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Hasek, Modano, Forsberg, Blake headed for Hall

By WTOP Staff

LARRY LAGE
AP Hockey Writer

Dominik Hasek, Mike Modano, Peter Forsberg and Rob Blake started playing hockey in four different countries as kids.

They will enter the Hockey Hall of Fame together.

“This tells me that our game is growing, our game is growing worldwide,” John Davidson, chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee, said Monday. “When we have a class like this coming into the hall, I think that says a lot about our game and how worldwide it is.”

The four players will be inducted Nov. 17 in Toronto along with former referee Bill McCreary and the late Pat Burns, who will be enshrined posthumously as a coach in the builder category.

Hasek, who was known as “the Dominator,” won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender six times, tying Bill Durnan’s total and trailing Jacques Plante’s record by one. He won two Hart Trophies as league MVP in 1997 and 1998 with the Buffalo Sabres, becoming the first to win the award from his position since Plante did it in 1962.

Hasek also helped the Czech Republic win gold at the 1998 Olympics — the first with NHL players — several years after he almost left the world’s top league.

“I was thinking about going back to Europe because I was in the minors, playing for the Indianapolis Ice,” Hasek recalled, referring to the Chicago Blackhawks’ affiliate. “But I got a chance to play in 1992 and it was the best thing that could happen for me because in Buffalo, I got a chance to play.”

The Sabres traded him to Detroit nearly a decade later and he helped the Detroit Red Wings hoist the Stanley Cup in 2002. Hasek becomes the seventh player from that team to be elected to the Hall of Fame as a player and it was led by Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman. Hasek was a backup in 2008 when Detroit won another championship.

Modano ended his career with his home-state Red Wings after leaving Michigan to play in Canada at the age of 15, a move that seemed to pay off. He finished with records for American-born players — 561 goals and 1,374 points — and helped the Dallas Stars win the Cup in 1999 against the Hasek-led Sabres. Modano was drafted No. 1 overall in 1988 by the Minnesota North Stars after playing juniors with the Prince Albert Raiders in the Western Hockey League.

“It was a tough decision to leave Detroit, to leave home,” he recalled. “I thought Canada was the best place to go for competition.”

Canada was home for Blake, who was born in Simcoe, Ontario. He helped his country win it all at the Olympics in 2002, earning a place in the Triple Gold Club that includes only players with a Cup, Olympic and world gold medals. Blake won an NHL title with the Colorado Avalanche in 2001 after winning one Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman in 1998 while playing for the Los Angeles Kings.

Forsberg, a smooth-skating, slick-shooting Swede, is also in the Triple Gold Club. He won two championships in Colorado and helped Sweden win gold at the 2006 Olympics. Philadelphia drafted Forsberg with the No. 6 overall pick in 1991 and traded him to Quebec a year later in a trade for Eric Lindros, and he played one season for the Nordiques before the franchise moved to Colorado. He had a great career, but it was stunted by several injuries.

Burns, who coached the New Jersey Devils to the 2003 Stanley Cup title, died of cancer at 58 in 2010. The police officer-turned-hockey coach won the Adams Trophy as the NHL’s top coach with three teams: Toronto, Montreal and Boston.

“It’s a very emotional day for the Burns family, I can tell you that, and I think it’s a great day,” said his wife, Lynn.

McCreary was an official for nearly 2,000 games, including 282 playoff games, from 1984 until he worked his last game on April 2, 2011. He also was an official in the 1998 and 2002 Olympic finals.

Brendan Shanahan, Chris Chelios, Scott Niedermayer, Geraldine Heaney and the late Fred Shero were inducted last year. Among eligible players who have not been picked for induction are Lindros, the 1995 NHL MVP and six-time All-Star, and Mark Recchi, a seven-time All-Star who won three Cups with three teams.

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Online:

Hockey Hall of Fame: www.hhof.com

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Connect with Larry Lage at www.Twitter.com/larrylage

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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