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The Lightning general manager sees a "whole 'nother dimension' against Rick Dudley's team.
By DAMIAN CRISTODERO, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 27, 2002
SUNRISE -- The question was rhetorical but Jay Feaster felt compelled to respond.
Asked if he was looking forward to games against the Panthers tonight at the Office Depot Center and Saturday at the St. Pete Times Forum, the Lightning general manager laughed.
"I wouldn't miss it," he said.
The already heated rivalry between the teams was turned up a notch over the summer when former Lightning general manager Rick Dudley was hired as Florida's GM.
Dudley resigned from Tampa Bay in February under pressure in a dispute with team president Ron Campbell over Dudley's attempt to trade Vinny Lecavalier. The split was not amicable and left bad feelings between Dudley and Feaster, whom Dudley believed did not support his position.
Feaster got Dudley's job. Dudley stocked seven of Florida's hockey operations positions with former employees of the Lightning.
Tonight's game is the first time Feaster and Dudley have faced off.
For Feaster, it is a big deal, and he clearly enjoyed stirring the pot.
"I want to win all seven games that we play against the Panthers," he said, counting the two preseason games in that equation. "It's always been a natural rivalry and we've always had some great battles since I've been here.
"For me, it takes on a whole 'nother dimension because it's Rick Dudley and the supporting cast that's around him."
Dudley avoided a war of words.
"Would I like to win all exhibition games? Sure," he said. "But if I had to get hyped up over every team I played with or worked for, there would be an awful lot of them. To be honest with you, I don't worry about it too much."
Pressed, Dudley said the game would trigger some emotions.
"It's like having my oldest boy play against my youngest," he said. "To watch Nikita Alexeev or Alexander Svitov or Brad Richards, or any of the others, it's just like watching my kids."
The kids on both sides always seem to play rough when they get together.
Last season's final game, a 3-2 Lightning victory in overtime, was a feisty affair punctuated by a knee-to-knee hit by Alexeev on Panthers rookie Stephen Weiss.
Alexeev said the hit was accidental, and though Weiss' left knee was only sprained, there were bad feelings.
Lightning coach John Tortorella said he considered the Panthers might be out for revenge, but did not change plans to put Alexeev in the lineup.
"It's part of the game," Tortorella said. "You have to see how your team reacts to it, and Nikita also."
Tampa Bay will not have to react to Florida enforcer Peter Worrell, who is expected to miss both games with a sore shoulder.
Nothing will dampen Feaster's enthusiasm, though he wondered if his adrenaline will transfer to the players in the preseason.
Defenseman Jassen Cullimore said he is aware of the rift between Feaster and Dudley but said, "When you get on the ice, your opponent is the players, not the management."
But right wing Sheldon Keefe said, "For me to know that my boss has a little extra incentive gives me a little more incentive."
Ultimately, Feaster said the incentive is to get the season rolling in the right direction.
"While this might be only a preseason game, they create a mind-set and an expectation level," he said. "Winning is something I want to become contagious. And, again, that's a team that we have to keep at bay in our own division, and it's important to set that tone from the beginning."
Imagine what Feaster's tone will be Oct. 10, when the teams play to start the regular season.
"I want to win these," Feaster said of the preseason games. "I want to win them all."