the Sabres have a strong defense and not much else.

It seems remote, but there is a chance that the Oilers won’t make it out of the Campbell Conference. Even though St. Louis won the Norris Division title, Chicago has played better than any team in recent weeks, finishing second with 83 points.

Every Smythe Division playoff team, except the Kings, had more points than any Norris team. Gretzky has speculated that the first two playoff rounds against Smythe teams could be the Oilers’ toughest this spring.

“They say every year that every team has a chance to win in the playoffs,” Gretzky said. “I don’t think that’s true. But any of the four teams in our division does have a chance for the Cup. That’s the first time in six years I’ve been able to say that.”

A closer look at the opening round of the playoffs:

PATRICK DIVISION

Two seasons ago, Philadelphia played the New York Rangers in a first-round series that didn’t figure to be close. It wasn’t. The underdog Rangers, called Smurfs by some, swept the Flyers in three straight.

It’s doubtful that the Rangers, who had their worst season in 10 years, will give the Flyers a problem this time. However, after failing to win in their last nine playoff games, the Flyers aren’t looking past any team.

Philadelphia figures to be involved in a much tougher series against the winner of the Washington-New York Islanders series. Based on the standings, the Capitals would have to rate the favorite, since they finished 15 points ahead of the Islanders.

But the Islanders believe they shouldn’t be put out to pasture just yet. After playing most of the regular season without a set lineup because of injuries, the Islanders are close to full strength.

Forwards Clark Gillies, Bob Bourne, Brent Sutter and Pat LaFontaine are back and producing after having gone through assorted injuries and ailments. But winger Greg Gilbert had knee surgery and is out for the playoffs, and defenseman Dave Langevin is most likely out with an injured knee.

Although Coach Al Arbour has used both goaltenders, rookie Kelly Hrudy and veteran Billy Smith, it appears that Smith will start against the Capitals. He has started 31 straight playoff games over the last five years and has lost only one playoff series.

“I see things I like,” Arbour said last week. “I still think we can put the pieces together.”

Washington has lost to the Islanders the last two seasons in the playoffs, but it was thought the Capitals had matured to the point where they might be ready to overtake the Islanders.

In recent weeks, though, the Capitals’ weaknesses have been exposed. They rely almost strictly on Mike Gartner (102 points) and Bobby Carpenter (95) for scoring. Rod Langway, Norris trophy winner as best defenseman last season, has had a subpar season and Coach Bryan Murray still hasn’t decided whether to go with Pat Riggin or Al Jensen in goal.

ADAMS DIVISION

The Adams Division produced the most suspense during the regular season. Montreal, Quebec and Buffalo battled to the final game of the season before the top three positions were determined.

The first two rounds of the playoffs also should be close.

Montreal swept Boston in the first round last season when the roles were reversed--the Bruins had finished first and the Canadiens fourth. The Canadiens seem to have enough offensive firepower to beat the Bruins, but their young defense may break down in later rounds.

Quebec’s main problem heading into the playoffs is the choosing of a goaltender. The Nordiques have used three--Richard Sevigny, Mario Gosselin and Dan Bouchard. Sevigny may have played himself out of a starting spot when he was bombed in a 7-2 loss to Montreal last week. Bouchard has been a disappointment this season and Gosselin is a rookie.

However, the Nordiques have an explosive offense, led by the line of Peter Stastny, Anton Stastny and Michel Goulet. Coach Michel Bergeron has tried for balanced scoring by breaking up the line but will go with that trio in the playoffs.

Defensively, Quebec is better than expected. Defenseman Brad Maxwell, acquired in a trade with Minnesota, has helped considerably.

Buffalo, though, has the best defense and goaltender, Barrasso, in the division. If the Sabres can muster enough offense, they can beat the Nordiques and the Canadiens.

SMYTHE DIVISION

Although Edmonton breezed through the regular season that doesn’t mean their task will be that easy in the playoffs. Last spring, Calgary took the Oilers to seven games in the second round before the Oilers overcame a third-period deficit and won the series.

That series was dubbed “The Battle of Alberta,” and there will be a sequel if the Oilers beat the Kings and the Flames beat Winnipeg in the first round.

The Calgary-Winnipeg matchup should be close, since the teams have similar styles. Although Winnipeg finished two points ahead of Calgary for second place, the Flames have posted an impressive 1-5-2 record against the Jets. Over the last three seasons, the Jets are 4-18 against the Flames.

“The way they have dominated us doesn’t make sense,” Winnipeg General Manager John Ferguson said recently. “We’re doing something wrong against them. I don’t know what it is. We’ve got to find out what it is before the playoffs.”

Except for games against Calgary, Winnipeg has been unbeatable the last two months. The Jets went unbeaten in their last 13 regular-season games and finished with the league’s fourth-best record. Center Dale Hawerchuck, inconsistent the last two seasons, was the league’s third-leading scorer with 53 goals and 77 assists for 135 points. Winger Paul MacLean is 12th in league scoring with 101 points and second-line center Laurie Boschman has enjoyed an excellent all-around season.

Brian Hayward has played surprisingly well in Winnipeg’s goal, but Calgary’s Reggie Lemelin clearly has the edge. Lemelin has been steady all season and is supported by an experienced defense that allowed 30 fewer goals than Winnipeg.

“These are two very even teams,” Hawerchuck said. “The series could turn on one break. It should be a great series.”

NORRIS DIVISION

The standings say that the St. Louis Blues won the Norris Division title, finishing three points ahead of Chicago. But in the final two months of the season, Chicago played as well as any team in the Campbell Conference.

Under the direction of General Manager Bob Pulford, who took over behind the bench when Coach Orval Tessier was fired, the Black Hawks are 17-8-3. The line of Denis Savard, Steve Larmer and Al Secord is as good and intimidating as any in hockey.

Doug Wilson, perhaps the best two-way defenseman in the league, stabilizes a defense that has been shaky because of goaltender Murray Bannerman’s unusually inconsistent play.

If the Black Hawks can control Detroit’s high-scoring line of Steve Yzerman, John Ogrodnick and Ron Duguay, they will stop the Red Wings. Occasionally, Detroit Coach Nick Polano will replace Ogrodnick at left wing with Ivan Boldirev. Detroit’s defense is weak, but Greg Stefan has been the division’s best goalie.

Further complicating things for Detroit, Danny Gare will be barred from tonight’s opening game for his role in a fight April 3. NHL Vice President Brian O’Neill rejected the Red Wings’ appeal of a suspension Gare got after a game with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

St. Louis is favored to get past struggling Minnesota in the first round, even though the North Stars have two players--Paul Holmgren and Craig Hartsburg--back from injuries.

If the Blues dispose of the North Stars as expected, however, their lack of depth will hurt them against Chicago. Because of injuries to Doug Wickenheiser, Kevin LaValle and others, the Blues have been forced to play nine left wings on their top line of Bernie Federko and Joe Mullen. In addition, Brian Sutter has been in and out of the lineup with assorted leg injuries, although he is expected to play in the playoffs.