Naslund could learn from Alfredsson

The Russians used to dominate the hockey world, in part, because they were physically fitter than their opponents. Today, almost everyone’s in shape. The great dividing line, then, is often mental conditioning. And that’s an area where one Swedish captain of a Canadian NHL team could learn from another.

Check out this recent excerpt from the Ottawa Sun:

[As] we talked about [Daniel] Alfredsson playing the best hockey of his career at a time when many other players begin to wane, Alfredsson said he used to be his own worst critic, but had eased up. The philosophy he had come to adopt for himself was the message he gave his teammates Saturday.

“I might look back at a game and I might have played well, but I misread that play or I did that wrong,” said Alfredsson. “Where I’ve gotten better is I used to take that too hard, then try and make it up and try to do too much. I’m smarter now about how I play the game and that allows me to be more effective.”

Markus Naslund, are you listening? Stop beating yourself up.

Heading into Wednesday’s game versus Edmonton, the captain of the Vancouver Canucks hasn’t scored since October 28 and is on pace for 20 goals. That would mark his worst output since 1997-98 (14). That year, he was so deep inside Mike Keenan’s doghouse that talk of him cracking the 40-goal barrier, which he eventually did each season from 2000-01 through 2002-03, would have sounded like a drug-induced media fantasy (with apologies to Brian Burke).

There are several reasons why Naslund doesn’t bulge the twine as often as in the past. His wrist shot has lost some zing and his legs aren’t as speedy. He preferred the ice time and freedom he got under Marc Crawford to Alain Vigneault’s more stifling defensive system. He has never found a linemate as effective as the pre-Steve Moore Todd Bertuzzi. And in the estimation of most, the burden of being the captain is one Naslund handles professionally but has not relished for years. (At the same time, it would put him in an uncomfortable, virtually impossible situation if the team took the C away from him now.)

But I believe the biggest reason is that the 34-year-old spends too much time putting pressure on himself, agonizing over what went wrong, telling himself and the world he can (and must!) do better, wanting to do well so badly that things turn out badly.

Only that kind of mindset could explain the sort of play where, for instance, he overskated the puck at center ice while participating in a shootout versus Dallas back in January.

Look at what he told the Canadian Press after the end of last season:

“I know I can play better,” Naslund said as the Canucks cleaned out their lockers and said goodbye for the summer. “It wasn’t a lack of effort, I wanted to do well. It just wasn’t there.”

“I know I can do better, that’s the bottom line. I’m proud of what I do. I want to show I can still perform. I’m going to come back and prove that I can play better.”

That’s pride, but it’s also the sound of a whip cracking. For most of us, self-flagellation went out of fashion in the 13th century. This isn’t about atonement for sins committed. It’s just sports.

Personally, I’ve run a lot of 5- and 10-km races over the years. Nobody would mistake my times for those of an Olympian. But I know that up until a few years ago, I’d often get way too hyped up before a race, feel queasy with nerves or even get sick through the first few kilometers, beat myself up the first time I didn’t hit a target split time, and end up not finishing as well as I should have. Now, I approach running with more of a level head and don’t worry so much about the small individual setbacks. As a result, I perform better.

Of course, it’s harder to tell a star like Naslund that he should try to relax when his professional future is very much up in the air. Naslund is in the final year of a deal that pays him $6 million, and if he isn’t dealt at the trade deadline, he’ll have to accept a drastically reduced salary for 2008-09 if he plans to remain in a Canucks uniform.

But Naslund can still play. He hustled–even if he didn’t produce big numbers–in last year’s playoffs. Even if decreasing physical abilities prevent him from hitting 40 goals again, he should be able to get 30. He just has to wrap his head around playing a more simplified game than in his early-millennium glory days with Bertuzzi and turning down the volume on his inner critic.

For somebody who hungers to be a champion, Naslund has endured plenty of disappointments. The 2002-03 Canucks could likely have marched to the Stanley Cup finals if they hadn’t blown a 3-1 series lead over the Minnesota Wild. Naslund was also part of the powerhouse Swedish World Junior team that surrendered gold to Canada on home ice in 1993, and wore Tre Kronor colors in the infamous 2002 Olympic quarter-final loss to Belarus.

But none of that matters now. If Naslund wants to find himself where Alfredsson found himself last season–in the Stanley Cup finals–his chances of success will certainly increase if he can find a way to think less, shoot more, and have more fun.