St. Louis Post-Dispatch from St. Louis, Missouri • Page 23

itfrt FEB 05 1999 Ambush coach will sign new contract Ambush playercoach Daryl Doran is expected to sign a two-year contract today. He has a regular season record of 159-90 since taking over in the middle of -the 1992-93 season. D7 i Final season rollercoaster IP 1 Iowa coach Tom Davis (left), who is stepping down at season's end, celebrates with Kent McCausland after a victory in December. But the team has slumped recently. D3 Friday, February 5, 1999 ST.

LOUIS POST-DISPATCH Skction 0K TtttfiwF jSi. AT Finest coaching hour Despite travails, Quenneville has Blues on high note Joel Quenneville got talked up for coach-of-the-year honors in the National Hockey League last season, and deservedly so. But leading that team to a fourth overall finish was easy compared to keeping this team above water. If Quenneville gets these Blues into the postseason on a good note and makes any noise at all, he should remember this as his finest hour in coaching. Sure, he knew it would be tougher this season.

He accepted the loss of Brett Hull and Steve lumiim Duchesne to 1 tract expires in May, said ABC had told his representatives that no substantial renewal offer would be made. He was making approximately $1.75 million annually to work on "MNF" and boxing broadcasts and reportedly was asked to take a salary cut. But he downplayed that as a factor. "I wouldn't make this a financial issue it just reached a stage they wanted to go one direction and I'll go another," Dierdorf said Thursday afternoon from Hawaii, the Pro Bowl site. "There were discussions, but I didn't want this to drag on, that's why I decided to announce this.

I would have preferred to have had a contract wrapped up before (the 1998) season started it didn't Lack of progress on contract prompts St. Louisan to step aside. BY DAN CAESAR Qf the Post-Dispatch St. Louisan Dan Dierdorf, who was frustrated that he received no significant contract offer from ABC-TV, said Thursday he is stepping down as an analyst on "Monday Night Football." Dierdorf, who has been in the "MNF" booth for 12 years, will make his final appearance Sunday when ABC televises the Pro Bowl (5 p.m., KDNL, Channel 30). Dierdorf, whose five-year con get done.

I've known for five years when my contract was going to be up, so no, I'm not shocked that nothing got done. But I am glad it's finally over." In recent months there has been talk that ABC has been interested in bringing Sterling Sharpe into the Monday night booth, at Dierdorf 's expense. Sharpe is a former Green Bay receiver who is an NFL studio analyst for ESPN, which is owned by Walt Disney Co. as is ABC. Joe Theismann and Paul Maguire work for ESPN, too, and also are logical candidates to move over to replace Dierdorf.

They are analysts on that network's NFL play-by-play team. See DIERDORF, Page D7 -1 Jerry Naunheim Jr. POST-DISPATCH After leaving the "Monday Night" booth, Dan Dierdorf indicates he'll be selective in future job pursuits. Jeff free agency, since the Blues owners made it (rOmOn abundantly clear they "I represent (St Louis) wherever I go. I want people to see what good things can come from there.

wouldn't fund a $40 million payroll. Quenneville was glad the team kept Stanley Cup winners Al Maclnnis, Geoff Courtnall (5) Hughes is all set for fun to start in NBA with 76ers Better late than never THE BIG PICTURE Nifty 50: The NBA begins a 50-game season tonight rather than the usual 82, three months late due to the lockout as players and owners negotiated anew agreement No Ml: Michael Jordan retired and the defending champion Chicago Bulls were dismantled. The openers: The season starts with 12 games tonight including a rematch of last year's finalists, Utah and Chicago. RATING THE TEAMS Out west The San Antonio Spurs picked up some key By Mike Eisenbath Of the Post-Dispatch PHILADELPHIA All those faithful Mowers of Larry Hughes need to proceed with caution. They saw him score points in bunches as he led CBC High to a state championship less than two years ago.

They saw him dominate most nights last season in helping St. Louis University win more than 20 games and advance to the NCAA Tournament. and Grant Fuhr. He figured the Blues could take the talent hit and still ease gracefully toward a new era. How could he foresee that: Courtnall would miss the bulk of the season with post-concussion syndrome.

Geoff gets whacked in the head every game he plays. Who knew that one more sucker punch would put him away? Jim Campbell would follow 23-and 22-goal seasons with a two-goal first half. Ouch! Pierre Turgeon would get sidelined by another slash, this time losing 14 games to a broken hand. The tandem of Fuhr and Jamie McLennan would rank last in the NHL in save percentage, giving minor-league journeyman Rich Parent a clear shot at the No. 1 job.

Veteran defensemen Todd Gill (waived good-bye), Marc Bergevin (abdominal muscle injury) and Rudy Poeschek (ankle injury) would all fall by the wayside. How could a team overcome all this and remain in strong playoff position? How could the Blues not collapse, as the Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings did this season amid similar travails? Tremendous coaching. Former Blues czar Mike Keenan enjoyed his tough-guy reputation as "Iron Mike," but Quenneville is the real steel. Keenan was an aloof dictator, ruling with fear. Each time his team slumped, he had players rounded up in the middle of the night and taken off.

That was the easy way out for both him and his players. Quenneville, by contrast, tries to drive his players through their struggles. When they fail to play hard enough or smart enough for his tastes, he spells this out to them. There are no mysteries, no mind games, no empty psychobabble. When a Blues blunder leads to a goal, players realize that Quenneville will pull that paper from his suit coat and make a few notes for later discussion.

This Blues organization believes in self-improvement and self-reliance. There will be no quick-fix trades, no throwing money at problems. When a player falters, he has to pick himself up. Hello, Chris Mc Alpine! When somebody goes down, somebody from within the organization has to step in. Hello, Terry Yake! For this approach to work at players, Shaq and Kobe and the takers look good, and the defending Western champion Utah Jazz remain virtualry intact Back east The New York Knicks added tatrell Sprewell, and tarry Bird's Indiana Pacers should have an easier time now that the Bulls have been dismantled.

Team-by-team previews, D4 SEASON PREVIEW Image problems: The job of resurrecting the NBA's image and purging the taint of a destructive lockout from the public's consciousness is no longer Michael Jordan's Tonight, they will see him in a competitive, meaningful National Basketball Association game for the first time. He will suit up with the Philadelphia 76ers, and possibly start in their delayed season-opener at Charlotte. Don't expect him to be the best player on the court. Maybe not even one of the best. In the Sixers' two preseason exhibition games, both against Washington, Hughes scored 23 points, had four assists and grabbed eight rebounds.

That was a fairly routine night with the Billikens, but those were his totals for both games. The numbers will look different for a while. His bank account is larger. The uniform looks a bit odd. But for the most part, he appears to be the same Larry Hughes, which is exactly what his new team wanted when they drafted him in the first round almost eight months ago.

"He's willing to do what it takes," 76ers coach Larry Brown said Tuesday. "He's just a good kid, so he's going to listen and work and pay attention to what we need him to do. That reflects on the way Larry was brought up. "The thing you have to love about him is that he wants to be great. There's a good chance he will make that the case." Some back stiffness, similar to a problem he had with SLU last season, forced Hughes to leave the morning practice Tuesday.

Club trainers quickly whisked him to a doctor for X-rays, which revealed only relatively minor muscle trouble. "It's a job," Hughes said that afternoon. "In college, if I was banged up, I had a chance to say I needed to sit one out. Here, I have to fight through it. They are going to make sure I'm playing every day possible because they are paying me a lot of money.

Right now, I have to get out there and play. "It's been tough. Going out there every day right now, we're having two-a-day practices. I never did that before, so it hasn't been easy. Especially at this level.

But that's why I (left college early). See HUGHES, Page DS Chris Gardner ASSOCIATED PRESS Now that Larry Hughes has a foothold in the NBA, he's ready to prove himself. responsibility. D5 I New Jersey's backup blanks Blues Several missed chances in shutout Devils 2, Blues 0 i i The New Jersey Devils followed the lead of the New York Islanders and the New York Rangers in dealing the Blues a 2-0 shutout Thursday at Kiel Center. And New Jersey's No.

1 goalie Martin Brodeur, one of the best in the business, had the night off. Backup goalie Chris Terreri posted his the ninth shutout his first since October 27, 1997 with a 36-save performance, joining New York cohorts Tommy Salo of the Islanders and Mike Richter of the Rangers in blanking the Blues 1-0 at Kiel Center this season. It took all three New York goalies to match the heroics of Colorado's Patrick Roy, who alone has three shutouts against the Blues this season. He'll go for four on April 11 at Kiel Center. Fortunately, the Blues are finished with New York this season.

"It was the same script all three games," Blues coach Joel Quenneville said. "I thought that in three games, we definitely deserved better all three. We totally dominated the games." The Blues outshot the New York teams 83-44 in the three games at Kiel but were outscored 4-zip. The Islanders won 1-0 on Oct. 17 despite being outshot 24-10.

The Rangers won 1-0 on Jan. 2 despite being outshot 23-12. See BLUES, Page D7 By Dave Luecking Of the Post-Dispatch Call it an unnatural hat trick. Three games against New York area teams at Kiel Center equaled three shutouts against the Blues. Jason Redmond POST-DISPATCH New Jersey winger Randy McKay and Blues goalie Rich Parent (right) watch the puck being cleared from the Blues' zone Thursday night.

all, Quenneville must have his players putting out at full capacity. The Blues have ordinary talent, so there is no margin for error or sloth. Free-agent signee Scott Young got that message right away, spending the first chunk of the season moving in and out of the rotation. Now he's in a groove, scoring at the 20-goal rate expected of him. Gill remained unfocused this season and got canned.

Rookies Marty Reasoner, Lubos Bartecko and Jochen Hecht played energetically for a while, but they were quickly returned to Worcester when their play slipped. Quenneville has tried everything short of electroshock therapy on Campbell, who has improved his effort. Somewhat. And now Fuhr and McLennan must fight for work. Against all odds, Parent claimed the No.

1 job with a 3-1 trip. For a future Hall of Famer like Fuhr to sit behind a 'former Manitoba Moose, well, that can't be pleasant. But that's life with the Blues today. Quenneville has set the bar high and players better stay on -their toes. BestBeisonTV Coming Saturday in Sports OT Ali gets Wheaties box cover Wheaties finally became the Breakfast of Champions on Thursday.

Many years after Muhammad Ali, 57, came to be revered around the world, the people who sell the corn flakes decided it was politically and profitably correct to jump onto the fabled boxer's bandwagon and put his picture on their cereal box. Ali joins a long list of American sports heroes although the first African American was not until Walter Payton in 1986 to be so prominently featured by the 75-year-old brand, which bills itself as "The Breakfast of Champions." Tonight NBA: New York-Orlando, 7 p.m., Houston-LA Lakers, 9:30 p.m., TNT. Saturday College hoops: Missouri at Nebraska, KDNL (30), 3 p.m. Hockey: Blues vs. Anaheim, Sunday NASCAR: Bud Shootout KMOV (4), 11a.m.

Golf: Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, KMOV (4), 2 p.m. NFL: Pro Bowl, KDNL (30), 5 p.m. Larry Hughes makes his professional debut with the Philadelphia 76ers in the team's NBA opener in Charlotte vs. the Hornets. Get complete schedules of the upcoming motor sports seasons: CART, IRL, Winston Cup, Busch Grand National, Craftsman trucks, Formula 1 andNHRA.

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