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Quick Hits: Return-to-Play, Morin, Stasiuk, Lindbergh and More

May 24, 2020, 11:44 AM ET [10 Comments]
Bill Meltzer
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Quick Hits: May 24, 2020

1) By a 29-2 vote on Friday, the NHLPA committee of team representative approved the concept of the NHL/NHLPA Return-to-Play committee proposal for a 24-team play-in/playoff when play resumes. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes were the two teams that voted against the idea.

There is still much work to be done -- the hows, whens, and wheres -- between the NHL and NHLPA before any bonafine plan can be put in place. That will include testing protocols (including steps to take if and when a player or other team personnel tests positive for Covid-19), navigating government-required quarantine periods for international travelers, and more.

The NHL's Board of Governors and Gary Bettman also have to determine a rescheduled date for the 2020 NHL Draft. There was significant pushback from general managers and hockey ops departments over Bettman's strong desire to hold an online Draft in June. The final decision is still the commissioner's to make.

2) In the next Therien's Take, Chris Therien suggests something that he'd like to see be part of a return-to-play plan: an extension of Stanley Cup playoff eligibility to impending NHL unrestricted free agents over the age of 30 who are on the rosters of the seven teams that will not make the playoffs. Examples would include Joe Thornton, Wayne Simmonds, Craig Anderson, Jimmy Howard, Ron Hainsey and Trevor Daley.

Bundy's idea is for there to be a lottery for selection order and then a one-round Draft of such players as short-term rentals. Teams would have the option of making a pick or passing on the opportunity. He points out that there is no salary cap in the postseason, anyway, and rosters will expand as soon as teams convene. Since the playoff format itself is going to change from 16 to 24 teams, he believes the player eligibility rules should also be relaxed to allow post-deadline acquisitions to play.

While Therien concedes that such a plan is rather unlikely, it's one he'd personally want to see enacted. He thinks it's something that would bring an added layer of fan interest to the return process and would also be a way to reward players such as Thornton and Simmonds by giving them one extra kick at the can to win the Cup rather than being in a protracted offseason mode that dates back to March and could extend to late 2020.

I don't think such a plan is feasible. For one thing, there are not 24 players among the seven non-playoff/play-in teams who fit the age-30-plus, impending UFA criteria. Secondly, the odds of such an idea being approved by the NHL, its member clubs and the NHLPA is unlikely especially since there are much bigger fish to fry in working out the many practical and logistical challenges that remain before a final return-to-play plan can be announced.

That said, it's fun notion to kick around. For instance, would Flyers fans welcome Simmonds back as a "free rental" for the rest of the season? Probably. But would there even be a spot in the lineup for him at this point, barring injuries? Probably not.

3) Rehabbing from his second ACL repair surgery in less than two calendar years, Flyers defenseman Sam Morin is sixth months into his recovery. He has been skating for roughly six weeks. A few days ago, I caught up with Morin to discuss his rehab progress, the mental challenges involved in coming back, and how he still has a burning desire to achieve his oft-delayed dream of becoming an NHL regular. For more, click here.

4) May 24: The late Pelle Lindbergh (1959-1985) was born in Stockholm on this day in 1959.



5) Yesterday, Vic Stasiuk celebrated his 91st birthday. The last living member of the Flyers' original hockey operations staff, Stasiuk was the coach of the AHL's Quebec Aces and then the second coach in Flyers' history after Keith Allen switched from coach to general manager following the dismissal of original general manager Bud Poile.

At the rink, Stasiuk was known for being hard-nosed and old-school in his coaching methods even by late 1960s standards. If you wanted to play for Vic, you couldn't be soft in his estimation, and preferably had big hands. He was an old Detroit Red Wings teammate of Gordie Howe -- actually, Stasiuk and fellow future Flyers coaches Keith Allen and Bill Dineen were all part of the 1953-54 Red Wings squad -- and believed that Gordie was the prototype that every player should aspire be like. Later, Stasiuk joined the Boston Bruins and joined with fellow Ukranian-Canadian players John Bucyk and Bronco Horvath to form the "Uke Line."

Flyers Hall of Famer Joe Watson, who played for Stasiuk with the Flyers, and Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill, who played junior hockey in Medicine Hat with Stasiuk as his coach, have both told some hilarious stories about Stasiuk. Stasiuk loved to have a good time off the ice, but exuded toughness with his players.

Sometimes, Stasiuk's players were confused by his instructions.

"Vic used to say, 'Check but don't check.' We had no idea what the hell that meant," a chuckling Watson recalled in 2016. "He'd tell Bernie [Parent] and Dougie [Favell], 'Challenge, but don't challenge.' If someone was taken off the puck, he'd say, 'Dammit! That wouldn't happen to Gordie Howe!' Well, none of us were Gordie Howe."

Perhaps the funniest Stasiuk story is one that involves the Flyers coach getting into a heated argument with referee Billy Friday over a call that actually went in the Flyers favor. Stasiuk felt his player -- whom he believed lacked toughness -- had gone down too easily to an opponent's stick check attempt.

"Our guys have been getting the hell beat out of them all night. No [bleeping] call. Now you call THAT?!" Stasiuk bellowed.

Friday was taken aback, telling Stasiuk to just shut up and accept the power play.

"That's not the point," Stasiuk protested. "I've been telling that [bleeping bleep bleep] to fight through the [bleeping] checking. You just set me back three [bleeping] months!"

Despite his unique methods, Stasiuk had some success as a coach. Before leading the Aces (the Flyers' first farm team) to the Calder Cup Finals in back-to-back seasons (1967-68 and 1968-69], he led the Cherry Hill-based Jersey Devils to the Eastern Hockey League finals in 1967. Later, he reached the finals in the Alberta Junior Hockey League with the Tabor Golden Suns. At the NHL level, Stasiuk's teams did not fare nearly as well.

The Flyers missed the playoffs in 1969-70 and were swept in the first round by Chicago the next year (losing all but one game by margins of three or more goals). He was replaced by Hockey Hall of Fame coach Fred Shero after the 1970-71 season.



Subsequently, Stasiuk spent one season apiece as the head coach of woeful California Golden Seals and Vancouver Canucks teams. The rest of his coaching career was spent in the minor leagues and western Canadian junior hockey. He retired from coaching in 1979. In 2009, an 80-year Stasiuk was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame.

Away from the rink, Stasiuk has always been known for his hearty chuckle, good heart and willingness to share his opinions on anything and everything. Last year, on his 90th birthday, Vic posed for a picture with his beloved daughter Jae Jae, holding up a sign that said, "Crazy doesn't run in my family.... it practically gallops!"

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