THE NHL : The Have-Nots Will Try to Become Haves

As Tuesday’s NHL trading deadline grows near, the list of names of players expected to be on the block grows longer.

Most prominently mentioned are goalie Ken Wregget of the Philadelphia Flyers, defenseman Reijo Ruotsalainen of the New Jersey Devils, center Peter Stastny, goalie Greg Millen and defenseman Michel Petit of the Quebec Nordiques, and defenseman Paul Reinhart of the Vancouver Canucks.

Those few teams without a shot at the playoffs are the ones most likely to deal, and a good bet to move is Petit, who publicly asked to be traded recently.

A Frenchman asking out of Quebec? The predictable reaction was a round of boos from the home folks every time Petit touched the puck his next time out.

The old and the restless: This country might be intrigued by the Donald vs. Ivana Trump saga, but in Canada, the No. 1 real-life soap opera is Harold vs. Yolanda.

For the uninitiated, that’s Harold Ballard vs. Yolanda Ballard. Harold is the 86-year-old owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who was recently declared mentally incompetent by a judge. Yolanda is his long-time companion, who, unable to lure him to the altar, had her last name legally changed to his. She used to be Yolanda MacMillan.

In Toronto, newspapers don’t bother with a last name. “Yolanda” is sufficient identification.

One Toronto sports section runs a Yolanda box with Maple Leaf games, keeping the team’s record when she is in attendance.

A recent story at the top of the front page of the Toronto Star described the latest battle:

“Harold Ballard told his lawyer, Rosanne Rocchi, that ‘We should try to have (Yolanda) either committed or arrested.’ When Yolanda protested, saying she wanted to stay with Harold to ‘keep him alive until he was 102,’ Ballard reportedly said he ‘did not want to live until he was 102 if it meant that he had to live with her. It would be better to be under the sod.’ ”

“Rocchi said she was called to Toronto General Hospital, where Ballard had gone for a checkup, and arrived to find Ballard and Yolanda fighting in the lobby.

“ ‘I have never seen Mr. Ballard so upset,’ Rocchi said. ‘He was hitting Yolanda with a cane and moving his wheelchair away from her. He informed me that he wanted Yolanda out of his life.’ ”

Add Ballard: Police were called to the Ballard household on a tip there were weapons in the house. Police discovered a dozen guns reportedly issued to cashiers at Maple Leaf Gardens during the Depression. The guns had so much rust on them, the triggers wouldn’t move.

Lost weekend: First the Pittsburgh Penguins go to Montreal Saturday and get thoroughly whipped by the Canadiens, 11-1.

Then they go to Quebec Monday night and get beaten by the league’s worst club, 3-2.

Finally, the Penguins get on a charter flight and return home in the early morning hours Tuesday. But because of a mixup, all their equipment remains on the charter and is shipped back to Quebec.

There was one bit of good news. Without anything to use for Tuesday’s scheduled practice, the team was given the day off.

Them’s fightin’ words: The Kings’ Wayne Gretzky has long been a voice of reason in the violent world of hockey, always speaking out for peace in our time.

But not everybody agrees that fighting is an unnecessary evil of the league. Take the Calgary Flames’ Tim Hunter, for example.

“I don’t care how much press (Gretzky) gets,” Hunter told the Associated Press. “I don’t think it should change because of Gretzky. It’s been part of the game for a long time and it’s going to be a part of the game for a long time to come.”

The next Great One? Eric Lindros, a 6-foot-4, 220-pounder, is already being talked about as the league’s next great superstar, although he is only 16.

When Lindros made his debut recently with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League, some scalpers got up to $20 for $6.50 tickets.

And concessionaires were getting $12 for Lindros T-shirts.

But how about that free trip? When word that the Kings are about to get their own plane reached left wing Luc Robitaille, he quipped, “What about my frequent flier mileage?”

Robitaille added that the $5-million purchase by owner Bruce McNall would be great for the team. “The best thing would be like on a Thursday night on the road,” Robitaille said. “We could get home that night, rest up Friday and come out feeling great for a Saturday game. I think it could make a big difference over a long stretch.”