The Toronto Star from Toronto, Ontario, Canada • 56

I E2 TORONTO STAR SUNDAY, MARCH 2. 2003 Hockey Curling Quinn holds Leafs future in his hands Pre-deadline move seems imperative thinking he needed another scorer to bump up the third or fourth line, or another defence-man to help the 4-5-6 spots, which often are stretched to their limits by speedy opposition. A new light might have gone on; fans are entitled to hopesoi Richard Peddie keeps assuring everyone about the existence of whatever funds are necessary between now and the March 11 trade deadline, but that shouldnt even be an issue. But the answer wasnt Varada and it wasnt Yushkevich and well all wait to see if its Richard Zhitnik or who, if anyone, it turns out to be. Quinns willingness to make the required move, if he even has it, has never been more draft choices, no less, prompting the questions: Why would Los Angeles Kings deal for the future when theyre only, like, three points out of the playoffs? Plus, did the Leafs once again finish second in a deal, or did they even bother trying for aguy who, according to many reports, simply hasnt been playing all that well? Pat Quinn clearly was indicating, without saying it, that he had no interest, even though some men in his locker room were testifying on Yushkevichs behalf.

Quinn at one point dropped the F-bomb weve all heard it, so no blue noses in his exasperation at trying to say the non-flammable thing. Tm not going to stand here and say I didnt want him, but, quite frankly here I am, Im That was Quinns not-so-secret message. So perhaps they have something else going on. Perhaps they dont want to face the hassle of dealing with an unrestricted free agent and remember, they chose to avoid that process last summer when they shipped Yushkevich to Florida for Robert Svehla, citing his extensive financial demands. Perhaps the Leafs also have zero interest in dealing with agent Mark Gandler on a personality basis.

If so, this wouldnt be the first time an agents identity dictated personnel strategy. Whether or not one considers the non-obtaining of Yushkevich a failing, it seems apparent that the Leafs next level of success is as much up to the coach going to put a poster up on their loving wall and I dont want to do that, Quinn said, not actually saying loving. He then excused himself possibly to the discerning dozens of viewers who plug in to LeafsTV. He admitted that Yushkevich "was available to us, available to a lot of teams" but otherwise dried up on the Yushkevich front He did volunteer that the Leafs were offered Vaclav Va-rada before he was traded to Ottawa and you can guess who they asked for," which means Nik Antropov. So that trigger went unpulled, as well.

There might be extenuating circumstances. Being the Leafs, there always are, right? They clearly dont feel they lost one here, that Yushkevich is the kind somebody else should own. and GM as much as to the two dozen men who skate in his command. The Leafs, despite getting hammered in Detroit the other night, appear as competitive as anyone in the East But others are reloading, so improving themselves by March 11 remains imperative. It might turn out that the Detroit debacle the other night produces a positive beyond lineup changes Jonas Hoglund out, a very good Shayne Corson back in their 4-1 win last night Quinns image of his team might have been altered by what happened against the Red Wings, when his club, as he said, showed fear" he didnt expect It's one game, surely, and one game can never mean too much, but perhaps Quinn came away Dave Perkins Only the Maple Leafs could possibly beat the Carolina Hurricanes and, on the same day, also lose to the Philadelphia Flyers.

Dmitry Yushkevich comes East and not to the Maple Leafs, but to their likely opponent in the first round of the NHL playoffs, the Flyers. For measly fourth- and seventh-round Flyers trade irks Leafs SHAUN BESTREUTERS Alberta skip Randy Ferbey, peeking around the shoulder of Nova Scotias Mark Dacey, is going after his third Brier in a row this week. He opened play yesterday with a resounding 10-4 victory. Riled Ferbey rolls over foe and spouts off HANS DERYKTORONTO STAR Players say Philly more dangerous with Yushkevich Carolinas Wesley happy hes named in T.O. trade buzz RANDY STARKM AN SPORTS REPORTER While Toronto coach and GM Pat Quinn professed no interest in reacquiring defenceman Dmitry Yushkevich, his former teammates arent happy to see the battle-tested veteran join conference rival Philadelphia.

The deal yesterday that sent the scrappy former Maple Leafs rearguard from Los Angeles to the Flyers for a pair of draft choices was a major of topic of dressing room conversation last night after Toronto dispatched the Carolina Hurricanes 4-L The Leafs sounded wistful the 31-year-old wasnt rejoining the squad that traded him to Florida in the off-season for Robert Svehla and they dorft look forward to facing him in an anticipated matchup with the Flyers in the first round of the playoffs. Wed love him here, said Gary Roberts. Hes a warrior, that guy. Were not very happy that hes back in the Eastern Conference, thats for sure Shayne Corson, who had a goal and assist after being a healthy scratch for seven games, noted teams are loading up for the playoffs, with the March 11 trade deadline fast approaching. Yushkies a competitor and hell bring something to the table that every team loves to have in the playoffs, Corson said Hell sacrifice his body every night and thats why the Flyers went out and got him.

You look at players teams are trying to get right now for the playoffs. Ottawa goes out and gets (Vaclav) Varada from Buffalo. Hes another guy who competes and plays hard every night Its a different game when you get in the playoffs. You need guys who are ready to sacrifice and compete every night The Flyers, who drafted Yushkevich in 1991, said they were glad to get him back. Hes a very competitive player, a gritty player that gives you 18 to 20 minutes a game, said Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock.

Hes a nice addition. Yushkevich said he was surprised by the trade, but added, It is nice to come back to the team that drafted me 12 years ago. One player mentioned as a possible Leafs acquisition, Carolinas Glen Wesley, logged nearly 20 minutes of ice time last night Wesley has agreed to waive his no-trade clause. I think for any Canadian kid to' play in Toronto would be a thrill, said Wesley before last nights game. "Obviously, theres a tremendous amount of history when you're playing in Toronto.

If a great place to play and a great hockey town. I think itd be exciting for anybody to get that opportunity to put on a Leafs" uniform. With the trade winds swirling veteran defenceman Jyrki Lumme said theres little to do but batten down the hatches. Theres a thousand rumours every year and maybe one or two come true, he said. I guess you learn over the years you try to control things you can and let the others slide.

The Leafs Gary Roberts cruises into the crease area looking for a rebound to no avail as Carolina goaltender Arturs Irbe covers up during first-period action last night. Leafs emerged with a 4-1 win. Corson back with a bang Hot Predators lose top scorer Legwand with broken collarbone David Legwand, the Nashville Predators leading scorer with 1 i I I i I i i 4 i i circuit, is No. To who? Weve got something to prove to the individuals on this team and that's it," he snapped. Bottom line.

Win three times. We want to win this thingthree times in a row. Absolutely. Some Grand Slam players have irked Ferbey even more by suggesting the Canadian Curling Association place an asterisk next to the winners names for the duration of the boycott This is a team game and if they want to put an asterisk next to our name, go ahead, we really dont care. And when I say they you know who Im talking about, Ferbey said Two-time world champion Russ Howard was indignant about the assertions that some of the best players weren't at the Brier, including his brother Glenn and Wayne Middaugh, both from Ontario, or Jeff Stoughton of Manitoba.

And not all of the best are there, Howard said about the Grand Slam that he originally joined in its first season before being kicked out for entering the New Brunswick playdowns. Howard scored a 6-4 win yesterday over Manitobas John Bubbs, who surprised even himself by winning the provincial title. Bubbs had been plaiuiingfor more thanayear to take aCarib-bean cruise last week with a large group of family and friends to celebrate his 50th birthday. He had to jump ship in St. Thomas and fly to Halifax.

He almost missed the first day of the Brier because new US. security regulations forbid cruise ship passengers departing from Florida to disembark before returning to the original port. At the urging of his MP, Reg Al-cock, the federal foreign affairs department was able to persuade the State Department to make an exception for Bubbs. Ontarios Bryan Cochrane, in his first Brier appearance, forced former world champion Pat Ryan of EC to throw his final stone for a 7-5 win. Talk about easy ride irks champ Manitoba skip has to jump cruise ship BRIAN MCANDREW STAFF REPORTER HALIFAX Hometown curler Mark Dacey thought Albertas Randy Ferbey had an easy ride getting to the Brier to defend his national championship.

He changed his mind after suffering a rough ride in the opening round of the okia Brier yesterday when Daces Nova Scotia rink lost 10-4 to the reigning world champions. That was a curling lesson, a dazzled Dacey said. They were obviously coming out hard at us and obviously very confident We were a little timid. If that was a 100-metre dash, after 40 metres they were about four paces clear. Earlier, Dacey had questioned how tough it was for Ferbey to win his provincial championship considering the Brier boycott by teams in the World Curling Tour Players Association pro league started by Edmontons Kevin Martin.

Obviously the fact Kevin Martin and Kevin Park dont play the provincial playdowns in Alberta makes it a tiny bit easier on them, although they are an exceptional team, Dacey had said. They dont have those real elite teams to beat Ferbey is tired of hearing that tune. The debate over which is the best team in the country intensified after Ferbey won the past two Briers and last years world title while Martin took the silver medal at the 2002 Olympic Games and has been cleaning up in the two seasons of the players associations Grand Slam Tour. Ferbey glares when asked what he has to do to prove that his team, even after becoming the first team to win more than $200,000 on the cash bonspicl 47 points, will miss up to six weeks with a broken right collarbone sustained midway through the third period of yesterday's 5-4 win over the Black-hawks. David has been a big part of our success, coach Barry Trotz said.

He has taken it to the next level as a player. Bertuzzi sports bruise but eye injury not bad Vancouver Canucks forward Todd Bertuzzfs injured eye isnt completely healed but it was good enough to allow him to play last night against the Canadiens in Montreal. Bertuzzi had a nasty bruise under his left eye from where he was hit by the stick of San Jose goaltender Evgeni Nabokov in a 3-2 Sharks win in Vancouver on Thursday night, but he said his vision was almost completely restored. They said it would clear up within 48 hours, said Bertuzzi Habs rearguard Souray lost for the season Montreal defenceman Sheldon Souray may need a second bone graft on his broken wrist and wont return this season. WITH FILES FROM STAR WIRE SERVICES I I Leafs From El Hes )ris own person.

He plays his own game. IVe been asked questions like that for three years now and Fm getting sick of answering them. I ckurt think he was affected when I was sick (with panic attacks during his time in Toronto). I dont think that happens. Darcy is accountable for himself Corson said.

He played a strong game; he played feisty tonight I dont think that had anything to do with me. I know what kind of player he is. I've seen him play great games. I just think he came out and played the way hes capable of playing. And so, it can argued, did Corson.

Although he was limited to fewer than 11 minutes of ice time, he played smart and physical without letting more than two weeks worth of frustration colour his game. "Missing seven games was real hard on me. Im not going to deny that, Corson said. It was the hardest thing Ive been through in my career, for sure. I just tried to stay positive and be ready when I got the chance.

I want to prove some people wrong. Ive had three tough years here in Toronto and havent played to my abilities. Id like to get back to playing the way Im capable of playing." Tucker said he could see the pressure leave Corson when he picked up an assist on Alexander Mogilnys second-period goal, the one that proved to be the winner. Its tough around here when everybody makes a big deal out of everything every day, Tucker said. "But he stayed hungry.

Were going to need him in the playoffs when the going gets rough and the goals are hard to come by. As for Fitzgerald, coach Pat Quinn said he dislocated something in his knee but it popped back in. He isnt expected to be out more than 10 days. I was really surprised I didnt break it because of the feeling, but the X-rays were good, Fitzgerald said. The only positive thing about this is my wifes due with our fourth and I might be around (when the baby is born).

Trevor Kidd received his first start at the Air Canada Centre since Oct 14 and turned in a strong game, making 20 saves, including his best work when Carolina held a 1-0 lead. He evened his record to 6-6-L i 1 1- J. to A Mon.