From The THN Archive: Dynamic Duo - Feb. 10, 2004 – Vol. 57 Issue 23

Today we're taking a look at Rick Nash and Nikolai Zherdev in the THN Archive. Go here to subscribe and you'll get full access to the Archive. 

Dynamic Duo - Feb. 10, 2004 – Vol. 57 Issue 23 

Nobody suggested they would contend for the Stanley Cup the way their expansion cousins in Minnesota did last year. But when the Columbus Blue Jackets stocked up on veterans in the summer, bringing in goalie Fred Brathwaite, forwards Todd Marchant and Trevor Letowski, and defenseman Darryl Sydor, they certainly didn’t expect to be knee-deep in the Alexander Ovechkin draft sweepstakes at this point in the season.

On many counts, it has been a frustrating year. Columbus was the last NHL team to win on the road, going 0-11-1-2 in its first 14 away games before beating Chicago 4-1 on Dec. 26. The team’s poor play led Doug MacLean to step down as coach, though he remains GM and president.

The news isn't all bad, however. For starters, 19-year-old Rick Nash was leading the NHL in goals with 31 in 50 games, four ahead of Vancouver sniper Markus Naslund. And there’s also the exciting emergence of Nikolai Zherdev, who started the season playing with Central Red Army in Russia but joined Columbus in December.

That’s not all. MacLean has done an excellent job stockpiling young talent right from his first entry draft when he made defenseman Rostislav Klesla the No. 4 overall pick. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder has yet to find his NHL legs, but has taken huge strides this season and will play even more after Columbus traded Darryl Sydor to Tampa Bay on Jan. 27. (In return for Sydor, Columbus picked up 6-foot-3,200-pound center Alexander Svitov, the third overall pick in 2001, who, like Klesla, has a massive upside.)

“Don’t forget about (goalie Pascal) Leclaire who has been playing amazing in the minors, (center Danny) Fritsche, and (center) Joakim Lindstrom, who is playing in the Swedish Elite League,” MacLean crowed. “I expect them all to play (in Columbus) next year. And Manny Malhotra is only 23. He has eight goals (in 31 games) since joining us and he’s only 23.”

The sweethearts of the team, and rightly so, are Nash and Zherdev.

Together, they can be to the Blue Jackets what Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk are to the Atlanta Thrashers, what Markus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi are to the Vancouver Canucks, and what Joe Thornton and Sergei Samsonov are to the Boston Bruins. And that, in a nutshell, is a couple of offensive dynamos capable of making the nightly highlights, well, nightly.

“They haven’t played too much together except on the power play and late in games when we need a goal,” said veteran defenseman Luke Richardson, “but I think as they get older and more experienced, they’ll be scary. I think that’s when you’ll hear more about the Kovalchuk and Heatley comparison. Kovalchuk is a shooter like Rick and Heatley makes those great passes that I think Zherdev will be able to make. You used to see (Wayne) Gretzky and (Jari) Kurri do it because they played together and they had talent."

“One game, Zherdev made three passes on the power play that should have resulted in goals, but he surprised the guy he passed to. They all missed the puck.”

The Blue Jackets moved up in the 2002 entry draft to pick the 6-foot-3, 210-pound Nash first overall. He repaid them by scoring 17 goals and 39 points in 74 games last season and finishing third in voting for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year. Nash quickly developed a reputation as a gunner who would go hard to the net and pay a price for goals, a reputation that he has enhanced this season. If you are looking for him on the ice, go directly to the blue paint. That’s his home away from home.

Zherdev, meanwhile, was the No. 4 overall pick in last June’s draft and had no intention of playing with the Blue Jackets this season. Yet here he is in all his splendor.

“When I was drafted, I was not thinking about playing in Columbus right away,” said Zherdev through an interpreter. “I was thinking I would play one more year in Russia and then play in the NHL after that. I felt it would be best for me to have one more year to prepare, to become more physical and develop with (Viktor) Tikhonov as my coach, to play in the World Junior Championship and maybe for the national team at the World Championship. That was the plan.”

But, frustrated at his lack of playing time in Russia, Zherdev decided to make a change. Having already signed with Columbus last August, he grabbed his passport and hopped a plane for Toronto, then flew to Ottawa to file papers that would allow him to play hockey in the United States and Canada. The Blue Jackets had already paid the International Ice Hockey Federation the required transfer fees, so, despite the fact Zherdev’s former team is kicking up a stink and wants him to return, the NHL has allowed him to remain with Columbus.

After scoring 12 goals and 24 points in 44 games for Red Army last season, the 6-foot-l, 176-pound right winger has had an impressive debut with the Jackets, scoring six goals and 13 points in 27 games.

“I remember playing against him in the under-18 (tournament),” Nash said. “He was one of two great players on their team. I can’t remember who the other guy was. (Zherdev) was unbelievable. The way he handled the puck and saw the ice was amazing.”

Zherdev, who often turns to teammate Jaroslav Spacek, a Czech who speaks Russian, to help him communicate, has been very impressed with what he has seen in his new teenage pal. “Rick is a great player for his age,” Zherdev said. “He has good size and uses his speed and he drives to the net very well. He has the ability to find openings on the ice that help him score goals with a very good shot.”

Richardson has been very impressed by the way Nash handles himself both on and off the ice. “It’s nice to see a kid come along who is so respectful,” Richardson said.

As for Zherdev, the big defenseman said the sky is the limit for the kid. “Zherdev could become one of the most highly regarded offensive players in this league,” Richardson said. “He’s very natural and has the confidence to try things…a little too much around our own blueline at times, but he’ll learn. He has really picked up his defensive game and work ethic in our own zone. He dives to block shots.”

The Blue Jackets are near the bottom of the Western Conference standings and don’t have a prayer of making the playoffs, but with Nash and Zherdev revving it up, MacLean is convinced success isn’t too far off.

“We signed veteran players and hoped things would be better this year, but we lost four defensemen for six weeks,” MacLean said. “That’s not making an excuse, it’s reality. I think we can be successful with the direction we are going now. Obviously, it might take a touch more time, but in the meantime, we’re a lot of fun to watch.”

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