The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.

January 11, 1969

The Hockey News January 11, 1969

<h2>WED. DEC. 25</h2>PHOENIX 2 at SAN DIEGO 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02330/2674012-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="576" height="472"></div>SEATTLE 3 at PORTLAND 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03237/2674005-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="580" height="503"></div><h2>THURS. DEC. 26</h2>PORTLAND 1 at SEATTLE 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-04187/2673998-1-eng-US/f0018-042.jpg" title="f0018-04" width="580" height="572"></div><h2>FRI. DEC. 27</h2>SAN DIEGO 4 at PHOENIX 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-05135/2673991-1-eng-US/f0018-052.jpg" title="f0018-05" width="587" height="678"></div>PORTLAND 3 at VANCOUVER 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-06112/2673984-1-eng-US/f0018-062.jpg" title="f0018-06" width="577" height="107"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-0798/2673977-1-eng-US/f0018-072.jpg" title="f0018-07" width="571" height="380"></div><h2>SAT. DEC. 28</h2>SEATTLE 3 at SAN DIEGO 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-0884/2673970-1-eng-US/f0018-082.jpg" title="f0018-08" width="577" height="524"></div>VANCOUVER 3 at DENVER 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-0973/2673963-1-eng-US/f0018-092.jpg" title="f0018-09" width="576" height="449"></div><h2>SUN. DEC. 29</h2>VANCOUVER 3 at DENVER 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-1065/2673956-1-eng-US/f0018-102.jpg" title="f0018-10" width="581" height="571"></div>SEATTIE 1 nt SAN DIEGO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-1160/2673949-1-eng-US/f0018-112.jpg" title="f0018-11" width="578" height="507"></div> &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

WHL Summaries

<div class="byline">with ED FITKIN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01675/2673440-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="308" height="423"></div>DO REFEREES KEEP AN EYE on the so-called bad guys of hockey as some people think they do? &hellip; Herb Ralby, writing in the Boston Bruins program, quotes veteran referee John Ashley as saying: &ldquo;No, there is no such thing as a marked plaver. The minute an official starts concentrating on individuals, he begins to lose touch with the game.&rdquo; Ashley claims to be able to tell the emotional state of these so-called bad guys in advance &mdash; by looking at their eyes! &hellip; Bernie Geoffrion, New York coach, talking about Vic Hadfield: &ldquo;I wish I had seven more like him.&rdquo; &hellip; The Boomer calls Bob Nevin &ldquo;the best two-way player in the game.&rdquo; &hellip; In Boston, some writers refer to Bobby Orr as &ldquo;Superboy.&rdquo; &hellip; John Andersen, who quit his job as publicity director of the Toronto Maple Leaf&rsquo;s and Punch Imlach&rsquo;s &ldquo;secretary&rdquo;, is now with the Oakland Seals as administrative assistant, thereby realizing a long-cherished ambition &hellip; After one visit, a few years back, John&rsquo;s heart remained in San Francisco &hellip;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02566/2673433-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="247" height="459"><figcaption class="caption-body">John Ashley</figcaption></div>RED KELLY LIKES NOTHING better than to practice with his Los Angeles Kings and, just watching him go, makes you realize how great a star he was in his 20-year career with Detroit and Toronto &hellip; Kelly isn&rsquo;t partial to curved sticks. &ldquo;Maybe it&rsquo;s because I&rsquo;m not used to them,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;but I find it difficult to take a pass. The puck has to hit the stick in exactly the right spot or you have trouble controlling it.&rdquo; &hellip; Reminds me of a Gordie Howe comment: &ldquo;The Rocket (Maurice Richard) couldn&rsquo;t have done as well with a curved stick. He used the old-style blade &mdash; arrow straight. As a result, he could take a pass and get away a backhander.&rdquo; &hellip; The Rocket, remember, was a left hand shot playing right wing&hellip;AMAZING FELLOW IS JACQUES PLANTE &hellip; After being creased by a slap shot for 15 stitches on the side of the head, M&rsquo;sieur Jacques returned to action after a 3-game absence and shut out the Oakland Seals. 1-0 &hellip; It was his fourth of the season &hellip; Dickie Moore, still in Montreal, keeps getting asked if he&rsquo;ll return to the St. Louis Blues this season &hellip; &ldquo;If my business here is still showing a profit in February,&rdquo; Dickie says, &ldquo;then I may come back.&rdquo; &hellip; Couldn&rsquo;t be the sweet smell of all that potential Stanley Cup dough, could it, Dickie? &hellip; Sid Salomon Jr., owner of the Blues, rewards St. Louis hat-trick scorers with a $750 watch &hellip; And by the way he sends out the most unique and pretentious Christmas Cards I&rsquo;ve ever seen &hellip; Sid Jr. does everything in style &hellip; Back in early November, King Clancy told me that Punch Imlach had a veritable powerhouse in his rebuilt Maple Leafs &hellip; &ldquo;Wait till this team jells,&rdquo; King asserted. &ldquo;By about Christmas we should be making our move.&rdquo; &hellip; Sure enough, right around Christmas the Leafs were shooting upwards like astronauts. They compiled an eight-game unbeaten streak (seven wins and a tie) and moved into challenging range of the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins &hellip; Oddly, the Leafs sizzling take-off came shortly after the Leaf brass and Imlach had their sort of &ldquo;State of the Union&rdquo; confrontation.IN A RECENT GAME in St. Louis, Ted Irvine of the Los Angeles Kings lost one of his contact lenses &hellip; Everybody started looking for it and you&rsquo;ll never believe who found it &hellip; Nobody else but linesman Matt Pavelich &hellip; He handed the lens to Irvine and quipped: &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t ever let me hear you call ME blind again!&rdquo; &hellip; Montrealers can be justifiably proud of their new old Forum. The renovation of the 44-year-old edifice has been magnificently done &hellip; Now if only Chicago Black Hawk would put in an escalator to the top of the building and the radioTV booth. By the time you climb those 98 septs, you&rsquo;re exhausted &hellip; Chicago fans have nicknamed Dennis Hull &ldquo;The Silver Jet&rdquo; and he&rsquo;s now in the Avis class &mdash; No. 2 behind brother Bobby in the idol dept &hellip; One sign in the statidum recenlty suggested: &ldquo;The Silver Jet for Mayor&rdquo; &hellip; Earlier in the season. Dennis was booed merci lessly. Then he hit a hot streak and before December ended he had scored 20 goals &hellip; How time flies: Tommy Ivan has been with Chicago Black Hawks for 15 years &hellip; Chicago publicist Don Murphy&rsquo;s daughter. Genevieve Marie, will marry next June &hellip; And that&rsquo;s it for this week. Hope 1969 is your greatest year yet!<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03432/2673426-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="269" height="439"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dennis Hull</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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Footloose

<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1213/2674567-1-eng-US/f0022-122.jpg" title="f0022-12" width="583" height="268"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. Dec. 27Fort Wayne 3 at Columbus 2Muskegon I at Toledo 5Sat Dec. 28Des Moines 3 ot Fort Woyne 6Doyton 4 at Muskegon 4Sun. Dec. 29Columbus 3 at Doyton 8Muskegon 4 ot Port Huron 3Des Moines 0 ot Toledo 3Tues. Dec. 31Toledo 4 at Fort Wayne 1Des Moines 1 ot Muskegon 4Doyton 8 at Port Huron 5Wed. Jan. 1Fort Wayne 3 ot Dayton 3Des Moines 4 ot Columbus 2Fri. Jan. 3Dayton 3 at Des Moines 2Fort Woyne 1 at Toledo 5Port Huron 4 at Columbus 4Sat. Jan. 4Dayton 5 at Des Moines 2Part Huron 2 at Fort Wayne 2Columbus 5 at Muskegon 8Sun. Jan. 5Fort Woyne 2 at Port Huron 3Toledo 11 at Columbus 2<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tues. Jan. 7Muskegon at Des MoinesColumbus at DaytonWed. Jan. 8Muskegon at Des MoinesDayton at Fort WayneColumbus at ToledoFri. Jan. 10Fort Woyne at MuskegonDes Moines at Port HuronDayton at ColumbusSat. Jan. 11Des Moines at Fort WayneColumbus at MuskegonPort Huron at ToledoSun. Jan. 12Des Moines ot ColumbusFort Wayne at DaytonToledo at Port Huron<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Fri. Dec. 27)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1312/2674560-1-eng-US/f0022-132.jpg" title="f0022-13" width="577" height="277"></div> &#9632;

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LOOKING AT IHL RACE

NEW YORK, N.Y. &mdash;The National Hockey League has announced a 13-game television schedule which began with the Jan. 4 game in Montreal between the Canadiens and Chicago Black Hawks.In all CBS will air 13 regular season games on a nation-wide network throughout the United States with 12 of the contests on Sunday afternoons. In addition a minimum of five Stanley Cup playoff games will be telecast, starting April 6, the NHL announced.The TV schedule:Jan. 4 &mdash; Chicago at Montreal.Jan. 12 &mdash; St. Louis at Minnesota.Jan. 19 &mdash; Toronto at Boston.Jan. 26 &mdash; Montreal at New York.Feb. 2 &mdash; Montreal at Chicago.Feb. 9 &mdash; Los Angeles at Detroit.Feb. 16 &mdash; Boston at Chicago.Feb. 23 &mdash; Toronto at Minnesota.March 2 &mdash; Chicago at Toronto.March 9 &mdash; Montreal at New York.March 16 &mdash; Minnesota at St. Louis or Philadelphia at Chicago.March 23 &mdash; To be selected.March 30 &mdash; To be selected. &#9632;

Chicago-Montreal Game Launches 13 TV Dates

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0001-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-01138/2674736-1-eng-US/f0001-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ullman Joins Select 350-Goal Club In NHL</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-02111/2674729-1-eng-US/f0001-022.jpg" title="f0001-02" width="496" height="618"><figcaption class="caption-body">RACE FOR ALL-TIME NO.3 SPOT GROWS HOTJEAN BELIVEAU 446</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-0348/2674722-1-eng-US/f0001-032.jpg" title="f0001-03" width="508" height="561"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOBBY HULL 441</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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AMAZING ST. LOUIS CONTINUES TO CONFOUND HOCKEY WORLD -ON THE INSIDES

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-03511/2672149-1-eng-US/f0002-032.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02612/2672156-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="217" height="211"></div>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Fri. Dec. 27Philadelphia 3 at Detroit 3Sat. Dec. 28New York 3 at Montreal 5Los Angeles 4 at Toronto 1Boston 6 at St. Louis 2Chicago 5 at Minnesota 2Oakland 4 at Pittsburgh 3Sun. Dec. 29Montreal 1 at New York 3Boston 3 at Detroit 3Los Angeles 1 at Chicago 4Oakland 2 at Philadelphia 1Tues. Dec. 31Montr&eacute;al 4 at Pittsburgh 3Minnesota 3 at Detroit 6Wed. Jan. 1Oakland 3 at Toronto 7Detroit 1 at Chicago 4St. Louis 0 at Los Angeles 0Thurs. Jan. 2Pittsburgh 5 at Montreal 2Boston 4 at New York 2Chicago 2 at Philadelphia 2Fri. Jan. 3St. Louis 3 at Oakland 1Sat. Jan. 4Chicago 6 at Montreal 3New York 3 at Toronto 5Boston 2 at Minnesota 2Detroit 1 at St. Louis 3Philadelphia 1 at Pittsburgh 1Sun. Jan. 5Montreal 4 at Chicago 2Toronto 2 at Philadelphia 2Minnesota 1 at New York 5Pittsburgh 1 at Detroit 2Los Angeles 0 at Oakland 0<h2>GAMES TO COME</h2>Tues. Jan. 7Montreal at MinnesotaLos Angeles at St. LouisWed. Jan. 8Philadelphia at TorontoSt. Louis at ChicagoThurs. Jan. 9Oakland at MontrealToronto at BostonNew York at PhiladelphiaLos Angeles at DetroitMinnesota at PittsburghSat. Jan. 11Boston at MontrealLos Angeles at TorontoNew York at DetroitChicago at St. LouisPhiladelphia at MinnesotaOakland at PittsburghSun. Jan. 12Pittsburgh at BostonOakland at DetroitLos Angeles at ChicagoSt. Louis at Minnesota (afternoon game) &#9632;

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THE NHL SCENE

<div class="byline">BY DAN MOULTON</div>CHICAGO, Ill.&mdash;Even after 11 seasons Bobby Hull continues to astound&hellip; not only Chicago hockey fans dut his Black Hawk bosses as well.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01642/2672118-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="538" height="1061"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOBBY HULL &hellip; Given Thunderous Ovation</figcaption></div>On Christmas night, Bobby was forced out of a game against Toronto with a fractured jaw after being clouted by Mike Pelyk&rsquo;s elbow.His jaws were wired shut and doctors informed him he could expect the wiring to stay for at least six weeks. That meant that he could count on at least six weeks of eating through a straw and six weeks of trying to take in enough breath to survive through an already badly battered nose.Certainly, Bobby could be expected to spend the first week or two away from the National Hockey league&rsquo;s nightly wars while growing accustomed to his new condition.And he did sit out a game in Minnesota three nights later but the next day, a Sunday on which the Hawks were due to meet Los Angeles in the Stadium, Coach Billy Reay received a phone call at home in the afternoon.The Jet was growing restive, after all, he&rsquo;d missed one entire game and wasn&rsquo;t it about time he tried to find out how things would be with a head gear and face protector? Shouldn&rsquo;t he try to see how it would be to try to breath through clenched teeth?Billy agreed that Bobby might show up in the Stadium for a test run, just to see how things would work out.&ldquo;The next thing I knew, Bobby had skated around a couple of times and informed me he thought he could go that night against the Kings,&rdquo; said Reay, shaking his head in admiration and wonderment.&ldquo;I told him it would be o.k. just as long as he promised to keep his headgear and protector on.&rdquo;So, Bobby skated out onto the Stadium ice that night to a thunderous ovation by the 18,000 fans on hand, and went to work.Bobby has played better games during his brilliant career. He seemed to be having trouble spotting the puck when it moved in near his feet and it was obvious that contact caused some pain, despite the bulky bar that covered the lower part of his face.But at 18:54 of the second period, defenseman Matt Ravlich worked his way through the Kings&rsquo; defense into the left corner. Glancing over his shoulder, Matt spotted Bobby cruising into the slot, about 25 feet away from Kings&rsquo; Goalie Gerry Desjardins.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-04364/2672111-1-eng-US/f0002-042.jpg" title="f0002-04" width="537" height="783"><figcaption class="caption-body">DENNIS HULL &hellip; Keeping Step With Bobby</figcaption></div>Ravlich slid the puck unto center ice and Bobby pounced on it like a dog going after horsemeat. A flick of the stick and the Hawks&rsquo; owned a 2-0 lead and Bobbv owned goal No. 23.Brother Dennis, who had scored his 19th of the year earlier in the period, added No. 20 twenty-eight seconds later and the Hawks were home free for their sixth victory in seven games.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never been this uncomfortable during a game in my life,&rdquo; mumbled Bobby. &ldquo;The helmet was a little large and kept slipping over my eyes and it was awfully warm. But I guess things will work out.&rdquo;Breathing wasn&rsquo;t too great a problem, according to Bobby, nor was he too unhappy over the diet imposed on him by the need to take all sustainance through a straw.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been eating a few things I never ate before, though, I can tell you,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;For instance, I never was a soup eater. But now, my wife has to mix all my meat with a soup base and put the whole thing in a blender so I can drink it. And I&rsquo;m finding that soup really isn&rsquo;t so bad after all.&rdquo;Reay can only marvel at Bobby&rsquo;s refusal to let the injury keep him out of action for more than a game.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t keep him off the ice if he has two legs under him,&rdquo; said Billy. &ldquo;I never thought he&rsquo;d come back this fast, though.&ldquo;You&rsquo;d have to say that guys like Bobby, Stan Mikita, and Gordie Howe are throwbacks to the old days. They play with injuries that would keep an average player out of action for weeks.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s great to have one or two like that on your team because they inspire a lot of ordinary guys to get well a lot sooner than they might if they didn&rsquo;t have the examples.&rdquo;Bobby&rsquo;s explanation for his quick return was typically flip.&ldquo;I had to hustle back as soon as I could,&rdquo; he cracked. &ldquo;Fans were starting to refer to me as Dennis Hull&rsquo;s older brother.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s a bit far-fetched but Dennis is starting to move into the league&rsquo;s star class in his own right. Those two goals he picked up against the Kings were his 13th and 14th in 11 games and moved him into the top five among league scorers. &#9632;

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Bobby Hull Amazes Fans, Hawks, Doctors

<div class="byline">BY SPENCE CONLEY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-01644/2672201-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="310" height="357"></div>OAKLAND, Calif.&mdash;You could hardly say that the hustling Oakland Seals have had a balanced attack lately, but coach Fred Glover isn&rsquo;t complaining.The torrid pace set by 24-year-old centerman Mike Laughton and his two wingers, Gary Jarrett and Billy Hicke, has more than compensated for a lack of overall team scoring.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02526/2672194-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="267" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Laughton</figcaption></div>In the last 16 games of 1968. Laughton&rsquo;s line led the surging Oaklanders to eight big wins and a pair of ties and out of fifth place into second in the pressure-packed West Division scramble for the Stanley Cup playoffs.The three forwards working in perfect concert, contributed 24 goals and 31 assists and an awsome total of 55 points.Hicke led the point-getting with nine goals and 13 helpers for a sizzling 22 points. Jarrett added nine goals and nine assists and pushed his season goal total to 17, and Laughton the key man on the line, cracked in six goals and helped on nine others.Hicke, the 30-year-old veteran who is off to one of his best seasons in his 10-year career, scored three gamewinning goals, Laughton had a pair, and Jarrett had a gametying score, Jarrett and Hicke had three game winning assists each.Laughton has been the biggest factor in the success of the other two and if both are under consideration for allstar berths, it is because of the helmeted young pivot.Jarrett and Hicke began the campaign this season teamed with hard-working center Teddy Hampson and the three went very well but Glover was interested in a more balanced attack.So Hicke and Jarrett went to work with slow-starting Billy Harris and Hampson started pivoting between Gerry Ehman and Norm Ferguson.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03353/2672187-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="2418" height="1368"><figcaption class="caption-body">Oakland coach FRED GLOVER discusses ice strategy with two of his highest scoring attackers, GARY JARRETT and BILL HICKE, right, as Seals continued upward climb in NHL race with Jarrett and Hicke contributing offensive drive.</figcaption></div>But Harris wasn&rsquo;t improving at all, even with the club&rsquo;s two best wingers so he was subsequently traded to Pittsburgh-for Bob Dillabough.At the same time as the trade Glover decided to call up Laughton from Cleveland where he had been sent, despite a strong showing during training camp.The reason Laughton didn&rsquo;t make it at the start was because Glover felt he was fairly strong at center with Hampson. Harris, and Joe Szura. But he was mistaken.So out went the call to Cleveland and Mike arrived on Nov. 23, he was scoreless in his first two games but in his last 16 games he has been amazing, averaging almost a point a game.Last season Laughton, a late-round selection by the Seals in the Expansion Draft, got into 35 games and scored just two goals and had eight pints. He was later sent down to Vancouver.Mike&rsquo;s big troubles last year were skating and play-making. Aware of that more than anyone, he worked long and hard last summer to improve both and spent some time at a British Columbia hockey school with Red Berenson. He apparently learned a lot.&ldquo;Mike simply does what he has to do in order to stay in the NHL.&rdquo; says Glover, &ldquo;He works as hard as he can, forechecks well and digs all the time. His skating is much improved and he&rsquo;s just as aggressive as he&rsquo;s always been.&rdquo;Although Glover split up the Jarrett-Hicke-Hampson &ldquo;Assembly Line&rdquo;, and has been getting great production from Laughton&rsquo;s line, the Hampson-Ehman-Ferguson unit has tailed off considerably.Over the same 16-game span in which Laughton&rsquo;s line has been going crazy, Hampson&rsquo;s line has contributed 10 goals and 18 assists, but in the last 10 games of the year, they could onlv come up with a single goal and four assists, and Ehman only had one assist.But Glover isn&rsquo;t too worried, he knows Hampson&rsquo;s line will get going again and in the meantime, he&rsquo;s getting a great effort from Laughton&rsquo;s.The offense isn&rsquo;t the only good thing in the Seal camp these days.Goalie Gary Smith has been playing very well as has defenseman Doug Roberts.Smitty has pulled his goals-against average down to 2.31 per game and appeared in 11 of the Seals 13 wins by New Year&rsquo;s.Roberts the one-time Detroit right wing, has made a super adjustment to his blueline post and has won repeated praise from Glover for his alert play, particularly the manner in which he clears the puck in his own end.Even Charlie Hodge, the 35-year-old Seal goalie who has had his troubles this year, got back into action and led the Seals to a 4-3 win over Pittsburgh. Dec. 28. It was Charlie&rsquo;s first win in eight appearances this season and the Seals&rsquo; first victory over Pittsburgh in four games this year. &#9632;

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Glover’s Oakland Club On Move With Hicke, Jarrett, Laughton Hot

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-01706/2672232-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg"></div>THE INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLYFounded October 1st, 1947Published weekly except monthly June through September by Ken-Will Publishing Co. Ltd. 1434 St. Catherine Street West Montreal 3, Canada.Kenneth W. McKenzie President and PublisherWilliam Z. Stevenson Managing DirectorYearly Subscription Rates: $5.00 in Canada and the British Commonwealth$6.00 in the U.S.A. and $8.00 in Foreign CountriesPostage paid at Rouses Point, N.Y.Authorized as second class mail, Post Office Department, Ottawa and for payment of postage in cash.Printed in CanadaVol. 22 MONTREAL, JANUARY 11, 1969 No. 14<h2>Passing On Accolades</h2>To &ldquo;Passing the Puck&rdquo;Hockey News Editor:I feel that Ken McKenzie&rsquo;s &ldquo;Passing the Puck&rdquo; is an excellent column. It has very interesting points that all hockey fans look for. I am a first-year subscriber to THE HOCKE\ NEWS, and Ken McKenzie&rsquo;s &ldquo;Passing The Puck&rdquo; is one of the main reasons I am a subscriber and will stav one.JOHN SOUTHCOTT, St. Catharines, Ont.<h2>Sentimental Punch Wouldn&rsquo;t Demote Mom</h2>Hockey News Editor:Punch Imlach is the best coach in the NHL. The reason I believe this is that he understands how the game must be played. The hockey fan who enjoys a 7-5 score cannot appreciate Imlach&rsquo;s Leafs.It is perhaps harder to play for Imlach than for anyone else. This is because Punch demands that the game of hockey be played correctly. To do so takes a great deal of hard work and discipline.I read how mean and bad Imlach is. However, I also read enough to convince me that he is an extremely loyal and even sentimental boss. Some of those smiling general managers and coaches on other teams would send their mothers to Siberia if she played a bad game.IVAN BLUM, Brooklyn, N.Y.<h2>Give Imlach Credit As Shrewd Trader</h2>Hockey News Editor:I feel compelled to set the record straight after reading a letter in your Fan Forum of Dec. 21 criticizing Punch Imlach. The fan writing the letter claims that Imlach is not a judge of hockey talent and has made many bad trades.While it is true that Punch has not had great results with every trade he has made, the overwhelming majority of the deals have been to the benefit of the Leafs. One of the first moves Punch made when he took over at Toronto was to reach into the minor league grab bag and come up with a well-traveled netminder by the name of John Bower. He has since won a few games for Leafs!A little while later Punch traded an obscure defenseman, Jim Morrison, to Boston for Allan Stanley. Stanley really came into his own with Leafs and was rated at the allstar level for years.In a fine trade a few years ago he got Marcel Pronovost from Detroit who was still able to help the Leafs, as witnessed in his great showing in the Stanley Cup finals two years ago. In more recent seasons, Punch has come up with some great personnel moves.Talking about judging hockey talent, Punch picked up a portly netminder who had been rejected by numerous clubs and was wasting away at Springfield. His name is Bruce Gamble and he has since turned out to be a top notch big league goalie.Punch brought the wrath of Leaf fans down on him when he traded Eddie Shack to Boston for Murray Oliver, but this season Oliver has really worked well on the Leaf offense, flashing some of the old time form which had him rated as one of the top forwards in the NHL a few years back.The controversial Mahovlich deal has really turned out well for Leafs as Norm Ullman and Paul Henderson have sparked the Leafs all season. It&rsquo;s quite plain that Punch Imlach has made many important moves to strengthen the Toronto club and after a very disappointing season last year, the Leafs should be right in the thick of the race this vear, with Punch at the helm!NORM RONSKO, Brooklyn, N.Y.<h2>Bruins Appreciate Ivan&rsquo;s Hockey Gift</h2>Hockey News Editor:When the NHL season reaches completion, the experts will be casring their ballots for their choices as the league&rsquo;s first and second team All-Stars. Without a doubt the first team center should be Boston&rsquo;s Phil Esposito. As I write this, he is tied with Bobby Hull for the most goals in the league. He has just been sensational from the start of the season on, and it would be highway robbery if he were denied this award.If anyone else gets the spot, namely Chicago&rsquo;s Stan Mikita, I would have to believe that the balloting was rigged. A belated Merry Christmas to Chicago&rsquo;s general manager Tommy Ivan for sending us such a happy present. All Boston loves you.JIM LAZAR South Boston, Mass. &#9632;

f0004-01

FAN FOURM

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02657/2672284-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="323" height="435"></div>&bull; NOT ONLY ARE the St. Louis Blues the most surprising team in the National Hockey League but their one-two veteran goaling punch of Jacques Plante and Glenr Hall are truly remarkable. The pair, who total 76 years between them in age, have combined to register eight shutouts so far this season to make the Blues far and away the Western Division leaders as well as establishing themselves as the No. 1 goaling team in the Vezina Trophy race &hellip; There was sadness in the hearts of all professional hockey people this past week with the death of Bob Wilson, the man who discovered Bobby Hull &hellip; Wilson, who was 66 when he passed away, had been a hockey scout all his hockey life and was the man credited with spotting Hull when he was a 14-year-old flash around Belleville, Ont&hellip; In a further note of anxiety, Frank Udvari, former top referee of the NHL and now Eastern supervisor of officials, has been forced to enter hospital for eye surgery in order to save his sight. Udvari, who was seriously injured in a car accident a few weeks ago between Toronto and Kitchener, owes his life to the fact he was wearing a seat belt at the time of the collison that put him in hospital with nine broken ribs and facial lacerations. The eye injury was the result of the car mishap &hellip; Sad sight at recent Toronto Maple Leaf Gardens&rsquo; game was veteran goalie Charlie Hodge sitting frustrated on the Oakland bench after being derricked from a MLG game in which the Leafs ran in six goals on him. Hodge has been battling two younger men, Gary Smith and Chris Worthy, to retain his NHL job and it hasn&rsquo;t been easy for the balding little goaler.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03561/2672277-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="246" height="461"><figcaption class="caption-body">Frank Udvari</figcaption></div>&bull; FLOYD CURRY, former Canadiens&rsquo; star and erstwhile coach of the Cleveland Barons, believes the Montreal organization will soon start to reap the profits of their tieup with the AHL club. The Barons have two players Curry figures have a good chance to reach the NHL. They are Bob Berry a forward and Pierre Bouchard, who is the son of former Montreal hockey great Butch Bouchard. Like his famous dad, young Bouchard is a defenseman &hellip;Observers who remember Dave Amadio of Los An geles as the somewhat crude rearguard in the minor leagues a few years ago, are greatly impressed by the amount of polish he has shown this season with the Kings&hellip; John Andersen, former admi nistrative assistant to Punch Imlach, has turned up with the Oakland Seals in the same executive capacity. Andersen will help out with the team&rsquo;s publicity now that director Joe Wilson has left the Seals to return to his Chicago home&hellip; The International Hockey League, run so efficiently by Andy Mulligan, will grow in size next year. The IHL governors have decided to make way for Flint, Mich., and will likely split the loop into a two-division operation&hellip; NHL referee Vern Buffey may face disciplinary action from the league for failing to show up for a game in Minnesota when he became snow bound in Denver&hellip; If the Chicago Black Hawks decide Dave Dryden isn&rsquo;t getting the job done for them, they could always think about getting his brother from Montreal. Ken Dryden has suffered only three defeats in three full seasons ot U.S. college hockey with Cornell. He also has a remarkable 1.60 goals against average.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04489/2672270-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="241" height="459"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ken Dryden</figcaption></div>&bull; NHL PRESIDENT Clarence Campbell in a year-end forecast for a Toronto newspaper, The Star, said he did not envisage very much in the way of changes for the league in 1969. The chief executive feels that relocation of Oakland Seals will probably have to be considered but adds the situation is a local matter which the Seals themselves will have to arrange. However, dwindling attendance is causing the NHL governors to take a long, hard look at the matter. Vancouver is next on the expansion list but Campbell doesn&rsquo;t think this will happen next year either. Nor does he think Pittsburgh will be moved to another city. He doesn&rsquo;t expect the NHL and Russians to get together before 1970 at the earliest&hellip; One of the reasons the St. Louis Blues are holding down first place in the Western race is their unblemished record against Oakland. The Blues virtually &lsquo;own&rsquo; the Californians. In two years the Blues have won 13 games and tied 3 in 16 starts &hellip;It has become a tough season for NHL goaltenders and the schedule has only reached the halfway mark. Even &ldquo;iron man&rsquo; Ed Giacomin bit the dust for the Rangers and Cesare Maniago of Minnesota was rested for two games. They along with Les Binkley of Pittsburgh are the NHL&rsquo;s most durable goalkeepers this season. The Montreal goaling picture has become alarming with Rogatien Vachon and Lome Worsley both being injured simultaneously. Worsley was back only one game when he went out again&hellip; There have been a total of 35 goalies who saw action in NHL games this season, 16 in the West and 19 in the East&hellip; There also has been 31 shutouts recorded this season, 17 by Western goalers and 14 by Eastern net minders.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05417/2672263-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg" title="f0004-05" width="261" height="421"><figcaption class="caption-body">Clarence Campbell</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0004-02

PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-06" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-06338/2672315-1-eng-US/f0004-062.jpg"></div>(Statistics include games of Sunday, Jan. 5) &#9632;

f0004-06

EAST WEST SCOREBOARD:

<div class="byline">BY GEOFFREY FISHER</div>ST. LOUIS, Mo.&mdash;The ability to strike like a coiled rattler with sudden and devastating power late in the game has played a major role in rocketing the St. Louis Blues into orbit in the National Hockey League&rsquo;s Western Division.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01659/2672353-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="256" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bill McCreary</figcaption></div>The Blues have done it pver and over &mdash; so often in fact that St. Louis fans have been conditioned to expect their heroes to produce magic results.It all began late last season when the Blues made their story-book run for glory through the Stanley Cup playoffs, pulling off the most unbelievable stunts in snatching game after game from the brink of defeat.Then as this second year of expansion hockey unfolded there were many cynical insinuations that the Blues&rsquo; great freshman season had left St. Louis so full of high expectations that the Blues were ripe for a big letdown. But it didn&rsquo;t come in October and it didn&rsquo;t come in November and it didn&rsquo;t come in December.Instead, the Blues continued to confound their opponents whether they wore the haughty emblems of the venerable Eastern Division clubs or whether they represented their more poorly endowed playmates from the Western branch. In both cases, the old magic was still there. The remarkable Blues from St. Louis were still pulling rabbits out of hats.And as youthful general manager and coach Scotty Bowman cunningly brewed his magical potions and deftly manipulated his troops, the Blues continued to rollick across the NHL&rsquo;s big ice cubes with an audacity that captured the emotions and hearts of their fans.By late December the Blues were playing to home audiences of better than 14,000 per game. Within the span of 48 hours in the last week of December they drew 30,204 to the St. Louis Arena for games with Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins. By December 28 they had magnetized 238,184 customers through the turnstiles.And they were doing it with the dash and flavor of heroic knights of old, taking on all comers with the sort of reckless abandon that stamped them as authentic headliners in what has become the greatest &ldquo;show biz&rdquo; attraction to land on the banks of the Mississippi River since Rhett Butler and &ldquo;Gone With The Wind.&rdquo;This wasn&rsquo;t just a game of shinny the fans of St. Louis were coveting. This wasn&rsquo;t just hockey players but rather starry heroes and giant killers. These weren&rsquo;t merely fans pouring into the Arena. They were hero worshippers, coming to pay homage to the Halls and the Plantes and the Berensons and the Arbours and the Picards and the rest of the blue-winged gladiators who had become household names in the brief space of a year.First place in the West by six games as 1968 faded into 1969 and the heroes among the Blues were spread from one end of the roster to the other.From early November the Blues came thundering from behind to win them or tie them in the third period, sometimes in the dying moments of the match. Four times in that period they snatched victory with spectacular rallies. Seven times they snapped back to gain ties.November 3, it was Camille Henry with two third period goals who tied Detroit, 4-4.November 6, it was Billy McCreary who got the winner against Pittsburgh after Henry had tied the game at 1-1.November 10, it was Jimmy Roberts, the 110-percenter, who fired into the Boston cage in the third period to gain a 1-1 deadlock with the Bruins.November 13, it was Ronnv Schock who notched the winner against New York Rangers in a third period rally.November 17, it was Schock again who turned on the red light late in the final period to gain a 3-3 tie with Minnesota.November 23, a goal by McCreary gave the Blues another victory in the third period over Chicago, 1-0.November 27, the Boston Bruins held what seemed a commanding 4-2 edge going into the third period and Roberts scored twice to earn the Blues a 4-4 tie.November 28, after Gordie Howe had given the Red Wings the lead at Detroit, Craig Cameron shot the Blues to victory after Red Berenson had matched Howe&rsquo;s goal.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02593/2672346-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg" title="f0005-02" width="1779" height="1554"><figcaption class="caption-body">Defense has been one of the Blues&rsquo; strong points in their season and a half in the NHL. Typical of the club&rsquo;s tenacious defense shows JEAN BELIVEAU of Montreal being foiled by no less than three members of the Blues. Goalie GLENN HALL (1), defensemen AL ARBOUR, left, and NOEL PICARD are on the job.</figcaption></div>December 4, with Chicago taking a 3-1 lead into the third period. Ab McDonald and Gary Sabourin went into high gear to gain a tie for St. Louis. Sabourin&rsquo;s tying shot coming with one minute to play.December 21, St. Louis was trailing New York 2-0 going into the final period and Cameron and Berenson connected to gain another tie. Berenson&rsquo;s goal coming with only 12 seconds remaining in the game.December 26. Pittsburgh held a 2-1 edge going into the third period when Jimmy Roberts popped home the tying goal and Sabourin drilled the winner past Les Binkley.In their first 33 games the Blues scoring record per period was the clearest cut evidence of their third period superiority. The Blues scored 57 times against 58 for their opponents in the first two periods. In the third period the Blues scored 41 times while being scored against only 18 times.Asked to comment on the possible reason for this strong third period performance. Managing Director Lynn Patrick declared:&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the veterans on this club who know when to open up and when to play it cool.Said Scotty Bowman: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got some old timers with the experience to know how to pace themselves. It&rsquo;s a matter of knowing how to pace yourself and then turning it on when you need it most. And don&rsquo;t overlook the goaltending we&rsquo;re getting from Hall and Plante. They keep us in there until we can get rolling.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0005-01

Letdown Fails To Materialize, Blues Still Confound Critics As Club Struts In First Place

<h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>PHILADELPHIA &mdash; Myron Stankiewicz, forward, secured from St. Louis of NHL on waivers, Stankiewicz was on loan to Omaha of CHL, Earl Heiskala, forward, recalled from Quebec of AHL.LOS ANGELES &mdash; Skip Krake and Doug Robinson forwards sent to Springfield of AHL. Bryan Campbell and Gord Labossi&egrave;re, forward, recalled from Springfield.ST. LOUIS &mdash; Ray Fortin defenseman, recalled from Kansas Citv of CHL.BOSTON&mdash;Grant Erickson and Jim Harrison forwards, Rick Smith, defense man recalled from Oklahoma City of CHL. Tom Webster forward and Barry Gibbs defenseman. returned to Oklahoma City, Wayne Cashman, forward, recalled from Hershev of AHL.DETROIT&mdash;Jim Watson, defenseman, recalled from Baltimore of AHL.MONTREAL &mdash; Christian Bordeleau, forward, recalled from Houston of CHL and returned, Ernie Wakely, goalkeeper, sent back to Cleveland of AHL.NEW YORK &mdash; Guy Trottier, forward, recalled from Buffalo of AHL Dennis Hextail, forward and Gilles Villemure, goalkeeper, returned to Buffalo.PITTSBURGH&mdash;Wayne Hicks, forward, recalled from Baltimore of AHL. Bobby Rivard, forward, transferred from Quebec of AHL to Baltimore.MINNESOTA &mdash; Lou Nanne, defenseman, recalled from Cleveland of AHL. Bill Goldsworthy, forward, recalled from Memphis of CHL. Mike McMahon, defenseman, assigned to Cleveland of AHL.<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>BUFFALO&mdash;Randy Legge, defenseman, recalled from Omaha of CHL.CLEVELAND &mdash; Michel Plasse, goalkeeper, called up from Drummondville of Quebec Senior League on five-game pro tryout, Don Fedun, defenseman, sent to Denver of WHL, Marshall Johnston, defenseman, secured from Minnesota of NHL.SPRINGFIELD &mdash; Mike Corbett, defenseman, sent to Davton of THL.QUEBEC &mdash; Bob Sneddon goalkeeper, secured from Philadelphia of NHL.<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>OMAHA &mdash; Jim Shires, forward secured from Denver of WHL. Bill Fairbairn, forward, returned by New York of NHL.TULSA&mdash;Al Smith, goal keeper, secured from Roches ter of AHL.<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>FORT WAYNE&mdash;Johnny Goodwin, forward, activated from retired list.TOLEDO &mdash; Bill White, goalkeeper signed from Sault Ste. Marie. Ont. Juniors.PORT HURON &mdash; Bill Horton, defenseman, secured on loan from Davton of IHL.DES MOINES &mdash; Steve Sutherland, forward secured from Memphis of CHL. Serge Aubry, goalkeeper, obtained on loan from Tulsa of CHL.<h2>EASTERN LEAGUE</h2>SYRACUSE&mdash;Paul Lessard, forward formerly with Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; Juniors, signed as free agent.CLINTON&mdash;Billy Armour, forward secured on loan from Greensboro of EHL.LONG ISLAND &mdash; Jacques Sevigny, forward loaned to St. Hyacinthe of Quebec Senior League. Ken Leibel, forward, secured from New Haven EHL in exchange for Russ McClenaghan, forward. &#9632;

Movements of Players

<div class="byline">BY JACK BERRY</div>DETROIT, Mich.&mdash;Usually when a team is in last place its record justifies its position. Last place clubs always lose more games than they win, a whole lot more. Right?Well, the Detroit Red Wings have been in the Eastern Division cellar most of the time since the season began but instead of a losing record they&rsquo;ve played .500 hockey, or slightly better, through the first half of the season.As Yul Bryner said in &ldquo;The King and I&rdquo;: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a puzzlement.&rdquo;Bill Gadsby knows why but he doesn&rsquo;t know how to solve the problem.The &ldquo;why&rdquo;. is Detroit&rsquo;s inability to master Western Division teams, the NHL&rsquo;S expansion clubs. Their record against their own division is fourth best in the East. But they have the poorest record of Eastern Division teams against the West: again, .500 hockey.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t understand it,&rdquo; Gadsby said. &ldquo;Look at our personnel and look at theirs; ours is better. But we don&rsquo;t play that way.&rdquo;He was especially incensed after Detroit blew a 3-1 lead in Pittsburgh on Christmas night and lost, 7-3, to the Penguins, then had to rally three times to get a 3-3 tie with Philadelphia two nights later.What ia aggravating to Gadsby is Detroit&rsquo;s unwillingness to bodycheck, particularly since he was a body-belter of the first order. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re paid twice as much what we need to get and do less for it.&rdquo;Only Gordie Howe, Bob Baun, Pete Stemkowski and Ron Harris check with consistency.Upsetting, too, is the failure of the young players to assert themselves when the old boys are having an off night. Instead of taking up the slack, they seem content to fall back too.&ldquo;They should be able to go all out &hellip; they&rsquo;re young,&rdquo; Gadsby said. &ldquo;Instead they make one rush and lose their bite.&rdquo;It&rsquo;s extremely frustrating for Gadsby, in his rookie year as a pro coach.&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re a player you can go out and hit, someone and feel better. If you play a bad game you go home and forget about it. But when you&rsquo;re the coach, you&rsquo;re thinking about 18 guys. And you can&rsquo;t go out and hit someone. You smoke a lot more and sleep a lot less,&rdquo; Gadsbv said.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-01733/2672408-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="550" height="1341"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETE STEMKOWSKI &hellip; One of The Few Hitters</figcaption></div>He&rsquo;s juggled his personnel, looked at players from the minors, switched seats for one game with general manager Sid Abel, watching from the press box and taking notes &mdash; he had a full page &mdash; while Abel ran the club from the bench.The only department Gadsby has no quarrel with is the goalkeeping of Roger Crozier and Roy Edwards plus Terry Sawchuk before he was injured. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had decent goaltending but our defense is inconsistent. We go into lapses and they kill us.&rdquo;The .500 record is like the donkey and carrot-on-a-stick routine. A playoff spot, a winning record, is there, right in front of the Red Wings, but always just a little out of reach. And, they&rsquo;ve given no indication that it will be any different the rest of the season.The hope always will be there, fanned by that .500 record, and that&rsquo;s an improvement over last season when the Wings were eight points under the break-even point. Fulfilling the hope is something else. &#9632;

f0006-01

Gadsby Loments Lock Of ‘Hitters’ As New Clubs Keep Wings In Cellar

LOS ANGELES, Calif.&mdash;Jack Kent Cooke&rsquo;s Forum in suburban Inglewood celebrated its first birthday on Dec. 30. In its first year, the $16,250,000 building drew 2.069.010 fans and grossed approximately $15,000,000.The basketball Lakers drew 572,811 with a one-game high of 17,392. The hockey Kings drew 361,835 with a single high of 15,752.The Home Show drew 260,000 for 11 days. A circus drew 166,758 for 13 days. An ice show did 157,309 for 20 days.Four boxing shows lured 56,534 and grossed $579,931 with one-show highs of 16,505 persons and $193,020. A closed-circuit TV ring show drew 13,160. One track meet drew 15,699.Seven concerts pulled 110,423 persons, topped by 18,564 for The Temptations and 18,547 for The Supremes. The Cream drew 35,190 in two nights.Few arenas ever could match this for one year of operation. Cooke predicts 3,000,000 fans in the Forum in 1969. &#9632;

New L.A.Forum Pulls In 2,069,010 First Year

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div>LOS ANGELES. Calif &mdash;Last season, the first edition of the Los Angeles Kings was the highest-scoring club in the expansion division. This season, the second squad of Kings is the second lowest-scoring team in the entire NHL. Therein lies part of the problem with the Kings this season. They have tightened up their porous defense of last season, but have stopped scoring.During the first two months of the season, the Kings scored more than three goals in a game only three times. They failed to score more than three goals in a game in one stretch of 16 games in a row. That they are not worse of than they are is tracable to goalie Gerry Desjardins and some fair defense.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-01685/2672470-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="256" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body">Howie Hughes</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02619/2672463-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="552" height="1206"><figcaption class="caption-body">BILL FLETT &hellip; Finally Finds Range</figcaption></div>The Kings are not getting balanced scoring. After slow starts, Eddie Joyal and Bill Flett have begun to pump in goals at least in spurts. Howie Hughes Jimmy Peters and Real Lemieux are getting their share. But a lot of forwards are not pulling their scoring weight.Through 30 games, Bob Wall and Ted Irvine had just four goals, Skip Krake just three and Doug Robinson only two. Irvine had none in his last 19 games. Robinson had one in his last 19, none in the last seven. Wall had one in the last 18, none in the last 10. Krake had one in the last 23, none in the last 12.Also, Lemieux had gone scoreless the last five games, Peters the last nine games.Before being demoted to the minors, Gordon Labossiere had one goal in 19 games, Lowell MacDonald one in 17 games. Moved in as replacements, Ron Anderson had two goals in 13 games, Howie Menard two goals in nine games.There is more to this game than just scoring goals and some of these men have made good contributions in other areas of play, but scoring goals is the most important single thing, especially for forwards, and it is statistically clear that the Kings are carrying too many forwards who are not scoring up to NHL standards.That Coach Red Kelly has the club still in contention under this circumstance is really remarkable.In the Kings&rsquo; 31st game, Anderson, Peters and Menard broke through with goals. This was in a 4-1 win on the road in Toronto over the red-hot Leafs. The Kings had not won in their five previous games. This is a team which seems to come through when it is least expected.Not that the Kings are not consistent. They consistently win and lose in bunches. This season they have had two four-game winning streaks. They also have had losing streaks of three games and five games. They went through one stretch of five games and another of six in which they failed to win, though they threw in ties here and there.In their 32nd game, they were ripped in Chicago, 4-1, the eighth time this season they have scored one or less goals in a game. If the brass does not provide Kelly with more firepower up front, or if the men now up front do not pick up their pace, things could get difficult through the second half of the campaign.Kings things &mdash; Stu Nahan, who now lives in L.A., has taken a top spot as halt the two-man team that does the ABC-TV night news locally. Stu is giving up his &ldquo;Today&rdquo; styled norming show, now being handled by Peyton Place&rsquo;s Ed Nelson, and his NFL TV chores, but will keep his Philadelphia Flyer weekend TV work. The hottest of hockey fans, Stu has seldom missed a Kings week-night home game despite a work schedule that would depress a camel. Of course his wife does not any longer know him by sight. Which may have its advantages. The Kings recalled forwards Gordon Labossiere and Bryan Campbell from their Springfield AHL form club and demoted forwards Skip Krake and Doug Robinson to that team as 1968 ran out. &#9632;

f0007-01

Too Many Kings Not Scoring Their Share

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03484/2672501-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0007-03

Looking At NHL Goalers

<div class="byline">BY PAT CURRAN</div>MONTREAL, Que &mdash;It was bitterly cold in Montreal when Gump Worsley drove the 25 miles from his home in Beloeil to the Forum. But when he arrived the big building was locked tight &mdash; someone forgot to tell him that even rink hands had a holiday on New Year&rsquo;s Day.&ldquo;Now I&rsquo;ve got something else to worry about, a stiff neck from the cold.&rdquo; joked Worsley who had tried for almost an hour to get into the Forum, hoping someone else would show up to shoot pucks at him.The incident showed how much the veteran netminder wanted to rejoin the Canadiens. He had been inactive more than a month since he quit the club during a bumpy flight to the West Coast and was ordered to rest his shattered nerves.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-01719/2672532-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="277" height="425"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lorne Worsley</figcaption></div>Gradually feeling better under doctor&rsquo;s care, Worsley was allowed to skate and then work out lightly with the Junior Canadiens. After the New Year&rsquo;s Day miss, he scrimmaged twice with the parent Habs before being declared fit for duty.That declaration from the team physician was hardly announced before Coach Claude Ruel declared Gump as his starting goalie next day against the Black Hawks. The Habs had become disenchanted with the work of Tony Esposito and injured Rogatien Vachon and apparently saw little to lose in going with Worsley against the chicago sharp-shooters.&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t had much work but I think I&rsquo;m ready,&rdquo; offered the 39-year-old veteran of 20 years in pro hockey. He hadn&rsquo;t played since Nov. 23 when the Habs had to struggle to edge Minnesota 4-3.The prospect of flying was another matter. Despite 10 years with the Rangers, who did more flying than any other club at the time, Worsley never kicked his fear of the airways. When he left the Habs after a bumpy flight to Chicago and then came home by train, he declared &ldquo;I just can&rsquo;t take it any more.&rdquo;Later during his resting period, Gump pointed out that aerophobia was just one of his problems.&ldquo;My nerves were gone. It would have been a lot more embarrassing if I had just packed up during a game. And don&rsquo;t think that couldn&rsquo;t have happened.&rdquo;Had he overcome aerophobia the past month?&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; replied Worsley with a sheepish grin. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just going to get on the plane and find out.&rdquo;Before leaving the club in November, Worsley&rsquo;s average of 1.97 was the best in the NHL while the Canadiens&rsquo; mark was 2.26. During his absence, while Esposito and Vachon shared Montreal netminding, the team&rsquo;s goals against average soared to 2.58 on a mediocre record of eight wins, five losses and fourties.Worsley&rsquo;s quick return to a starting role was prompted by Montreal failures in the three previous games. Esposito blew a long shot as the Rangers beat Canadiens for the third time this season. Vachon, favoring a sore hand, was shaky as the Habs squeaked by 4-3 at Pittsburgh and then was beaten five times in the Penguins&rsquo;5-2 upset in the Forum.January loomed as a key month in Montreal&rsquo;s bid to retain the Eastern Division championship with nine of their 13 games at home. However the Habs haven&rsquo;t played too well in the New Forum, despite a mark of 10 wins, three losses and three ties in 16 games.The setback to Pittsburgh evoked cries of concern from General Manager Sam Pollock.&ldquo;Frankly, I&rsquo;m worried. You&rsquo;d think that we would be able to overwhelm the opposition a few times on home ice. Instead we seem to be struggling every game.&rdquo;Major reason for Montreal struggles has been a tendency to give up early goals. The club hoped Worsley would start solving the problem. &#9632;

f0008-01

Worsley Eager To Play, Given Nod By Coach Ruel As Club Goaling Falters

<div class="byline">By Bill Libby</div><h2>Every NHL Game A Crisis Says Gadsby</h2>THE NEW COACH &mdash; Bill Gadsby was the third player in National Hockey League history to play 20 seasons. His face looks like it played 40 seasons. It is seamed and scarred by the ordeal of playing this game, and blocking pucks, sometimes with his crooked nose, and getting slashed by sticks and skates. He was a fine player with New York and Chicago and Detroit, a strong defenseman who set up 437 goals in his career, a record for defensemen, and scored 130 and three times was a first all-star. After he retired, he coached the Edmonton Junior A team for two years, winning the top amateur pennant with them one year, and this year he has taken over as coach of the Red Wings in the Majors.&ldquo;Coaching is pretty much the same on any level, I think. I&rsquo;m&middot;still learning, but I haven&rsquo;t changed my thoughts about it much so far&rdquo;, he said the other night before a game.&ldquo;But it is much harder than playing. When I was playing, I wanted my teams to win, of course. But it wasn&rsquo;t my job to worry about the other players. If I was playing well myself, the rest of it just had to take care of itself. Now I have 18 men to worry about. Some of them have to be having problems. And when things are going bad, I can&rsquo;t go out there and try to do something about it. My wife says its the same for her. Before she worried mainly about me. If I played well, it was OK. Now she worries about 18 guys and me worrying about 18 guys.&rdquo;Gadsby and his wife have an agreement and have had it for many years. When they drive home together after home games, she does not talk until he does. If there is to be a conversation, he must start it. There are nights a hockey man does not feel like talking. Sometimes the Gadsbys get all the way home in silence. There have been nights like that lately, when Detroit has had its troubles. One recent game, Detroit&rsquo;s manager and retired coach Sid Abel moved back to the bench while Gadsby moved up to the press box to see if they could get a different perspective on their problems. &ldquo;You try anything,&rdquo; Gadsby sighs.This game was drawing near now and the big man hunched over a little, as though thinking about it. &ldquo;The worst thing is the nervousness,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When I was playing, I &lsquo;got butterflies as a game approached, but once they dropped that puck and the game began, I was in action and I felt good. Now I have those butterflies in my stomach before games, all during games, and after games. They never leave me. It&rsquo;s like being a little sick all the time. I still go through the same routine as I did as a player, eating a steak early and trying to take a nap and so forth, but I don&rsquo;t eat as well as I did and some nights I don&rsquo;t sleep much. It wasn&rsquo;t so bad in the amateurs. I wanted to win there, but it didn&rsquo;t seem like the world depended on it. Here in the majors, everyone seems to be watching, every game seems to be a crisis, and the pressure bends you something terrible.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-02634/2672563-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="554" height="893"><figcaption class="caption-body">BILL GADSBY &hellip; Pressure Bends You Over</figcaption></div>ANOTHER NEW COACH &mdash; Minnesota&rsquo;s play has been disappointing this season. Manager Wren Blair turned the coaching reins over to John Muckier early this season, but both remain dissatisfied with the North Stars&rsquo; performances. Among others. Bill Goldsworthy, Mike McMahon and Andre Boudrias have been reprimanded publicly, suspended, demoted and/or fined for their showings. Muckier says, &ldquo;Players have to give everything they&rsquo;ve got every minute of every game.&rdquo;It was pointed out, &ldquo;Some just aren&rsquo;t psychologically able to do it. They want to, but it&rsquo;s just not in them.&rdquo;&ldquo;They&rsquo;re being paid and paid well to do it,&rdquo; Muckier said. &ldquo;If they don&rsquo;t, they have to be punished.&rdquo;<h2>Kelly Sees Coaching As A Risky Job</h2>AND A NOT-SO-NEW COACH &mdash; One full year of coaching has left its mark on Red Kelly of Los Angeles. Almost midway in his second year, he admitted to Chuck Garrity of the L.A. Times recently his responsibilities off the ice wear him out. &ldquo;I like work with the players,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The most pleasing part of coaching is the ice time &mdash; practice and the games. Other than that, I don&rsquo;t get as much thrill out of it as I thought I would.&rdquo; He said the discussions with the manger and owner after the game are difficult. &ldquo;Most of the time I&rsquo;m defending my players. The easiest thing in sports is to put someone down.&rdquo;Kelly doesn&rsquo;t feel coaching has altered his views. &ldquo;I really haven&rsquo;t learned that much,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I think I&rsquo;ve seen about everything. I always will have that knowledge of what it is like to play. When things are going good, everything&rsquo;s fine. But I understand slumps. I can probably be more lenient than the person who never has gone, through it. The athlete is up and down trom victory to defeat. He&rsquo;s great one night, then he&rsquo;s on the bottom the next. The biggest problem of coaching I&rsquo;ve had is to bring the players who are down back up. I can be quite severe if they&rsquo;re not giving an effort. I can tolerate mistakes as long as they don&rsquo;t keep making the same one.&rdquo;Dan Reeves, the owner of pro football&rsquo;s Los Angeles Rams, who was supposed to get the NHL&rsquo;S Los Angeles franchise before Jack Kent Cooke got it, had just fired George Allen as Ram coach. No active coach in any sport has been as successful in recent years as Allen, but he could not get along with Reeves off the field. The dismissal was shocking, and shook L.A. We talked about it with Kelly, who may possibly move to Toronto&rsquo;s Maple Leafs.&ldquo;Coaching is a thankless profession. You&rsquo;ve got to look out for yourself,&rdquo; we said.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s for sure,&rdquo; Kelly said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a very risky proposition.&rdquo;&ldquo;Does it worry you to realize that even winning may not be enough to keep you secure:&ldquo;Yes, but nothing is secure. I was a politician and there&rsquo;s nothing secure about that. To be a coach you have to be a politician, too. Coaching is a hard thing. There&rsquo;s never any let-up in it. When you&rsquo;re a coach, you&rsquo;re a coach 24 hours a day.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0008-02

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-01700/2672601-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="587" height="555"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02647/2672594-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="581" height="511"></div>(Statistics include Games of Sunday January 5) &#9632;

f0009-01

ALL-TIME GOAL SCORING LEADERS

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-03551/2672632-1-eng-US/f0009-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">LARRY MICKEY &hellip; Toronto Maple Leafs</figcaption></div>Larry Mickey is not young as National Hockey League rookies go but the 25-year-old right winger with the Toronto Maple Leafs is actually playing his first full season in the league. Mickey is getting what could amount to his fourth chance in the NHL this season. He had three previous brief stints with the Rangers before the Leafs got their hands on him during the off-season draft session. A solidly-built 180 pounder, Mickey is proving a good addition to the Leafs and undoubtedly will draw some rookie award votes. &#9632;

f0009-03

MEET THE ROOKIES

COTTON STRINGS &mdash; the hottest new demand item since the turtle. Tuned to the fashion of cool clear hues. Featured here by our two fashion models Jacques Lemaire wears a high V style #220; Jacques Laperriere a mock turtle style #221. Other styles available come in marl tones and pencil stripes. Make sure to ask for them by name &ldquo;KAMBERN ORIGINALS&rdquo;. Our full spring collection can be seen on display at your leading Men&rsquo;s Wear Store or Department store from coast to coast.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-04464/2672663-1-eng-US/f0009-042.jpg" title="f0009-04" width="733" height="726"><figcaption class="caption-body">(PHOTO PHOTOGRAPHERS Famous Studio OF THE STARS)</figcaption></div>Highland Knitting MillsMontreal, Canada &#9632;

f0009-04

“KAMBERN ORIGINALS”

MONTREAL, Que. &mdash;Bobby Hull and Norm Ullman continue to make big strides in hockey&rsquo;s all-time goal-scoring race.Hull, playing only his 12th NHL season, is in hot pursuit of Montreal&rsquo;s Jean Beliveau in the struggle to hold down hockey&rsquo;s No. 3 spot in the lifetime goal-scoring derby.Hull this past week tallied his 440th and 441st goals against the Canadiens to move to within five of the Montreal ice captain who scored twice while Hull was popping five past big league netminders.Beliveau, with a total of 446, appears to be losing ground steadily to the Golden Jet in the all time race. Gordie Howe is still no. 1 with 706 goals and retired Maurice Richard remains No. 2 with 544.Ullman, the 14 year veteran centre, shot his 350th goal as part of a three-goal hat trick as Toronto beat New York 5-3 last weekend.He thus becomes only the eighth player in NHL history to achieve the 350-goal plateau. Howe, Richard, Beliveau, Hull, Bernard Geoffrion, Ted Lindsay and Alex Delvecchio are the others.Unless Los Angeles Kings, who didn&rsquo;t score a goal in two games last week, go on a scoring rampage at St. Louis goaltenders Jacques Plante and Glenn Hall will be richer.The two St. Louis veterans have such a lead in the goaltending race that it would take at least 16 goals by the Kings to put their lead in jeopardy. The goaltenders for the team with the fewest goals against after each team has played 39 games-exactly half the schedule-share $250 as mid-season Vezina Trophy leaders. It would be the second straight season the West division has picked up the halfway award for goalkeepers, Philadelphia having won in 1967-68.Plante, who leads the league in shutouts with five, has a fantastic average of 1.76 goals against per game, a mark he never attained even while winning six Vezina Trophy titles with Montreal in the &lsquo;50s. He and Hall, whose average is 2.46 and who has three shutouts, have a combined average of 2.11. Against west division rivals the two have been beaten only 21 times in 18 games while they have had 57 goals against in 19 games against East Divison teams.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-05362/2672694-1-eng-US/f0009-052.jpg" title="f0009-05" width="538" height="588"><figcaption class="caption-body">NORM ULLMAN &hellip; Reaches Milestone</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0009-05

Hull Zeroing In On Jean Beliveau

HAVELOCK, Ont. &mdash;Robert D. (Bob) Wilson, the man who discovered Bobby Hull for the Chicago Black Hawks, died at his home here Dec. 29 after a lengthy illness. He was 66 and had spent most of his life in hockey.At the time of his death, Wilson was chief scout and director of player development for Oakland Seals of the National Hockey League&rsquo;s expansion group.He was hired by Rudy Pilous, then general manager of the Seals, in 1966-67 and beat the bushes as well as scouting the established eastern group to give Pilous a rundown on the hockey players available in the expansion draft.Prior to working for the Chicago club, Wilson was connected with the Maple Leaf organization and sent many youngsters to Marboros and St. Michael&rsquo;s College.Wilson went to Belleville to scout another player, spotted Hull, a flashy 14-year-old, and forgot all about the other lad in his haste to put Marvin Robert on the Hawks&rsquo; list. This wouldn&rsquo;t be possible in today&rsquo;s hockey, where a player must graduate form junior before the pros can grab him. &#9632;

Discoverer Of Bobby Hull, Scout Bob Wilson Dies At 66

<div class="byline">RY ED CONRAD</div>PHILADELPHIA. Pa. &mdash;The about-face by the Flyers this season may mystify some people but there&rsquo;s no wool being pulled over Gary Dornhoefer&rsquo;s eyes.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not going anywhere because we&rsquo;re not winning the big games,&rdquo; explained Dornhoefer. &ldquo;That was our strong point in our championship a year ago. Whenever we were faced with a must situation, we hardly ever lost.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-01719/2672749-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="237" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gary Dornhoefer</figcaption></div>&ldquo;This year has been a complete reversal. We haven&rsquo;t won a big game yet. What this means is that we keep making it harder on ourselves.&rdquo;Dornhoefer, just back in action after being out a month due to a broken ankle, was lamenting the Flyers&rsquo; 2-1 loss to Oakland at the Spectrum. It was only their second defeat in eight games following the club&rsquo;s 11-game winless streak, but their second 2-1 setback to the Seals in that span.Even Keith Allen was at a loss for an explanation of the Flyers inability to rise to their occasion when a crucial contest confronted them &hellip; the same mystery that surrounds the Seals&rsquo; supremacy over the Flyers (four wins and a tie in five meetings this year).&ldquo;I just don&rsquo;t know why we can&rsquo;t beat them,&rdquo; said Allen. &ldquo;For some reason they seem, to play their best hockey against us. This was the same situation last year (when the Flyers won only three of 10 games) when we finished in first place and they finished last.&ldquo;I tried to impress upon our players that this was a four-point game &mdash; two points that we&rsquo;d have picked up and two that Oakland wouldn&rsquo;t have collected. But it didn&rsquo;t do any good because we still didn&rsquo;t beat &lsquo;em.&rdquo;Same as in the four previous games against the Seals, the Flyers got numerous opportunities but couldn&rsquo;t score more than one goal against Oakland goalie Gary Smith. That came by Forbes Kennedy in the second period before Carol Vadnais&rsquo; shot from the blue line zipped past goalie Bernie Parent.&ldquo;Baloney, Smith didn&rsquo;t play that well,&rdquo; said Dornhoefer, whose ankle was broken when deliberately struck by Gary&rsquo;s stick. Nov. 23. &ldquo;We made him look good the way we kept most of our shots up high where he could simply pluck them off with his glove.&ldquo;We had a lot of good chances, I agree, but they don&rsquo;t mean a thing unless you&rsquo;re capitalizing on them. The name of the game is to put the puck in the net. If you don&rsquo;t do that, it doesn&rsquo;t matter if you have a hundred shots on goal. You still won&rsquo;t win.&rdquo;Dornhoefer was playing on the point in addition to his regular shift during the Flyers&rsquo; powerplay because of the club&rsquo;s dissatisfaction with Simon Nolet in that capacity.Same as had been their problem all along, the Flyers were having headaches due to their popgun offense which was averaging something like 2.08 goals in the first 35 games.The sad victim of most of the impotent offense was Parent, who deserves to play in the AllStar game even though he has been in the net for more losses than wins so far this season. Three times Bernie had lost 1-0 games this year, not to mention a handful of 2-1 decisions. &#9632;

f0010-01

“We’re Not Winning Big Games” Says Dornhoefer As Club Slips

<h2>MAIL ORDERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-02631/2672895-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="391" height="377"></div>3247 W. Lawrence Ave Chicago 25, III.Phone Keystone 9-5044<h3>BRAND NAMES</h3>C.C.M.&mdash;COOPER WEEKSBAUERHYDEIWNWELLJOHNSONAERFLYTENORTHLAND<h3>FILLED PROMPTLY</h3>(Use the order form below) Check off desired Item Insert size where requiredHOCKEY JERSEYSToronto, Chicago Montreal, New York, Detroit, Boston, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Minnesota, Pittsburgh.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-03530/2672888-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="757" height="69"></div>HOCKEY STOCKINGS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04410/2672881-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="749" height="37"></div>Toronto, Chicago, Montreal, New York, Detroit, Boston.HOCKEY PANTS(All with braid trim)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-05311/2672874-1-eng-US/f0010-052.jpg" title="f0010-05" width="751" height="200"></div>Actual waist size(Hockey pants automatically oversized. We will size accordingly.)NHL HOCKEY CRESTS(All washable swiss embr. emblems)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-06242/2672867-1-eng-US/f0010-062.jpg" title="f0010-06" width="755" height="342"></div>(Add 50&cent; per emblem sewn to iersey)HOCKEY SWEATSHIRTS(Chicago, Boston, Montreal, New York, Detroit, Toronto)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-07176/2672860-1-eng-US/f0010-072.jpg" title="f0010-07" width="742" height="71"></div>HOCKEY GLOVES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-08134/2672853-1-eng-US/f0010-082.jpg" title="f0010-08" width="742" height="352"></div>HOCKEY SHINGUARDS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-09103/2672846-1-eng-US/f0010-092.jpg" title="f0010-09" width="754" height="167"></div>HOCKEY ELBOW PADS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1085/2672839-1-eng-US/f0010-102.jpg" title="f0010-10" width="740" height="140"></div>HOCKEY HELMETS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1167/2672832-1-eng-US/f0010-112.jpg" title="f0010-11" width="739" height="111"></div>(One size only fits all)GOALIE GLOVES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1250/2672825-1-eng-US/f0010-122.jpg" title="f0010-12" width="743" height="140"></div>GOALIE PADS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1336/2672818-1-eng-US/f0010-132.jpg" title="f0010-13" width="738" height="168"></div>GOALIE MASKS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1428/2672811-1-eng-US/f0010-142.jpg" title="f0010-14" width="745" height="74"></div>TOUQUES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-1526/2672804-1-eng-US/f0010-152.jpg" title="f0010-15" width="742" height="104"></div> &#9632;

f0010-02

NED SINGER’S HOCKEY SUPPLY CO. SKATE EXCHANGE

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0011-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-01710/2672947-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg"></div><h2>INDIVIDUAL SCORING LEADERS</h2>(Including Games of Sun. Jan. 5)WEST DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-02657/2672940-1-eng-US/f0011-022.jpg" title="f0011-02" width="593" height="2559"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-03563/2672933-1-eng-US/f0011-032.jpg" title="f0011-03" width="583" height="211"></div>EAST DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-04475/2672926-1-eng-US/f0011-042.jpg" title="f0011-04" width="579" height="2353"></div> &#9632;

f0011-01

NHL SCORING RACE

<div class="byline">BY TOM MONAHAN</div>BOSTON. Mass. &mdash;A month can make a great difference in the life of a professional athlete. If you don&rsquo;t think so, just consider the case of Bruins&rsquo; right wige Ken Hodge.At the start December, Hodge was the victim of fan derision and unfounded rumors that he was on the trading block.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-05399/2672978-1-eng-US/f0011-052.jpg" title="f0011-05" width="265" height="430"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ken Hodge</figcaption></div>Why the fans were on the handsome 24-year-old who came to the Bruins last year from Chicago with Phil Esposito and Fred Stanfield to score 25 goals and have 31 assists for the best season of his career is not quite understandable.Even less understandable is the source of the rumor that the smooth-skating rugged 200-pounder should be the subject of a possible Bruin trade.Up to that point in the season (21 games to be exact) Hodge has a record of six goals and 10 assists.Going into January of last season his total output had been seven goals and 17 assists.This indicated that Hodge was playing ahead of his 1967-68 pace and had been a major factor in the Bruins&rsquo; hold on a playoff position.But in the next 13 games Hodge really caught fire.He scored seven goals and had eight assists and the Bruins moved into a first place tie with the defending Stanley Cup champions from Montreal.Ken has a simple explanation for this sudden surge.&ldquo;The difference now,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;is that I have regained my confidence and the rest comes after that.&rdquo;Coach Harry Sinden has a different explanation.&ldquo;Ken has been covering the front of the net to perfection.&rdquo; says Sinden. &ldquo;This is the spot he can handle as well as anyone in the league.&ldquo;He is big and strong. No one can move him out of there very easily and he is tall enough (6:1) to be able to reach over a scramble and strong enough to still move that puck to the goal.&rdquo;This paid off for Hodge twice last week when he scored a pair of goals in a 6-2 victory at St. Louis and a comeback 3-3 tie at Detroit.&ldquo;As a matter of fact Ken just missed what could have been the winning goal when he grabbed a pass from Ron Murphy and hit the post.&rdquo;Another point Sinden brings up with regard to Hodge&rsquo;s hot streak is the fact that he has reverted to a wrist shot instead of the slap shot.&ldquo;Ken is so strong that he overpowers a slap shot.&rdquo; says Harry. &ldquo;When he uses just his wrists he has more accuracy and he is a much more effective shooter.&ldquo;Ken also is such a good, strong skater that he can cover his position as effectively as anyone in the league. He can overtake a man and grab the puck from him and he can outfight anyone in the corner.&ldquo;There is little doubt of his value to the team when he is playing the way he is right now.&rdquo;If Hodge keeps this pace and finishes as strongly as he did last year when he scored 18 goals in the second half of the season, the Bruins hope of finishing on top of the Eastern Division may be much more than just a dream. &#9632;

f0011-05

Hot Streak Helps Hodge Get Wolves Off His Back

BOSTON, Mass. &mdash;The Bruins added Johnny Bucyk to their injury list along with Gary Doak, Eddie Shack and Tom Williams during the past week &hellip; The veteran left wing was sidelined with a charley horse in his left thigh &hellip; Doak still was bothered by a pulled groin muscle after missing a week of action with a strained back muscle &hellip; Shack has been bothered by a torn right shoulder muscle &hellip; The B&rsquo;s called up Grant Erickson, Jim Harrison and Rick Smith from Oklahoma City and returned Barry Gibbs and Tom Webster to the Blazers &hellip; One of the most encouraging items of the past week was the return to uniform of veteran goalie Eddie Johnston &hellip; Johnston replaced rookie Joe Junkin as backup man for Gerry Cheevers and is ready for action when needed. He has been fitted with a new mask that gives added protection to the temple area.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-06354/2673009-1-eng-US/f0011-062.jpg" title="f0011-06" width="283" height="430"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jim He rison</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0011-06

Bruins Call Oklahoma Trio As Injuries Hit Regulars

Punch Imlach, whose Toronto Maple Leafs have been flying ever since his early-season confrontation with team brass over the club&rsquo;s nonproductivity, believes that Normie Ullman is &ldquo;the most complete player I&rsquo;ve coached in 10 years.&rdquo; And Ullman seems determined to prove that this is indeed true.The high-scoring centre, obtained from Detroit in a multi-player deal for Frank Mahovlich late last season, whipped home five goals in two games last week to boost his total for the campaign to 21.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02592/2673071-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="268" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body">Norm Ullman</figcaption></div>Ullman scored twice in the Leafs&rsquo; 7-3 romp over Oakland Seals, and then thrilled the Maple Leaf Garden faithful with a hat-trick three nights later to spearhead a 5-3 triumph over New York Rangers.Ullman&rsquo;s heroics pushed him into sixth place in the NHL scoring race with 43 points in 36 games and helped move the Leafs to within four points of the Eastern Division-leading Montreal Canadiens.El Producto and THE HOCKEY NEWS are pleased to salute the player-of-the-week in the East:Norm Ullman &hellip;.. Toronto &#9632;

f0012-02

NHL Player Of The Week — IN THE EAST

When Jacques Plante prematurely retired from hockey in 1965, he did so with a record of six Vezina Trophies, one Hart Trophy and a string of allstar honors under his belt. His return to the NHL wars this year has been equally as sensational.The St. Louis Blues&rsquo; veteran cage cop, who will be 40 years old Jan. 17, lost none of his reflexes during his three-year layoff from active competition. He presently leads the National Hockey League in two key departments and along with teammate Glenn Hall has a healthy lead en route to a seventh Vezina Trophy.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03465/2673102-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="274" height="405"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jacques Plante</figcaption></div>Plante hung up his league-leading fifth shutout last week in a scoreless battle with Gerry DesJardins of the Los Angeles Kings. Jake the Snake kicked aside 31 shots and followed this up with a magnificent 38-save performance on the weekend as the Blues upended the Detroit Red Wings 3-1.The two top-notch efforts lowered Plante&rsquo;s goals-against average to 1.76, easily the best in either Division. He is a shoo-in to start between the pipes for the West against the East in the NHL&rsquo;S annual allstar game in Montreal Jan. 21.El Producto and THE HOCKEY NEWS are pleased to salute the player-of-the-week in the West:Jacques Plante &hellip;.. St. Louis &#9632;

f0012-03

NHL Player Of The Week — IN THE WEST

<div class="byline">BY GLENN REDMANN</div>ASK YOUR DEALER ABOUTLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS(FORMERLY WALLY)(Hockey sticks distributed in the U.S. through the Hillerich & Bradsby Co.)ASK YOUR DEALER ABOUTLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS(FORMERLY WALLY)(Hockey sticks distributed in the U.S. through the Hillerich & Bradsby Co.)TWIN CITIES, Minn. &mdash;Last season, Minnesota&rsquo;s National Hockey League North Stars got through 74 regular season and 14 playoff games with a miraculously small amount of injuries.But the North Stars are finding out how the other half lives in what up to the 35-game mark of the 1968-69 campaign has to be described as a most puzzling, disappointing over-all team performance.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-01687/2673040-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="256" height="455"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike McMahon</figcaption></div>The Minnesotans&rsquo; troubles started, way back on Oct. 19 when, in the fourth game of the season, defenseman Mike McMahon &mdash; a mainstay in the club&rsquo;s 1967-68 success with 14 goals and 33 assists &mdash; took a wicked check from Los Angeles&rsquo; Jim Peters and went on the shelf with badly bruised knee.Mike had been one of the Stars&rsquo; leaders in a season-opening 5-1 win at Oakland and also played a starring role in a 4-1 triumph over the Kings on the night he was hurt.In the opinion of this writer, he came back too soon, and this may easily have been why his play dipped to such a low ebb that coach John Muckier ordered Mike&rsquo;s departure to Cleveland &ldquo;in hopes that he&rsquo;ll regain last year&rsquo;s form.&rdquo; The move has to rank as one of the big surprises of the first half of the season.The list of injuries after McMahon&rsquo;s struck two of Mike&rsquo;s fellow blue-liners, Bob McCord and Wayne Hillman &mdash; the latter twice for a total of 10 games out of uniform.Among forwards, only J.P. Parise and Wayne Connelly, who started slowly but have come on like Gangbusters since the middle of November, managed to play in all of the Stars&rsquo; first 35 contests.All three of Muckier&rsquo;s &ldquo;hot line,&rdquo; comprised of rookie centerman Danny O&rsquo;Shea between former Montreal wingers Danny Grant and Claude Larose, had been incapacitated for from two to four games before the 1968 half of the schedule was completed.O&rsquo;Shea, who scored two goals and helped set up two others in the Stars&rsquo; come-from-behind (4-1 deficit) 4-4 tie at Los Angeles late in December, battled back miseries after crashing into a goal post while scoring a goal against Pittsburgh on Dec. 11.Grant and Larose suffered groin pull miseries, an affliction which also put penalty-killing ace Andre Boudrias on the sidelines just before a late-November road trip.While Hillman&rsquo;s knee injury and Larose&rsquo;s groin were perhaps the most costly because they came at the same time the club was trying to shake a long winless streak (which stretched to nine games), the crowning blow came in St. Louis&rsquo; first invasion of Met Sports Center on Christmas night.On that evening, the Stars lost the services of Ray Cullen, their leading scorer (with 10 goals and 25 assists) for at least three weeks.The crafty centerman&rsquo;s ankle was broken by a hard shot late in the first period when Minnesota outshot the Blues, 18-to-6, but skated off the ice with no more than a 0-0 tie to show for its efforts. St. Louis ultimatelv won, 2-0.The game Cullen, who had the same ankle broken last season when L.A. goalie Wayne Rutledge whacked him near the crease, played a shift in each of the last two periods and the seriousness of his injury wasn&rsquo;t discovered until the next day when X-rays were taken by Kings&rsquo; physician Dr. Bob Kerlan.&ldquo;If there&rsquo;s one man we could least afford to lose at this time,&rdquo; said general manager Wren Blair, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s Cully. He was playing so well and it has shown in the play of his two linemates, Parise and Connelly.&ldquo;But injuries are part of the game, and we&rsquo;re just going to have to try and ride this thing out.&rdquo;Starting with that Chicago tilt which drew another capacity crowd of 14,404 to push season home attendance to 214,524 (an average of 12,618) for 17 games, the Minnesotans were to play five straight games against East Division opposition.In view of the club&rsquo;s miserable 2-15-1 log against the establishment at this writing, that wasn&rsquo;t exactly music to Muckier&rsquo;s or Blair&rsquo;s ears.STAR-LITES: Danny O&rsquo;Shea was handed a two-minute penalty in the Dec. 28 game against Chicago for using a strick which had a blade less than the regulation 2 1/2 inch width in the middle &hellip; Bob Myers, normally a linesman but filling in as referee for snowbound Vern Buffey, meted out the penalty after Black Hawks coach Billy Reay rightfully complained &hellip; Moose-Vasko, who also had played in each of the Stars&rsquo; first 35 games, earned a &ldquo;star&rdquo; for a hard-hitting performance against his old Chicago teammates Dec. 28 &hellip; Muckier and Blair decided to rest Cesare Maniago for two games after the tall goalie had played in 31 of the club&rsquo;s first 34 games including his last 15 without relief. &#9632;

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McMAHON DEMOTION BY STARS SURPRISES NHL

<h2>MONTREAL</h2>Goal, Vachon, Worsley, Defense, Laperrire, J.C. Tremblay, Harns, Hillman, Savard, Forwards, Beliveau, G. Tremblay, Backstrom, Duff, Cournoyer, Provost, Rousseau, Richard, Ferguson, Redmond, Lemaire.<h2>TORONTO</h2>Goal, Gamble, Bower. Defense, Pilote, Pronovost, Horton, Peiyk, Dorey, Forwards, Ellis, Ullman, Oliver, Keon, Mickey, Walton, F. Smith, Henderson, Pulford, Armstrong. CHICAGOGoal, Dryden, DeJordy, Defense Marotte, Young, Reid, Ravlich, Stapleton, Jarrett, Forwards, Orban, Martin, Pappin, B. Hull, D. Hull, Mohns, Nesterenko, C. Maki, Wharram, Schmautx.<h2>NEW YORK</h2>Goal, Giacomin, Villemure, Simmons, Defense, Howell, Brown, Park, Neilson, Seiling, Forwards, Trottier, Nevin, Fleming, Jeffrey Hadfield, Stewart, Baton, Ra telle, Goyette, Marshall, Tkacuk.<h2>DETROIT</h2>Goal, Crozier, Edwards. Defense, Baun, Douglas, Popiel, Bergman, Harris. Forwards, Unger, Howe, Delvecchio, F. Mahovlich, MacGregor, Libett, Lawson, Stemkowski, P. Mahovlich, Prentice.<h2>BOSTON</h2>Goal, Cheevers, Johnston. Defense, Orr, Green, Westfall, Smith, Doak, Awrey. Forwards, Esposito, Hodge, Bucyk, Cashman, Sather, Sanderson, Stanfield, McKenzie, Shack, Murphy. Erichson, Harrison.<h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2>Goal, Parent, Favell. Defense, Van Impe, Watson, Miszuk, Stanley, Hale, Cherry, Forwards, Lacroix, Rochefort, Selby, Gendron, Nolet, Sarrazin. Peters, Blackburn, Johnson, Kennedy.<h2>OAKLAND</h2>Goal, Hodge, Smith, Worthy, Defense, Roberts, Vadnais, Lacombe, Watson, Marshall, Odrowski. Forwards, Laughton Ehmen, Hicke, Hampson, Jarrett, Swarbrick, Dillabough, Ferguson, Szura, Perry.<h2>PITTSBURGH</h2>Goal Binkley, Daley,, Defense, Boivin, Speer, Price, McCallum, Woytowich. Forwards, Angotti, Fonteyne, Burns, Ingarfield, Ubriaco, Schinkel, Dea, Harris, Boyer, Pronovost, McCreary.<h2>ST. LOUIS</h2>Goal. Hall, iPlante. Defense, Arbour, Bob Plager, Roberts, Barclay Plager, Talbot, Picard. Forwards, Berenson, St. Marseille, Schock, Sabourin, Ecclestone, McCreary, Cameron, Keenan, McDonald, Henry.<h2>MINNESOTA</h2>Goal, Maniago, Bauman. Defense, W. Hillman, Rupp, Vasko, McCord, Nanne Forwards, O&rsquo;Shea, McKechnie, Smith, Cuk Ion, Parise, Connelly, Boudrias, Johnston, Larose, Collins, Grant, MacDonald, Goldsworthy.<h2>LOS ANGELES</h2>Goal, Rutledge, Desjardins. Defense, Wall, Amadio. Rolfe. B. Hughes, Cahan, White. Forward, Campbell, Peters, R. Lemieux, H. Hughes, Irvine, Joyal, Rett, Labossiere, Anderson. &#9632;

NHL TEAM LINEUPS

<h2>FRI. DEC. 27</h2>PHILADELPHIA 3 at DETROIT 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01677/2673371-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="581" height="553"></div><h2>SAT. DEC. 28</h2>CHICAGO 5 at MINNESOTA 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02631/2673364-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="572" height="650"></div>BOSTON 6 at ST. LOUIS 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-03586/2673357-1-eng-US/f0013-032.jpg" title="f0013-03" width="569" height="641"></div>OAKLAND 4 at PITTSBURGH 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-04535/2673350-1-eng-US/f0013-042.jpg" title="f0013-04" width="579" height="600"></div>LOS ANGELES 4 at TORONTO 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-05441/2673343-1-eng-US/f0013-052.jpg" title="f0013-05" width="568" height="447"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-06375/2673336-1-eng-US/f0013-062.jpg" title="f0013-06" width="547" height="57"></div>NEW YORK 3 at MONTREAL 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-07345/2673329-1-eng-US/f0013-072.jpg" title="f0013-07" width="596" height="643"></div><h2>SUN. DEC. 29</h2>MONTREAL 1 at NEW YORK 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-08323/2673322-1-eng-US/f0013-082.jpg" title="f0013-08" width="577" height="447"></div>BOSTON 3 at DETROIT 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-09307/2673315-1-eng-US/f0013-092.jpg" title="f0013-09" width="580" height="587"></div>OAKLAND 2 at PHILADELPHIA 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-10285/2673308-1-eng-US/f0013-102.jpg" title="f0013-10" width="562" height="125"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-11260/2673301-1-eng-US/f0013-112.jpg" title="f0013-11" width="568" height="323"></div>LOS ANGELES 1 at CHICAGO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-12227/2673294-1-eng-US/f0013-122.jpg" title="f0013-12" width="567" height="543"></div><h2>TUES. DEC. 31</h2>MONTREAL 4 At PITTSBURGH 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-13193/2673287-1-eng-US/f0013-132.jpg" title="f0013-13" width="568" height="625"></div>MINNESOTA 3 At DETROIT 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-14162/2673280-1-eng-US/f0013-142.jpg" title="f0013-14" width="572" height="398"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-15133/2673273-1-eng-US/f0013-152.jpg" title="f0013-15" width="573" height="305"></div><h2>WED. JAN. 1</h2>OAKLAND 3 At TORONTO 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1693/2673266-1-eng-US/f0013-162.jpg" title="f0013-16" width="563" height="743"></div>DETROIT 1 at CHICAGO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1772/2673259-1-eng-US/f0013-172.jpg" title="f0013-17" width="573" height="524"></div>ST. LOUIS 0 At LOS ANGELES 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1861/2673252-1-eng-US/f0013-182.jpg" title="f0013-18" width="550" height="321"></div><h2>THURS. JAN. 2</h2>PITTSBURGH 5 at MONTREAL 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1947/2673245-1-eng-US/f0013-192.jpg" title="f0013-19" width="577" height="631"></div>BOSTON 4 at NEW YORK 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2033/2673238-1-eng-US/f0013-202.jpg" title="f0013-20" width="573" height="347"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2125/2673231-1-eng-US/f0013-212.jpg" title="f0013-21" width="574" height="280"></div>CHICAGO 2 at PHILADELPHIA 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2221/2673224-1-eng-US/f0013-222.jpg" title="f0013-22" width="569" height="488"></div><h2>FRI. JAN. 3</h2>ST. LOUIS 3 at OAKLAND 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2315/2673217-1-eng-US/f0013-232.jpg" title="f0013-23" width="562" height="446"></div><h2>SAT. JAN. 4</h2>CHICAGO 6 at MONTREAL 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2411/2673210-1-eng-US/f0013-242.jpg" title="f0013-24" width="567" height="767"></div>NEW YORK 3 at TORONTO 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2511/2673203-1-eng-US/f0013-252.jpg" title="f0013-25" width="570" height="647"></div>DETROIT 1 at ST. LOUIS 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2611/2673196-1-eng-US/f0013-262.jpg" title="f0013-26" width="563" height="179"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02584/2673189-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="580" height="332"></div>PHILADELPHIA 1 at PITTSBURGH 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-03495/2673182-1-eng-US/f0015-032.jpg" title="f0015-03" width="574" height="453"></div>BOSTON 2 at MINNESOTA 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-04382/2673175-1-eng-US/f0015-042.jpg" title="f0015-04" width="569" height="495"></div><h2>SUN. JAN. 5</h2>MONTREAL 4 at CHICAGO 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-05285/2673168-1-eng-US/f0015-052.jpg" title="f0015-05" width="572" height="596"></div>TORONTO 2 at PHILADELPHIA 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-06234/2673161-1-eng-US/f0015-062.jpg" title="f0015-06" width="568" height="128"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-07208/2673154-1-eng-US/f0015-072.jpg" title="f0015-07" width="580" height="429"></div>MINNESOTA 1 at NEW YORK 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-08186/2673147-1-eng-US/f0015-082.jpg" title="f0015-08" width="573" height="546"></div>PITTSBURGH 1 at DETROIT 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-09171/2673140-1-eng-US/f0015-092.jpg" title="f0015-09" width="570" height="475"></div>LOS ANGELES 0 at OAKLAND 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-10148/2673133-1-eng-US/f0015-102.jpg" title="f0015-10" width="565" height="382"></div> &#9632;

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National Hockey League Summaries

<div class="byline">BY NORMAN MacLEAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01650/2673478-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="529" height="564"><figcaption class="caption-body">REG FLEMING &hellip; Spark For Blues</figcaption></div>NEW YORK, N.Y. &mdash;The public address announcer at the Montreal Forum intoned, &ldquo;Ranger goal by Reg Fleming.&rdquo;What was so noteworthy about this tally? It was the fifth straight game that the normally light scoring Fleming had lit the red lamp for the New York Rangers and the second straight time that he had scored the opening goal of the game. Did this bring Reggie up with the team leaders in goals? No. However, it was the sixth goal of the year of the Montreal born blockbuster, who has so successfully pinch hit for Rod Gilbetrt during Gilbert&rsquo;s three week injury. When Gilbert went to the sidelines on December 7, he had scored 9 goals and the season was in its eight week. Fleming, as Rodrigue&rsquo;s caddy has scored five in three weeks and was oroviding a major portion of the New Yorker&rsquo;s offensive spark.When you read this, Gilbert will probably be back in his accustomed spot with Center Jean Ratelie and left wing Vic Hadfield, but Fleming did a job and then some, during Rod&rsquo;s absence. Gilbert, who was hurt in Toronto on December 7, returned to the lineup on December 28 at Montreal. He was placed on the line centered by Phil Goyette with Donnie Marshall at left wing. The reason for this was twofold: Fleming&rsquo;s excellent play in Gilbert&rsquo;s usual spot and a knee injury suffered by Captain Bob Nevin in New York&rsquo;s 3-1 win over Oakland on December 26.That New York&rsquo;s power play sputtered during Gilbert&rsquo;s absence was not Fleming&rsquo;s fault. Reg, a 32 year old, 5 foot ten inch, 185 pounder, does not profess to be a power play specialist. What he is, is a hard nosed to way hockey player. Sometimes, he will take a cheap penalty &mdash; and he has in past season even been fined for this, but all in all he creates excitement and confusion in the enemies ranks when he starts hitting. A Fleming who can also score is a plus which Ranger coach Bernie Geoffrion can only be happy about.Reggie is looking forward to a coaching career when his playing days are over.&ldquo;I like to work with kids. Watching a youngster develop is almost as much fun as playing this game,&rdquo; says Fleming.&ldquo;We use Reggie at our Metropolitan Junior Hockey Association Clinics every season. Without a doubt, he is one of the most popular Rangers and the local coaches are always asking for him to work with their young players,&rdquo; notes Emile Francis, the New York General Manager.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-11129/2673471-1-eng-US/f0015-112.jpg" title="f0015-11" width="536" height="631"><figcaption class="caption-body">VIC HADFIELD &hellip; Nets 100th Goal</figcaption></div>The injury to Nevin, while not supposed to be of long duration left the Rangers exactly where they were with Gilbert out-minus one of the NHL&rsquo;s outstanding right wingers. Nevvy twisted his knee in a freak collison.In other developments, Geoffrion indicated that he was going to play Arnie Brown with Harry Howell and Rod Seiling with Jim Neilson of defense. This left rookie Brad Park as the fifth man.&ldquo;Park must get down from his present 197 pounds,&rdquo; growled Boomer. &ldquo;In camp when he went so well he has a bit lighter.&rdquo;The return of Gilbert in exactly half the time estimated by Dr. Kazuo Yanagisawa was a big New-Year&rsquo;s present for Rangerville. The team won two games and tied three others during his absence with the other four efforts being losses &mdash; and they slid from second to fourth place.&ldquo;It is hard to believe that Gilbert means that much to the club,&rdquo; mused Geoffrion. &ldquo;I have to believe that the boys just hit a slump at the same time that he was out.&rdquo;A Gilbert hot streak, which necessarily might be delayed a few weeks while Rod works back to a fine hue in conditioning, plus improved play from Seiling and Neilson probably could catapult New York back into thick of the frav at the top of the NHL.Neilson was a ring tailed wow at this time last season in busting out of his own end with the puck &mdash; and more of same would solve a lot&rsquo; of Goalie Eddie Giacomin&rsquo;s problems. Giacomin has been wandering more of late than he should have to, and although he has not been caught, this seemingly is because the defense was not doing its job in getting the puck back up ice quickly enough.Eddie returned to goal in the Montreal game of December 28 after missing three games due to an injury suffered in the St. Louis game of December 21. He had a badly bruised left shoulder. Replacement Gilles Villemure, up from Buffalo of the AHL won two and tied one in Eddie&rsquo;s absence. Second string goaltender Donnie Simmons remained tied to the bench in Giacomin&rsquo;s absence.BLUE CHIPS &mdash; Ron Stewart is playing extremely well on N.Y.&rsquo;s third line &hellip; Dennis Hextall up from Buffalo to provide some needed sock is not getting that much ice &hellip; Rangers have been outshot in only eight of their first 35 games and have fired 40 or more shots at the enemy in 12 of these contests. Only Boston (41 on Nov. 23) has succeeded in firing 40 or more salvos at the Ranger net &hellip;Up to game No. 36 New York had scored 25 power play goals in 122 attempts with Bob Nevin leading the way with six &hellip; This area of play needs improvement &hellip; Jean Ratelie has not scored since December 4 and did not score with Gilbert out &hellip; Rangerville please note: There are still some tickets left for the last 17 home games on the schedule. They are on sale at the Madison Square Garden Box office every dav &hellip; The 1968 E.C.A.C. Holiday Hockey Festival was won by Clarkson. Other entrants were Brown, Dartmouth and Yale &hellip; The Metropolitan Junior Hockey Association will stage its first All Star game at MSG on Sunday Afternoon February 16. &#9632;

f0015-01

Fleming Smash Hit As Pinch Hitter For Star

<h2>SAT. DEC. 28</h2>QUEBEC 3 AT SPRINGFIELD 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02424/2673687-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="587" height="678"></div>ROCHESTER 4 At CLEVELAND 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03335/2673680-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="577" height="499"></div>PROVIDENCE 2 At BALTIMORE 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04266/2673673-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="585" height="725"></div>BUFFALOS At HERSHEY 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05197/2673666-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="585" height="605"></div><h2>SUN. DEC. 29</h2>HERSHEY 5 At PROVIDENCE 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06159/2673659-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="577" height="629"></div>CLEVELAND 4 At ROCHESTER 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-07146/2673652-1-eng-US/f0016-072.jpg" title="f0016-07" width="580" height="536"></div>QUEBEC 2 at BUFFALO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-08133/2673645-1-eng-US/f0016-082.jpg" title="f0016-08" width="577" height="503"></div>BALTIMORE 4 at SPRINGFIELD 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-09113/2673638-1-eng-US/f0016-092.jpg" title="f0016-09" width="574" height="750"></div><h2>WED. JAN. 1</h2>SPRINGFIELD 1 at HERSHEY 3FIRST PERIODNo scoring.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1095/2673631-1-eng-US/f0016-102.jpg" title="f0016-10" width="586" height="434"></div>BUFFALO 4 at ROCHESTER 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1182/2673624-1-eng-US/f0016-112.jpg" title="f0016-11" width="585" height="603"></div>QUEBEC 5 at BALTIMORE 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1267/2673617-1-eng-US/f0016-122.jpg" title="f0016-12" width="579" height="502"></div>CLEVELAND 2 at PROVIDENCE 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1357/2673610-1-eng-US/f0016-132.jpg" title="f0016-13" width="577" height="579"></div><h2>FRI. JAN. 3</h2>ROCHESTER 0 at BUFFALO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1452/2673603-1-eng-US/f0016-142.jpg" title="f0016-14" width="583" height="400"></div>SPRINGFIELD 3 at BALTIMORE 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1546/2673596-1-eng-US/f0016-152.jpg" title="f0016-15" width="581" height="650"></div>SAT. JAN. 4QUEBEC 1 At HERSHEY 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1644/2673589-1-eng-US/f0016-162.jpg" title="f0016-16" width="586" height="451"></div>ROCHESTER 6 At CLEVELAND 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1739/2673582-1-eng-US/f0016-172.jpg" title="f0016-17" width="586" height="750"></div>PROVIDENCE 5 At SPRINGFIELD 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1836/2673575-1-eng-US/f0016-182.jpg" title="f0016-18" width="578" height="671"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1933/2673568-1-eng-US/f0016-192.jpg" title="f0016-19" width="560" height="107"></div><h2>SUN. JAN. 5</h2>SPRINGFIELD 2 At BUFFALO 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2032/2673561-1-eng-US/f0016-202.jpg" title="f0016-20" width="580" height="455"></div>HERSHEY 4 At PROVIDENCE 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2130/2673554-1-eng-US/f0016-212.jpg" title="f0016-21" width="588" height="605"></div>QUEBEC 5 At ROCHESTER 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2230/2673547-1-eng-US/f0016-222.jpg" title="f0016-22" width="586" height="652"></div>BALTIMORE 6 At CLEVELAND 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2328/2673540-1-eng-US/f0016-232.jpg" title="f0016-23" width="581" height="725"></div> &#9632;

f0016-02

American Hockey League Summaries

<div class="byline">BY SHEL FULLERTON</div>&ldquo;You like 7up 7up likes You&rdquo;&ldquo;You like 7up 7up likes You&rdquo;CLEVELAND, Ohio &mdash;No one has dragged out one of those measuring devices yet to test just how fast it moves, but there is a growing suspicion among followers of the Cleveland Barons that the shot propelled goalward from the point by young Pierre Bouchard is faster than that of any other Baron in history.As far as that is concerned, it is hard to recall any other American Leaguer on any team who puts the steam on a shot that Bouchard does.It is only one of the attributes possessed by this 6-2, 200-pound, 20-year-old blockbuster that stamp him as a star defenseman of the future and a worthy wearer of the name made famous in hockey circles by his father, the great Emile (Butch) Bouchard of Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; fame.There must be something in the air that swirls off Lake Erie that breeds speed. Three of the fastest pitchers in modern baseball history-Bob Feller, Herb Score and Sam McDowell-performed for the Cleveland Indians. The speed that they applied to a baseball is matched by the speed that Bouchard applies to a hockey puck.He fires screamers. What&rsquo;s more, they generally are on target.If a fast shot were the only asset to recommend the graduate from the Montreal Canadiens Juniors, he would be interesting. Bouchard has a lot more going for him than that.He also is developing into a polished, bone-crushing backliner, a take-charge guy who, &lsquo;paired in recent weeks with Lou Nanne, gives the Barons a defense pair that makes honest skaters out of enemy forwards and provides a rock-ribbed duo that gives valuable protection to a goalie.With the trouble the Barons have been experiencing in keeping a netminder for more than a game or two, the type of protection Bouchard gives is invaluable.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01496/2673509-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="570" height="573"><figcaption class="caption-body">PIERRE BOUCHARD &hellip; Fires Screamers</figcaption></div>For four straight home ice weekends, the Barons have had a different goalie in the nets. First it was Ernie Wakely, then Rocky Farr, then Carl Wetzel. The latest is 20-year-old Michel Plasse, a product of the Provincial junior League&rsquo;s Drummondville team&rsquo; who was pressed into service when Wetzel injured his knee and made his first professionnal start a winning one by defeating the Quebec Aces, 2-1.By the time this article appears, hopefully Wakely will be back in the nets. The desire for his return by Coach Jackie Gordon is for the purpose of stability.Neither Gordon, nor anyone else, can criticize the work of Wakely&rsquo;s understudies. Thanks to their own abilities and the protection given them by their teammates, they have done a terrrific job.Among those teammates who-rate credit is young Bouchard, who looms bigger in the hockey picture with every passing game. &#9632;

f0016-01

Bouchard Hardest Shooter In Baron History

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01411/2673732-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="573" height="400"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Sat. Dec 28Providence 2 at Baltimore 7Rochester 4 at Cleveland 4&gt;Buffalo 5 at Hershey 2Quebec 3 at Springfield 5Sun. Dec. 29Quebec 2 at Buffalo 4Hershey 5 at Providence 3Cleveland 4 at Rochester 1Baltimore 4 at Springfield 7Wed. Jan. 1Quebec 5 al Baltimore 2Springfield 1 at Hershey 3Cleveland 2 at Providence 4Buffalo 4 at Rochester 3Fri Jan. 3Springfield 3 at Baltimore 4Rochester 0 at Buffalo 4Sat. Jan. 4Rochester 6 at Cleveland 4Quebec 1 at Hershey 5Providence 5 at Springfield 7Sun. Jan. 5Hershey 3 at Providence 5Baltimore 6 at Cleveland 4Quebec 5 ot Rochester 3Springfield 2 at Buffolo 3<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tues. Jan. 7Rochester ot QuebecWed. Jan. 8Springfield at HersheyThurs. Jan. 9Rochester 10 QuebecFri. Jan. 10Hershey ot BuffoloProvidence ot RochesterBaltimore ot SpringfieldSat. Jan. 11Quebec ot ClevelandProvidence at HersheyBuffalo at SpringfieldSun. Jan. 12Cleveland at BuffaloSpringfield ot ProvidenceBaltimore ot QuebecHershey ot Rochester<h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2>(Including Games of Sun. Dec. 22)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02362/2673725-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="573" height="472"></div><h3>GOALKEEPERS RECORDS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03296/2673718-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="570" height="449"></div> &#9632;

f0017-01

Looking At AHL Race

<div class="byline">BY JOHN TRAVERS</div>HERSHEY, Pa.&mdash;For some guys it&rsquo;s a case of they&rsquo;d rather fight than switch. Not so Bud Debrody, the Hershey Bears young winger, who broke a 21-game scoring slump by switching from white to black tape on the blade of his stick.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-04231/2673763-1-eng-US/f0017-042.jpg" title="f0017-04" width="247" height="429"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bud Debrody</figcaption></div>The 22-year-old Debrody accepted the suggestion of a friend who recommended the change to black tape to make it a little more difficult for a goalie to follow the flight of the puck.Christmas Night against the Cleveland Barons Debrody skated out with black tape and wound up with a pair of goals, including the game winner, in a 7-3 decision over the Ohio outfit.As it turned out it was a key win for the Bears who regained sole possession of first place in the Eastern Division race which suddenly turned into a three-way scrap between the Bears, Providence and the Baltimore Clippers.Until he blinked the light twice, Debrody had not tallied a goal since Nov. 1. His two markers gave him seven for the season, but unquestionably boosted his confidence for the club&rsquo;s coming stretch drive.In the same game, two of Hershev&rsquo;s stickout defenseman, Barry Ashbee and Ralph Keller, both strong all-star contenders, turned in a solid two-way effort. Ashbee set up a pair of goals, while Keller, making a great fake to spring loose for a shot, drilled a 50-footer past Cleveland rookie goalie Michel Plasse.Hershey, the league&rsquo;s best home ice outfit at the 15-game with an 11-3-1 record for 23 points, was riding a five game unbeaten streak at the Sports Arena as of Dec. 26.From Dec. 28 to Feb. 1, the Bears play 11 games at home and coach Frank Mathers hopes his charges can rack up the points to open some daylight on the pressing Reds and Clippers.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had some injuries which haven&rsquo;t helped things,&rdquo; said Mathers, &ldquo;but you&rsquo;ve got to expect that over a long 74-game schedule.&ldquo;I still feel we have the talent to win the East again. Some of the guys who got off to a rather slow start are beginning to click now and it&rsquo;s going to make a big difference.&rdquo;Through the early part of the schedule the line of Michell Harvey-Gil Gilbert-Chuck Hamilton packed the major share of the goal scoring load, rapping in 44 goals.However, Bod Leiter, Don Marcotte, Stan Gilbertson, Ace Bailey, Debrody and Roger DeJordy are beginning to click with consistency. &#9632;

f0017-04

Changing Tape Aided Debrody

<div class="byline">BY CHARLEY BARTON</div>BUFFALO. N.Y.&mdash;Guy Trottier led the Buffalo Bisons with 24 goals as the American Hockey League schedule neared the midway point, and the gutty little right-winger was also adding to his evergrowing group of major league scouts.A year ago, in his debut with the Herd following a brilliant amateur career, Trottier finished with 16 goals and 19 assists after missing 30 games because of knee surgery.Goals and Trottier are seldom far apart. In three winters with Davton in the Internationl League, Trottier posted totals ot 46 68 and 71. The Bisons signed him for a bonus and a lucrative one-year deal.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s always been a great scorer, and this season he&rsquo;s been as aggressive as I&rsquo;ve ever seen him,&rdquo; said Fred Shero, the Buffalo coach.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a tiger every minute he&rsquo;s out there. He doesn&rsquo;t get anv garbage goals. He works and earns every one of his goals.&rdquo;Trottier opened the season on a line with Dennis Kassian and center Dennis Hextall. When Hextall moved up to the parent New York Rangers. Billy Knibbs took over in the middle. Knibbs was hurt, and then Roger Picard went between Trottier and Kassian. The Rangers called Trottier up this past week and returned Hextall to the Bisons.Trottier is a two-way performer, and checks with authority. He doesn&rsquo;t fight often, but when he does he&rsquo;s a winner.In two seasons here, Trottier has been in just two fights. He became involved in a pre-season scrap with Omaha&rsquo;s Billy Fairbairn, and later with Keke Mortson of Baltimore. In both instances. Trottier delivered fearful lacings to his opponents.Now 27, and a ocompact 5-foot 8-inch 175-pounder. Trottier is being closely followed by a number of major league scouts.However, since he is the property of the Bisons, the New York Rangers, the Herd&rsquo;s parent club, will get first refusal of his services. The Rangers indicated they are seriously interested in him by recalling him as injuries hit the NHL club.&ldquo;He&rsquo;ll make it in the NHL, and all he needed was experience in the higher minors,&rdquo; Shero said. &ldquo;Now, he&rsquo;s about readv to move up.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-05187/2673794-1-eng-US/f0017-052.jpg" title="f0017-05" width="551" height="965"><figcaption class="caption-body">GUY TROTTIER &hellip; Headed For NHL</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0017-05

Trottier Hot With 24 Goals

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK SANTANIELLO</div>SPRINGFIELD, Mass. &mdash;Ken Turlik, Gordon Labossiere and Bryan Campbell had been performing so well with the Springfield Kings that two of them found themselves back in the National League. In fact, during the month of December, their record on the ice was unbelievable. They had well over 45 points tallied in goals and assists.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-06158/2673825-1-eng-US/f0017-062.jpg" title="f0017-06" width="287" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gord Labossiere</figcaption></div>Turlik has been a sweet and pleasant surprise in the Springfield lineup. Slowly but surely, he is creeping into first place in team scoring. Ken should give Marc Dufour, now in first place, a real run for his money in the point-making department. With Campbell and Labossiere recalled by the parent Los Angeles Kings, the AHL Kings would have to make some revisions with Doug Robinson and Ship Krake coming in.At this writing, rookie Ken is in second place but now his linemates have changed. He is a definite NHL prospect. The 24 year old Turlik was born in Lethbridge, Alberta and now lives in Vancouver. He stands six feet and weighs 175 pounds. He is single.Turlik came to the Los Angeles Kings when the New York Rangers made the deal with Jim Murray for Barclay Plager. Turlik came up the hard way in the tough and explosive Eastern League, where he played the last two seasons with Knoxville.Ken potted 24 goals and 26 assists last season with Knoxville, which earned him a promotion in the pro ranks.&ldquo;The trio carried our club,&rdquo; Coach Johnny Wilson stated. &ldquo;You expect top performances from Campbell and Labossiere. After all, they are seasoned pros. But Turlik lias been a pleasant surprise. He has developed and matured far beyond our expectations.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0017-06

Labossiere, Campbell Play Way Back To NHL

<div class="byline">BY HANS TANNER</div>&mdash;ROCHESTER. N.Y.42 wins, 29 losses and 11 ties.Not a bad record for a year, is it?That&rsquo;s what the Rochester Americans registered during 1968 for American Hockey League regular season and playoff games.But. unfortunately for the fans following the fortunes (or is it misfortunes?) of the 1968-69 Amerks, 3.3 of the victoria only 12 of the defeats and five of the ties were posted by the &lsquo;67-68 squad from last January 1 through may 4.That leaves triumphs. 17 setbacksand six deadlocks for the 58-69 outfit. Not only is that an incredibly bad record, it hints the Rochester Americans may finish with their worst showing since they joined the AHL back in 1956.Even more disturbing lo the Ians is the way the Americans wound up 1968. They closed with just one solitary victory in their final 15 games while losing 10 and tying four. And before the home folks the once mighty and proud Amerks stumbled to one win, three defeats and two ties in their last six tries of &rsquo;68.The reasons for his horrendous showing have been mentioned here time and again &mdash; the main one being the Rochester Americans&rsquo; &ldquo;West Coast unit&rdquo; (otherwise known as the Vancouver Canucks) is on the way to winning the Western League championship with most of the same players responsible for the Amerks, success here last spring.The goaltending has been spotty. The play of the defense has been spotty. The offense has been spotty. Put them all together and they spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E.It takes more than five or six players with talent to make a winning hockey club. &#9632;

Americans Continue To Stumble With Inadequate Player Talent

<div class="byline">RY JOHN WHITE</div>PORTLAND. Ore.&mdash;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01417/2673880-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="265" height="407"><figcaption class="caption-body">Hal Layco</figcaption></div>A letter was delivered to our office by mistake the other day and inadvertently was opened and read. We suppose we shouldn&rsquo;t do it. but we&rsquo;ll pass it along to THE HOCKEY NEWS readers:This is what it said:&ldquo;Dear Abbey:&ldquo;I am a coach in the Western Hockey League and I have a problem &mdash; the Portland Buckaroos.&ldquo;I have tried all kinds of game plans against them this season. One time our big defensemen carried their sticks high and put on their track shoes. Oh, we really played the old body. The Buckaroos won.&ldquo;Next time we went into a shell from the first faceoff. We picked up the wings. Our defensemen never crossed their own blue line. We checked and checked and checked. The Buckaroos won.&ldquo;So we tried something different. Our offense was so wide open that two wings stripped their skates in the stands. Nobody checked. We just shot and shot and shot. The Buckaroos still won.&ldquo;What I am wondering is whether there is any way to beat the Portland Buckaroos?Signed, Frustrated&rdquo;As long as we&rsquo;ve gone this far, we might as well pass along an answer.Dear Frustrated:In the first place, don&rsquo;t feel bad. The Portland Buckaroos won the regular-season championship in the Western Hockev League in 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1968. You are not alone.We&rsquo;ll admit that this was the season that the San Diego Guils blazed off to one of the fastest starts in WHL history. And Vancouver&rsquo;s Canucks drip with talent. And the league is the strongest ever. And everyone points for Portland. And maybe, just maybe, the stranglehold will be broken.But as the New Year approached, the Bucks were one point out of first and climbing.The most direct answer to your problem is a simple one. But you&rsquo;ve probably already thought of it. Pesides, we doubt that Chicago will part with Bobby Hull. Boston with Bobby Orr, Montreal with Jean Beliveau or Detroit with Gordon Howe.So the next-best solution might be to persuade the Portland coach, Hal Laycoe, to retire on his National League pension.This Laycone has a funny approach to the game.You take defensemen. Portland&rsquo;s are lousy. You think not? Check the scoring records of the Western Hockey League at one point in late December.Seattle defensemen had scored 18 goals. Phoenix blueliners had scored 10. The rearguards of San Diego had scored 9, of Vancouver 8 and of Denver 7.Portland defensemen had scored only 5 goals among the five of them. Pretty bad. &rsquo;eh?But that&rsquo;s Laycoe. He has this peculiar notion that defensemen should play defense and make the job easier for goalies who already are strong. (He even thinks wings should check as well as shoot and pass.)Maybe that explains why Portland had yielded fewer goals as New Year&rsquo;s Day approached than any team in the league.Now consider penalties. Portland isn&rsquo;t taking so many these days. But there&rsquo;s a kicker. The Bucks aren&rsquo;t taking anything from anyone, either. By late December they had drawn almost twice as many major penalties as any other team in the league. You can&rsquo;t push the Bucks around.There are the little aspects of the game like power plays and defense while shorthanded. The Bucks in late December were a plus 12 &mdash; considering goals for with a man advantage against goals against while short-handed. San Diego was plus 7 and Denver was plus 2 and everyone else was minus.Now Laycoe doesn&rsquo;t mind a bit of offense. He had three of the league&rsquo;s top 10 scorers in late December in Bill Saunders, Norm Johnson and Art Jones. But they all play defensively, too, and there&rsquo;s that checking again.And then there are overtimes. Correction, there no longer are overtimes in the Western League. Laycoe led the change to eliminate them last summer. Wide-eyed and innocent, armed with thousands of words of testimony for throwing &rsquo;em out, he knew what he was doing.And by late December. Portland already has played 10 tie games. Now in the decade of the 1960s, only one other Western League team, the California Seals of &lsquo;67, ever played 10 tie games &mdash; ever the full schedule. No one played more. The Bucks had 10 ties in 34 games.Seven of those ties were on the road &mdash; more than twice the road total of any other Western League club.Laycoe, after all, keeps saying, &ldquo;A tie on the road is a victory.&rdquo;If the Buckaroos win a fifth straight title &mdash; and no other team in league history ever won more than two in a row &mdash; some of the spadework was done in the league meetings last summer by Laycoe.Well. sir. we probably haven&rsquo;t been much help. To be perfectly honest, we don&rsquo;t know if the Backaroos can be beaten. We are sure of only one thing you will have to heat there.Under Hal Laycoe. the Bucks never will beat themselves &mdash; not over the long haul. &#9632;

f0018-01

Portland Club Again Threat For Title

For The Best In Hockey Reading It&rsquo;s HOCKEY PICTORIAL Hockey&rsquo;s Most Exciting PublicationIt Will Be A Happy 1969 If You Give The HOCKEY NEWS To The Family<h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-1254/2673918-1-eng-US/f0018-122.jpg" title="f0018-12" width="576" height="236"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. Dec. 27San Diego 4 at Phoenix 4Portland 3 at Vancouver 3Sat. Dec. 28Vancouver 3 at Denver 1Seattle 3 at San Diego 2Sun. Dec. 29Vancouver 3 at Denver 3Seattle 1 at San Diego 4Tues. Dec. 31San Diego 4 at Denver 5Phoenix at Seattle, post ponedWed. Jan. 1Denver ot Portland, post ponedPhoenix 1 at Vancouver 2Fri. Jan. 3Phoenix 0 at San Diego 5Denver 2 at Vancouver 3Sat. Jan. 4Seattle 2 at Portland 5Denver 4 at Vancouver 8&gt;<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tues. Jan. 7Denver at SeattieWed. Jan. 8Vancouver at PhoenixThurs. Jan. 9Vancouver at San DiegoFri. Jan. 10Seattle at PhoenixSat. Jan. 11Seattle at San DiegoVancouver at Portland<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Sun. Dec. 22)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-1348/2673911-1-eng-US/f0018-132.jpg" title="f0018-13" width="573" height="612"></div> &#9632;

f0018-12

How They Stand

PROVIDENCE, R.I. &mdash; The perils of ice hockey&rsquo;s rough and fast action caught up with Referee Wally Harris in an American Hockey League game here on December 22 when the R.I. Reds plaved the Baltimore Clippers.Late in the game, won by the Reds, 4-3, Harris and Baltimore&rsquo;s Keke Mortson bumped. The official lost his balance and fell to the ice, striking his head.After being given first aid on the ice, Harris was taken to the Reds&rsquo; dressing room where four stitches were taken to close a deep cut on his head. He was then taken to Miriam Hospital and later put in the intensive care unit suffering with a concussion.Harris remained in the hospital for two days before being released. &#9632;

Referee Harris Bumped Out Of Game

<div class="byline">BY GEORGE DUFFY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0019-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01394/2674050-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Veteran Providence forward TONY GOEGAN doesn&rsquo;t have his front teeth anymore but the smiling youngsters shown with him do. They&rsquo;re sons of Reds&rsquo; players and all potential hockey stars of the future. Left to right, front row, KELLY MEISSNER, whose daddy is Dick Meissner, and CAR and EDDIE KACHUR Jr. Back row, MOE MANTHA Jr., left, and SCOTT McKENNEY, son of Don McKenney.</figcaption></div>PROVIDENCE. R.I. &mdash;Marcel Paille played his 862nd professional hockey game recently at the R.I. Auditorium against the Baltimore Clippers.For Paille, a native of Shawinigan in Quebec, pro hockey has been a way of life since he joined the Chicoutimi team of the Quebec Senior League at the beginning of the 1955-56 season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02342/2674043-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="263" height="438"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marcel Paille</figcaption></div>He is now in his fourth year with the Reds. Since shaking an early season injury, the quiet netminder has been little short of sensational in goal for the Reds.There have been many reasons why the Reds are now pennant contenders. Paille must be considered one of the prime ones. Marcel, in the words of Creighton has been &ldquo;unbelievable&rdquo; in some of the tilts.It is nothing new for Paille to be a starry person in between the pipes. He has been a first member of the American Hockey League all-star team three times and two other times won a spot on the second team. And when he was just six, he was the No. 1 goalie in a league in Shawinigan.Paille rarely has much to say. He is considered to be an excellent team man and never blames a defender when the opposition scores a goal.But while Paille has little to say in terms of the spoken word, his goaltending record is just the opposite. It speaks volumes.It is estimated that he has had over 28,000 shots fired at him during 14 professional seasons.In terms of weight, Marcel has turned aside about 10,000 pounds of rubber.And if all the pucks fired at Paille were laid side by side. they probably would form the foundation for an expressway between here and Hong Kong.After beginning his career with Chicoutimi, he bought himself a good suitcase and it came in handy. He later was to hang his goalie pads in dressing rooms in Cleveland, New York, Buffalo, Springfield, Baltimore and Vancouver, as well as Providence.Marcel has played in 105 National Hockey League games, all with the New York Rangers. The most games in one season for Paille with the Rangers was 33 in 1957-68.He is known in hockey as a standup goalie. He does go down at times but admits, &ldquo;I like to keep from flopping on the ice as much as possible.&rdquo;For a guy who has played some 50,000 minutes in goal among the pros, Paille is marked up only a little. He has some facial scars, the result of 101 stitches.Many goalies now use masks to protect them against flying pucks which whiz towards the net at nearly 100 miles per hour. Paille uses a mask in practice but up to now will not use it in a game. &ldquo;In practice it&rsquo;s O.K.,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;but not the game. You want to see everything.&rdquo;He has a lifetime goals-against average of 3.32 in regular season play and 2.64 in 69 playoff games. At the moment, his GAPG stands at 3.73 and Marcel has a record of nine victories, seven losses and three ties.The Reds do not have a shutout this season so naturally Paille has been scored upon in each game. But over the years, Marcel has had his share of shutouts. In fact, Paille ranks No. 5 on the all time American Hockey League goalie list for shutouts with 28. (Counting NHL games he has 34).His top year for shutouts was 1960-61 when he had eight and won the Harry Holmes Memorial Trophy for being the AHL&rsquo;s leading goalie. He was with Springfield then.In the Reds&rsquo; dressing room, Paille sits in a corner near Ross Brooks, the Reds&rsquo; backup netminder. Marcel was sitting there recently when someone asked him if he gets mad when the enemy scores.&ldquo;Well,&rdquo; he said in slow reply, &ldquo;it upsets me but I will not let it show.&rdquo;During 14 years as a pro, Marcel has given up 2,633 goals. It is just as well the flashing red light does not disturb him. Otherwise, in the fashion of a bull, he might be tempted to crash through the boards in back of the cage and get at the little man who pushes the light button. &#9632;

f0019-01

Sensational In Goal For Reds, Paille Plays 862nd Pro Game

<div class="byline">BY TOM RENO</div>For Something Different, Informative In Hockey Reading See T.V. Sections, Thumbnail Sketches In HOCKEY ANNUALHOCKEY NEWS Makes An Ideal Gift On Any Occasion. Give A Subscription To Dad Or BrotherKANSAS CITY. Mo. &mdash;Jim Niekamp, a converted detense star who sparked Fort Worth to three straight victories, has been selected as the fourth &ldquo;Player of the Week&rdquo; by the Central Hockey League.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01239/2674105-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="271" height="449"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jack Norris</figcaption></div>The 6-foot, 180-pounder scored four goals and four assists, including a three-goal &ldquo;hat trick&rdquo; against Northern Division leader Oklahoma Citv as the Wings won, 7-2.While Niekamp was having his big week, Jim Lorentz of Oklahoma City added three assists to his total to retain the top spot in the league scoring race with 55 points. Teammates Tom Webster and Grant Erickson are second and third respectively with 48 and 39 points. Erickson was summoned by the Boston Bruins as an emergency player replacement.Webster, who was also called up by the parent Bruins; and returned, still leads in goals with 22. Tied for second in goals are Lorentz and Gary Veneruzzo, each with 17.Russ Gillow of Oklahoma City continues to lead the goalies with a 2.20 goals-against average and also is tops in shutouts with four.Niekamp is one of a limited number of U.S. citizens in the Central Hockey League. The 22-year-old, second-year pro was born in Detroit, where he played in the amateur program there. He played for the Toledo Blades of the International League for one year, then joined Fort Worth last year, where he played defense and right wing. Only in his last five games has Niekamp been used at right wing this season, but he now has six goals and 14 assists for 20 points.Previous winners of &ldquo;Player of the Week&rdquo; honors, started in December, were: goalie Fern Rivard, Memphis; and forwards Brian McDonald, Dallas, and Webster of Oklahoma City.OKLAHOMA CITY: &mdash; Despite a rude 7-2 setback at the hands of Fort Worth, the Oklahoma City retained a solid 10-point advantage over Fort Worth and Houston, 43-33, in the Southern Division scramble.After beating Kansas City 6-4 in a battle of divisionl leaders, the Blazers found Fort Worth a stubborn host, but bo unced back into the win column the following night bv halting &ldquo;turnpike&rdquo; rival, Tulsa, 6-2.FORT WORTH:&mdash;A perfect string of three victories in three outings enabled the Fort Worth Wings to climb into a second-place tie with Houston in the Southern Division, each with 33 points. Niekamp&rsquo;s four goals and four assists and fine efforts by Ed Hatoum and Rick McCann helped lift the Wings.HOUSTON:&mdash;After allowing near-record goal totals against Oklahoma City and Dallas, the Apollos settled down to tie Kansas City, 2-2, then tripped Memphis, 6-1, before losing a road game to Tulsa, 3-1. And it did keep the Apollos in the thick of the divisional race. The Apollos still have three men among the top 15 in league scoring, Chris Bordeleau with 33 points, Ernie Hicke with 30 and Al Caron with 27.DALLAS:&mdash;lack Norris has returned to the nets for the Black Hawks, following the recall of Dennis DeJordy to Chicago. And, it didn&rsquo;t take Norris long to post his second shutout of the season as the Black Hawks blanked Omaha, 3-0. Dallas remains only five points out of second after posting two victories, one loss and a tie.AMARILLO:&mdash;The Wranglers put up a tough scrap but dropped their only decision of the week, 31, to lot Fort Worth. Injuries have been a big problem, but the return of Paul Andrea and Dale Blomquist should improve the situation.KANSAS CITY:&mdash;After dropping an action-packed 6-4 decision to Oklahoma City, the Kansas City Blues picked off a pair of 2-2 ties from Houston and Tulsa. This enabled the Blues to retain their two-point hold on first place in the Northern Division.Despite an ailing stomach, left winger Gary Veneruzzo scored the &ldquo;hat trick&rdquo; against Oklahoma City and also added two more goals before the week&rsquo;s action was completed. Veneruzzo now ranks No. 6 in the loop scoring race with 31 points and is tied for second in goals with Jim Lorentz of Oklahoma City, each with 17.TULSA:&mdash;Eager to regain the divisional lead they lost to Kansas City a week ago, the Tulsa Oilers turned apparent defeat into a 2-2 tie with the Blues on Friday, then fell to Oklahoma City, 6-2, before halting Houston, 3-1. An exciting finish followed two scoreless periods at Kansas City as the Oilers knotted the score on a goal by Chris Evans, assisted by Andre Hinse, with only 18 seconds remaining in the game. Hines, Nick Harbaruk and Gary Marsh shared the goals in the victory over Houston.OMAHA: &mdash; A pair of meetings with Dallas resulted in a 3-3 tie and the short end of a 3-0 shutout for the Omaha Knights, who remain only five points out of second place in the Northern Division.The Knights, who have suffered a series of injuries in the past month, acquired 22-year-old Jim Shires on loan from Denver. Shires, 6-0, 180 pounds, played for Denver University&rsquo;s NCAA championship team last year.MEMPHIS:&mdash;Although the Memphis South Stars currently hold the cellar slot in the Southern Division, they remain only four points out of third and still only 11 back of the divisional leader, Kansas City.After surprising Dallas, 5-2, the South Stars took it on the chin for Houston and Memphis to close out the week. &#9632;

f0020-01

Wings’ Jim Niekamp Hottest CHL Performer

THURS. DEC. 12OMAHA 2 at HOUSTON 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02169/2674248-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="581" height="539"></div>FRI. DEC. 13DALLAS 2 at TULSA 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-03138/2674241-1-eng-US/f0020-032.jpg" title="f0020-03" width="586" height="503"></div>SAT. DEC. 14FORT WORTH 5 at KANSAS CITY 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-04106/2674234-1-eng-US/f0020-042.jpg" title="f0020-04" width="592" height="438"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0547/2674227-1-eng-US/f0020-052.jpg" title="f0020-05" width="574" height="86"></div>AMARILLO 3 at OMAHA 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0632/2674220-1-eng-US/f0020-062.jpg" title="f0020-06" width="582" height="456"></div>WED., DEC. 18HOUSTON 5 at DALLAS 10<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0728/2674213-1-eng-US/f0020-072.jpg" title="f0020-07" width="578" height="906"></div>KANSAS CITY 4 at OKLAHOMA CITY 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0821/2674206-1-eng-US/f0020-082.jpg" title="f0020-08" width="565" height="176"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0914/2674199-1-eng-US/f0020-092.jpg" title="f0020-09" width="586" height="585"></div>THURS. DEC. 19KANSAS CITY 2 at HOUSTON 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1011/2674192-1-eng-US/f0020-102.jpg" title="f0020-10" width="581" height="525"></div>FRI., DEC. 20DALLAS 2 at MEMPHIS 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-118/2674185-1-eng-US/f0020-112.jpg" title="f0020-11" width="580" height="529"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-127/2674178-1-eng-US/f0020-122.jpg" title="f0020-12" width="457" height="85"></div>OKLAHOMA CITY 2 at FORT WORTH 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-136/2674171-1-eng-US/f0020-132.jpg" title="f0020-13" width="587" height="713"></div>TULSA 2 at KANSAS CITY 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-146/2674164-1-eng-US/f0020-142.jpg" title="f0020-14" width="583" height="507"></div>SAT DEC. 21DALLAS 3 at OMAHA 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-156/2674157-1-eng-US/f0020-152.jpg" title="f0020-15" width="583" height="353"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-165/2674150-1-eng-US/f0020-162.jpg" title="f0020-16" width="585" height="258"></div>MEMPHIS 1 at HOUSTON 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-173/2674143-1-eng-US/f0020-172.jpg" title="f0020-17" width="583" height="681"></div>TULSA 2 at OKLOHOMA CITY 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-182/2674136-1-eng-US/f0020-182.jpg" title="f0020-18" width="588" height="707"></div> &#9632;

f0020-02

Central Hockey League Summaries

<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01105/2674321-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="587" height="451"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. Dec. 27Omaha 2 at Houston 4Sat Dec. 28Amarillo 2 ot Kansas City 4Houston 2 ot Dallas 4Memphis 1 at Tulsa 6Omaha 0 at Fort Worth 3Sun. Dec. 29Dallas 4 ot Oklahoma City 6Memphis 3 at Omaha 3Tulsa 5 ot Amarillo 1Mon. Dec. 30Fort Worth 3 at Houston 4Tues. Dec. 31Kansas City 3 at Fort Worth 6Memphis 3 at Omaha 6Oklahoma City 5 at Amarillo 3Wed. Jan. 1Amarillo 3 ot Oklahoma City 3Dallas 6 ot Tulsa 3Fri. Jan. 3Amarillo 2 at Dallas 4Houston 2 at Fort Worth 2Kansas City 1 at Tulsa 1Oklahoma City 7 at Memphis 6Sat. Jan. 4Amarillo 3 at Houston 2Fort Worth 3 ot Omaha 6Kansas City 3 at Oklahoma City 1Tulsa 5 at Memphis 3Sun. Jan. 5Dallas 0 ot Fort Worth 2Memphis 5 at Kansas City 5Omaha 5 at Tulsa 5<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tues. Jan. 7Omoha at AmarilloWed. Jan. 8Fort Worth at HoustonOklahoma City at DallosOmaha at Konsas CityFri. Jan. 10Dollas at AmorilloHouston at OmohaKansas City at MemphisTulsa at Oklahoma CitySat. Jan. 11Fort Worth at MemphisHouston at Konsos CityOklahoma City at TulsaOmoha at DallasSun. Jan. 12Amorillo at Fort WorthDollos at KansasGty Memphis at HoustonTulsa ot Omaha<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Sun. Dec. 22)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0274/2674314-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="577" height="431"></div><h2>ONTARIO SENIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings On Fri. Dec. 4)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0343/2674307-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="574" height="337"></div>(x&mdash;plays partial schedule)<h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Dec. 31)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0435/2674300-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="572" height="239"></div><h2>NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Tues. Dec. 31)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0530/2674293-1-eng-US/f0021-052.jpg" title="f0021-05" width="574" height="200"></div><h2>NEW YORK METRO LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 23)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0625/2674286-1-eng-US/f0021-062.jpg" title="f0021-06" width="585" height="406"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Sat. Dec. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0721/2674279-1-eng-US/f0021-072.jpg" title="f0021-07" width="579" height="170"></div> &#9632;

f0021-01

Hockey Races

<div class="byline">BY HARVEY POLLACK</div>CHARLOTTE. N.C. &mdash;Ernie Dyda&rsquo;s value to the Charlotte Checkers is becoming more and more evident as the Eastern Hockey League season reaches the halfway mark of an unpredictable season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0817/2674352-1-eng-US/f0021-082.jpg" title="f0021-08" width="245" height="429"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rick Foley</figcaption></div>Dvda&rsquo;s latest caper was to take over the coaching reins when pilot Fred Creighton was sidelined with the flu. He did well too, so Creighton jokingly said he recuperated faster so he wouldn&rsquo;t lose his job.Earlier in the campaign, Dyda, who had been a lineman throughout his EHL career with varied clubs, was moved from a wing billet to defense. He did so well that Creighton has kept him there because of his ability to steady the back line.There have been past emergency situations where Dyda has played defense but never on a regular basis until now. It was an unusual move anyway because Dyda is one of the top forwards on the club, but Creighton was looking for something to jolt his club which is trying to stage a second half comeback comparable to a year ago.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m real pleased with the way Bernie works on defense. A lot of players can&rsquo;t skate backwards well enough to play defense. Other guys wouldn&rsquo;t want to take on an unfamiliar position. But Ernie has made the switch without a whimper for he&rsquo;s mainly concerned about helping the team rather than what is best for him individually,&rdquo; Creighton said.Ernie says the transition hasn&rsquo;t been tough. The only thing that bothered him was the fact that he has to &ldquo;think more about my position at all times. You can&rsquo;t afford to get caught out of position. One mistake can cause a goal.&rdquo;JERSEY: Devils shut out for second time this year by Lyle Carter &hellip; Reggie Meserve and Bobby Brown&rsquo;s two goals each beat Syracuse. Wayne Kitchen and Blazers defenseman Jim Whittaker has slugfest. Devils winning steadily at home but not doing well on road.SYRACUSE: Paul Lessard, newcomer from Montreal&rsquo;s Junior A team, scored two goals at Jersey. Ed Skyhar scored twice in 36 seconds to preserve win over Johnstown. Lee Inglis&rsquo; steady scoring continues to be bright spot. Goalie Tony Gale drawing raves despite club&rsquo;s dismal recordCHARLOTTE: Checkers perked up with road wins at Greensboro and Nashville. Rick Foley played key role in club&rsquo;s win over Clinton as Checkers swept season series. He became his old aggressive self with two fights and then scored two goals in win over Jacksonville. Doug Ferguson and Frank Golembrosky also had two-goal games.CLINTON: Comets have been strengthened by addition of Bill Armour, on loan from Greensboro, and Maurice St. Jacques, on loan from Cleveland, as subs for injured Tom Mitchell and John Chapman. Lyle Carter now has five shutouts with latest over Jersey. Borden Smith and Jack Kane battling for club scoring laurels. Pat Kelly&rsquo;s club evidently will battle Johnstown and New Haven to the wire for Northern title.GREENSBORO: Gens continue to have trouble with last place Salem, losing third game to Rebels. Don Burgess nearing 30 goal mark, tops in loop, breaking out of temporary slump. Goalie Pete McDuffe&rsquo;s great eyesight is credited with many of his spectacular saves. Coach Ron Spong satisfied with club&rsquo;s defense.JACKSONVILLE: Rockets top circuit in ties, having eight at last count. Ted Baylis&rsquo; thigh was hurt again by a knee from Clinton&rsquo;s Joe Robertson. Bob Sabourin was given up on his Kid Line and is putting youngsters with veterans. Win over Greensboro ended eight game winless streak. Sabourin working on getting some help for weak offense.LONG ISLAND: Jacques Sevigny sent to St. Hyacinthe of Quebec Sr. League to make room for Norm Ryder. He&rsquo;ll come to Ducks camp next fall. Ducks traded Ken Leibel to New Haven for Russ McClenaghan. This is his third term with Ducks. Coach John Brophy satisfied with sub goalie Roger Wilson&rsquo;s efforts during convalescence of Norm DeFelice. Les Calder No. 1 scorer.NASHVILLE: Flyers nursing colds which thev claim they secured in unheated dressing rooms with no hot showers in Syracuse. Flyers temporarily held tie for first with Greensboro for lone time this year. Flyers disputed losing goal at New Haven. Wally Sprange had fight with Long Island&rsquo;s Hal Willis. Cliff Pennington&rsquo;s 4-goaler vs Syracuse included one tally when Fivers were two men short.NEW HAVEN: Rumors here that Nate Podoloff will leave post of GM of New Haven Arena but not his slot with Blades. Billy Orr&rsquo;s slap shot gave Blades tie at Johnstown after Don Perry pulled goalie with minute left. Players received beer mugs and windbreakers at Xmas party at Perrv&rsquo;s house.JOHNSTOWN: Excessive penalties hurt Jets in defeat at Syracuse. Jets awaiting word on availability of Bob Taylor after his trial with Quebec. Jim Mair tended goal vs New Haven after goalie Jim Coombs was ousted for fighting. Jets lost 5-1 decision to Czechoslovakian national team. Reg Kent&rsquo;s abundant assists continue to make him league scoring leader.SALEM: Rebels beat Greensboro with five goal outburst in final period. Jim Lorette&rsquo;s tally proved winner. Rebels also have matched 11-game win total of year ago. George Surmay had 55 saves at Long Island. The next night he posted a shutout at Syracuse. Coach Dave Lucas disturbed by his club&rsquo;s failures in final periods. &#9632;

f0021-08

Dyda’s Switch To Charlotte Defense, Coaching Stint Gives Checkers Lift

<h2>EASTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0914/2674404-1-eng-US/f0021-092.jpg" title="f0021-09" width="586" height="470"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. Dec 27Johnstown 2 at Clinton 2Syracuse 4 at New Jersey 7Charlotte 2 ot Greensboro 6Sat. Dec 28New Jersey 0 ot Clinton 5Johnstown 4 at Long Island 8Charlotte 5 at Nashville 3Greensboro 3 at Jacksonville 5Sun. Dec. 29Long Island 3 ot Syracuse 7Clinton 5 ot New Hoven 5New Jersey 3 at Johnstown 3Salem 1 at Nashville 4Tues. Dec. 31Long Island 5 at Johnstown 2Salem 0 at Nashville 5New Jersey 3 ot Greensboro 6Jacksonville 4 ot Charlotte 1Wed. Jan. 1Johnstown 8 ot New Haven 5Syracuse 3 ot Long Island 5Thurs. Jan. 2New Jersey 3 at Salem 6Charlotte 5 at Nashville 10New Haven 4 ot Syracuse 2Fri. Jan. 3Johnstown 0 at Clinton 4Greensboro 6 at Long Island 8New Hoven 3 ot New Jersey 6Salem 1 ot Charlotte 4Nashville 3 at Jacksonville 7Sat. Jan. 4Long Island 4 at Syracuse 1Greensboro 3 ot Clinton 4New Jersey 0 at Johnstown 6Charlotte 4 at Nashville 7Sun. Jan. 5Greensboro 4 at Syracuse 1Clinton 2 at New Haven 4Nashville 2 ot Salem 3Charlotte 0 at Jacksonville 7Jersey 1 at Johnstown 9<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tues. Jan. 7Charlotte at JacksonvilleNashville at SalemWed. Jan. 8Jacksonville at GreensboroJohnstown at Long IslandFri. Jan. 10New Haven vs. Clinton (At Utica)Syracuse ot New JerseSalem at GreensbaroJacksonville at CharlotteSat. Jan. 11Long Island ot ClintonNew Haven at New JerseySyracuse at JohnstownSalem at NashvilleGreensboro at JacksonvilleSun. Jan. 12New Jersey at New HovenSyracuse at Long IslandClinton at JohnstownGreensboro at NashvilleJacksonville at Salem<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Sun. Dec. 22)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-1013/2674397-1-eng-US/f0021-102.jpg" title="f0021-10" width="575" height="398"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-119/2674390-1-eng-US/f0021-112.jpg" title="f0021-11" width="573" height="210"></div><h3>GOALKEEPERS RECORDS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-127/2674383-1-eng-US/f0021-122.jpg" title="f0021-12" width="579" height="325"></div> &#9632;

f0021-09

LOOKING AT EHL RACE

<h2>ONTARIO JUNIOR &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2>(Standings on Tues. Jan. 7)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01122/2674484-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="580" height="362"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. Dec. 27Oshawa 1 at Niagara Falls 3Hamilton 7 at London 5Peterborough 7 at Toronto 3Ottawa 1 at Montreal 6St. Catharines 5 at Kitchener 3Sat. Dec. 28Oshawa 7 at Kitchener 2Sun. Dec. 29Peterborough 5 at Montreal 6Kitchener 3 at Hamilton 5Ottawa 3 at St. Catharines 13Niagara Falls 5 at Oshowo 4London 6 ot Toronto 4Wed. Jan. 1Niagara Falls 3 at St. Catharines 6Toronto 2 at Oshawa 4Kitchener 0 at Montreal 9Thurs. Jan. 2Montreal 0 at Hamilton 3London 2 at Peterborough 10Fri. Jan. 3St. Catharines 4 ot Niagara Falls 6Montreal 8 at Kitchener 4London 3 at Ottawa 4Oshawa 6 at Toronto 4Sun. Jan. 5London 1 at Montreal 5Ottawa 5 at Oshawa 5Niagara Falls 2 at Toronto 7Kitchener 6 ot St. Catharines 1<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Sun. Dec. 29)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0266/2674477-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="585" height="539"><figcaption class="caption-body">image caption</figcaption></div><h3>GOALKEEPERS RECORDS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0353/2674470-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="575" height="277"></div><h2>IHL JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Fri. Dec. 27)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0439/2674463-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="573" height="167"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0531/2674456-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="581" height="280"></div><h2>QUEBEC METRO JUNIOR &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2>(Standings on Mon. Jan. 6)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0625/2674449-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="575" height="268"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3>(Including Games of Mon. Dec. 30)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0725/2674442-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="582" height="537"></div><h2>WESTERN ONTARIO JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Sat. Jan. 4)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0822/2674435-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="575" height="169"></div> &#9632;

f0022-01

<div class="byline">BY BOB REED</div>COLUMBUS, 0.&mdash;The Columbus management, after some research, has come up with an explanation of why the club is down in the International Hockey League race. The reason: The Checkers have been under the impression all along that hockey games are only two periods long.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0919/2674529-1-eng-US/f0022-092.jpg" title="f0022-09" width="253" height="411"><figcaption class="caption-body">Johnny Goodwin</figcaption></div>More seriously, the statistics reveal that the Checkers have been losing their games in the final period after outscoring the opposition in the first two. Shuffling through the official scoresheets the Checkers&rsquo; front office came up with the following figures relative to total goals by periods.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1015/2674522-1-eng-US/f0022-102.jpg" title="f0022-10" width="584" height="124"></div>The Checkers suffered nine of their 15 losses by third period lapses, after leading or tying at the end of two periods. If the situation were reversed it is figured that the Checkers would be holding a commanding lead in the IHL. The Chex have vet to come from behind to win or tie a game they had trailed at the end of two periods.In their last 11 games, opponents had outscored Columbus eight times in the third period, while the Chex outscored the opposition only onceFORT WAYNE &mdash; With four straight victories the Komets vaulted from sixth to third place. They started the winning streak with the temporary return to action of retired Johnny Goodwin &hellip; Playing coach Len Thomson was still out with his eye injury. Defenseman Lionel Repka added to injury list with a broken nose.MUSKEGON &mdash; Goalie Bruce Mullett underwent surgery for a damaged knee and was expected to be lost for about six weeks &hellip; Gary Ford was the first Mohawk to hit 50 points with 17 goals and 33 assists &hellip; The Mohawks had failed to win a game from leading Toledo in eight meetings &hellip; Jerry and Winn DeLise were presented plaques by the Boy Scouts, whom they entertain at hockey games each vear.TOLEDO &mdash; Goalie Glenn Ramsay had his second shutout of the season and the Blades had by Jar the best goals-against record in the league &hellip; Rookie Bill White from Sault St. Marie gave Ramsay relief for the first time in 30 games and the Blades were beaten by the Gems, 8-1.PORT HURON &mdash; Injuries to Leon Fontaine, Marcel Goudreau and Gary Harmer reduced the Flags to 12 skaters. They secured defenseman Billy Horton from Dayton on loan but it was doubtful if he would report &hellip; Veteran Bob McCammon was moved to defense &hellip; Ross Eichler had the cast removed from his knee and started light workouts.DES MOINES &mdash; The Oak Leafs&rsquo; series sweep over Port Huron was their first at home since last February &hellip; They added left wing Steve Sutherland from Memphis of the Central League &hellip; Ken Silver, injured in an auto accident Nov. 4 was still in semi-conscious condition. Jim Currie returned to Canada to recuperate &hellip; Howie Milford asserted he finally has three good foraard lines together. They added another goal tender, Serge Aubry from Tulsa of the Central League.DAYTON &mdash; The Gems dealt defenseman Bill Horon to Port Huron and took on Mike Corbett, wingerdefenseman from Springfield of the American League &hellip; Coach Larry Wilson insists the Gems are better club than Toledo, &ldquo;but they have to show it on the ice&rdquo; &hellip; The Gems had an attendance of 8,844 for 17 home games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1114/2674515-1-eng-US/f0022-112.jpg" title="f0022-11" width="547" height="643"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRUCE MULLETT &hellip; Out After Surgery</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0022-09

Third-Period Letdown Hurts Checkers; Fort Wayne On Move With Win Streak

<div class="byline">BY BOB ELMER</div>BALTIMORE, Md. &mdash;For the past month now, General Manager Terry Reardon and his coach Aldo Guidolin, have been looking for a player from the Philadelphia Flyers.They got him this week. And, while it turned out to be a popular transaction as far as the Clipper public is concerned, the player in question didn&rsquo;t belong to the Flyers after all. He&rsquo;s a Penguin from Pittsburgh.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01103/2674598-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="275" height="443"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bobby Rivard</figcaption></div>All this leads up to the recent deal which brought popular Bobby Rivard, whom his teammates call &ldquo;Rivet&rdquo; back to the Baltimore Clippers for whom he performed so valorously last winter by scoring 38 points in 41 games.After the diminutive, 29-year-old center&rsquo;s recall by Pittsburgh GM Jack Riley last February, Rivard finished the season with Red Sullivan&rsquo;s club and had 17 points in 27 games. However, it was generally admitted that after a fast start for the Pens, he tailed off toward the end of the long campaign.Feeling that he would not make the Pittsburgh varsity this year, Rivard asked to be sent back to his home in Quebec where he could again play for the Aces, with whom he made his pro start in 1966-67. That winter was a big one for Bobby as he scored 62 points in 71 starts, helped lead the Aces to the Eastern division playoffs and was awarded the Dudley Garrett Trophy as the AHL&rsquo;s top rookie of the year.Riley drafted him for Pittsburgh in the Expansion Draft of June 6, 1967. But after an in-and-out major league season including a healthy stint in Baltimore, Rivard was optioned to Quebec, the Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; farm club for this season.It appeared that Rivard was playing where he wanted. But, it didn&rsquo;t turn out that way and as the current season progressed he began to see less and less ice action under vitriolic Vic Stasiuk.That&rsquo;s when Clipper GM Reardon and Messrs Riley of Pittsburgh and Bud Poile of Philadelphia began to start the wheels turning. Since Philadelphia owed Baltimore a player after having recalled left winger Don Blackburn, and since Rivard was anything but happy in Quebec, the next obvious step was for Pittsburgh to recall Rivard on loan to the Philadelphia-owned Aces and reassign his contract to Baltimore. This got everybody off the hook and it is hoped the situation remains status quo from here to the end of this season.Meanwhile, Baz Bastien and Sid Abel of Detroit stepped in to further aid the beleaguered Baltimore by sending up two young promising twenty year olds in Gerry Hart, a solidly built, 5-9 defenseman from Flin Flon and left winger Dick Mortenson. Both turned pro this year with impressive amateur credentials.Mortenson slapped in 53 goals and added 40 assists for a 93 point bag in behalf of his hometown Edmonton Kings, while Hart as a defenseman came up with 13 goals and 38, scoring passes for 51 points with the Flin Flon Bombers. The two youths spelled defenseman Jim Watson who was recalled by the Red Wings and Dave Rochefort, another Red Wing prospect, out with a shoulder injury. &#9632;

f0023-01

Clippers Swing Deal To Get Bobby Rivard Back

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0267/2674629-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="901" height="1199"></div>SOLUTION IN JANUARY 18 ISSUE<h2>ACROSS</h2>1&mdash;Pictured player.5&mdash;Initials of former Bison Wilson.7&mdash;Pictured player played Junior in this league.8&mdash;A former Hawk.9&mdash;A Pittsburgh farmhand.11&mdash;One of the Leafs.12&mdash;To make mistakes.13&mdash;Period of time.15&mdash;Initials of one of the Blues.16&mdash;Nothing.17&mdash;Initials of Erickson of Phoenix.18&mdash;Wears No. 23 for L.A.23&mdash;Exclamation.24&mdash;Either.26&mdash;One of the L.A. Kings.29&mdash;Each. (abbr.).30&mdash;One of the Rangers answers to this.31&mdash;Initials of one of the Blues.32&mdash;One of the Vancouver Canucks.<h2>DOWN</h2>1&mdash;A Leaf forward.2&mdash;A St. Louis forward.3&mdash;One of the Bruins answers to this.4&mdash;1967-68 Conn Smythe trophy winner.5&mdash;This type of shot is highly successful.6&mdash;One of the Bruins.8&mdash;N.H.L. record holder for 3 fastest goals.10&mdash;Number of N.H.L. goals registered by former Hah Johnson. (Rom. Num.).14&mdash;Initials of Ingram of Buffalo.15&mdash;Short for first name of an N.H.L. coach.17&mdash;First name of one of the Rangers.19&mdash;Girl&rsquo;s name.20&mdash;Number of goals scored by Talbot last season.21&mdash;Pronoun.22&mdash;First name of a St. Louis defenseman.25&mdash;One of the North Stars answers to this27&mdash;Initials of one of the Hawks.28&mdash;Pronoun.<h2>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S ANSWERS</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3>1&mdash;JOYAL.5&mdash;G.A.7&mdash;A.B.8&mdash;LEITER.11&mdash;REDMOND.12&mdash;R.N.13&mdash;P.S.14&mdash;ED.15&mdash;PAT.16&mdash;TOR.18&mdash;APR.19&mdash;TRI.20&mdash;P.O.21&mdash;F.C.22&mdash;GIN.24&mdash;HORNUNG.28&mdash;WHARRAM.29&mdash;R.E.30&mdash;D.H.32&mdash;DEJORDY.<h3>DOWN</h3>1&mdash;JARRETT.2&mdash;OBENDORF.3&mdash;ALMA.4&mdash;LEO.5&mdash;G.E6&mdash;ARMSTRONG.9&mdash;INN.10&mdash;TD.13&mdash;PAPPIN.15&mdash;P.A.17&mdash;RICHARD.22&mdash;GUM.23&mdash;TWO.25&mdash;OREE.26&mdash;R.R.27&mdash;N.A.30&mdash;D.D.31&mdash;HY. &#9632;

f0023-02

Hockey Crossword

<div class="byline">BY JACK BERRY</div>DETROIT, Mich. &mdash;Alex Delvecchio almost always does everything without a fuss and that&rsquo;s the way he passed retired Maurice (Rocket) Richard to become hockey&rsquo;s third-ranking point collector of all time.The 37-year-old Red Wing captain moved past the Rocket with a pair of assists on Christmas night but the celebration was a sour one because Detroit wasted a 3-1 lead and lost 7-3 to Pittsburgh.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01113/2674660-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="247" height="419"><figcaption class="caption-body">Alex Delvecchio</figcaption></div>Delvecchio assisted on two goals in the game to run his career point total to 967 on 364 goals and 603 assists. Richard had 544 goals and 421 assists for his 965.The leader, of course, is Gordie Howe who had 1,629 points on 704 goals and 925 assists going into New Year&rsquo;s Eve play. Montreal&rsquo;s Jean Beliveau is second with 444 goals and 606 assists for 1,050 points.Behind Delvecchio among players active now is Bobby Hull and he&rsquo;s some 125 or so points back.Terry Sawchuk continues idle because of a broken little finger on his glove hand, a month-old injury.Doctors decided to put a pin in the digit to speed healing but infection set in and the finger ballooned to more than twice its normal size. So the pin was taken out, the swelling went down &hellip; and somehow infection set in again and the finger was resplintered. He isn&rsquo;t likely to be available until mid-Januarv.The fourth annual Great Lakes Invitational college hockey tournament at Olympia was the first successful one, drawing 14,000-plus fans for the two-night run with host Michigan Tech, which has produced Montreal&rsquo;s Tony Esposito and Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Lou Angotti, the winner.Lincoln Cavalieri, Olympia Stadium&rsquo;s assistant general manager, said the four participating schools would receive profit checks this year and said there definitely will be a tournament next Christmas. &#9632;

f0024-01

Delvecchio Passes Rocket As Third All-Time Point Man

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0024-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0265/2674691-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg"></div>(Statistics include Games of Sunday, December 29) &#9632;

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January 11, 1969

WHL Summaries

Footloose

LOOKING AT IHL RACE

Chicago-Montreal Game Launches 13 TV Dates