//and there was war outside the window//
//and children in the streets were throwing rocks at the tanks// ~ Patti Smith

Kevin was in goal today, taking a shut out over the New Jersey Devils as the Carolina Hurricanes progress to round two, four games to two. I'll write more about Cheesy later.

Today, I thought I'd say something on the Canes number one netminder, Arturs Irbe.

Irbe picked up the first two wins for the Hurricanes although he downplays that somewhat. "I would say this is a total team effort. Yeah, I had to make the saves to help the team win, but you can't call it a steal when guys play so well defensively. It's a really good feeling, and I knew the guys did that, but when I saw the stats, that really made it even more special."

"Archie made some great saves. He was squared to just about everything. The save on the breakaway at the start of the game really was an important thing for our team, and let us get through some of the jitters." ~ Carolina head coach Paul Maurice

"He plays his best hockey when he gets a lot of shots. Archie's the one that got us into the playoffs last year. He didn't have to steal as many games as he did for us last year, because we're a better hockey club, but tonight, he did. He was great. He couldn't have been any better. The one that went in, he says he should have had. I could tell by his reaction -- he felt he could have had it. That's just the competitor he is." ~ teammate Rod Brind'Amour

"As much as you talk about athletes getting into a zone, I think he's in a zone. He's one of those guys that you know, when it comes down to crunch time, he's going to block out all the external stuff and just play, and play well." ~ Carolina defenseman Aaron Ward

"The goalie is like the guy on the minefield. He discovers the mines and destroys them. If you make a mistake, somebody gets blown up. " -Arturs Irbe

Irbe, 34, was born in Latvia and grew up during a time when his homeland was part of the Soviet Union. He was in Moscow securing his first American visa to play in the NHL when the coup to topple Communism began.

"In my short life I have experienced obviously tanks and barricades on the streets, shooting on the streets of the city.

"I've experienced a lot of things with my own eyes. Back then it was part of the Soviet Union and not all the world was paying attention."

Irbe was an unproven European import when Kevin Constantine, now the head coach of the New Jersey Devils, took over the San Jose Sharks nine years ago. The rookie coach gave Irbe his big break. Irbe became Constantine's workhorse, leading the upstart Sharks to an opening-round playoff victory against the powerhouse Detroit Red Wings in 1994.

"I've often said Arturs should get paid more, because he makes the game so much more exciting." Constantine said of Irbe, referring to those scary times when Irbe ventures away from the net.

"He was the first coach who gave me a chance in this league," Irbe said Of Constantine. "He was the first one who trusted me. That's goes a long way, and nobody can take that away."

"You should do that. You should try to do something interesting." ~ Irbe, to Tie Domi after Domi threatened to mash him.

Constantine has had nothing but praise for Irbe, citing him as one of the main reasons the Sharks went from a bumbling expansion club to a team that pulled off some exciting playoff upsets. Irbe said Constantine was a very structured coach back then, and that is part of what makes him successful.

"I assume he hasn't changed much," Irbe said. "He's always been the man we knew then. He made everybody special. Sure, there were guys who liked him more or less, but he had the team playing a disciplined style of good defense. A goalie can't complain about that kind of coach."

Over the grind of an 82-game season, every NHL player needs some way to escape. On the road, Arturs Irbe passes the time with needle and thread repairing his own goalie equipment. Last season, he sewed a glove from scratch for his son.

But when he's home, he turns to his dogs.

"As a kid, I dreamed of having dogs," he said. "We lived in an apartment in the city and couldn't afford to have a pet because we barely could make ends meet. It was always a dream to have some kind of pets."

He has two dogs now on his North Raleigh horse farm that allows him to "get away from crazy urbanization." There are no horses yet, but he says there will be someday.

"I don't want to do anything I really cannot enjoy or really cannot be in touch with and understand what's happening," Irbe said. "As far as I am concerned, right now I concentrate on hockey, and horses can come later."

"How can you not like a pro athlete who lists one of his hobbies as miniature golf? Although at his size, what other kind of golf could Irbe play?" ~Scott Ostler

Irbe was one of a group of Canes players to visit Ground Zero. An avid student of history, Irbe was surprised both by how mundane the World Trade Center site now looks and how much meaning it still retains.

"It looks like a construction site now, to be honest," Irbe said. "It's easier to deal with that way.

"This (was) complete and absolute terror."

What struck Irbe most was the pride of the New York police officers who gave the tour, both for their fellow officers lost and their success in getting so many people out before the towers collapsed.

One thing Irbe said he is sure of is America's resilience in times of crisis, and he was quick to point out the people in his homeland are behind this country. And he is very interested in what lies ahead.

"The United States will now find out who their true friends and allies are because you cannot sit on the fence on this one," he said. "You cannot only be remorseful and condemn it but not do anything about it. You have to choose one side."

"At times like this, there are priorities. Even if we miss games in the preseason or regular season, it's not the end of the world. The key is to make sure our families feel secure."

Still, Irbe was not against playing a scrimmage four days after the Attacks at TECO Arena. "Of course it's a great cause and a wonderful thing to set up and we want to do something as a team. And also it's obvious people need a break because we cannot be glued to the news and the TV 24 hours a day. We might go crazy. We cannot forget and not pay attention, but we also have to try to move on, and this way we can help people to put their minds on something else."

$5,640 was raised by the event, a benefit for the American Red Cross. The Florida Everblades booster club would raise an additional $347 for the same charity.

"Irbe is handling the puck badly! Or is that redundant?" ~ Unidentified hockey writer

Myself, I consider Irbe a warrior. He goes out there night after night, and gives the team a chance to win. He took the first two games for the Hurricanes in the playoffs this year before struggling on the road. Still, Irbe has been nothing less then supportive of his new partner. He was the first guy to congratulate Kevin on his win in game five, Wednesday night.

"Archie's a class guy," Kevin said. "I knew he would be supportive of me. That's the way he is. I know he would like to be in there, but he's a team player first."

Irbe said he saw Weekes celebrating alone on the ice.

"I didn't want him to steal the show," Irbe joked. "I know how he felt about starting this big game."