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HERITAGE
CLASSIC > FEATURES
Not everybody was eager to play MegaStars game
Wayne Gretzky has said the Heritage Classic MegaStars game this Saturday wouldn't be the same without his friend and former Oilers great Mark Messier.
The same case could be made for the NHL's all-time winningest goalie
Patrick Roy, who unlike Messier, won't participate in the outdoor
event at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium pitting the Montreal Canadiens
alumni against the Oilers' former stars.
"We talked to both Patrick and (former Canadiens great) Ken Dryden and you get the same answer from both of them. They don't want to put the pads on after their career," said Canadiens alumni general manager/assistant coach Rejean Houle.
"Goalies are vulnerable. They're the last guys before the (goal) line. They think people might look at them and judge them if they have a bad game."
On Thursday, the Oilers confirmed Messier's participation in the game.
The Edmonton native was awaiting permission from New York Rangers
coach Glen Sather, who will coach the Oilers MegaStars.
Messier, 42, is in his 25th NHL season and 10th with the Rangers.
He won five Stanley Cups with the Oilers in the 1980s and 1990, and
one as a Ranger in 1994. Messier is the lone player to captain two
Cup champions.
Among the more notable players absent from the Canadiens' roster are forwards Mats Naslund, Bob Gainey, Ryan Walter, Pierre Mondou, Mario Tremblay, Shayne Corson and netminder Rick Wamsley.
Houle said Gainey, who was named general manager of the Canadiens on June 2, didn't want to play in the MegaStars game.
Houle also didn't approach Tremblay, who is an assistant coach with the Minnesota Wild.
Past Oilers who won't suit up this weekend are goaltender Andy Moog, defenceman Steve Smith, current head coach Craig MacTavish and forwards Kevin McClelland, Pat Hughes and Mike Krushelnyski.
"A lot of players called us but we couldn't say yes to them," said Houle, adding the 21-man roster had been set. "We could have had two teams of 20 players."
Former Habs forwards Brian Bellows and Doug Gilmour expressed an interest in playing along with Brian Skrudland, who may join head coach Jacques Demers and Houle behind the team's bench as an assistant.
Houle, who played nine full seasons in a Montreal uniform during the early 1970s and '80s, wanted to select players from the Canadiens' Stanley Cup-winning teams in the '70s, 1986 and 1993.
"The only guy (on the roster) who didn't win a Cup was Russ Courtnall," Houle said, "but we wanted a guy with speed to keep up with those (high-flying) Edmonton Oilers."
For the Oilers, Moog had originally accepted the team's invitation to play, but later declined because of his commitment to the Dallas Stars as their goalie coach.
Steve Smith won't attend due to a prior commitment in Toronto. The former blue-liner still holds the Oilers' record for most penalty minutes in a season with 286.
McClelland, who is an assistant coach with the St. John's Maple Leafs of the American Hockey League, backed out for personal reasons.
According to Oilers' vice-president of public relations Bill Tuele, MacTavish decided not to play, saying his focus is with the current Oilers' squad. Following the MegaStars game, Edmonton plays host to Montreal in an NHL regular season tilt at Commonwealth Stadium.
"We had several players call us. It was a difficult decision, even for a team with a relatively short history," Tuele said. "We've had so many great players, but it's difficult to include everybody."
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