Disney boss Michael Eisner may be making his first power-play move since The Mighty Ducks entered the NHL this year. Besides favoring the elimination of fighting, Eisner is said to favor replacing five-minute, sudden-death overtimes with shootouts.
Hawks coach Darryl Sutter hates shootouts. The International League used them when he coached the Hawks’ farme there, and he thinks they detract from the NHL’s image of grit alongside the grace.
“You can keep guys on the bench for shootouts who don’t need to wear shoulder pads,” Sutter said. “Guys who have no interest in physical contact.”
” I guess it’d be fun for the fans in the stands, but do you really think Stadium fans want to see us fight to a 2-2 tie and then lose 6-2 by giving up four breakaway goals? That’d be brutal.”
This issue will test how deep Eisner’s influence goes. There probably are enough traditionalists to defeat his bid, but he won’t be easy to dissuade.
Same old game: Sutter said he saw the replacement referees do exactly what they should in Monday’s three games. “Officials should have no impact at all on games, and that’s what happened,” he said.
“I’m sure there will be (referee) situations blown out of proportion as long as the strike goes on. But maybe we’re crustier and better prepared for them because of what we’ve already been through this year with the officials.”
No deal: Hawks management has assured defenseman Steve Smith that those weekend rumors that had him going to Quebec in a three-way deal are inaccurate. “Those rumors came from afar,” Smith said,
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