THE NHL / HELENE ELLIOTT : Fedorov Should Be at Top of Awards List

Who should win the NHL’s regular-season awards?

Glad you asked.

Hart (most valuable player): Sergei Fedorov. The Russian center carried the Detroit Red Wings while Steve Yzerman was injured and finished with a career-high 56 goals and 120 points. Runners-up: the New York Rangers’ Adam Graves, for his 52 goals; Chicago center Jeremy Roenick, for his third consecutive 100-point season; goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck, who gave the Florida Panthers instant credibility and kept their playoff bid alive until their offense disappeared down the stretch.

Calder (rookie of the year): Playing perhaps the toughest position for a rookie, New Jersey goalie Martin Brodeur finished with a 2.40 goals-against average and a .915 save mark. Runners-up: Alexei Yashin, who amassed 30 goals and 79 points for the dreadful Ottawa Senators; Mikael Renberg of the Philadelphia Flyers, who led rookies with 82 points, and 33-goal scorer Jason Arnott of Edmonton.

Vezina (best goalie): Dominik Hasek of Buffalo. Runners-up: Mike Richter of the Rangers and Ed Belfour of the Blackhawks. Hasek’s 1.95 average was the NHL’s best in 20 years and he led the league with a .930 save percentage. Richter plays behind a good defense, but his 2.57 average was no fluke. Belfour, a workhorse, had a 2.67 average in 69 games.

Norris (best defenseman): Let’s keep the defense in defenseman and pick the New Jersey Devils’ Scott Stevens. A leader and a physical presence, he had a league-high plus-51 rating and was one of two defensemen to lead his team in scoring--the Rangers’ Sergei Zubov was the other. Runners-up: Boston’s Ray Bourque, still peerless at directing the power play, and Toronto’s defensive corps. Ordinary individually, they’re formidable as a unit.

Adams (coach of the year): Mike Keenan’s Rangers had a league-best 112 points, but Jacques Lemaire had less talent to work with in New Jersey and earned a franchise-record 106 points. Runners-up: Keenan; Buffalo’s John Muckler, for devising a superb defensive system; Kevin Constantine, who led the San Jose Sharks to a record 58-point improvement, and the Mighty Ducks’ Ron Wilson for squeezing the most out of a motley crew.

Masterton (perseverance and dedication): Bruin right wing Cam Neely. He has had almost as many knee injuries as he had goals, 50, this season yet never quit. Runners-up: Randy Burridge, who returned from surgery on both knees and scored 25 goals for Washington, and Toronto’s Wendel Clark, who overcame lingering back injuries in scoring a career-high 46 goals.

Lady Byng (sportsmanship)--Detroit right wing Ray Sheppard, who had 50 goals in 82 games and only 26 penalty minutes. Runner-up: Bob Kudelski of Florida, who had 30 goals, 70 points and only 24 penalty minutes.

Selke (defensive forward)--Fedorov is a reasonable choice. So is Brian Skrudlund, whose experience was vital to the expansion Panthers.

AWARDS WE’D LIKE TO SEE

General manager of the year--The Rangers’ Neil Smith. He drafted Zubov, Sergei Nemchinov and Alexei Kovalev, acquired goalie Glenn Healy for a draft pick, saw free-agent signee Graves blossom into a dangerous scorer and added depth with a flurry of deadline-beating deals. Runner-up: Glen Sather, whose Oilers missed the playoffs but will be heard from soon. He stockpiled young talent and fleeced Winnipeg in the Dave Manson trade to get the fourth draft pick.

Mr. Minus--There’s an award for the best plus-minus, so why not one for the worst? The prize could be a neck brace. Ottawa’s Gord Dineen might need one after constantly swiveling his head to watch opponents skate past him. He wound up with a minus-52 rating.

Flop of the year: Alexandre Daigle. Ottawa is paying him $12.5 million over five years for 20 goals and a minus-45 defensive rating?

Look us over award--For the overlooked. To Dallas’ Dave Gagner, a diligent two-way center who had 32 goals, and Buffalo’s Dale Hawerchuk. Without his 86 points, the Sabres would be on vacation.

A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE THINGS

What we love about the playoffs:

The unlikely heroes--Until Sunday, Darcy Wakaluk’s claim to fame was being the first American Hockey League goalie to score a goal. Then Dallas Coach Bob Gainey chose Wakaluk to start against St. Louis instead of Andy Moog, who won three Stanley Cup championships with Edmonton and leads active goalies in winning percentage and victories. Wakaluk stopped 33 shots in a victory that preserved the Stars’ home-ice advantage.

The secrecy--Was it an old wrist problem that kept Yzerman out of Detroit’s opener against San Jose on Monday? Another knee injury? Or the neck problems that idled him early this season?

Yzerman said he wasn’t allowed to talk and Coach Scotty Bowman probably wouldn’t confirm that Yzerman even exists if asked under duress.

SOBERING THOUGHTS

In the last month, six Hartford Whaler players were involved in a barroom brawl, General Manager Paul Holmgren was arrested for drunken driving and entered the Betty Ford Clinic for treatment, and defenseman Bryan Marchment was arrested for drunken driving on the way home from a charity event.

The Red Wings suspect that Bob Probert, who has undergone alcohol treatment three times, is drinking again. He denies having a problem. Early this season, Pittsburgh General Manager Craig Patrick was arrested for driving under the influence.

And still the NHL has no alcohol- or drug-rehabilitation policy.

A drinking-drug abuse program such as the NBA’s has been discussed during collective bargaining talks, but because there’s no agreement, there’s no policy. Will it take an alcohol-related driving death to get a program going?

SLAP SHOTS

Those close to the Nordiques say that Pierre Page, vilified by Quebec fans for missing the playoffs, will return as general manager but might give up coaching. Marcel Aubut will probably stay as team president. . . . The Pittsburgh Penguins won’t increase ticket prices next season and will cut some. They had 11 sellouts and averaged 16,714 in the 17,537-seat Civic Arena this season. They didn’t sell out their playoff opener Sunday, their first postseason non-sellout since 1982.

ABC’s Sunday playoff telecasts averaged a 2.6 rating and an 8 share, “not a bad number,” a network spokesman said. Each rating point equals 941,000 homes. Regular-season games averaged ratings of 1.6, 2.0 and 2.4 and shares of 4, 7 and 6, respectively. . . . If Tampa Bay General Manager Phil Esposito goes to ESPN, he’s leaving before the club’s owners push him out.

Some Flyers complained that Coach Terry Simpson ran harsh practices and didn’t punish stars for mistakes that got others benched. Said the team’s biggest star, Eric Lindros: “If we went out there and did what Terry told us to do, things would have been a lot better for the team. I don’t think you can blame the coach at all.” Owner Ed Snider gave General Manager Russ Farwell a vote of confidence, which also covers Simpson.