TOP TO BOTTOM / NHL

By HELENE ELLIOTT

April 20, 1999 12 AM PT

TEAM RECORD: COMMENT

1. Dallas (51-19-12): But are Stars ready for real season?

2. Colorado (44-28-10): Fast finish of 9-2-1.

3. New Jersey (47-24-11): Loosened reins do the trick.

4. Detroit (43-32-7): A-one, and a-two, and a-three . . .

5. Ottawa (44-23-15): Late 1-2-4 slide costly.

6. Toronto (45-30-7): Surprise top-scoring team.

7. Boston (39-30-13): Solid defense, goaltending.

8. St. Louis (37-32-13): 11-4-3 in final five weeks.

9. Philadelphia (37-26-19): Held together with spit and tape.

10. Buffalo (37-28-17): Satan has devilishly good season.

11. Pittsburgh (38-30-14): Worrisome flaws in 2-8-2 finish.

12. Phoenix (39-31-12): Won’t get far without Roenick.

13. Carolina (34-30-18): Best in bad division.

14. Edmonton (33-37-12): 5-0-1 push gets playoff berth.

15. Mighty Ducks (35-34-13): 1-5-2 slide bad omen.

16. San Jose (31-33-18): Lowest-scoring playoff team.

17. N.Y. Rangers (33-37-11): Gretzky may be first in exodus.

18. Chicago (29-41-12): Good close (8-1-1) but no pressure.

19. Calgary (30-40-12): Ran out of gas.

20. Florida (30-34-18): Folded after Bure’s knee injury.

21. Kings (32-45-5): Book closes on Robinson regime.

22. Nashville (28-47-7): A Music City hit.

23. Montreal (32-29-11): Weaker than Canadian dollar.

24. Washington (31-45-6): From runner-up to also-ran.

25. N.Y. Islanders (24-48-10): Palffy is lone bright spot.

26. Vancouver (23-47-12): Little talent, less hope.

27. Tampa Bay (19-54-9): Lecavalier survives tough first year.

WAYNE’S WORLD

Wayne Gretzky’s dominance of the NHL record books is unmatched by other athletes in their respective sports.

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LEAGUE/REC. LEADER SECOND PCT. AHEAD NHL Goals Gretzky, 894 Gordie Howe, 801 12% Ast Gretzky, 1,963 Paul Coffey, 1,102 78% Pts Gretzky, 2,857 Howe, 1,850 54% NBA Pts Abdul-Jabbar, 38,387 Chamberlain, 31,419 22% MLB HRs Hank Aaron, 755 Babe Ruth, 714 6% Hits Pete Rose, 4,256 Ty Cobb, 4,191 2% NFL TD pass. Marino, 408 Tarkenton, 342 19% Yds pass. Marino, 58,913 Elway, 51,475 14% Yds rec. Rice, 17,612 Lofton, 14,004 26% Yds rush. Payton, 16,726 Sanders, 15,269 9%

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GRETZKY’S VICTIMS

Gretzky scored 839 regular-season goals against 155 goaltenders, besides 55 empty-net goals. He scored 113 playoff goals against 35 goalies, plus nine empty-net goals.

REGULAR SEASON

Goals: Goalie

29: Richard Brodeur

23: Mike Liut

21: Don Beaupre

21: Kirk McLean

21: Greg Millen

18: Don Edwards

17: Rejean Lemelin

17: Mario Lessard

17: Mike Vernon

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