NHL Official Doesn’t Get the Call : Hockey: “Cover boy” Van Hellemond, chastized for no-goal call, is not working Stanley Cup finals.

The NHL’s “cover boy” referee will be missing in this year’s Stanley Cup finals.

Andy Van Hellemond, whose image appears on the NHL’s official rules book and has long been regarded as one of the league’s top officials, didn’t make the cut for the championship round.

Van Hellemond’s name was absent from the list of seven officials named to work the finals.

It wasn’t totally unexpected. In a first-round series between Quebec and the New York Rangers, Van Hellemond was fined and publicly chastised by the league for a controversial no-goal call against the Nordiques.

Among those named to this year’s list for finals officials is Brian Murphy, who is making his finals debut.

The list is headed by referee Kerry Fraser, officiating in his seventh championship series, and Ray Scapinello, who leads all linesmen in finals experience with 36 games worked, sixth on the all-time list.

Scapinello made his first finals appearance in 1980 and is working in his 14th championship series overall.

The others: referees Terry Gregson and Bill McCreary and linesmen Wayne Bonney and Kevin Collins.

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Collectibles are no less important to hockey players than fans. A prime example is Detroit’s Keith Primeau, who admittedly has a pretty substantial Mickey Mouse collection.

“I have everything ... T-shirts, shorts, socks, ties, limited edition statues. I asked my mom one time when it started because I was curious, and she told me that as an infant my room was done up in Mickey Mouse.”

Primeau said he’s only been collecting Mickey Mouse items since he turned pro, “because it’s the only time I’ve been able to afford it. It’s a pretty expensive hobby.”

Primeau said he had close to 500 Mickey Mouse items.

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The New Jersey Devils won’t have to win the Stanley Cup to establish themselves as the best road team of all time in the post-season tournament.

With an 8-1 mark, the Devils have already tied the record for most road wins in the playoffs -- shared by five other teams. But the Devils are the only team to have won eight road games prior to the championship series.

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The Detroit Red Wings can run rings around the New Jersey Devils in respect to players who have won Stanley Cups.

Starting with four by Paul Coffey, the Red Wings have a total of 10 Stanley Cup rings in their dressing room, compared to just two among New Jersey players.

Mike Krushelnyski has three, Bob Errey two and Mike Vernon one. The only players with the Devils who have won rings are Stephane Richer and Claude Lemieux.

As for the coaches, Devils coach Jacques Lemaire won eight Stanley Cup championships as a player, and assistant coach Larry Robinson won six titles.

Detroit coach Scotty Bowman, of course, is no slouch in this department, either, with six Stanley Cup victories behind the bench.

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When Viacheslav Fetisov joined the Red Wings late in the season, it was a big moment for Detroit forward Sergei Fedorov. Fetisov, onetime star of the Russian Red Army team, had been Fedorov’s boyhood idol.

“He’s probably the greatest player I’ve ever seen, the greatest player I’ve ever played with,” said Fedorov, who last played with Fetisov on the Red Army team 10 years ago.

The 37-year-old Fetisov was one of the first Russian players to join the NHL following the recent meltdown of the Iron Curtain, coming into the league at a relatively late time in life.

“He seems very happy, very excited to be on our team,” Fedorov said. “From the first practice, he started flying all over the ice like he’s not 37, but 25 or something. It’s amazing to be playing with Slava again after all these years.”

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This year’s Stanley Cup finals will be seen and heard by more people than at any other time in history.

The NHL says the finals will be distributed to television outlets in more than 140 countries worldwide, an increase of 20 over last season. The NHL said the live and tape-delayed telecasts will reach 300 million homes worldwide.