ESTRANGED FROM THE FAMILY : KINGS REACH OUT TO DIONNE AFTER YEARS OF BITTERNESS.Byline: Tim Trepany Daily News Staff Writer He is the Kings' all-time leading scorer and the only player who spent the majority of his career in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. to be elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame, located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is dedicated to the history of ice hockey with exhibits featuring memorabilia and NHL trophies (including the Stanley Cup) along with interactive activities. . When the Kings invited Marcel Dionne Marcel Elphege "Little Beaver" Dionne (born August 3 1951, in Drummondville, Quebec, Canada) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers. to take part in the celebration of the franchise's 30th anniversary this week, however, he was surprised. Dionne has been estranged es·trange tr.v. es·tranged, es·trang·ing, es·trang·es 1. To make hostile, unsympathetic, or indifferent; alienate. 2. To remove from an accustomed place or set of associations. from the Kings ever since then-general manager Rogie Vachon traded him to the New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York, New York, U.S.A. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). 10 years ago. He accepted the invitation only after several phone calls from Kings president Tim Leiweke and former teammates. It is just the second time the Kings have welcomed him back to the Forum. Six years ago they retired his jersey, and Dionne today views that as a hollow gesture. ``It was almost like, `Let's put the number up there, let's get rid of this and let's get on with our lives,' '' he said. ``So there's never been any contact.'' Leiweke wants Dionne to be part of the organization, but as he's finding out, soothing 10 years of bitterness isn't done overnight. ``I was never asked for anything in the past,'' said Dionne, who lives outside of Buffalo, N.Y., and runs his own marketing company. ``Not even for alumni or golf tournaments. There's always excuses for everything, but if you stand up and be counted, things happen. ``I'm home. Everybody has my phone number. Everybody can find me. If they can't find me, you're in trouble.'' Dionne was one of the most dangerous scorers in NHL NHL Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, see there history. His 731 goals and 1,771 points in 18 seasons rank third behind Wayne Gretzky Noun 1. Wayne Gretzky - high-scoring Canadian ice-hockey player (born in 1961) Gretzky and Gordie Howe Noun 1. Gordie Howe - Canadian hockey player who holds the record for playing the most games (born 1928) Gordon Howe, Howe in each category. The majority of the points came during his 11-plus seasons in Los Angeles. It is Dionne, not Gretzky, who holds the team records for goals scored (550), assists (757) and points (1,307). ``He was one of the early, true superstars,'' said Charlie Simmer Charles Simmer (born March 20, 1954, in Terrace Bay, Ontario) was an ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League from the 1974-75 season to the 1987-88 season, notable for his scoring and power play prowess. , who played on the fabled Triple Crown line with Dionne and Dave Taylor. ``When you ask people today who's the third-leading scorer in NHL history, not many people will think of Marcel Dionne, and that's a shame. He ended up getting a lot of points even though he played on a lot of bad teams.'' Dionne, 45, regularly takes part in events for the Rangers, Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. - the first NHL team he played for - and even the neighborhood Sabres, who he never played for. He is puzzled by the Kings. ``What did I do wrong?'' Dionne said. ``I mean, I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. , somebody has to tell me. What did I do wrong? I just don't know.'' He was in the twilight of his career when Vachon traded him to the Rangers on March 10, 1987, along with a minor-leaguer and a later third-round draft pick to the Rangers for center Bobby Carpenter Bobby, or Bob Carpenter may refer to:
Laidlaw started his National Hockey League career with the New York Rangers in 1980. He also played for the Los Angeles Kings. He left the NHL after the 1990 season. . Vachon gives the same reason he did the day he made the deal: The 35-year-old Dionne wanted to win a Stanley Cup Stanley Cup: see hockey, ice. Stanley Cup Trophy awarded annually to the winning team of the National Hockey League championship. Named for its donor, the Canadian governor-general Frederick Arthur Stanley, Lord Stanley of Preston before he retired, so he asked to be sent to a contender. ``At the time, we were just starting to rebuild and he said, `I understand what you're trying to do, but I never had a chance to win a Stanley Cup,' '' said Vachon, now the team's director of hockey operations. There was speculation that Dionne didn't really want to leave the Kings, that he was only bluffing in order to get an extension because he had only an option year left on his contract. Dionne refuses to discuss details of the trade, but he believes that his outspokenness threatened Vachon. ``Sometimes, you're around people and you become a threat to them and certain things happen,'' Dionne said. ``I talk about a lot of things with past players and we see who's involved in hockey, and it's funny. It's a very insecure position for a lot of people.'' Said Vachon, ``He's still bitter.'' Dionne believes that when former owner Bruce McNall Bruce Patrick McNall (born April 17, 1950 in Arcadia, California) is a former American sports executive who once owned the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League bought the team and acquired Gretzky, they intentionally cut all ties to the past. McNall not only changed the uniforms from the purple and gold to silver and black, he forgot former players. ``I'm not trying to have any controversy, but it seems when Wayne came everybody else died,'' he said. ``I'm very happy what I'm doing, I want to move ahead, but I do have a lot of memories with the Kings. I am remembered as a purple and gold King.'' There also is a story about the Kings' appearance in the 1993 Stanley Cup finals. Dionne has said that he asked the Kings for tickets, but was denied them, an account Vachon said is untrue. ``It's total (hogwash hog·wash n. 1. Worthless, false, or ridiculous speech or writing; nonsense. 2. Garbage fed to hogs; swill. hogwash Noun Informal nonsense Noun 1. ),'' Vachon said. ``First of all, he never contacted us directly. Afterward, he says they didn't give me tickets. That's not true.'' What is known is that Dionne attended the finals, courtesy of tickets he said were provided by the Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (French: Canadiens de Montréal) are a professional men's ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). , the Kings' opponent. Dionne even visited the Canadiens' dressing room, but not the Kings'. Leiweke tackled the hard feelings head on, visiting Dionne when the Kings played at Buffalo Dec. 20. He is optimistic a formal relationship between the former player and organization will be established, perhaps having Dionne work at camps or alumni functions. ``We think we have an idea of how to bring him back into the family, and we're in the middle of trying to work that out now with some of his people,'' Leiweke said. ``But I don't know. He's an interesting guy. He went to great lengths to say there was no bad blood or ill will and he felt great about the organization, and then all of a sudden, boom, he'd stick in a `but.' '' They are ``buts'' Dionne has been waiting 10 years to say. Now someone in the organization is listening. MARCEL DIONNE'S NHL ACHIEVEMENTS 18 NHL seasons Third all-time in goals (731) and points (1,771) Kings all-time leader in goals (550), assists (757) and points (1,307) Five straight seasons (1979-83) with 50-plus goals, 100-plus points Inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame, 1992 KINGS 30th ANNIVERSARY WEEKEND Thursday Kings vs. St. Louis Blues, 7:30 p.m., Forum Kings will wear replicas of their 1967 jerseys Pregame autographs and photos with Kings alumni Kings alumni introduced during intermission Friday Kings 30th Anniversary Gala, benefiting Kings Care Foundation, 6 p.m., Century Plaza Hotel The Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles is a landmark 19-story luxury hotel forming a sweeping crescent design fronting the spectacular fountains on Avenue of the Stars adjacent to the twin Century Plaza Towers. Dinner and program with actor Alan Thicke as master of ceremonies Presentation of Kings all-time team and other awards Silent auction Saturday FanFest, 3 p.m., Forum parking lot Autograph/photo booths with Kings alumni Kings alumni vs. celebrity team, 4 p.m. Kings vs. Calgary Flames, 7:30 p.m. CAPTION(S): 3 Photos, 2 Boxes Photo: (1--color) Marcel Dionne, shown at a February oldtimers game near Toronto, has felt snubbed by the management of the Kings. Steve Russell / Special to the Daily News (2) Marcel Dionne, accepting retired jersey from Dave Taylor, saw it as a hollow gesture. (3) The Kings' all-time leading scorer and only Hall of Famer Marcel Dionne, shown in the original uniform, was part of the fabled Triple Crown line. Daily News File Photo Box: (1) MARCEL DIONNE'S NHL ACHIEVEMENTS (see text) (2) KINGS 30TH ANNIVERSARY WEEKEND (see text) |
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