WHAT THEY SAY

FROM THE SPORTS FORECASTER His blazing speed, goal-scoring touch and Slovakian origins have made for inevitable comparisons with Peter Bondra. The youngest player at World Cup '96 didn't fill the net in his first pro season in Portland, but recorded 16 of his 35 points in his last 20 games there. He was the 249th pick overall in 1994 and remains a dark horse for this season.

October 1, 1997 Wrapping Up the Preseason: After a grinding preseason where Washington played four games in four nights twice, the Capitals finished the preseason, for the first time in franchise history, with only one defeat (6-1-2). The Capitals record during the exhibition season was enough to win the team standings race, collecting 14 points to edge out Montreal, Dallas, Los Angeles, and the New York Rangers by two points. Washington’s youth has looked very impressive this fall, with Andrew Brunette leading the Caps in scoring during the exhibition season with 9 points (2-7-9). Jan Bulis (1-5-6) and Jan Benda (4-1-5) were fourth and fifth respectively on the team in scoring. Richard Zednik contributed four points and finished eighth on the squad in scoring. Equally impressive has been the goaltending, as veterans Olaf Kolzig and Bill Ranford have put up playoff-like goaltending in the preseason. Kolzig and Ranford have a combined 1.72 goals against average and a 5-1-1 record. Center Richard Zednik is a speedy pivot with excellent offensive instincts. The 20-year-old has the potential to jump-start Washington's anemic offense, and will be given every opportunity to skate with the big club this fall.

FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS VOL. 48, NO. 36 10th ANNUAL DRAFT PREVIEW "Portland(WHL), 249th overall. Team's top scorer small, but plays with spark and pizzazz."

FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS VOL. 49, NO 36 11th ANNUAL DRAFT PREVIEW "Portland (WHL), 249th overall. Explosive scorer, offensive force a gem"

FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS VOL. 50 NO 36 12th ANNUAL DRAFT PREVIEW "Portland (AHL), 249th overall. Slovak was youngest player in World Cup"

Washington Capitals Prospect List and Scouting Report, 1997-98 Edition (By Shawn Chiu) The Capitals are spoiled rotten with all their depth. They already have a very deep and talented defense corps, and now there are bright forward prospects giving hope to an underachieving offense. Incidentally, the Caps have more first rounders on their defense corps than any other team in the league with 7. The only place they are not well-stocked is in their goaltending department. Billy Ranford is on his last legs, and Olaf Kolzig looks like he'll never be a franchise goalie, despite some impressive performances with Washington and Portland. You could blame Jim Carey for stealing Kolzig's thunder at a time that Kolzig could have won the starting job. Yes, that's right, he of Ace Ventura fame -- the regular season phenom who's still doing some detective work to find out where all those pucks are that eluded him in the playoffs. Anyways, Washington remains the envy of many a GM with even more defense prospects -- they picked two defensemen with their first two draft picks this year -- and a set of forwards ready to step in either now or next year. Here they are in order of making the team and potential. Have a look at some of the Report Cards, too. Rank Name Age Shoots Pos'n Ht/Wt GP-G-A-P-PM (+/-) Draft Yr/Rd(Pos) 6 Richard Zednik 22 L LW 5'10/172 (AHL) 56-15-20-35-70 (+5) 94/10(249) The Slovak Express looks at times like he's the next Petr Bondra. He's offensively skilled and he's got some serious speed and one-on-one danger to him -- at least he did in junior. AHL defensemen are more able to catch him in mid-flight, and NHL defensemen just aren't impressed. Although he doesn't stay away from contact, he just isn't strong enough -- he's getting pushed around. He played 11 games for Washington last year and scored 3 points. He needs to be stronger and regain his confidence before he can turn a defenseman inside-out and put the move on the goalie like Bondra can. He'll play another year in the AHL unless he impresses and takes Nikolishin's vacated spot on the 2nd line. Report Card: Probability of playing: B- (C+ if Nikolishin were healthy) Offensive potential: B- (maybe too small to be effective) Prediction: 20 games, 3-8 goals, 2-7 assists, 5-15 points. Future: 20-30 goals, 20-30 assists, 40-60 pts, longshot 2nd line LW.

From the Ultimate Sports Hockey, 1998-99 NHL Player Ratings 34. Richard Zednik Skating.......................................................8+ Skills..........................................................8 Hockey Sense............................................7+ Physical Game............................................6 Defence.....................................................7 Consistency................................................6+ Intangibles.................................................7+ Scout: He scored a lot of key goals for them in the playoffs. He has a lot of speed, a lot of skills, and a good goal-scoring touch to go with it. I think he's going to be a big-time goal scorer in this league. Right now the problem is lack of consistency. He hasn't learned how to play night-in and night-out with the same intensity. All he needs is some experience and some vetran guys to show him the way. Scout: He's not the playmaker he should be with that kind of skill, but he's extremely strong on his skates. He skates like the wind. OVERALL GRADE: 6.6^

LOCATION: Nagano, Japan HOURS: Feb 6-Feb 21, 1998 Hometown: Born in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia; lives near Washington, D.C. Played for the Portland Winter Hawks from 1994-'96. Event: Ice Hockey -- Slovakian team Accomplishments: Drafted by the Washington Capitals, 10th round, 1994 Entry Draft. During career in juniors with the Winter Hawks: High scorer for Slovakia in the 1996 World Junior championships; nominated for the WHL "Player of the Year" award, 1995-'96; tied for team record with 44 goals during the Winter Hawks' '96-'96 season. After Winter Hawks stint: Played for Slovakia in the 1996 World Cup; runner-up for NHL's "Player of the Week" award for October 1 to 5, 1997. With his blazing speed and deft scoring touch, Richard Zednik was one of the most entertaining players to wear a Winter Hawks uniform in recent years. Zednik spent most of 1996-'97 season in the American Hockey League--the top level of the NHL's farm system--playing for the Portland (Maine) Pirates. In 11 games with the Caps last season, "Z," as he was known here, notched two goals and one assist. Zednik started the '97-'98 season off right with the Capitals, making the team out of training camp and assuring himself a more-or-less permanent spot by scoring a goal in each of the Caps' first three games. Zednik has continued to play well for the Caps, especially under new coach Ron Wilson--who happens to be the Olympic U.S. men's ice hockey coach. Zednik's skills and temperament mesh well with Wilson's offense-oriented coaching style. For his part, Zednik has improved his defensive game and added some muscle to his frame. Update: Unfortunately, Zednik will not play in an Olympic game this year. He and the other NHL members of the Slovakian men's hockey team arrived in Nagano on February 10, barely in time for Slovakia's game against Kazakhstan. Because of International Ice Hockey Federation rules pertaining to roster changes, only Washington Capitals right wing Peter Bondra and Florida Panthers defenseman Robert Svehla were able to suit up and play in the first round. Kazakhstan won the game on a late goal by Alexandr Koreshkov, thus advancing to the main draw and eliminating Slovakia from medal competition.

Youngest player on the Caps to see regular ice time in the playoffs, he has become an integral member of the team's top line with Andrei Nikolishin and Peter Bondra. Tallied twice in Game 3 of conference finals. Missed six games due to a concussion in March, then sat out the final eight of the regular season with an abdominal injury. Was third among rookies with 17 goals and tied for 10th in rookie scoring. Scored the Capitals' first goal at the MCI Center on Nov. 26 against Montreal. Had a four-game goal-scoring streak that spanned the first two rounds of the playoffs.

Zednik started the '97-'98 season with a roar with three goals in first three games. Runner-up for NHL ''Player of the Week'' for week of Oct. 1-5. Last season he appeared in 11 Caps games, scoring two goals and one assist. In his first appearance with the Portland Pirates on 4/6/96, he became the 14th player to score a goal in his first game. Completed last season with the Portland Pirates skating in 56 games and totaling 35 points(15 goals and 20 assists).

Richard is in his first full season with the Washington Capitals after playing for Portland from '94-'96. In this time with the Hawks, Richard had 79 goals and 88 assist in 126 gamesRichard is in his first full season with the Washington Capitals after playing for Portland from '94-'96. In this time with the Hawks, Richard had 79 goals and 88 assist in 126 games

The Capitals' wildcard was the young Slovak Richard Zednik, a tenth-round pick in the 1995 draft who was casually shipped off to the WHL's Portland Winterhawks to learn North American style and English. Zednik turned in an offensive onslaught in the WHL, leading the league in scoring for much of the season and shining brightly in the World Junior Tournament as well. While he appeared in only one game for the Capitals, he did not appear out of place. The Capitals firmly believe they have the next coming of Peter Bondra on their hands.

Data: Has exploded for six goals in his first career Stanley Cup playoffs ... Despite missing 14 games at the end of the season with a concussion, was third on team in regular season goals with 17 and third in shots with 148 ... Scored first-ever Caps' MCI Center goal on Dec. 5, 1997 against Florida.