Congratulations Barry. I understand you've been voted into the Mullet Hall of Fame. How do you feel about the honor? -- Darren, West Hartford, Conn.

'Mullet Night With Melrose'

The American Hockey League's Manchester (N.H.) Monarchs will pay homage to Barry Melrose's hair by inducting him into the ficitcious Mullet Hall of Fame, Friday night before their game against the Portland Pirates. Melrose will receive a Monarchs jersey with his name and the number 10/90 on the back, which refers to the proportion of hair in front compared to the length in back. The first 4,000 adult males at the game will receive a mullet wig courtesy of Trimz Family Haircut Center. For those men who sport a mullet of their own, Trimz barbers will be on hand to offer a quick cleanup. Women with a femullet need not fear, as they will not be turned away if seeking a trim of their own. Other highlights of the night include an on-ice contest to determine the radio contestant with the "Best Mullet," and "Celebrity Mullet Match-Ups" throughout the game on the video screen. The Monarchs are averaging a league-leading 8,773 per game at the 10,000-seat Verizon Wireless Arena.

Melrose: Well, it's certainly been a long, tough grind with a lot of ups and downs. It's been a tough career. But to finally reach the point where I'm inducted into the Hall of Fame; it's been worth it.

It's taken a lot of years, a lot of hard work and hair gel to reach the pinnacle of mullet notoriety. I've switched hairdressers many times, but I remain my own favorite. I feel that I've mastered the art of "throw in some hair gel and go." And the way I see it, it's much better than being inducted into the Comb-Over Hall of Fame. So, I'm very proud and happy.

Do the Colorado Avalanche have a chance at the Northwest Division title? How far can they go in the playoffs if they keep playing like they are currently? -- William Fuerst, Rapid City, S.D.

Melrose: Right now, Colorado is the best team in the West. They've been awesome. Joe Sakic is on the road trip, so it looks like he's close to playing. Everyone is getting healthy, so they'll have their whole team together soon.

Teams envision playing their best hockey at the end of the season, not the start. And in the process, the Avs have found out a lot about their players. Patrick Roy has been awesome, Greg de Vries and Derek Morris are playing great, and Peter Forsberg's line is unbelievable right now.

With Detroit struggling and St. Louis' goaltending issues, Colorado could easily be the team out of the West again. The Dallas Stars have been awesome, but with Roy in goal, Colorado has a chance of winning every series. So, the Avs have to be pretty happy with themselves right now.

What will the Boston Bruins do about their goaltender situation? Steve Shields seems be be outplaying Jeff Hackett. Is there a possibility of Shields stealing the No. 1 job?-- Matt Sawyer, Rochester, N.Y.

Melrose: More than anything, Boston needs one of those goalies to come in and be awesome for the remainder of the season. Head coach Robbie Ftorek doesn't care who's No. 1, as long as one of them is playing super. Whoever that is will play.

It's always something with the Washington Capitals. If it's not injuries, it's lack of a center and this year, it's apparently lack of defensive depth. Is this the year the Caps break through or must I wait for the proverbial "next year?" Are the Caps a legitimate contender or are they another Eastern pretender? -- Matt, Williamsburg, Va.

Melrose:Matt, until they give us reason to believe they can win the East, you have to look at the Caps as a pretender. They're a very talented team, with a lot of guys who can score. Their power play is awesome and goalie Olaf Kolzig has been very consistent all year long -- that gives them a chance to win right there. But as a team, they need to improve defensively and keep the goals against down. The Caps don't need a lot of goals to win; they can score.

On paper, the Capitals are as talented as any team in the East. But they've got to win the Southeast Division. They've stumbled a bit, watching their six-point lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning dwindle to two.

First, will Garth Snow keep the starting job when Chris Osgood comes back? Second, can the New York Islanders make any kind of run in the East with an inconsistent Alexei Yashin and a bunch of grinders? -- Fred, Dallas Tex.

Melrose: Snow is looking sharp and playing well, so I don't expect them to make any changes. Osgood is practicing, which certainly gives them more depth, but right now, it's Snow's job.

And you're right Fred, Yashin needs to be better. The Islanders' No. 1 goal is to make the playoffs and to have any chance of winning the East, the most talented player on their team must be a factor. Yashin has to play better for them to have a chance of winning a round.

Michael Peca, Mark Parrish, Arron Asham, Roman Hamrlik and Adrian Aucoin have all been playing well. But when you're paying a guy $9 million, he better be the best player out there, and that's not the case right now in New York.

The St. Louis Blues just signed Ryan Johnson off the waiver wire. But to do that, they sent Justin Papineau down to the minors. Why would they sign a winger who is not a difference maker and who will most probably be sent down to the minors when everyone returns to the lineup? Why not just keep Papineau up and develop him? -- Byron, Toledo, Ohio

Melrose: Come playoff time, teams can never have enough depth. The Blues have been hit hard by injuries this season, so with Johnson, the Blues got another veteran who can play a lot of positions. He's a good skater and can kill penalties; he's very versatile. Now is not the time to be building a young players career and waiting for him to get better. St. Louis' goal is to win the Stanley Cup and to do that, they need veterans.

It's somewhat surprising to see the Detroit Red Wings look so average. A lot has been said about Steve Yzerman being out of the lineup and guys like Luc Robitaille not putting the puck in the net. But what about Brendan Shanahan? He doesn't even play a physical game anymore. Isn't he suppose to be a power forward? Also, who should they get to help with the playoff run? -- Scott, Saginaw, Mich.

Melrose: Remember Scott, it's a team effort. No one is having an outstanding year. At times Sergei Fedorov has been very good, but Robitaille is not scoring, Shanahan has been erratic, and Brett Hull hasn't exactly been on fire.

Defensively, they've been hit by injuries to Jiri Fischer and Chris Chelios, and certainly haven't looked like the defense that won the Stanley Cup last year.

But the No. 1 problem the Red Wings need to fix is goaltending. It's been average -- that has to change. They have to beat some good goaltenders in Roy, Marty Turco, and Tommy Salo to get out of the west.

On the bright side, Steve Yzerman's return should be unbelievable. And may be just what's needed to jump start the team and look like the Red Wings of old.

Do you think we will ever see the two-line pass allowed in the NHL? I think it made the game a lot more exciting during the Olympics. What do you think? -- Robert Gibb, Grapevine, Texas

Melrose: I watch a lot of high school and college hockey with my son, so I'm sort of turning into a guy who'd like to see it tried. But it needs to be tested in the American League first, to see if it creates open ice and long passes they way we're hoping.

Some good coaches could have some fun with it, especially on the power play. But there are also some great defensive coaches who will find a way to stop the pass, and it might end up hurting the game more than helping. We've got to be careful not to let that happen.

What happens to the hats on the ice after someone scores a hat trick? Does the player keep them? -- Dean Arnold, Daytona Beach, Fla.

Melrose: Actually, a lot of teams do special things with the hats. For example, Philadelphia showcases them in their waiting room -- it's sort of an art display. A lot of the hats are also given to charities like to the salvation army or the baptist church. But the players don't get the hats and the teams don't throw them away. They're somehow put to good use.

Barry Melrose, a former NHL defenseman and coach, is a hockey analyst for ESPN.