TORONTO,Sept. 27 2000 --He's the ultimate hockey Insider and one of the
first true "beat" sports television reporters.
    He's Bob McKenzie and he started breaking hockey news stories with the
NHL season not even a day old.
    Viewers can see McKenzie in an expanded role this season on TSN as
SPORTSDESK's regular hockey Insider; on Molson That's Hockey; on regional
broadcasts of Toronto Maple Leafs hockey; and, he writes regular columns and
gives fans the inside scoop on trades, team and player news for TSN's website,
tsn.ca.
    Now, with the NHL's regular season set to begin Oct. 4, McKenzie previews
all six Canadian NHL teams.  (McKenzie also previews all 30 NHL teams in-depth
at tsn.ca.)

    (Alphabetical Order)

    - Calgary Flames:
      ---------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish: 11th

    "Former coach Brian Sutter took the Flames about as far as he could with
an unyielding demand for work ethic," McKenzie says. "Now, new coach Don Hay
has to try to play to this young, rebuilding team's strengths. That is,
offensive creativity and puck control."
    "Of course, all that depends on getting key restricted free agents
signed. If defenceman Derek Morris and center Marc Savard are out for any
length of time, it severely cripples the Flames' hopes for challenging for the
playoffs."
    "With Savard, Cory Stillman, Valeri Bure and Jarome Iginla, who is
destined for a breakthrough year, the Flames have a nice offensive nucleus, if
a little on the small side."
    "The defence is mobile with some offensive punch, although the key blue-
line personnel is either quite old (Phil Housley, Tommy Albelin) or quite
green (Morris, Denis Gauthier, Robyn Regehr). The Flames are continuing an
upward climb but probably not fast enough to nail down a playoff spot. They'll
make it interesting, though."


    - Edmonton Oilers:
      ----------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish: 9th

    "The Oilers have become something of a fixture at the low end of the
Western Conference playoff tier for the last few seasons," McKenzie says. "The
question now is, can they hang on for another?"
    "It's going to be more difficult than in the past, not so much because of
anything the Oilers are, or aren't, doing as much as other teams in the
conference starting to get their stuff together. The Oilers' goaltending is in
good hands -- Tommy Salo is one of the most underrate No.1 stoppers in the
league. But the Edmonton defence lost some much-needed experience with the
trading of Roman Hamrlik to the Islanders."
    "His replacement Eric Brewer may one day emerge as a star but, for now
anyway, he has to prove he can play regularly in the league. Igor Ulanov gives
everything he's got, but if he's playing in the top four, there's a problem.
Up front, the Oilers' finally re-signed restricted free agent Ryan Smyth.
There's precious little scoring on the left side, especially with Ethan Moreau
and Josh Green recovering from injuries."
    "The right side -- with Bill Guerin, Mike Grier and Georges Laraque -- is
in better shape and there's no problem up the middle with Doug Weight, Todd
Marchant and Rem Murray. Under new GM Kevin Lowe and new bench boss Craig
MacTavish, the Oilers will continue to be a speedy and abrasive squad, but
they are in danger of being eclipsed for a final playoff spot by a team like
Anaheim."


    - Montreal Canadiens:
      -------------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish: 13th

    "There is a tendency to say the Canadiens were a Cinderella story last
season, but can there be a Cinderella if she never got to the ball, never even
flirted with Prince Charming? The Canadiens earned everyone's respect for
their valiant but failed effort to make the playoffs," McKenzie says.
    "Heck, coach Alain Vigneault even got an Adams nomination for doing an
incredible job in the face of so much adversity, most of it injury-related."
    "But that was then and this is now. Shayne Corson. Gone. Turner
Stevenson. Gone. Neither of those two players were offensive dynamos for the
Habs but they were two big reasons why Montreal made such a spirited bid for
the playoffs. Those two went to war and now they're gone, with no real
replacements to be found. The Habs' goaltending is secure with Jeff Hackett,
but the early line on the defense is that the injury bug will continue to
bite."
    "Even when healthy, the Habs' blueline (led by Sheldon Souray, Eric
Weinrich, Patrice Brisebois and Craig Rivet) is far from inspiring. Up front,
Montreal has some offensive pop from the wings with Martin Rucinsky and Brian
Savage. The Habs desperately need Saku Koivu and Trevor Linden to step up at
center. But it's difficult to see how this team can reasonably expect to make
any noise this season."
    "This appears to be a below-average squad, set against the backdrop of
Molson looking to sell the franchise. For the sake of the game and tradition,
let's hope the picture isn't as bleak as it appears to be for the bleu, blanc
et rouge. But it doesn't look good. It doesn't look good at all."


    - Ottawa Senators:
      ----------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish: 8th

    "A lot of people are predicting the Senators will take a step backwards
this season, largely because of two question marks in net," McKenzie says.
    "Patrick Lalime? Jani Hurme? Can one or both of these guys shoulder the
load in goal? Time will obviously tell, but a lot of people asked the same
questions when the Senators first started platooning Damian Rhodes and Ron
Tugnutt and look at the great mileage Ottawa got from those two."
    "The worst-case scenario is that the Lalime-Hurme tandem doesn't get the
job done, in which case the wise-spending Sens will look to the trade market.
Besides, goalies in Ottawa aren't expected to carry the entire load because
Jacques Martin is one of the premier coaches in the game and gets his team to
play a solid defensive style."
    "As long as Wade Redden and Sami Salo stay healthy, the Sens have a
decent nucleus on the blueline. On paper, the Sens are a better team with
Alexei Yashin in the lineup but it remains to be seen if he becomes a
distraction. Chemistry is so important on a team like the Sens, so that is an
area to watch closely."
    "Ottawa continues to be one of the speedier teams in the league, a great
counter-attacking squad that makes the opposition pay for their mistakes. And
if they can break in some of their talented youngsters -- Mike Fisher and
Martin Havlat, for example -- so much the better. It says here the Sens will
be in a major dogfight for the final playoff spot, but don't ever
underestimate the little franchise that could."


    - Toronto Maple Leafs:
      --------------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish:  2nd

    "As long as Curtis Joseph's training camp groin injury remains just that -
- a training camp affliction -- the Leafs look to be the class of the
Northeast Division and maybe even the entire Eastern Conference," McKenzie
says.
    "The addition of gritty forwards Gary Roberts and Shayne Corson --
assuming they remain healthy (Corson hasn't been able to play so far because
of a "virus") -- greatly enhances the Leafs' depth and ability to compete with
teams like New Jersey and Philadelphia."
    "If Alexander Karpovtsev doesn't sign, or is traded, the Leafs will miss
his defensive play on the blueline but it won't have a significant negative
impact. Still, that is the area that separates the Leafs from the elite Cup
contenders. They are one big defensive kingpin shy, which is why they should
be pursuing every avenue to secure Rob Blake from the Los Angeles Kings."
    "Nevertheless, the Leafs now have a nice blend of skill and toughness
that was lacking in the last couple of seasons and will only get better once
Yanic Perreault and Nik Antropov return from injury rehab. Alyn McCauley looks
rejuvenated and he's either going to become a factor for this team or, when
Perreault and Antropov return, a valuable trade asset."
    "Of course, if Joseph's groin injury turns out to be of the serious
variety, all bets are off."


    - Vancouver Canucks:
      ------------------

    McKenzie's Predicted Conference Finish: 12th

    "As long as Felix Potvin provides the kind of goaltending he gave the
Canucks down the stretch last season -- and not what he gave the Islanders and
Maple Leafs over the last few seasons -- the Canucks have a chance to be
competitive as they earnestly enter into a major rebuilding phase," McKenzie
says.
    "Much of the focus will be on the vaunted Sedin twins, but Vancouver
fans' attitudes should be that whatever Daniel and Henrik provide this year is
a bonus. The real test of the Canucks' immediate future hinge on how well
Andrew Cassels responds to No. 1 center duty and if Brendan Morrison can be a
front-line center."
    "Mattias Ohlund and Ed Jovanovski anchor a blue-line that is slowly, but
surely, maturing. Markus Naslund is the proven goal-scoring commodity and Todd
Bertuzzi has to develop some consistency because the rest of the Canuck lineup
is littered with kids just learning the NHL ropes."
    "There will be nights this season when the Canucks look like world
beaters, but as with any team with so many youngsters, there'll be a lot of
inconsistency. That'll make it tough to grab a playoff spot."


    TSN is Canada's most watched sports network. Led by TSN SPORTSDESK, the
network's comprehensive schedule includes the Olympics, Blue Jays baseball,
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Season of Champions curling and amateur sports action.  TSN's Internet site is
located at tsn.ca.

    *Note: Photo, interview available upon request



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For further information: Chris Doyle (416) 490-7365