By RANDY SPORTAK 
Val Bure knows the brush with which he's been painted. 

He doesn't have to read the papers or listen to the radio talk shows to sense he's being vilified. 

He knows many consider him to be the biggest reason the Calgary Flames have floundered this season. 

He knows people believe his relationship with Don Hay was a big reason the latter was fired as head coach last week. 

He knows he's being considered a disruptive force in the dressing room. 

And it bothers him, even though he doesn't want to show it. 

"I don't like it, but what can you do about it?" he said yesterday. "I heard a lot of talk, but it's part of the business we're in. 

"People will have their opinions of me, but I'm not going to go to them and say, 'You're wrong.' 

"The people who know me and are around know what I'm like and what I do, so I'm not going to go to the people who write bad stuff about me or say bad stuff about me. That's their decision, but I'm not willing to go to every person and say, 'Hey, that's not the way it is.' " 

A year ago, Bure was the toast of the town, even on a team that had missed the playoffs for a fourth straight year, thanks to a 35-goal, 75-point season. 

But the cheers turned to jeers when the Russian Pocket Rocket failed to ignite -- going without a goal in the first 10 games. 

By the second week of December, he'd been benched for a pair of games for lacklustre play and a mere three goals. 

Heading into tonight's clash with the New Jersey Devils, Bure's second on the Flames with 24 goals and has just as many assists. 

Still, there's a sentiment he's not done enough for the Flames, and GM Craig Button said after the trade deadline he'd tried to move Bure but couldn't find any takers. 

The biggest reason, many believe, is the perceived battle with Hay, a notion that Bure bristles at. 

"You never heard anything coming from me or anything from Donny when things weren't going well," he said. "I read an article with Stiller (Cory Stillman) and he said 'If you work in an office with 20 people, not everyone's going to get along, but once you get on the ice you have to pull the same boat.' 

"You don't have to like the coach and the coach doesn't have to like you -- what matters is what you do on the ice. 

"It's tough from a coach's point of view to make everyone like him. Some people won't get the ice time they think they deserve and it's always been like that." 

Since trade deadline day came and went, though, Bure's been the club's biggest offensive force. In the three games since Hay was let go, he's collected three of the four goals the Flames have scored. 

His performance in Saturday's 2-2 draw with St. Louis, one goal and a plus-one rating in nearly 24 minutes of action, earned kudos from new head coach Greg Gilbert, although he'd love to see Bure reach another level in his game -- naturally. 

"Val's starting to show the competitive person he is," said Gilbert. "He's got to prepare himself to be a competitive person every day. It's not rocket science or an in-depth psychological study, he just has to bring what he can and when he does he's a pretty big part of the team. 

"(Against St. Louis) he played pretty well, he competed hard, but you always have to expect more." 

Only time will tell what the future holds for Bure in regards to the Flames. 

He'll be a restricted free agent and looking for a raise from the $1.175 million US he was paid this season. 

Speculation abounds he'll demand a salary that will price him out of the Calgary market, though he refused to discuss what he'll be asking. 

"I'm really not worrying about that. I'll leave that stuff to Craig and my agent. I'm sure they'll figure something out," he said. "Do I want to be here? Ya. But it's different when it comes to negotiating a contract. When summer comes, I have to do what's best for me and the Calgary Flames are going to do what's best for them. 

"I would hate (to sit out) more than anything. I hate negotiations and hope things get resolved early."