No Red Line Means the Smallest Players Get Bigger Chances

There’s no red line in college hockey, and that means a green light for the game’s little guys to make a big impact.

No red line means there is no penalty for length-of-the-ice passes and the threat of fast breakaways means that defensemen--like cornerbacks playing against the deep pass--tend to back off opposing forwards. That means a little space, and college hockey’s nifty small players can do huge things with a bit of open ice.

There are four finalists for this year’s Hobey Baker Award competing in the Frozen Four at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim on Thursday and Saturday. All four--Boston College’s Brian Gionta, Maine’s Steve Kariya, New Hampshire’s Jason Krog, and Michigan State’s Mike York--fall into the small-of-stature category, ranging from 5-foot-6 water bug Gionta to Krog, who’s listed at 5-11 but still would need elevator skates to look Eric Lindros in the eye.

“There are just some tremendous players this year that are small,” Boston College Coach Jerry York said. “Small players are getting more chances to play on the collegiate level and they’re doing very well.”

Gionta, a sophomore, leads the Eagles with 60 points (27 goals, 33 assists) and was the Hockey East rookie of the year. He wears size 5 skates and is used to having to prove himself on every level, “even to your teammates sometimes, but that’s fine.”

“He’s as good a player as I’ve coached,” said York, in his 27th year of college coaching. “He has breakaway speed, quickness and a tremendous skill level. It’s a great, great package.

“But he also has a certain toughness to him. He never backs down. Despite being 5-5, it says 5-6 in the book but it’s more like 5-5, he has a balance, a strength on the ice that makes him very difficult to knock down. And like all good players, he’s completely unafraid going into the corners. He takes a lot of hits to make plays.”

Michigan State’s York, a 5-9 1/2 senior, was the Central Collegiate Hockey Assn. player of the year and has five goals and 10 assists in the last nine games. He was picked in the sixth round of the 1997 draft by the New York Rangers, who apparently aren’t concerned about his size. They like his tenacity and defensive abilities as well as his offensive skills. Opponents scored only three five-on-five goals when he was on the ice, and he was on the ice for more than 900 shifts this season.

“I’ve had to deal with that [talk about size] all my life,” York said, “but hockey is hockey and I just go out and play. There’s clutching and grabbing and it’s no different for the bigger guys. I don’t think it will be a problem on the next level.”

New rules on interference and obstruction have created more space on NHL rinks and some of the smaller pros--Steve Kariya’s older brother, Paul, for instance--have been very successful in recent years. The Mighty Ducks list Kariya at 5-10 but he’s probably closer in size to his 5-7 brother, who had four goals and four assists as the Black Bears won the East Regional last weekend.

“They work together all summer off the ice and I’m sure Steve’s picking Paul’s brain,” Maine Coach Shawn Walsh said. “Human nature tells you that it would have to be a tremendous motivator to have a brother who’s the best in the world at the same sport you play. And it can be a big advantage too.

“Steve has stepped it up for his senior year. He’s really tenacious and to be a big-time player, you have to be tenacious.”

Even Krog, a senior who at 5-11, 191 pounds is by far the biggest Smurf in this diminutive quartet, has had to learn to adjust to playing with the big boys on his way to leading the nation in goals (32), assists (49) and points (81).

“Jason takes a lot of pride in the fact that he’s not the biggest kid in the world, but he can compete,” New Hampshire Coach Richard Umile said. “This year especially, people have been trying to play him physically to take him out of the game, not viciously, but to try and control him. And he just bounced off and found ways to make plays.”

And the plays these darting little skaters are making often are the most exciting in the game.

“This year, the smaller players have been the real giants of college hockey,” Boston College’s York said. “Every time they get the puck, they bring people to the edge of their seats.”

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The Frozen Four

* What: The Frozen Four, the NCAA Division I hockey championship.

* Where: Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim.

* Today’s semifinals: No. 4 Maine (29-6-4) vs. No. 5 Boston College (27-11-4), 1 p.m.; No. 2 New Hampshire (30-6-3) vs. No. 3 Michigan State (29-5-7), 6 p.m.

* Championship game: Saturday, 4:30 p.m.

* Television: Semifinals on ESPN2, championship game on ESPN.

* Tickets: $75 for the three-game package, (714) 704-2500 or Ticketmaster at (213) 480-3232, (714) 740-2000.