Twins Territory

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Lemaire turns practice into 3-on-3 tournament

By Michael Russo, Star Tribune
Last update: December 20, 2006 – 10:35 PM

With two days before Friday's game in Detroit, Jacques Lemaire wanted his players to practice Wednesday but knew "some guys would have been looking at the time when it was going to be over."
So the Wild coach instead allowed the players to play a fast, exciting version of morale-boosting shinny (i.e. pickup hockey).

Before practice, the six defensemen held a draft to choose forwards. Keith Carney picked Brian Rolston with the first overall pick and Derek Boogaard with the last.

Lemaire ridiculed Carney for the first pick because Rolston's "not a practice player."I agree 100 percent," reacted Rolston.

They played a tournament-style format of 3-on-3 games played horizontally in one end zone with each goal placed along the sideboards. The laughs and one-liners were plentiful.

Defenseman Brent Burns had the sixth pick, so he got to choose two players in a row. He picked Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Pascal Dupuis, although Dupuis "made clear I was the first-rounder."

When Boogaard buried Rolston's feed, teammates went crazy. When Branko Radivojevic, who scored twice Tuesday against Vancouver, scored on Manny Fernandez, Lemaire screamed, "He's hot. He's hot."

The funniest moment came in the championship -- Kim Johnsson, Pavol Demitra and Wyatt Smith vs. Martin Skoula, Mark Parrish and Radivojevic. Johnsson buried Demitra's rebound at the last second, but nobody was sure Johnsson beat the buzzer.

As General Manager Doug Risebrough sat in the stands, his phone rang. It was assistant coach Mike Ramsey calling "Toronto" from the referee's crease.

"I didn't even see it, so it's a goal," cracked Risebrough, a jab at the NHL for the amount of controversial goal/non-goal decisions lately.

Center Mikko Koivu was ticked Johnsson's goal stood.

"That's what Swedes always get -- luck," quipped Koivu, a Finn.

Rolston said: "This was absolutely good for us. We just had fun out there. We're coming off a big win, and this helps make us feel good about ourselves even more going into [back-to-back games against Detroit Friday and Saturday]."

Skoula comes around

Lemaire was delighted with Skoula's game Tuesday, especially because he's averaged one killer shift a game recently.

At Dallas on Dec. 2, Skoula's turnover led to Jussi Jokinen's tying goal. Against Chicago on Dec. 9, Skoula carelessly stepped up at center ice, then backchecked lazily, helping trigger a Blackhawks rally. At Edmonton on Dec. 14, Skoula didn't pick up Matt Greene going to the net for the tying goal. And Saturday in Vancouver, Skoula's tripping penalty led to Mattias Ohlund's winner.

"It's one play that is costly," Lemaire said. "To me it's a lack of focus."

This and that

• Risebrough said Marian Gaborik's Los Angeles-based soft tissue specialist says Gaborik, who has missed 26 games because of a strained groin, "is responding faster now than the last time he saw him last year." Last season, the doctor got Gaborik playing within two weeks of treatment.

• Defenseman Kurtis Foster (larynx) practiced Wednesday and could play this weekend, Lemaire said.

• Defenseman Petteri Nummelin (upper body) didn't practice Wednesday but is probable for Friday.

• Smith cleared waivers Wednesday. He can be reassigned to the minors within 10 games or 30 days after Dec. 28.

• With two assists Tuesday, Koivu (22 points) surpassed his point total of last season's 64-game rookie campaign.

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