Will Overtime Get Overhauled in Offseason?

OT might be in for an overhaul.

The NHL’s new overtime format is only a half-season old, but some people in the league are lobbying for changes as early as next season.

Four-on-4? Most seem to like it, if only because it doesn’t necessarily favor the teams with speed and top scorers, as many predicted it would. (Pittsburgh has Jaromir Jagr and a fleet of fast European skaters, for example, yet has one of the worst overtime records).

The regulation tie? Nobody seems to like it -- the fans who find it confusing, the players or general managers who worry it might result in teams tying their way into the playoffs.

For example, Buffalo and Boston were tied recently with the same number of points, even though Boston was five games under .500 and Buffalo was three games under. Why? Boston had 10 ties, Buffalo had only five.

In the Western Conference, Edmonton was four games under .500, yet led even-record Calgary by two points for the final spot in the playoffs because the Oilers had 11 ties and Calgary had only five.

That’s why the Board of Governors might explore a tweaking of the present format. Several GMs have suggested a return to the old system of awarding three points to the overtime winner and none to the loser. That might be an easier sell now that it has been shown that 4-on-4 doesn’t necessarily favor teams that play a certain style.

FEELINGS OF RELIEF: Steve Smith of the Calgary Flames was lying on the ice, no feeling at all in his arms and legs but feeling very, very scared.

“It’s weird, but all I could think of was Christopher Reeve,” Smith said, referring to the actor who was paralyzed in a horse-riding accident.

The Calgary captain regained the feeling in his arms and legs several days after his spinal column was bruised during an accidental collision with teammate Bobby Dollas. But his return to the ice is uncertain.

“You fear things in the game of hockey,” Smith said. “You fear letting your teammates down. You fear the other team. You fear great players. You fear losing.

“So you fear things. But, until this, I was never afraid. Never.”

As he was carried off the ice, Smith said, “I kept thinking that I would give everything back that I ever got in this life just to get the feeling back in my body.”

Now that his wish has been granted, Smith will wear a brace for another 10 days. He plans to use the time considering whether he should retire following a series of injuries during the last year.

MYSTERY AILMENT: Hamstring pulls, muscle tears and torn knee ligaments are common injuries in sports.

Athletic pubalgia is not.

Yet four Detroit Red Wings -- Brent Gilchrist, Joe Kocur, Kirk Maltby and Darren McCarty -- have been diagnosed with the ailment, a lower abdominal and pelvic-area muscle strain injury that is still relatively unknown.

Gilchrist has been limited to five games in two years because of the injury. One problem is doctors are not in universal agreement how to apply treatment.

NEW RATINGS: Dany Heatley, a Wisconsin forward described by Badgers coach Jeff Sauer as “a scoring machine,” is the top-rated North American prospect in the NHL’s midseason ratings.

Heatley’s favorite team is the Pittsburgh Penguins, because of scoring stars Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr. But it is highly unlikely he will slip far enough in the June draft to be selected by the Penguins.

The NHL compiles separate rankings for North American and European prospects. Trailing Heatley in the North American ratings is Rostislav Klesla, a defenseman for the Ontario Hockey League’s Brampton Batallion.

The top-ranked European player is Czech Republic center Vaclav Nedorost, who moved ahead of center Marian Gaborik of Slovakia following the world juniors.

RANKING ‘EM: The All-Star break is coming up soon, but there’s no break in the weekly rankings:

1. Detroit: Shutout loss in Montreal? Maybe that’s their slump for the season.

2. New Jersey: George Steinbrenner watched them win their ninth in a row and immediately wanted to buy them.

3. St. Louis: Turgeon’s turning it up. Can he sustain it until June?

4. Philadelphia: Don’t give them home-ice advantage in the playoffs.

5. Toronto: What must scare other Eastern Conference teams is they can play even better.

6. Dallas: Could be ready to make their move. Of course, they’ve thought that all season.

7. Florida: One caveat: Schedule has been easy so far.

8. Ottawa: Two good goaltenders, one improving team.

9. Phoenix: Are they as good as their record, or as bad as they so often look?

10. Colorado: Best in the world: three players on World All-Star team.

11. Pittsburgh: Herb Brooks breaks up non-checking Czech line of Straka, Hrdina and Jagr.

12. Calgary: They enjoy overtime more than New York City stagehands.

13. Washington: Who does Gonchar think he is, Gretzky?

14. Carolina: Whole team is wearying of Primeau mess.

15. Edmonton: Considering how many ties they play, why not go to tie-dye uniforms?

16. San Jose: Five under .500 since hot start.

17. Los Angeles: Somebody in their division will have a good record and miss the playoffs. It could be them.

18. Anaheim: Power play? What power play?

19. New York Rangers: If it weren’t for October and November, they might have had a May.

20. Buffalo: Hasek isn’t the only Sabre who’s sitting out the season.

21. Nashville: Lot of improvement in their second year. Lot more needed.

22. Boston. Most combative team in the league. And that’s just in their own room.

23. Chicago: Looks like Bob Pulford’s chemistry class is finally paying off.

24. Vancouver: They played better defense than this in the AFL.

25. Montreal: Wondering why they can’t play every night like they did against Detroit.

26. Tampa Bay: Well, there’s always spring training.

27. Atlanta: Bet you knew all along that Patrik Stefan would be an All-Star.

28. New York Islanders: Nassau Coliseum is as empty these days as a Y2K seminar.