Friday, February 22, 2002
Been there, done that
By JEAN LEFEBVRE -- Calgary Sun
Steve Begin tried to plead ignorance yesterday when a wiseacre reporter suggested Belarus' shocking Olympic victory over Sweden on Wednesday might have triggered bad memories for the Flames centreman.
"Hmm," mused Begin, straining to suppress a smile. "Can you refresh my memory? In Finland, maybe?"
That would be the place. The event was the 1998 world junior championships -- more specifically, Canada's astounding 6-3 loss to a rag-tag bunch from Kazakhstan, of all places.
"Anybody can cause a surprise," nodded Begin, a member of that unfortunate and infamous Canadian squad. "You can't underestimate any club."
The major difference between the upsets was the stakes.
While the Swedes squandered a chance to advance to the semifinals, Canada's improbable loss to Kazakhstan meant an eighth-place finish instead of seventh.
"When we lost any chance of a medal after the loss to Russia," suggested Begin, "I think there were some guys who already had hung up the skates and packed their bags."
The turn of events didn't sit well with Begin, then a 19-year-old member of the Val-d'Or Foreurs.
"We had plenty of good players," noted Begin of a squad that included Mathieu Garon, Roberto Luongo, Brad Ference, Eric Brewer, Vincent Lecavalier and Alex Tanguay. "But things never clicked. I think there were some guys who went there just to enjoy themselves more than anything else.
"There were guys who missed meetings. It seems to me when you're representing Canada, it's important and you have to take it seriously. Especially when you've won the gold medal the five previous years. I couldn't believe my eyes.
"I was going there to win gold and when I saw the nonsense that was going on off ice, I was surprised and angry," he said. "Lots of guys were angry. Some guys had another opportunity the year after but for me, I was 19, it was my last chance."
GLOBAL EDUCATION:
Flames coach Greg Gilbert, like many Canadians, is keeping a watchful eye on the Olympic hockey tournament and he's picking up some tips in the process.
"The one thing European teams do very well is how they really support the puck," he remarked. "There's always two or three guys within 15, 20 feet to make a short pass instead of having to go cross-ice every time."
The defensive play in Utah has also been enlightening.
"They work their way back from the offensive zone back into defensive position and they stop and sort things out instead of running all over the place."
Gilbert, however, has no intentions on following the example of Canadian coach Pat Quinn, who is using Flames right winger Jarome Iginla as a penalty-killer.
"He's a guy who's logging 23, 24 minutes already for us," explained Gilbert, "and that's a lot of ice time for a forward. If we were to add three or four or five minutes because we use him in (the penalty-killing) situation, he could burn out very quickly."
HE'S NO SLOPE DOPE:
Mending Flames forward Chris Clark spent the Olympic break in the heart of B.C. ski country but he steadfastly avoided the slopes.
"The last time I skied," grinned the South Windsor, Conn., product, "I was 12 years old and I broke my arm. I haven't skied since."
Instead, Clark and wife Kim took things nice and easy.
"We did absolutely nothing and that's what we wanted," said Clark. "Some vacations don't seem like vacations because you're doing stuff all the time."
ONE FROM THE CORRAL:
The layoff did nothing to dull the sharp tongue of assistant coach Brian Skrudland.
When centre Marc Savard, a frequent target of ribbing for his less than sculpted physique, stepped on the ice yesterday at the Corral, Skrudland quipped: "Surprisingly enough, on his first day back from the break, Marc Savard's stuff still fits."
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2002 Games Men's Hockey Coverage
