Last Gasp for Coyotes and Schoenfeld

There’s only one thing in the NHL more certain than referees swallowing their whistles in the third period: the Phoenix Coyotes choking in the playoffs.

It’s that time again. After taking a 3-1 lead over the St. Louis Blues in their first-round series, the Coyotes lost the next two and can complete their collapse tonight at America West Arena. They haven’t survived the opening round since 1987, when they were the Winnipeg Jets, and squandered 3-1 leads in 1990 and 1992, and a 3-2 lead over the Mighty Ducks in 1997.

If they go down this time, Coach Jim Schoenfeld goes with them.

“We’re going to win Game 7,” he said. “It’s the type of series that every game has been close. . . . I would tell you that I’ll stake my job on it, but that’s already been done. So I’ll just say we’re going to win Game 7.”

The Coyotes were among the top teams in the West in the first half of the season but crumbled defensively and were 10-18-2 in their last 30 games. No matter how many times Keith Tkachuk insists he has grown up and Jeremy Roenick proclaims he has become mature and responsible, the chemistry in the locker room and on the ice doesn’t work.

Logic says the Coyotes should win tonight. Even without Roenick, who is recovering from a broken jaw, the Coyotes have the depth to wear down the Blues. The loss of left wing Greg Adams because of a groin strain and third-line center Juha Ylonen, who has a broken foot, hurts them, but their biggest obstacle is a lack of heart, a quality the Blues have in abundance.

St. Louis defensemen Chris Pronger and Al MacInnis have averaged about 35 minutes a game and have been superb. A good effort by Craig Conroy and a dose of grit from Pierre Turgeon complemented them Sunday. Scott Young has awakened, having scored a goal in each of the last two games, and the Blues’ power play has kicked in at key times and is nine for 31 (31%) in the series.

The Blues shouldn’t win tonight, but they have a better than even chance because MacInnis, Pronger and Grant Fuhr are clutch players, whereas the Coyotes specialize in clutching at their tight throats.

ROGER THE DODGER

Coach Roger Neilson and Chairman Ed Snider blamed referee Terry Gregson for the Philadelphia Flyers’ playoff elimination, claiming John LeClair didn’t deserve the third-period elbowing penalty the Maple Leafs capitalized on for their 1-0 victory Sunday. In truth, the Flyers lost the series well before that.

It can be argued they lost it last summer, when they signed goalie John Vanbiesbrouck instead of Curtis Joseph to save money. Joseph, who then signed with Toronto, was exceptional throughout the series, especially considering the paltry offensive support he got. Vanbiesbrouck allowed three soft, bad-angle goals early in the series and never had the commanding presence Joseph did.

Or did the Flyers lose the series when Eric Lindros suffered a collapsed lung a month ago, which led to their offense producing only one goal in Games 2, 3 and 5? Or when their power play went 0 for eight in the last two games and three for 27 in the series?

Forget Snider’s saying the officiating was “a disgrace” and hinting Gregson favored the Maple Leafs because he’s from Toronto (Gregson is actually from Guelph, another city in Ontario). The Flyers have no one to blame but themselves, but the mirror is the last place they ever look.

The Maple Leafs, who scored a league-leading 268 goals this season, scored only nine in the series. The difference was Joseph. And on the rare occasions he erred, his teammates rescued him, as when he took a belly-flop behind the net in the second period Sunday and defenseman Bryan Berard stood in for him and made a left-skate save on Mikael Andersson.

“I’ll give him $100 for the shutout,” Joseph said.

Said Berard, who had a fine series offensively and defensively: “I think the old street hockey game helped on that.”

Resourcefulness helped the Maple Leafs defeat the Flyers, but they must find more offense in the next round against Pittsburgh or Boston.

PICK A PECA

Center Michael Peca, whose checking of Alexei Yashin was a key in Buffalo’s first-round upset of Ottawa, didn’t grow up hoping to be a defensive player.

“I just wanted to do everything well,” he said. “When I played juniors in Ottawa, people were saying, ‘Oh, you remind us a lot of Doug Gilmour,’ because they had seen a lot of Doug Gilmour. I knew Doug Gilmour was a pretty solid defensive player. It was just something I wanted to be consistent in.

“I knew a lot of guys that, when they make the jump [to the NHL], spend years in the minors because they’re told they have an inconsistent game defensively and can’t really be relied on that way, and I didn’t want to have any flaws in my game. I always took pride in it.”

As well he should, because he did a superb job in holding Yashin scoreless.

“We wanted to be physical, and our defense did a great job being physical on him, as well,” said Peca, who won the Selke Trophy as the NHL’s top defensive player in 1997 and was second to Dallas’ Jere Lehtinen in 1998. “More than anything, we just wanted to plug him up as much as possible and not let him get to the net a lot, not let him get speed through the neutral zone so he can handle the puck, because he’s such a great puck handler.”

PENGUINS’ LAST GAME?

The Pittsburgh Penguins’ 3-2 overtime victory over New Jersey on Sunday might have been their last game at the Civic Arena. And their game today at New Jersey could be their last as the Penguins.

A bankruptcy court judge forwarded Mario Lemieux’s reorganization plan to a hearing of creditors, but the 45-day period set for him to finalize details goes beyond the NHL’s June 1 deadline for settling the club’s future, and the league has the right to revoke or dissolve the franchise. Lemieux must still renegotiate the Penguins’ lease and TV deal and reach agreements with secured lenders, and little progress has been made on those fronts.

Jaromir Jagr extended their season by at least one game with a magnificent effort Sunday in scoring the tying and winning goals. Although hampered by a sore groin muscle, he skated all-out on the game-winner, he said, “because I smelled a chance.” Unfortunately, the Penguins’ chances of emerging unscathed from bankruptcy seem less promising.

SLAP SHOTS

Hockey and beer have long been entwined. That relationship sometimes takes tragic turns--and might have again if initial reports on Carolina Hurricane defenseman Steve Chiasson’s fatal accident early Monday morning are true. Police said evidence and interviews suggest speed and alcohol might have been factors in the accident, in which he drove off the road, flipped his truck and was ejected. Some NHL teams don’t serve alcohol on charters if they know players will drive home afterward; sadly, Chiasson’s death may be a cautionary tale. . . .

Edmonton Oiler players love Coach Ron Low, but the team’s disappointing season may still result in his dismissal. The Oilers needed a late charge to make the playoffs but put up a respectable fight before being swept by Dallas. Rumors abound that General Manager Glen Sather will leave, but he has become a spokesman for small-market Canadian teams, and his departure would be hypocritical and dispiriting for Canadian franchises. Low’s fate should be clear within a week. . . .

Comes playoff time and coaches rate experience over almost any other factor. Cases in point: Toronto Coach Pat Quinn didn’t use rookie defenseman Tomas Kaberle until Game 6, and San Jose Coach Darryl Sutter started Mike Vernon the first four games against Colorado before going to Steve Shields, whose strong finish helped the Sharks win a playoff berth. Although Shields lost Game 5, starting him in the second game of a back-to-back sequence in a 2-2 series was a good call. . . . Kudos to Boston goalie Byron Dafoe for his first playoff series victory. He’s a class act who found a home with the Bruins.