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No VH-1 Fashion Award, but ...

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 24, 2000

DETROIT -- When Steve Ludzik played juniors for the Niagara Falls Flyers, he had one suit for all occasions.

"I wore it for three years," he said, smiling at the memory.

The 38-year-old Lightning coach has about 20 suits and 40 vests, and he is not afraid to mix and match, which makes him one of the more stylish coaches in the league.

Add his slick-backed brown hair and an array of shoes that range from classic black to wing tips, and Ludzik is absolutely Rileyesque in fashion consciousness.

It's no accident.

"I just think that the players can't have a coach looking sloppy," Ludzik said. "Pay attention to detail in all aspects, whether it's game preparation or how you dress."

What is the well-dressed coach wearing this season?

Ludzik has been dapper on this road trip, which finishes Wednesday night against the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena.

In New Jersey he wore a silvery gray suit with a shiny white tie and a white shirt that had black borders on the collar. The vest was dark with a hieroglyphic-like design. In New York, he had a more classic look, the gray suit working well with a white shirt, and dark vest and tie.

"Nice and sharp. It's that old Chicago gangster style," left wing Fredrik Modin said.

There have been no sightings, however, of Ludzik's favorite vest, a black beauty highlighted by gold dragons.

Nor have we seen the "Joker outfit," so dubbed because it includes a purple suit and purple vest much like Cesar Romero wore when he played the Joker on the Batman television show.

"My wife didn't like it," Ludzik said. "She threw it out, unbeknownst to me. I went to look for it. She said, "I threw it out. This is ridiculous.' "

Ludzik always will have new and interesting vests because he occasionally gets them from fans. Some are mailed to the Ice Palace. Some are sent to his home.

Ludzik called one "a bad nightmare. I can't even describe it, there are so many colors."

What do his players think of their coach's fashion sense?

Goaltender Kevin Weekes, who has a keen eye for fashion, is on board. He especially likes Ludzik's more daring combinations, like the look in New Jersey.

"He's not afraid," Weekes said. "It's good to see somebody with a little savoir-faire."

A playful thumbs down comes from defenseman Andrei Zyuzin.

"He does some things, I don't know who buys his clothes for him," Zyuzin said. "Everybody has their own decisions about what to wear, but Halloween is over."

"I like his stuff," center Vinny Lecavalier said. "But the shoes have got to go."

Lecavalier was referring to the coach's wing tips in brown and white and black and white.

Can't lose 'em, Modin said.

"Those shoes are part of the whole outfit," he said. "It doesn't work without the shoes."

"He's well-dressed; don't get me wrong," goaltender Dan Cloutier said. "Everything matches perfectly. I don't know how long it takes him to get dressed. I think it looks good on him. But I wouldn't wear it."

KUDOS FOR KUBINA: If you blinked, you might have missed it.

As Rangers forward Theo Fleury circled the Lightning net at the end of Sunday's second period, he sneaked a slash at Weekes. Tampa Bay defenseman Pavel Kubina saw it and slammed Fleury, prompting a pileup of players.

Kubina got a minor roughing penalty and a 10-minute misconduct. Fleury got two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct, and Tim Taylor got two minutes for roughing. Add an interference call on New York's Mike York nine seconds earlier and the Lightning had a two-man advantage.

Tampa Bay cashed in 1 minute, 45 seconds into the third period on Mike Johnson's goal. Twenty-eight seconds later, Modin scored for a 3-1 lead.

"I don't care if it's Fleury or somebody else," Kubina said. "You have to do something."

Said Ludzik: "It was the turning point of the game. That's what we have to keep stressing, strength in numbers at obvious times."

CLEAN HIT: After reviewing the videotape, Ludzik said he thought Brad Brown's crunching check Sunday night on Lightning wing Martin St. Louis was "a fair hit."

Brown was penalized for boarding, and the check prompted retaliation from defenseman .

"He came across and made a play," Ludzik said of Brown. "What happens is, there's no hitting at all in the league, and when it does happen, it shocks the coaches, the people on the ice and the officials."

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