Chairmen of the boards - NHL - fighters in the corners for loose pucks

Certain players can be counted on to dig the puck out of the corners, a vital skill in the postseason

It is hockey's version of trench warfare. Instead of dirt and mud, this war zone is bounded by a floor of ice and a 4-foot-high barrier of unforgiving plastic topped by another 10 feet of shatter-resistant glass.

The inescapable truth here is that there is no escape for combatants brave enough or foolhardy enough to step into a zone with few roles, almost no mercy and only one winner.

Dozens of times a night in any NHL game these battles unfold, the hand-to-hand, face-to-face, shoulder-to-shoulder struggles along the boards for the right to possess loose pucks.

There are no stats, and there is only one truth: The team with the players who excel at winning the battles along the boards, especially during the playoffs when the little things take on a larger significance, almost always will win.

"Having those kinds of guys on your team is very important," says Maple Leafs grinder Shayne Corson, whose victories in the corners and along the boards against Alexei Yashin helped Toronto sweep the Senators. "There's not a lot of room now (in the playoffs), so you need those guys battling along the wall and in the corners, guys who are willing to -sacrifice their bodies to do the job. That's where a lot of goals come from."

It is a thankless job, underappreciated by most fans. But players who are willing to pay the price and are adept at winning the puck on a regular basis also win grudging admiration from their opponents and the gratitude of their teammates.

"If I'm on the bench, and I see a guy battling hard on the boards, sacrificing for the team, that's just as important as making a nice play everybody sees," Corson says. "Those guys should get more respect."

The Capitals' Ulf Dahlen, a journeyman to most fans, draws raves from his peers, NHL coaches and scouts. They marvel at his ability to be the man who more often than not skates out of the corner with the puck.

He's one player who's good at a small thing that can lead to bigger things. You cannot win unless you score, and you cannot score unless you have the puck. It's that simple.

"There are lots of battles (along the boards) in the playoffs," says Leafs coach and general manager Pat Quinn, who signed Gary Roberts and Corson because the Leafs did not win enough of those battles last spring. "You can't win all of them, but you can't lose many or you lose the game. There's not a lot of room out there.

"You can be an open-ice player in the regular season, but you better be able to play in close (along the boards during the playoffs), or it's gone. Those guys (Roberts and Corson) have played that way most of their careers."

There is no stereotypical boardman. A big player will not be automatically successful. The common ingredients in the NHLs best boardmen are an acute hockey sense, good balance, the ability to control the puck with active feet and, perhaps above all, the willingness to absorb the punishment that comes with being hammered into the wall, elbowed in the face, kneed, having a stick jammed between your legs and getting punched in the back of the head.

Think of it as trying to protect a hamburger between your feet in a dead-end alley against a pack of hungry dogs armed with tire irons.

Get the idea?

"The most important thing is the willingness to pay the price physically," says Capitals coach Ron Wilson. "You are going to be held. You are going to be hit. It comes down to hard work because you are usually lugging a guy with you."

Attitude is critical, as summed up by Senators winger Andreas Dackell, not big by NHL standards, but recognized as one of the league's most effective players along the wall.

"Any way I can, I want that puck, and I'm really confident I can get it," Dackell says. "I'm proud of it. It's my job. It doesn't get a lot of notice in the papers, but I take a lot of satisfaction in it and I know my teammates appreciate it, too."

While size doesn't matter, there are certain physical attributes that the best boardmen seem to have in common. Politely put, it's a low center of gravity.

"It's all in the ass," says Senators defenseman Jason York. "Look at (Dackell). I call him the chairman of the boards. Dacks has huge legs and a huge ass.

"I try every summer to get my ass bigger, doing squats, eating. It doesn't work."

Avalanche defenseman Ray Bourque also is known for the size of his backside and, not coincidently, he also is good along the boards.

"He stays low and he's got that really big butt," says Dackell. "He's got good balance and he's really tough to move."

Size, though, is only one way to be successful. Players such as Joe Sakic of the Avalanche and Patrik Elias of the Devils are effective along the boards, despite slight builds. They have quick sticks and the ability to twist and turn, making them harder to hit than smoke, which helps them win battles in close quarters.

"They're both very quick and agile," says a pro scout. "They're there, and they're gone, like a pickpocket."

The playoffs are when the ability of those grinders to win the battles along the boards becomes more important.

"You can't all of a sudden change a guy's style of game," says Roberts. "You can't change the way they've played all season. Winning the battles along the boards means hitting people and taking hits.

"You know what? That takes a lot out of you. Guys who don't do it all year find out it's a tough job."

Somebody's got to do it.

The top five wall bangers

In a straw poll of NHL players, coaches, assistant coaches and pro scouts, certain players were mentioned most often as being the best at winning the battles along the boards.

1. Ulf Dahlen, RW, Capitals: Toes-out skating style makes him tough to move ... Has the best feet in the NHL for controlling the puck along the wall ... Has great balance.

2. Ray Bourque, D, Avalanche: Veteran D has a big rear end, and his low center of gravity makes him a load to move ... Also helped by smart use of his stick.

3. Peter Forsberg, C, Avalanche: Fearless competitor will fake a hit to protect the puck and give a mean one to get it ... Wields a quick stick with impunity.

4. Joe Sakic, C, Avalanche: Success along the boards based on quick hands and the ability to execute quick, tight turns ... Like trying to contain an oily weasel.

5. John LeClair, LW, Flyers: Has a huge, thick body that he effectively uses to protect the puck.

Honorable mention: Keith Tkachuk, Blues; Andreas Dackell, Senators; Patrik Elias, Devils; Gary Roberts, Maple Leafs; Mike Keane, Stars; Doug Weight, Oilers. --C.S.

More buck for the bang

You need look no farther to explain the Avalanche's postseason success than our top five list of wall bangers. Players from the Avs, who have been to the conference finals three out of the last four years and won the Stanley Cup in the fifth, earned three spots on our list.

It makes sense, of course, that the team named after snow is good on boards.

With Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg creating mayhem and scooping up the remnants in the corners, the Avs are deep at center. Having depth down the middle is one thing, but when your top two guys are great at gaining puck possession and not just used to win faceoffs, it becomes all the more important during the playoffs.

In veteran defenseman Ray Bourque, also in our top five, the Avs have that same successful presence on the blue line, which helps regain the puck in the defensive zone.

Bourque's ability to win loose pucks is one reason teams often dump the puck into his defense partner's corner. With Bourque on patrol, the Avs' opponents will find it tough to win the battles in the corners. Just ask the Canucks.

Playoff success depends on having guys who are adept at grabbing pucks away from foes against the boards and in the corners, as the Avs have shown. Their depth in this area goes well with skilled players such as Milan Hejduk and Alex Tanguay.

"You can't win with just skill guys. You need a good mix," says Maple Leafs veteran forward Gary Roberts. "You've got to complement those skill guys with grit, with those guys who can win the battles along the boards. A skill guy has to have the puck and you need a gritty guy to get it for him." --Paul Grant and Chris Stevenson

Chris Stevenson is a correspondent for THE SPORTING NEWS online and covers hockey for Slam/Sports.

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