November 18, 2009
Time for Forsberg to call it quits

[DENVER, CO] -- For now, Peter Forsberg isn't planning to pull off a Brett Favre, not that the Swedish star has ever actually retired.

But the 36-year-old forward and former Hart Trophy winner was contemplating yet another comeback, presumably with the hope of returning to the NHL.

It's on hold, now that Forsberg apparently plans to continue playing for MoDo in the Swedish Elite League and wants to suit up for Sweden in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

A number of teams, including the Vancouver Canucks and Philadelphia Flyers, were said to be interested in signing Forsberg; I'm not sure how much interest the Colorado Avalanche would have had.

The oft-injured center has experienced problems with his right foot for several years and didn't play at all last season, except for three games with MoDo, when the chronic foot ailment forced him to give up the comeback attempt.

A great one in his prime and one of hockey's most entertaining players, Foppa as he's affectionately known in Sweden and by his legion of fans (especially in Colorado, where he's still revered), has undergone several foot surgeries and experimented with various skates in an attempt to return to the ice.

But maybe, just maybe, it's time for Forsberg to give up the game for good and enjoy life away from the rink.

Easy for me to say, because his love for the sport is so obvious. But how much pain and frustration can a guy be expected to endure before reality finally sinks in?

Forsberg last played in the NHL with the Avalanche late in the 2007-08 season, when he was only able to play in nine of 18 regular-season games (he had one goal and 13 assists) and in seven of 10 playoff games (with one goal and four assists).

Forsberg was nearly as dangerous as ever when he was healthy, but the Avalanche never knew from one day to the next if he'd be able to play.

Now that he's chosen to stay out of the NHL for the remainder of the season, it will be even more difficult for him to attempt a comeback. He'll be a year older if he does, and I doubt a team like the Avalanche – despite his popularity – would be interested in bringing him back then.

I'm not sure if Colorado would have wanted him back this season, though his presence surely would have filled some of the empty seats that have become commonplace in the Pepsi Center. But the team is in a rebuilding mode and, surprisingly enough, sitting in first place in the Northwest Division.

I could be wrong, but I think the next time Foppa pops into the Pepsi Center, it will be to attend a ceremony in which his No. 21 jersey is retired.

Deservedly so.

*****

Marty Turco has never been averse to plenty of work, and that’s a good thing because the Dallas Stars plan to give the veteran goalie plenty of it during an upcoming stretch in which they’ll play eight games in the next 13 days.

"We have taken care of the rest, and the schedule really has been very favorable for us, but it's time to play him now," Stars coach Marc Crawford told the Dallas Morning News. "When you have a stretch like this, you want your goalie sharp, and we think we are ready for this."

The Stars have been playing mediocre hockey so far, but Turco could change that. He’s on a roll with a 5-1-1 record, 2.10 goals-against average and .928 goals-against average in his past seven starts.

"I feel good," Turco said. "You obviously have to change depending on performances, and you can't always predict that, but what you can do is give yourself the best chance to succeed, and I think we're doing that right now."

Turco has started 13 of Dallas’ 19 games – he missed two games because of the flu – with Alex Auld getting the call in the other six.

"I think what we have done has worked, and I'm ready to take the next step," Turco said. "I'll do whatever they want me to do, but I can definitely play more."

*****

John McCain is a closet hockey fan. Who would have known?

Like NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, the U.S. Senator from Arizona is hopeful that a buyer will come forward to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes and keep them at Jobing.com Arena.

"I hope they can stay," McCain, who lost to Barack Obama in last year’s U.S. presidential election, told the Arizona Republic. "I hope that the fans will come out. We’re going to have to increase the fan base, that’s all there is to it. I think winning takes us a long way."

The Coyotes have slipped a bit in recent weeks, but they still had a winning record heading into Wednesday’s game at Minnesota. Yet the fans haven’t exactly been coming out in droves.

They’ve drawn fewer than 10,000 fans in six of 11 home games and have had embarrassing crowds of 5,855 (against Los Angeles), 6,495 (Anaheim), 6,899 (St. Louis) and 7,968 (L.A., again).

"If I would ask our citizenry to do anything, I would ask them to consider coming out to a hockey game and watch this team play," McCain said.

Rick Sadowski is a columnist for TheFourthPeriod.com and the Colorado correspondent for The Fourth Period Magazine. He has covered the NHL since 1981, most recently for the Rocky Mountain News in Denver. He writes for several publications and web sites, including NHL.com and Real Clear Sports. Be sure to check out his blog at Through the 5 Hole.