Richards, Sakic have chance to make point
By BRUCE GARRIOCH -- Ottawa Sun
Team Canada will try to take a step forward on the power play.
Canadian coach Pat Quinn said yesterday he'll experiment with Tampa Bay's Brad Richards and Colorado's Joe Sakic on the point with the man advantage during a scrimmage tomorrow night at the Corel Centre.
While defencemen will be used on the power play in tonight's exhibition game vs. Team USA at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, Quinn said it makes sense to give Richards and Sakic a shot from the point.
"They're two guys who do it for their own teams and I would think that would be something we would look at," said Quinn.
TOUGH GAMES: D Scott Niedermayer said Canada's three pre-tournament games (two vs. the U.S. and one against Slovakia) should be good tests. "I remember the exhibition games in 1996 and they were pretty intense. You definitely had two teams that were trying to win," said Niedermayer. "These teams are all competitive and they want to play well to prepare for the tournament."
AROUND AND ABOUT: Quinn said he and former Senators coach Jacques Martin easily defeated Philly's Ken Hitchcock and Wayne Fleming in a golf match Saturday at The Marshes in Kanata. "I don't want to crow about it, but I knew we were in good shape when the excuses started from the other team on the first tee," Quinn said with a smile. That's the second straight win for Quinn and Martin. They also defeated Hitchcock and Fleming earlier this summer in Banff, Alta. ... The word is Canadian F Shane Doan, who earns his keep with Phoenix, turned down an opportunity to play in Germany if there's a lockout ... In a 20-minute scrimmage yesterday, only C Mario Lemieux scored. During a shootout at the end of practice, Sakic scored twice while Dany Heatley and Kris Draper added one apiece.
