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Dwindling numbers: Fight for the ice is clearer

With 11 cuts, each Lightning player knows the man he has to beat.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 19, 2000

BRANDON -- It's getting closer and closer to crunch time for those hoping to make the Lightning's 23-man roster.

Tampa Bay trimmed the number of players in training camp at the Ice Sports Forum to 33 Monday, reassigning or releasing 11. The most notable was defenseman Ben Clymer, who played 60 games for the Lightning last season but was sent to the team's IHL affiliate, the Detroit Vipers.

Other notable cuts were right wing Dmitry Afanasenkov, a 1998 third-round draft choice who had a stellar rookie tournament but slowed in two preseason games; right wing Dan Kesa, who played 50 games with the Lightning last season; and defenseman Kaspars Astashenko, a 1999 fifth-round pick.

Remaining players are fighting for an ever-shrinking pool of positions.

Assuming Sergey Gusev (right knee) and Andrei Zyuzin (right ankle) are good to go, Tampa Bay has, at most, openings for two defensemen depending on whether the team keeps seven or eight. It also has two or three forward spots available, depending on the number of defensemen.

"The beauty of looking at the list is showing how much more depth we have and didn't have last year," general manager Rick Dudley said. "We have lots of tough decisions."

Dudley said some will come after Thursday night's game against the Panthers at the Ice Palace.

It appears Bryan Muir, Jassen Cullimore and Marek Posmyk will battle for the defensive positions. Nineteen-year-old Kristian Kudroc also is in camp for an extended look.

"We think that he's a big-time player and we want to see what we've got," Dudley said.

Forwards on the bubble appear to be Thomas Ziegler, Nils Ekman, Steve Martins, Dwayne Hay, Sheldon Keefe, Kyle Freadrich and Gordie Dwyer. Eighteen-year-old Nikita Alexeev, this year's first-round draft choice, has been impressive, but his time is in the future.

An additional forward position could open if Yaroslav Svejkovski, recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, starts the season on injured reserve. Dudley said he expects that to happen.

Hay said he doesn't know what to expect.

"I'm not worrying about things I can't control," he said. "I just worry about the things I can control. All I can do is give myself the best opportunity and know I didn't leave anything in the room and do my best."

Dwyer agreed.

"Numbers and roster spots, I can't think about that. I just play hockey," he said. "It's not in my control anyway. I do what I can and bring what I can to the team, and that's the way it works."

Dudley said those cut should not be discouraged.

"That doesn't mean you're gone and gone," he said. "We fully expect to see those guys again."

But that doesn't stop the initial shock.

"Obviously, I'm not happy about being sent to Detroit," Clymer, 22, said. "All I can really do is work hard. Hopefully, we can straighten some things out and I'll be back soon."

Dan Keczmer's story was the saddest. In camp as a tryout, the defenseman, who played last season for the Predators, seriously injured his right knee during Saturday's game with the Hurricanes when checked into the boards. He was released.

"You feel for him," coach Steve Ludzik said.

"The one thing we will do is when he is healthy, we will give him another opportunity," Dudley said.

Roster trimming

MONDAY'S CUTS: RW Dimitry Afanasenkov, D Kaspars Astashenko, D Ben Clymer, RW Matt Elich, C Fedor Fedorov, D Michael Jones, D Dan Keczmer, RW Dan Kesa, G Dieter Kochan, D Mario Larocque, C Scott Nichol.

All were assigned to the IHL's Detroit Vipers except Fedorov (Sudbury juniors), Kesa (Manitoba, IHL) and Keczmer (released).

STILL IN CAMP: Goaltenders -- Dan Cloutier, Evgeny Konstantinov, Kevin Weekes.

Forwards -- Nikita Alexeev, Stan Drulia, Gordie Dwyer, Nils Ekman, Kyle Freadrich, Dwayne Hay, Brian Holzinger, Mike Johnson, Ryan Johnson, Sheldon Keefe, Alexander Kharitonov, Vinny Lecavalier, Steve Martins, Fredrik Modin, Wayne Primeau, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Yaroslav Svejkovski, Todd Warriner, Thomas Ziegler.

Defensemen -- Jassen Cullimore, Sergey Gusev, Pavel Kubina, Kristian Kudroc, Paul Mara, Bryan Muir, Marek Posmyk, Cory Sarich, Petr Svoboda, Andrei Zyuzin.

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