This Hockey Will Be Good, Clean Fun

Michael Wilbon of the Washington Post writes that hockey will be the premier sport in the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan:

“If nothing else is any good at these Winter Games, hockey will be. If you think they play hockey in the NHL, watch the Olympics and see how a different style may impress you even more.

“You’ll be better able to appreciate skills that are often obscured in the clutch-and-grab, fight-obsessed world of North American pro hockey. This is going to be, plain and simple, the best hockey tournament ever put on anywhere at any time.”

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Trivia time: How many former UCLA players have played for the Lakers and who was the first?

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Less is more: The New York Rangers’ Wayne Gretzky on former King teammate Bernie Nicholls, now with the San Jose Sharks:

“My first year in Los Angeles, Bernie scored 70 goals and was making $300,000. Now he has one goal and he’s making $2 million. The last time I was talking to him, I told him, ‘Bernie, you really have this game figured out.’ ”

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Not so fast, Harry: Longtime broadcaster Harry Caray after being informed that cable superstation WGN is cutting its Chicago Cubs’ telecasts from 144 games to 92 to make room for network shows such as “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”:

“Hell, I’m more attractive than Buffy.”

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Serious fun: There’s a good-natured rivalry among the Bowdens--father Bobby and sons Terry and Tommy--while recruiting high school football players for different universities:

“I have to tell people about Tommy’s drinking problem and how abusive he is,” Terry said. “And I warn them about how Daddy can’t hear too good and nods off during meetings.”

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Different game: Filmmaker Spike Lee on agent Eric Fleisher’s not allowing the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Stephon Marbury and Kevin Garnett to audition for a role in his upcoming movie “He Got Game” unless they were guaranteed good parts:

“I said, ‘Look, come on, I’m not a GM. This isn’t the NBA. This is the movies. There are no guaranteed contracts in cinema.’ ”

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Gold rush: From Jay Leno: “The Olympics always remind me of the Republican convention, 10,000 people devoting their lives to getting as much gold as possible.”

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FYI: Hank Luisetti of Stanford averaged 19.3 points a game during the 1937-38 season to lead the Pacific Coast Conference in scoring in league games. That wasn’t surpassed until USC’s Bill Sharman averaged 19.8 points in 1949-50.

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Trivia answer: 12; Walt Hazzard (1964-67).

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And finally: Phoenix Sun Coach Danny Ainge, noting that fans voted injured Penny Hardaway into the Eastern Conference All-Star starting lineup:

“That’s not right. The guys with the best commercials made it.”