


Adrian - As a player, would it not make more sense to stick with a winning team for less money or a lower-line assignment than go to a team that has little chance of postseason action, for big money, and end up shouldering all the responsibility? I just look at Peter Forsberg's departure to Philly, Adam Foote to Columbus and Rob Blake to L.A. as prime examples.
-- John, Hooksett, N.H.

John - Good to hear from the Granite State. Have you paid your 75-cent toll? (Inside joke).

Well, Foote and Blake, I can see your argument. No way in god's green earth do the Blue Jackets and Kings win the Stanley Cup the last couple years. The only thing lower than the temperatures here in my Calgary hotel room as I write this were Foote's and Blake's combined minus numbers last year.

But with Forsberg in Philly, it was supposed to be different. That team had a real shot at a Cup - and in the first year Foppa was there, they were as good as it got much of the regular season. But by the playoffs, it was a worn-down team and they bowed out. The next year, it was a disaster in Philly, and he moved on to Nashville.

So, yeah, I can see taking a hometown discount in a lot of situations. I mean, look at Sergei Fedorov's career since he opted for bigger bucks in Anaheim (when they were bad) and Columbus. If he'd have stayed in Detroit, he might have another ring right now.

It's tough - I mean, you want to get paid as a pro athlete, but you want to win. You don't always get both, but I think in a player's dark corners of his heart, he'd have taken staying on for less on a good team than going for an extra million for what turned out to be a lousy team - a la Foote and Blake.

Former Avalanche defenseman Adam Foote
Former Avalanche defenseman Adam Foote (Post file)

Hi, Adrian! What is the news on Patrick Roy? How is he doing? Is there any chance he might rejoin the Avalanche organization any time soon? I admit, him making a comeback in goal is almost impossible, but perhaps a position in player development or assistant coach would suit him!
-- Ondrej Chvosta, Prague, Czech Republic

Ondrej (that's what my mom almost named me before Adrian) - First off, I think Roy's playing days are toast. Last I checked, he was looking a little doughy around the middle and the man is 42 now. So, forget the Gordie Howe comeback.

Listen, I think he'll be a GREAT GM in the NHL some day, though, and it's always possible he could come back to the Avs in a management capacity. But with Francois Giguere being a young GM and, I think, a pretty good one, there might not be an opening for quite a while.

Roy might be a coach in the NHL, but I think Patrick thinks of himself more as a management guy, the guy who makes the decisions on personnel - not at the whim of a GM over his head.

He's doing fine coaching his junior team in Quebec still, and has had a lot of success there. He'll always succeed at whatever he does in hockey.

The problem with the new jerseys is that they took away the black-and-white stripe on the shoulders and arms. The straight maroon-to-blue coloring looks awkward and tacky. Can we expect new jerseys next year? Perhaps third jerseys?
-- Alex, Brooklyn, N.

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Alex - I haven't given a lot of thought to the new jerseys. I think, once you pass 40, how a team is dressed starts to fall on the Life Priority Attention List.

As a younger man, I cared about not only how my team played, but also how they looked. Thank God I was never a fan of the Vancouver Canucks in the early '80s, with the Rainbow V pajamas, or the Astros of that era with the Orange Madness getups. I really don't think I could have gone to any game of theirs, if I was a fan, without a constant "Are you kidding me with these uniforms" look on my face.

The new uniforms are taking flak right now from the players in the NHL because they don't absorb any moisture, making it all flow down to their socks and skates. By the end of a game, one player said his skates feel like they are like Frankenstein's clodhoppers, they're so heavy. So, I'm sure there will be some tinkering with the unis.

Bonjour, Adrian. Do you think that Jose Theodore should be in goal much more often this year? Thank you.
-- Pierre Philippon, Deux-Montagnes, Quebec

Pierre - Ah ... well. Hmmm. Ah, can I pass on this one?

I just don't know what to say anymore about No. 60. He's like the ne'er-do-well cousin we all have, who just can't seem to stay out of trouble. Every holiday season when the family gets together, you say something like, "Hey, I hear our ne'er-do-well cousin is getting his life together," and you all get hopeful. Then, a few months later, you hear he's back in jail again.

Theodore had yet another chance to claim the top job Friday in Chicago. It was 3-0, it seemed, before the 179 fans or so had taken their seats at the United Center. He held the fort long enough for his team to tie it, only to give up the game-winner in the end on a goal that was, well, a little soft.

So, I just don't know what to say. You hope he can turn his life around. But, you know you're going to get that phone call.

Hey, Adrian! I have noticed that when the Avs are on a power play, they do a lot of passing, almost too much passing and not enough shooting. Could this be a reason why their power play is not as effective as it could be?
-- Henry, Denver

Henry - Listen, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard "SHOOT ... THE ... PUCK" from frustrated Avalanche fans over the years, I could buy myself a very nice steak dinner tonight on the town in Calgary. As it stands, I have no idea what I'll be eating. There's no room service at the hotel here, the Red Sox are just in the first inning with the Rockies, so there's no way I'm going to venture out for a bite somewhere in the next couple hours or so. Unless Todd Helton hits a grand slam or something off Josh Beckett. In which case, I won't eat anything anyway. I'll simply jump out of my hotel window.

Adrian - With the Avs having nearly $6 million available under the cap, what is the plan? I know Forsberg's name has come up. But really, you shouldn't have that much cash left after the offseason when you could have bought another good player and still had about $2 million left for the trade deadline! Your thoughts please, because I am confused!
-- Kevin, New Baltimore, Mich.

Kevin - Ah, stay tuned. The plan is to wait until Forsberg gives his smoke signal from Sweden when he's ready to play, then make a decision on how much to offer him to play again in Denver. Or, to decide whether to sign him at all. We've gone over all the reasons why or why not to get Foppa back, so I'll skip that here. But, just like every other NHL team right now, the Avs are waiting to see when/if Forsberg will come back, and go from there. He's getting closer to a decision, so we should all get the answer soon. (I think he wants to come back here, very much so. So, if I was an Avs fan, I'd be feeling good).

So if the Avs had bought out Theodore, they would have saved $1.5 million. That would buy every fan a large soda at the Pepsi Center for 16 games. Which do you think is the better deal: a "goalie" or thrilled fans for 16 games?
-- Keith, Los Angeles

Keith - Um, see answer above about No. 60.

Any word on a suspension for the guy who crosschecked Scott "The Sheriff" Parker in the face? Look out for the next time Columbus plays the Avs.
-- Jarvis Dees, Dolores

Jarvis - There was no justice for the Sheriff. No suspension, nothing. When you're a goon - and I say that in the most affectionate way to Mr. Parker - you tend to get less sympathy from the NHL judges.

I've read in other sports pages that the opinion on Avalanche coach Joel Quenneville is that he does more with less, but underachieves with top talent. Now that the Avs have top talent, do you think Quenneville will be able to take them over the top?
-- Matt Kring, Ames, Iowa

Matt - My one issue with Coach Q is his handling of the goalies. Other than that, no, I have no issue with him and I think he can take any team to a Cup with enough talent. Part of his problem over the years is that he's just never had that stud goalie to rely on. But maybe he exacerbates the problem by always moving them up and down the depth chart.

(OK, as I write this, Dustin Pedroia has just hit the first pitch from Jeff Francis over the Monstah, after Josh Beckett struck out the side in the first. So, I'm feeling good about that. But I just saw Carl Yastrzemski give out the starting lineups for Fox, and now it can officially be said that I feel old. Yaz looked like Jonathan Frid from the last year of his playing of Barnabas Collins on "Dark Shadows.")

Adrian Dater has covered the Colorado Avalanche since the team moved to Denver in 1995. To drop a question into his Avs Mailbag click here or visit's Avalanche Page.