Monday, April 27, 1998 | 9:31 a.m.
If ever a team should be glad to see a season end, this would be it.
But happiness was not the emotion of choice for the Las Vegas Thunder in the wake of its season-ending elimination from the Western Conference quarterfinals.
Las Vegas dropped its best-of-5 series with Long Beach when the Ice Dogs posted a 3-1 victory in Game 4 Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Center. The defeat ended the most frustrating campaign in the Thunder's five-year history.
"You look at what happened all year, it was tough mentally," right wing Patrice Lefebvre said. "I can't say I'm happy it's over because I'd like to go all the way and win (the Turner Cup). But I look at how the season has gone, and I can say it's been a long season."
The Thunder finished the regular season at 33-39-10, its first sub-.500 record. And the bumps along the way, including a team-record seven-game losing skid, made the season that much uglier.
"There was a time when the players were so negative on themselves and on each other," head coach Clint Malarchuk said. "They didn't believe in themselves and didn't believe in the talent they had.
"There were a lot of frustrating times. The team seemed to have no cohesiveness. In a lot of different ways, there was always something wrong. It was one thing after another."
Las Vegas appeared in position to turn in a quality campaign in January. After playing all of December on the road, the Thunder was 25-19-6 with a home-dominant schedule the balance of the season.
"I thought our play before Christmas was pretty reinforcing in terms of what we were trying to do," general manager Bob Strumm said. "Then the roof fell in. I was shocked at the direction this team took after Christmas."
Original bench boss Chris McSorley, who had been courted by the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning early in the season, resigned in March. That made way Malarchuk, who had never been a head coach at any level.
The Thunder also struggled to recover from several key player losses. Defensemen Radoslav Suchy and John Slaney were recalled by the Phoenix Coyotes and not replaced.
The blue line took another hit after David Shaw -- possibly the biggest acquisition of the season when he was loaned tp the Thunder by the Lightning -- unexpectedly retired to tend to family matters.
Injuries also claimed top center Jesse Belanger, No. 1 goaltender Manny Legace and NHL products Jeff Christian and Barry Potomski for major stretches.
"It was a trying season," Strumm said. "It was interesting, challenging.
"We had some good things happen. The necessity for us is to build on those positives and evaluate the negatives to make sure they don't happen again."
Despite the record, Lefebvre managed to post the most productive season in team history. He set the standard for points with 116, including a team-record 89 assists.
"The year I had the 114 points (in 1995-96), there was a lot of firepower on our team," Lefebvre said. "This team, we had a lot of changes, and it was not the same as two years ago. That year, everybody was racking up goals and assists and points."
Las Vegas provided some off-ice excitement by gambling -- and losing -- in its attempt to sign former NHL star center Petr Nedved, who was holding out from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The IHL nixed the deal after much legal haranguing.
"It was a great thrill to have (Nedved) in the lineup," Strumm said, "and I don't think it affected our finish any."
In fact, Strumm and Malarchuk claimed Friday night's thrilling 3-2 victory was a strong indicator the Thunder finally was hitting stride. But they also agreed it was too little, too late.
"I was actually real proud of the way we played the last two games," Strumm said. "One of the greatest games in team history was Friday night."
Friday was one of the finer days in Malarchuk's life. Earlier in the day, his wife, Christy, gave birth to their first child, a six-pound, seven-ounce baby girl named Dallyn Sarah. Later that night, Malarchuk discovered all his preparation and coaching was not a waste of time.
"We won the game and played exactly as we planned and talked about for so long but weren't able to do," Malarchuk said. "The guys played great. It was a character win against one of the best teams we've seen in the IHL in five years."
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