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Friday, February 9, 2001
Panthers trade Mellanby for minor leaguer
SportsTicker
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| Mellanby |
SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers said goodbye
to their captain Friday night, trading veteran right wing Scott
Mellanby to the St. Louis Blues for minor leaguer Dave Morisset
and a 2002 draft pick.
Mellanby, 34, was one of three remaining players from Florida's
first team of 1993-94, along with Rob Niedermayer and Paul Laus.
He appeared in 40 games this season, registering four goals and
13 points, and sat out Friday's 4-2 loss to the New York Rangers
with the flu.
"Mel gave his heart and soul to this organization," Florida
coach Duane Sutter said. "He requested a three-year contract
and at 34 years old, we couldn't justify that as an
organization. Because he's been such a good individual with this
organization for all these years, we decided we'd try to give
him an opportunity to win a Stanley Cup."
Mellanby will be remembered most for creating the "rat craze"
that symbolized Florida's improbable run to the Stanley Cup
finals during the 1995-96 season. Prior to the home opener, he
one-timed a rodent in the team's dressing room, then scored two
goals.
Fans at Miami Arena caught on and began to throw plastic rats on
the ice after every Florida goal. The practice was soon
outlawed by the NHL.
"It's disappointing to lose a guy like him," Niedermayer said.
"We've been through a lot together. He's a guy who epitomizes
what the Panthers are all about. He's the heart and soul of our
team. He showed up every night."
The Panthers made the playoffs twice since then, getting
eliminated in the first round by the Rangers (1997) and New
Jersey (2000).
But Florida has fell on hard times this season, going 13-28-8-7
for the fewest wins in the Eastern Conference. The poor play
led to the firing of general manager Bryan Murray and coach
Terry Murray, his brother.
"I said to Scotty on the phone, `I think this is going to be a
real good opportunity for you,'" Panthers general manager Bill
Torrey said. "It doesn't look like we're going to make the
playoffs. He's given a lot to this franchise and I want to put
him in the best possible situation."
Mellanby also has played with Philadelphia and Edmonton during
his 15-year NHL career, amassing 278 goals, 633 points and 1,991
penalty minutes over 1,056 games. He also appeared in the
Stanley Cup Finals with the Flyers in 1986-87.
Mellanby was chosen by the Flyers with the 27th pick in the 1984
draft and was there for six seasons before being traded to
Edmonton as part of a five-player deal on May 30, 1991. Florida
claimed Mellanby during the 1993 expansion draft.
The Blues are second in the NHL with 76 points but have been
decimated by injuries at both ends of the ice. They are playing
without top defensemen Chris Pronger and Al MacInnis as well as
talented forward Michal Handzus.
St. Louis also has played without Pierre Turgeon, Pavol Demitra
and Lubos Bartecko during the season.
"Scott certainly feels that St. Louis, when everybody gets
healthy, they'll have a better shot at (the Stanley Cup) than
anyone," Torrey said.
Morisset, 19, has played the last three seasons with Seattle of
the Western Hockey League. He appeared in 40 games with the
Thunderbirds this season, collecting 21 goals and 41 points with
56 penalty minutes.  Send this story to a friend
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