Thunder unloads Demitra

Tim Graham

Tuesday, Nov. 26, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

Unhappy with the way its players have been manhandled in recent games, the Las Vegas Thunder made a trade of left wings Monday, giving up offense for physical presence.

The Thunder dealt Pavol Demitra to the Grand Rapids Griffins for Darin Smith, who will be in uniform tonight as Las Vegas travels to Salt Lake City for a 6 p.m. contest against its chief rivals, the Utah Grizzlies.

The game, which pits the top two teams in the Southwest Conference, will be televised on KUPN Channel 21 (Prime Cable Channel 2), giving Thunder fans a chance to see Smith immediately.

"Our guys are getting chopped to ribbons," Las Vegas general manager Bob Strumm said. "We've got lots and lots of skill out there, but we need a guy to defend the fort.

"Smith gives us more grit. He's a real character guy, a real strong guy."

In 14 games with the Griffins this season, the 6-foot-2, 205-pound Smith had a goal and two assists with 23 penalty minutes.

Last season he played in the Turner Cup Finals after the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Solar Bears traded with the Fort Wayne Komets for him. In 63 games with the Komets and 16 more with the Solar Bears, Smith notched 17 goals and 22 assists with 143 penalty minutes.

Demitra was the Thunder's sixth-leading scorer with eight goals and 13 assists in 22 games, but in one sense was a liability. The 6-foot, 190-pounder is a free agent of the National Hockey League's Ottawa Senators and will leave the minor leagues the moment he signs with them.

"He was making no bones about the fact he was putting in time until he got back to the NHL," Strumm said.

In recent weeks, the Thunder has seen its players head back and forth to the NHL. Defenseman Kevin Dahl and left wing Jason Simon spent time with the Phoenix Coyotes and center Sergei Zholtok played a few games for the Ottawa Senators.

"This trade stabilizes our lineup from that standpoint," Strumm said. "Our players were going up and down and there was uncertainty as to how long (Demitra) was going to be here."

Also on Monday, the Thunder suspended center Blaine Moore for not reporting to Port Huron of the lowly Colonial Hockey League. Moore was demoted on Sunday, bypassing the organization's East Coast Hockey League affiliate in Toledo. In 14 games this season, he recorded one goal and three assists with a minus-2 and 14 penalty minutes.