Excitement! Drama! Suspense! This NHL season has more than its fair share of exciting plot lines to keep fans riveted from the opening faceoff to the final horn

Hockey Digest, Dec, 2002 by Keith Loria

LOOKING BACK ON LAST SEASON, the NHL had plenty of intriguing stories that kept hockey fans riveted to the sports pages and sports broadcasts from opening day until the final game of the playoffs.

Would all the big moves the Red Wings made return the Cup to the Motor City?

Would the woebegone Islanders return to the respectability after finally opening up the purse strings and signing Alexei Yashin, Michael Peca, and Chris Osgood?

Would Eric Lindros come back strong from his exile to help lead the improvident Rangers back to the playoffs?

Well, two out of three ain't bad.

As the 2002-03 season gets underway, there are plenty of interesting plot lines developing in the NHL that have as much excitement and mystery as a typical blockbuster movie. The offseason provided a lot of questions concerning the players, coaches, league executives, and even the NHL's TV contract.

Here are 10 plot lines that will be pondered and debated by NHL fans this season.

CHANGES IN HOCKEYTOWN

It didn't take long after Detroit's Stanley Cup victory for the pieces of its championship team to start crumbling. First, coach Scotty Bowman announced he was retiring and then All-Star goalie Dominik Hasek decided to call it a career as well. Fredrik Olausson went back to the Ducks as a free agent and Chris Chelios was entertaining offers from several teams around the league. To top it all off, captain Steve Yzerman had an operation on his right knee in the offseason that will keep him out of action for several months. He even hinted at retirement if the pain continues.

Luckily for Motown fans, Norris finalist Chelios decided to stay with the team and the Red Wings brought in the best available goalie in Curtis Joseph to replace Hasek in net. They also kept Darren McCarty in place by signing him on the heels of training camp.

Taking over for Bowman is longtime Detroit assistant Dave Lewis. He may have big championship skates to fill, but Lewis is well respected in the organization and has survived behind the bench for the past three coaching regimes.

With a nucleus that includes Luc Robitaille, Brett Hull, Chelios, Nicklas Lidstrom, Sergei Fedorov, and Brendan Shanahan, the team should be a top contender for the Cup once again.

AND AN ISLANDER SHALL LEAD THEM

Despite the team bringing in marquee name after marquee name, the Rangers haven't reached the playoffs since 1997. They spent the offseason retooling again, adding prize free agents Bobby Holik and Darius Kasparaitis to play alongside All-Stars Eric Lindros, Pavel Bure, Brain Leetch, and Mark Messier. They also resigned goalie Mike Richter and watched their budget climb to new heights.

Spending gobs of money hasn't worked for the Rangers in the past, but Holik gives them a top-notch player in the prime of his career and he could very well be collecting the Hart Trophy by season's end. His presence should guarantee that the Rangers return to some postseason glory.

However, the biggest move the Rangers made--and probably the most shocking--was bringing in rookie coach Bryan Trottier to lead the team. As a member of the Islanders dynasty of the early '80s, "Trotts" was despised by Rangers fans, and New Yorkers have long memories. If the team starts off slowly, expect the boo birds to be out in full force as the coach becomes the scapegoat.

HITCHCOCK PUTS FEAR IN THE FLYERS

Although long considered to be a tough and hard-nosed coach who sometimes alienates players, Ken Hitchcock was brought in to Philadelphia to lead the underachieving Flyers to possible Stanley Cup dreams.

A proven winner in Dallas--the Stars won a Stanley Cup and got to another Finals series during five straight 100-point-plus seasons--Hitchcock was fired after the Stars started slowly last season. His rugged demeanor supposedly had just as much to do with his departure from the team.

The Flyers are loaded with proven stars such as Mark Recchi, John LeClair, Keith Primeau, and Jeremy Roenick, but whether they will listen to Hitchcock and his orders remains to be seen. Veteran stars don't like to be told what to do and Hitchcock will bark at players all day long to get his way.

GM Bob Clarke has stated that if Hitchcock can't coach this team, then no one can. If the players don't respond to their new coach, there's a good chance that it will be Clarke who is hitching a ride out of Philly at season's end.

HOW MANY GAMES WILL MARIO PLAY?

Focusing on the Olympics last season--a little too much in the eyes of some Penguins fans--Mario Lemieux was limited to just 24 regular-season games due to injuries to his hip and back. Super Mario did score 31 points in those games, but it wasn't enough to lead Pittsburgh to the playoffs--their first postseason miss in more than a decade.

Lemieux has said that he hopes to play in about 60-70 games this season, and will probably see less time on the ice in the early parts of the season as he continues to recover from those nagging pains.

But if the Penguins start losing early, expect Lemieux to tough it up and keep the team close in the playoff picture. When he's out there, he still provides as much scoring spark as anyone on the ice, and as long as he's playing there's a chance he can get support for a new arena, thus keeping the Pens in Pittsburgh. And besides, the next Olympics aren't for another four years.