Timeless Classic

Dave Andreychuk's career statistics rank among the greats, but his selfless attitude and willingness to teach are what amaze the Lightning most of all.

[Times photo: Dirk Shadd] Andreychuk scores 21 goals and adds 17 assists.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published October 10, 2002

For Dave Andreychuk, nothing is more important in hockey than the circle of life.

Rookies who come into the league brash and bold, with credentials that label them future stars, are put in their place by veterans who know that to build NHL players you must first tear down their egos.

It happened to the left wing 20 years ago as a Sabres rookie. Now Andreychuk, entering his 21st season and on his way to the Hall of Fame, is teaching the Lightning.

"I believe young players need the desire to be the best every night and to get better every day, and sometimes that's hard to do," Andreychuk, 39, said after a recent practice at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon.

"You're given a big contract and you realize you can almost ride it out if you want to. That's why you need older guys around to show them you could be gone tomorrow, and this great life you have could be all over if you're not prepared to work every day."

[AP - 1987] In two stints with the Sabres, Andreychuk scores 368 goals and adds 436 assists.

It is no coincidence, then, that Andreychuk is Tampa Bay's captain. Nor is it by chance his locker is between those of Vinny Lecavalier and Brad Richards, two 22-year-old potential superstars.

It is like having a hockey how-to book at their fingertips.

Andreychuk enters tonight's season-opener against the Panthers on the verge of solidifying himself as one of the game's greatest players.

He needs seven goals to become just the 14th to reach 600. Five power play goals and he passes Phil Esposito's record of 249.

Andreychuk's 593 goals, 654 assists and 1,247 points are third all-time among left wings. His 17 20-goal seasons are tied for third overall behind Gordie Howe and Ron Francis.

"That's a Hall of Fame career," said Scotty Bowman, who coached Andreychuk as a Buffalo rookie. "He was good right from the start. His records are going to be tough to beat."

"He is what a hockey player should be," said Wild coach Jacques Lemaire, who coached Andreychuk with the Devils. "He was always prepared physically and mentally. I used to tell the young guys, 'Watch that guy over there. That's how you play the game. Do what he does and you'll give yourself a chance to have a good career in the NHL.' "

Andreychuk, who has scored against 141 goaltenders, would rather not talk about his milestones. He said he considers them inevitable and, as such, should not be a focal point, though Lightning spokesman Bill Wickett said a ceremony commemorating the 600th goal is in the works.

"I know it sounds a little corny, but I've never really tried to achieve anything other than making a team win," Andreychuk said.

Press a bit, though, and he admits, "It is kind of special to be mentioned in the same category as Phil Esposito."

About the only thing Andreychuk hasn't done is win a Stanley Cup. In fact, no player has participated in more games without one.

Why, then, come to Tampa to finish a career mentoring one of the NHL's youngest teams; a team that may not even make the playoffs.

Easy, said Andreychuk, who is expected to retire after the season. The Lightning, searching for a veteran presence and model from whom the kids could learn . . . asked.

Setting an example

It was about 11 a.m. in Montreal last season when the Lightning hit the ice to prepare for that night's game. Many players were still groggy from the previous night out: a successful bonding experience that started at a fancy restaurant.

But there was the 6-foot-4, 220-pound Andreychuk hustling up and down the ice, skating with energy and exhorting his teammates to do the same.

"I wanted to make them aware of the fact that it was no different that day than it was the day before that," Andreychuk said. "If you want to go out and play, that's fine, but we still have to come to work every day."

After a terrible game against the Islanders, Andreychuk demanded the players (even goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, who did not play) to be accountable by sitting at their lockers at the Nassau Coliseum and be available to reporters.

Richards said only Andreychuk could have made it happen so easily.

"When he says it, it's done," Richards said. "Other guys could have pulled it off, but it would have been more of a question. Everybody just did it. Everybody wanted to do it."

"There are a lot of young players here, and they are starving for leadership," Andreychuk said. "I think with the guys we had last year, Grant Ledyard and Tim Taylor, we were able to provide something that they wanted here, and hopefully that made guys better for this year and maybe years to come."

Taylor, 33, has set his own example by overcoming last season's serious groin injury. And Ledyard, now retired, gave everything a 40-year-old body could give while mentoring the defense.

But Andreychuk, brought in last season, along with Taylor and Ledyard, by then-general manager Rick Dudley, was the cornerstone.

He became more so as Tampa Bay's injuries increased. Andreychuk, who signed as a free agent, averaged 16:25 of ice time, including turns on the penalty kill. In 24 of the team's final 30 games, he averaged more than 20 minutes.

He led the Lightning with 21 goals and nine power play goals. His 74 blocks led Tampa Bay's forwards, his 82 takeaways were fourth in the league.

For a time, Andreychuk took just about every important faceoff. He won 53 percent, 23rd-best.

"You're talking about a Hall of Famer here," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "You're talking about a guy who understands what it means to prepare. He doesn't say much about himself. He goes about his business. But for us to have him, with the youth we have on our team, it's perfect timing."

"I'm going to be just like a sponge around him," Richards said. "I'm taking it all in."

Andreychuk did not always set a good example.

The Hamilton, Ontario, native made the jump from juniors to the NHL in 1982 as a hotshot scorer, getting 14 goals for the Sabres in 43 games.

He was 19 and having a blast, enjoying the social and financial perks of an NHL career. So what if he didn't play defense?

Bowman, the legendary coach who eventually won a record nine Stanley Cups, provided an answer.

He made Andreychuk change his game from pure scorer to complete player with a defensive sensibility and a willingness to play in high traffic areas. When Andreychuk resisted, he found himself watching from the pressbox.

"He was sending me a message that you're going to have to work for everything you get," Andreychuk said. "He taught me there was another zone to the game, that you have to play defense if you want to play in this league.

"He taught me to take the game seriously and that you have to come to work every day. I look back on it and it was huge for my career."

Andreychuk scored 38 goals the next season, and his size, reach and willingness to muscle up in front of the net earned him 10 power play goals.

"I played pretty regularly," Andreychuk said. "But there was always that fear that you can never be satisfied and always had to do better."

"He learned how to take that ability and maximize it," said Jim Schoenfeld, who played with Andreychuk in Buffalo, coached him and is now a Rangers assistant. "He didn't stop with his god-given ability. Now he's giving it back to the other guys."

A bigger picture

Andreychuk, who also played for the Maple Leafs and Avalanche, said he has come to terms that he will likely not win a Stanley Cup.

"It's the hand I've been dealt," he said.

Not that helping Tampa Bay to the playoffs for the first time in seven years would be bad.

It was one of the reasons Andreychuk said he accepted Dudley's offer, which included a one-year contract for $850,000 and a team option for this season. Andreychuk's wife, Sue, also liked the idea of bringing the family, including their girls Taylor, 9; Caci, 7; and Brooke, 2 on Oct. 27, to Florida. Their other home is in Buffalo.

"I accepted it as a challenge, really, to try to get this team to the playoffs," said Andreychuk, who, with bonuses, made $1-million last season. "I could have easily ended my career last year, but that goal hasn't been achieved."

"He likes seeing himself as the guy coming into the team that needed an older veteran," Sue said. "He knows he can make a difference. More than just his skill on the ice, it's the camaraderie he brings."

As well as lessons taught by Schoenfeld, Gilbert Perrault, Ric Seiling and Dale McCourt, all of whom Andreychuk watched as a youngster in Buffalo.

"These were professionals," Andreychuk said. "When I wasn't playing a lot, I watched them come to work every day. I realized the game is not just going out there and playing hockey. There's a lot more to it. There's a mental part of the game."

It was the part of the game at which the Lightning was most deficient.

"When I got here last year, that's the first thing I noticed, inconsistency in our game; working in practice and being prepared mentally to play games," he said. "There are a lot of good players in this league. What puts them ahead is mentally being ready to play every night."

And keeping focused for 60 minutes.

"That's definitely something this team lacked," Andreychuk said. "Playing against them in the past, it was always if you got on them early, the game is over. Last season we battled through games right to the end. Obviously we would have liked to have won more, but that's learning a lesson."

Andreychuk has learned something too. He relishes the role of mentor, and he feeds off the energy produced by hungry young players.

"I still want to be a big part of this team," Andreychuk said. "I don't want to sit on the bench. I think I can still contribute. I want to be in the playoffs as a Lightning player. I don't want to be in it as any other player. I would love to see the reaction on a lot of the faces of our young guys who have never been there before."

It might just happen, Schoenfeld said, if Tampa Bay makes good use of a most valuable resource.

"The one thing I would tell them," he said, "is watch, listen and learn."

It's hockey's circle of life.

600 CLUB

1. Wayne Gretzky 894

2. Gordie Howe 801

3. Marcel Dionne 731

4. Phil Esposito 717

5. Mike Gartner 708

6. Brett Hull 679

7. Mark Messier 658

8. Steve Yzerman 658

9. Mario Lemieux 654

10. Luc Robitaille 620

11. Bobby Hull 610

12. Dino Ciccarelli 608

13. Jari Kurri 601

CENTURY MARKS

100: Jan. 10, 1986 for Buffalo in a 9-7 victory over the Maple Leafs (goalie Tim Bernhardt).

200: March 24, 1989 for Buffalo in a 5-2 victory over the Canucks (Steve Weeks).

300: Jan. 15, 1992 for Buffalo in an 8-8 tie with the Devils (Chris Terreri).

400: Dec. 18, 1993 for Toronto in a 4-1 victory over the Kings (Kelly Hrudy).

500: March 15, 1997 for New Jersey in a 3-2 victory over the Capitals (Bill Ranford).

MOST GOALS AGAINST

Andy Moog 23

Kelly Hrudey 20

Mike Liut 17

Patrick Roy 15

Curtis Joseph 13

LEFT WING GOALS

1. Luc Robitaille 620

2. Bobby Hull 610

3. Dave Andreychuk 593

LEFT WING ASSISTS

1. John Bucyk 813

2. Luc Robitaille 668

3. Dave Andreychuk 654

LEFT WING POINTS

1. John Bucyk 1,369

2. Luc Robitaille 1,288

3. Dave Andreychuk 1,247

20-GOAL SEASONS

1. Gordie Howe 22

2. Ron Francis 19

3. Dave Andreychuk 17

Marcel Dionne 17

Mike Gartner 17

Wayne Gretzky 17

Mark Messier 17

Buffalo 1982-93, 2000-01

GOALS: 368

ASSISTS: 436

Toronto 1993-1996

GOALS: 120

ASSISTS: 99

New Jersey 1996-99

GOALS: 64

ASSISTS: 86

Boston 1999-2000

GOALS: 19

ASSISTS: 14

Colorado 2000

GOALS: 1

ASSISTS: 2

Tampa Bay 2001-02

GOALS: 21

ASSISTS: 17

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