Keenan Out To Master Tale Of Two Trophy Teams
From day one, Mike Keenan has been talking about Game 49. Now his quest for two Stanley Cups in two seasons with different teams begins in earnest.
Keenan used the abbreviated schedule to mold the St. Louis Blues, a team that was swept in the first round of the playoffs last year by Dallas, in his own image.
Another term high on his list, especially earlier in the season, was “embracing change.” The Blues wrapped up the regular season with a roster that featured 12 players who weren’t around for last season’s early playoff exit.
“We’ve had our ups and downs during the regular season, but we have a lot of experience and we came through the regular season OK,” said checking center Guy Carbonneau, one of several off-season pickups who have won Cups. “I think if you put our season over 84 games, it was a great season.”
The Blues, who open the playoffs today against the Vancouver Canucks, tied for the third-best record with Pittsburgh in the regular season with 61 points and a 28-15-5 record. Prorated over 84 games, it’s one of the most successful seasons in team history.
Keenan has taken four previous teams to the Cup finals, capped by last season’s success with the New York Rangers - who barely made this year’s playoffs without him.
Could this be the fifth? Keenan hedged, saying he was more confident about the Blues’ chances “than some, and less than others.”
Maybe because it hasn’t been an easy ride, not even after the additions of defenseman Al MacInnis and forwards Esa Tikkanen, Glenn Anderson and Greg Gilbert from the Rangers. The Blues had to work around injuries to four top players: goalie Curtis Joseph, Brendan Shanahan, Al MacInnis and lately, Tikkanen.
MacInnis was limited to 32 games due to a recurring shoulder injury. He missed the last five games of the regular season, but Keenan said he would be ready for the start of the playoffs.
The Blues have veteran Jon Casey to back up Joseph. Other holes were filled mostly with rookies.
“I’m very pleased with the consistency of the team with the injuries we had to dominant players,” Keenan said. “Having four, five and six rookies in the lineup each night, I think, will serve us well because they gained some experience in pressure situations.”
One of those rookies, Ian Laperriere, had 13 goals. Another, Dave Roberts, has often ended up centering Brett Hull’s line and in one three-game stretch, scored the first four goals of his career.
The Blues enter the first round a heavy favorite against the Vancouver Canucks, a Stanley Cup finalist last year but a team that struggled to get to the .500 mark this season. Keenan won’t let the Blues get too confident.
Last season, the Canucks upset Calgary, Dallas and Toronto before losing in a seven-game final to Keenan’s Rangers. This season, Vancouver was 18-18-12 in the regular season and split the season series with St. Louis 2-2.
Certainly, the Canucks won’t catch the Blues coasting. Keenan is a notorious slave driver, requiring all players to ride stationary bicycles after every game, so they could be the best-conditioned team in the playoffs.