Notable Feats Take Edge Off Season on Rink

This season will not be remembered as one of the NHL’s finest.

It began with Dan Snyder’s death in a car crash with Atlanta teammate Dany Heatley at the wheel, became a rummage sale when the inept Washington Capitals and New York Rangers began to dump salaries, and veered toward reprehensible when Vancouver’s Todd Bertuzzi attacked Colorado’s Steve Moore in an incident that might drag the league to court to defend its honor.

Or lack thereof.

The scoring decline continued, motivating NHL executives to ponder rule changes that favor offense. For the second consecutive season, no one scored 50 goals. Ilya Kovalchuk of Atlanta, Jarome Iginla of Calgary, and Rick Nash of Columbus shared the goal-scoring title at 41, the lowest since Gordie Howe won it with 38 in 1962-63 in a 70-game schedule.

Nor did anyone reach 100 points, the second time that has happened in three seasons. Martin St. Louis won the Art Ross trophy with 94 points, the lowest league-leading total since Stan Mikita had 87 points for the Chicago Blackhawks in a 74-game schedule in 1967-68.

Even so, there were some memorable achievements over the 1,230-game playoff prelude.

An unprecedented 10 teams reached 100 points, boosted by the point awarded for overtime losses. However, that rule has been in effect for five seasons and only three teams reached 100 points in 2001-02.

The Calgary Flames ended a seven-season playoff drought and the Nashville Predators qualified for the first time in their six-season existence. But the Rangers missed for the seventh straight season and last season’s West finalists, the Mighty Ducks and Minnesota Wild, are spectators this spring.

Here’s a look at individual performances that merit special recognition. The first five awards are chosen by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Assn., the Vezina winner is chosen by general managers and the Adams winner is selected by the NHL Broadcasters’ Assn.

* Hart Trophy (most valuable player): Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning. Honorable mention: Miikka Kiprusoff, Calgary; Marian Hossa, Ottawa Senators.

Undrafted out of college and set adrift by Calgary in 2000, St. Louis won the scoring title with 38 goals and 94 points. Playing against giants, the 5-foot-9, 185-pound winger had to have passion every game, and it rubbed off on his teammates.

Without Kiprusoff (1.69 goals-against average, .933 save percentage), the Flames wouldn’t have made the playoffs. He played for Coach Darryl Sutter in San Jose and they were reunited after Sutter was hired by the Flames and acquired the fabulous Finn for a second-round draft pick in 2005. Hossa led the Senators in scoring with 36 goals and 82 points and was a tireless leader.

* Calder trophy (rookie of the year): Andrew Raycroft, Boston Bruins. Honorable mention: Michael Ryder, Montreal Canadiens, and Trent Hunter, New York Islanders.

Raycroft’s 2.05 goals-against average and .926 save percentage made him the foundation of the Bruins’ renaissance. Ryder (25 goals, 63 points) and Hunter (25 goals, 51 points) were also impressive in an era of low scoring. Each played a key role in getting his team back into the East playoffs.

* Selke trophy (best defensive forward): Kris Draper, Detroit Red Wings. Honorable mention: John Madden, New Jersey Devils, and Keith Primeau, Philadelphia Flyers.

Draper’s scoring drew attention to his long-standing defensive strengths. He has been the heart of Detroit’s terrific Grind Line for years. Madden is a typical Devil: a solid two-way player who does all the little things right during the playoffs. Primeau has transformed himself from a scorer into a conscientious defensive player.

* Norris trophy (best defenseman): Scott Niedermayer, New Jersey. Honorable mention: Zdeno Chara, Ottawa; Adrian Aucoin, New York Islanders; Mathieu Schneider, Detroit.

This is a tough choice. Niedermayer is creative (40 assists, 54 points), smart and a big-game player who stepped up when teammate Scott Stevens was idled by a concussion. Chara (16 goals, 41 points, +33 plus/minus) can dominate physically and handle the puck well. Aucoin (44 points, +29) averaged 26 minutes 37 seconds a game and excelled in every situation. Schneider (14 goals, 46 points, +22) energized Detroit’s power play and did a fine job defensively too.

* Lady Byng trophy (sportsmanship): Daniel Alfredsson, Ottawa. Honorable mention: Ron Francis, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Brad Richards, Tampa Bay.

All are class acts who play hard but clean, and none took a major penalty. Alfredsson had 24 penalty minutes, Francis had 14 and Richards had 12.

* Vezina trophy (best goaltender): Martin Brodeur, New Jersey. Honorable mention: Evgeni Nabokov, San Jose Sharks; Roberto Luongo, Florida Panthers, and Ed Belfour, Toronto.

Nabokov (2.20, .921) led San Jose’s rebound to a club-record 104 points. He’s steady and unflappable. Brodeur (2.03, .917, league-leading 11 shutouts) isn’t flashy. He just makes saves and gets his name on the Stanley Cup a lot. Luongo set records for most shots faced (2,475) and most saves (2,303) behind a scruffy defense. The Maple Leafs’ Cup hopes rest on Belfour’s sore back. When he’s hurt, they wince.

* Jack Adams award (coach of the year): Ron Wilson, San Jose. Honorable mention: Mike Sullivan, Boston; Barry Trotz, Nashville; Dave Lewis, Detroit, and Darryl Sutter, Calgary.

Wilson is a good motivator and he coaxed strong efforts out of the Sharks’ youngsters. Sullivan gave Raycroft the starting job and created an atmosphere that allowed Joe Thornton to continue maturing. Trotz blended veterans and youngsters well and has a good relationship with General Manager David Poile, which makes for stability.

Wolves howled for Lewis’ head when the Red Wings started slowly, but he didn’t panic then or while the Dominik Hasek-Curtis Joseph soap opera percolated. Sutter is blunt and demanding, but players bought into his insistence on honest effort.

Here and There

Iginla, the only holdover from Calgary’s last playoff team in 1996, wasn’t always sure he’d get another shot.

“It has been a long time for our fans and it has been a long time for us,” he said. “Our team committed to rebuilding seven years ago, and we wanted to make it a shorter process than it has taken.... It’s going to be a great experience and we want it to be a long one.”

Teammate Denis Gauthier said the Flames didn’t fear the third-seeded Canucks, who won the Northwest division.

“They have the experience and think they can make a run this year,” he said. “We feel they have to go through us first. We’re ready for the challenge.”

Gauthier also said he wished the Canucks had Bertuzzi, who was suspended for the final 13 regular-season games and the playoffs for attacking Moore.

“In some crazy sort of way, I would have liked to have the challenge to face him in a seven-game series,” Gauthier said.

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Remember when NHL executives said they’d discuss cutting the maximum width of goalies’ leg pads from 12 inches to 10, in the interest of increasing scoring? Apparently, a decision has been made.

According to Duck goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere, the NHL sent a memo to equipment manufacturers, directing them to start making pads 10 inches wide.

*

If Mark Messier has played his last NHL game, he left in style. Messier, 43, took a turn around the ice at Madison Square Garden last Wednesday after the Rangers’ final home game and basked in an ovation. He left the ice but returned after having been voted the game’s first star, bowing toward every corner of the arena.

More clues he’s done: His family attended the game, as did relatives of his friend Brian Leetch, whom the Rangers traded to Toronto last month. Retired goalie Mike Richter, another member of the Rangers’ 1994 Cup-winning team, was also at the game. Wayne Gretzky, Messier’s teammate on four Oiler Cup champions, called him before the game, and Messier sat out the Rangers’ finale at Washington on Saturday.

This is a good time for him to exit, while memories of his intensity and leadership outweigh visions of the player who faded in the late stages of the last few seasons. It’s always a good idea to leave the audience wanting more.

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It was fitting that Edmonton’s Adam Oates earned an assist Saturday before announcing his retirement. He had 1,079 assists in 1,337 games and was the rare player who preferred setting up goals to scoring them. The Ducks might have fared better if they’d brought him back.... Farewell to linesmen Randy Mitton and Ray Scapinello and referee Terry Gregson, who turned in their striped shirts after decades of honorable service.

*

The injury jinx continues for Colorado left wing Paul Kariya, who will be out indefinitely after spraining his ankle Sunday in the regular-season finale against Nashville, the Avalanche said.

Kariya played only 51 regular-season games because of a sprained wrist.