THE NHL / HELENE ELLIOTT : ‘Benedict’ Keenan a Selfish Schemer

Although New York Ranger Coach Mike Keenan has denied persistent reports that he will leave New York to become coach and general manager of the Detroit Red Wings, this circus isn’t over.

There are two disturbing aspects to this mess:

--When the first reports surfaced, he danced around them for three days. If he didn’t talk to the Red Wings, why not deny it as soon and as emphatically as possible, as New York Knick Coach Pat Riley did after it was reported that he had been wooed by the Clippers? Because Keenan wanted to fan the flames, the better to get bargaining leverage with his Madison Square Garden bosses.

--If Keenan did reach a verbal agreement with the Red Wings, as is believed by many NHL observers and at least one Ranger executive, that’s unethical.

Equally reprehensible is talk that he claims credit for the trades that brought Stephane Matteau, Glenn Anderson and Craig MacTavish to New York. Keenan wanted the deals, but General Manager Neil Smith made them, and at minimal cost. There’s a difference between wanting a player and getting that player. Smith got the job done.

Will Keenan do his job tonight in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, or will he be a four-time Cup loser?

He said Monday he “will be coaching the New York Rangers next year unless my bosses decide that I won’t be.” They might decide they’ve had enough of his self-serving scheming and set him free. Keenan wants to call the shots, but that won’t happen while Smith is there. Smith has made many astute draft selections and trades. He plays according to the rules, which makes him a favorite with his bosses but a pawn in Keenan’s power games. Smith has told friends that he and Keenan won’t be in the same city next season, so Smith might end up in Detroit when this is all settled.

Keenan has earned no admirers this spring. He set up an excuse for a possible loss to the New Jersey Devils in the semifinals when he “revealed” that Brian Leetch and Mark Messier were hurt. Club insiders doubt Messier was injured, but saying so lifted any possible blame off Keenan. They won Game 6 and the series because of Messier, not Keenan.

The Ranger coach pulled a similar stunt in the finals, blaming New York “media hype” for losing Game 5 when the real reasons were a disorganized defense and a soft game by goaltender Mike Richter. Keenan came to New York knowing it’s not a backwater town. He sought the spotlight and now blames its glare for the team’s shortcomings.

He said officiating cost the Rangers Game 6, inaccurately claiming that referees have called the first penalty of the game against the Rangers more often than they’ve called the first penalty against the Vancouver Canucks. Not so. Each team has taken the first penalty three times.

When Monday’s New York Post trumpeted, “Benedict Arnold had nothing on Mike Keenan,” Keenan said he didn’t know who Benedict Arnold was. Those who ignore history are condemned to repeat it.

Mike Keenan will have a Stanley Cup ring if the Rangers win tonight. But he will have no credibility or respect around the NHL.

AGENT OF CHANGE

Don Meehan stands to lose thousands of dollars if an agent certification proposed by the NHL Players Assn. becomes part of its next collective bargaining agreement with the league.

The program, to take effect on Jan. 1, 1995, is meant to prevent conflicts of interest affecting agents with a multitude of clients. Meehan represents many prominent players, including Pat LaFontaine and Wendel Clark, as well as coaches Pat Burns of Toronto, Brian Sutter of Boston, Scotty Bowman of Detroit and Jacques Demers of Montreal. He also represents the NHL Officials Assn.

Meehan was recently the target of a whisper campaign by rival agents who tried to discredit him by saying he made investments that cost his clients large amounts of money. However, no legal claims have been made against him.

“If it is the wish of players that I no longer act for coaches, I’ll accommodate them and respect their wishes even though I don’t agree with it,” Meehan said.

He also said he would hand the day-to-day concerns of the officials’ association to an associate, but wants to remain involved in the next negotiations.

SLAP SHOTS

Pavel Bure’s agent, Ron Salcer, denied reports that Bure threatened to stop playing unless the Canucks granted his request for a new contract. His threats were supposedly made during Vancouver’s first-round series against the Calgary Flames and before Game 5 of the semifinals against the Toronto Maple Leafs. . . . General Manager Harry Sinden of the Boston Bruins interviewed former Bruin Eddie Westfall for the assistant GM job. . . . Sinden is considering the acquisition of backup Ranger goalie Glenn Healy. The Bruins gave Jon Casey a termination contract and otherwise will go with free agent Blaine Lacher of Lake Superior State in goal.

The Ottawa Senators are interested in free-agent goaltender Don Beaupre. . . . The Edmonton Oilers are expected to name George Burnett, coach of their Cape Breton farm team, as their new coach. . . . The St. Louis Blues may pursue free-agent defenseman Glen Wesley. . . . Will the Quebec Nordiques hire Larry Robinson as their coach instead of supposed shoo-in Michel Bergeron?