News from February 1999

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Leafs Bure Panthers

-- Slam Hockey

Pavel Bure goes flying on a check by Toronto Maple Leafs Igor Korolev, center, as Sergei Berezin looks on during second period NHL action in Toronto Saturday, Feb. 27, 1999. (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer)

The Russian Rocket was grounded on his first flight at the new Air Canada Centre.

Pavel Bure was held without a goal for only the third time this season as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Florida Panthers 4-1 Saturday night behind three second-period goals.

There was no confusing the excellent job Alexander Karpovtsev and company did on Bure, who had only one shot in the first two period and missed on two good chances at goalie Curtis Joseph during a third-period power play.

"(Karpovtsev) played a real good game," said Leafs coach Pat Quinn. "(Former Ranger coach) Colin Campbell told me the other night that he'd always play him with Lindros and he'd always come up with a big game."

The sellout crowd of 18,800 had a good time booing Bure whenever he had the puck and cheering enthusiastically whenever he lost it.

"They didn't do anything special against me," said Bure, who had eight goals in his previous five road games.

Pavel ended up as a minus two, and three shots on goal. He received a cut on his chin from a high stick during the game. Panthers were upset when Karpovtsev only got a two-minute high-sticking penalty after cutting Bure with 3:14 remaining in the third period.

"I would complain more about the refs than the ice," Bure said. "It's a rule if a player gets a cut it's got to be four or five (minutes). But he (referee Bernard DeGrace) didn't call it, so there's something I can't understand."

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Pavel scores twice in tie game!

Pavel and ex Russian team-mate, Sergei Fedorov, exchange post game comments

Pavel Bure scored twice, including a successful penalty shot, as the Florida Panthers rallied from a three-goal deficit in the third period before settling for a 5-5 tie with the Detroit Red Wings.

Bure, in his second start since recovering from a knee injury that kept him out of eight games, made it 1-1 at 6:12 with his ninth goal.

After a Detroit odd-man rush was broken up midway through the Panthers zone five minutes in to the third period, Panthers defenseman Dan Boyle spotted Bure cherry-picking at the red line, a step behind Murphy.

Murphy would need Bure's Ferrari just to keep up with him, even with Bure at a standing start. So, he yanked Bure down as the Panther started his move on Osgood. Referee Paul Stewart immediately snapped his arm toward center ice, indicating a penalty shot.

The entire crowd rose and chanted ``Oz-zie! Oz-zie!'' Bure gingerly approached the puck from the Panthers blue line, picked it up and sauntered to his right. As he started to go up through his gears, he faded back toward the left. Just before he was in the middle of the ice, he whipped a shot over Osgood's glove.

"I just said to myself, 'If he gives me left side, top shelf, I'm going to go there,"' Bure said.

It was Bure's fourth consecutive successful penalty shot and his fifth in seven career attempts.

"I'm not satisfied with the outcome after getting up 5-4," Bure said. "I'm satisfied that down 4-1 the guys pulled together and came back. ... But a tie is better than a loss and a win is better than a tie."

"We should be more disciplined," said Bure after the two-goal performance that included the first penalty shot goal in franchise history. "In the first 40 minutes, we took bad penalties, and we can't do that if we expect to win games."

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Pavel pumped in Detroit

DETROIT -- Pavel Bure scored twice, including a successful penalty shot, as the Florida Panthers rallied from a four-goal deficit in the third period before settling for a 5-5 tie with the Detroit Red Wings.

Bure's penalty shot came at 5:34, right in the middle of Florida's third-period comeback. Rookie Mark Parrish tied it 61 seconds later and Scott Mellanby's third goal in as many games gave the Panthers their first lead just 2:08 thereafter.

But the Red Wings were able to escape with a point as red-hot Igor Larionov potted the equalizer with 5:04 remaining.

With just over a minute left in overtime Larionov broke alone down the slot and shot, but goaltender Kirk McLean leaned left for a glove save that left Larionov shaking his head.

Still, he finished with a goal and two assists for Detroit, which has gone to overtime in each of its last three games. The Red Wings are 6-1-2 in their last nine and moved to 3-0-2 in the last five meetings with Florida.

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Panthers RW Bure returns Wednesday from knee injury

Pavel Bure skates with the puck against the Philadelphia Flyers during the first period Wednesday Feb. 24, 1999. This was Bure's first game back after an injury. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Panthers center Viktor Kozlov, center, is congratulated by teammates Rob Niedermayer (44), right, Pavel Bure (10), left, and Terry Carkner (2) after Kozlov scored the fifth point on an empty goal box. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

SUNRISE, FLORIDA (TICKER) -- Pavel Bure was scoreless in his return to the lineup, but the Florida Panthers got a power-play goal from rookie Mark Parrish with 8:28 remaining and handed the Philadelphia Flyers their third loss in four games, 5-3.

Bure missed eight games with a right knee injury and the Panthers sputtered. But they have rediscovered their offensive touch in the last two contests, combining for 12 goals in victories over two of the NHL's elite teams -- the Phoenix Coyotes and Flyers.

"We're stepping up our offense. It's a good time to start doing that," Bure said. "I had no problems, it felt great to be out there. It's real boring spending all of that time in the training room."

During in the first period, it was obvious Bure had missed 19 days with his injury. At least he had a reason. The other skaters dressed in Flyers' black and Panthers white also looked as if they hadn't played in 19 days.

Bure, doing his usual augmentation of a shift, did set up the best scoring chance of the first. With quick U-turn in the right circle, he spotted left defenseman Rhett Warrener coming on to complete a shift change. Bure's cross zone pass left Philly goalie John Vanbiesbrouck peering through a bunch of bodies, and Vanbiesbrouck didn't move until Warrener's shot had clanged off the left post.

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Panthers RW Bure returns Wednesday from knee injury

-- Slam Hockey

SUNRISE, FLORIDA (TICKER) -- Florida Panthers superstar Pavel Bure returned for tonight's game against the Philadelphia Flyers after missing eight games with a strained right knee. The Panthers were 2-3-3 without "The Russian Rocket," who was injured in the first period of a 3-0 loss at Pittsburgh on February 5. Florida, which is tied with Boston for the final Eastern Conference playoff berth, scored 20 goals without Bure, exploding for seven on Saturday in a rout of Phoenix.

It has been an eventful five weeks for Bure, who on January 17 was traded from the Vancouver Canucks in a seven-player blockbuster. He provided the plodding Panthers with instant offense, scoring six goals in his first three games with the club and totaling 11 points in seven contests before the injury.

On February 8, Florida rewarded Bure with a five-year contract extension worth a reported $47 million that puts him among the NHL's highest-paid players.

Bure ended a season-long holdout after he was acquired from Vancouver. The Panthers had been sputtering along at 15-16-11 and had been shut out five times before acquiring the 27-year-old right wing.

Bure tied for third in the NHL with 90 points and 51 goals last season. In 1992-93, he became the first 50-goal and 100-point scorer in Canucks history, finishing with 60 goals and 50 assists. Bure also had 60 goals in the 1993-94 season, helping Vancouver reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time.

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Bure receives cortisone shot

By Brian Biggane -- The Palm Beach Post

Recuperating right winger Pavel Bure rode the stationary bike instead of joining his teammates at practice Tuesday after taking a cortisone shot Monday designed to settle inflammation that has flared in his right knee.

"We'll get a better idea of how he's doing (this)morning," coach Terry Murray said, who hadn't ruled out the possibility that Bure could play against Philadelphia tonight.

Murray insisted that Bure, who has been sidelined 19 days since straining the knee Feb. 5 in Pittsburgh, does not have a more serious injury than first feared.

"It's not the knee itself, it's the hamstring muscle) that's connected to the muscle. There's just some inflammation with all the biking and skating he's been dong. We're trying to speed this along . . . and by getting this injection we're hoping there's going to be good news for us (today)."

Bure, who was paid $3 million for the final 40 games of the season after being acquired from Vancouver Jan. 17, has missed seven games with the injury. The Panthers are 2-3-2 in his absence.

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Pavel jets to hang out with Gino

By Ed Willes -- Vancouver Province

Stop us if this sounds familiar. When Pavel Bure tweaked his knee earlier this month, he was supposed to be out for a week. It's now 18 days and counting and the earliest he'll be back is Wednesday's Florida Panthers' tilt against the Philadelphia Flyers.

OK, Bure is hardly the first hockey player who didn't come back from injury on schedule. But there's more to this story. A couple of weeks ago, he was going to stay behind in Florida and rehab his knee while the Panthers went on the road, then had a sudden change of heart and showed up in Ottawa and Montreal where he was greeted by his old pal Gino Odjick. Hockey's odd couple were then inseparable during the Panthers' two-game swing, which drew a lot of long looks from the Panthers.

Bure, it should be noted, has pretty much been placed in charge of his own timetable. Maybe he should be given the benefit of the doubt here. Then again, maybe the alarms should be ringing all over the Panthers' organization.

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Bure better

By David Neal -- Miami Herald

Right wing Pavel Bure skated through Saturday's morning skate, then did the extra 4-on-4 game scratches usually play with the assistant coaches. It was Bure's second practice in full equipment. He was also wearing a brace.

``It feels better,'' Bure said of his strained muscle around his right knee. ``It's still sore a little bit.''

Bure said he still hoped to play Wednesday, which would be 19 days after the injury. The original prognosis was a week.

``There's nothing you can do about it,'' Bure said. ``It was put to me this way: It's like when you cut your finger. It's not going to heal in a couple of days.''

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Pavel Bure update

-- Slam Hockey

Pavel Bure cannot return soon enough for the Panthers, who have won just once (1-3-3) since he went down with right knee injury on February 5. Bure's absence also has affected Florida's power play which was scoreless on three opportunities and is 1-for-31 over the last nine games.

Panthers coach Terry Murray commented on Bure's condition. "His progress is coming. He was 45 minutes skating out there today. That's three days in a row. We'll go back and see him tomorrow and see how things go. It's his decision."

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Breaking Away

By E.J. Hradek -- ESPN Magazine

Pavel Bure: Bure's off to a flying start
in South Florida.

He is standing on the edge of the Atlantic, waves slapping his muscular legs, the soft breeze tossing his brown-blond hair, the gorgeous blue-sky South Florida afternoon providing the backdrop. Pavel Bure tilts back his head and breathes in the fresh salt air as if there isn't enough of it to fill his lungs. He exhales slowly -- he is in no hurry to let any of this slip away. He smiles. He says, "It's beautiful here." Paradise found?

Over his shoulder and 22 floors up into that gorgeous Fort Lauderdale sky is his oceanfront condominium -- 2,800 square feet of luxury at a pricey address that offers two swimming pools, tennis courts and an attendant who will valet park and pamper his Ferrari. But that's not why Pavel Bure is happy. Despite slightly straining a muscle in his right knee on Feb. 5, a setback that was expected to sideline him for a week, Bure knows this: After seven tumultuous seasons in Vancouver and nine months of professional uncertainty, he is playing hockey again. Scoring goals again -- eight in his first six games. Scaring the bejeebers out of goaltenders again. He has a new team, a new contract in the works, a new life. The haughty new digs are nice, but can't compare with playing hockey. Anyone who knows Bure knows that.

"He wants to be the best all the time," says Detroit center Igor Larionov, who once took a 20-year-old Bure under his wing when they were teammates in Vancouver. "It's like he has to prove that every time he's on the ice. He plays every shift like it's his last."

Not too long ago, people wondered if the Russian Rocket, a two-time 60-goal scorer, really had played his last shift. Despite a contract that would have paid him more than $8 million for this season, Bure refused to report to the Canucks in the fall. He had demanded a trade and was serious about sitting out the season if he had to. So now, with the sun on his face and a Panther on his uniform jersey, maybe he can explain why he was so angry.

It wasn't one thing, Bure says; it was a litany of snubs and annoyances. He says the Canucks ignored him when he first came to North America. During a difficult period of adjustment, he stayed at the California home of his then-agent, Ron Salcer, while the Canucks took their time welcoming him into the fold. To get Bure into the NHL, the Canucks had to buy out his Russian contract, and they forced Bure to pay a fifth of the total, about $50,000, he says. During his time in Vancouver, he went through several botched and highly publicized contract negotiations that left him looking like the villain. He says false stories were leaked about him. He says a promise to trade him went unkept. Bure says those were the sole reasons for his leaving. He says his having become an idol in Vancouver's gay community and published reports linking him to members of the so-called "Russian Mob" had nothing to do with his decision.

"It's easy for people to print all sorts of totally unfounded rumors about me," Bure says. "But it's very difficult for me, or anyone for that matter, to try and clear your name after such false information."

By the end of the 1997-98 season, Bure had had enough. He wanted out. His contract stipulated he would become the third-highest paid player this season, but that wasn't incentive enough to return. He demanded a trade and said he would never again play for the Canucks. Summer slipped by. Training camp started. Days turned into weeks, weeks rolled into months. Still Bure was not playing. There was a fresh rumor about a deal every week, and each one filtered back to Moscow, where he trained every day. Don't cry for Pavel -- the guy had plenty of ready money -- but sitting out started to add up, eventually reaching $4 million in lost salary. "It was a tough time," Bure says. "But sometimes you have to sacrifice. It was a matter of principle. At the end of the season, I told management I wasn't coming back, and I meant it."

The Canucks, meanwhile, limped through the season's first three months, playing sub-.500 hockey. But Brian Burke, the team's new general manager, was as stubborn as Bure.

Burke said he would not be held hostage by Bure's demands. He said a trade would come only when it benefitted the team. Finally, three days after Christmas, Burke was on his way to Winnipeg for the World Junior Championships. He boarded a connecting flight in Toronto. Seated next to him in the first-class cabin was Bryan Murray, general manager of the Florida Panthers.

"It gave Bryan a great opportunity to express our club's interest in acquiring Pavel," says Panthers assistant general manager Chuck Fletcher. "In turn, we found out what it might take to get him."

By the time the plane touched down in Winnipeg, the wheels of a deal were in motion. The Panthers asked the Canucks for permission to speak to Bure's agent, Mike Gillis. With Bure heading into restricted free agency this summer, the Panthers had to find out two things: Did Bure want to come to South Florida? And could a new deal be struck? Once Gillis answered yes to both questions, Murray made an early-morning trip to Stuart, Fla. to see team owner H. Wayne Huizenga, the same man who, in a financial snit, dismantled the Florida Marlins after their 1997 world championship season. Convinced Bure would score goals and sell tickets, Huizenga gave Murray the green light.

Later that day (Jan. 17), Bure received the call from Gillis. The deal was done: Bure, Bret Hedican, Brad Ference and a third-round pick to the Panthers for Ed Jovanovski, Dave Gagner, Kevin Weekes, Mike Brown and a first-round pick.

Through the good and the not-so-good, two things have remained constant for Bure: his private passion for hockey and his hard-core work ethic, inherited from his father, Vladimir, a former Olympic swimmer. Both virtues were evident in his wildly successful Panthers debut, a 5-2 victory over the Islanders on Jan. 20. Former Canucks teammate Trevor Linden, now captain of the Isles, has seen it all before. "He has the ability to make something out of nothing," Linden says. "I've always thought Pavel to be more quick than fast. He gets the puck and takes it right to the net. Heck, he was just half-speed, and he scored two goals against us."

Bure is skittish about flying, but he had endured a 10-hour flight from Moscow to New York, quickly introduced himself to his new teammates and, barely a full day after arriving, beat Felix Potvin and the Islanders for two goals. Bure was thrilled. "I could've never dreamed I would score two goals in my first game back," he says. "I just wanted to play again."

That's why he kept himself in such great shape during his hold-out. Bure turns 28 on March 31. You look at him, standing in the Lauderdale surf, and you can't see an ounce of fat on his 5'10" frame. In Moscow, he stuck to a daily practice routine with the two Red Army teams.

"I went back to Moscow in early September," says Bure. "I knew both coaches -- Viktor Tikhanov and Boris Mikhailov -- since I was 16 years old. Even though there was a strong rivalry between the two, they both let me practice with their teams. When one team was on the road, I practiced with the other."

His days in Moscow became rote. "I'd get up around 8:30, go to practice from 10 to 12, have lunch, rest for a while, then ride the bike or lift weights between 5 and 7. By then, the day was almost over."

Funny, that's not the schedule newspaper reports had him keeping. According to those stories, Bure had become a party boy back in Russia. "I've never really lived in Moscow for any length of time," says Bure. "So I was getting invited to a lot of official banquets and things like that. But, because a lot of people recognize me there, I really couldn't go out in public on my own." Bure is so revered in Russia, he was awarded the Order of the Silver Sabre, one of Russia's highest military honors, for his past service to hockey. Once back on the ice in NHL arenas, there was no doubt Bure had kept himself in shape.

Only one night after his two-goal effort against the Isles, he scored a breakaway goal to help the Panthers to a 2-1 win over the Rangers, the team many figured to win the Bure trade sweepstakes. After getting a few days to settle in during the All-Star break, he scored a hat trick as Florida rallied for a 3-3 tie in Philadelphia. By Feb. 4, he had eight goals and had led the Panthers to within four points of the division-leading Hurricanes.

Bure's fast start didn't shock some of his older countrymen. "I'm not surprised how well he's playing," says Devils assistant coach and former star defenseman Slava Fetisov. "He wants to prove something. That's what's driving him right now."

In his home debut, Bure didn't score a goal, but he thrilled the crowd with several great scoring chances. He picked up an assist as the Panthers edged the Canadiens, 2-1, in front of 19,250 at the National Car Rental Center. It was just the sixth sellout in 22 home dates at the new building. More proof of Bure's star power: Jon Kramer, the Panthers' publications manager, says 1,800 copies of their game-night program, featuring Bure on the cover, sold out well before the puck was dropped. The Bure trade had required Kramer to make a last-minute change, bumping veteran center Kirk Muller off the cover. At the concession stands, the club reported that a combined total of 50 authentic and replica jerseys (priced between $199 and $324) featuring Bure's No. 10 were scarfed up. Clearly, Pavel sells.

"The marketing thing is a nice plus," Fletcher says. "Although the trade is first and foremost a hockey trade, there's no question it will be easier to maintain our season-ticket base having a star of this magnitude."

It will also be a lot easier to maintain if the Panthers make the playoffs. If Florida can win the weak Southeast Division, it will earn at least a third seed in the conference playoffs. That means home-ice advantage in the first round. "If you look at our record," explains coach Terry Murray, "we've had a bunch of ties [12 through Feb. 4]. With Pavel in the lineup, some of those ties become wins. That's the kind of impact he could have here."

As for Bure, after several years of frustration and confusion, he's just thrilled to be doing what he loves -- playing hockey. "I don't really want to talk about the past anymore," he says, 22 stories high now, leaning over his terrace balcony, listening to the waves crash, at peace with himself and his surroundings. He has made a decision. "I'd like to stay here," he says. "I'd like to finish my career here."

Paradise found.

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Bure skates

By David Neal -- Miami Herald

Pavel Bure skated Tuesday for the first time since straining a muscle behind his knee, but he isn't expected to accompany the team to Dallas and St. Louis. Florida's superstar forward skated for about 45 minutes before the team's practice at National Car Rental Center.

When will the forward be ready?

``He will skate the next couple of days when we're on the road,'' coach Terry Nurray said. ``We'll evaluate him after we get back from this road trip. Everything was pretty positive [Tuesday].''

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Without Bure, desperation replaces hope

By Greg Stoda -- The Palm Beach Post

SUNRISE -- No, he wasn't back.

That's the answer to the first inquiry anyone makes concerning the Florida Panthers these days.

Everyone still is waiting for Pavel Bure.

Well, maybe not Ray Whitney.

Other than Whitney, who scored both Florida goals, the Panthers were ineffective during a 2-2 tie Monday night against San Jose.

"He gave us the tie," Florida coach Terry Murray said. "There's no question about that."

There's no question about something else, either.

Life is very different without Bure, who who made such a splashy entry onto the South Florida sports scene.

Bure, who played six full games with the Panthers after being obtained from Vancouver

in a trade (and thus rescued from his self-imposed exile in Russia), sat out the game at National Car Rental Center against the Sharks. He injured a knee against Pittsburgh on Feb. 5 and hasn't playedsince.

To suggest the Panthers miss him would be to understate the obvious.

Including the loss to Pittsburgh during which Bure was hurt, Florida is 1-3-2 and has scored 12 goals in those six games.

Oh, sure, Bure made big news while he was healthy.

He signed a huge contract.

And he teased the Panthers by pulling them along to a 4-1-1 record while scoring eight goals.

Since then, though, a Pavel Bure might as well have been a fine cigar or an exotic coffee for all the good he's done the Panthers.

"I'll have a Pavel Bure, please."

"Give me a Pavel Bure to go."

The Panthers' problem -- besides losing Bure's wonderous scoring touch, of course -- is the uncertainty surrounding his status. The whispers are that Bure is close to returning, but nobody in Catland is whispering a definition of what close means.

Bure is riding a bike.

Bure is stretching.

Bure might or might not travel with the team.

But what Bure isn't doing is playing.

So, the Panthers are left to anticipate his return under the consequence of disappointment every time he shows up out of uniform.

Complicating matters is the fact that the Panthers are in a scramble for a bottom-rung Eastern Conference playoff spot with one-third of the schedule remaining on the calendar.

The quick promise Bure provided boosted Florida's hopes, which fade with every game he misses. Interest in the Bure-less team is fading, too, if the number of empty seats Monday night was a reasonable indication.

(Hey, Heat-New Jersey in downtown Miami couldn't have been that interesting a draw in the same time frame.)

Not that the Panthers gave fans much to cheer about. They caught San Jose on the seventh game of a diabolical 10-game, 17-road trip . . . and managed only the tie.

And they wouldn't have gotten that had Whitney not come up with his team-leading 16th and 17th goals, including the winner off his own steal and a wicked slap shot from the left point late in the third period that brought the Panthers even.

Florida was desperate for points with upcoming assignments against Dallas, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Detroit and Colorado dotting the next couple of weeks.

"An average tie," Whitney said.

It was a desperate tie.

And the Panthers are desperate without Bure.

"As a guy who scores goals," Whitney said, "there's pressure to put the puck in the net (without Bure). I don't consider myself in Pavel's category."

No, of course not.

But it's Whitney who skates as Florida's best threat until Bure gets back.

Whenever that is.

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By Don Cherry -- Vancouver Province

Florida is going to get their money back with Pavel Bure in spades. He is bigger than a rock star in Florida. It's a funny thing with Pavel. Remember when I really gave it to him when he kicked the feet out from under Keith Tkachuk, then with the Winnipeg Jets? I said, "He was a little weasel for slew-footing Tkachuk." Couldn't believe it the next game in Vancouver they had thousands of towels with the words "Weasel Power" on them and I really got the boo-birds when I tried to do my opening for Hockey Night in Canada. But a funny thing happened, if you remember -- Pavel hurt his back and in this column I ripped the people for getting all over him and insinuating he was faking it about his back and for all the thrills he has given them. They should be ashamed and get off his back. He doesn't deserve the criticism and give the kid a break. About two months later I was standing in the studio. MacLean was doing the opening out in the Forum and as I was standing looking at the monitor in the empty studio, I felt somebody else's presence. I looked around and here was Pavel standing there in a long black top coat staring at me. I thought, "Oh boy! He's pissed about something. OK, let's get it on." But he stuck out his hand and said, "Thanks for sticking with me, Grapes, when I was having a tough time."

Another time last year when I was walking along the halls at GM Place after the game, coming the other way was Pavel with those four guys he always has around him. As we passed by he broke between his entourage and we shook hands. The people in the hall couldn't believe it. Why did Pavel say hello and seem to like me? One, he knew I was right about Tkachuk and I had stuck with him when he was having a tough time. It's easy to stick with a guy who's flying high, but people always remember when you stick with them when they're struggling. It's funny. When asked why he wanted out of the Vancouver organization, the first thing he mentioned was that the organization never backed him up when people in the media were giving it to him, saying they wonder if his back is really bothering him. So you can see it was a big thing with him. Nothing is worse for an athlete who is a proud guy than to be accused of faking an injury. When I saw he never really got the backing of the organization, I knew he was on his way out. So isn't it ironic that the guy I called a weasel turns into a friend of mine.

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Once on ice, Bure to be in game

By Brian Biggane -- The Palm Beach Post

MONTREAL -- Pavel Bure remained off skates for the eighth straight day Saturday as he continued to rehab his strained right knee. But coach Terry Murray said he could be back in the lineup almost immediately when he does start skating. "He's been (riding the stationary bike) very hard the last four or five days," Murray said. "The elite condition these guys are in anyway, (he could return) with one or two days of practice. But I'm not going to put a number (of days) on that. "Once he makes the decision (to skate), the doctors clear him and he's back on the ice, I think it's going to be very quick from his first ice time until he's playing again.

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Bure's return date remains uncertain

By David Neal -- Miami Herald

KANATA, Ont. -- The mystery of right wing Pavel Bure extends to the status of his strained muscle behind the right knee. At least, that's the way the Panthers are acting, which is rather suspicious for a supposedly minor injury.

Panthers coach Terry Murray, who doesn't like a player sneezing unless he knows and approves the cause, suddenly turned vague Thursday when asked about Bure's injury.

``I don't really know about that kind of stuff,'' Murray said. ``I have no idea when he's going to skate again. We made the decision to bring him on the road because we wanted him to get the proper treatment.

``I don't know how long it's going to be because I just don't have the answers to those questions.''

The team originally said last Saturday that Bure would miss at least a week.

Bure himself says he doesn't know when he'll begin skating again, although he said the injury feels better than he thought it would at this point.

``I thought I wouldn't be able to ride the bike,'' said Bure, who was slated to begin some rehabilitative swimming this week, but will instead do the exercise bike.

Flying from Vancouver to hang out with Bure in Ottawa was former Vancouver teammate Gino Odjick, now with the Islanders and out for the season with an abdominal strain. Odjick has a 15-month-old son named Bure.

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Panthers, Bure remain mum on knee

By Bruce Garrioch -- Toronto Sun

The return of the Russian Rocket to Florida's lineup is shrouded in mystery.

While club officials insist the right knee injury newly acquired winger Pavel Bure suffered last week isn't serious, he and the Panthers weren't giving any answers on his status yesterday.

With talk the injury could be worse than the Panthers expected, Florida coach Terry Murray and Bure wouldn't say when he might resume skating, but it's doubtful he'll be in the lineup soon.

"I don't know," said Bure.

This is the same knee which forced Bure to miss 67 games with the Canucks in 1995-96 with a torn ACL.

"I don't really know about that kind of stuff. I have no idea when he's going to skate again," said a coy Murray. "We made the decision to bring him on the road because we wanted him to get the proper treatment."

But Murray isn't going to allow Bure's absence to be a distraction to the Panthers.

"It's hard not to just sit back with your mouth wide open watching some of the things he does. I do it myself," said Murray. "Whether we have Pavel or not, it still takes 20 guys to win a hockey game."

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Bure (calf) likely to miss trip

By Meri-Jo Borzilleri -- Miami Herald

Right wing Pavel Bure said a strained calf muscle sustained Friday likely will keep him from accompanying the Panthers on a road trip to Ottawa and Montreal beginning Thursday.

Bure, who signed a reported five-year, $47.5 million deal Monday, has missed games against Carolina and St. Louis after injuring the muscle against Pittsburgh.

Bure did not practice Tuesday and said he will not skate until at least Friday.

``There is not pain, but it's a little tight,'' Bure said. ``It is progressing.''

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Bure is everything to Panthers

By Al Strachan -- Toronto Sun

Around the National Hockey League, the reaction to the latest big-money signing is predictable.

The small-market teams are quivering because the price of hockey just went up again. Pavel Bure signed a five-year $47.5-million US deal.

The numbers shouldn't be a surprise. They were all in The Toronto Sun on Jan. 21. But neither should it be a surprise that a team in a large market is willing to make that kind of commitment.

High impact

Bure is a high-impact player in every sense of the word. He can make and break managerial careers -- both Neil Smith in New York and Rejean Houle in Montreal are on shakier ground these days because of their inability to land Bure -- and he can turn around a team.

When he's in the lineup, the positive impact is enormous. But when he's out of the lineup, the negative impact is just as enormous.

Therefore, there's a great deal of queasiness in the Panthers front office these days. If you believe that wrestling isn't faked, that Elvis is alive or that snowmobilers have brains, you also can believe Bure is out only for a week with his latest knee injury.

Anyone else would try to think of the last time a knee injury put a player out of action for only a week, especially a player who has undergone reconstructive surgery on that particular knee.

If Bure is indeed out for only a week, he'll play in Montreal on Saturday. Don't base your Sports Select picks on that assumption. It's highly unlikely he'll even make the trip, let alone step on the ice.

But he is so important to the Panthers' future that for the sake of public relations, not to mention the morale of the team, management is fudging the prognosis a bit. The team officials are not lying. They're saying that Bure will be gone for a minimum of one week. The key word is minimum.

Until Bure joined the Panthers, they were a mediocre team. Win one here; lose one there; toss in an occasional tie. They never were more than two games over .500 and never more than one game under .500.

But in the six-game stretch following Bure's arrival, they racked up a 4-1-1 record. Then they lost the game in which he was injured -- on Friday against the Pittsburgh Penguins -- and they haven't won since.

If Bure returns in a hurry, the Panthers have a chance of making a mark this season. If he is gone for a long time, they have no hope whatsoever.

Dino Ciccarelli could have helped fill some of the void, but he has re-experienced back problems and now is on injured reserve, lost until late March.

Viktor Kozlov was to have had a breakout year, but he has been erratic. He looked good when Bure was around, but still didn't rack up many points. In fact, his goal during the Panthers' 5-4 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Monday was his first of 1999.

Oleg Kvasha is an even brighter prospect, a fact that paid benefits to the Toronto Maple Leafs. New York Islanders general manager Mike Milbury is enthralled with Kvasha and tried to get the Panthers to part with him for Bryan Berard. But Miami GM Bryan Murray refused and, as a result, Berard was available to be dealt for Felix Potvin.

Mark Parrish is another Miami prospect and while his acquisition -- from Colorado for Tom Fitzgerald, who played only 18 games for the Avalanche before leaving as a free agent -- was a coup for Murray, he's erratic. He scores in clusters but also endures long dry spells.

Bure is the key to patching together all these diverse fortunes. If he is there, Kvasha and Kozlov look a lot better. That leaves more room for the likes of Parrish and Rob Niedermayer.

The defencemen can concern themselves with defence -- something they haven't bothered to do since Bure went down, perhaps because they feel the need to make up for missing firepower.

Evaluate

Furthermore, if Bure is healthy, Murray can evaluate his team properly. He can see where the serious holes are and he can decide whether it makes sense to try to fix them in time for the playoffs.

But with Bure out, the Panthers are in disarray, not sure which way to go and unsure of their future. That's not the return they envisioned for their big expenditure.

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Purring over Bure, Panthers

All-Gender sex appeal: Pavelmania allows marketing hockey to gay community

By Mike Ulmer -- National Post

Pavel Bure: 'Just a hunk of burning hockey love,' one writer says.

Marios Cruz fingers the gold ring that dangles from his left nipple and surveys the program picture of Pavel Bure.

"He's cute," Cruz says glibly, "I could marry him."

From the chaise lounge next to him in the flamboyantly gay section of South Beach, his lover Andre Antoni lifts his sunglasses from his nose. "Honey," he says in mock indignation, "you already are married."

While the recent trade of Bure from Vancouver to Florida deprives the West Coast of a celebrity worshipped in the gay and straight communities, it presents the six-year-old Panthers with a unique marketing opportunity.

Bure's full, red lips, perfect cheekbones, pale green eyes, and spectacular physique give him an exotic, androgynous appeal. He is to die for and has been since he arrived in Canada, burst into Vancouver, and claimed the National Hockey League rookie-of-the-year honours in 1992.

"He was," said Toronto Maple Leafs coach Pat Quinn, Bure's first coach in Vancouver, "everything people wanted to see in an athlete they loved."

And love him they did, especially in a series of articles penned by Vancouver writer Daniel Gawthrop, who exposed Bure as a hunk of burning hockey love among gay as well as straight fans.

After seven years, Bure soured on Vancouver, demanded a trade and last month was dealt to the Panthers.

A minor knee injury has temporarily knocked him out of the lineup, but he produced eight goals in his first six games and spun merchandising wheels at a pace never seen before in a region where puck is often considered an off-colour verb.

Bure presents a never-considered marketing opportunity for the Panthers: gay males, a rarely shaken arm of the 18-35 demographic money tree.

The news that Bure could be a ticket into that market makes Declan Bolger, the Panthers vice-president of marketing, positively giddy.

"Oh, you are kidding me?" he asks, before turning his mind to the possibilities. Despite their splashy new arena in a Fort Lauderdale suburb, the Panthers are no easy sell in Florida.

The team has cultivated a non-traditional clientele, nearly 50% of which is female. Until this year it courted Hispanic fans with Spanish radio play-by-play.

"Have we targeted gay men?" Bolger asked. "No. Would we turn them away?" he says, a grin creasing his face. "No. We haven't said no to anyone."

Bolger has worked to make the Panthers sexy and Bure will get the same treatment.

Unlike most NHL teams who deal with media requests as they come in, the Panthers employ a publicist to gain prominent placements for Panther players in South Florida publications.

Bolger says any Bure promotions will be tasteful. "We don't want to promote Pavel as a handsome man on ice," says Bolger earnestly. "He's a hockey player who happens to look very good."

About all this Bure is unmoved. When told many gay men loved him in Vancouver, Bure replied modestly. "I don't think they thought I was the most incredible guy in the world."

He welcomes the interest of all his fans for all their reasons.

"Why would I have a problem?" he says. "If people like you and treat you with respect, that's great. That's how I treat them."

Gawthrop, whose description of Bure's lips as rose petals raised hackles even in cosmopolitan Vancouver, said while many homosexuals supported his contention, there was a backlash to his stories in the Vancouver Sun and Xtra West, the city's gay newspaper. "People in the gay community were embarrassed by the stories," he said. "They said hockey is from [the straight] world. It's considered ungay to be interested in hockey."

Bure's Russian aloofness eventually came to be regarded as the petulant pouting of Pavel the Prima Donna in Vancouver. The rancorous contract problems and Mr. Bure's reticence to explain why he chose to return to Russia and force a trade have soured his image.

Gawthrop admitted the bloom is off the rose-coloured lips. "Now when I see his face I think, 'that spoiled brat,' " he said.

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Kings GM won't grovel about Pavel

By J.A. Adande -- Los Angeles Times

While the Los Angeles Kings are outside the velvet rope of the playoff club, hoping the bouncer will see them and let them in, while they're struggling to put pucks in the net and fans in the seats, Pavel Bure goes down to Florida and starts scoring as if he's trying to beat an expiration date.

Bure is a man who would have been a King -- if the Kings had thrown together the right trade package and followed it up with the right contract offer.

He told the Vancouver Canucks he'd never play for them again, prompting them to hold a season-long trade search that ended when he went to the Panthers on January 17, along with defensemen Bret Hedican and Brad Ference, for center Dave Gagner, goalie Kevin Weekes, forward Mike Brown and defenseman Ed Jovanovski.

Bure, who was home in Russia while he waited for the Canucks to find him a new team, stepped on a plane, laced up the skates and had scored six goals before he even realized what time zone he was in.

So didn't Kings general manager Dave Taylor feel some pings of regret when he saw the highlight shows?

"Not really," Taylor said. "We tried hard in that deal. There was nothing there that made sense to us, as far as a hockey deal is concerned. Most players, shortly after a trade, come in and play well. The key to any trade is to evaluate it after time."

Which is why I believe Taylor isn't staying up nights envisioning Bure in a Kings uniform. It's only a matter of time before Bure reverts to his old ways and concentrates on the only agenda he has ever pursued: his own.

Bure revealed his nature in 1997, when the Canucks signed Mark Messier as a free agent. Bure popped off, saying he wanted to be traded before the season started. There's no way Bure can be about winning if his response to adding the greatest hockey winner of this era to his team is to ask out.

A year and a half later, he finally got his wish.

In the short term, this is going to look bad for the Kings because Bure could have been doing the same things here that he's doing in Florida. And, man, do the Kings need that.

Only five teams in the NHL have scored fewer goals than the 122 put on the board by the Kings. They need some type of spark to make up the four-point deficit in the standings to San Jose, which currently occupies the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They also need someone to inspire fans to step up and buy those expensive seats in the new Staples Center next season.

Bure has two 60-goal seasons on his resume, scored 51 goals last year and is one of the most exciting players in the NHL.

Eventually, however, Bure would be doing the same type of things here that he did in Vancouver. When he wasn't bickering with management and staging protests over money, he accused management of planting stories that he was bickering with them over money.

Fans who wrote in to the Vancouver Sun after the trade last month called Bure a "petulant ingrate", a "selfish little whiner" and a "petulant little whiner." I think I detect some kind of theme here.

One thing the Kings have going for them now is chemistry. Unfortunately, chemistry doesn't necessarily get you goals. But goal scorers don't necessarily get you victories, or Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne would have the Mighty Ducks in first place.

And if Bure poisons the atmosphere in the locker room, it might undo all the good he does on the ice.

He isn't even a proven winner. Since he led the Canucks within a game of the Stanley Cup in 1994, they haven't been close. There has been more attention paid to Pavel's soap opera than the team itself.

And there's no guarantee he would help at the box office. Attendance in Vancouver actually slipped his first three seasons there, and that's in a town that loves hockey.

At some point it has to be about character. Sports sure makes it easy to look the other way as long as a guy is scoring goals or catching touchdown passes or hitting home runs. What about when that stops?

That's why Derek Harper is a better addition to the Lakers than Dennis Rodman would be, even though Rodman is a more effective player. The problem with Rodman has nothing to do with what color he dyes his hair or how he decides to get married. It has to do with helping those around him improve their skills, not distracting them by picking up technical fouls or getting kicked out of games.

It's the same reason I wouldn't want Latrell Sprewell on my team. It's not because he choked his coach, an overblown incident that was similar to what has happened before and will happen again. It's because he was a bad influence on Chris Webber and Joe Smith when they played with him at Golden State and never exhibited the true qualities of a winner.

Bure just signed a five-year, $47.5-million deal in Florida, and now that he has his money he should be happy.

There's no way to guarantee the Kings such happiness. But at least they'll have peace.

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Panthers improve in a hurry with Bure

by Helene Elliott -- Los Angeles Times

Pavel Bure has brought sizzle to the Florida Panthers' bland, new arena. Since his arrival, the Panthers have moved into position for a playoff spot, pulled better TV ratings and won back fans who had turned away in boredom.

"Players of that nature are rare," Panther General Manager Bryan Murray said. "How do you get them? You draft and you wait. I've had some nice players over the years. Bengt Gustafsson (in Washington) and Sergei Fedorov and Steve Yzerman (in Detroit) come to mind. The most exciting player, without a doubt, is this guy. He's just explosive. . . .

"You worry sometimes about other players on your team after you make a deal like this. To a man they all said, 'Wow! What an addition!'"

Before Bure sprained his knee Friday, an injury that's expected to idle him at least a week, he had eight goals in six games and had scored or set up 11 of Florida's 19 goals since his arrival.

"Just playing alongside the guy is a dream," rookie winger Mark Parrish said. "You always want to play with a superstar. He's going to make everybody pick up their play.

"What doesn't he do? He's a great goal scorer, a good passer and one of the best players of all time."

The Panthers aren't an elite team, but they can do damage in the playoffs. And with Bure having agreed Monday to a five-year, $47.5 million deal with a $10.5 million option year, they have reason for long-term optimism.

To get him and Bret Hedican, they gave up only Dave Gagner, Ed Jovanovski, Mike Brown, a draft pick and the rights to Kevin Weekes.

The Los Angeles Kings could have topped that, but their reservations about Bure's off-ice behavior made them hold back, although they won't acknowledge it. General Manager Dave Taylor said he didn't want to give up prospects, but Bure is a proven commodity and if those King kids don't pan out, passing on Bure will be a grievous error.

The Kings have shifted their focus to Theo Fleury, who is older and less a scoring threat than Bure but still effective. Working out a new contract -- he can be an unrestricted free agent July 1 -- may be the key to that move.

In the meantime, Bure is delighted to be a Panther.

"I think it's a really good hockey team, good defense, good goaltending and guys who can make things happen," he said.

However, he's uncomfortable with the suggestion that he's their savior.

"Hockey is a team game," he said. "One player can't win it all. You have to work together as a team, and if you do, we have a chance."

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Bure's new deal keeps him in Florida through 2005

by Jeff Shain -- AP Sports Writer

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) - The Florida Panthers wasted little time locking up Pavel Bure for the long term, signing the high-scoring Russian to a five-year contract extension with an option for a sixth year.

The four-time All-Star will remain under contract to the Panthers through at least the end of the 2003-04 season.

``Maybe I can finish my career here,'' said the 27-year-old Bure, who has eight goals and 11 points in seven games since coming to Florida in a trade with Vancouver. ``That's why I took a long-term deal.''

Financial terms were not disclosed, but sources put the deal at $47.5 million over five years with an option year at $10.5 million.

``It's probably among the top five (in the NHL), something like that,'' Panthers general manager Bryan Murray said.

The three-time 50-goal scorer came to Florida in a seven-player deal Jan. 17, ending a holdout in which he vowed never to play for Vancouver again.

Florida gave up defenseman Ed Jovanovski, centers Dave Gagner and Mike Brown and holdout goaltender Kevin Weekes for Bure, defenseman Bret Hedican and defenseman Brad Ference. The teams also traded draft picks.

The Panthers and Bure's agent, Mike Gillis, struck a $3 million contract for the rest of this season and began working on a long-term deal. Twenty-two days later, Bure was signed. ``After going through what he went through in Vancouver - for a team to step up and cut through what went on - I told Pavel there'd have to be a commitment from him,'' Gillis said.

``He's been thrilled with everything that's gone on so far. I think his play so far is a reflection of how he feels. He's really happy.''

Bure scored two goals in his first appearance, a 5-2 win over the New York Islanders, and became only the second player in the past 20 years to score six goals in his first three games with a new team. Bure scored a point in each of his first six games, as Florida went 4-1-1.

``I surprised myself with the way I was playing, but for the team I'm not surprised,'' Bure said.

His streak ended when he sprained his knee Friday night in a 3-0 loss to Pittsburgh. He sat out Saturday's tie against Carolina and did not dress for Monday's game against St. Louis, but is expected back by the end of the week.

``Signing Pavel to a long-term deal is a major step for the organization to take, and a major investment,'' Panthers president Bill Torrey said. ``We are trying to make a statement to everybody that we are here to win and to put together the most exciting hockey team we can.''

Bure won the 1992 Calder Trophy as the NHL's rookie of the year, scoring 34 goals in 60 games. He followed that with consecutive 60-goal seasons, leading the Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup finals with 16 postseason goals in 24 games. His 51 goals last season was one off the league lead.

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Bure signs rich new deal with Panthers

-- Slam Hockey

SUNRISE, Fla. (CP) -- Pavel Bure has signed a rich new contract with the Florida Panthers.

The NHL team scheduled a news conference for Monday afternoon to announce the mega-deal with the high-scoring right-winger. Terms were not immediately available.

Bure scored eight goals in seven games after being acquired Jan. 17. He hasn't played since straining a knee in Pittsburgh last Friday night, when coach Terry Murray said Bure would be out of action for about one week.

Florida acquired the five-foot-10, 190-pound Russian on Jan. 17 from Vancouver along with defencemen Bret Hedican and Brad Ference and a third-round draft pick. In exchange, the Canucks got defenceman Ed Jovanovski, goaltender Kevin Weekes, forwards Dave Gagner and Mike Brown and a first-round draft pick in either 1999 or 2000.

Bure had refused to play for the Canucks this season despite being under contract for $8 million. After the trade, Bure's pro-rated pay from the Panthers for the balance of this season was to be $5 million.

Bure, 27, scored 51 goals last season. In seven years in Vancouver, beginning with his 1991-92 rookie-of-the-year campaign, he scored 254 goals in 428 games. He has had two 60-goal seasons, and he's appeared in four all-star games.

The Panthers improved noticeably after Bure was inserted into their lineup. At 19-18-13 going into a home game Monday night against St. Louis, they were tied with Boston for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.

Florida is in its first season in the 19,200-seat National Car Rental Center and general manager Bryan Murray hit paydirt when he swung the trade to bring in the crowd-pleasing Bure.

"He can lift people out of their seats with his speed and flash," Murray said the day of the trade. "We're also confident he'll lift the play of some of our younger players."

The Panthers GM, well aware that Bure was on the last year of a five-year contract he'd signed with Vancouver, talked with Bure's agent Mike Gillis of Kingston, Ont., the weekend of the trade. A long-term deal was in the making from Day 1.

Bure's rise to prominence began 10 years ago when, playing on a line with Sergei Fedorov and Alexander Mogilny, he was named best forward in helping the Soviet Union win the world junior championship.

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The Rockets has landed, but NHL's Super Bowl hasn't

by Larry Wigge -- The Sporting News

There's a buzz in the sellout crowd, an anticipation that a sense of the dramatic is about to happen. Then a roar comes from the giant video board. "10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. We have liftoff," a voice says. After a pause, the announcer says: "The Russian Rocket has landed."

At a time when south Florida was caught up in whether John Elway and the Broncos were going to win their second straight Super Bowl, Pavel Bure won his share of headlines.

Some previous hockey snobs actually said Bure might soon challenge Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino for top billing, and not only put his face on the Panthers' franchise but sandy south Florida as well.

In his first three games, Bure scored six goals--quickly putting him ahead of 14 of his new teammates. In Bure's much-publicized home debut, he hit a goalpost, was stopped on a breakaway and twice turned back from in tight but still managed to help the Panthers' liftoff with a game-winning assist on a goal by youngster Oleg Kvasha in a 2-1 victory over Montreal. All of this after not playing a game in nine months.

Bure, who twice scored 60 goals and had 51 last season, clearly adds visibility to a team that was lucky to be .500.

"When we're in Philadelphia, we normally see this same old lady and three or four of her friends waiting for our bus outside the arena," Panthers G.M. Bryan Murray says, still in awe of what having a ticket-selling machine on his side means. "There had to be 75 people the other night waiting for autographs. It was incredible."

Incredible? The team was able to acquire seven authentic No. 10 Bure jerseys before his debut. They were sold out in 15 minutes at $324 a pop.

"This franchise has now gone from an expansion team that made it to the Stanley Cup finals on character, hard work and great goaltending to a team that is building to get back to the top of the mountain," says Panthers goaltender Sean Burke, who saw firsthand in Vancouver last season how explosive Bure can be. "I'll tell you one thing: The fans won't need to throw plastic rats onto the ice to get excited the way they did in '96.... Now, Pavel Bure will help bring excitement into this building and bring these fans out of their seats."

Making it to the finals, however, can sometimes be easier than getting back there once you've seen just how difficult it is to win the Stanley Cup.

Boston's Ray Bourque and Calgary's Theo Fleury haven't been to the finals since 1989 and '90, respectively. Panthers center Kirk Muller was in his ninth season before he made it to the finals and won a Stanley Cup in Montreal in 1993. He's still looking for another chance--and stresses to teammates not to get caught up in Pavelmania, that this is a team game.

"You have to have that star credibility, but you also have to have that credibility all the way down the bench," Muller says. "It's almost like passing the baton to the next line in a relay race. Drop the baton, and you lose.

After putting Bure in the lineup, the Panthers beat the Islanders and Rangers and tied the Flyers on the road.

"You could say he's sort of like Mark McGwire," Canadiens winger Mark Recchi says. "Whenever McGwire comes up to the plate, everyone expects him to hit a home run. Same thing with Pavel Bure. Give him a sniff at a goal and he'll beat you.

"And just like some teams pitch around McGwire, we tried to shadow (Bure) with Shayne Corson--and he still set up the winning goal. Great players always seem to find a way to put themselves in those game-winning situations."

But before anyone starts asking for Stanley Cup finals tickets in Florida, they had better remember that McGwire's Cardinals didn't make the playoffs.

Yes, Pavel darts. He even changes lanes and goes around opposing defensemen in a gear faster than many do on 1-95 in Miami. But the rest of the players on the Panthers' roster are too old and slow or young and mistake-prone to take full advantage of Bure's great talent.

Three nights after the Flyers game, the Stars came to town and beat the Panthers, 5-2, and Stars center Mike Modano says although his team didn't put a shadow on Bure, it didn't want him skating freely. They knew Bure had scored half of the Panthers' 12 goals in the past four games.

"Take Terrell Davis out of the game, and the Broncos aren't the same team," Modano says. "Speed still wins in this game, and no disrespect meant, but the Panthers are no track team without Pavel. You have to pay attention to Bure just like you do Terrell Davis, or he can break a game open by himself."

Told about the 70 home run comparison with McGwire, a bewildered-by-all-the-attention Bure says of a goal-a-game pace, "If I scored every game, then I would be Wayne Gretzky.... What did he get, 92 goals one year?" says Bure, shrugging. "And I'm not Gretzky ... or McGwire, either."

Bure won't get 92 goals or 70 home runs this season, but he's one of only about four or five who can score 60 or more in a season again-although in a half-season he does have a chance to break Ray Whitney's team record of 32 goals set last season.

In Vancouver for seven years, Bure says he felt like he was in a fishbowl, that he was blamed when he didn't score and called selfish when he scored in bunches. He walked out on the fifth and final year of a contract that would have paid him $8.3 million but will recover some of those rubles in the next few weeks, when the Panthers finish off a five-year, $47.5 million contract.

"This is like a vacation place for me, not like Vancouver," Bure says. "I like it. I already made some friends at the grocery store. Nice people. Maybe they'll come out and root for us."

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Bure signs reported $47M deal

-- CBS Sportsline

Bure scores with a better paycheck.

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Since his arrival in Florida three weeks ago, superstar Pavel Bure has given the Panthers instant respectability. Today, the Panthers gave Bure instant financial stability.

"I'm really happy to be playing here," Bure said at a news conference at the National Car Rental Center. "I know this team can do something good. It's nice to have a long-term contract. I felt real comfortable here from the first day. It's a big responsibility, but I'll just go out there and do the best I can."

Panthers owner Wayne Huizenga and general manager Bryan Murray decided to make the expensive long-term commitment to Bure, one of the NHL's fastest skaters and true offensive impact players in a sport dominated by defense.

"BRYAN AND I have been looking to do something for some time for this team to step up to the next level," Panthers president Bill Torrey said. "It's a commitment to Pavel, a commitment to the fans to let them know this team wants to compete at the highest levels. For Wayne to give us this kind of backing, it's a clear indication of the direction we're going to go."

"Obviously, it's a commitment on the part of both parties," said Murray. "To get it done, we had a huge commitment made by our owners to have a star player, an elite player join our club. We want to play with the big guys in the league."

Currently sidelined with a strained right knee, Bure initially energized the moribund Panthers, scoring or assisting on 11 of 19 goals as the team went 4-1-1 over a six-game stretch.

Bure ended his season-long holdout when he was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks in a seven-player deal January 17. He was scheduled to make $5.05 million this season but was prepared to sit out the entire campaign.

THE PANTHERS had been sputtering along at 15-16-11 and had been shut out five times until acquiring Bure. He collected eight goals and three assists over six games, including a hat trick in a 3-3 tie against Philadelphia.

Bure left Friday's 3-0 loss at Pittsburgh with a minor strain of a muscle behind his right knee. The following night, the Panthers managed a 3-3 tie at Carolina.

The team had been drawing well but showed a slight increase in attendance since the acquisition of the "Russian Rocket." "We wanted to make a deal that would give us a number of years to build around this star player," Murray said. "We've known the last four, five days the deal was going to be done."

Bure's deal rivals but does not surpass those of superstars Eric Lindros of Philadelphia, Paul Kariya of Anaheim and Jaromir Jagr of Pittsburgh. Lindros and Kariya have deals averaging $8.5 million per season and Jagr's deal is for $48 million over six years.

The 27-year-old Bure tied for third in the NHL with 90 points and 51 goals last season. In 1992-93, he became the first 50-goal and 100-point scorer in Canucks history, finishing with 60 goals and 50 assists. Bure also had 60 goals in the 1993-94 season, helping Vancouver reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time.

Florida made the Stanley Cup Finals in 1996, its third year of existence. But the Panthers have played just one postseason series since and currently are tied with Boston for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.

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Bure out at least 2 more games

by Clark Spencer -- Miami Herald

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Pavel Bure is expected to miss a minimum of a week with what was diagnosed Saturday as a strained right knee.

Bure injured the knee when he lost his balance and fell to the ice in the first period of Friday's game in Pittsburgh. The forward flew back to South Florida on Saturday to undergo an MRI and X-rays.

``He's got a slight [muscle] strain in the back of the knee,'' Panthers coach Terry Murray said. ``He'll be out a minimum of a week and after that we'll re-evaluate him. Hopefully, that's the maximum, too.''

In addition to Saturday's game at Carolina, Bure will miss games Monday against visiting St. Louis and at Ottawa on Thursday. He could be back for Saturday's game at Montreal.

The injury occured in the same knee that required reconstructive surgery in 1995 when Bure tore the anterior cruciate ligament, which caused him to miss most of the 1995-96 season. But Murray said the two injuries are unrelated.

``It has nothing to do with the injury before,'' Murray said. ``He was a little nervous about it. When you've had reconstructive surgery and something happens to that leg, I'm sure anybody would have apprehensions. I'm sure today he's feeling a lot better. He'll start rehab and strengthening treatment to his leg immediately.''

Bure flew on the team charter to Greensboro after Friday's game, but then caught a commercial flight to South Florida to undergo tests on the injury. He was seen by Dr. David E. Attarian at the Cleveland Clinic in Fort Lauderdale.

``He's had a tremendous impact on our team for the time he's been here,'' Murray said. ``You miss your top players the most when they get hurt.''

Murray said there are two ways of looking at Bure's injury: ``It could have been a lot worse, and he could have been hurt last night and played tonight, too.''

Murray said the injury was to the calf muscle that is attached to the back of Bure's knee.

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Bure out at least a week for Panthers

by David Droschak -- AP Sports Writer

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) - Pavel Bure, who scored eight goals in his first six games with Florida, will miss at least one week because of a slight muscle strain to his right knee, Panthers coach Terry Murray said Saturday.

Bure did not dress for Saturday's key Southeast Division game with the Carolina Hurricanes and could miss at least three games next week after an MRI procedure in Florida revealed the injury.

The Panthers entered the game trailing division leader Carolina by four points.

Bure was injured with 2:26 left in the first period Friday night in a 3-0 loss at Pittsburgh while trying to redirect the puck with his skate.

Since ending a season-long holdout and joining Florida in a seven-player trade with Vancouver on Jan. 17, the right wing had scored at least one goal in all but one of six games.

``You have injuries and you've just got to suck it up,'' said Murray. ``You always miss your top player more than the other guys. We are going to miss him a great deal. He's had a tremendous impact on our team from the time he's gotten here, but again that's the way things are in this game.''

Murray said Bure's injury is to the same knee that required reconstruction surgery during the 1995-96 season, forcing him to miss the final 67 games. However, Murray said this injury is not related.

``He was a little nervous about it,'' Murray said. ``When you've had that reconstruction and anything happens to that leg any player would have some apprehension and be nervous about what his status is.''

Murray said Bure will be replaced in the lineup by Alex Hicks, who has no goals in 25 games.

``If Pavel is in the lineup it still takes the 20 guys that are dressed that night to go out and play hard for the 60 minutes,'' said Murray. ``The direction of what we need to do is the same. I'm sure there will be a lot of juggling of lines out there.''

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Pavel injured !!

Pavel Bure is knocked off the puck by Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Jiri Slegr during first period NHL action Friday Feb. 5, 1999 in Pittsburgh. Bure left the game in the second period with a knee injury, not suffered on this play.(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Pavel Bure, who had eight goals in his first six games with the Florida Panthers, left Friday night's game in Pittsburgh with a slightly strained right knee.

The sprain was described initially as ''slight,'' but the knee will be re-examined today, and it remained uncertain how long the injury will keep him out of the lineup.

''It's not too bad right now,'' Bure said after the game. ''It's a little bit stiff. I was trying to kick the puck, I missed the puck, and I lost my balance. It was a little bit sore, so I decided to go out. He [the trainer] said it's better to stay out.''

The incident occurred with 2:24 left in the first period. While trying to clear the zone, Bure lost his edge at the blue line when he tried to play a bouncing puck with his skate. But he missed, lost his balance and twisted awkwardly to the ice in front of the Panthers' bench.

Bure limped off in pain and slumped over on the bench as trainer Dave Smith began treatment. After fellow superstar Jaromir Jagr gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead with the first of his two goals with 1:02 left, Bure tried to test the knee by playing the ensuing shift.

The knee wouldn't cooperate, and he quickly made an about-face for the bench, slamming the door behind him in frustration.

Standing without the aid of crutches, Bure put weight on his knees by almost doing a tap dance to show reporters he had little discomfort after the game. He did have a slight limp.

Bure has had problems with his right knee before. On Nov. 9, 1995, he was mugged behind the net in Chicago by defenseman Steve Smith. His skate got caught in a rut, and he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament. He missed the next 67 games and underwent reconstructive surgery.

''We just don't know what it is right now,'' Bure said.

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Bure no prima donna, say teammates

-- Slam Hockey

SUNRISE, Fla. (CP) -- The angst that plagued Pavel Bure as a Vancouver Canuck seems to have vanished under the Florida sun as the new member of the Florida Panthers.

When asked by Toronto Maple Leafs Tie Domi to donate an autographed stick on Wednesday to Domi's charity dinner, Bure obliged that and several other requests after the morning skate.

"I haven't seen any prima donna-type attitude from him at all," Panthers centre Kirk Muller told the Toronto Sun. "We collected for a silent team auction the other night and he whipped his game-worn jersey into the pile. That kind of behaviour is important on a team such as this where there haven't really been any stars and everyone's equal.

Muller shrugged when asked how Bure was perceived by NHLers regarding his abandonment of the Canucks.

"You just judge him by yourself, not what others say about him," Muller said.

"Whatever happened in Vancouver, he wasn't happy there for a number of years."

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Russian Rocket enjoying sunny days in Florida

by Lance Hornby -- Toronto Sun

SUNRISE, Fla. -- In the thousands of kilometres between Florida and Vancouver, the cloud of bad press that followed Pavel Bure has evaporated.

His pouts, his holdout from the Canucks and his mudslinging at Vancouver management have been replaced by a kinder, gentler Bure.

As the Panthers winger spoke to a Toronto Sun reporter at the National Car Rental Center, the Maple Leafs' Tie Domi shouted down the hall for an autographed stick for his charity dinner. Bure was quick to respond, one of several favours and requests he handled yesterday after the morning skate. He sees the attention he has generated as vindication of his controversial trade stand.

"Definitely (the holdout) was worth it," Bure said. "I'm really happy to be back in the NHL. It's working out, not just for me but for the organization here. It's a good bunch of people here, a good system and the fans have been unbelievable."

Most certainly, to the point of selling out the rink for the three games he has played since the trade. Though some veteran Pavel Peepers predict the chemistry won't last, the Panthers have no complaints so far.

"I haven't seen any prima donna-type attitude from him at all," Panthers centre Kirk Muller said. "We collected for a silent team auction the other night and he whipped his game-worn jersey into the pile. That kind of behaviour is important on a team such as this where there haven't really been any stars and everyone's equal.

"Pav has been such a big lift for us and brought so much hockey excitement to the area. He's the one guy we have who can bring people to the edge of their seats with all his moves."

Muller shrugged when asked how Bure was perceived by NHLers regarding his abandonment of the Canucks.

"You just judge him by yourself, not what others say about him," Muller said. "Whatever happened in Vancouver, he wasn't happy there for a number of years."

Leafs coach Pat Quinn, whose role as Canucks general manager was prominent in Bure's public rehash of bad memories of the West Coast, had little comment yesterday about Bure the person.

"I love the kid," Quinn said, assuring that he meant it. When Bure said last month he was short-changed on a Canucks contract, Quinn's successor, Brian Burke, charged to his old boss' defence, saying Bure was way out of line to "throw stones" at the man who helped deliver him from the former Soviet Union.

Interviews with Bure used to be conducted on the run, but he has made attempts to answer every request from the south Florida media contingent.

CO-OPERATION

"We as coaches appreciate what a guy like him can do for the whole team. I'm a believer that your best player on the ice should be your best player in practice and Pavel has reinforced that. He's done all the drills we've asked of him and done them the right way."

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Bure, Panthers close in on $47M deal

-- National Post

Pavel Bure and the Florida Panthers have almost concluded talks on a five-year contract worth $47-million (US).

The salary breakdown, sources tell the National Post, is $8-million in each of the first two years, $10-million in each of the next two, and $11-million in the final year.

Bure was to have made $5-million (US) with the Vancouver Canucks this season, but held out for a trade. He was traded to the Panthers a couple of weeks ago, and Florida agreed to pay him $3-million for the remainder of this season.

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Pavel scores in win over hot Toronto

SUNRISE, Florida (Ticker) -- The Florida Panthers continued to ride the crest of the Pavel Bure acquisition, getting a goal and two assists from the Russian superstar in a 5-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Obtained from Vancouver on January 17, Bure has a point in all six games with Florida, helping the Panthers to a 4-1-1 record. He has scored or set up 11 of Florida's 19 goals during that stretch.

Sean Burke made 17 of his 34 saves in the third period for the Panthers, who ended a five-game winless streak against Toronto with their first victory since November 14, 1995. Florida's Terry Murray became the seventh active coach to reach the 300-win mark.

Bure opened the scoring and put the Panthers ahead for good with 3:18 left in the first period. "I always say it's a team game," Bure said. "We all pulled together tonight and showed the fans we're a good team."

With both teams down a man, Jaroslav Spacek's shot was blocked but teammate Rob Niedermayer controlled the puck in the left faceoff circle. He steered it into the slot, where Bure wristed a shot just under the crossbar for his eighth goal.

Despite a good early effort at neutralizing Bure, the Leafs were dazzled by the Russian Rocket's work with linemates Ray Whitney and Rob Niedermayer.

"He's a premier player in the league, so he's going to get his opportunities," Smith said of Bure.

"Obviously, he's a threat every time he's on the ice," Toronto's Mats Sundin said. "You have to be aware of him. At times he disappears, but then he appears and creates shots."

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Pavel-mania hits in south Florida

by Mike Brehm -- USA TODAY

To see original newspaper clip, click with mouse on above.

Rocket prepares for takeoff during his first game as a member of the Panthers on Jan. 20 (AP)

SUNRISE, Fla. - When the Florida Panthers acquired Pavel Bure from the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 17, the players were as wide-eyed as the fans.

"Everyone couldn't wait until he got here," rookie Mark Parrish says. "Everyone was saying, 'Is he here? Is he here yet?' It's weird to see guys who've been in the league 10 years excited to see a player like that."

Yes, the two-time 60-goal scorer brings instant credibility to the Panthers, but mostly he brings excitement. On a team known for good defense and a blue-collar work ethic, he brings the glamour and glitz of South Beach. Since-departed star John Vanbiesbrouck might have drawn admiration for his solid saves, but Bure has the ability to get fans - even team presidents - on the edge of their seats every time he touches the puck.

"When he scored (against Philadelphia), I looked over at Bill Torrey and he fell off his chair almost," general manager Bryan Murray says of the reaction of the Panthers' president.

"The Russian Rocket" has been everything the Panthers have hoped for and more. Though Bure hadn't played in nine months because of a holdout, he has seven goals and an assist in five games, including a hat trick against Philadelphia in his third game.

In two weeks, he has become the Panthers' 11th-leading scorer and has half the goal total that leading scorer Ray Whitney compiled in 46 games. His speed backs off defensemen and creates opportunities.

"His first two strides are unbelievable," Parrish says. "Right off the bat, he's like lightning."


But Bure, 27, is more than breakneck speed, world-class moves and jaw-dropping goals. He is a marketer's dream, especially with the team in a new arena.

Phones have been ringing off the hook at the season-ticket office since the trade was made. His first two home games have been sellouts in 19,200-seat National Car Rental Center, following only six in the first 22 games. A 2,000-copy run of the team program - Bure bumped Kirk Muller off the cover in a quick remake - was snapped up in 15 minutes. A combination of 50 authentic (for $324) and replica ($199) No. 10 jerseys sold in two games. SportsChannel Florida ratings are the highest they've been all season.

Indeed, Pavel-mania has hit south Florida. The Panthers always have had their niche, especially after reaching the Stanley Cup Finals in 1996, but they never had the superstar that made them stand out. Now, they do.

"The perception down here is that he's as big a superstar in his sport as Dan Marino is in football," team communications director Mike Hanson says.

The Panthers are getting the national attention that eluded them the last two years. Reporters broke free from Super Bowl week to cram the press box for his home debut last Wednesday.

And autograph-seekers are greeting the team in droves. "In Philadelphia, normally you have the same lady and four or five of her friends," Murray says. "There were probably 75 people waiting there when we were boarding the bus."

Of course, Bure never would have been available if he had not forced the issue by vowing to sit out all season. Word came out he wasn't happy with the fishbowl existence in Vancouver, that he felt he couldn't go out in public.

Not true, says Bure. His dispute was with management, not with fans. He had "a great time" in Vancouver and enjoyed the city and all the friends he made there.

"People can say whatever they want about me," he says. "A lot of times, they put their own thoughts in my mouth. I never said it. If people lie, I'll just ignore it."

Canucks general manager Brian Burke said he would wait until he got the right deal, prompting a daily rumor mill. Bure's brother, Calgary winger Valeri Bure, even floated a story that Bure would sign with a team in Belarus.

Late arrivals

The Panthers got involved relatively late in the Bure talks and traded defenseman Ed Jovanovski, center Dave Gagner, goalie Kevin Weekes, prospect Mike Brown and a first-round pick to land Bure, defenseman Bret Hedican and prospect Brad Ference.

Murray says he isn't worried that Bure's holdout means he arrives with baggage.

"I really believe that things happen in people's lives when they're younger and you put it aside because it never happens again," Murray says. "If you deal with a guy honestly and tell him what you expect from him on and off the playing field, a guy will respond to that.

"He's just an awfully good player who wasn't happy in the situation he was in before and decided it was time to move on and forced the issue. He put the pressure on like Eric Lindros did in Quebec. Lindros doesn't have a lot of baggage with him at this point."

Coach Terry Murray planned to break Bure in slowly. But with Bure having a hot hand, Murray had him playing 30 minutes in his third game.

"Pavel is a well-conditioned athlete," Murray says. "He plays the game in a way where it's not overtaxing on him. You're not looking at a guy who's going to be running over guys. He skates well and knows when to really turn it up."

The Panthers have turned it up since Bure's arrival. In 11th place when the trade was made, they've gone 3-1-1 and are now tied for the eighth and final playoff spot.

"It couldn't get any better," Bure says, "especially when you're winning. I was missing that kind of feeling."

He is happy, which should throw a scare into the Eastern Conference. After all, he scored 51 goals last season while he was unhappy. When he was in his element last year as captain of the Russian Olympic team, he was dominating, scoring five goals against Finland in the semifinal.

"When you read the resume that he has brought along with him, it's easy to see what he has done, although you haven't seen him a lot," Terry Murray says. "He's done some wonderful things in this game. He's a very gifted guy, and he's living up to his billing."

Even Bure is surprised by his start with the Panthers.

"Obviously, you can't score a goal every game," he says. "If I could score every game, you'd be Wayne Gretzky, who used to score 92 goals. Hockey is a team game. You can't expect one player to do it all."

Heavy reliance

If anything, the Panthers might rely on Bure too much.

His seven goals are half the total the team has scored in the five games since he arrived.

"He's going to get closely checked every time we're going to play for the rest of the year," Terry Murray says. "Other people are going to have to take advantage of the opportunities. We haven't figured that out. That's going to take some time."

But with the Panthers working to sign Bure to a long-term deal - believed to be about $47 million over five years - there will be plenty of time for that. He'll give the youngsters time to develop and inject enthusiasm into a team that has done little since its 1996 run.

"We're playing with confidence now," Parrish says. "Before, we'd win a game or win two games and we'd kind of be riding high and we'd never know what would happen in the next one. Now we're excited about going out there."

And south Florida is going along for the ride.

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Bure's addition stirs fans' hope for a Cup

by Michael Russo -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel

In a survey on the Sun-Sentinel Internet Edition, the question was posed: "With the acquisition of Pavel Bure, how far away are the Panthers from winning the Stanley Cup?"

Of the more than 600 entries cast through Monday, 44 percent voted, "This year."

But in Saturday night's blowout to Stanley Cup-contending Dallas, it was obvious how large the gap is between the Panthers and Stars.

The Panthers might have been intimidated by the powerhouse Stars, because six times last month the Panthers rallied from deficits, including a 3-0, third-period deficit to Wednesday night's opponent, Toronto.

But as good as the Maple Leafs are, the Stars are clearly another animal. Disregarding the number of stars Dallas has, the team suffocates opponents with a work ethic that's unparalleled. It executes the same way all game, and when the Panthers got down 2-0, it was evident there would be no comeback.

"Our intensity lowered big-time and we stopped playing the same kind of game that we've seen throughout most the month of January," coach Terry Murray said.

The Panthers went 5-4-6 last month, which was the first time they finished a month above .500 since January 1997, when they were 6-5-1.

The Panthers were off Monday, but before Sunday's long and hard practice, Murray gathered the players to the side of the rink for a 20-minute meeting.

"What I tried to highlight was here was Dallas, the premier team in the NHL, and they go the same way shift after shift after shift," Murray said.

"Sure, they have their star players, and those were the guys who emerged, but it wasn't them who beat us. It was ourselves.

"I can absorb losing, I can handle that when it somes to the real good teams. But let's not lose the way we did. Let's keep battling and execute properly, but that didn't happen."

Besides all the turnovers and mistakes, the Panthers weren't able to get an attack going because of Dallas' forechecking.

Instead of good passes, the defensemen were swinging the puck around the boards on dump-ins, slowing down the attack. "There was never any coordination," Murray said. "We didn't show any patience or poise. ... It's the little things that make Dallas successful, and we didn't do the little things correctly."

Center Kirk Muller, who won a Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1993, was also disappointed with the loss because it was a measuring stick for the Panthers. And the only thing they learned is that they don't measure up with elite teams such as Dallas.

"We have to learn how to push each other in this room and hold each other to higher standards," Muller said. "You can take the X's and O's, but what it all comes down to is for us right now to hate to lose much more to get to the next level of teams.

"You can have it from the media, the fans and even the coaches, but the pressure has to come from in here. That's where you feel it the greatest. We have to start to hold each other to higher standards."

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Russian rocket gives Florida big boost

by Larry Wigge -- The Sporting News

There's a buzz in the sellout crowd, an anticipation that a sense of the dramatic is about to happen. Then a roar comes from the giant video board. "10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, l. We have liftoff," a voice says. After a pause, the announcer says: "The Russian Rocket has landed."

At a time when south Florida was caught up in whether John Elway and the Broncos were going to win their second straight Super Bowl, Pavel Bure won his share of headlines.

Some previous hockey snobs actually said Bure might soon challenge Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino for top billing, and not only put his face on the Panthers' franchise but sandy south Florida as well.

In his first three games, Bure scored six goals -- quickly putting him ahead of 14 of his new teammates. In Bure's much-publicized home debut, he hit a goalpost, was stopped on a breakaway and twice turned back from in tight but still managed to help the Panthers' liftoff with a game-winning assist on a goal by youngster Oleg Kvasha in a 2-1 victory over Montreal. All of this after not playing a game in nine months.

Bure, who twice scored 60 goals and had 51 last season, clearly adds visibility to a team that was lucky to be .500.

"When we're in Philadelphia, we normally see this same old lady and three or four of her friends waiting for our bus outside the arena," Panthers G.M. Bryan Murray says, still in awe of what having a ticket-selling machine on his side means. "There had to be 75 people the other night waiting for autographs. It was incredible."

Incredible? The team was able to acquire seven authentic No. 10 Bure jerseys before his debut. They were sold out in 15 minutes at $324 a pop.

"This franchise has now gone from an expansion team that made it to the Stanley Cup finals on character, hard work and great goaltending to a team that is building to get back to the top of the mountain," says Panthers goaltender Sean Burke, who saw firsthand in Vancouver last season how explosive Bure can be. "I'll tell you one thing: The fans won't need to throw plastic rats onto the ice to get excited the way they did in '96. ... Now, Pavel Bure will help bring excitement into this building and bring these fans out of their seats."

Making it to the finals, however, can sometimes be easier than getting back there once you've seen just how difficult it is to win the Stanley Cup.

Boston's Ray Bourque and Calgary's Theo Fleury haven't been to the finals since 1989 and '90, respectively. Panthers center Kirk Muller was in his ninth season before he made it to the finals and won a Stanley Cup in Montreal in 1993. He's still looking for another chance -- and stresses to teammates not to get caught up in Pavelmania, that this is a team game.

"You have to have that star credibility, but you also have to have that credibility all the way down the bench," Muller says. "It's almost like passing the baton to the next line in a relay race. Drop the baton, and you lose.

"And what we have to guard against here is standing around watching Pavel. I've been in this league 15 years, and I must admit I've had to catch myself a time or two. . . . If we are going to be successful, we have to feed off his excitement, not stand there in awe."

After putting Bure in the lineup, the Panthers beat the Islanders and Rangers and tied the Flyers on the road.

"You could say he's sort of like Mark McGwire," Canadiens winger Mark Recchi says. "Whenever McGwire comes up to the plate, everyone expects him to hit a home run. Same thing with Pavel Bure. Give him a sniff at a goal and he'll beat you.

"And just like some teams pitch around McGwire, we tried to shadow (Bure) with Shayne Corson -- and he still set up the winning goal. Great players always seem to find a way to put themselves in those game-winning situations."

But before anyone starts asking for Stanley Cup finals tickets in Florida, they had better remember that McGwire's Cardinals didn't make the playoffs.

Yes, Pavel darts. He even changes lanes and goes around opposing defensemen in a gear faster than many do on I-95 in Miami. But the rest of the players on the Panthers' roster are too old and slow or young and mistake-prone to take full advantage of Bure's great talent.

Three nights after the Flyers game, the Stars came to town and beat the Panthers, 5-2, and Stars center Mike Modano says although his team didn't put a shadow on Bure, it didn't want him skating freely. They knew Bure had scored half of the Panthers' 12 goals in the past four games.

"Take Terrell Davis out of the game, and the Broncos aren't the same team," Modano says. "Speed still wins in this game, and no disrespect meant, but the Panthers are no track team without Pavel. You have to pay attention to Bure just like you do Terrell Davis, or he can break a game open by himself."

Told about the 70 home run comparison with McGwire, a bewildered-by-all-the-attention Bure says of a goal-a-game pace, "If I scored every game, then I would be Wayne Gretzky. . . . What did he get, 92 goals one year?" says Bure, shrugging. "And I'm not Gretzky . . . or McGwire, either."

Bure won't get 92 goals or 70 home runs this season, but he's one of only about four or five who can score 60 or more in a season again -- although in a half-season he does have a chance to break Ray Whitney's team record of 32 goals set last season.

In Vancouver for seven years, Bure says he felt like he was in a fishbowl, that he was blamed when he didn't score and called selfish when he scored in bunches. He walked out on the fifth and final year of a contract that would have paid him $8.3 million but will recover some of those rubles in the next few weeks, when the Panthers finish off a five-year, $47.5 million contract.

"This is like a vacation place for me, not like Vancouver," Bure says. "I like it. I already made some friends at the grocery store. Nice people. Maybe they'll come out and root for us."

Panthers fans, those rats fanatics of the past, are going to find that getting back to the finals takes more than writing one big paycheck, but says the Rangers' Gretzky, "Pavel will bring some excitement to those fans -- and he'll be worth every penny once they develop the kind of team they want around him."

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