Before and After, Forsberg makes all the right moves
By Terry Frei - Special to ESPN.com
Yes, we've joked, too: The way Peter Forsberg is playing, we can expect 57 veteran players to inform their general managers they intend to take leaves of absence for the entire 2002-03 regular season, then show up in time for the playoffs.
If Mario Lemieux could be assured that his team could make the playoffs without him, he might ponder sitting in the owner's box, then suiting up for the Penguins in the playoffs.
Couldn't Wayne Gretzky at least still be effective on the power play in the postseason for Phoenix?
Could this be the start of a trend?
Then, we come back to the serious reality.
It's not as if the Swedish superstar took off for Maui last May, then spent the next 11 months sunning on the beach, playing golf, and eating before he returned in time for the 2002 playoffs -- which he has taken by storm.
Forsberg lost his spleen for heaven's sake, and that doesn't mean he left it in a bag in the overhead bin and forgot to take it with him when he got off the plane. It was removed surgically after it ruptured, and he was fortunate he was able to get immediate help when he doubled over in pain after Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals a year ago.
Then he underwent so many foot and ankle surgeries, he piled up sufficient frequent patient points to get his next operation free.
Plus, there also are millions of reasons why no other NHL player is going to be willing to skip a regular season. Forsberg, after all, willingly gave up any claim to his salary for the first half of the season after he passed the team physical and skated with the team for the first few days of training camp.
Player to agent: "I'm taking the year off, without pay."
Agent to player: "WHAT? There must be $omething wrong with thi$ $tupid connection!"
Forsberg needed time off to both heal and rejuvenate his mental batteries, and he had the courage to admit it rather than go through the regular-season motions, collect his money and try to awaken for the playoffs.
It's possible, and maybe even probable, that he would have been in the Avalanche lineup sooner if he had put himself in the care of team medical personnel during his sabbatical because his foot tendon problem likely would have been discovered sooner.
But the Avalanche have to like the way this has worked out. They saved roughly $5 million in payroll this season, and Peter Forsberg not only returned when it really mattered, but he returned better than ever. Usually playing left wing on the Chris Drury centered line along with Steve Reinprect Forsberg is back to his "turnback" tricks, so reminiscent of the leaner Gretzky.
When he swoops in Joe Louis Arena, for example, the savvy fans gasp -- or inhale in anticipation of something "bad" happening.
That "oh-no" reaction, whether expressed verbally or just in body language, is more of a compliment than booing or other forms of "villain" targeting. So when Forsberg got to the puck in the Detroit zone Monday night in overtime of Game 5 after Drury fanned on Brian Willsie's pass, Detroit fans recoiled.
Forsberg, like Gretzky, is not renowned for his breakaway skills, but you don't want him with the puck. That's true, whether you're watching from the Red Wings' bench or in the seats with an octopus tucked under your seat -- the one you would have tossed out if Brendan Shanhan had only buried that virtual empty-net chance in the final stages of regulation.
Forsberg beat Dominik Hasek.
His 27 points not only are far and away the top total of the playoffs, but that also means he has been in on half of Colorado's 54 goals in the playoffs.
And if the Avalanche can close out the Red Wings on Wednesday night in Denver -- certainly no better than a 50-50 proposition given the teams' parity and the road-warrior nature of both the series and the postseason -- Forsberg and Company would open the finals Saturday against Carolina in Denver.
So much for rust.
He's strong, he still has the knack to spot the contact coming and brace for it, or deliver the counterbalancing blow first. The instincts honed when he was playing for his father, Kent, in Ornskoldsvik, are sharper than ever. He is a combination of skill, savvy and toughness.
"I used to be amazed by what he does," said his linemate, Drury. "But nothing he does surprises me anymore. My first year and a half, I always was amazed. I'm beyond that now."
A year ago, Forsberg put a jersey over his shirt in the final minute of the Game 7 finals victory over the Devils, stepped into the bench and then joined in the postgame celebration. He didn't feel left out, but he didn't feel completely part of it, either. The Avalanche's regular-season mediocrity -- at least by the franchise's own standards -- seemed to underscore that while Colorado had managed to pull off victories over the Blues and Devils without him, he was indispensable for long-term success.
Maybe that's part of his fire, too.
He not only is a vital cog on a team that needs one victory in two games against Detroit to advance to the finals, but he has been the best player of all in the postseason.
"I didn't know what to expect when I came into the first game of the playoffs," Forsberg said. "I have been working hard off the ice, skating a little bit in August and January (before his surgeries), before I came back, even if I missed a lot of games."This is an easy team. I've played here for a long time. I've got great linemates. It's been easy to fit in."
And that was colorful for Forsberg.
"It's fun when you're winning," he said. "As long as we're doing that, it's great. This is really a tough series. Of course, you're talking about fun, but it's coming down to winning the games and playing hard and who wants to win."
His return also has taken some of the attention and physical heat off Joe Sakic, who spent much of the season being reminded that when Forsberg plays, most teams use their most physical defensive pair against the Swede because of the perception that the only way to control him is to goad him out of his game.
"It's really amazing," Sakic said of Forsberg's playoff showing. "But if you saw him when he came back and how hard he worked to get back, this is the best shape he's ever been in. He's rested, excited and good things are happening for him right now. It's great for our hockey club. It takes so much pressure off everybody else. You can just play."
This isn't a miracle, but it does qualify as amazing.
Terry Frei of The Denver Post is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.
(Not sure where this one came from - but it was written after Detroit beat Carolina in the Finals)
Gone almost unnoticed in Detroit�s successful chase of the Cup was the fact that Colorado�s Peter Forsberg won the playoff scoring title with nine goals and 27 points in 20 games. What makes this even more remarkable was that Forsberg missed the entire regular season with ankle problems and at one point, team officials said there was virtually no chance he would play in the post-season. Forsberg�s efforts prompted Red Wings forward Brendan Shanahan to suggest that Forsberg should have received some consideration for the Conn Smythe Trophy.
He�s known as �magic boy� in his native land, but those who know the game of hockey will tell you it�s a nickname that knows no borders. When Peter Forsberg dipped, deked and deposited the overtime winner against the Red Wings in Game Five of their Western Conference final clash, it was, for want of a better term, pure magic.
There�s no smoke and mirrors in Forsberg�s game and certainly no sleight of hand. Night in and night out in the 2002 post-season, the 28-year-old has been simply sensational and downright inspirational. The shots are accurate and the passes are precise. But most importantly, Colorado�s comeback kid is the undeniably the best player in an Avalanche uniform.
It�s been said often that offence is what wins games, defence is what wins you Stanley Cups. A notion the players on the Avalanche beg to differ with.
�Peter has phenomenal throughout the entire playoffs,� says defenceman Rob Blake. �He�s playing like a man on a mission.�
Some may argue that Forsberg�s phenomenal post-season is his way of making up for lost time, that he has something to prove. Those who truly know the player will tell you it is far from that. Perhaps it was Colorado captain Joe Sakic who said it best when asked for his opinion of Forsberg�s contributions.
�He�s just playing the way he always has,� said Sakic, who has 20 playoff points to date. �We�ve come to expect that of Peter. He constantly amazes you with what he can do.�
A ruptured spleen forced Forsberg out of last year's Cup Finals and the superstar decided to sit out most of the 2001-02 season before undergoing foot surgery. The native of Ornskoldsvik returned for the playoffs and is currently tied with Sakic for the league lead with nine tallies.
When he made the announcement he would return to the game, many wondered if Forsberg would ever regain his form of old, the player labeled as one of the league�s best all-around performers. Some believed he would never play again competitively, others assumed he would be significantly less effective. With 27 points and counting, the multi-talented winger has put those predictions to rest.
Perhaps the greatest testament to Forsberg�s glorious abbreviated season is not so much what he�s done on the scoresheet, but more so with what he�s done in spite of being a marked man. As the drive for the Cup wears on, you�ll find his name front-and-centre on the opposition�s dressing room drawing board more often. Stop Forsberg and you stop the Avs, coaches tell the players. Sound advice, but obviously easier said than done.
There was a collective hush at the Joe Louis Arena when Forsberg drove towards the Detroit goal in overtime on Monday night. For as much as the Motown faithful revile him, their silence spoke volumes about No. 21. It was a measure of respect, albeit a grudging one, for the skillful Swede.
"It's just unbelievable," Colorado coach Bob Hartley said. "Even after missing the whole year, he continues to rise up to challenges and pressure. He's the full package as a player."
But even Forsberg, who looked calm and in control when he skated towards the Red Wing net, admitted afterward to not being overly-confident after taking the pass that led to his one-on-one confrontation with Dominik Hasek.
"You don't usually get breakaways in OT," said Forsberg, who became the first NHL player to host the Stanley Cup overseas after the Avs� first Cup win in 1996. "I was a little nervous, but I got it done."
And with it, he brought Colorado to within one game of reaching the Cup Finals for the second-straight season. Only this time, Forsberg isn�t watching the headlines to see how the Avs are faring, he�s making his own.
When Sakic was asked if people have seen the best of Forsberg, he paused briefly and smiled before firing off his retort.
�With the way he�s playing, who knows?� said last year�s Lester B. Pearson Award winner. �Every game, it�s something new. He always seems to have something up his sleeve.�
Whatever that may be, �magic boy� certainly won�t be giving away any trade secrets. At least not until he and his mates lay claim to another coveted Stanley Cup title.