Friday, May 30, 2003 | 10:38 a.m.
It will be more than just a friendly hockey game against local firefighters Saturday night when Cammi Granato takes her skates to the Santa Fe Station Ice Arena.
The most dynamic American female hockey player won't be gliding around as if gold were on the line against the powerful Canadians, but it should help her finalize her desire to commit to going for that gold at the Winter Games in Italy in 2006.
In the mental match in her noggin, Granato is in the crease and set to go for that goal. She played for a National Women's Hockey League team in Vancouver, B.C., this past season.
"In the back of my mind, I think I've made a decision to do it," Granato said from Vancouver. "I've been here playing, and I'm not ready to give it up. If you still love it ...
"And I still really love it. I've been really, really enjoying myself on the ice. I'm thinking a decision has been made, but you never know."
The next national team will take, at least, a 50 percent turnover hit, as her former teammates have left the game to get married, start families or begin professional careers.
With so many fresh faces, Granato knows how valuable her rich experiences will be on a team that will need every ounce of her skills to recapture the gold from the Canadians who took it in Salt Lake City.
The other side of the equation is her strong desire to settle down, lead more of a balanced life and earn a regular paycheck.
Being 32 and confined to a training dorm for such a long stretch, a request that Granato knows is coming within the next year, isn't the most pleasant of circumstances for someone with the aforementioned desires.
"It's such a commitment," Granato said.
Longtime teammate and best friend Christina Bailey, who retired from hockey last year and moved from New York to Las Vegas to start a career as a financial analyst in January, knows exactly what Granato is experiencing.
"The hardest part is actually turning the page," said Bailey, who will be skating alongside Granato on Saturday. "You never know until you do it. The majority of my teammates were around each other for more than 10 years, so it's scary."
Unlike the non-stop victory party that followed the U.S. national women's team's success in Nagano in 1998, when women's hockey made its Olympic debut, there was no such fervor after Salt Lake City.
Granato and her teammates learned gold to silver is a big drop. No calls came from Letterman, Regis or Conan, and the Cubs and Blackhawks didn't ring with first-pitch or puck-dropping offers.
Five years ago, Granato, from the Chicago suburb of Downers Grove, threw a strike with her ceremonial toss at Wrigley Field.
That was also when Sammy Sosa battled Mark McGwire for the home run crown, so she treasures even more the authentic No. 21 Cubs jersey -- her and Sosa's uniform number -- she was given.
Granato dons the number in honor of former Blackhawks great Stan Mikita and Mike Eruzione, who converted the game-winning goal for the U.S. in its "Miracle on Ice" Olympic semifinal victory against the Soviet Union in 1980.
Granato and her puck-happy brothers Tony, Don and Rob replayed their own versions of that famous game in the basement of their Downers Grove home countless times.
Utah didn't produce such vintage memories for Cammi and her teammates, who saw their celebrity status wane in the wake of a second-place finish.
"It was a lot more mellow," she said. "Ten of us went to the Bahamas."
Granato has continued to honor endorsement demands, she has found a comfort zone as a motivational speaker and her children's foundation has been an immensely rewarding endeavor.
Living with her boyfriend in Vancouver, where younger brother Joey is going to school, has also been peaceful, and she has become a fan of the West Coast.
Playing with new teammates and for new coaches in the NWHL, a 12-team pro league for women in Canada, reinforced Granato's passion for the game. She hopes the club-level league catches on with fans.
"I had the best time playing hockey this season," Granato said. "For two, three years, we had so much focus on Salt Lake, defending the title at home. We lived in seclusion, we were so focused. It was intense."
Saturday night's game will benefit the Team Las Vegas Hockey Club youth organization and, Bailey and Granato hope, raise interest in the sport for girls.
Having not skated for nearly two months, since the end of the NWHL season, Granato said she has some work to do on her equipment.
"I've got to dust off my hockey bag," she said. "But it's going to be fun to be on the ice again, act like clowns and see how competitive we get. It should be a great event."
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