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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Knightfall" data-source="post: 3090852" data-attributes="member: 2012">Cujo's pumped about the re-tooled teamCanadian Press9/27/2006 4:51:10 PMIt seems like ages ago that Curtis Joseph was stealing the spotlight in Edmonton and Toronto with his trademark acrobatic saves.Well the veteran goalie is as pumped about his 17th NHL season as he's been for any other and believes this year's version of the Phoenix Coyotes will get him back to the playoffs.After helping a young and rebuilding club to a respectable 38-39-5 record last season, the 39-year-old native of Keswick, Ont., has loftier goals for his team this season.''Oh absolutely, the expectations are higher,'' Cujo said Wednesday. ''Anything short of making the playoffs would be deemed a failure - even though it's extremely competitive to make the playoffs. But certainly we feel that's in our future, that's the feeling in the locker-room, that once we get in maybe we can make some noise.''The off-season additions of defencemen Ed Jovanovski and Nick Boynton as well as veteran forwards Owen Nolan, Jeremy Roenick and top tough guy Georges Laraque have the Coyotes thinking bigger.''We have made some notable changes,'' Joseph said from Anaheim, Calif., before a pre-season game. ''When you acquire a defenceman like Ed Jovanovski that can play between 25 and 30 minutes a game, he's just such a talent. I think he was one of, if not the best free agent available. That's a big plus for our team.''Jeremy Roenick and Owen Nolan have looked extremely good in camp, so there's a lot of reasons for optimism.''Jovanovski and Boynton join a blue-line that already includes promising youngsters Keith Ballard and Zbynek Michalek, as well as Derek Morris and Dennis Seidenberg.That's a top-rate defence.''Absolutely,'' said Joseph. ''I always say Derek Morris is one of the most underrated players in the league. And obviously Ballard and Michalek are a year older and they had outstanding rookie campaigns. The future looks bright, no question.''Last March it wasn't clear where Joseph's future lay. With the Coyotes out of the playoff picture and Joseph due to become an unrestricted free agent in July, GM Mike Barnett took calls from four other NHL teams who had serious interest in acquiring the former Maple Leafs and Oilers netminder for the stretch run.Barnett decided to approach Joseph's agent, veteran Don Meehan, to see how the goalie felt about things.''I spoke to Donnie and I told him Curtis had been tremendous for us and that we would accommodate him in any way or fashion,'' Barnett said Wednesday. ''They got back to us very quickly and said he didn't want to go anywhere.''So Barnett took him off the trade market and focused his energy on re-signing him, which he did in late May, more than doubling Joseph's salary in a US$2-million, one-year deal for the 2006-07 season.''I was treated so well here last season,'' Joseph said in explaining his decision to stay. ''I know the direction the team was going with Wayne (Gretzky) being coach, it just was a nice fit for me, and my family certainly enjoyed life in the desert. Things worked out so well last year that I didn't want to change it.''Just how long he intends to play remains a mystery even to himself. One year at a time.''It is the cliche and it's a good one in my case,'' he said. ''As long as I'm contributing the way I feel that I would like to, then I will keep playing. Because I enjoy playing. If I can play well, I'll keep playing.''Barnett got a bargain in August 2005 when he scooped up Joseph for a one-year deal worth $900,000, the Detroit Red Wings having made him a free agent when they declined to pick up an option year.''We were fortunate in that we had a little bit of an inside edge in the person of Barry Smith,'' said Barnett.Smith was an assistant coach in Detroit during Cujo's final year in Hockeytown and recommended him to the Coyotes after joining the Phoenix coaching staff.Barnett knew Joseph had battled ankle problems his last season in Detroit but the NHL lockout year helped heal those issues.''He played like he was healthy last year,'' said Barnett. ''And when he's been healthy, he's authored an elite career at that position.''Limited to 31 games in 2003-04 in Detroit, Joseph understands why his 61-game, 32-win campaign last year was seen by many as a bounce-back year.''Maybe it was a bounce back from injury,'' Joseph said. ''But I was pretty happy with how I played the last year in Detroit. I don't know what it looked like for outsiders but I felt good every time I was in net other than the ankle problems I had. Certainly last season was injury-free and it worked out great.''The Leafs, meanwhile, have now moved on to their second starting goalie since Cujo's departure four years ago, Andrew Raycroft. Joseph wishes the former Bruins goalie all the best.''I've only met him on one occasion, it was a Reebok photo shoot,'' said Joseph. ''But he seems like a great young man. You wish success for people who are good. Toronto is the biggest stage in the world for hockey and if he can make it there then he'll be set for a long time.''</blockquote>

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