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.

February 15, 1969

The Hockey News February 15, 1969

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03280/2909826-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg"></div>SEATTLE, Wash. &mdash;The San Diego Gulls continue to lead the Western Hockey League in attendance but they are getting a bit of a challenge now from the Vancouver Canucks.San Diego averaged 8,749 fans a game for the first 24 clashes of the season, while the Canucks&rsquo; average for their first 25 games is 7,439, including one whopping turnout of more than 13,000.These are unofficial attendance figures for games played through February 2, with figures missing for two games in Seattle and one in Denver: &#9632;

f0018-03

IN THIS ISSUE

Vancouver Threat To San Diego For Lead In Attendance Race

INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1514/2910492-1-eng-US/f0022-152.jpg" title="f0022-15" width="598" height="288"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDMon. Feb. 3Port Huron 2 at Columbus 2Muskegon 6 at Dayton 8Port Huron 2 ot Toledo 3Wed. Feb. 5Des Moines 5 ot Port Huron 3Fort Wayne 5 at Dayton 2Muskegon 5 ot Columbus 2Fri. Feb 7Des Moines 3 at Toledo 4Dayton 1 ot Muskegon 7Sat. Feb. 8Columbus 4 ot Fort Wayne 7Des Moines 4 at Muskegon 10Toledo 3 at Port Huron 8Sun. Feb. 9Columbus 3 at Toledo 5Fort Wayne 0 ot Port Huron 5 &#9632;

f0022-15

How They Stand

<div class="byline">with ED FITKIN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01730/2909346-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="292" height="415"></div>STARS SEEIN&rsquo; STARS &hellip; More and more the Hollywood film colony is starting to take a lively interest in the Los Angeles Kings &hellip;This season, for instance, I&rsquo;ve had as guests on my radio intermission interviews from the fabulous $16,000,000 Forum that Jack Kent Cooke built in the LA suburb of Inglewood, such noted screen and TV personalities as &ldquo;The Odd Couple&rdquo; &mdash; Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau; George Kennedy, who won an Oscar for his performance in &ldquo;Cold Hand Luke&rdquo; and is a rabid hockey fan; Jack Palance, usually cast in the heavy role; Jackie Cooper, now a director of Screen Gem; Joseph Cotten, Art Linkletter, Jonathan Winters, Peter (Li&rsquo;l Abner) Palmer, old buddy Robert Goulet from my days in Toronto; such lovely charmers as Joan Caulfield, who only shows up when Chicago plays, and Meredith McRae, daughter of Gordon and Sheila McRae &hellip;and last, but certainly by no means least, the one and only Tiny Tim &hellip;1 think Jack Palance summed it up for all when he remarked: &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t enjoyed a sports event so much in years. I had forgotten how fast, how rough and how exciting hockey could be.&rdquo;.. Glenn Ford turned out to be a rugged individualist on his appearance. He was there on a night my old team, the Toronto Maple Leafs played, and when he discovered that I, too, was a Canadian (Glenn was born in Quebec) he came out with the statement (the Leafs were losing): &ldquo;Well, Ed, we&rsquo;ve really got to get behind these Leafs and root them on to victory!&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02619/2909339-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="1186" height="888"><figcaption class="caption-body">&ldquo;The Odd Couple&rdquo; pay a visit to the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; dressing room at The Forum. Kings&rsquo; Howie Hughes shakes hands with Jack Lemmon as Kings&rsquo; owner Jack Kent Cooke looks on. Behind Lemmon is Walter Matthau. Back of Cooke is Chris Lemmon, Jack&rsquo;s son.</figcaption></div>YOU MIGHT SCOFF AT TINY TIM but would you believe he was the most knowledgeable of my celebrity guests, really knows his hockey and loves it. and especially loves the Toronto Maple Leafs? &hellip;He fell in love with their name away back during the World War Two years and in the ensuing years became something of a rink rat around New York&rsquo;s Madison Square Garden &hellip;He&rsquo;s been a devoted Maple Leaf fan ever since &hellip;King Clancy remembers him hounding the Leafs for autographs in New York back in the immediate post-war era, and Red Burnett, veteran hockey scribe of the Toronto Star, said he remembered Tiny Tim for the loud sports jackets he used to wear in those days &hellip;He has written often to the Leafs and occasionally sends a letter to Punch Imlach &hellip;or Mr. Imlach, as he calls him because he politely calls everybody &ldquo;Mister&rdquo; &hellip;When Punch sent Jim Pappin to Rochester during the late stages of the 1967-68 season, Tiny Tim sent him a telegram saying: &ldquo;No Pappin, no playoffs&rdquo; &hellip;And he was right &hellip;&rdquo; No, I never try to tell Mr. Imlach how to run his team,&rdquo; Tiny Tim said. &ldquo;A fan can only suggest, never try to tell management what to do. I am a great admirer of Mr. Imlach&rsquo;s. Toronto will make a bad mistake if they decide to let him go. He has done a wonderful job since he took over. Right now he is rebuilding, and he needs time. As Mr. Branch Rickey made it so clear, you have to rely on your farm system to produce your star players.&rdquo; &hellip;He would like nothing better than to someday put on the goalie pads at Maple Leaf Gardens and have people like Mr. Horton take shots at him &hellip;&rdquo;You might get killed,&rdquo; I said &hellip;Tiny Tim grinned. &ldquo;But,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;what a way to die!&rdquo;TINY TIM MADE ONE CONCESSION in his devotion to the Leafs &hellip;He thinks Gordie Howe is the greatest&hellip;Gordie has come to the conclusion, too, that Tiny Tim must be quite a guy, too. &ldquo;Anybody who likes hockey the way he does,&rdquo; says Gordie, &ldquo;can&rsquo;t be such a bad fellow&rdquo; &hellip;To tell you the truth, I enjoyed Tiny Tim&rsquo;s appearance, because he is the epitome of courtesy and humility, and for what it&rsquo;s worth, of all the stars who have appeared on our radio intermissions, Tiny Tim drew the greatest gallery of fans, hundreds of them standing in front of our broadcast location just to watch him &hellip;Incidentally, he did get to meet Mr. Imlach at that game while he was en route to the broadcast. &ldquo;But I just shook hands with him,&rdquo; Tiny Tim said. &ldquo;The Leafs were losing and I knew Mr. Imlach had problems and it was not the right time to talk to him.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0014-01

Footloose

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK SANTANIELLO</div>SPRINGFIELD, Mass. &mdash;Any professional hockey club considers itself fortunate in a given season to have even a single contender on its team who might qualify for &ldquo;Rookie of the Year&rdquo; honors. The Springfield Kings are lucky. They have two.In an otherwise so-so season, which has seen the Kings laboring hard but not making much headway, both Ken Turlik and Gary Croteau have certainly been pleasant surprises on the local scene.&ldquo;Both have exceeded all expectations,&rdquo; Coach John Wilson stated. &ldquo;They should certainly be battling it out right to the end of the season for rookie honors. It&rsquo;s too bad they don&rsquo;t have two awards. These boys will be right in there in the final voting.&rdquo;The local fans have certainly responded to the fine play of both Turlik and Croteau. Both are only youngsters but have developed rapidly this season, much more than expected.The youngsters are also doing their share of scoring and will give Marc Dufour a battle for scoring honors before the season has been completed here. The boys are real scrappers all the time on the ice. They are certainly NHL material when they get the proper seasoning.Turlik is only 24 and plays wing. He stands six feet and weighs 175. He is single and was born in Lethbridge, Alberta but now makes his home in Vancouver.Ken came up through the ranks the hard way. The last two seasons he was a member of the Knoxville club in the Eastern League. He collected 24 goals and 26 assists. He also earned 50 minutes in penalties to indicate he would not be pushed around.Turlik was traded to the parent Los Angeles Kings by the New York Rangers in a deal with Jim Murray for Barclay Plager. It is perhaps one of the sharpest deals pulled off and should pay dividends.Croteau is a wing who likes to hit, back-check and knock people around. He&rsquo;s nicknamed &ldquo;The Bull&rdquo; by fans. He does all this and scores, too. Croteau is only 22, was born and still lives in Sudbury, Ontario. He is also married.Garv stands big. six feet and 210. Last season, he played for St. Lawrence where he graduated last June. In 19 games, he pumped in 21 goals. &#9632;

Turlik, Croteau Rated Top Freshmen

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-02124/2910891-1-eng-US/f0001-022.jpg" title="f0001-02" width="559" height="1377"><figcaption class="caption-body">In The West They Call Him &ldquo;Mr. Durable&rdquo;</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-01151/2910898-1-eng-US/f0001-012.jpg" title="f0001-01" width="224" height="269"></div>&mdash;ON THE INSIDECOURNOYERWill He Hit The 5O-Mark?&mdash;PAGE 9STAPLETONHe Wears New Look&mdash;PAGE 24WESTFALLGoal scoring newest touch&mdash;PAGE 15CESARE MANIAGO&mdash;PAGE 2<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0001-0359/2910884-1-eng-US/f0001-032.jpg" title="f0001-03" width="1797" height="1305"></div>BRAD PARKNew Darling Of The Gallery Gods&mdash;PAGE 5BLUES READY FOR SECOND FLORIDA VACATION&mdash;PAGE 3 &#9632;

f0001-02

Oakland Seals ‘Giant Killers’ Cutting Down NHL’s Old Clubs

<div class="byline">BY GLENN REDMANN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01697/2908154-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="553" height="630"><figcaption class="caption-body">DANNY GRANT &hellip; Snapped Out Of Slump</figcaption></div>TWIN CITIES, Minn. &mdash; At the half-way mark of the National Hockey League season, Daniel Frederick (Danny) Grant&mdash; the pride of Fredericton, N.B. &mdash;looked like a shoo-in to succeed Derek Sanderson of Boston to the Calder Memorial trophy.Oh sure, there were other outstanding NHL rookies such as New York&rsquo;s Walt Tkaczuk and Brad Park, Los Angeles&rsquo; Gerry Desjardins and Oakland&rsquo;s Norm Ferguson to name just a few.But none were able to match the 22-year-old Minnesota left winger&rsquo;s 38-game showing, one which produced 16 goals and a like number of assists that was to win Grant a berth on the West Division All Star team.Thirty-two points in half a season! Why if Danny could repeat those totals in the second half, thought most North Star fans, he&rsquo;d be a cinch for the Calder and the $1,500 award that goes with it.After all, the scrappy Sanderson had won it a year ago with 49 points on 24 goals and 25 assists. Surely, Grant would top those figures.But then something happened in Danny&rsquo;s next 10 games. He encountered a horrible slump during which his point total sagged to four &mdash; one goal and three assists &mdash; and even his most ardent boosters were beginning to write off his chances for the Calder.But Grant is a determined sort of fellow and fortunate to be working on the same line as Claude Larose and rookie Danny O&rsquo;Shea, who dig tirelessly in the corners in order to get the puck to their sharp-shooting teammate.This digging paid off to the tune of three goals and three assists for Grant on the weekend of Feb. 1-2 and he was back in Calder contention with 42 points on 20 goals and 22 assists.Four of those points &mdash; two goals and two assists &mdash; came in a satisfying 5-5 tie with Chicago here on Feb. 1, the first time the Stars had been able to gain a home-ice point against the Black Hawks in five tries.Less than 24-hours later, the Grant-O&rsquo;Shea-Larose line struck twice again in leading their team past Philadelphia, 3-2, on the Flyers&rsquo; ice.General Manager Wren Blair, who had led the Minnesotans to a 3-2-1 record since replacing John Muckier behind the bench on Jan. 23, was elated over Grant&rsquo;s surge.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s been working harder than I&rsquo;ve ever seen him,&rdquo; said Blair, &ldquo;and this goes for both offense and defense. One of his biggest assets, of course, is that he gets his shots off very quickly. He&rsquo;s on net, too, despite the fact that he always goes for one comer or the other.&rdquo;If Grant, Larose and O&rsquo;Shea can keep up the good work, they&rsquo;ll make Blair look good, for it was he who engineered deals with Montreal that brought all three into the camp of the Stars.Grant&rsquo;s big week end enabled him to tie teammate Ray Cullen for the club scoring lead and Larose was only a point behind. O&rsquo;Shea, the former Canadian Olympic star, had 11 goals and 18 assists. His 29 points had him tied for fourth on the club with J.P. Parise, who came out of a slump of sorts by bagging a goal in each of the Hawks and Flyer games, his 14th and 15th. &#9632;

f0002-01

Stars Elated As Rookie Hope Grant Rebounds

The East has its Ed Giacomin but here in the West they like to call Cesare Maniago &lsquo;Mr. Durable and rightly so.The Minnesota goalkeeper is the No. 1 NHL performer as far as putting in ice time. He has played in the same number of games as Giacomin 49&rsquo; but he has spent 2828 minutes under fire compared to 2820 for the Ranger puck-stopper. &#9632;

They Call Him ‘Mr. Durable’

TWIN CITIES, Minn. &mdash;Minnesota North Stars have announced that they are pondering moving their top farm club in the Central Hockey League from Memphis to Des Moines, la.Gordon Ritz, vice-president of the North Stars, discloses that &ldquo;there is a good possibility the Memphis club will be moved after this season although nothing definite has been decided.&rdquo;The main reason for the switch appears to be that Memphis is not drawing. The Stars are averaging around 1,900 per game, which is considerably below the break-even mark.Des Moines now operates in the International League. &#9632;

North Stars Ponder Shift Of Memphis To Des Moines

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-03545/2908254-1-eng-US/f0002-032.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02657/2908261-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="205" height="216"></div>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)EAST DIVISIONWEST DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-04387/2908247-1-eng-US/f0002-042.jpg" title="f0002-04" width="1111" height="267"></div>(Last year&rsquo;s standings on Mon. Feb. 12)EASTERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-05272/2908240-1-eng-US/f0002-052.jpg" title="f0002-05" width="1129" height="300"></div>WESTERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-06178/2908233-1-eng-US/f0002-062.jpg" title="f0002-06" width="1122" height="261"></div>GAMES TO COMETues. Feb. 11Los Angeles at MontrealChicago at BostonWed. Feb. 12Minnesota at TorontoNew York at OaklandPhiladelphia at ChicagoPittsburgh at St. LouisThurs. Feb. 13Montreal at DetroitNew York at Los AngelesSt. Louis at PhiladelphiaSat. Feb. 15Boston at MontrealNew York at TorontoDetroit at MinnesotaChicago at PhiladelphiaOakland at PittsburghLos Angeles at St. LouisGAMES COMPLETEDTues. Feb. 4Detroit 2 at Philadelphia 0St. Louis 2 at Los Angeles 4Wed. Feb. 5Montreal 1 at Oakland 5Minnesota 5 at Toronto 5New York 2 at Pittsburgh 3Boston 7 at Chicago 2Thurs. Feb. 6Montreal 4 at Los Angeles 2Boston 1 at St. Louis 3Chicago 1 at Detroit 6Sat. Feb. 8Montreal 6 at Minnesota 3Oakland 4 at Toronto 1St. Louis 0 at New York 2Philadelphia 5 at Boston 6Los Angeles 4 at Pittsburgh 2Detroit 3 at Chicago 1Sun. Feb. 9Montreal 4 at St. Louis 4Toronto 5 at Chicago 3Philadelphia 3 at New York 3Oakland 3 at Boston 3Los Angeles 0 at Detroit 5Pittsburgh 1 at Minnesota 3 &#9632;

f0002-03

THE NHL SCENE

<h2>EAST</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-07103/2908299-1-eng-US/f0002-072.jpg" title="f0002-07" width="553" height="306"></div><h2>WEST</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-0863/2908292-1-eng-US/f0002-082.jpg" title="f0002-08" width="559" height="306"></div>Ken McKenzie&rsquo;s column. 4 Bill Libby&rsquo;s column &hellip;.. 8Ed Fitkin&rsquo;s column &hellip;.. 14 Crossword Puzzle &hellip; 23AHL &hellip;.16 WHL &hellip;. 19CHL &hellip;. 20 EHL &hellip;. 21 IHL &hellip; 22 &#9632;

f0002-07

WHERE THE NHL TEAMS ARE

<div class="byline">BY GEOFFREY FISHER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-01699/2908344-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="553" height="449"><figcaption class="caption-body">RED BERENSON &hellip; Sweet Music To Blues</figcaption></div>ST.LOUIS, Mo. &mdash;The St. Louis Blues are opening up so much daylight in the Western Division they act like they are afraid of catching the plague from the rest of the league.The Sidney Salomon&rsquo;s, who promised their skaters another luxury vacation in Florida at season&rsquo;s end, could move that date up to a winter vacation in Florida. The boys could still make it back in time to wrap up the championship.Braintrusters Lynn Patrick and Scotty Bowman made a preseason calculation that it would take 76 points to win the West this year. They must feel like a couple of guys who have just seen an oil gusher spout out of the backyard tomato patch. With 25 games to go the Blueshave roared within 13 points of that magic 76.Meanwhile, the spear carriers from the banks of the Mississippi continued hotter on ice than the St. Louis Blues, the song they were named for, ever was in the hit parade lists.And when Organist Norm Kramer, the Liberace of the hockey set, hits those big pipes with &ldquo;When The Saints Go Marching In&rdquo;, the roar from St. Louis Arena must cause the wild animals in the St. Louis Zoo, some miles away, to quiver with sheer fright.If it wasn&rsquo;t against the rules, the Blues could start selling playoff tickets right now. They&rsquo;ve got the title locked up tighter than the gold in the vault at Fort Knox. They&rsquo;re playing like they want to get back home to Canada before the Spring thaw.Of course, it&rsquo;s a long time from February to April when you are making your living in the National Hockey League, and the Blues are not going to sneer at the chance to knock off whatever club eventually earns the right to play for the big silver trophy donated by Lord Stanley of Preston in 1893. But it&rsquo;s a pretty safe bet that lying somewhere in the astute brain of Scotty Bowman is a mammoth desire to do it to the Canadiens, the club that blitzed the Blues in four straight last Spring.It may well be that this season represents the best chance the Blues will have to go all the way for some time to come. Just about everything is clicking for them.They have the hottest goaltending duet in the game in Glenn Hall and Jacques Plante. Hall and Plante were hanging up a shutout at the rate of better than one every five times the Blues took to the ice against their NHL playmates.They have had superlative performances from some ageless wonders such as Douglas Norman Harvey, Jean Guy Talbot, Billy McCreary, Camille Henry and Al Arbour.They are getting astounding sophomore years out of youngsters like Craig Cameron, Gary Sabourin, Frank St. Marseille, Tim Ecclestone and Terry Crisp.If they are getting the customary 110 per cent from the cyclonic Jimmy Roberts, they must be getting at least 105 per cent from Noel Picard, Barclay Plager, Ab McDonald, Larry Keenan, and Ronny Schock.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02580/2908337-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="1804" height="1241"><figcaption class="caption-body">One of the reasons the Blues are running away with the expansion division race this season has been their astonishing netminding. Here&rsquo;s veteran JACQUES PLANTE foiling Chicago&rsquo;s KEN WHARRAM in a recent game. Plante and Glenn Hall have combined to provide Blues with best goaling in entire NHL. They have a total of 11 shutouts between them.</figcaption></div>Then there is the sweetest of all those blue notes - the incomparable No. 7, Gordon Berenson. The Red Baron is something else. Lithe, smooth as imported silk, swift as the arrow in flight, clever, adroit, and elusive as a leaf in a windstorm. Berenson is king of Western Division forwards.If there was ever room to question the old adage that nice guys finish last, that time is now. Sid Salomon, Jr. and his son, Sid, III provide the Florida vacations, the sauna baths, the $750 watches for a hat trick and the closed circuit television in a plush room of the Arena for hockey wives who want to babysit with their youngsters. And Scotty Bowman likes to give his warriors a night on the town when they seem a bit drawn from the fatigue of battle.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03387/2908330-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="556" height="432"><figcaption class="caption-body">JIMMY ROBERTS &hellip; Giving 110 Per Cent</figcaption></div>Does that make them soft?Ask the Detroit Red Wings who got thoroughly trounced by the Blues, and ignominiously blanked, 2-0, in a match at the Olympia Stadium, Saturday, February 1.Or ask Punch Imlach and his Toronto Maple Leafs who stormed into the St. Louis Arena the following night, determined to chop these expansion league upstarts to pieces. The Blues took the Leafs&rsquo; best punches and sent them reeling away on the short end of a 5-3 count.Imlach&rsquo;s the gentleman who was quoted as saying the Blues are treated too well with all that generosity showered on them by the Salomon&rsquo;s.That proved to be real bad strategy for Punch because these Blues don&rsquo;t want folks going around trying to kill their good thing. The Blues were obviously so perturbed they sprayed poor old Johnny (China Wall) Bower with 48 shots. Bower must have thought his Maple Leaf teammates had caught an early plane back to Toronto.The Press Box philosophers who have been asking the question: &ldquo;How are the Blues going to top that remarkable act they put on last season?&rdquo; are getting their answer.That was merely the appetizer a year ago.Now comes the main course. &#9632;

f0003-01

Blues Again Assured Of Florida Vacation

TWIN CITIES, Minn. &mdash;When veteran referee John Ashley meted out minor, misconduct and game misconduct penalties to Capt. Moose Vasko in the Chicago game here Feb. 1, it wat the first time the burly Star defenseman had been ejected in his 12-year NHL career &hellip; The 14,599 fans who showed up for the Black Hawk game pushed season home attendance to 311,947 for 25 games &hellip; That&rsquo;s average of 12,477 per outing and just under 40,000 ahead of last season&rsquo;s gate pace &hellip; Maniago having played in 46 of the Stars&rsquo; first 51 games for a total of 2,648 minutes, was on the verge of passing one-time teammate Ed Giacomin of New York as tbe NHL&rsquo;s busiest goalie. &#9632;

Stars’ Crowds Up Nearly 40,000

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$6.00 in the U.S.A, and $8.00 in Foreign Countries.Postage paid atRouses Point, N.Y.Authorized as second class mail, Post Office Department, Ottawa and for payment of postage in cash.Printed in CanadaVol. 22 MONTREAL, FEBRUARY 15,1969 No. 19DETROIT, Mich. &mdash;Carl Brewer is keeping his sights set on amateur hockey according to Red Wing chief scout Jim Skinner.Skinner, just back from a tour of Scandinavia and Germany, said Brewer told him his dislike of flying is the reason he won&rsquo;t play in the NHL.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-01761/2908399-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="259" height="432"><figcaption class="caption-body">Carl Brewer</figcaption></div>Carl is a player-coach in Helsinki, Finland, and his team is in first place.Skinner put a Finn, left wing Tommi Salmelainen, who plays for Brewer, and two Swedes, defensemen Lennart Svedberg and Arne Carlsson on the Detroit negotiation list.&ldquo;Svedberg is an excellent puck carrier and Carlsson is about the size of Doug Barkley and likes the rough stuff,&rdquo; Skinner said.Can&rsquo;t Win &lsquo;Em All Dept.:Red Wing coach Bill Gadsby no sooner said &ldquo;500 hockey isn&rsquo;t good enough&hellip;we&rsquo;ve got to do better,&rdquo; than the Red Wings went out and lost their next two games.That&rsquo;s .000 hockey. Not so good, either.Gadsby, trying to spread around the scoring punch, removed Alex Delvecchio from the Wings&rsquo; big line in Boston and put Garry Unger in the slot between Frank Mahoclich and Gordie Howe.The experiment lasted less than two periods, though, and Delvecchio went back &ldquo;home&rdquo;.Mahovlich certainly has found a home on the Howe line. The Big M, with 31 goals through 51 games, is certain to become Detroit&rsquo;s top goalgetting left wing in the club&rsquo;s history.Carl Liscombe&hellip;thought Ted Lindsay, did you? &hellip; scored 36 goals in 1943-44.Lindsay&rsquo;s best goal year was 1947-48 when he scored 33.Detroit&rsquo;s big line of Howe-Delvecchio-Mahovlich is heading for a NHL record for goals and points, according to league statistician Ron Andrews. The trio has scored 73 goals and 91 assists for 164 points, an average of 11.4 goals per game and 3.2 points per game. Projected over the remainder of the campaign, this scoring rate would give the line 114 goals and 243 points, Andrews says. The current records are 105 goals by Rocket Richard-Toe Blake-Elmer Lach in 1944-45 and 226 points by Howe-Ted Lindsay-Norm Ullman in 1956-57. &#9632;

f0004-01

Dislike Of Flying To Keep Brewer From Returning To NHL

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02712/2908451-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="390" height="483"></div>&bull;BOSTON&mdash;BRUINS nipped Philadelphia Flyers, 6-5, here the other night in a wild and woolly game loaded with all kinds of excitement for the loyal Beantown fans &hellip;Phil Esposito picked up three assists, two new Boston club records, a misconduct and game misconduct penalty in this game, to round out a full evenings&rsquo;s work &hellip; The new Boston records are most assists (his 51 bettered by one Don McKenney&rsquo;s record set in 1959-60) and most points a Bruin (he finished the game with 85, one more than his record set last season) &hellip; Phil received his game misconduct when he pushed Referee Bob Sloan &hellip;It was the first time Espo had been evicted from a game since he came into the NHL &hellip;Referee Sloan handed out 22 penalties &hellip; Philadelphia is playing standout hockey right now and they&rsquo;ve had some tough luck losing extremely close games in recent weeks &hellip; Dr. Ron Adams, Boston&rsquo;s club doctor, presided over a press conference following the game, in which he explained to the best of his ability the extent of Bobby Orr&rsquo;s injured knee &hellip;Arne Carlson has signed to attend Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; training camp next September. He was a member of Sweden&rsquo;s last National Team and is reported to be a very promising defenseman &hellip;Lou Nanne, scouted for the Minnesota North Stars by Johnny Mariucci, is one of the better NHL rookies at the moment.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03614/2908444-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="274" height="462"><figcaption class="caption-body">Phil Esposito</figcaption></div>&bull;YVAN COURNOYER is the latest member of the Montreal Canadiens to plan for the day his hockey career is over. He&rsquo;s gone into business to distribute fuel oil. Yvan is almost as shrewd on me ice as on. ne set up his small company and retained 98 shares. His father and brother have the other two &hellip; Oakland players believe in travelling first class. Three of them, Carol Vadnais, Francois Lacombe and ex-Seal Bryan Watson pooled their finances and purchased a Cadillac for $650. Of course it was a 1962 model but at least it showed the boys have good taste &hellip; Charles (Sparky) Schulz, creater of the Peanuts comic strip, is a keen hockey fan. He recently went over to Oakland with 50 people from Santa Rosa, California for The Canadiens-Seals&rsquo; game and presented John Ferguson with an original cartoon of Snoopy duplicating the Habs&rsquo; hardrock. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m mean and tough and I eat goalies.&rdquo; &hellip; Bobby Rousseau raised a few eyebrows recently when he talked about relations with his former Montreal coach, Toe Blake.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04529/2908437-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="248" height="371"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bobby Rousseau</figcaption></div>The retiring Blake had said some of the Canadiens would be happier and might play better with someone else at the helm. &ldquo;I believe Toe was referring to me when he said that.&rdquo; Rousseau claims that the easier rein of young Claude Ruel has been responsible for his fine play this season &hellip; It&rsquo;s been 24 years since a defenseman scored 20 goals in the NHL &mdash; back to Flash Hollett of Detroit in 1944-45. Now both Bobby Orr of Boston and Oakland&rsquo;s surprising rearguard Carol Vadnais have a good chance to hit the 20-goal plateau &hellip; Linesman Matt Pavelich had the quip of the season recently after listening to Montreal Coach Ruel complain bitterly in French about one of his offside calls. &ldquo;Do you understand what he&rsquo;s saying?&rdquo; asked Ralph Backstrom. &ldquo;No,&rdquo; said Matt, &ldquo;but if he says the wrong thing he&rsquo;s going to get a bench penalty.&rdquo;&bull;GORDIE HOWE took his place alongside one of sports most illustrious figures when he scored his 714th career goal. Howe matched the number of home runs the immortal Babe Ruth stroked his baseball lifetime &hellip; And speaking of milestones. Frank Mahovlich has already moved up the all-time goal-scoring list two notches since the season started. He could hit that elusive 50-goal plateau he never attained as a Maple Leaf. The Big is already on his way to a 40-goal season with the Wings and it appears being free of Toronto&rsquo;s iron-fisted Punch Imlach and those critical Leafs&rsquo; fans is agreeing with the big left winger. Ironic part of it all is that Imlach and the Wings have talked trade twice this season and both time Mahovlich&rsquo;s name came up. Imlach is seems would like to get his temperamental winger back &hellip; Wily Joe Crozier has put Czechoslovakian National star Zdenek Cerny on the Rochester Americans&rsquo; negotiation list. Cerny has come to Canada to settle and is rated a good prospect for pro hockey &hellip; Philadelphia correspondent Ed Conrad reports that cocky young Doug Fa-vell showed that he&rsquo;s a true big leaguer. Favell took his recent demotion to Quebec of the AHL by the Flyers without emotion &hellip; When was the last time you heard of a general manager, 10 years retired, returning to help his team out. Jake Milford, the GM of the Des Moines Oak Leafs, recently came out of retirement to aid his hard-pressed defense. Milford showed he hasn&rsquo;t lost his touch either. He scored a goal &hellip; Ranger scouts are raving over the work of top minor leaguers Mike Robitaille, a defenseman, and Jack Egers, a forward, with Omaha of the CHL. But the player the New York organization is really high on is Brad Park, the dashing young rearguard who has become the new darling of the Garden gallery gods. Rangers&rsquo; Emile Francis is concerned that the recent flood of publicity, magazine and TV specials accorded Park might turn the rookie&rsquo;s head. Broadway hockey observers are touting the kid backliner for rookie of the year honors.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05430/2908430-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg" title="f0004-05" width="248" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gordie Howe</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0004-02

PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="byline">BY NORMAN MacLEAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01713/2908482-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="569" height="917"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRAD PARK &hellip; Darling of The Gallery</figcaption></div>NEW YORK, N.Y.&mdash;&ldquo;We want Park! We Want Park!!&rdquo; boomed the Madison Square Garden gallery on February 2.Emile Francis, the doughty General Manager who is filling in for the ailing coach Bernie Geoffrion, immediately tapped Park on the shoulder and sent him over the boards. Only a minute and a half remained in the New York game with Pittsburgh but the crowd cheered every move that the 20 year old baby faced blue liner made &mdash; and then some.At the end of the contest, Park was selected as the Number One star of the game&mdash;and he deserved the accolade. He had notched four assists in the Rangers, 7-3 victory. This raised his point total to 13, all assists.&ldquo;I wish he had gotten that goal in the second period when Jean Ratelle tiped his shot in. If you will notice. Brad help set up Rattv&rsquo;s other goal, which was as neat a breakaway as you will see,&rdquo; said Francis.Observers around the NHL are starting to sit up and take notice of the tough little gamecock who roams the blue line for the Blueshirts. With Jim Neilson on his right, Park is playing as well that New York has not missed Harry Howell, who missed 8 games with bach trouble. The New York defense lists Neilson and Brown at 27 each, with Seiling 24 and Park the baby at 20.&ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t play like a baby. He takes charge out there and is a little son of a gun in the corners,&rdquo; notes Francis. &ldquo;In fact, he is doing so well that maybe he can overtake some of those guys who got a little more ice early in the season when we had Brad down in Buffalo for more seasoning.&rdquo;Francis, who now calls Brad, &ldquo;Mr. Park&rdquo; meant such as defensemen Jim Dorev of Toronto, Goaltender Gerry Desjardins of Los Angeles and perhaps even Dick Sarrazin of the Philadelphia Flyers. Sarrazin. a forward was called up in early December, but has been hot of late.For our whether he wins the Calder Memorial Award as the NHL&rsquo;s best rookie, or not, PARK is the best first year man in the National Hockey League. He will be a star when some of those who may get more votes will not be in the league.He reminds veteran observers of the former Toronto star Carl Brewer. Park fights you every inch of the way and is a cool cute little number out there. Francis is also planning to work Park in as one of the Rangers&rsquo; point men. When Rod Gilbert was hurt, New York&rsquo;s point play suffered and the &ldquo;Cat&rdquo; wants to be prepared should a future emergency arise.&ldquo;Brad shoots accurately and is usually able to keep his drives down. This kind of shooting leads to rebounds and goals for the team on the attack,&rdquo; notes Francis. &ldquo;Also, Park gives you the puck a little and then takes it away from you and slips around you.&rdquo;Park came to training camp determined to win a spot with New York. The first time he saw the big city was when he played in an exhibition against Toronto at Madison Square Garden on September 27. He is the Rangers&rsquo; first dividend from the 17 year old draft of amateurs. New York took him from the Toronto system, but allowed him to play with the Toronto Marlboros in 1967-68.&ldquo;When Park was only the fifth man early in the season, we decided to send him to Buffalo, with orders that he get plenty of ice. They used him on his regular turn, at the point and killing penalties. When he came back, the work showed and the kid is here to stay. Also, there would have been no point in keeping him in New York and letting him rust on the bench as the fifth man, so Buffalo was the answer in the early part of the season&rdquo;.Right now, around Rangerville, the cry is &ldquo;We want Mr. Park!!&rdquo; &#9632;

f0005-01

Rangers Tout Brad Park For Rookie Award

<h2>Sullivan Trades Seen Ridiculous</h2>If the Toronto fans think Punch Imlach&rsquo;s trades were bad, they should take a look at Red Sullivan&rsquo;s! His latest masterpiece was the trade of Leo Boivin to Minnesota for Duane Rupp.Sullivan claims he&rsquo;s been trading for a team leader. Billy Harris was originally supposed to fill the bill. He obviously has done nothing for morale or scoring-wise.We believe Leo Boivin was the closest thing to a team leader. He was popular with the fans and plaVs consistent hockey. I see no leadership qualities in Rupp, as shown by Minnesota&rsquo;s poor record. I fail to see the logic in trading defensemen when what Pittsburgh needs is a consistent scorer.Sullivan and Jack Riley constantly shift the burden of losses on their defense. It is time they wake up and take a good look at their offense.Bob Dillabough, Ab McDonald, and now Boivin. Who is to be sacrificed next? Les Binkley?MR. AND MRS. W. PATRICK, Pittsburgh, Pa.<h2>NHL Should Rotate All-Star Game Site</h2>The first East vs. West hockey all-star game was an artistic success, as the expansion players proved that team play and a tight defense could overcome the individual talents of Gordie Howe, Bobby Hull, Bobby Orr, et al.There is no doubt in my mind that the new all-star game format is here to stay. And in the near future I hope to see another change made, mainly, the rotation of the game so that fans in all NHL cities will be able to see the stars in action.In as much as a complete team (the defending Stanley Cup champions) no longer competes in the all-star game, it would not be fair to the hockey fans in the 11 other cities if the game were played every year in Montreal (or will it be Boston?)When the home team was involved, it made sense. But now that all twelve teams have near-equal representation, it seems reasonable to expect that the fans in every city be given an eventual opportunity to see the classic game, which is more meaningful now than it ever was under the old format.JONATHAN CLARK, Wheaton, Ill.<h2>White Can&rsquo;t Hold Candle to Bruin</h2>In a recent issue a reader from Philadelphia expressed good and bad feelings on L.A. scribe Bill Libby. In the same issue Mr. Libby professed not to be a &ldquo;homer&rdquo;. That&rsquo;s the best joke I&rsquo;ve heard in a year.He seems to have a pretty warped sense of this game. In the same issue he described Bill White as &ldquo;&hellip; maybe the best all-round defenseman in the entire NHL.&rdquo; He must not attend games when the Kings play Boston, Montreal or other Eastern clubs. Why, Bobby Orr is twice the all-round defenseman Bill White is &mdash; and that&rsquo;s not taking anything away from White. Others who easily surpass him are Tim Horton, J.C. Tremblay, Bobby Baun, Teddy Green, Pat Stepleton, etc., etc.As the Kings&rsquo; number one subject, Mr. Libby had better start looking at other kingdoms, preferably further East, before the picks the NHL&rsquo;s top rearguard.BARRY DIXON, Halifax, N.S.<h2>Fan Deplores Ice Littering</h2>I am a rabid hockey fan and an amateur hockey player. I am writing to plead with all fans that read this paper to help control a problem which seems to be growing, unhindered, in every NHL ring. What I&rsquo;m referring to is the constant littering of the ice by assinine people who call themselves hockey fans. Living in Pittsburgh, I attend every Penguin home game. It angers me to see these pleple throw a variety of food, beverages, and coins onto the ice whenever a referee makes a bad call or a fight occurs on the ice. Watching hockey games on television, I notice this problem is not confined to Pittsburgh alone.These people should be made to realize that it takes only a small piece of candy or a coin to cause a player to trip and crash into the boards, injuring himself seriously &mdash; or maybe fatally.SKIPREMMY, Pittsburgh, Pa.<h2>Underrated Wings Cause Surprise</h2>Although, it is not a surprise to me, I believe one of the most surprising teams in the NHL this season has been the Detroit Red Wings. In my opinion, they were grossly underrated at the start of the season, as almost every &ldquo;expert&rdquo; relegated them to the cellar in their predictions.The main reasons given were the weak defense and the age of such stalwarts as Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio and Dean Prentice. As I write this, the Red Wings have just lost their first game in eight outings. In those eight games, the defense allowed 13 goals for an average of 1.63 per game. Not bad for a poor defensive team!As for offense, the Red Wings have a fine mixture of youth and experience. The line of Howe-Delvecchio-Frank Mahovlich has to be rated as one of the top lines in hockey as far as production is concerned, and youngsters such as Pete Stemkowski, Rene LeClerc, Danny Lawson, Nick Libett, Hank Monteith and Garry Unger could give the Wings a future dynasty with the latter boasting superstar potential.MARKHUESTIS, Saint John.N.B.<h2>Hockey News Back Copies</h2>I have some back copies of THE HOCKEY NEWS from May, 1948 to March, 1950. If interested, write to me.I enjoyed the all-star game very much, and I agreed with the selection of the players who took part.P.D.GIESEBRECHT, Box 1, Wymark, Sask. &#9632;

Fan Forum

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-01790/2908537-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"></div>Relax and enjoy your favourite sport, while tiny transistors work for you,that you should see the results on the SCOREBOARD clearly and preciselyWatch the electronic SCOREBOARD on your TV, satellites carry their message to spectators 10,000 miles away!Supplier of all scoreboards for the XIXth Summer Olympic Games MexicoFamous exporter of scoreboards, publicity color signs and newsletters &#9632;

f0006-01

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-01741/2908568-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rookie netminder GERRY DESJARDINS has been nothing short of sensational for the Kings in recent weeks. Desjardins has continually bailed out the Californans with his goaling heroics.</figcaption></div>LOS ANGELES, Calif.In their brief existence, the Los Angeles Kings have always had the philosophy that if they won a game they played well, and if they lost a game they played badley. It is better to win than to lose, no matter how it comes, of course, but there is a flaw to this reasoning. If you are going to realistically evaluate your performance in quest of improvement, you must face the fact you can play badly and win, and played well and lose.A good example came during a recent one-week, four-game stretch in which the Kings were outscored 22-19&mdash;losing in Chicago. 9-3 then coming home to win over Toronto, 3-1, lose to Boston. 7-5. and win over Oakland, 8-5. The latter two set new one-game total-goals highs for the Forum, and the Oakland game was a one-game scoring record for the Kings this season.Toronto outplayed the Kings, but was beaten when King goalie Gerry Desjardins foiled four straight breakaways. Boston outplayed the Kings and won breezing when Desjardins was unable to stop each of live more breakaways Coach Red Kelly felt the Kings played poorly in the first and good in the second, but the fact is they played about the same in both games. The only difference was Desjardins.The Kings have several forwards who do not check and some big, slow defense. men. They probably give away more breakaways than any club in the league. And they play loosely and often carelessly in general. All season. Desjardins has been making them look better than they are. but he cannot keep bailing them out forever.Gerry is a rookie, probably the outstanding rookie in the league, though the stats do not support his case and Minnesota&rsquo;s Danny Grant. Oakland&rsquo;s Norm Ferguson and Toronto&rsquo;s Jim Dorev are good ones, too. Desjardins is young and because of an injury to Wayne Rutledge, Gerry has had to play in 21 straight games, and he is mentally and physically tired.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m beginning to fight the puck,&rdquo; he admits. He has been bailing out the Kings all season, and he is still doing it often but he now blows easy shots here and there and gives too many rebounds and flops too much now. He just can&rsquo;t carry the club forever.He is the quickest young goalie and the best on breakaways I&rsquo;ve seen in years, but when a team gives nine breakaways in two games its not playing good team hockey and when it gives up 22 goals in four games a lot of people are letting down along the line.On the positive side, the Kings have finally begun to score. Their first team last season was high-scoring, but defenseless. Most of this season, they&rsquo;ve been low-scoring, but Desjardins and Bill White have kept opposition scoring down. Now, they&rsquo;re reverting to past form, scoring goals, but giving them up. too.Eddie Joyal, the scoring leader all season, has banged in five goals in three games and passed the 20-goal mark as this is written. Bill Flett, one of his linemates, should be next at that plateau, while Real Lemieux, the other linemate, who otherwise has been playing good, aggressive, playmaking hockey, got his first goal in 22 games against Oakland.Key to the offense resurgence has been Gordon Labossiere with seven goals in 11 games. Not a great skater, Labossiere can do it if he works, and since his recall from brief exile to the minors has finally begun to live up to his status as the Kings&rsquo; No. 1 choice in the original expansion draft. &#9632;

f0007-01

Kings Find Scoring Range To Back Up Super Goaling

LOS ANGELES. Calif. &mdash;Late in the third period of Oakland&rsquo;s Feb. 2 game in L.A., the Kings&rsquo; Dale Rolfe spun the Seals&rsquo; Bill Hicke down. As Hicke went down, he bruised Rolfe&rsquo;s chin with the butt of his stick. While he was down, Rolfe took a wild, roundhouse swing with his stick, slicing Hicke&rsquo;s back. Hicke jumped up and swung his stick at Rolfe. Rolfe swung back. Officials intervened.Both were banished. Later, Oakland coach Fred Glover was fuming. He said, &ldquo;Rolfe didn&rsquo;t just try to injure Hicke, he darn well injured him!&rdquo; L.A. coach Red Kelly shrugged, &ldquo;When you&rsquo;re attacked, you fight back.&rdquo; There is bad feeling between the two clubs, which may intensify when they next meet Feb. 23 in Oakland in a game that will be televised back to L.A.Bill White has been slumping since the all-star game. Brent Hughes and Dave Amadio have been the best defensemen lately. Larry Cahan got his nose badly broken in an accidental collision with Oakland&rsquo;s Brian Perry. Right afterwards, Rolfe, who has been a bit offensive-minded, got into the stick-fight with Hicke which resulted in banishment of both.Wayne Rutledge reinjured his pulled muscle in his one appearance in a month, so veteran minor leaguer Jacques Caron was recalled from Denver to be available as spare goalie. Young forward Brian Campbell was returned to Springfield. Ron Anderson and Jim Peters have gone without goals for 16 straight games each.The Kings have drawn the most penalties in six of their last seven games. They give an average of only one power-play goal in each six shorthanded situations, but cash in on only one of eight. &#9632;

Stick Fight Sets Off Kings-Seals’ Feelings

<div class="byline">BY JIM PROUDFOOT</div>TORONTO, Ont.&mdash;A key figure for Toronto Maple Leafs as they enter the final weeks of the 1968-69 National Hockey League season is Marcel Pronovost, their 38-year-old defenseman.Leafs have been doing well, but their recent advance into a contending position may be largely due to the fact they&rsquo;ve been playing regularly against Western Division clubs during the past fortnight. Things are bound to get tougher later on, and if they are to survive, Leafs must get a significant contribution on defense from either Pronovost or Pierre Pilote.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-01776/2908623-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="261" height="441"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marcel Pranovost</figcaption></div>It&rsquo;s difficult to be optimistic about Pilote, who has failed to regain his all-star touch since coming here from Chicago Black Hawks in a summer trade. However, there is every indication that a rejuvenated Pronovost may be able to help Tim Horton with the rearguard leadership Leafs must have.Mind you, there&rsquo;s nothing wrong with Leafs&rsquo; greenhorn defenders &mdash; Jim Dorey, Mike Pelyk and Pat Quinn &mdash; but it&rsquo;s a well-known fact that NHL opposition stiffens in February and March, a time which is often termed the homestretch. That&rsquo;s when the battle for playoff positions heats up and it looks as though it&rsquo;s going to be even more hectic than usual this spring, with four clubs &mdash; Detroit, Leafs, Chicago and New York &mdash; scuffling for the bottom two openings in the Stanley Cup playoffs.During such a critical struggle, it&rsquo;ll be almost imperative to give Horton some help. That&rsquo;s why Leafs will find themselves looking to Pronovost.You can take it for granted he&rsquo;ll do the job that&rsquo;s necessary. He&rsquo;s ready to go now after one of the most frustrating seasons of his 19 in the NHL.Pronovost was troubled by a knee injury almost from the beginning of the schedule and, as a result, had appeared in only 26 of Leafs&rsquo; first 45 matches. In many of those, he seldom got on the ice.An injury to Quinn &mdash; incurred when he threw a bodycheck that missed the intended target and hit Horton &mdash; forced coach Punch Imlach to hurry Pronovost back to duty before he really intended to, as Horton&rsquo;s partner. All hands were pleased to note that Pronovost was capable of much more than they had hoped. Now the situation was ideal. Quinn&rsquo;s return would give Imlach five dependable rearguards, with Pilote available for point duty on power plays.During his convalescence, Pronovost became a sort of unofficial assistant coach, working with the youngsters &mdash; particularly Dorey, but also Pelyk.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s something I always liked to do,&rdquo; said Pronovost, harking back to his days with Detroit Red Wings, &ldquo;but only when I found a kid that was as willing to listen and as anxious to learn as Dorey is.&rdquo;Dorey, in turn, paid tribute to Pronovost for imparting the knowledge and experience he&rsquo;d picked up in his long and distinguished NHL career. In a way, this was professional suicide because the improvement of a rookie means just that much more difficulty for Pronovost in retaining his job.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t look at it that way at all,&rdquo; Pronovost argued. &ldquo;I see it as an opportunity to help the team.&rdquo;Pronovost turned professional in 1949 as a recruit in the Detroit organization. He was a first-string all-star twice and on the second team twice before being dealt to Leafs in 1965 as part of the trade that sent Andy Bathgate, Billy Harris and Gary Jarrett to Wings.Along with Pronovost, Leafs got Autrey Erickson, Larry Jeffrey, Eddie Joyal and Lowell MacDonald, none of whom is. with the Toronto club any more. Bathgate, Harris and Jarrett are gone from Detroit, too.Defense isn&rsquo;t Leafs&rsquo; only problem, mind you. They have only two good forward lines and you need three. The units centred by Dave Keon and Norm Ullman are more than satisfactory but Imlach can&rsquo;t use his other threesome &mdash; Mike Walton, George Armstrong and Bob Pulford &mdash; in tough situations. &#9632;

f0008-01

Maple Leafs Confident Rejuvenated Pronovost To Aid Club In Stretch

<div class="byline">&#x2014; By Bill Libby</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-02686/2908661-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="301" height="397"></div><h2>An Old Act: King And Red</h2>&bull;TORONTO CAME to L.A. to play a hockey game at the new Forum, but the best show wasn&rsquo;t on the ice, it was in the press box, which is a first of sorts, since writers are about as exciting as used tea leaves. Guests can be thrilling, however. Like two hardbitten old-timers, King Clancy, the veteran Maple Leaf aide, and Red Burnett, the veteran Toronto journalist.There is a large glass partition that has been improvised to divide part of the box in two. It perches precariously about six feet high atop one of the working tables. Clancy and Burnett chose to sit on opposite sides of it for some reason. As the game excited them, they responded to it, jumping around and pounding things and shouting until the glass partition began to shake violently, which frightened the more cowardly of the brave writers.King and Red began to shout comments at each other through the glass. But they could not hear through it. Soon one had jumped atop the table, where he wavered precariously, and was chinning himself on the top of the partition, shouting over it to the other. A few minutes later, the other returned the favor. Each time, the glass wobbled severely. By now the writers were in hysterics watching them.&ldquo;Look, look what he&rsquo;s doing now, one writer said hysterically, doubled over, gasping for breath, pointing at Burnett. He had jumped up on his table again, was reaching up and dropping a note over the top of the partition, where it fluttered down to Clancy. Clancy read it, wadded it up and threw it away angrily. Moments later, something else happened and Clancy was scribbling furiously, jumping up on the table and throwing a note over to Burnett. Burnett read it and discarded it with muttered comments.Still, they would not sit with one another. They stayed on their respective sides of the partition. Until, finally, a penalty call on the ice was just too much for Clancy. He leaped up, climbed over the back of chairs, swung himself around the glass as it bent horribly, and dropped into Burnett&rsquo;s section like a parachutist out of the sky. They talked and gestured wildly for a few moments. Then, sure enough, Clancy somehow managed to heave himself back around the partition and back to his seat.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03566/2908654-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="512" height="717"><figcaption class="caption-body">KING CLANCY &hellip; Hockey&rsquo;s My Home</figcaption></div>The whole game they shouted and gestured and directed notes at each other through the glass and over it and around it while it shuddered, yet stood. L.A. won, 3-1. Watching Clancy and Burnett, few of the writers had seen enough of the game to report it accurately. Few could, in any event. I forget who the three stars selected were. It doesn&rsquo;t matter. First star should have been Clancy. Second star, Burnett. And the third star? The glass partition, by all means.Clancy, of course, was a great defenseman. He has just the right face for an old defenseman. It shows every stick, every puck, every first, every memorable moment that passed its way. And the jaw still juts out determinedly, just begging for action. He coached for awhile and has been Punch Imlach&rsquo;s first lieutenant for a long time.Clancy is so old he calls Punch a young man. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t coach again for all the money in the world,&rdquo; King says. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s for young men like Imlach. By next season, Red Kelly will be one of the best in the business. All he needs is to get a little toughened up. It&rsquo;s a son of a gun of a job. It&rsquo;s not just knowing hockey, or getting respect. It&rsquo;s handling 18 men, all of them different, off the ice as well as on it. When I was playing, the more garbage the coach poured on me, the better I played. I wanted to show him up. It inspired me. Some are like that. Others you say the wrong word to them, you hurt their feelings, they curl up and go look for a place to die, and they&rsquo;re no good to anyone. You&rsquo;re responsible. It a heck of a responsibility.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t miss coaching. I don&rsquo;t miss playing. All I&rsquo;d miss is hockey if I wasn&rsquo;t in it somewhere, and I am. It&rsquo;s some kind of game, and I want to tell you it&rsquo;s getting better and the players are getting better and it&rsquo;s more exciting every year. I&rsquo;ve been married 35 years. I have two children and four grand-children. I have a good home and a fine family. But hockey people are my family, hockey&rsquo;s my home and my own familv knows it best of all.&ldquo;Hockey&rsquo;s been so good to me, I got to feel good about it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m very critical. I want the players to play the game just right, the way it should be played. I get very excited. It still gets me excited after all these years. If I ever have to leave it, forget it. By now, it&rsquo;s me. And it&rsquo;s beautiful to have something like this, anything that means to you what this means to me.&rdquo;<h2>A New Act: Bobby And The Animals</h2>&bull;THAT WAS THE head in Sports Illustrated when Bobby Orr and the Boston BruiAs followed Toronto into town, a good head, too, though Harry Sinden, the young Boston coach didn&rsquo;t like it. &ldquo;This game is won in six places&mdash;in the four corners and in front of the two nets. That&rsquo;s where we play it. And we play it the way it was meant to be played&mdash;fast and rough. We hit people. But we&rsquo;re not dirty. And we score goals,&rdquo; Sinden said.It&rsquo;s all true, too, though the Bruin cleanliness is at best tattle-tale grey, the blackboard in the Boston dressing room had on it, very large, the word: &ldquo;KILL. In just three years, this bright, brilliant 36-year-old young man who never even played in the NHL, has along with manager Milt Schmidt, rebuilt pussycats into tigers. Now he had a long unbeaten streak going.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a funny thing,&rdquo; Sinden said, &ldquo;but I used to be able to sleep, even when I lost. Once I made a bad play that blew us a big playoff game, got in a bus and immediately slept throughout a long, hard, cold, bumpy ride home. Three years ago when I first coached Boston and we finished last, I slept. Now, I&rsquo;m so excited at winning I lay awake all night and can&rsquo;t sleep.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0008-02

Hockey Ad Lib

<h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>BOSTON &mdash; Tom Webster, forward, recalled from Oklahoma City of CHL. Jim Harrison, forward, returned to Oklahoma City. Jean Gauthier, defenseman, recalled from Providence of AHL.TORONTO &mdash; Ricky Ley, defenseman, recalled from Tulsa ofCHL.ST. LOUIS &mdash; Ted Ouimet, goalkeeper, recalled from Kansas City of CHL. Gary Edwards, goalkeeper, returned to Kansas City.OAKLAND &mdash; Charlie Hodge, goalkeeper, assigned to Vancouver of WHL.CHICAGO &mdash; Jean-Paul Leblanc, forward, and Paul Shmyr, defenseman, recalled from Dallas ofCHL.<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>HERSHEY &mdash; Pete Goegan, defenseman, secured from Denver of WHL.ROCHESTER &mdash; Don Cherry, defenseman, sent to Vancouver of WHL.<h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>DENVER &mdash; Jacques Lemieux, defenseman, dropped from roster.PHOENIX &mdash; Doug Dunville, defenseman, dropped from roster.SEATTLE &mdash; Larry Lund, forward, sent to Quebec of AHL on loan.<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>PORT HURON &mdash; Henry Jaruga, defenseman. and Ken Kirton, goalkeeper, placed on waivers.DES MOINES &mdash; Phil Headley, goalkeeper, loaned to Jacksonville of EHL tor five-game emergency. Duffy Lewis, goalkeeper, secured from Nashville of, EHL as replacement. Bruce Neeley, defenseman. signed from Sarnia, Ont. Michel Jacques, forward, quit team and returned to Quebec home.COLUMBUS &mdash; Andre Courtemanche, forward, placed on waivers.<h2>EASTERN LEAGUE</h2>GREENSBORO &mdash; Wayne Caulfield, forward, secured from Salem of EHL on loan.SALEM &mdash; Claude Boucher, forward, placedon waivers.JERSEY &mdash; Ray Brunet, defenseman, signed from Victoriaville, Que, of Quebec Senior League. Claude Piche, forward, secured on loan from Clinton of EHL. &#9632;

Movements of Players

<div class="byline">BY PAT CURRAN</div>MONTREAL, Que.&mdash;Tiny Yvan Cournoyer did not want to think of any special number of goals he might score this season for the Canadiens.&ldquo;As long as the team wins, I should get my share, said the young winger some time ago. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be happy if I can break my own record.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-01755/2908716-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="253" height="405"><figcaption class="caption-body">Yvan Cournoyer</figcaption></div>Now the little speedball with the swift shot is happy to have topped the 28 goals he netted in 64 games last season. He has improved production every one of his five seasons in the NHL from seven goals in 55 games of 1964-65 to totals of 18, 25, 28 and whatever he accumulates this season.With more than 20 games left to play, Cournoyer has jumped the 30 goal mark to battle Bobby Hull, Phil Esposito and Frank Mahovlich for the goal-scoring title.It&rsquo;s quite awhile since any member of the Canadiens scored 40 goals, back to 196061 when Boom Boom Geoffrion had his 50-goal season and before that to 1958-59 when Jean Beliveau tallied 45 times and Dickie Moore netted 41.&ldquo;Sure it would be nice to hit 40 and I guess there&rsquo;s a good chance for me this year,&rdquo; offers Yvan cautiously. &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s bad for a player to think of a number and put pressure on himself. Then everytime he misses a goal he worries about it.&rdquo;.The 25-year-old forward is enjoying a fine season allround. Besides leading the Canadiens in goals, he is also high in four other brackets of team statistics &mdash; goals on the road, game-winners, tying goals and away ahead on his specialty of power-play tallies.His steady improvement since he broke into the NHL as a regular includes much more effort defensively, a phase of play emphasized by former Coach Toe Blake.&ldquo;I used to have some real bad games defensively, now I just have some bad periods when I forget my checks.&rdquo;In recent weeks, Cournoyer has shown a new willingness to absorb checks and to work harder for the puck instead of skating aimlessly and waiting for the breaks. He has also become quite a playmaker &mdash; over 25 assists to date &mdash; and his recent setup to Jean Beliveau was a hockey beauty at Chicago.Cournoyer shifted from right to left, faked a shot to bring both Hawks&rsquo; defenceman out of position and then passed across to Beliveau at the goalmouth. That was the second goal of Big Jean&rsquo;s 16th NHL hat trick.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s always nice to score myself but these plays really give me a thrill,&rdquo; said Yvan with a wide grin.Since Cournover skates on right wing as a left-hand shot he can&rsquo;t use the curved stick.&ldquo;I tried the curved blade and had all kinds of trouble with the puck bouncing off my stick. I should have known better because I have to take so many passes on the backhand.&rdquo;For awhile this season, Yvan was missing a lot of goals due to broken sticks. It seemed that every time he tried a slapshot the blade wound up further than the puck.&ldquo;I was going crazy until I got new sticks. They put a little fibre glass to reinforce the blades and now I&rsquo;ve got more confidence when I wind up to drill the puck.&rdquo;Shortly after changing sticks, Cournoyer wound up with the second hat-trick of his career in a Montreal win over Philadelphia and has been scoring consistently since then.Yvan credits his fine season and steady improvement to gradual maturity in pro hockey since he came up from the Junior Canadiens.&ldquo;Experience has helped and I guess I&rsquo;m taking the job more seriously since I got married last summer.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0009-01

Cournoyer Refuses To Set Scoring Target

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02690/2908747-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="552" height="709"></div> &#9632;

f0009-02

NHL’s ‘Big 10’ Goal Leaders

<div class="byline">BY LOU PRATO</div>PITTSBURGH, Pa. &mdash;It may be too late to save his job. but Pittsburgh Penguins coach Red Sullivan may have finally found the aggressive checking combination he has sought for two seasons.Almost from the time he accepted the Penguins&rsquo; coaching job, Sullivan said he wanted some bruising, hard checking players. However, seldom have his players lived up to expectations.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-01772/2908778-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="250" height="429"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bryan Watson</figcaption></div>The easy-mannered Penguins have been the softest touch in the NHL during the past two seasons and undoubtedly their type of play is responsible for the team&rsquo;s errant showing. Unless there is a complete reversal of form, the Penguins will finish out of the playoffs for the second straight year.Such a finish will certainly cost Sullivan his job, even though the fast-talking redhead is not totally responsible. Yet, perhaps, he has found the hard hitting combination he wanted so much.It is really too early to tell, but the trade which brought Bryan Watson and others to Pittsburgh in late January could someday be recognized as the turning point for Penguins hockey.Watson and teammate George Swarbrick, along with Tracy Pratt from Vancouver, were sent to Pittsburgh by Oakland in exchange for forwards Earl Ingarfield and Gene Ubriaco and defenseman Dick Mattiussi. And even though Ingarfield had been the team captain and Ubriaco the leading goal producer, the trade was not really surprising.Pittsburgh needed defense, particularly hard checkers. Ingarfield had been in Sullivan&rsquo;s dog house and Ubriaco, though one of the most popular players among the fans, was expendable in the right deal.Automatically, Watson and Swarbrick became the two most penalized members of the Penguins. And they showed why in their Penguins debut against Philadelphia &mdash; they gave no quarter and asked none, either.But, more importantly, their presence had other Penguins playing a more aggressive game, the type Sullivan had been seeking.&ldquo;It was nice to know you have got a couple of other guvs hitting,&rdquo; said Dune McCallum, until Watson&rsquo;s arrival the man with the most time in the penalty box.Before there were just two or three of us hitting but now we&rsquo;ve got help.&rdquo;&ldquo;Bryan put a lot of spark into us,&rdquo; said Wally Boyer. &ldquo;We saw a little body contact and we got fired up. He started it with his hustling.&rdquo;What Watson and Swarbrick did was help give the Penguins a 3-3 tie with Philadelphia. But the next night, the Penguins returned to form, blowing a 2-0 lead against New York and losing 7-3. It was costlier for Swarbrick who fractured his jaw when struck accidentally by a teammate&rsquo;s stick.Yet, despite the defeat and the familiar pattern in which it came, there is hope for the Penguins. Maybe not this year, though. After all, the team is now a good 10 points out of fourth place, and with Eastern Division teams making up the brunt of the remaining schedule the future this season is bleak.But Watson and Swarbrick have proven that the Penguins could play the type of aggressive, hard checking style needed to win. &#9632;

f0010-01

Watson’s Arrival Puts New Sock In Timid Penguins

MONTREAL, QUE.&mdash;It would appear now that it is a question of when, rather than wheher, Phil Esposito of Boston Bruins will break the 100-point barrier in the National Hockey League.The rangy Bruin center piled up another nine points in four games last week to widen his lead a top the scoring para de to 14 points. At the same time, Esposito equalled the total which Chicago&rsquo;s Stan Mikita had last season to win the scoring championship.Esposito, with 23 games still to play, has 87 points, including a league-leading 53 assists. The record for points is 97, Shared bv Mikita and Bobby Hull. &#9632;

Esposito Nears 100-Point Mark

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0010-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-02669/2908861-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg"></div>OVERALL WON AND LOST RECORDS THIS SEASON BETWEEN NHL TEAMS(Statistics include qames of Sunday, February 2)EASTERN DIVISIONHOME GAMES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-03555/2908854-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="565" height="300"></div>AWAY GAMES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04431/2908847-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="576" height="294"></div>WESTERN DIVISIONHOME GAMES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-05328/2908840-1-eng-US/f0010-052.jpg" title="f0010-05" width="577" height="303"></div>AWAY GAMES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-06256/2908833-1-eng-US/f0010-062.jpg" title="f0010-06" width="574" height="297"></div> &#9632;

f0010-02

How Teams Compare In National League

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0011-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-01763/2908906-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg"></div>INDIVIDUAL SCORING LEADERS(Including Games of Sun. Feb. 9)EAST DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-02703/2908899-1-eng-US/f0011-022.jpg" title="f0011-02" width="622" height="2166"></div>WEST DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-03591/2908892-1-eng-US/f0011-032.jpg" title="f0011-03" width="631" height="2166"></div> &#9632;

f0011-01

NHL SCORING RACE

<div class="byline">BY JACK BERRY</div>DETROIT, Mich. &mdash;The only power in the Red Wings&rsquo; power play is in the name.For a time the team successfully scoffed at the tradition that says a club must have a good power play to win. But that time ran out.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-04500/2908937-1-eng-US/f0011-042.jpg" title="f0011-04" width="280" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body">Garry Unger</figcaption></div>Statistically, the Wing power play was l-for-33 in a nine game span, 3-for-46 over 14 games. That&rsquo;s not the kind of figure that makes rival goalies board up their nets.Coach Bill Gadsby knows what the problem is but the solution is something else.Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio are Detroit&rsquo;s two best point men on the power play. But if Gadsby puts them on the points he doesn&rsquo;t have any wingmen up front who can deflect the Delvecchio and Howe shots or convert their passes into goals.Detroit&rsquo;s second, third and fourth line wingmen just aren&rsquo;t scoring and, even more, lately haven&rsquo;t been especially threatening. Offensively the club is almost a one line team&mdash;the Howe line.Gadsby put Frank Mahovlich, Delvecchio and Howe up front for the power play and put 21-year-old Garry Unger and Kent Douglas on the points. But Unger is inexperienced and often has been indecisive over whether to pass or shoot.&ldquo;I keep telling him that if he&rsquo;s got an opening, he should shoot,&rdquo; Gadsby said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s got a helluva shot, both slap shot and wrist shot.&rdquo;Douglas, whose slap shot was one of the best during his time in Toronto, just hasn&rsquo;t been able to click. He moved into 25-foot range in a game in Boston and blasted a slapper but Gerry Cheevers made a great stick save, deflecting the puck into the crowd.Despite regular duty on the power play, Douglas scored only two goals through the first 51 games.Another problem with the troublesome power play is that Gadsby doesn&rsquo;t want to break up three lines to get five men that can produce a power play goal and he can&rsquo;t afford to have his kid line go on the ice following a power play when the other club puts its big line out.&ldquo;You can do it against an expansion club, maybe, but you sure couldn&rsquo;t do that against Chicago&rsquo;s Bobby Hull line or Boston&rsquo;s Esposito line or Montreal&rsquo;s Beliveau line,&rdquo; Gadsby said.The Red Wing power play was quite proficient last season, fourth best in the league as a matter of fact. It produced 43 goals. However, the Wing penalty killing was the worst in the league and yielded 54 goals. The disparity is greater now. After 51 games the Wing power play had scored just 24 goals and the Wings gave up 39 power play markers, a difference of 15 goals.The penalty killing has been getting better with Pete Stemkowski and Dean Prentice turning in strong efforts up front and Bob Baun and Douglas on defense.But the failure of the power play to score makes the defensive record look worse.What can be done about it? Gadsby points out that the younger players, such as Unger, need experience and the only way they can get that is by playing.The Wings have taken a look at everyone they have in Fort Worth and don&rsquo;t appear ready to make any more changes.Prentice, who was used for only spot duty after an extremely disappointing first half, is being worked in more regularly now on a line with Stemkowski and Bruce MacGregor which gives the club two veteran lines plus a third line of youngsters and another with two youngsters on the flanks and Stemkowski at center. &#9632;

f0011-04

Wings’ Power Play Problems Haunt Gadsby For Solution

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0011-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-05420/2908968-1-eng-US/f0011-052.jpg"></div>(Including games of Sun. Feb. 9) &#9632;

f0011-05

Looking At NHL Goalers

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-06367/2908999-1-eng-US/f0011-062.jpg" title="f0011-06" width="735" height="729"><figcaption class="caption-body">PHOTO BY FAMOUS STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHERS OF THE STARS</figcaption></div>COTTON STRINGS - 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 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.Highland Knitting MillsMontreal, Canada &#9632;

f0011-06

“KAMBERN ORIGINALS”

&ldquo;you like 7up 7up likes you&rdquo;&ldquo;you like 7up 7up likes you&rdquo;OAKLAND, Calif. &mdash;If some of the other expansion teams are doing nothing to take some of the starch out of the established National League teams at least the Oakland Seals are giving it a whirl.The Seals have suddenly become the West&rsquo;s new &lsquo;giant killers&rsquo; in their relentless bid to catch up to the old line NHL clubs. Admittedly the East tops the West on the overall season 101-39 and 27 ties in 167 games but recently they haven&rsquo;t been quite so convincing against the new clubs.In the last 25 starts between the two divisions&rsquo; the East has only an 11-8-6 won-lost-tied record&rsquo; which represents a substantial gain for the expansion teams, possibly their best three-week showing since the NHL grew to 12 teams last season.The Seals have been leading the charge against the East in recent weeks without discrimination. They&rsquo;ve knocked off all the top Eastern clubs&rsquo; including Montreal and Boston.In their last nine meetings with old clubs, the Seals have won five, lost two and tied two which represents 12 out of a possible 18 points. Not bad for a club that is loaded with Montreal &lsquo;castoffs&rsquo; and a team that couldn&rsquo;t get out of the division cellar last year.The Seals have a new outlook on big time hockey this season and Oakland coach Fred Glover must be commended for bringing the team all the way from the Western depths to second place behind the runaway St. Louis Blues.Despite their vigorous performance on the ice, the Seals still appeared to be doomed off of it.Directors of the club submitted a formal request to the NHL last week to have their franchise transferred to Vancouver. The application will go before the NHL&rsquo;s board of governors at a Feb. 18 meeting in New York.The application for transfer, which carried the signature of Barry Van Gerbig, was delivered to NHL president Clarence Campbell by hand while Campbell was visiting San Francisco.The NHL team owners announced during the AllStar game break in Montreal that they had decided to retain the Oakland franchise in the San Francisco-Oakland area even if it mean&rsquo;t subsidizing the club.The Vancouver delegation will carry the torch for an NHL berth to the New York meeting according to Cyrus H. McLean, president of the Vancouver Hockey Club, which now operates in the Western League.The Canucks, who have a spanking new 15,000-seat arena, have been averaging 7,422 at WHL games. The Seals, who lost a reported $1,800,000 in 1967-68, have been below than number. &#9632;

Aroused Oakland Seals Cut Old Teams Down To Size

&mdash; IN THE EASTIt&rsquo;s safe to assume that Frank Mahovlich has made Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; fans forget all about Normie Ullman.Mahovlich, involved in a multiplayer trade that saw Ullman head for Toronto a year ago, has become the National Hockey League&rsquo;s leading goalgetter with 36.He combines with linemates Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio to form the NHL&rsquo;s highest-scoring unit &mdash; surpassing the Boston Bruins&rsquo; trio of Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Ron Murphy.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-01742/2909054-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="268" height="333"><figcaption class="caption-body">Frank Mahovlich</figcaption></div>Mahovlich tallied his fourth hat-trick of the season and 10th of his illustrious career Sunday to steer the Wings to a 5-0 whitewashing of Los Angeles Kings. The Big &lsquo;M&rsquo; also assisted on the remaining Angeles two Detroit goals.Earlier in the week. Mahovlich sparked Detoit to back-to-back victories over the slumping Chicago Black Hawks. He played second fiddle to Gordie Howe&rsquo;s hat-trick in a 6-1 win with a goal and an assist, and then netted the insurance marker in a 3-1 Detroit triumph.El Producto and THE HOCKEY NEWS are pleased to salute the NHL player-of-the-week in the East:Frank Mahovlich.....Detroit &#9632;

f0012-01

NHL Ployer Of The Week

&mdash; IN THE WESTFrom out of nowhere, Mike Laughton is suddenly emerging as a bonafide candidate for rookie-of-the-year honors in the NHL.Laughton, who had only 10 goals irior to last week, splurged for four joals in three games to ignite the Oakland Seals to an unbeaten siege against three Eastern Division teams.The big forward started it off with two goals and two assists as the Seals trounced the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens 5-1.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02644/2909085-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="265" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Laughton</figcaption></div>Laughton followed this up by netting the back-breaker as Oakland stunned Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 in Toronto and found the range again as the Seals held the powerful Eastern leaders, Boston Bruins, to a 3-3 stalemate.The Oakland streak solidified the team&rsquo;s hold on second place in the Western Division ahead of Los Angeles Kings.El Producto and THE HOCKEY NEWS are pleased to salute the player-of-the-week in the West:Mike Laughton.....Oakland &#9632;

f0012-02

NHL Player Of The Week

<h2>MONTREAL</h2>Goal, Vachon, Worsley, Defense, Laperriere, J.C. Tremblay, Harris, 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, Pelyk, Ley. Forwards, Ellis, Ullman, Oliver, Keon, Mickey, Walton, F. Smith, Henderson, Pulford, Armstrong, Sutherland.<h2>CHICAGO</h2>Goal, Dryden, DeJordy, Defense Shmyr, Young, Reia, Ravlich, Stapleton, Jarrett, Forwards Orban, Martin Pappin, B. Hull Leblanc, Mohns, Nesterenko, C. Maki, Wharram, Schmautz, Mikita.<h2>NEW YORK</h2>Goal, Giacomin, Simmons, Defense, Hamilton Brown, Park, Neilson, Seiling. Forwards, Gilbert, Nevin, Fleming, Jeffrey Hadfield, Stewart, Balon, Ratelie, Goyette, Marshall, Tkaczuk.<h2>DETROIT</h2>Goal, Crozier, Edwards, Sawchuk. Defense, Baun, Douglas, Popiel, Bergman, Harris. Forwards, Unger, Howe, Delvecchio, F. Mahovlich, MacGregor, Libett, Hatoum, Stemkowski, Monteith, Prentice, Leclerc.<h2>BOSTON</h2>Goal, Cheevers, Johnston. Defense, Orr, Green, Westfall, Smith, Doak Awrey. Forwards, Esposito, Hodge, Bucyk, Cashman, Sather, Sanderson, Stanfield, McKenzie, Shack, Murphy, Webster.<h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2>Goal, Parent, Wilson. Defense, Van Impe, Watson, Miszuk, Stanley, Hale, Cherry. Forwards, Lacroix, Rochefort, Selby, Gendron, Dornhoefer, Sarrazin,-Peters, Blackbum, Johnson, Kennedy, Stankiewicz.<h2>OAKLAND</h2>Goal, Smith, Worthy. Defense: Roberts, Vadnais, Lacombe, Mattiussi, Marshall, Odrowski, Forwards, Laughton, Ehman, Hicke, Hampson, Jarrett, Ingarfield, Dillabough, Ferguson, Szurra, Perry, Ubriaco.<h2>PITTSBURGH</h2>Goal, Binkley, Daley, Defense, Rupp, Legace, Price, McCallum, Woytcwich. Forwards, Angotti, Fonteyne, Burns, Watson, Swarbrick, Schinkel, Dea, Harris, Boyer, Pronovost, McCreary.<h2>ST. LUIS</h2>Goal, Hall, Plante. 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, Boivin, Vasko, McCord, Nanne. Forwards, O&rsquo;Shea, Cullen, Parise, Connelly, Boudrias Johnston, Larose, Collins, Grant, MacDonald, Goldsworthy.<h2>LOS ANGELES</h2>Goal, Rutledge, Desjardins. Defense, Wall, Amadio, Rolfe, B. Hughes, Cahan, White. Forwards, Campbell, Peters, R. Lemieux, H. Hughes, Irvine, Joyal, Flett, Labossiere, Anderson. &#9632;

NHL TEAM LINEUPS

<h2>TUES. FEB 4</h2>DETROIT 2 PHILADELPHIA 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01730/2909308-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="594" height="335"></div>ST&mdash;LOUIS 2 LOS ANGELES 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02681/2909301-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="606" height="497"></div><h2>WED. FEB. 5</h2>MONTREAL 1 At OAKLAND 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-03632/2909294-1-eng-US/f0013-032.jpg" title="f0013-03" width="594" height="631"></div>NEW YORK 2 At PITTSBURGH 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-04580/2909287-1-eng-US/f0013-042.jpg" title="f0013-04" width="606" height="467"></div><h2>THURS. FEB. 6</h2>MONTREAL 4 at LOS ANGELES 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-05477/2909280-1-eng-US/f0013-052.jpg" title="f0013-05" width="594" height="663"></div>BOSTON 1 at ST. LOUIS 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-06407/2909273-1-eng-US/f0013-062.jpg" title="f0013-06" width="596" height="541"></div>CHICAGO 1 at DETROIT 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-07377/2909266-1-eng-US/f0013-072.jpg" title="f0013-07" width="594" height="287"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-08354/2909259-1-eng-US/f0013-082.jpg" title="f0013-08" width="598" height="403"></div>BOSTON 7 At CHICAGO 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-09337/2909252-1-eng-US/f0013-092.jpg" title="f0013-09" width="604" height="739"></div>MINNESOTA S At TORONTO 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-10315/2909245-1-eng-US/f0013-102.jpg" title="f0013-10" width="576" height="791"></div><h2>SAT. FEB. 8</h2>PHILADELPHIA 5 at BOSTON 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-11289/2909238-1-eng-US/f0013-112.jpg" title="f0013-11" width="584" height="989"></div>LOS ANGELES 4 at PITTSBURGH 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-12253/2909231-1-eng-US/f0013-122.jpg" title="f0013-12" width="598" height="617"></div>MONTREAL 6 At MINNESOTA 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-13219/2909224-1-eng-US/f0013-132.jpg" title="f0013-13" width="598" height="195"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-14186/2909217-1-eng-US/f0013-142.jpg" title="f0013-14" width="606" height="643"></div>OAKLAND 4 At TORONTO 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-15154/2909210-1-eng-US/f0013-152.jpg" title="f0013-15" width="584" height="581"></div>DETROIT 3 At CHICAGO 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-16112/2909203-1-eng-US/f0013-162.jpg" title="f0013-16" width="598" height="573"></div>ST. LOUIS 0 At NEW YORK 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1791/2909196-1-eng-US/f0013-172.jpg" title="f0013-17" width="600" height="177"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1877/2909189-1-eng-US/f0013-182.jpg" title="f0013-18" width="572" height="219"></div>SUN. FEB. 9MONTREAL 4 At ST. LOUIS 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1960/2909182-1-eng-US/f0013-192.jpg" title="f0013-19" width="598" height="655"></div>OAKLAND 4 At BOSTON 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2040/2909175-1-eng-US/f0013-202.jpg" title="f0013-20" width="590" height="613"></div>LOS ANGELES 0 At DETROIT 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2131/2909168-1-eng-US/f0013-212.jpg" title="f0013-21" width="612" height="453"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2224/2909161-1-eng-US/f0013-222.jpg" title="f0013-22" width="564" height="107"></div>TORONTO 5 At CHICAGO 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2316/2909154-1-eng-US/f0013-232.jpg" title="f0013-23" width="586" height="661"></div>PITTSBURGH 1 At MINNESOTA 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2412/2909147-1-eng-US/f0013-242.jpg" title="f0013-24" width="588" height="489"></div>PHILADELPHIA 3 At NEW YORK 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2512/2909140-1-eng-US/f0013-252.jpg" title="f0013-25" width="588" height="613"></div> &#9632;

f0013-01

National Hockey League Summaries

<div class="byline">BY ED CONRAD</div>PHILADELPHIA. Pa. &mdash;When the historians recap the 1968-69 National Hockey League season, they&rsquo;d better save a page in their book for the Flyers&rsquo; nightmare against the Chicago Black Hawks.That was the night when the Black Hawks made the Flyers look like a &ldquo;Junior B&rdquo; team while bombarding them to the tune of 12-0, a game in which several all-time NHL records were threatened.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03481/2909377-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="259" height="378"><figcaption class="caption-body">Keith Allen</figcaption></div>It was the worst defeat in the league in several years, the most one-sided defeat by an expansion team to one of the established clubs and the highest score by any team this season.&ldquo;We were absolutely terrible,&rdquo; said coach Keith Allen afterward. &ldquo;We couldn&rsquo;t do a damn thing right. That wasn&rsquo;t just for one period, either, because we played bad in every period.&ldquo;And it wasn&rsquo;t only one guy. It was all of us. When you come up with such a sad performance, everybody on the team contributes to it.&rdquo;The Flyers, who had battled the Black Hawks to a pair of 2-2 ties their only previous meetings of the season, suffered a gigantic reversal in the game&rsquo;s early minutes.The Black Hawks performed one of the rarest feats in hockey&mdash;scoring a pair of shorthanded goals on the same two-minute penalty &mdash; and that was the go-power that sent them soaring. They collected both of these, the first by Stan Mikita and the second by Chico Maki, within a span of 61 seconds against goalie Doug Favell.Before the period was through, the Black Hawks had turned on the red light four more times. The score was an unbelievable 6-0 when Allen yanked Favell with 2 &frac12; minutes remaining in the first period.The Black Hawks never let up, though. They blitzed Parent for three goals in each of the next two periods even though Bernie had a dozen fine saves. Chicago was simply passing the Flyers dizzy and their shots &mdash; they had 49 in the game &mdash; came a dime a dozen.In fact, if the Black Hawks had even a little more luck, they certainly might&rsquo;ve broken the league&rsquo;s all-time record of 16 goals in a game by the Montreal Canadiens in a 16-3 victory ever the old Quebec Bulldogs in 1920.They also would&rsquo;ve had a legitimate shot at breaking the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; record for the worse shutout, a 15-0 win over the New York Rangers in 1944.&ldquo;I really felt sorry for Keith Allen,&rdquo; said Chicago coach Billy Reay. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough to have it happen at home. It&rsquo;s really rugged.&ldquo;The thing is, we couldn&rsquo;t score a goal even-up for about three games there. Then in this game everything goes in. You can never figure it.&rdquo;Dennis Hull, who contributed two goals and three assists, figured the Flyers suffered a tremendous psychological letdown once the Black Hawks had gotten two quick goals on the Flyers&rsquo; power-play.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s really enough to knock the starch out of you,&rdquo; said Dennis. &ldquo;Why, when you give up two goals like that and then fall behind by three goals so early in the game, it&rsquo;s only natural for the guys on the team to play differently.&ldquo;When things seem to be getting out of hand, the individual players start trying to win the game themselves. I know, because it has happened to us many times.&rdquo;Dennis DeJordy, who turned back 37 shots to record the shutout, said he didn&rsquo;t think Favell was in the proper frame of mind to be the starting goalie.&ldquo;He just didn&rsquo;t seem to be his old self because, even on his first two saves, he seemed to be falling down on the ice and just hoping he&rsquo;d make the stop. It looked to me that he was reallv fighting the puck.&rdquo;Dejordy&rsquo;s appraisal proved correct because the Black Hawks took only 18. shots at Favell before he was replaced but hit the bulls-eye on six of them. They later scored the other six goals in 31 shots at Parent. Jim Pappin had the three-goal hat trick to lead the Black Hawks.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not only blaming Dougie but everyone on the club,&rdquo; said Allen. &ldquo;I only put in Bernie (the firs time the Flyers have ever changed goalies except for an injury) because sometimes it gives a team life.&ldquo;It was the worst loss any team of mine ever suffered,&rdquo; lamented Keith. &#9632;

f0014-03

Allen Laments Hawk Shelling, Expects Flyers To Bounce Back

<div class="byline">BY TOM MONAHAN</div>BOSTON, Mass. &mdash;Durability and dependability have been Eddie Westfa1l&rsquo;s trademark since he finally made the grade as a full-time Bruin five seasons ago.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01704/2909415-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="274" height="423"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jean Gauthier</figcaption></div>Now he has added scoring touch to his other talents and Coach Harry Sinden calls Westfall the &ldquo;most underrated player in the league.&rdquo;Until the second half of last season, the 28-year-old veteran from Belleville, Ont., had been noted as a utility player.His job was to kill penalties and when the Bruins played Chicago his specialty was covering Bobby Hull.He did this latter job so effectively that he was known around the Hub as &ldquo;The Shadow&rdquo;.But then through the process of injury and steady performance he became a regular at right wing.He finished the season with 14 goals, the most in his NHL career. He also chipped in 22 assists for a total of 36 points.Starting this season Westfall was assigned the right wing spot with Calder Cup winner Derek Sanderson at center and Eddie Shack on the left side.The Bruins have suffered a series of injuries on both the right and left wings but Sinden has kept Westfall in that one spot.Westfall now has reached a career high of 15 goals scored and has 16 assists and is certain to surpass the best point production of his six previous seasons with the Bruins.&ldquo;I always had confidence that I could get my share of goals if I played regularly at one position,&rdquo; says the personable Westfall.&ldquo;But until this year I never really had one assignment. I always was filling in here or there. I&rsquo;d be on right wing one game, center in another, left wing a third and then be back on defense.&ldquo;And there always were those special jobs like watching Hull or Gordie Howe.&ldquo;I never really objected to this. I didn&rsquo;t mind as long as I was playing and was doing something that would help the team. But it does make a difference as far as scoring is concerned when you are shifting around like that.&rdquo;Sinden definitely agrees with Westfall in this respect.&ldquo;Any player has to be able to play one position every night to be most productive from the scoring standpoint,&rdquo; says Sinden. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s why Westfall never really showed up well in the point standings.&ldquo;But now we haven&rsquo;t had to use him in so many different jobs and he is showing what he can do.&ldquo;Unfortunately,&rdquo; continues Sinden &ldquo;a great many people still don&rsquo;t recognize what Eddie is doing.&ldquo;They have been so accustomed to seeing him out there and just working away that they tend to take him for granted.&ldquo;But let me tell you I don&rsquo;t take him for granted. He is a very valuable asset to this team and I think he is the most underrated player in the league.&ldquo;You never have to worry about Westfall being ready to play a game. He comes into that locker-room ready to play.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02633/2909408-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="552" height="1215"><figcaption class="caption-body">EDDIE WESTFALL &hellip;Most Underrated Player</figcaption></div>&ldquo;Oh yes, he might have an occasional off night. But those are very rare with Westfall.&ldquo;He isn&rsquo;t the greatest skater in the league but he is the most effective forechecker in the league. He has great hockey sense. He anticipates plays the other team will try to make.&ldquo;He is in the right place at the right time while doing a defensive job. He also is a great passer. And he has exceptional balance. You rarely see Eddie knocked down. He&rsquo;s on his skates and always ready to do his job.&ldquo;And we still regard him as one of our best penalty killers and if we need him to put on a guy like Hull we know he&rsquo;s going to get the job done.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s just steady and ready all the time to do the job we need.&rdquo;ICE CHIPS &mdash; The loss of Bobby Orr and Johnny McKenzie with knee injuries for at least the two games at Chicago and St. Louis last week forced the Bruins to call up Jean Gauthier from Providence to fill in for Orr and Tom Webster, 20-year-old wing who is in his first year of pro hockey, from Oklahoma City&hellip; Orr aggravated the left knee which has been operated on twice in the last two seasons and the B&rsquo;s decided to take no chances with the young all-star defenseman&hellip; McKenzie suffered strained ligaments in his left knee and was placed in a cast&hellip; He may be out for two weeks. &#9632;

f0015-01

Versatile Westfall Adds Hew Talent-He’s Scorer, Too

ASK YOUR DEALER ABOUTLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS (FORMERLY WALLY)(Hockey sticks distributed in the U.S. through the Hiherich & Brads by Co.)ASK YOUR DEALER ABOUTLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS (FORMERLY WALLY)(Hockey sticks distributed in the U.S. through the Hiherich & Brads by Co.)LEADING SCORERS(including Games of Sun. Feb. 2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01551/2909477-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="594" height="505"></div>GOALKEEPERS&rsquo; RECORDS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02474/2909470-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="592" height="477"></div> &#9632;

f0016-01

AHL Point Race

HERSHEY 3 at PROVIDENCE 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03374/2909571-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="590" height="529"></div><h2>TUES. FEB. 4</h2>SPRINGFIELD 6 At QUEBEC 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04299/2909564-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="598" height="553"></div><h2>FRI. FEB. 7</h2>ROCHESTER 3 at BUFFALO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05227/2909557-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="600" height="477"></div>HERSHEY 4 at BALTIMORE 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06180/2909550-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="572" height="185"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-07167/2909543-1-eng-US/f0016-072.jpg" title="f0016-07" width="606" height="487"></div><h2>SAT. FEB. 8</h2>BUFFALO 4 At CLEVELAND 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-08151/2909536-1-eng-US/f0016-082.jpg" title="f0016-08" width="586" height="601"></div>ROCHESTER 3 At PROVIDENCE 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-09130/2909529-1-eng-US/f0016-092.jpg" title="f0016-09" width="604" height="717"></div>BALTIMORE 2 At SPRINGFIELD 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-10110/2909522-1-eng-US/f0016-102.jpg" title="f0016-10" width="602" height="227"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1196/2909515-1-eng-US/f0016-112.jpg" title="f0016-11" width="596" height="177"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1280/2909508-1-eng-US/f0016-122.jpg" title="f0016-12" width="592" height="197"></div> &#9632;

f0016-03

American League Summaries

<div class="byline">By GEORGE DUFFY</div>PROVIDENCE, R.I.&mdash;Alton White, a likeable 23 year old Negro hockey player, will make history the night of February 14, 1969.On that occasion, the high scoring right winger of the Columbus Checkers of the International Hockey League, will join the Rhode Island Reds for a one game tryout in an American Hockey League game against the Buffalo Bisons.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1369/2909602-1-eng-US/f0016-132.jpg" title="f0016-13" width="246" height="443"><figcaption class="caption-body">Alton White</figcaption></div>It will mark the first time in 43 years of competition that a Negro has played in a regularly scheduled game for providence.And the impression has been created that all concerned are happy. Owner Lou Pieri and General Manager Dave Creighton of the Reds feel that White is a budding star.He will not be in a Providence uniform long, however. Under hockey rules, White is allowed only five games in the AHL before he is turned pro. The February 14 game will be one of those tilts. When it is over Alton will hurry back to Port Huron, Mich, to play for the Columbus Checkers.Actually, the Reds had hoped to have White for five games in a row and then decide whether to turn him pro or not. But the Columbus club balked at this arrangement, insisting it wanted to keep hold of White as long as possible.Although the Reds own White, they had to give in to the Columbus request. White will now play five games for the Reds on occasions when the Checkers are not playing.With 29 goals already this season, it would appear White is spending his last season in the International League. Despite his size, 5-9, 160 pounds, Alton is considered a great pro prospect. He has unending energy, a good shot and skates well.Most important, he wants to be a pro. &ldquo;My one ambition,&rdquo; he has said over again, &ldquo;is to play in Providence.&rdquo; On February 14, the young man who was born in Amherst, Nova Scotia, will see his dreams come true. &#9632;

f0016-13

Reds To Test Negro Star In Five-Game AHL Tryout

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)Eastern Division<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01464/2909640-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="598" height="173"></div>Western Division<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02412/2909633-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="582" height="167"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDTu. Feb 4Springfield 6 at Quebec 2Fri. Feb 7Hershey 4 at Baltimore 7Rochester 3 at Buffalo 4Sat. Feb. 8Buffalo 4 at Cleveland 3Rochester 3 at Providence 6Baltimore 2 at Springfield 7Sun. Feb. 9Hershey 4 ot Buffalo 2Springfield 3 at Cleveland 6Quebec 0 at Rochester 3Baltimore at Providence, pp&rsquo;d. storm.GAMES TO COMETues. Feb. 11Quebec at BaltimoreWed. Feb. 12Rochester ot BuffaloQuebec at ClevelandFri. Feb. 14Buffalo ot ProvidenceHershey at SpringfieldSat. Feb. 15Buffalo at BaltimoreRochester at ClevelandProvidence at SpringfieldSun. Feb. 16Cleveland at BuffaloSpringfield at ProvidenceHershey at QuebecBaltimore at Rochester &#9632;

f0017-01

<div class="byline">BY CHARLEY BARTON</div>BUFFALO. N.Y.Guy Trottier, the Buffalo Bisons&rsquo; non-stop rightwinger with 33 goals in 42 games, is taking dead aim on the American Hockey League&rsquo;s all-time record.The sturdy Trottier, who has scored at least once in 16 of 22 home games and in 13 of 20 away games, missed one game here when he was recalled by the parent New York Rangers.Scoring currently at the rate of .786 goals per game. Trottier would wind up with 57 goals in the 74-game schedule if he maintains his present pace over the remaining 31 games.The AHL record of 55 goals for one season is shared by Carl Liscombe and Sid Smith. Liscombe was with the Providence Reds and Smith with the Pittsburgh Hornets when they established the record in 1948-49 over a 68-game schedule. The Buffalo team record is 50, set by Len Lunde in 1964-65 in 72 games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-04267/2909671-1-eng-US/f0017-042.jpg" title="f0017-04" width="524" height="817"><figcaption class="caption-body">GUY TROTTIER &hellip;On Goal-a-game pace</figcaption></div>Lunde, now with the Vancouver Canucks of the Western League, played here on a line with Pat Hannigan, back with the Bisons, and Art Stratton, now with Seattle in the Western League.Trottier opened this season on a line with Dennis Hextali and Dennis Kassian. Hannigan has taken his spot with those two, and Trottier is working with Billy Knibbs at center and left-winger Norm Beaudin, also a right-hand shooter.Trottier scored in eight straight games &mdash; four short of the league record &mdash; before he was stopped here Jan. 3 in a 4-0 win over Rochester. He had scored in eight straight road games before missing at Providence. &#9632;

f0017-04

Hot Scoring Trottier Aims At 55-Goal Record

<div class="byline">BY BOB ELMER</div>BALTIMORE, Md. &mdash;Two twenty year old youngsters in the Detroit Red Wings organization are doing their part to help Baltimore Clippers coach Aldo Guido-lin get his normal eight hours sleep these days.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03341/2909702-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="242" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dick Mortenson</figcaption></div>Since the addition of defenseman Gerry Hart and left winger Dick Mortenson, the Clippers have come on like gangbusters the last few weeks and are making a legitimate run at Hershey&rsquo;s eastern division leading Bears.&ldquo;Both of these boys have showed me something, &ldquo;Guidolin enthuses, &ldquo;and you can bet they are a welcome addition to our club. Terry (Reardon-GM) and I have long felt that if we could get a few youngsters with young, fast legs to blend with the older but more experienced skaters like Willie Marshall, Jim Morrison, Jean-Marie Cossette, Keke Mortson, Ed MacQueen and others, that we would have a flag contender. And, they have done just that.&rdquo;After sitting on the bench for about six games, Mortenson was thrust into the Baltimore lineup just after they returned from their most successful road trip in history as a replacement for the injured Jean-Marie Cossette. The latter, enjoying his finest winter as Baltimore&rsquo;s top scorer with 51 points in 38 games, was victimized by teammate Wayne Hicks&rsquo; blistering slap shot in a game in Hershey, and spent the next two weeks on the sidelines administering to a severely bruised left instep.Mortenson moved in with center Bob Rivard and Wayne Hicks and demonstrated a lot of talent in shooting and passing as well as the ability to take the rougher action which characterizes American League play as compared to the brand of Junior A hockey young Mortenson participated in with the Edmonton Oil Kings last winter. He turned pro with Detroit this year and his credentials were most impressive with 53 goals and 40 assists for 93 points with Edmonton. Physically, Mortenson reaches 5-11, weighs 175 and could be another Gordie Howe for the Wings.Hart is also well liked by both the Detroit and Baltimore brass, and although a little small at 5-9, he is stocky at 180 and reminds Clipper trainer Gump Embro of Chicago&rsquo;s Pat Stapleton.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s built just like him,&rdquo; Embro avers, &ldquo;and at 20 years old I&rsquo;d say he appears to have a great future. He can take it as well as dish it out just like you saw the other night in his fight with Springfield&rsquo;s lanky Rick Pagnutti.&rdquo;&ldquo;Hart has captured the fancy of the Clipper fans for his wide open style of play. He brings the puck up nicely from his defensive zone, passes smartly and isn&rsquo;t afraid to tangle with the best of the league&rsquo;s sharpshooting forwards.&rdquo;Hart hails from Flin Flon, Manitoba which Clipper goalie Gil Boisvert claims is 200 miles north of Winnipeg, but which nevertheless has spawned a number of fine hockey players including today&rsquo;s active skaters like Eric Nesterenko, Duane Rupp, Allan Hamilton, Mel Pearson, George Konik, Dune McCallum and goalie Ernie Wakely. With the Bombers in Junior A last winter, the blond-haired Hart hit for 13 goals and 38 assists for 51 points.Both boys came to Baltimore through the generosity of Detroit&rsquo;s Sid Abel and Baz Bastien, with whom the Clippers entered into a player agreement last summer. In addition to Hart and Mortenson, other Detroit chattels who have worn Clipper livery at various times this winter are Jim Watson, Dave Rochefort, Bob Falkenberg and Don McLeod. &#9632;

f0017-03

Detroit Chattels Mortenson, Hart Impress

<div class="byline">BY HANS TANNER</div>ROCHESTER, N.Y. &mdash;The Rochester Americans are in the wrong division of the American Hockey League.At least that&rsquo;s what the records show this season. The Amerks are playing in the Western Division with Buffalo, Quebec and Cleveland. Through Feb. 6, they have won but once over both Buffalo and Quebec, while losing six to each club and tying the Bisons once and the Aces three times. Against Cleveland Rochester has a 4-5-1 record.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-05220/2909733-1-eng-US/f0017-052.jpg" title="f0017-05" width="254" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ron Ward</figcaption></div>That&rsquo;s a combined mark of six victories, 17 defeats and five ties. At home, Rochester is a miserable 4-8-2 and hasn&rsquo;t beaten a Western Division opponent since Dec. 15. Since then, the Amerks are 0-6-1 against Buffalo, Quebec and Cleveland here.But the Eastern Division&hellip; ah, how sweet it is!At least a 10-9-3 record is sweeter than 6-17-5. The Amerks hold a 4-1-0 bulge over Providence and are 3-1-0 over Baltimore. Rochester is 2-3-1 against Springfield and 1-4-2 against Hershey.On home ice, the Americans are a great 8-1-1 &mdash; the lone defeat coming against Hershey way back on Dec. 1.ICICLES &mdash; The Oakland-Pittsburgh trade recently cost Vancouver defenseman Tracy Pratt, on loan to the Canucks. And that cost the Amerks captain Don Cherry, who joined the Canucks just the day before his 35th birthday&hellip; Rookie Ron Ward should be a shoo-in as the top first year player. He tallied his 26th and 27th goals of the season here Feb. 2.Rochester&rsquo;s loss in Hershey Jan. 29 was its 26th of the season. That&rsquo;s more than any Amerk club in the previous four years lost for an entire campaign. &#9632;

f0017-05

West Teams Too Tough For Amerks

<div class="byline">BY JOHN TRAVERS</div>HERSHEY, Pa.&mdash;Young Garnet (Ace) Bailey is the Hershev Bears ho pe to capture the &ldquo;Rookie&rdquo; of the Year award a prize that has escaped the club since it was first introduced 22 years ago.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01470/2909764-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="277" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Garnet Bailey</figcaption></div>Hershey skaters have managed to win at least once every other individual league trophy with the exception of the Dudley (Red) Garrett Memorial Award, given to the American League&rsquo;s outstanding first year skater.In his first 42 games, the 20-year-old left winger, gifted with one of the hardest shots in the league, notched 33 points, including 13 goals. Three of his markers were game winners.Bailey, who broke into pro ranks last season with Oklahoma City of the Central League, is a fiery competitor. He has pulled 82 minutes in penalties, tops for the club.&ldquo;He was bothered with an injury for a short time,&rdquo; said coach-general manager Frank Mathers, &ldquo;but since he&rsquo;s returned he&rsquo;s done a fine job.&rdquo;Bailey, a product of Edmonton, had one recent spurt of four goals in a half-dozen games.In order to be eligible for the &ldquo;Rookie-of-the-Year&rdquo; award, a player must not have played in more than 30 games in any combined season in the AHL, WHL or NHL.Bailey is one of two young outstanding new skaters on the Hershey club. The other is Stan Gilbertson, a 23-year-old left winger, who spent the past three seasons in the Western League and is ineligible for the Red Garrett Award.Gilbertson, through 46 games, had scored 18 goals and aided in 13 tallies for 31 points.The Eastern Division pacesetting Bears departed Feb. 2 on an extended seven game road trip boasting a ten point lead.In order to keep a comfortable edge over the pressing Providence Reds and Baltimore Clippers in the Eastern title race, the Bears must win at least three of the road games.And foreign ice has been the Bears only headache this campaign. Hershey has won only seven of its first 23 road matches, a factor which has kept the club from making a strong run at the W&rsquo;estern Division leading Buffalo Bisons for the league&rsquo;s overall crown.Long John Henderson continues his outstanding play in the nets as the 6-5 veteran goalie backstopped the Bears to 10 wins in his last 15 starts. In compiling a 10-4-1 record in that stretch, Henderson allowed only 40 goals, a splendid 2.6 average.And Michel Harvey, the league&rsquo;s top scorer with 66 points after 48 games, has an outside chance of becoming only the third player in club history to score 100 points in a single season. He figures as a strong candidate for the league&rsquo;s most valuable player prize. &#9632;

f0018-01

Bailey Hershey’s Big Hope For Rookie Award in AHL

<div class="byline">BY ED CRANE</div>SPOKANE, Wash.&mdash;Spokane Jets are clinging precariously to the lead in the Western International Hockey League but the Kimberley Dynamiters are breathing down their necks.Ever since the Jets took over first place in the early part of the season they&rsquo;ve been looking over their shoulders somewhat apprehensively as the Dynamiters have been relentless in their pursuit, but now a new threat looms on the horizon &mdash; the third-place Nelson Maple Leafs, four points behind Kimberley, have suddenly become the hottest team in the league.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02380/2909795-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="265" height="423"><figcaption class="caption-body">Murray Owens</figcaption></div>At the end of the first half of the 48-game season, the Leafs had a mediocre 12-12-0 record. They&rsquo;ve played another quarter of the season since then, and have a 9-3-0 record for that period. This includes 7-2 and 8-2 victories over Spokane (the latter was the Jets&rsquo; worst drubbing of the season). Not only that, but the Leafs have won their last five in a row, including victories over Kimberley and Spokane and a win in an interlocking game with the ASHL-leading Edmonton Monarchs. Also in that five-game stretch, goalkeepers Bill McDonnell and Dave Halme have allowed only 7 goals.The Maple Leafs were hampered by injuries to a degree early in the season, particularly to defensemen, they had lost several top performers from last year&rsquo;s team, and they were trying to get used to a new playing-coach who was also the league&rsquo;s top pointscorer &mdash; not always the easiest situation to live with. They also had a tendency to be hurt by penalties, with Grant Warwick, Ron Barkwell, Skip Holmes, Rod Collins, and Gary McQuaid among the league&rsquo;s top ten penalty-getters. The team is strong on offense, though, and is leading the league in goals scored at this writing with a 4.69 average.The Leafs have five players &mdash; Murray Owens, Coach Dave McComb, LeRoy Mowery. Brian Russill, and Corky Agar &mdash; among the league&rsquo;s top 15 scorers. &#9632;

f0018-02

Nelson Leafs Hottest Club In WIHL Race

<div class="byline">BY JOHN WHITE</div>SAN DIEGO, Calif. &mdash;The San Diego Gulls already have played two hockey seasons.The first was a dandy, one of the best, in fact, in the history of the Western Hockey League.The second was enough to make tears stream down the cheeks of those hundreds of thousands of Gull fanatics who live and die with every goal.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01449/2909857-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="277" height="420"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dennis Huculak</figcaption></div>There&rsquo;s one season left &mdash; the final one-third of the campaign &mdash; and Coach Max McNab can hope only for a return to the form of October and November.Actually, the collapse of the Gulls has been one of the worst of all time in the WHL.You almost hate to prin&rsquo;t the figures, but you can&rsquo;t avoid &lsquo;em.In their first 24 games this season, the Gulls won 16, lost only 3 and tied 5. They outscored opponents 100 to 66 and threatened to run away with the Western League championship.In their next 24 games that look them into February, the Gulls won 5, lost 14 and tied 5 and were outscored 92 to 72.The collapse was reflected at home. From the start of the season through December 5, the Gulls were unbeaten &mdash; six victories and four ties &mdash; in their fan-packed International Sports Arena.From December 6 through February 2, they played only .500 hockey at home &mdash; five victories, five defeats, four ties.But the biggest change was on the road.The Gulls played 14 of their first 24 games away from home and posted a remarkable record of 10 victories, 3 defeats and a tie. They were on their way to the best road record in Western League history.Then they played 10 of their next 24 games away from home. And they failed to win once &mdash; nine defeats and a tie.What happened?Well, there was some suspicion all along that the Gulls were fattening up early on a Denver hockey club that was struggling to get started. Nine of San Diego&rsquo;s first 24 games were against the Spurs. And the Gulls posted an 80-1 record in the series.But that still left an 8-3-4 mark against the rest of the Western League. So victories over Denver didn&rsquo;t tell the whole story.As often happens when a team slumps, the Gulls started losing the close ones instead of winning them. Four of San Diego&rsquo;s first 24 games were decided by a single goal. The Gulls won all four of them. Four of their next 24 clashes also were decided by one goal. The Gulls lost all four.But the big problem was defense, spelled with a capital in October and November and a small in December and January.Jack McCartan, the goalie who was the hero of the United States Olympic Games team in 1960, blazed off this season to the best start of his career. He allowed only 14 goals in his first eight games fora sizzling 1.77 average.In October and November, McCartan played 716 minutes, yielded only 29 goals for a 2.44 goals-against mark that was the lowest in the Western Hockey League.In December and January, McCartan played 819 minutes, was punctured for 57 goals &mdash; an average of 4.16 a contest.Bobby Champoux played 604 minutes in October and November and gave up 29 goals for a 2.84 average. In December, January and his first test of February, he played 740 minutes and yielded 41 goals for a 3.33 average.Obviously, the goalies shouldn&rsquo;t share the entire blame. The play of the defensemen and forwards in front of them makes a whale of a difference.And San Diego was hurt by the loss for 17 games of young Dennis Huculak, who was having a fine season &mdash; his second as a pro &mdash; on defense until forced out with a shoulder separation.Offensively, the Gulls had few problems.Willie O&rsquo;Ree was having his best season. By February 2, he had scored 27 goals and a total of 60 points after collecting 21goals and 54 points during the entire last campaign. He was scoring at a 42-goal pace (over a full season) and seemed a cinch for a new career record. &#9632;

f0019-01

Loose Defensive Play Blamed For Gulls’ Dip

For The Best In Hockey Reading It&rsquo;s HOCKEY PICTORIAL Hockey&rsquo;s Most Exciting PublicationSave $$$$$$ Subscribe To The HOCKEY NEWS Receive 35 Issues At Home & Save $3.75<h2>SUN. JAN. 26</h2>PORTLAND 2 At VANCOUVER 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02391/2909937-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="600" height="383"></div>SAN DIEGO 1 At SEATTLE 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03318/2909930-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="590" height="475"></div>PHOENIX 3 At DENVER 9<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-04273/2909923-1-eng-US/f0019-042.jpg" title="f0019-04" width="582" height="779"></div><h2>TUES. JAN. 28</h2>SAN DIEGO 1 at VANCOUVER 10<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-05228/2909916-1-eng-US/f0019-052.jpg" title="f0019-05" width="610" height="479"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-06180/2909909-1-eng-US/f0019-062.jpg" title="f0019-06" width="600" height="481"></div><h2>WED. JAN. 29</h2>SAN DIEGO 2 at PORTLAND 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-07156/2909902-1-eng-US/f0019-072.jpg" title="f0019-07" width="594" height="605"></div>VANCOUVER 2 at SEATTLE 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-08141/2909895-1-eng-US/f0019-082.jpg" title="f0019-08" width="596" height="607"></div><h2>THURS JAN. 30</h2>PHOENIX 1 SAN DIEGO 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-09120/2909888-1-eng-US/f0019-092.jpg" title="f0019-09" width="594" height="485"></div> &#9632;

f0019-02

WHL Summaries

PORTLAND, Ore. &mdash;Veteran center Art Jones of the Portland Buckaroos is now the sixth player in professional hockey history to score 1,000 points in one league.Jones collected the 1,000th point of his Western Hockey League career on January 31 in Vancouver.It was a big one &mdash; the game-winning goal &mdash; and was scored on Jones&rsquo; 34th birthday.The only other player in the Western League to score more than 1,000 points is all-time leader Guyle Fielder of the Seattle Totems.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-10102/2909968-1-eng-US/f0019-102.jpg" title="f0019-10" width="274" height="427"><figcaption class="caption-body">Art Jones</figcaption></div>Other 1,000-pointers are Gordon Howe and Jean Beliveau in the National League and Fred Glover and Willie Marshall in the American League. &#9632;

f0019-10

Jones Joins Select Group By Scoring 1,000th Point

<h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1186/2910006-1-eng-US/f0019-112.jpg" title="f0019-11" width="588" height="235"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDTues. Feb. 4Vancouver 5 at Seattle 3Wed. Feb. 5Denver 0 at Portland 8San Dieqo 3 at Phoenix 2Thurs. Feb. 6Denver 5 at Seattle 4Fri. Feb. 7San Dieqo 1 at Phoenix 3Denver 7 at Vancouver 7Sat. Feb. 8Vancouver 5 at San Dieqo 3Phoenix 1 at Portland 7Sun. Feb. 9Vancouver 1 ot Son Dieqo 1Denver 2 at Portland 1Phoenix 1 ot Seattle 5LEADING SCORERS(Including Games of Sun. Feb. 2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1279/2909999-1-eng-US/f0019-122.jpg" title="f0019-12" width="594" height="325"></div> &#9632;

f0019-11

Looking At WHL Race

<div class="byline">BY TOM RENO</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01293/2910037-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="535" height="513"><figcaption class="caption-body">JIM LORENTZ &hellip;High CHL Point Man</figcaption></div>OKLAHOMA CITY &mdash;Center Jim Lorentz of Oklahoma City, top scorer in the Central Hockey League with 89 points, has been selected &ldquo;Player of the Week.&rdquo;A second-year pro who was named &ldquo;Rookie of the Year&rdquo; in the CHL last year after scoring 83 points in 70 games, Lorentz tallied five assists lats week as Oklahoma City won one game and tied one to build its lead in the Southern Division to 11 points, 66-65, over Houston.Two CHL records are within the grasp of the Blazers&rsquo; star.Lorentz has scored 26 goals and 63 assists&mdash;just three short of the assis record set by Art Stratton in 1965-66. The point record of 125 was set in 1963-64 by Al Caron at St. Louis. Caron now plays for Houston.Tom Webster, also of Oklahoma City, leads the league in goals with 29 and is second in scoring with 69 points. Chris Bordeleau, Houston, is third with 54 points and two Omaha players, Bill Fairbairn and Juha Widing, each have 52 points.OMAHA&mdash;The climb to the top spot in the North has also been a big boost to the Knights&rsquo; attendance as they attracted a club record 9,092 persons for back-to-back home games. Omaha also is pointing toward breaking its one-game mark of 5,412 in the near future. Fairbairn and Widing are tied for fourth in the league with 52 points each and the injured Jack Egers has 45.TULSA&mdash;Although the Oilers are tied with Omaha for the divisional lead, they were dealt a serious blow last week when Andre Hinse suffered a broken hand and now is sidelined for six weeks or more. Hinse has 42 points on 19 goals and 23 assists. Danny Johnson, the club leader in points with 43, and Nick Harbaruk each notched his 20th goal last week. Toronto General Manager and Coach Punch Imlach saw Tulsa in a recent game at Amarillo and was quite pleased with the plav of several Oilers.KANSAS CITY&mdash;The Blues ended a winless slump that started on Jan. 4 by blanking Dallas, 3-0 as rookie Ted Ouimet recorded his second shutout. Two nights later he was sitting in St. Louis and Gary Edwards was returned to K.C. on the Blues&rsquo; &ldquo;shuttle plan&rdquo; for young goalies. Billy Plager is back on the ice after missing almost three months of action.MEMPHIS&mdash;Fern Rivard was able to play one period in the nets against Omaha and will be used more and more as his knee mends. A solid 6-3 triumph over Dallas appeared to give the South Stars some new life, but they promptlyfell back in stride with losses to Amarillo and Omaha.OKLAHOMA CITY &mdash; Rookie right winger Tom Webster has been called up by the Boston Bruins once again, but his second-place count of 69 points in the league scoring race is safe for the moment. In addition to left wing Bill Lesuk and center Jim Harrison, who also are with Boston, the Blazers are minus Ted Hodgson, who suffered a broken wrist against Dallas. Defenseman Nick Beverly is expected to move to a forward slot, temDorarilv.HOUSTON&mdash;Coach Al MacNeil&rsquo;s club keeps plodding along, gaining some ground on Oklahoma City, then losing a little. But the Apollos continue to hold off serious challenges from Dallas and Fort Worth. Only three or four points have separated the three clubs for a month. Paul Curtis continues to star on defense and Chris Bordeleau still leads the Apollos in scoring with 54 points.DALLAS&mdash;It took some doing, but Dallas finally climbed out of fourth place in an exchange of positions with Fort Worth. Five games in one week took its toll of the Black Hawks, but it was a good feeling for Coach Bobby Kromm when his team moved to within three points of Houston. Oscar Gaudet leads the Dallas scoring parade with 48 points, Brian McDonald has 46, Cliff Koroll 43 and Jim Wiste 42FORT WORTH&mdash;The Wings halted a three-game slump by tieing Kansas City, 33, but did lose their slim hold on third place in the South. Rick McCann has climbed into a three-way tie for seventh place in the scoring chase with 49 points. Second on the club is Fred Speck with 33 points and John Cunniff is next with 32.AMARILLO&mdash;As tough as any club in the league since Christmas, the Wranglers now have dropped only two of their last 11 games and are only 10 points back of Dallas. Even more impressive, Amarillo has lost only twice in the club&rsquo;s last seven road engagements. Larry Billows fired in five goals and Bill LeCaine scored six points in leading the recent Wrangler attacks. &#9632;

f0020-01

Blazers’ Lorentz Eves Two CHL Records

New Subscribers To THE HOCKEY NEWS Guaranteed To Get First Issue Within Two WeeksHOCKEY NEWS Makes An Ideal Gift On Any Occasion. Give A Subscription To Dad Or BrotherOMAHA 5 At KANSAS CITY 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02216/2910166-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="600" height="707"></div><h2>SUN. JAN. 26</h2>OMAHA 6 At HOUSTON 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-03180/2910159-1-eng-US/f0020-032.jpg" title="f0020-03" width="586" height="705"></div><h2>TUES. JAN. 28</h2>DALLAS 2 at HOUSTON 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-04137/2910152-1-eng-US/f0020-042.jpg" title="f0020-04" width="588" height="507"></div><h2>WED. JAN. 29</h2>AMARILLO 3 at OMAHA 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0573/2910145-1-eng-US/f0020-052.jpg" title="f0020-05" width="598" height="531"></div>DALLAS 3 at MEMPHIS 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0655/2910138-1-eng-US/f0020-062.jpg" title="f0020-06" width="594" height="261"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0746/2910131-1-eng-US/f0020-072.jpg" title="f0020-07" width="594" height="481"></div>FORT WORTH 2 at OKLAHOMA CITY 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0839/2910124-1-eng-US/f0020-082.jpg" title="f0020-08" width="596" height="811"></div><h2>FRI. JAN. 31</h2>AMARILLO 4 At MEMPHIS 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0928/2910117-1-eng-US/f0020-092.jpg" title="f0020-09" width="588" height="573"></div>HOUSTON 3 At TULSA 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1024/2910110-1-eng-US/f0020-102.jpg" title="f0020-10" width="592" height="603"></div>KANSAS CITY 3 At DALLAS 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1118/2910103-1-eng-US/f0020-112.jpg" title="f0020-11" width="584" height="283"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1217/2910096-1-eng-US/f0020-122.jpg" title="f0020-12" width="600" height="135"></div><h2>SAT. FEB. 1</h2>AMARILLO 3 At Tulsa 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1314/2910089-1-eng-US/f0020-132.jpg" title="f0020-13" width="582" height="807"></div>FORT WORTH 2 at OMAHA 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1413/2910082-1-eng-US/f0020-142.jpg" title="f0020-14" width="600" height="557"></div>HOUSTON 3 at KANSAS CITY 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1513/2910075-1-eng-US/f0020-152.jpg" title="f0020-15" width="592" height="603"></div>OKLAHOMA CITY 3 at DALLAS 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-169/2910068-1-eng-US/f0020-162.jpg" title="f0020-16" width="590" height="697"></div> &#9632;

f0020-02

Central League Summaries

<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)Northern Division<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01156/2910225-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="592" height="177"></div>Southern Division<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02117/2910218-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="586" height="203"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDTurn. Feb. 4Oklahoma City 1 at Memphis 1Omaha 4 at Amarillo 4Wed. Feb. 5Amarillo 5 at Houston 2Omaha 1 at Dallas 3Thurs. Feb. 6Omaha 3 at Fort Worth 6Kansas City 3 at Tulsa 6Fri. Feb. 7Tulsa 2 at Oklahoma City 7Houston 1 at Memphis 1Dallas 4 at Kansas City 2Sat. Feb. 8Houston 1 at Omaha 3Kansas City 2 ot Fort Worth 1Memphis 1 ot Amarillo 6Sun. Feb. 9Houston 2 at Oklahoma City 4Memphis 3 at Dallas 9Omaha 3 at Tulsa 6GAMES TO COMEWed. Feb. 12Houston at AmarilloMemphis at Fort WorthDallas at Oklahoma CityTulsa at Kansas CityFri. Feb. 14Amarillo at OmahaHouston at DallasOklahoma City at TulsaSat. Feb. 15Amarillo at Kansas CityDallas at TulsaFort Worth at Oklahoma CityMemphis at HoustonSun. Feb. 16Memphis at Fort WorthOklahoma City at Omaha(Leading Scorers)(Including Games of Sun. Feb. 2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0379/2910211-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="594" height="715"></div><h2>EASTERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)NORTHERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0468/2910204-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="592" height="243"></div>SOUTHERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0561/2910197-1-eng-US/f0021-052.jpg" title="f0021-05" width="590" height="205"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDTues. Feb. 4Syracuse 4 at Charlotte 6Clinton 1 at Nashville 7Salem 1 at Jacksonville 4Wed. Feb. 5New Haven 8 ot New Jersey 2Greensboro 9 at Syracuse 3Long Island 6 at Johnstown 1Thurs. Feb. 6Nashville 3 at Syracuse 3Clinton 2 ot Salem 2Fri. Feb. 7Jacksonville 6 at Syrocuse 2Nashville 6 ot Charlotte 4Clinton 4 to Johnstown 2Long Island 4 ot New Jersey 3Salem 0 at Greensboro 6Sat. Feb. 8Long Island 0 at Clinton 5New Jersey 2 at Johnstown 5Greensboro 2 at Jacksonville 7Sun. Feb. 9Syracuse 4 at Salem 5Jacksonville 4 at Greensboro 6Johnstown 1 at Charlotte 3New Jersey at Long Island, pp&rsquo;d.Clinton at New Haven, pp&rsquo;d. &#9632;

f0021-01

Hockey Races

<div class="byline">BY HARVEY POLLACK</div>CHERRY HILL. N.J.&mdash;If the Jersey Devils don&rsquo;t land a playoff berth this year, they only have themselves to blame fortheir failure to win on the road in Eastern Hockey League play.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0653/2910263-1-eng-US/f0021-062.jpg" title="f0021-06" width="250" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marcel Pelletier</figcaption></div>Through their first 50 games, the Devils were able to register but one triumph on enemy rinks and that a one-goal decision over last place Syracuse. Coach Marcel Pelletier has been beside himself trying to extract road wins out of his troops. He thought that the win at Syracuse would wake up his troops in their road endeavors, but the team slumped right back into its original lackluster action and didn&rsquo;t gain win No. 2 until it met Syracuse again.Jersey has one shot at a playoff berth and that is to catch the fourth place&rsquo;Long Island Ducks. Each has seven home games remaining, but it appears the verdict could be decided in the final week if the Devils can make up ground. The two teams clash in a home-and-home series the last two nights of the campaign, but these games won&rsquo;t mean anything unless the Devils cut into Long Island&rsquo;s lead before then.Pelletier has been disenchanted even by some of his team&rsquo;s performances at home. &ldquo;We have had several poor games at home and we can&rsquo;t afford to lose there when we can&rsquo;t make up the games on the road&rdquo;, said the skipper.The late season acquisition of Ray Brunet and some other changes could help the Devils drive. Pelletier believes the availability of Larry Pleau for more games this year would have helped the team&rsquo;s cause considerably. But the Army has first call on his services and the Devils are happy with whatever time they can get from the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; chattel.SURACUSE: Blazers topped Clinton again to make season record with Comets, 44-1, the best in the league. Brian Elwell and Jerry Clayton both injured in game with New Haven. Paul Lessard&rsquo;s hat trick helped beat Clinton. Only other club hat trick this year credited to Lee Inglis.NEW HAVEN: Blake Ball&rsquo;s latest victim was Clinton&rsquo;s Pat Kelly whose eye was injured in a fight. Mike Hornby continues to pace club&rsquo;s scoring. Billy Orr&rsquo;s goal nipped Syracuse. Don Perry will ask for extra protection next time his club goes to Long Island on Mar. 7 because of recent melee in which action was halted for 45 minutes.GREENBORO: Goalie Pete McDuff hurt his ankle vs Nashville and had to be replaced by trainer Bobby Smith. Club&rsquo;s defense dipped considerably in ensuing games. Dom DiBerardino on disabled list with injured knee. Kas Lysionek nursing groin injury. Gens celebrated 10th anniversary of hockey here. Bill Young tabbed hat trick vs Nashville. Wayne Caufield on loan from Salem.JACKSONVILLE: Rock ets continue to give Charlotte and its coach Fred Creighton fits. Ron Willy tops club in scoring. Coach Bob Sabourin despondent over close defeats and bad breaks that have befallen his team. Rockets worried about advances Salem is making toward their fourth position.JOHNSTOWN: Jets&rsquo; nine game unbeaten streak stopped by Clinton. Dick Roberge played 1,000th game for Jets and posted two assists. In same game vs Jersey, Garry Sharp scored his 400th EHL goal. Sub goalie Jim Coombs scuffled with Jersey&rsquo;s Wayne Kitchen and both were ejected. Center Dan Patrick had to appear before EHL prexy Tom Lockhart for two stick fights. Gene Peacosh had 4-goaler vs Devils.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0745/2910256-1-eng-US/f0021-072.jpg" title="f0021-07" width="533" height="573"><figcaption class="caption-body">Garry Sharp scored his &hellip;400th EHL goal</figcaption></div>SALEM: The Rebels went 49 games before engaging in their first tie of season. A 6-0 loss to Charlotte was worst defeat for Rebels in two months. Claude Boucher placed on waivers. Jim Lane recuperating from broken foot while Wally Chase was sidelined with concussion after coming back from a broken hand. Gil St. Jacques scored winning goal in crucial game with Charlotte.NASHVILLE: Flyers picked up big 8-7 win over Greensboro after being blanked by Gens the previous night. Cliff Pennington has cleared century mark in points. Chuck Goddard turned in first shutout for Dixie Flyers with blanking of Long Island. He had two earlier whitewashings with Charlotte.CHARLOTTE: Tim Mc-Coamack doing well since acquisition from Syracuse. Bob Whidden&rsquo;s first shutout came against Salem. Pete Shearer just missed hat trick and $35 reward in quest of first trio since 1961. Roger Ouimet had five point game vs Greensboro. Chuck Stuart&rsquo;s return has helped attack. Coach Fred Creighton delighted with Bob Graham&rsquo;s defensive play.LONG ISLAND: Goalie Roger Wilson required two head stitches when a shot him above the mask. Ducks hevan&rsquo;t won at New Haven in three years, losing 18 straight times. Ducks had eight game winless streak to kill hopes of any finish higher than fourth.CLINTON: Borden Smith and Jack Kane in tight fight for club scoring laurels. Coach Pat Kelly out of action temporarily from black eye and some bone chips administered by New Haven&rsquo;s Blake Ball. &#9632;

f0021-06

Jersey’s Failure to Win On Road Could Cost Devils Playoff Berth

LEADING SCORERS(Including Garnet of Sun. Feb. 2)NORTHERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0839/2910315-1-eng-US/f0021-082.jpg" title="f0021-08" width="586" height="279"></div>SOUTHERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0933/2910308-1-eng-US/f0021-092.jpg" title="f0021-09" width="594" height="155"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-1030/2910301-1-eng-US/f0021-102.jpg" title="f0021-10" width="590" height="141"></div>GOALKEEPERS&rsquo; RECORDS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-1124/2910294-1-eng-US/f0021-112.jpg" title="f0021-11" width="588" height="379"></div> &#9632;

f0021-08

Looking At EHL Race

<h2>ONTARIO JUNIOR &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2>(Standings on Tues. Feb. 11)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01173/2910423-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="594" height="372"></div>GAMES COMPLETEDTue. Feb. 4St. Catharines 3 at London 3Hamilton 5 at Toronto 2Thurs. Feb. 6Ottawa 3 at Peterborough 5London 1 at Hamilton 4Fri. Feb. 7Montreal 4 at Kitchener 3London 3 at Niogora Falls 6Peterborough 4 ot Ottawa 7St. Catharines 4 at Toronto 4Sat. Feb. 8Montreal 9 at Oshawa 3Sun. Feb. 9Montreal 3 at Toronto 4London 2 ot St. Catharines 6Niogara Falls 2 at Ottawa 6Oshawo 4 ot Peterborough 4Kitchener 5 at Hamilton 9LEADING SCORERS(Including Games of Sun. Feb.2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02113/2910416-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="600" height="531"></div><h2>QUEBEC SENIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 10)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0399/2910409-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="588" height="231"></div>(x-plays partial schedule)<h2>ONTARIO SENIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Sat. Feb. 8)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0481/2910402-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="590" height="339"></div><h2>MINNESOTA JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Wed. Jan. 29)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0571/2910395-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="588" height="171"></div><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2>VIRGINIA<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0655/2910388-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="596" height="99"></div><h2>WESTERN INTERNATIONAL</h2>(Standinas on Tues. Jan. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0753/2910381-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="592" height="107"></div>DULUTH<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0846/2910374-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="590" height="131"></div>GRAND RAPIDS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0942/2910367-1-eng-US/f0022-092.jpg" title="f0022-09" width="596" height="111"></div>HIBBING<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1034/2910360-1-eng-US/f0022-102.jpg" title="f0022-10" width="598" height="211"></div><h2>NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 5)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1131/2910353-1-eng-US/f0022-112.jpg" title="f0022-11" width="588" height="201"></div>LEADING SCORERS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1229/2910346-1-eng-US/f0022-122.jpg" title="f0022-12" width="604" height="181"></div> &#9632;

f0022-01

<div class="byline">By BOB REED</div>TOLEDO, O.&mdash;The Toledo Blades and Dayton Gems were deadlocked at the top of the International League, with undoubtedly a hard fight ahead.What was worrying the Blades was how soon - it at all &mdash; Glenn Kamsay would be back at his job of goaltending. Ramsay was schedule to undergo surgery for a torn carti-lege in his right knee and the guesses at his length of absence ranged all the way from three weeks up to the end of the season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1323/2910461-1-eng-US/f0022-132.jpg" title="f0022-13" width="244" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bob Baird</figcaption></div>It was a bad break for the Blades and the seven time all-star goalie who missed 18 games last season because of required knee sur-gery-but on the opposite knee.Ramsay&rsquo;s collapse came in a game with Muskegon, which was tied at 2-2, but his mates cames storming back to whip the Mohawks, 8-3.The departure of the veteran netminder placed the burden on 21-year old Bill White, a resident of Sault Ste. Marie, who had done practically nothing but sit on the bench. The youngest goalie in the league, White played for three junior clubs in Ontario this season. His experience in the IHL this season was limited to four periods.In his first start in relief of Ramsay, White turned hack Muskegon, 3-2 making 36 saves. Then the Blades and Gems clashed in a big week-end series, home-and-home, and broke even, the Blades winning in Toledo, 5-2 and the Gems keeping things even at home, 6-2 for a tie at the top of the IHL.FORT WAYNE &mdash; The Komets, after an 8-3 drubbing at Muskegon, followed by a long ride and four hours sleep, came back to trounce Columbus, 10-2 for their most one-sided win of the year. Bob Baird had a hat trick and two assists, getting all three goals in the second period &hellip; Coach Len Thomson was trying new glasses, which he said improved his vision &hellip; Doug Reid, out for over two weeks with a knee injury, started to work out.PORT HURON &mdash; Rookie goaler Al Cecile made his debut against Muskegon and came off with a 5-5 tie &hellip; The Flags asked waivers on defenseman Henry Jaruga and spare goalie Ken Kirton . . Center Gary Harmer may be lost for the season with his eye injury &hellip; The Flags had played nine tie games, six on their own ice.DES MOINES &mdash; There were rumors Des Moines might enter the Central League next year, replacing Memphis; also that the Oak Leafs might leave here to become the new Flint, Mich, team in the IHL next year &hellip; Goal-tender Phil Headley was sent to Jacksonville, Fla. (Eastern League) for a five-game emergency and Duffy Lewis came in from Nashville of the same league to replace him &hellip; Chick Chalmers broke a long drought with his fifth goal of the year.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1416/2910454-1-eng-US/f0022-142.jpg" title="f0022-14" width="552" height="585"><figcaption class="caption-body">GLENN RAMSAY &hellip;Surgery On Knee</figcaption></div>DAYTON &mdash; Don Westbrooke, leading IHL scorer, was on the verge of his 200th career goal in his sixth season &hellip; Pat Rupp, with his second straight shutout, had a string of 129 minutes, 53 seconds without giving up a goal &hellip; There was talk of a possible Dayton entry next year in the American League but it was believed Hara Arena would be too small to qualify. The Gems had 110,871 for 26 home games.MUSKEGON &mdash; The Mohawks received some good news when it was announced that Bryan McLay, who was feared lost for the season, would not need a kidney operation and he returned to action; also Gary Schall, out since the opening game with a back injury, returned and scored three goa.s in his first two games &hellip; The Mohawks had only one tie in 10 games with Toledo, whom they posted an 8-13 record against last season.COLUMBUS &mdash; Defenseman Bill Bond returned to action for the first time since his injury on Nov. 13 &hellip; Rookie winger Andre Courtemanche was placed on waivers &hellip; Doug Volmar&rsquo;s 48th goal broke the Checkers&rsquo; all-time record of 47 set by Nelson Tremblay last season &hellip; Ron Park, defense rookie who was badly injured in his first game Jan. 7 was released from the hospital. &#9632;

f0022-13

Loss Of Star Goaler Ramsay Major Blow To Toledo In Title Battle With Dayton

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1610/2910614-1-eng-US/f0022-162.jpg" title="f0022-16" width="406" height="399"></div>SKATE EXCHANGE MAIL ORDERS FILLED PROMPTLY(Use the order form below) Check off desi red Item Insert size where required<h2>HOCKEY JERSEYS</h2>Toronto, Chicago Monti eol, 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/f0022-177/2910607-1-eng-US/f0022-172.jpg" title="f0022-17" width="774" height="77"></div>HOCKEY STOCKINGS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-186/2910600-1-eng-US/f0022-182.jpg" title="f0022-18" width="784" height="105"></div><h2>HOCKEY PANTS (All with braid trim)</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-196/2910593-1-eng-US/f0022-192.jpg" title="f0022-19" width="760" height="221"></div>Actual waist size (Hockey pants automatically oversized. We will sizeaccordingly.)<h2>NHL HOCKEY CRESTS (All washable swiss embr. emblems)</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-206/2910586-1-eng-US/f0022-202.jpg" title="f0022-20" width="788" height="351"></div>(Add 50a per emblem sewn to jersey)HOCKEY SWEATSHIRTS(Chicago. Boston, Montreal New York, Detroit, Toronto)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-216/2910579-1-eng-US/f0022-212.jpg" title="f0022-21" width="768" height="79"></div>HOCKEY GLOVES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-225/2910572-1-eng-US/f0022-222.jpg" title="f0022-22" width="766" height="347"></div>3247 W. Lawrence Ave Chicago 25;III. Phone Keystone 9-5044BRAND NAMESC.C.M. &mdash; WINWELLCOOPER WEEKS JOHNSONBAUER AERFLYTEHYDE NORTHLAND<h2>HOCKEY SHINGUARDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-235/2910565-1-eng-US/f0022-232.jpg" title="f0022-23" width="786" height="169"></div><h2>HOCKEY ELBOW PADS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-244/2910558-1-eng-US/f0022-242.jpg" title="f0022-24" width="766" height="143"></div><h2>HOCKEY HELMETS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-253/2910551-1-eng-US/f0022-252.jpg" title="f0022-25" width="754" height="113"></div>(One size only fits all)<h2>GOALIE GLOVES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-263/2910544-1-eng-US/f0022-262.jpg" title="f0022-26" width="774" height="139"></div><h2>GOALIE PADS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-273/2910537-1-eng-US/f0022-272.jpg" title="f0022-27" width="754" height="167"></div><h2>GOALIE MASKS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-282/2910530-1-eng-US/f0022-282.jpg" title="f0022-28" width="776" height="75"></div><h2>TOUQUES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-292/2910523-1-eng-US/f0022-292.jpg" title="f0022-29" width="758" height="107"></div> &#9632;

f0022-16

NED SINGER’S HOCKEY SUPPLY CO.

<div class="byline">BY JACK GATECLIFF</div>MONTREAL. QUE. &mdash;With one month left in its 270-game schedule the only thing certain in the Ontario Hockey Association junior A league is that (1) there will be a new pennant-winner and (2) Montreal Canadiens will shatter all records for attendance in Canadian amateur hockey.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01153/2910645-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="266" height="421"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rejean Houle</figcaption></div>Kitchener Rangers, who finished first in 1967-68 and again in 1968-69 are dead last this year and. barring a complete reversal of form will miss the playoffs.The Canadiens. who had some lean years as far as attendance is concerned since joining the Ontario league, have had almost unbelievably strong support this year.On several occasions more fans have turned out for the junior games Sunday night than attended the National Hockey League games in the Forum Saturday evening.Since the New year paid admissions have averaged more than 15.000 and an alltime Canadian record for junior hockey attendance was established Jan. 26 when 18.153 turned out to see the junior Canadiens defeat their arch-rivals the Toronto Marlboros 5-2.Montreal&rsquo;s Phil Wimmer, one of the most popular managers in the 10-team circuit, feels that a combination of circumstances have produced the new enthusiasm for junior hockey in the Forum.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got an exciting hockey team&rdquo;, he said recently, &ldquo;and a winning hockey team. Then there&rsquo;s the fact that the Forum has been renovated and it could be that a lot of people come to see our games who feel they haven&rsquo;t much chance of getting a ticket for an NHL game.&rdquo;However Wimmer isn&rsquo;t really looking for reasons for the huge crowds attending the Montreal games.&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t look for reasons when they&rsquo;re storming the gates,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;You only start worrying when they stop coming in.&rdquo;Forwards Rejean Houle and Gilbert Perreault are undoubtedly two reasons for the popularity of the Babv Habs.Both are typical free-skating French-Canadian players not unlike Bobby Rousseau and Henri Richard. And both are unquestionably ranked highly in the future plans of the NHL Canadiens.According to NHL rules Montreal has first choice of two French-Canadian juniors each year and it would appear fairly certain that they&rsquo;ll pick Houle and Perreault.The Canadiens have lost only one game on home ice, dropping a 6-4 decision to Ottawa 67s back on Nov. 17. Oddly enough the 67s will almost certainly be one of the two teams (with Kitchener) which will not qualify for the playoffs.Montreal is also favored to succeed Kitchener as the regular season champions although they are being given a real run for the money by both Peterborough Petes and St. Catharines Black Hawks.They were tied with St. Catharines for first place with four weeks left in the schedule and were three points ahead of Peterborough. However the Canadiens had four games in hand on the Hawks and three on the Petes and at their present clip seemed unlikely to lose more than two or three more before the playoffs start.The junior A league has settled down to battles on four different levels.The Canadiens, Hawks and Petes will fight it out for the top three spots. Hamilton and Niagara Falls are waging a personal battle for fourth and fifth places. London, Oshawa and Toronto Marlboros are scrapping over sixth to eighth positions while Ottawa after a promising start this year has tailed off and will likely finish ninth, just one place ahead of Kitchener. &#9632;

f0023-01

Montreal Most Exciting Amateur Club In Country

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02114/2910676-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="259" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bob Sheehan</figcaption></div>ST. CATHARINES, ONT.&mdash;St. Catharines Black Hawk coach Brian Shaw announced this week that Bob Sheehan had been reinstated after the Boston born centre and right winger Don O&rsquo; Donoghue had been indefinitely suspended for allegedly breaking club training rules.Sheehan and O&rsquo;Donoghue were dismissed by Shaw following the Hawks&rsquo; 8-5 win over Ottawa 67s.O&rsquo;Donoghue returned to his home in Toronto while Sheehan spent one week in Halifax where he had played the last two seasons with the junior Canadiens.At the time of his suspension Sheehan was the leading points scorer in the Ontario Hockey Association junior A league with 41 goals, 37 assists and 78 points.He missed only one game during the suspension and picked up an assist his first game back in the Hawks 5-4 win over Toronto Marlboros.O&rsquo;Donoghue was already out of the lineup with a shoulder separation but will rejoin the Hawks within the next 10 days. &#9632;

f0023-02

Hawks Lift Suspension Of Sheehan

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0388/2910707-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="895" height="1188"></div><h2>SOLUTION IN FEBRUARY 22 ISSUE</h2>ACROSS1&mdash;Pictured player.5&mdash;Initials of one of the Penguins.6&mdash;One of the Blues answers to this.7&mdash;Affirmative.9&mdash;Wears No. 7 for St. Louis.10&mdash;15th and 12th letters of the alphabet.11&mdash;Few NHL games are played on this day. (abbr.)13&mdash;14th and 18th letters of the alphabet.14&mdash;Distress signal.15&mdash;Most players chew this during a game.16&mdash;Before.18&mdash;Initials of a former Flyer.19&mdash;An NHL coach.21&mdash;First name of one of the North Stars.22&mdash;Initials of one of the Rangers.23&mdash;Initials of a Ranger forward.26&mdash;One of the Hawks answers to this.28&mdash;Former team of 9 across.29&mdash;NHL scoring leader answers to this.DOWN1&mdash;One of the L.A. Kings.2&mdash;An NHL general manager.3&mdash;One of the San Diego Gulls.4&mdash;Pictured player played in this division last season.5&mdash;A St. Louis farmhand.8&mdash;One of the Hawks.12&mdash;A Minnesota rookie.17&mdash;First name of one of the Rangers.18&mdash;A Portland forward.20&mdash;Locas of Providence answers to this.24&mdash;Initials of one of the Canadiens.25&mdash;First name of one of the Penguins.25&mdash;9th and 16th letters of the alphabet.<h2>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S ANSWERS</h2>ACROSS1&mdash;UNGER4&mdash;RON.7&mdash;LE.8&mdash;PETE.9&mdash;LIBETT.11&mdash;M.L.12&mdash;SASK.15&mdash;A. S.16&mdash;ERA.18&mdash;NOV.20&mdash;NON.21&mdash;N.A.23&mdash;EVE.24&mdash;SMITH.27&mdash;MARTY.29&mdash;J.P.30&mdash;S.O.31&mdash;BRENNEMAN.DOWN1&mdash;ULLMAN.2&mdash;NEILSON.3&mdash;EYES.4&mdash;R.E.5&mdash;OTT.6&mdash;N.E.8&mdash;PTS.10&mdash;T. A.13&mdash;KENNEDY.14&mdash;SANDERSON.17&mdash;R.O.19&mdash;VAN IMPE.22&mdash;ASH.25&mdash;T.A.26&mdash;H.R.28&mdash;TEE.29&mdash;J. R.30&mdash;S. A. &#9632;

f0023-03

Hockey Crossword

<h2>MICHIGAN JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Fri. Jan. 31)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01164/2910822-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="592" height="211"></div><h2>BORDER CITIES JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Fri. Jan. 31)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02113/2910815-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="608" height="331"></div>LEADING SCORERS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0379/2910808-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="590" height="287"></div><h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 3)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0462/2910801-1-eng-US/f0024-042.jpg" title="f0024-04" width="598" height="235"></div><h2>IHL JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Sat. Feb. 8)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0549/2910794-1-eng-US/f0024-052.jpg" title="f0024-05" width="596" height="167"></div>LEADING SCORERS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0641/2910787-1-eng-US/f0024-062.jpg" title="f0024-06" width="596" height="275"></div><h2>MASSACHUSETTS JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 3)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0736/2910780-1-eng-US/f0024-072.jpg" title="f0024-07" width="584" height="175"></div><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0832/2910773-1-eng-US/f0024-082.jpg" title="f0024-08" width="602" height="287"></div><h2>NEW YORK METRO LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 3)EASTERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0927/2910766-1-eng-US/f0024-092.jpg" title="f0024-09" width="596" height="175"></div>WESTERN DIVISION<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1024/2910759-1-eng-US/f0024-102.jpg" title="f0024-10" width="594" height="169"></div>LEADING SCORERS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1123/2910752-1-eng-US/f0024-112.jpg" title="f0024-11" width="594" height="271"></div><h2>QUEBEC JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 3)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1219/2910745-1-eng-US/f0024-122.jpg" title="f0024-12" width="588" height="231"></div><h2>CENTRAL JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 5)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-1311/2910738-1-eng-US/f0024-132.jpg" title="f0024-13" width="590" height="213"></div> &#9632;

f0024-01

<div class="byline">BY DAN MOULTON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0024-14" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-149/2910853-1-eng-US/f0024-142.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAT STAPLETON (12) of the Hawks and Canadiens&rsquo; RALPH BACKSTROM have a ring-side seat as JOHN FERGUSON and BOBBY HULL stage one of their epic ice battles. Stapleton rarely resorts to fisticuffs to get job done for Chicago. He has only 34 penalty minutes.</figcaption></div>CHICAGO, III &mdash;Hockey has taken on a new look for Hawk defenseman Pat Stapleton in recent games.This is because the stubby little All-Star is viewing the action thru two wide open eyes for the first time since his right eye became the target for enemy sticks, pucks, and elbows and friendly shoulder pads.Pat recently had more than three inches of scar tissue removed from his eyelid and brow by minor surgery and despite considerable swelling didn&rsquo;t even miss a turn on the ice.&ldquo;The eye had been bothering me ever since a slapshot by Boom Boom Geoffrion caught me nearly two years ago,&rdquo; said Pat. &ldquo;And from then on, everything that happened to me seemed to happen to the eye.&ldquo;Last year, Bob Pulford of Toronto caught me across the face with the blade of his stick and, sure enough, the eye opened up. And a little later, I caught another shot in the same place.&ldquo;I took exercises all last summer to strengthen thg eye but this year, I got conked again. Then the final blow fell a couple of weeks ago when I collided with Gilles Marotte (Pat&rsquo;s defensive runningmate) and my face smashed into his shoulder pad. Of course, the eye opened up.&rdquo;Pat claims that the buildup of tissue was causing his lid to droop and impairing his vision and that when the doctor removed the tissue, &ldquo;it was just like somebody had turned on the light.&rdquo;&ldquo;What&rsquo;s more,&rdquo; he continued, &ldquo;the tissue was making my right eye lazy and forcing the left eye to do all the work and that can be dangerous.&ldquo;It hurt my depth perception quite a bit, too, and cut down my reflexes.&ldquo;And without my reflexes I&rsquo;m out of luck. I can&rsquo;t get the job done on size. I knew I was in trouble recently when I reached up to knock down a high pass with my glove and missed the puck by several inches.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d been warned that I should have the tissue removed but had sort of backed off. But when that happened I decided to make the move.&rdquo;Actually, Pat&rsquo;s size (5-8, 185) is the chief cause of his misery. Pucks, sticks, and elbows, which would catch the larger players on the chest or shoulders invariably bounce off Pat&rsquo;s eyes, ears, nose, and throat.&ldquo;It never fails,&rdquo; conceded Pat. &ldquo;Everything happens to my face. Some of the bigger guys in this league even have all of their teeth.&rdquo;When you consider what Pat has been going through from the start of the season, his selection as a second team all-star becomes all the more remarkable.But Hawk Coach Billy Reay isn&rsquo;t about to let one of his favorite characters coast.&ldquo;Well, now that Pat can see out of both eyes, I don&rsquo;t want to see any more of his passes missing their mark for the rest of the season,&rdquo; said Billy.HAWK TALK &mdash; Bobby Hull, who had the wiring removed from his jaws recently, was the victim of a freak accident only a day before the wiring was to come out. During the first period of a game here against the Canadiens, Bobby had removed the glove from his right hand and was sitting on the bench awaiting his turn on the ice.As Scooter line right wing Kenny Wharram swung over the boards, he lost his grip and brought the edge of his skate down onto the back of Bobby&rsquo;s hand, opening a deep gash and putting the Jet out of action for the rest of the game.Left Wing Doug Mohns, who recently returned to action after suffering broken bones in his left hand, has been on a torrid scoring streak of late. At this writing, the veteran had scored six goals in three games.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s really flying,&rdquo; said Doug&rsquo;s center Stan Mikita, who moved back into the league scoring race by putting Doug &ldquo;in&rdquo; for several of his tallies. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s been busting in from the blue line like a 20-year-old.&rdquo;Reay had the needle out for defenseman Doug Jarrett after a recent practice session. As the team clumped into the locker room, Reay said, loud enough for Jarrett to hear, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll bet if I took a week to get into shape I could beat Jarrett in a race and I&rsquo;m 50 years old.&rdquo;&ldquo;Not a chance,&rdquo; Doug retorted. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d turn on the after burners and leave you in my jetstream.&rdquo;&ldquo;Until you fell down,&rdquo; Reay replied. &#9632;

Search for your favorite player or team

February 15, 1969

Vancouver Threat To San Diego For Lead In Attendance Race

How They Stand

Footloose

Turlik, Croteau Rated Top Freshmen