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.

April 24, 1970

The Hockey News April 24, 1970

<h2><i><b>In The East</b></i></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>he Chicago Black Hawks moved menacingly into the Eastern playoff finals last weekend and much of their momentum was provided by the inspired play of Bobby Hull.</b></p><p><b>The Hawks&rsquo; high-scoring Golden Jet came through with a splendid series as Chicago disposed of Detroit in four straight. Hull scored only once in the first two games but his sparkling puck handling kept the Red Wings off balance and he capped his series&rsquo; performance by scoring twice and setting up the winner by Stan Mikita in the wrap-up game.</b></p><p><b>After 16 playoff games, Hull was the NHL&rsquo;s leading point man with three goals and six assists as he played a major role in vanquishing the Detroiters.</b></p><p><b>THE HOCKEY NEWS and El Producto are pleased to salute the NHL&rsquo;s player-of-the-week in the East:</b></p><p><i><b>BOBBY HULL&hellip;Chicago</b></i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03441/2736038-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="251" height="434"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bobby Hull</b></figcaption></div><h2><i><b>In The West</b></i></h2><p><b>Mike Briere of the Pittsburgh Penguins is a rookie and when a young player scores his first Stanley Cup playoff goal it has to be the thrill of his career. But it was a little more than that.</b></p><p><b>The Pen&rsquo;s freshman center popped in the game-winning goal in overtime to knock the Oakland Seals right out of the Western Division playoffs. It was also Briere&rsquo;s first of the playoffs and no doubt one he&rsquo;ll cherish for a long time.</b></p><p><b>The Penguins, who stunned the Seals by wrapping up the series in four straight games, came up with a lot of surprising efforts against the Seals and it paid off. Briere was no exception. He hustled throughout and it was richly rewarding that he should bag the series winner.</b></p><p><b>THE HOCKEY NEWS and El Producto are pleased to salute the NHL&rsquo;s player-of-the-week in the West:</b></p><p><i><b>MIKE BRIERE&hellip;Pittsburgh</b></i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04328/2736031-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="247" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Mike Briere</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0014-03

IN THIS ISSUE

NHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-01699/2735729-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="313" height="669"></div><p>ST. LOUIS&mdash;</p><p>The St. Louis Blues came home to the friendly confines of their home rink after being shell shocked in Minnesota by the North Stars.</p><p>The Western champions found themselves in the position of having to win two of the next three games at home to vanquish the Stars, who appeared they haven&rsquo;t lost any of the momentum that carried them down the NHL home stretch and into the playoffs.</p><p>After St. Louis won the first two at home 6-2 and 2-1, the North Stars turned on the Blues in game three and won 4-2. They deadlocked the best-of-seven set at 2-2 by doing something few NHL clubs have been able to achieve this year&mdash;shut out the champs. The Stars won 4-0 with Cesare Maniago turning in a flawless performance in goal.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02604/2735722-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="245" height="381"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Cesare Maniago</b></figcaption></div><p>The Stars posed a definite threat to the Blues&rsquo; domination of the West led by scoring star Bill Goldsworthy. The big Minnesota winger scored four times in the series including one in the fourth game along with Claude Larose, Tommy Williams and Bob Barlow. In game three, Goldsworthy emerged as the hero by counting twice in the final period after the Blues knotted the score at 2-2.</p><p>The comeback pulled the Stars even with the Blues and that&rsquo;s how it stood as the teams approached game five on St. Louis ice before going back to Minnesota for No. 6.</p><p>The big question was whether the Blues could regain some of the sharpness that apparently left the team in the stretch run. The Western titleholders weren&rsquo;t sharp in either game on Minnesota ice, a situation that coach Scotty Bowman will move quickly to rectify.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-01

North Stars Rebound As Threat To Blues

<h2><b>ALLAN CUP Eastern Finals</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0195/2737561-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="582" height="167"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Orillia 7 at Victoriaville 8</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Orillia 3 at Victoriaville 6</p><h3><b>Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0265/2737554-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="580" height="133"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0344/2737547-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="581" height="159"></div><h3><b>Western Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0439/2737540-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="588" height="307"></div><h3><b>Eastern Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0530/2737533-1-eng-US/f0027-052.jpg" title="f0027-05" width="584" height="129"></div><h3><b>Western Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0626/2737526-1-eng-US/f0027-062.jpg" title="f0027-06" width="589" height="302"></div><h3><b>Western Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0723/2737519-1-eng-US/f0027-072.jpg" title="f0027-07" width="577" height="133"></div><h2><b>MEMORIAL CUP</b></h2><h3>Eastern Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0822/2737512-1-eng-US/f0027-082.jpg" title="f0027-08" width="578" height="171"></div><h3><b>Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-0921/2737505-1-eng-US/f0027-092.jpg" title="f0027-09" width="587" height="341"></div><h3><b>Western Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1019/2737498-1-eng-US/f0027-102.jpg" title="f0027-10" width="579" height="264"></div><h3><b>Eastern Quarter-finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1117/2737491-1-eng-US/f0027-112.jpg" title="f0027-11" width="579" height="299"></div><h2><b>CHA PLAYDOWNS WESTERN ONTARIO LEAGUE FINALS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1216/2737484-1-eng-US/f0027-122.jpg" title="f0027-12" width="578" height="129"></div><h3><b>WESTERN CANADA LEAGUE WESTERN FINALS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-169/2737477-1-eng-US/f0027-162.jpg" title="f0027-16" width="606" height="133"></div><h3>SEMI-FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1313/2737470-1-eng-US/f0027-132.jpg" title="f0027-13" width="581" height="292"></div><h3><b>EASTERN FINALS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1413/2737463-1-eng-US/f0027-142.jpg" title="f0027-14" width="578" height="128"></div><h3><b>SEMI-FINALS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-1511/2737456-1-eng-US/f0027-152.jpg" title="f0027-15" width="591" height="304"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0027-01

Looking At The Playoff Races

<p>1&mdash;Beforethe current Stanley Cup playoffs started, the NHL had a new playoff penalty leader. Was it Gordie Howe, John Ferguson or Forbes Kennedy?</p><p>2&mdash;What NHL player has played 16 consecutive seasons in the playoffs. Is it Gordie Howe, Jean Beliveau or Alex Delvecchio?</p><p>3&mdash;Two of these three great NHL goalers share the existing playoff record for most shutouts, 13. They are Terry Sawchuk, Turk Broda and Jacques Plante.</p><p>4&mdash;Maurice Richard is the all-time playoff scoring leader with 82 goals. What player is threatening his lead with 73, Jean Beliveau or Bobby Hull?</p><p>5&mdash;Chicago Black Hawks haven&rsquo;t won a Stanley Cup for many years. The last time they did win it was 1950-51 or 1960-61?</p><p>6&mdash;Montreal has won the most modern day cups with 14. Toronto has won 11. Do you know what NHL club ranks third with 7?</p><p>7&mdash;Boston Bruins didn&rsquo;t last beyond the Eastern semi-finals last season but one of their players emerged as the top playoff scorer. Who was he?</p><p>8&mdash;Jean Beliveau won the first Smythe Trophy award. Roger Crozier the second and Dave Keon the third. What two players won it the last two years?</p><p>9&mdash;The longest playoff game in hockey lasted more than five hours and was played back in 1936 at Montreal. The two teams involved were Detroit and the Canadiens or Detroit and the Maroons. Which is right?</p><p>10&mdash;Three NHL players have played on the most cup winners, nine. They all played for the same team. Who were they and what was the name of the team.</p><h2><b>HOCKEY QUIZ ANSWERS</b></h2><p><b>1&mdash;John Ferguson, 224 minutes.</b></p><p><b>2&mdash;Jean Beliveau, 1954 to 1969.</b></p><p><b>3&mdash;Broda and Plante.</b></p><p><b>4&mdash;Beliveau</b></p><p><b>5&mdash;1960-61</b></p><p><b>6&mdash;Detroit Red Wings</b></p><p><b>7&mdash;Phil Esposito, 18 points.</b></p><p><b>8&mdash;Glenn Hall in 1967-68 and Serge Savard in 1968-69.</b></p><p><b>9&mdash;Detroit and Maroons.</b></p><p><b>10&mdash;Jean B&eacute;liveau, Henri Richard, Claude Provost with Montreal Canadiens.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

two minute hockey quiz

<div class="byline">BY TOM MONAHAN</div><p>BOSTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>long with a good many other people in the National Hockey League Bruins&rsquo; coach Harry Sinden would not be unhappy with a change in the method of resolving ties in the standings.</p><p>First place in the East Division slipped away from the Bruins on the final night of the regular season when Chicago defeated Montreal, 10-2</p><p>Although the two teams wound up deadlocked with a total of 99 points, the Black Hawks had won five more games in the season, 45-40.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01654/2734622-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="254" height="405"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Harry Sinden</b></figcaption></div><p>Naturally there always has been a premium on sports for winning, but there also could be more consideration given for not losing and the Bruins with only 17 defeats lost fewer games than anyone in either division. A total of 19 ties proved to be just too much of an impost for the B&rsquo;s to win the Prince of Wales Trophy for the first time since 1941.</p><p>It is natural to look back on a season and pinpoint a certain game that actually cost a team the title and in the Bruins&rsquo; case they can point to two such incidents. Oddly they both came in the B&rsquo;s own stamping grounds at the Garden.</p><p>The first was back on Nov. 15 when the New York Rangers scored with just 11 seconds remaining to win their only game of the season in Boston, 6-5.</p><p>The second was the disputed goal incident that gave Chicago a 1-0 victory.</p><p>A tie in either of those games would have put the Bruins on top.</p><p>&ldquo;But actually,&rdquo; said Sinden, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s all water under the bridge now. We can&rsquo;t keep crying about things that happened during the regular season.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to look ahead to the second phase of the season now.&rdquo;</p><p>This is the third time in the four years since, Harry became coach that the Bruins are bidding for the Stanley Cup and he thinks he finally has the formula to bring the venerable mug to Boston for the first time in 29 years.</p><p>The first season he was handling the club, the B&rsquo;s finished in the cellar. The following year they finished third and were dumped in the opening round. Last year they finished second, wiped out Toronto in four straight and extended Montreal through six games including three overtime games.</p><p>With that experience behind them, Sinden feels the whole squad has learned it must play sound positional hockey, avoid cheap penalties and continue with a strong offense.</p><p>Meeting New York in the opening round, Sinden had a healthy respect for the Rangers although they managed to squeak into fourth place ahead of Montreal.</p><p>&ldquo;New York is a slick outfit,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They move the puck very well. They score a lot of pretty goals. Usually those goals come against a team that is caught up ice or out of position.</p><p>&ldquo;Cheap penalties really hurt a team,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It seems that if you draw a good penalty, say trying to stop a break, the penalty killers do a better job. But cheap penalties work the opposite.&rdquo;</p><p>Harry should know about penalties since the B&rsquo;s were belted with 1196 penalty minutes&mdash;an average of 15.7&mdash;in the 76-game regular season to lead the league in this department.</p><p>&ldquo;Another vital factor is to stay healthy,&rdquo; added Sinden. &ldquo;A key injury at this time is much more serious than in mid-season. Now a player just doesn&rsquo;t have the time to recover completely and the loss of even one player can be costly.&rdquo;</p><p>If the Bruins carry out Sinden&rsquo;s formula to the letter, they can make chairman of the board Weston Adams Sr. the happiest owner in the NHL.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0002-01

Sinden Joins Club, Time NHL Changed Tie-Break System

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02622/2734709-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Chicago Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-03520/2734702-1-eng-US/f0002-032.jpg" title="f0002-03" width="1125" height="134"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Detroit Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-04369/2734695-1-eng-US/f0002-042.jpg" title="f0002-04" width="1122" height="275"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On New York Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-05257/2734688-1-eng-US/f0002-052.jpg" title="f0002-05" width="1120" height="139"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Boston Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-06164/2734681-1-eng-US/f0002-062.jpg" title="f0002-06" width="1125" height="273"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On St. Louis Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-0793/2734674-1-eng-US/f0002-072.jpg" title="f0002-07" width="1112" height="140"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Minnesota Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-0855/2734667-1-eng-US/f0002-082.jpg" title="f0002-08" width="1122" height="272"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Oakland Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-0935/2734660-1-eng-US/f0002-092.jpg" title="f0002-09" width="1116" height="131"></div><h2><b>How They Fared On Pittsburgh Ice</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-1023/2734653-1-eng-US/f0002-102.jpg" title="f0002-10" width="1120" height="135"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0002-02

How Playoff Teams Compare

<p>PITTSBURGH&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Pittsburgh Penguins and the Chicago Black Hawks have much in common at playoff time&mdash;they both got an early ride into the divisional finals of the Stanley Cup playdowns.</p><p>You might of expected it of the hot Black Hawks but maybe not so of the surprising Penguins who stunned the Oakland Seals by sweeping them from the Western semi-finals in four straight with the windup win coming right on Oakland ice.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-01656/2734754-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg" title="f0003-01" width="262" height="429"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ken Schinkel</b></figcaption></div><p>The Black Hawks, still roaring along with the momentum that allowed them to move all the way from last to first place in the NHL this season, didn&rsquo;t cool out in the least as they rode over the leg-weary Detroit Red Wings in four straight games.</p><p>The Penguins, in the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since expansion came to the NHL, have won themselves a spot in the final against either St. Louis or Minnesota by maintaining the same hight brand of hockey coach Red Kelly has expected of them. Kelly said he was confident before the series got underway and his onrushing Penguins didn&rsquo;t betray him, especially players like Mike Briere, Ken Schinkel, Les Binkley, Dean Prentice, Nich Harbaruk and Bob Woytowich. They were among the big stars for the Penguins as they mowed down the Seals 2-1, 2-1, 5-2 and 3-2. It was Briere&rsquo;s first NHL playoff goal in overtime that sent Oakland packing for the summer in the fourth game after Schinkel had popped in three goals in the third game to lead they way in the rout of the Seals.</p><p>Binkley was outstanding in the series and the Penguins rallied magnificiently behind Kelly, who unboubtedly won himself a few more votes for the coach-of-the-year award in the NHL.</p><p>While the Penguins were throttling the Seals, the Chicago Black Hawks put the skids to the lacklustre Wings and they did it in a rather unusual way&mdash;all four of their victories were by 4-2 scores.</p><p>The Wings were never really in the series with the Hawks and gave the impression that they had possibly burned themselves coming down the stretch in a hectic battle to gain a playoff spot.</p><p>Once the teams starting playing for keeps in the playoffs it was all over for the Wings in a hurry. Outside of goaler Roy Edwards, who held the Detroiters in singlehandedly, the Wings offered little resistance to the refreshing young Hawks.</p><p>It remained for oldsters Bobby Hull, Chico Maki, Eric Nesterenko and Stan Mikita to provide the scoring punch, but the young Hawks skated the Wings into the ice and checked them relentlessly with Tony Esposito hardly extended in goal.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02538/2734747-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="2400" height="845"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03360/2734740-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="1778" height="972"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Oakland goaler GARY SMITH was hard pressed to hold the Pittsburgh Penguins in check during the recent Western series. Here&rsquo;s Smith striving to keep JEAN PRONOVOST, left, top and MIKE BRIERE, right, from scoring. Below, Smith faces BRYAN HEXTALL (7) and DEAN PRENTICE of the Pens in action at front of net. Penguins swept Seals from playoffs in four straight.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0003-01

PITTSBURGH, CHICAGO SWEEP PLAYOFFS

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-01718/2734806-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="366" height="433"></div><p>&bull; <b>PITTSBURGH&mdash;AFTER KNOCKING</b> off the Oakland Seals in four straight games the fired-up Penguins are given better than an even chance of representing the Western Division in the Stanley Cup finals. Hockey interest and enthusiasm is on the rise here after what must be described as a most disappointing beginning. General Manager Jack Riley and Coach Red Kelly have done a remarkable job in bringing the Pens from last place in the NHL West a year ago to second place this season and into the NHL West finals&hellip;Les Binkley, only goalie in pro hockey to wear contact lenses, has been the star for the Pens so far in the playoffs, although teammates such as Nick Harbaruk, Glen Sather and Ron Schock have also been great&hellip;Ken Schinkel scored the first Pittsburgh hat trick in Stanley Cup play when he notched three against the Seals in the 5-2 win at Oakland&hellip;&ldquo;Did you know that the Pittsburgh Penguins are the only NHL team undefeated in Stanley Cup play?&rdquo; enthused a hilarious Craig Kadlec, the Penguins publicity director, after the four-game sweep of the Seals. Kadlec, incidentally, is one of the brightest young publicists around today&hellip;Rookie Nick Harbaruk scored but five goals for the Pens during the regular schedule and has already scored three in the playoffs&hellip;Mike Briere&rsquo;s overtime series-winner against Oakland was the greatest moment for the talented rookie forward&hellip;&ldquo;I hope I have the opportunity to score an even more important goal in the playoffs,&rdquo; Briere stated after the game&hellip;Joe Tucker, veteran Pittsburgh sportscaster who originally hails from Estevan, Sask., handled the complete three periods of both West Coast games over colored TV&hellip;Beckley Smith Jr, who is the radio announcer of the Pens, is the only hockey announcer with a PHD in mathematics. He broadcasts over WEEP&hellip;Many hockey experts are picking New York Rangers to oust Boston Bruins from the playoffs&hellip;and more than a few look to Minnesota North Stars to do the same to St. Louis.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02669/2734799-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="247" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Les Binkley</b></figcaption></div><p>&bull; <b>ONE OF</b> the recurring rumors making the rounds of the playoffs concerns Red Sullivan and his coaching future. Sully is reportedly being considered by Minnesota for 1970-71. The former NHL coach told a national TV audience last weekend that there is no truth to the story whatever. Besides, doesn&rsquo;t Charlie Burns rate another chance after the positively marvelous job he did this season after taking over from Wren Blair&hellip;The post mortems have been flying since the demise of the Canadiens. Claude Ruel was lamenting the team&rsquo;s failure to make the NHL playoffs for the first time in 22 years. &ldquo;Last year I had 18 players going all out but only half as many this season.&rdquo;&hellip;Mickey Redmond was in line as the lone Canadien to navigate the full 76-game schedule when he sustained a severe hip injury and had to sit out the Habs&rsquo; finale at Chicago. Injuries played havoc with the aging Canadiens this year&hellip;Canadiens still waiting for Minnesota to come through with a player to finalize the Gump Worsley trade. It proved to be a solid bit of manoeuvering on the part of Wren Blair. The Gumper has been the difference in the North Stars making the playoffs&hellip;Jon Washington, real class guy, has parted with the Los Angeles Kings and will pursue new endeavors. The publicist of the Kings, he recently resigned. Jon ranks with the best around the NHL and all hockey people wish him well wherever he goes&hellip;The Minnesota North Stars barely made it into the playoffs but they boast the No. 2 scoring line in the NHL in Tom Williams, Bill Goldsworthy and Jean Paul Parise. The trio wound up with 200 points between them&hellip;Minnesota ended with a fine year at the box office. A total of 543,000 watched them play at home. It was a good year all round for the NHL it seems. Rangers packed in 652,317 and Philadelphia went over 500,000 for the first time after 15 straight sellout crowds of 14,600.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03572/2734792-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="253" height="408"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Red Sullivan</b></figcaption></div><p>&bull; <b>THE GOOD</b> people in Philadelphia are still in shock after the Flyers missed the playoffs on the final weekend. They had already announced playoffs tickets would go on sale and they had planned to serve coffee and donuts to all early arrivals at the box office&hellip;The four-game ouster of the Red Wings by Chicago in the playoffs has to rank alongside the Philadelphia collapse in the stretch. The Wings were the hottest club coming home, next to Chicago. It is now evident they put out too much in the final stretch battle for a playoff spot&hellip;The sparkling play of goaler Roy Edwards was something to behold in the series with Chicago. It also brings to mind that Edwards thought he was done for after being struck hard by a puck above the heart. The Wings had a electrocardiogram taken after Roy complained of a &lsquo;tightness&rsquo; in his chest. Doctors gave him the okay. He&rsquo;s only 33&hellip;Ed Giacomin nearly became the first goaler in NHL history to score a goal in a game recently against Toronto. It also reminded oldtimers of the day Clint Benedict, playing in nets for Ottawa, scored in an exhibition game. Giacomin&rsquo;s shot caromed off the boards and just slithered past the open net&hellip;St. Louis Blues are considering putting a minor league team in Columbia, Mo., home of the sprawling University of Missouri. But now Jefferson City has made a pitch for the proposed franchise. The bid will likely go to the city that constructs a new arena first. Jefferson City has a head start on Columbia. It is already seeking ways to finance the construction job&hellip;A most happy fellow is Bill White of the Black Hawks. He stands to pick up $7,000 plus in bonus money if the Hawks go all the way. Not bad for a fellow who wasn&rsquo;t even playing hockey before Christmas time because he couldn&rsquo;t negotiate a contract with the lowly LA Kings&hellip;Hockey fans in Denver are hailing the move by A. Rowland Boucher and Bennett King in purchasing more stock in the club as an indication that pro hockey is in the city to stay.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04500/2734785-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="264" height="425"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill White</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0004-01

PASSING THE PUCK

<h2><b>Canadiens Had No Right To Expect Helping Hand</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>fter gaining only three points in their last five games and needing only one win in the final weekend to clinch a playoff spot, several of the Montreal Canadiens were still prone to lay part (or even all) of the blame for their elimination from the playoffs on the Detroit Red Wings.</p><p>This is really hard to believe. Detroit, which had made the playoffs for the first time in four years and had just celebrated the event, lost 9-5 to New York. Rangers came out flying the next day in the wind-up game. Any team, especially one such as Detroit, which realistically had nothing to gain or lose by the game, would have been hard pressed to hold them off. As for the Wings resting Howe and Delvecchio, I wonder if the Canadiens, in a similar situation, would have dressed Jean Beliveau?</p><p>Mickey Redmond was quoted as saying &ldquo;none of us expected Detroit to lay down and die.&rdquo; Professionals, moreover defending champions, should not expect anything of any team other than their own.</p><p>It looks to me as though the Canadiens and their followers used the Detroit situation as a scapegoat for their undeniable grief. Perhaps thinking back to the behaviour of Boston and New York fans in the lean early sixties, they can learn how to be good losers, as well as proud winners.</p><p>DWIGHT DISHAW,<br>Ingleside, Ont.</p><h2><b>NHL Should Consider Sudden-Death Playoff</b></h2><p>Just think. A team plays all year and winds up in a points tie with another, yet is out of the playoffs. The way things developed you would have thought it was a Dartmouth minor hockey tournament. These people are professionals, playing for big money. Goals for and against, number of wins shouldn&rsquo;t have any bearing at all on the final standings. Situations change from game to game but no matter what, the playoff positions should have definitely been determined by a sudden-death playoff.</p><p>It would have been the only fair way and it would have eliminated all the controversy.</p><p>If I heat you 5-0 one night and you beat me 2-1 the next night, isn&rsquo;t your win as good as mine? Besides the teams in the NHL don&rsquo;t just play for wins, they play for points.</p><p>I really don&rsquo;t get it, 96 points or 10, they are all points you earn all year and if you tie with another team, nothing else should matter except the points you have earned. Thus a playoff should be necessary.</p><p>You might say a playoff would extend the season, but they play until May now, one more game wouldn&rsquo;t have hurt.</p><p>DAVID DUGGAN,<br>Halifax, N.S.</p><h2><b>Bruins Going Way Of The Black Hawks</b></h2><p>I was looking back in the Jan. 2 HOCKEY NEWS recently and saw a letter in the Fan Forum that made me laugh.</p><p>The letter implied Bobby Hull was only concerned in scoring goals for himself and not winning games for the Hawks. It also said that Bobby Orr was more of what a superstar should be. Well I admit for a few seasons Hull wasn&rsquo;t helping the Hawks and Orr was helping the Bruins. But this year Bobby Hull isn&rsquo;t a one way player, he&rsquo;s going up and down his wing. He&rsquo;s sacrificed scoring for winning. Orr on the other hand leads the scoring race and his team has the worst defensive record in the east. Boston failed to finish ahead of the Hawks this year and their future looks dim unless Orr learns to stay in position. It looks like Orr, Espo and Co. are deteriorating into what the Bobby Hull led Black Hawks used to be while the present Hawks are developing into what a hockey team should be.</p><p>BOB OSACKY,<br>Chicago, Ill.</p><h2><b>The Time Has Come To Give Refs Help</b></h2><p>Congratulations to Scotty Bowman and to HOCKEY NEWS for your recent article &ldquo;Refs Need Help&rdquo;. Certainly, no referee alone is capable of seeing with accuracy every move made on the ice. There is no doubt in my mind that the burden should be lightened.</p><p>However, it has occurred to many people recently that the official capacity of a goal judge during a hockey contest is minimal. In the truest sense, as has been proven this season in the NHL, he is not the goal judge, but rather a button-pusher whose decision must agree with that of the game referee who, in turn, is actually the goal judge. For if the &ldquo;goal judge&rdquo; standing behind the glass should disagree in his decision with the ref, the former might as well forget it.</p><p>RICHARD NOLAN,<br>Weston. Mass.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Fan Forum

<div class="byline">BY ED CONRAD</div><p>PHILADELPHIA</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>eams have lost six straight games before and they&rsquo;ll lose six straight games again, but no losing streak can compare to what the Flyers went through to end their season.</p><p>All six games were actually decided by one goal (if you&rsquo;ll exclude Pittsburgh&rsquo;s pair of open-net goals in one of the losses). It was unbelievable. It was uncanny.</p><p>Even a tie in any of the six low &ndash; scoring games would&rsquo;ve been enough to put the Flyers in the Stanley Cup playoffs but, instead, they lost out to Oakland which was tied in points but made it on the strength of more victories.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01671/2734909-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="274" height="440"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bernie Parent</b></figcaption></div><p>In a weird stroke of bad fortune the Flyers&rsquo; all-time league record of 24 ties doomed them.</p><p>&ldquo;It seemed like we were kissed by the devil,&rdquo; sighed coach Vic Stasiuk. &ldquo;We never got bombed. We were always close, always respectable. Maybe it would have been a lot better if we had been bombed in one of the games.&rdquo;</p><p>The streak started in Oakland under the most trying of circumstances. The Flyers were playing well and held a 2-1 lead with 3&frac12; minutes left when Don O&rsquo;Donoghue scored the tying goal. Then Joe Hardy, also a rookie, broke the tie with just 12 seconds remaining.</p><p>The very next night in Los Angeles, the Flyers dropped a 3-2 decision to the Kings. Then they met Pittsburgh at the Spectrum and lost, 2-1. Oddly enough, if they had beaten the Penguins in this one, they would have moved back into second place.</p><p>With his team scoring only five goals in three games, Stasiuk figured something was happening to his offense. He figured however, that it couldn&rsquo;t continue. Sadly, it not only continued, it got worse!</p><p>Again meeting the Penguins, this time in Pittsburgh, the Flyers dropped a 4-1 contest which was 2-1 until the Penguins scored with Bernie Parent out of the net in lieu of another skater.</p><p>Then came St. Louis and Jimmy Roberts&rsquo; goal while the Blues were killing a penalty. It doomed the Flyers to a 1-0 defeat as Ernie Wakely recorded the shutout.</p><p>Two days later, the script was almost the same. The Minnesota North Stars, with Worsley in goal, kept them scoreless and defenseman Barry Gibbs&rsquo; goal broke their backs.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s so unreal,&rdquo; said Flyers&rsquo; GM Keith Allen. &ldquo;If someone had told me this would happen a month ago, I&rsquo;d have said it wasn&rsquo;t possible. But it happened.</p><p>&ldquo;The worse part of all, the goals that beat us in the last two games were really flukes.&rdquo;</p><p>They certainly were, especially the goal by Gibbs who flipped an 80-footer past Parent midway through the final period of the final game.</p><p>&ldquo;Honestly, I didn&rsquo;t even try to score,&rdquo; said Barry afterward. &ldquo;I just tried to put the puck in their end. I guess Parent wasn&rsquo;t expecting it, or else didn&rsquo;t see it until the last split second.&rdquo;</p><p>In any event, it wrote the end to a collapse that has rarely been matched in the NHL.</p><p>The Flyers&rsquo; did not choke. They just couldn&rsquo;t get a break on offense while the defense, which played brilliantly, wasn&rsquo;t able to carry the load.</p><p>The Flyers wound up scoring only six goals in their last six games, losing five by one goal and trailing in the other by one goal with less than a minute left.</p><p>It seems unbelievable that one goal would&rsquo;ve meant the difference between them making the playoffs or missing it.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0005-01

Flyers’ 24-Game Tie Record Doomed Club In Weird Finish

<div class="byline">&#x2014;CONRAD</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02604/2734940-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg"></div><p>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;</p><p>Veteran goalie Bernie Parent wound up as the Flyers&rsquo; most valuable player this season.</p><p>Parent, who played well all season but was especially brilliant during the club&rsquo;s six-game losing streak, received a large trophy.</p><p>Bernie also won the Inver House Trophy, which goes to the Flyer who picks up the most points in the three-star selections at home games. In addition, he shared the Big Brother Award with rookie center Bobby Clarke.</p><p>Clarke, on his own, won the most popular player trophy as presented by the Flyers Fan Club. Gary Dornhoefer, who led the club with. 26 goals, was the choice of the junior members.</p><p>The Flyers most valuable defenseman award went to Larry Hillman.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0005-02

Parent Named Flyers’ MVP

<div class="byline">BY CHARLIE HALPIN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-01747/2734971-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="270" height="432"></div><p>&bull; <i>THE BIG clamor for the postseason NHL awards is nearing and soon you&rsquo;ll hear it everywhere: &ldquo;Who&rsquo;s gonna win all the silverware this year?&rdquo;</i></p><p><i>If you shot back, Bobby Orr of course, you&rsquo;ll probably be 90 percent right but not totally. There&rsquo;s a fellow named Tony Esposito who is going to give the Bruins&rsquo; Wonder Boy a run for his bonus money.</i></p><p><i>Orr, of course can&rsquo;t win the Vezina, because this NHL award is reserved for goalkeepers and Esposito already has won it. By the same token Esposito can&rsquo;t win the Norris Trophy either, because it is awarded to the best defenseman and no one is going to argue that Orr isn&rsquo;t No. 1 in this department.</i></p><p><i>Neither Orr nor Esposito will get a look for the Lady Byng Trophy which is distributed to the most gentlemanly player who also combines value to his team. The likes of Phil Goyette of St. Louis, Boston&rsquo;s John Bucyk, Dave Keon of the Leafs and surprisingly Bobby Hull of Chicago, are the main hopefuls. Hull, for the record, finished with the lowest penalty total among the top 15 NHL scorers&mdash;only eight minutes.</i></p><p><i>But that friends is where it ends. The rest of the gravy belongs to Orr and Esposito and don&rsquo;t think for a minute anyone else is going to even get a second look.</i></p><p>&bull; <i>THE CALDER award for the rookie of the year is a lock up for the chunky Esposito even though he might have to fight off a teammate, Keith Magnuson, for it. There are other&rsquo;eligibles&rsquo;like New York&rsquo;s Bill Fairbairn, Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Mike Briere and Bobby Clarke of Philadelphia, but none can compare with the Hawks&rsquo; duo.</i></p><p><i>Up to now all Orr has won is the Ross Trophy as the leading NHL scorer. The Nonis Trophy well come a little later. Then he&rsquo;ll get a good shot at the Smythe Trophy, too, which goes to the outstanding playoff performer but this is contingent on the Bruins making it all the way to the throne room and the Stanley Cup. Rarely is it awarded to the &lsquo;loser&rsquo; in the finals.</i></p><p><i>If the Bruins falter along the way and it could conceivably happen, it would automatically disqualify Orr and put Esposito squarely in the limelight providing he gets more of a test than he did in the first round against Detroit. This is almost guaranteed if the Bruins are the Hawks&rsquo; rivals in the finals and even if the Rangers make it too.</i></p><p>&bull; <i>BUT THE piece de resistence as far as NHL awards are concerned is the Hart Trophy which is reserved for the player considered to be the No. 1 operator of the entire season. Right now, you would have to say that Orr has the inside track, naturally, off his great scoring year but can Esposito be far behind?</i></p><p><i>The Chicago netminder has a lot going for him and the knowledgeable men who vote on hockey&rsquo;s No. 1 Oscar no doubt will take a sincere and honest look at the fine print which says the trophy should go to the player adjudged the most valuable to his team. The question is, where would the Hawks be without Esposito this season?</i></p><p><i>Could Orr be more valuable than a guy who personally lifted a whole hockey club from the doldrums of the NHL and stashed them in first place in just 76 games? The voting of course will provide us with the answer, but in the meantime it makes good back room debating.</i></p><p><i>The NHL hasn&rsquo;t seen the likes of a player like Orr in more than a decade when Bobby Hull broke in and there are those who will argue now that even at the tender age of 22, Orr is already the greatest player of all time.</i></p><p><i>Time will prove them right or wrong but it does seem the great, young Boston defenseman is headed for a sweep of the NHL awards which would make him the first man in league history to ever win four major trophies in one season.</i></p><p><i>Only one player has ever won three of them in a single season and he did it twice. Stan Mikita swept the Hart, Byng and Ross Trophies two years running but no one has ever captured four.</i></p><p><i>Orr will be the first unless someone recognizes Tony Esposito&rsquo;s true worth and cuts him in for some of the trophy swag intended for Orr&rsquo;s bank account.</i></p><p><i>Take heart fans, the suspense will soon be over!</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0006-01

INSIDE HOCKEY

<div class="byline">BY PAT CURRAN</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>E</span>ven Clarence Campbell hesitated to figure the possibilities of the most exciting finish the National Hockey League ever has had in its 52-year history. But the president didn&rsquo;t need any prodding to declare 1969-70 as the greatest all-round campaign in his 24 years at the helm.</p><p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no question about it being our best season ever,&rdquo; said Campbell, as energetic as ever at 64. &ldquo;The tightness of the race has been in large part responsible.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-02606/2735002-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="266" height="433"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Clarence Campbell</b></figcaption></div><p>He credited the third year of expansion as a factor in success.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s most gratifying especially when so much has been made of talk that the league is unbalanced. The race in the East was so close because West Division clubs influenced the outcome. It&rsquo;s very easy to knock the calibre of the West Division and to use misleading percentages of possible points from season to season.</p><p>&ldquo;But the answer is simple. In the normal process of competition, the new teams have generated improved balance in the East. They have put great pressure on Eastern teams to take as many points as possible in the interlocking games. Some have been more successful than others, hence the close race in the East Division.&rdquo;</p><p>Campbell obviously was referring to Boston&rsquo;s mastery over the West (28 wins and eight ties) and Montreal&rsquo;s struggle in which the Habs lost eight and tied seven games.</p><p>&ldquo;All I can offer is a Purple Heart to the schedule maker and to some of the players and teams who are responsible,&rdquo; said the president about the hectic race as he waited to match the teams for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.</p><p>And after the hectic finish of the regular schedule he wondered what the teams could do for an encore in post-season series.</p><p>After six months of play, eight of the 12 teams didn&rsquo;t know their fate going into the final weekend. Four teams were still in line for the East Division championship and any one of three faced elimination from the playoffs. There was still a three-way struggle for third and fourth playoff berths in the West.</p><p>At the same time, Campbell was delighted with other facets of the banner NHL season, an increase in attendance and U.S. television ratings.</p><p>Despite criticism of the hockey product at times, the league enjoyed an overall attendance increase of 7&frac12; per cent. It was up 16 per cent in the West with hardly a way of attracting more fans to Eastern rinks because of limited capacity.</p><p>For instance, Madison Square Garden had 22 straight sellouts and 35 overall with some 655,000 fans flocking to watch the Rangers. In the West, Minnesota continued to draw capacity crowds despite the fall of the North Stars.</p><p>United States television ratings were up considerably over last season with the CBS Game of the Week gaining in popularity with armchair sports fans. Neilsen ratings, taken on a national scale, jumped 22.1 per cent. The MNA figures for 30 principal cities in the U.S. were up 27.5 per cent.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0006-02

Campbell Says Current Year Best Overall In History Of NHL

<div class="byline">BY NORMAN MacLEAN</div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>This observer witnessed the mass hysteria of Bobby Thomson&rsquo;s pennant winning home run in 1951 and covered the New York Mets&rsquo; impossible dream last fall, but for sheer implausibility the New York Rangers&rsquo; nine-goal barrage which gave them the fourth and last playoff spot, will do for a one-day flash flood.</p><p>New York needed a win over Detroit on the last day of the season, a Montreal loss to Chicago and needed to pick up six goals in the goals for column in order to edge the Canadiens for the last playoff spot. In March, there were times when six goals represented about a week&rsquo;s work for the struggling New Yorkers. With their backs to the wall they fired a fantastic 65 shots at Roger Crozier in the Detroit net. Nine of them went home, with Coach Emile Francis even pulling goalie Eddie Giacomin, while leading 9-3. The Wings potted two more goals into the empty Ranger net, but New York, playing in the afternoon had its big win and a big plus four in the goals for column. The Canadiens, playing at night, were under extreme pressure and when the score reached 5-2 in favor of Chicago, they pulled their goalie and tried to score goals no matter how. This failed and the proud Canucks tumbled by a fantastic 10-2.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-01699/2735040-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="265" height="455"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Dave Balon</b></figcaption></div><p>By the time you read this, New York and Boston will have played five games of their quarter final playoff series. With the momentum gained in their fantastic finish, we think New York may surprise. Boston has shown they cannot do the job on the road against Eastern Division opponents. The Broadway Blueshirts must win one game in the Boston Garden. If they do, the Rangers could quite easily upset the Bruins.</p><p>Going into the playoffs New York has all three lines in working order. Jack Egers, the Omaha wing who was called up when Vic Hadfield hurt his ankle, has shown he can do the job and some. Egers potted two big goals in the nine-goal barrage and tied the score at 1-1 when New York went down to a 6-2 defeat against Detroit on Saturday April 4.</p><p>&ldquo;Egers has a hard shot and plays his wing in good defensive style,&rdquo; commented Emile Francis. &ldquo;He has fit in very well with Jean Ratelle and Rod Gilbert.&rdquo;</p><p>Gilbert, stung by criticism of his low goal total, may have been the catalytic agent who boomed the big New York victory. He tipped in an Arnie Brown shot at thirty-six seconds of the first period and got New York started. Rod later added a second goal, his 16th of the season with a patented Gilbert blast from the right side. If Rod can get hot in the playoffs, watch out. He is a streak player and when on, nothing can stop him. During his period of travail he has worked harder than ever, but the puck just didn&rsquo;t want to go in for the handsome Frenchman.</p><p>The Rangers&rsquo; number one trio of Walter Tkaczuk, Dave Balon and Billy Fairbairn seemingly have caught their second wind after carrying the club for the first 56 games and then tailing off. Balon fired a hat trick against Detroit to finish with a career high of 33 goals. This mark edged Ratelie&rsquo;s 32 for the club lead. Ratty&rsquo;s 32 was his third season in a row in which he had posted this figure.</p><p>The checking combinations including fast-skating Don Luce, hard-checking Orland Kurtenbach at center mixed well with Ted Irvine, Bob Nevin and Ron Stewart. Stew, 37, finished with a fantastic 14 goals in limited ice time. He won three games all by himself.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02627/2735033-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="573" height="1172"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>WALTER TKACZUK&hellip;West Side MVP</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0007-01

Fans Remember Mets’ Impossible Dream, They Won’t Forget Ranger Miracle Either

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03489/2735071-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg"></div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>The 65 shots New York fired at Detroit on April 5 were the most ever taken by a Ranger team in 2,613 games&hellip;Arnie Brown with four assists finished with 15-21&mdash;36, which is production and then some&hellip;Walter Tkaczuk received three awards prior to the last regular season game. He won the West Side Association&rsquo;s award as MVP, the CYO award and the Frank Boucher Trophy as most popular Ranger&hellip;Jean Ratelle won the player&rsquo;s player award. Ratty was there when he was needed in the stretch&hellip;The CYO award is also a most popular player award and is decided by a poll of 278,000 members of the New York CYO. The Boucher award is given by the Rangers&rsquo; Fan Club, whose President Nick Panzera did the honors&hellip;New York scored its most ever wins, most ever points, most ever goals and set an all time attendance mark of 652,317. This represented 35 sellouts in 38 home games&hellip;</p><p><b>American Airlines gives your customers something to do between Toronto and Los Angeles.</b></p><p>We think an airline should provide a little entertainment on long flights.</p><p>So we show you a full-length, colour movie between Toronto and Los Angeles. (The only movie flight out of Toronto, by the way.)</p><p>We give you your own personal stereo headset and a choice of stereo music to listen to.</p><p>And now we&rsquo;ve added another creature comfort on our 6.00 p.m. L.A. flights.</p><p>It&rsquo;s called Americana. And it&rsquo;s our way of showing you a little more America on your way <i><b>to</b></i> America.</p><p>Americana is a new menu of famous American dishes. Like Alaskan Shrimp, Chicken New Englander and Boston Brisket of Beef.</p><p>It&rsquo;s sitting in new, more spacious seats in both first class and coach. It&rsquo;s a stewardess wearing a new uniform inspired by American history.</p><p>Fly American to Los Angeles.</p><p>We&rsquo;ll give you a lot of things to do to make the time fly by, instead of giving you a lot of time to just sit and watch the sky fly by.</p><p>For reservations, call your Travel Agent or American Airlines.</p><p><b>American Airlines</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0007-03

Tkaczuk Hauls Away 3 Ranger Awards

<div class="byline">&#x2014;By Bill Libby</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-01733/2735130-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="298" height="374"></div><h2><i><b>Thoughts On A Season&hellip;</b></i></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>HIS SIMPLY HAD TO BE</b> the most exciting season the National Hockey League, or any sports league, for that matter, ever has had. Never before have so many teams been in the pennant race or locked in important battles for playoff positions through the last day of the regular campaign&hellip;</p><p>With it, came many real surprises. Who would have thought, after Teddy Green was injured and lost for the season, and after Bobby Hull held out and was lost for the first part of the season, that Boston and Chicago would have wound up tied for first place?</p><p>And, whatever the rules separating ties may be, let us not lose sight of the fact that these teams did tie for the pennant and deserve to be remembered as co-champions of the long, true, season-long struggle, no matter their fate in the playoffs. And St. Louis is to be applauded for winning the West so decisively.</p><p>With so many playoff games scheduled, anyway, a playoff game would be the only fair way to settle tied positions&rsquo; Since the NHL recognizes game ties as positive accomplishments by awarding a point for each, why split positional deadlocks on the basis of victories? The team with the most victories thay also have the most losses, as was the case this season, so why should Chicago have been adjudged more entitled to first place than Boston?</p><p>Additionally, why should goals scored be more important than goals against as a way of deciding positional ties when the victories are equal? Is offense more important than defense? Would not the difference be better? It did not matter in this season&rsquo;s case, since New York not only had more goals for, but fewer against than Montreal. Still a playoff game would have been a far fairer way to determine the valuable playoff berth. And a neutral site.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-02645/2735123-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="343" height="581"><figcaption class="caption-body"><i><b>Bobby Orr</b></i></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03529/2735116-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="345" height="578"><figcaption class="caption-body"><i><b>Phil Goyette</b></i></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-04392/2735109-1-eng-US/f0008-042.jpg" title="f0008-04" width="348" height="582"><figcaption class="caption-body"><i><b>Jean-Paul Parise</b></i></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-05306/2735102-1-eng-US/f0008-052.jpg" title="f0008-05" width="348" height="590"><figcaption class="caption-body"><i><b>Roy Edwards</b></i></figcaption></div><p>While we are in favor of continuing the expansion and established teams in separate divisions as a logical way of maintaining balanced pannant races, and they can fight it out for divisional money, why couldn&rsquo;t the eight teams with the best records out of the 12 or 14 teams in the league be the ones to make the Stanley Cup playoffs? After all, these playoffs mean a lot more in prestige and money.</p><p>It is unfair that Montreal and Toronto should be excluded from the playoffs while three teams with lesser records in the other division make the post-season competition and have a shot at great rewards. To cite the most extreme case, Montreal, 18 games above. 500, misses out, while Oakland, 18 games below. 500, makes it. This defies logic.</p><p>Still, we found sentiment running strongly against Montreal down the stretch. In the past 10 or 20 years, Montreal and Toronto have so dominated pennant and playoff laurels that many hockey people and fans felt it would be healthy for hockey as a whole if either, or, as was, the case, both were the teams which missed out. The popularity of any game depends on competition, and cycles of domination work against this.</p><p>It was one of the more noteworthy aspects of this unusual season that Montreal missed the playoffs for the first time since 1948 and both Canadian teams missed for the first time ever. Somehow, though, the most shocking miss was that of Philadelphia Flyers in the West. Until a few weeks before season&rsquo;s end, they were considered the likely second-place finishers, and some did not realize until the final day that they, incredibly, were not going to make it. It sneaked up on everyone.</p><p>When New York Rangers hit the skids, even learned hockey men said they had no chance to fight back in. When they had to make up a five-goal deficit on Montreal in the goals-for column, among other things, on the season&rsquo;s final day, most considered it hopeless. If ever a season proved many times over that no game is over until the final buzzer sounds, nor no season over until the final game ends, this was it.</p><p>Speaking of goals at the final buzzer, how about that one scored by the last-place Kings in Los Angeles late in January which almost cost the Rangers their playoff berth? L.A. is such a hot hockey town that after the Kings concluded their worst-ever season, on Saturday night, the critical results of Sunday&rsquo;s decisive, final NHL games were buried in the sports section on page six between a horse-racing preview and yacht-racing review in the morning newspaper.</p><p>It remains a mystery why in the first round of the playoffs the first-place teams play the third-place teams and the second-place clubs meet the fourth-place finishers. This encourages suspicion over teams&rsquo; late losses which place them fourth and give them a softer shot at winning the opening post-season series. The pennant-winner should have earned the easier touch of playing the fourth-placer, while two and three mix for the other finals berth.</p><p>One would hope changes which might help the league would be considered seriously, but one must applaud the basic structure of a league which produces such intense competition, such start-to-finish excitement and so many surprises as this one did.</p><h2><i><b>Orr The Dominant Figure</b></i></h2><p><b>CLEARLY, BOBBY ORR EMERGED</b> as the dominant individual in the game, while Phil Esposito established himself beyond argument as one of a handful of true super-stars. Stan Mikita and Gordie Howe demonstrated that they remain great, while Tony Esposito, Brad Park and Walt Tkaczuk indicated they may have greatness in them. The most surprising seasons may have been those enjoyed by Phil Goyette, Jean Paul Parise and Roy Edwards.</p><p>Who would have believed him if Gordie Howe had been a cockier sort and said, I think I&rsquo;ll play 25 years until I&rsquo;m 43 and break every offensive record available to me&rdquo;, as he will next season? Is he not, all things considered, the marvel of sports of all time?</p><p>And how about his old teammate, Red Kelly, leaving L.A. to take over a team which had not made the playoffs in its two prior seasons and guiding them into second place among the expansionists! And, speaking of coaches, it is interesting that the only two NHL coaches who held their positions throughout the last three years since expansion began, Billy Reay and Harry Sinden, were the two whose teams tied for the big pennant!</p><p>It is to those managers and coaches who were fired this season or now will be fired that all this madness is dedicated.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY VICTOR BERNS</div><p>ST. LOUIS&mdash;</p><p>The St. Louis Blues added a footnote to international history when Jaroslav Jirik skated in a Blues&rsquo; uniform near the end of the regular season.</p><p>Jirik is the first player to come from behind the Iron Curtain to sign a National Hockey League contract.</p><p>He was born and reared in Czechoslovakia, joined the Czech national team at the age of 18 and represented his country three times in the Olympics.</p><p>However, Jirik&rsquo;s aim was to play in the NHL, and finally the Communist authorities permitted him to leave Czechoslovakia last year to sign a contract with the Blues. He had played on the Czech national team 12 years.</p><p>Jirik was with the Blues during training camp and was assigned to their Kansas City farm club for the season. He had 18 goals and 16 assists while missing several games with injuries.</p><p>Kansas City missed the playoffs, and Jirik was called up to the Blues at the end of the regular sea son in the Central Hockey League. His first game was against the Chicago Black Hawks at Chicago Stadium, and he also played with the Blues in their next two road games in Los Angeles and Oakland.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-06252/2735161-1-eng-US/f0008-062.jpg" title="f0008-06" width="249" height="432"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Jaroslav Jirik</b></figcaption></div><p>The Czech player, now 30 years old, has had some difficulty in changing from the European style of play and also admitted that the step from Kansas City to the NHL was a big one.</p><p>He said, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s more of a scramble in the minor league. They play positions more in the NHL, and the game is so much faster, and they handle the puck so much better. They know what they&rsquo;re doing. It&rsquo;s a lot harder.&rdquo;</p><p>Jirik returned to his home in Vojnuv, Mestac, Czechoslovakia, after his three-game trial with the Blues. He was anxious to rejoin his bride, whom he married during the season, and the talent-laden Blues were setting their lineup for the Stanley Cup playoffs. However, Jirik is still under a Blues&rsquo; contract and will be available for play next year. Making the team will be tough, but Blues&rsquo; officials concede that Jirik has some sound hockey ability.</p><p>Blues&rsquo; general manager-coach Scotty Bowman says, &ldquo;He played quite well for us. He&rsquo;s a fast skater and plays his wing well.&rdquo;</p><p>The Blues&rsquo; veteran defenseman. Al Arbour, who coached the team in two of Jirik&rsquo;s three games while Bowman was scouting junior players in Canada, said, &ldquo;Jirik&rsquo;s a good player. He did all right; he can skate.&rdquo;</p><p>NHL President Clarence Campbell has envisioned the day when European teams will be a part of the league, and the new teams could include some from Communist countries. Jirik may be a grandfather by then and will be glad that he didn&rsquo;t wait to make the trip from East to West.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-06

Jirik Returns Home After Impressing Blues In NHL Trial

<p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>B</span>oston Bruins&rsquo; vaunted offense took its toll among the power play records established this season in the National Hockey League as new marks were set in both East and West.</p><p>The Bruins scored 81 power play goals to erase the old record of 70 set by the Chicago Black Hawks in 1965-66. The St. Louis Blues, who owned the Expansion division standard of 62 set last year, also bettered Chicago&rsquo;s total and put a new figure in the book for the West by counting 72 power play goals, second only to the devastating Bruins.</p><p>The NHL as a whole registered 663 power play goals to topple the record of 549 set last season and the 82 shorthanded goals scored this year also surpassed the mark of 72 that was also set last season.</p><p>While the Bruins were the most prolific power play team in the entire NHL, they were also the most futile at killing off penalties, yielding a total of 80 power play goals as compared to 32 by Chicago, which led the NHL. However, the Bruins did pace the NHL in shorthanded goals with 13 in spite of their high goals-against mark.</p><p>Individually, Boston&rsquo;s Phil Esposito was the leading power play scorer with 18, two below Bobby Hull&rsquo;s record total of 20 set last year. Red Berenson of St. Louis was second to Esposito and top man in the West with 16.</p><p>Stan Mikita, Hull and Berenson were deadlocked for the lead in game winning goals with eight each, which was also below Hull&rsquo;s 11 that led the league in 1968-69.</p><p>In two other important goal categories, Bill Collins of Minnesota North Stars capped his most successful NHL season with 29 career goals. Six of them came with the opposition shorthanded to make him top man in this department. Bill Goldsworthy, also of Minnesota, had the most game tieing goals with five.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-01712/2735605-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="270" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Phil Esposito</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02656/2735598-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="276" height="415"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Stan Mikita</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-03554/2735591-1-eng-US/f0009-032.jpg" title="f0009-03" width="276" height="407"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bobby Hull</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-04467/2735584-1-eng-US/f0009-042.jpg" title="f0009-04" width="277" height="403"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Red Berenson</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-05364/2735577-1-eng-US/f0009-052.jpg" title="f0009-05" width="281" height="402"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill Collins</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-06311/2735570-1-eng-US/f0009-062.jpg" title="f0009-06" width="270" height="406"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill Goldsworthy</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>TEAM POWER PLAY GOALS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-07276/2735563-1-eng-US/f0009-072.jpg" title="f0009-07" width="528" height="339"></div><h2><b>PENALTY KILLING STATISTICS</b></h2><p><b>KEY: GP&mdash;Games Played; ADV&mdash;Advantage in manpower; PPG&mdash;Power Ploy goals; TS&mdash;Times Shorthanded; PPGA&mdash;Power Play Goals Against.</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-08255/2735556-1-eng-US/f0009-082.jpg" title="f0009-08" width="592" height="364"></div><h2><b>INDIVIDUAL SCORING LEADERS IN IMPORTANT GOALS</b></h2><h3>POWER PLAY</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-09247/2735549-1-eng-US/f0009-092.jpg" title="f0009-09" width="528" height="259"></div><h3>GAME WINNERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-10227/2735542-1-eng-US/f0009-102.jpg" title="f0009-10" width="582" height="282"></div><h3>SHORTHAND GOALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-11197/2735535-1-eng-US/f0009-112.jpg" title="f0009-11" width="524" height="131"></div><h3>GAME TIEING GOALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-12159/2735528-1-eng-US/f0009-122.jpg" title="f0009-12" width="586" height="87"></div><h2><b>POWER PLAY GOALS</b></h2><h3>BOSTON (81)</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-13142/2735521-1-eng-US/f0009-132.jpg" title="f0009-13" width="399" height="261"></div><h3><b>ST LOUIS (72)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-14116/2735514-1-eng-US/f0009-142.jpg" title="f0009-14" width="392" height="387"></div><h3><b>DETROIT (57)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-1594/2735507-1-eng-US/f0009-152.jpg" title="f0009-15" width="390" height="238"></div><h3><b>MINNESOTA (57)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-1667/2735500-1-eng-US/f0009-162.jpg" title="f0009-16" width="393" height="259"></div><h3><b>MONTREAL (57)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-1753/2735493-1-eng-US/f0009-172.jpg" title="f0009-17" width="389" height="377"></div><h3><b>CHICAGO (55)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-1833/2735486-1-eng-US/f0009-182.jpg" title="f0009-18" width="389" height="304"></div><h3><b>PITTSBURGH (53)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-1929/2735479-1-eng-US/f0009-192.jpg" title="f0009-19" width="396" height="386"></div><h3><b>NEW YORK (52)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2020/2735472-1-eng-US/f0009-202.jpg" title="f0009-20" width="398" height="413"></div><h3><b>TORONTO (49)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2118/2735465-1-eng-US/f0009-212.jpg" title="f0009-21" width="387" height="336"></div><h3><b>PHILADELPHIA (46)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2214/2735458-1-eng-US/f0009-222.jpg" title="f0009-22" width="389" height="354"></div><h3><b>OAKLAND (45)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2314/2735451-1-eng-US/f0009-232.jpg" title="f0009-23" width="392" height="329"></div><h3><b>LOS ANGELES (39)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2412/2735444-1-eng-US/f0009-242.jpg" title="f0009-24" width="386" height="355"></div><h2>GAME WINNING GOALS</h2><h3>CHICAGO (45)</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2511/2735437-1-eng-US/f0009-252.jpg" title="f0009-25" width="394" height="361"></div><h3><b>BOSTON (40)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-2611/2735430-1-eng-US/f0009-262.jpg" title="f0009-26" width="390" height="386"></div><h3><b>DETROIT (40)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-279/2735423-1-eng-US/f0009-272.jpg" title="f0009-27" width="394" height="305"></div><h3><b>NEW YORK (38)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-288/2735416-1-eng-US/f0009-282.jpg" title="f0009-28" width="395" height="282"></div><h3><b>MONTREAL (38)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-297/2735409-1-eng-US/f0009-292.jpg" title="f0009-29" width="395" height="359"></div><h3><b>ST. LOUIS (37)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-307/2735402-1-eng-US/f0009-302.jpg" title="f0009-30" width="394" height="328"></div><h3><b>TORONTO (29)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-317/2735395-1-eng-US/f0009-312.jpg" title="f0009-31" width="389" height="260"></div><h3><b>PITTSBURGH (26)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-325/2735388-1-eng-US/f0009-322.jpg" title="f0009-32" width="389" height="308"></div><h3><b>OAKLAND (22)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-334/2735381-1-eng-US/f0009-332.jpg" title="f0009-33" width="388" height="255"></div><h3><b>PHILADELPHIA (17)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-344/2735374-1-eng-US/f0009-342.jpg" title="f0009-34" width="389" height="230"></div><h3><b>MINNESOTA (16)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-354/2735367-1-eng-US/f0009-352.jpg" title="f0009-35" width="384" height="203"></div><h3><b>LOS ANGELES (14)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-364/2735360-1-eng-US/f0009-362.jpg" title="f0009-36" width="390" height="231"></div><h2>SHORTHAND GOALS</h2><h3>BOSTON (13)</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-374/2735353-1-eng-US/f0009-372.jpg" title="f0009-37" width="386" height="155"></div><h3><b>MINNESOTA (10)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-383/2735346-1-eng-US/f0009-382.jpg" title="f0009-38" width="389" height="134"></div><h3><b>DETROIT (8)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-04351/2735339-1-eng-US/f0012-042.jpg" title="f0012-04" width="381" height="128"></div><h3><b>MONTREAL (8)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-05263/2735332-1-eng-US/f0012-052.jpg" title="f0012-05" width="379" height="130"></div><h3><b>CHICAGO (7)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-06216/2735325-1-eng-US/f0012-062.jpg" title="f0012-06" width="380" height="128"></div><h3><b>NEW YORK (7)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-07188/2735318-1-eng-US/f0012-072.jpg" title="f0012-07" width="377" height="99"></div><h3><b>PHILADELPHIA (7)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-08163/2735311-1-eng-US/f0012-082.jpg" title="f0012-08" width="379" height="130"></div><h3><b>LOS ANGELES (6)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-09135/2735304-1-eng-US/f0012-092.jpg" title="f0012-09" width="378" height="101"></div><h3><b>ST LOUIS (5)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-10121/2735297-1-eng-US/f0012-102.jpg" title="f0012-10" width="376" height="101"></div><h3><b>TORONTO (5)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-11112/2735290-1-eng-US/f0012-112.jpg" title="f0012-11" width="376" height="101"></div><h3><b>OAKLAND (4)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1295/2735283-1-eng-US/f0012-122.jpg" title="f0012-12" width="376" height="104"></div><h3><b>PITTSBURGH (2)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1384/2735276-1-eng-US/f0012-132.jpg" title="f0012-13" width="377" height="49"></div><h2>GAME TIEING GOALS</h2><h3>PHLADELPHIA (23)</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1477/2735269-1-eng-US/f0012-142.jpg" title="f0012-14" width="380" height="326"></div><h3><b>MINNESOTA (21)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1571/2735262-1-eng-US/f0012-152.jpg" title="f0012-15" width="378" height="231"></div><h3><b>BOSTON (18)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1662/2735255-1-eng-US/f0012-162.jpg" title="f0012-16" width="381" height="306"></div><h3><b>MONTREAL (16)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1748/2735248-1-eng-US/f0012-172.jpg" title="f0012-17" width="381" height="274"></div><h3><b>DETROIT (15)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1842/2735241-1-eng-US/f0012-182.jpg" title="f0012-18" width="380" height="251"></div><h3><b>NEW YORK (15)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-1936/2735234-1-eng-US/f0012-192.jpg" title="f0012-19" width="384" height="224"></div><h3><b>OAKLAND (14)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-2031/2735227-1-eng-US/f0012-202.jpg" title="f0012-20" width="379" height="253"></div><h3><b>TORONTO (13)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-2124/2735220-1-eng-US/f0012-212.jpg" title="f0012-21" width="383" height="257"></div><h3><b>ST. LOUIS (11)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-2218/2735213-1-eng-US/f0012-222.jpg" title="f0012-22" width="380" height="253"></div><h3><b>PITTSBURGH (11)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-2314/2735206-1-eng-US/f0012-232.jpg" title="f0012-23" width="381" height="178"></div><h3><b>LOS ANGELES (9)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-2410/2735199-1-eng-US/f0012-242.jpg" title="f0012-24" width="379" height="150"></div><h3><b>CHICAGO (8)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-259/2735192-1-eng-US/f0012-252.jpg" title="f0012-25" width="376" height="150"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0009-01

Bruins Turned On With Record 81 Power Play Goals

<p>Following are the latest player movements in hockey:</p><h2><b>NATIONAL LEAGUE</b></h2><p>BOSTON&mdash;<b>DAN SCHOCK,</b> forward, recalled from Salt Lake of WHL.</p><p>DETROIT&mdash;<b>HANK MONTEITH</b> and <b>DOUG VOLMAR,</b> forwards, recalled from Fort Worth of CHL.</p><p>PITTSBURGH&mdash;<b>RICK KESSELL</b> and <b>GEORGE SWARBRICK,</b> forwards, returned to Baltimore of AHL.</p><p>MINNESOTA&mdash;<b>TOM POLANIC,</b> defenseman, re-called from Iowa of CHL to replace <b>LEO BOIVIN,</b> defenseman, placed on injury list. <b>WALT McKECHNIE,</b> forward, returned to Iowa.</p><p>LOS ANGELES&mdash;<b>HOWIE HUGHES,</b> forward, assigned to Springfield of AHL.</p><h2><b>AMERICAN LEAGUE</b></h2><p>MONTREAL&mdash;<b>JEAN GAUTHIER,</b> defenseman, rejoined team from Montreal of NHL. <b>ROCKY FARR,</b> goal-keeper, recalled from Denver of WHL to serve as standby netminder.</p><p>BUFFALO&mdash;<b>RON BUCHANAN,</b> forward, recalled from Kansas City of CHL as replacement for <b>GUY TROTTIER,</b> forward, out with eye injury. <b>WAYNE MAKI,</b> forward, placed on injury list with, severely sprained wrist.</p><p>ROCHESTER&mdash;<b>JACK WELLS,</b> forward, recalled from Charlotte of EHL. <b>JACK CHIPCHASE,</b> defenseman, out for season with muscle spasm in back. <b>JACK STANFIELD,</b> forward, out for season with shoulder separation. <b>BOB WHIDDEN,</b> goalkeeper, out for season with ruptured disc in back requiring surgery.</p><h2><b>WESTERN LEAGUE</b></h2><p>SEATTLE&mdash;<b>TOM</b> TREVE<b>LYAN,</b> forward, recalled from Charlotte of EHL for playoffs despite being suspended for seson for pushing referee. <b>BOB BROWN,</b> forward, recalled from Jersey of EHL for playoffs.</p><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;<b>PAT HANNIGAN,</b> forward, placed on suspended list for rest of season for stick swinging and fined $.300.</p><p>DENVER&mdash;<b>BILL DINEEN,</b> player-coach, retired as player to become full time coach with club. <b>ROGER LAFRENIERE,</b> defenseman, placed on suspended list for rest of season and fined $200 for stick swinging.</p><h2><b>EASTERN LEAGUE</b></h2><p>LONG ISLAND&mdash;<b>BLAKE BALL,</b> defenseman-coach, suspended until Jan. 1, 1971 for striking referee and replaced as coach of EHL club by <b>ED STANKIEWICZ.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Movements of Players

<div class="byline">BY GLENN REDMANN</div><p>TWIN CITIES&mdash;</p><p>There are those who insist that the Minnesota North Stars would have finished fifth instead of third in the NHL&rsquo;s West Division if (1) Charlie Burns had not become a playing coach on March 1 and (2) Gump Worsley had decided against making a come-back.</p><p>These theories have merit, to be sure, but this writer would prefer to think beyond individual accomplishment in coming up with the main reason for the stirring, late-season surge which enabled the courageous Minnesotans to knock Philadelphia out of the playoffs and relegate Oakland to the fourth-place spot.</p><p>And what would that main reason be?</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-01731/2735636-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="267" height="451"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Lorne Worsley</b></figcaption></div><p>Easy&mdash;the realization that they indeed were as good a hockey club as any other in the West when they put their minds to it.</p><p>Consider the fact that before winning their last four games of the regular-season schedule&mdash;all against Western foes&mdash;the Stars were an absolutely miserable six victories, 20 defeats and 10 ties against fellow expansionists.</p><p>That, friends, is only 22 out of a possible 72 points. Small wonder the Minnesotans were having trouble qualifying for a playoff spot when they most generously yielded 50 markers to the very clubs with which they were battling for a chance at the post-season jackpot.</p><p>Then it happened. With the tireless-checking Bruns and Worsley definitely playing key roles, the North Stars suddenly found the formula for beating the West and reeled off successive triumphs over Oakland (8-3), Los Angeles (5-2), Philadelphia (1-0) and Pittsburgh (5-1) over an eight-day span and were on the inside looking out.</p><p>In what has to rank as one of the new division&rsquo;s greatest rallying efforts, if for no other reason than three of the four wins were recorded on the road, the &ldquo;big&rdquo; victory, of course, was the blanking of the slump-ridden Flyers.</p><p>It came on April 4 before a hostile sellout crowd of 14,606 at the Spectrum when defeat for either team meant fifth place.</p><p>Sure, it was scored on a fluke, 85-foot goal by rookie defenseman Barry Gibbs in the third period, but the point is this&mdash;the Stars more than held their own against a club which they hadn&rsquo;t come close to beating on foreign ice in three previous battles this season.</p><p>Shots-on-goal totals can sometimes be deceiving. But the Stars&rsquo; 35-30 edge over the Flyers was indicative of their slight territorial edge.</p><p>Worsley was superlative as the Stars picked up their fifth victory against a lone loss and one tie behind the little goalkeeper, who, coincidentally, donned a North Star uniform for the first time the same day Burns became a playing coach and watched his new mates rout Toronto, 8-0.</p><p>The Gumper robbed Terry Ball of a tally with just 18 seconds left after Reg Fleming had dug the puck out of the corner and fed a perfect pass to the goal mouth.</p><p>&ldquo;Ball&rsquo;s shot was headed right for the corner,&rdquo; said defenseman Tom Reid, &ldquo;but Gump timed his dive beautifully to get in front of it.&rdquo;</p><p>Worsley also was in goal for the 8-3 rout at Oakland, the Stars&rsquo; only win in eight starts against Fred Glover&rsquo;s Seals.</p><p>In between those two games, Cesare Maniago turned in a splendid job against the loosy-goosy Kings at home before 14,905 fans&mdash;the second largest crowd of the season&mdash;rewarding Burns&rsquo; faith in him when just about everybody thought Charlie would tap Worsley.</p><p>Burns also used the 31-year-old Maniago in the season-windup at Pittsburgh and, although the Penguins weren&rsquo;t skating with their usual drive, Cesare played a big part in his team&rsquo;s first road win of the season in the Steel City.</p><p>So did the Tommy Williams&mdash;Bill Goldsworthy&mdash;J. P. Parise line, which scored three goals to up their combined season total to 75, one more than the club record established last season by the Danny O&rsquo;Shea&mdash;Danny Grant&mdash;Claude Larose unit.</p><p>Goldsworthy&rsquo;s 36th also was a club standard, breaking by one the old mark set two years ago by another right winger, Wayne Connelly, now of Detroit.</p><p>That win over Red Kelly&rsquo;s pesky Penguins pushed the Stars ahead of Oakland, something some persons might have questioned since it meant the Minnesotans would have to meet St. Louis in the first round of the playoffs instead of Pittsburgh.</p><p>But that&rsquo;s the way the Stars wanted it.</p><p>&ldquo;This time,&rdquo; said Goldsworthy, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll get three games against them on our home ice. We think we&rsquo;ve got a good chance to take &lsquo;em.&rdquo;</p><p>Goldy was, of course, referring to the Stars&rsquo; 1968 West Division final playoff series against St. Louis when (because of an ice show occupying the Sports Center) five of the seven games were played on the Blues&rsquo; rink.</p><p>The North Stars&rsquo; four straight wins at the end&mdash;they had not won more than two in a row before&mdash;gave them a total of 60 points, 30 against each division.</p><p>If able to keep up that momentum, the Minnesotans do indeed have a chance to go beyond the first round of Stanley Cup actions. A good chance.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

Burns, Worsley Big In Windup For Stars, But Solving West Puzzle Won NHL Playoff

<div class="byline">BY PAT CURRAN</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he only thing missing was a jig to make it resemble an old-fashioned Irish wake. The drinks were strong, the roast beef was good and Toe Blake told a few old hockey stories with due respect for the deceased.</p><p>And like the Irish, with the same respect for a saint or a scoundrel after he&rsquo;s gone, everyone spoke well of the dead&mdash;the Canadiens who two days earlier had been eliminated from a playoff berth for the first time in 22 years.</p><p>The wake was held in the plush Mise au Jeurestaurant on the West side of the Forum where press, radio and two types gathered for the last freeload of the 1969-70 season. The party really had been planned a month earlier when GM Sam Pollock said jokingly it would be held &ldquo;whether we make the playoffs or not&rdquo;.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-01721/2735691-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="248" height="431"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Jean B&eacute;liveau</b></figcaption></div><p>However if the media men expected crying towels for napkins they were disappointed. President J. David Molson and Pollock took defeat with the same class in which they had accepted championships in previous seasons.</p><p>&ldquo;This is not a post mortem nor a crying session,&rdquo; said Molson. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m just sorry we couldn&rsquo;t make the season longer. But we were beaten out by a better club. Chicago deserved to win.</p><p>&ldquo;We only hope that next year our team will be strong enough to win the important games. We didn&rsquo;t quite have it when we needed it most this season. There will be some changes but I&rsquo;m not prepared to talk about them now.&rdquo;</p><p>Pollock sounded at times like Evangelist Billy Graham consoling victims of an earthly disaster.</p><p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to die to be born again,&rdquo; said Sam, confident the Canadiens will be right back in contention next season. &ldquo;The best part of it is we don&rsquo;t have to rely on a trade to get back on top. We&rsquo;ll see what we can do with what we&rsquo;ve got.&rdquo;</p><p>The GM added that all things considered, especially the incredible number of injuries, Canadiens didn&rsquo;t do so badly.</p><p>&ldquo;Just 48 hours before the end of the schedule we still had a good chance to finish second. We ended up missing a playoff by three goals and only seven points out of first place.&rdquo;</p><p>The Montreal management will go over its long roster of players, those with the parent Habs and about 10 members of the AHL Voyageurs good enough for the NHL, between now and the June draft meetings.</p><p>Major factors in changes are the possibility of retirement of Jean Beliveau, who never really got started in his 17th NHL season as a 38-year-old centre, and the veteran Claude Provost who isn&rsquo;t interested in playing anywhere but Montreal.</p><p>Rumors have been rampant that Beliveau has played his last game for Canadiens but neither the all-time great nor the club threw any light on his plans.</p><p>&ldquo;Everything has happened too quickly for me to discuss the future,&rdquo; said Big Jean the day after elimination, the first time his team missed the playoffs since his initial junior season in 1947. &ldquo;I have to talk things over with management to see what the plans are for the team &ldquo;</p><p>There&rsquo;s thought of shifting left wing Jacques Lemaire to centre next season and speculation that Ralph Backstrom will be traded to make room for a younger pivotman. If so, the Habs will need a new man on left wing, a position that suffered drastically through injuries to John Ferguson.</p><p>Meanwhile Pollock and his aides are taking in all four play-off series and scouting earnestly for whatever replacements are needed. He hasn&rsquo;t yet given up hope of landing Junior Canadiens&rsquo; sensation Gilbert Perreault who is due to be drafted by either Buffalo or Vancouver</p><p>&ldquo;I always figured the dance isn&rsquo;t over until the band stops playing,&rdquo; says shrewd Sam who could swing a deal to keep Perreault in Montreal.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0011-01

Molson, Pollock Laud Hawks—Promise Changes

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03476/2735760-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Tempers and sticks were really running high in the Eastern playoff series between the Bruins and Rangers. Here&rsquo;s Boston&rsquo;s DON AWREY and New York&rsquo;s WALTER TKACZUK battling one another in the tense ice action.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Hockey News Photo by Harry Klaft)</span></figcaption></div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Old New York was never a peaceful city and it won&rsquo;t be either as long as the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins are around cutting one another up in little pieces.</p><p>The bad blood and high emotions that have long existed between the two clubs finally erupted in the third game of their best-of-seven Eastern semi-final playoff series, and when the smoke had cleared, they had set a new Stanley Cup playoff record in penalties.</p><p>The Rangers were rebounding from a pair of defeats in the first two games at Boston, an 8-2 drubbing and a 5-3 setback that not only injured the New Yorkers&rsquo;s pride but took some of the starch out of the team.</p><p>But the Rangers got a full head of steam up once they returned home to Madison Square Garden and emerged with two victories in succession to tie the series at 2-2. They won game three by 4-3 and took the fourth game 4-2 forcing the Bruins hand in both games.</p><p>The donnybrook that accompanied the third game broke in the second minute of play in the first period and resulted in 24 penalties being called for a total, of 132 minutes.</p><p>It all started when Boston&rsquo;s Derek Sanderson and Dave Balon of the Rangers clawed at one another and before it was over a dozen players became embroiled in the affair.</p><p>The game was only 1:31 old before Sanderson and Balon each was assessed a double major, a 10-minute misconduct and a game conduct by referee John Ashley. In all, there were 12 major penalties called for fighting, four 10-minute misconducts and six minors in addition to the game misconducts.</p><p>The penalties were distributed evenly between the teams.</p><p>The former records of 23 penalties and 130 minutes for a playoff game were set by Montreal and Toronto, April 14, 1966.</p><p>After the fight-filled first period, the teams settled down to a little hockey playing and the Rangers came on stronger from a 2-1 opening period lead to build up to a 4-3 victory on goals by Rod Gilbert, Walt Tkazcuk, Ted Irvine and Jean Ratelle.</p><p>Tempers were still running high when the teams came back to the ice for the fourth game as Gilbert sparked the Rangers&rsquo; upsurge by scoring twice in the first period and the Bruins never recovered although they came close to tieing it. Tkaczuk and Dave Balon added singles and the Rangers came away with a win and were true value for their victory with Ed Giacomin rising to great heights in goal.</p><p>Bobby Orr with two goals, one in each game, accounted for the Boston scoring along with Phil Esposito, Bill Speer and Fred Stanfield in the New York games. Esposito broke out with three goals and Orr two in the first-game rout as the Bruins shot 13 pucks past the Rangers in the two games on Boston ice in what looked like another playoff rout reminiscent of last year&rsquo;s Toronto-Boston series.</p><p>But the Rangers skated back into contention and obviously full of fight. It looked like a tough, knockem-down, dragem-out series for both clubs.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-03

Fists, Tempers Fly As Rangers Square Series With Bruins

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0013-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01689/2735903-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg"></div><h2><b>SERIES A</b></h2><h3><b>Wed. April 8 DETROIT 2 AT CHICAGO 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02643/2735896-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="598" height="628"></div><h3><b>Thurs. April 9 DETROIT 2 AT CHICAGO 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-03598/2735889-1-eng-US/f0013-032.jpg" title="f0013-03" width="597" height="536"></div><h3><b>Sat. April 11 CHICAGO 4 AT DETROIT 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-04547/2735882-1-eng-US/f0013-042.jpg" title="f0013-04" width="596" height="626"></div><h3><b>Sun. April 12 CHICAGO 4 AT DETROIT 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-05451/2735875-1-eng-US/f0013-052.jpg" title="f0013-05" width="591" height="637"></div><h2><b>SERIES B</b></h2><h3><b>Wed. April 8 NEW YORK 2 AT BOSTON 8</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-06383/2735868-1-eng-US/f0013-062.jpg" title="f0013-06" width="596" height="973"></div><h3><b>Thurs. April 9 NEW YORK 3 AT BOSTON 5</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-07353/2735861-1-eng-US/f0013-072.jpg" title="f0013-07" width="600" height="660"></div><h3><b>Sat. April 11 BOSTON 3 AT NEW YORK 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-08331/2735854-1-eng-US/f0013-082.jpg" title="f0013-08" width="599" height="874"></div><h3><b>Sun. April 12 BOSTON 2 AT NEW YORK 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-09315/2735847-1-eng-US/f0013-092.jpg" title="f0013-09" width="600" height="636"></div><h2><b>SERIES C</b></h2><h3><b>Wed. April 8 MINNESOTA 2 AT ST. LOUIS 6</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-10293/2735840-1-eng-US/f0013-102.jpg" title="f0013-10" width="601" height="710"></div><h3><b>Thurs. April 9 MINNESOTA 1 AT ST. LOUIS 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-11268/2735833-1-eng-US/f0013-112.jpg" title="f0013-11" width="594" height="485"></div><h3><b>Sat. April 11 ST. LOUIS 2 AT MINNESOTA 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-12235/2735826-1-eng-US/f0013-122.jpg" title="f0013-12" width="604" height="624"></div><h3><b>Sun. April 12 ST. LOUIS 0 AT MINNESOTA 4</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-13201/2735819-1-eng-US/f0013-132.jpg" title="f0013-13" width="592" height="559"></div><h2><b>SERIES D</b></h2><h3><b>Wed. April 8 OAKLAND 1 AT PITTSBURGH 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-14170/2735812-1-eng-US/f0013-142.jpg" title="f0013-14" width="594" height="524"></div><h3><b>Thurs. April 9 OAKLAND 1 AT PITTSBURGH 3</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-15140/2735805-1-eng-US/f0013-152.jpg" title="f0013-15" width="594" height="561"></div><h3><b>Sat. April 11 PITTSBURGH 5 AT OAKLAND 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-16100/2735798-1-eng-US/f0013-162.jpg" title="f0013-16" width="601" height="659"></div><h3><b>Sun. April 12 PITTSBURGH 3 AT OAKLAND 2</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1779/2735791-1-eng-US/f0013-172.jpg" title="f0013-17" width="600" height="631"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0013-01

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF SUMMARIES

<h2><b>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1867/2735962-1-eng-US/f0013-182.jpg" title="f0013-18" width="587" height="210"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Detroit 2 at Chicago 4</p><p><b>Thurs. April 9</b></p><p>Detroit 2 at Chicago 4</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Chicago 4 at Detroit 2</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Chicago 4 at Detroit 2</p><h2><b>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-1951/2735955-1-eng-US/f0013-192.jpg" title="f0013-19" width="585" height="168"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>New York 2 at Boston 8</p><p><b>Thurs. April 9</b></p><p>New York 3 at Boston 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Boston 3 at New York 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Boston 2 at New York 4</p><h2><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h2><p><b>Tues. April 14</b></p><p>New York at Boston</p><p><b>Thurs. April 16</b></p><p>Boston at New York</p><p><b>Sat. or Sun. April 18-19</b></p><p>New York at Boston (if necessary)</p><h2><b>SERIES &lsquo;C&rsquo;</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2035/2735948-1-eng-US/f0013-202.jpg" title="f0013-20" width="582" height="165"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Minnesota 2 at St. Louis 6</p><p><b>Thurs. April 9</b></p><p>Minnesota 1 at St. louis 2</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>St. Louis 2 at Minnesota 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>St. Louis 0 at Minnesota 4</p><h2><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h2><p><b>Tues. April 14</b></p><p>Minnesota at St. Louis</p><p><b>Thurs. April 16</b></p><p>St. Louis at Minnesota</p><p><b>Sat. or Sun. April 18-19</b></p><p>Minnesota at St. Louis (if necessary)</p><h2><b>SERIES &lsquo;D&rsquo;</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2127/2735941-1-eng-US/f0013-212.jpg" title="f0013-21" width="582" height="203"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Oakland 1 at Pittsburgh 2</p><p><b>Thurs. April 9</b></p><p>Oakland 1 at Pittsburgh 2</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Pittsburgh 5 at Oakland 2</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Pittsburgh 3 at Oakland 2</p><h2><b>PLAYOFF SCORING</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-2222/2735934-1-eng-US/f0013-222.jpg" title="f0013-22" width="549" height="1545"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0013-18

Looking At The Playoff Scene

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE SLUBBER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD. Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S. and Canada</b></p><p>LOS ANGELES&mdash;</p><p>At last it ended, the longest season in NHL history. The Los Angeles Kings impressed everyone with their spirited play through to the finish under deeply depressing circumstances, so there is no desire to punish them beyond what their foes did, but at this point the details must be chronicled.</p><p>Finishing a distant last, the Kings won 14 games, lost 52 and tied 10 for 38 points. They were 12-22-4 at home, 2-30-6 on the road. They were 3-29-4 against established teams in the Eastern Division, 11-23-6 against fellow expansionists in the Western Division. They failed to best an Eastern foe in 18 road games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01687/2736000-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="273" height="424"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Butch Goring</b></figcaption></div><p>Over the years, the NHL schedule has increased from 18 to the present 76 games. The schedule stood at 70 games for 18 years through the 1967 season, the last one prior to expansion.</p><p>This past season, the Kings won fewer games in 70 games, 11, than any previous team. They missed the mark for most defeats in 70 games with 49, but with the help of six additional games, they wound up with the most losses in history, 52. tied for the most home losses in history, 22, and tied for the most road losses in history, 30.</p><p>Despite the extra six games, they tied the record for the fewest road victories in 70 games or more, two.</p><p>One of the few records in reverse which eluded them was that for the longest winless streak. The record is 21, set by the New York Rangers in 1944. The best the Kings could do was a string of 20.</p><p>The previous record-holding worst teams in NHL history were the 1931 Philadelphia Quakers, which had a 4-36-4 record in 44 games and dropped out of hockey the next season, and the 1954 Chicago Black Hawks, which had a 12-51-7 record in 70 games.</p><p>The Black Hawks did not drop out of hockey, but in case you think teams can&rsquo;t repeat such records, they almost did with only 13 victories the next season.</p><p>The worst may be yet to come, since the schedule goes up two games to 78 games next season.</p><p>It does not matter what sort of talent one feels the Kings have, what might have been or could have been, results are all that counts and the Kings may have been the worst team in NHL history. There were only nine teams in the NHL when the Quakers set their mark, only six when the Hawks set their mark. This season there were 12 and the talent was divided more thinly.</p><p>The Hawks team included Bill Mosienko, Bill Gadsby and Al Rollins, who had a respectable 3.23 goals-against average. It also included Jimmy Peters, whose son Jim Jr., was on the Kings this season. And Larry Wilson. John Wilson coached the Kings the last two-thirds of this season after replacing Hal Laycoe.</p><p>Perhaps the brightest part of the season was the fan support, which was surprising. L.A. has not yet attained a true NHL level in attendance, but in a year of seemingly endless losses, only 1,912 fewer fans than last season turned out&mdash;321,922, for an average of 8,492. The Kings have averaged in the 8,000 range each of their three seasons; clearly, this measures the hard core of hockey supporters in this area.</p><p>Although no players had outstanding seasons, some were good individually for half a season or even for all of the season. These included Eddie Joyal, Bill Flett, Ross Lonsberry, Butch Goring and two who were traded late in the season, Dale Rolfe and Gerry Desjardins. Ironically, these two and Bill White and Bryan Campbell, also traded, could wind up on a Stanley Cup winner in Detroit or Chicago.</p><p>The writers voted Lonsberry MVP. Others voted Peters &ldquo;the unsung hero,&rdquo; Eddie Shack &ldquo;the most popular player,&rdquo; and Goring &ldquo;rookie of the year.&rdquo; Dale &ldquo;Red&rdquo; Hoganson also was a promising rookie performer. Veterans Matt Ravlich and Gilles Mar&oacute;tte, obtained in the trades, helped on defense late.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02578/2735993-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="561" height="546"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>EDDIE SHACK&hellip;Most Popular King</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0014-01

Kings Wind Up NHL’s All-Time Losers

<div class="byline">BY JACK BERRY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01662/2736083-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="458" height="565"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>SID ABEL</b></figcaption></div><p>DETROIT&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he season began in controversy for the Red Wings with owner Bruce Norris firing coach Bill Gadsby after the first two games and it ended in controversy with the farcical 9-5 loss to the New York Rangers on national television.</p><p>But before boiling Red Wing managercoach Sid Abel in oil, a number of factors should be pointed out:</p><p>&mdash;Montreal had every opportunity to win a place on its own but the Canadiens stumbled badly in the last five games, gaining just three of a possible 10 points. Four points would&rsquo;ve clinched the final spot.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02595/2736076-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="265" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Gary Bergman</b></figcaption></div><p>&mdash;Abel&rsquo;s first concern was having his own team ready for the Stanley Cup playoffs. He used the Big Line (Frank Mahovlich&mdash;Alex Delvecchio&mdash;Gordie Howe) together no more than six times in the debacle in New York but that was more than he intended. Howe had a very bad cold, souvenir of the round trip bus ride to Chicago.</p><p>&mdash;The Sunday game was the fourth in five days for Detroit and, as Abel pointed out, the team did poorly in the final game every time it had a four-in-five sequence during the season.</p><p>&mdash;The first three games in the sequence were tough ones, a 5-2 victory in Chicago that wasn&rsquo;t broken open until midway in the third period, then a 4-2 victory at 01ympia over Toronto, the Wings&rsquo; game in hand on the other challengers, and finally the big 6-2 victory Saturday over New York that clinched third place.</p><p>&mdash;Compounding the four games in five nights was the bus trip to Chicago, a five hour and 20 minute ride over, and then a stormy trip home with a stop halfway because of a heavy snow storm. The team arrived back in Detroit at 2:45 p.m., less than six hours before the game with Toronto.</p><p>The Wing performance Sunday was terrible&mdash;they let the Rangers bombard goalie Roger Crozier with 65 shots&mdash;but Abel shouldn&rsquo;t be blamed for the fault of the system of breaking ties.</p><p>Abel said the Wings hadn&rsquo;t given up hope of making second place&mdash;they would&rsquo;ve had to beat New York in the matinee and when have last place Toronto beat Boston in Boston Garden at night.</p><p>Abel&rsquo;s heavy use of his second line troops made it obvious the Wings didn&rsquo;t think much of their chances of making second place and Abel said Detroit was at a disadvantage because: 1&mdash;The Bruins could use the afternoon result as a psychological edge and 2&mdash;The Bruins had at least six hours more rest than the Wings.</p><p>The Wings didn&rsquo;t reach their New York hotel until 3:30 a.m. Sunday and the faceoff was at 2 p.m.</p><p>Contributing to the furor over the windup was the fact that a Canadian team was involved. There wasn&rsquo;t anywhere near that reaction when St. Louis Blues&rsquo; manager-coach Scotty Bowman sat out four and five regulars after the Blues clinched first place even though they were playing clubs that were fighting for playoff berths.</p><p>Not only that, Bowman even turned the coaching over to defenseman Al Arbour and went off on scouting missions.</p><p>Only one Detroit regular sat out the Ranger game, defenseman Dale Rolfe who sustained an elbow injury the previous night. And, while Howe saw little duty, it was more than Abel intended&mdash;he wanted to sit him out because of the cold.</p><p>Asked what his reaction would be if he was Montreal general manager Sam Pollock, Abel answered &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not one bit worried about Sam Pollock. I&rsquo;m worrying about my own club.&rdquo;</p><p>Abel said the game, in which the Rangers threw everything but the seats at Crozier, foregoing, defense and pulling goalie Ed Giacomin with nearly four minutes to play to get more goals, wasn&rsquo;t good for hockey.</p><p>&ldquo;I told our guys it&rsquo;d probably be a 9-8 game. All they wanted to do was score goals and it was obvious from the start when they used four forwards and a defenseman.&rdquo;</p><p>As for the Wings, Abel said the team already had cinched its spot and that he couldn&rsquo;t very well tell them &ldquo;to knock their heads in&rdquo; because the normal reaction would be to avoid being injured for the playoffs.</p><p>At that, defenseman Gary Bergman was hurt twice when he went down to block shots.</p><p>It was a weird finish and tainted somewhat the Wings great effort as they lost only twice in 18 games through the clinching victory over the Rangers.</p><p>Howe was superb in that one, scoring his 29th and 30th goals of the season to reach the 30-mark for the 14th time in his 23 NHL seasons. The first was a turn-in, with Rod Seiling hanging on him, of a fine pass from rookie Al Karlander who was fighting off a check.</p><p>The second was a break-in on which he sped by Brad Park, lost control of the puck as Dave Balon hacked at him, regained it. faked Giacomin down and out and fired the puck home as the crowd roared.</p><p>It was a sizzling finish for the Big Line as it contributed 12 goals in the Wings&rsquo; five-game unbeaten streak that sealed third place.</p><p>The surge helped lift Howe into ninth place in the final scoring standings, the first time he&rsquo;s been out of the top five in 21 years&hellip;but then, no one else has been in the top 10 for 21 straight years either.</p><p>Mahovlich had an excellent finish, winding up with 38 goals and playing his best hockey of the season, especially skating and playmaking. He took 10th place in the scoring race.</p><p>And club captain Alex Delvecchio, who didn&rsquo;t score his first goal until New Year&rsquo;s Eve, still finished with 21 markers.</p><p>There was champagne in the dressing room after the clinching victory over New York and you&rsquo;d have thought the team had won the Stanley Cup&hellip;but then, it was their first playoff appearance in four years.</p><p>Twenty-two-year-old Garry Unger, the Wings&rsquo; top goal man with 42, said on the national telecast during the Ranger game that there&rsquo;d been some partying Saturday night but it hardly was a drunken debacle. There wasn&rsquo;t time&mdash;the team had to fly to New York.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-03502/2736069-1-eng-US/f0015-032.jpg" title="f0015-03" width="1779" height="861"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Wings brilliant stretch finish was result of team effort but Detroiters received solid support from this high scoring trio of WAYNE CONNELLY, left, GARRY UNGER and PETE STEMKOWSKI. Between them they accounted for total of 90 goals this year.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0015-01

Had To Rest Big Line Says Abel Defending Wings’ Partital Finish

<p>STOCKHOLM&mdash;</p><p>The Soviet Union, with no opposition from North American countries this year, continued to dominate world amateur hockey.</p><p>The Russians captured their eighth world title in a row and 10th since they began competing 16 years ago with a 3-1 victory over Sweden in the final game of the six-team 1970 world tournament here recently.</p><p>The Soviets went through the 10-game tournament, originally scheduled for Montreal and Winnipeg before Canada withdrew from international competition, with nine victories and only one defeat.</p><p>Earlier in the action the Swedes had upset the dominant Russians 4-2.</p><p>Therefore, the Swedes wound up in second place with a 7-2-1 won-lost tied record, taking the silver medal.</p><p>Canada withdrew from the tournament because they were not permitted to use nine professionals. The United States was not included in this year&rsquo;s world tournament makeup having been relegated to the B Group after finishing last in 1969. However, the Americans will be back in the A category for 1971 following their sweep of the B tournament recently in Romania.</p><p>The absence of the popular Canadians obviously had an effect on the box office. A total of 154,486 spectators saw the tournament games, some 40,000 less than last year.</p><p>According to Tom Ratshunas of Sweden, writing from the tournament, the Canadians were unanimously missed. He reported that overall play was ragged and only the Swedes&rsquo; upset of the Russian kept the tourney from falling flat completely.</p><p>While the Russian team captain was stepping up to receive the championship trophies, the presentation was punctuated by shouts from the crowd of &ldquo;Go Canada Go,&rdquo; an obvious slap at the tourney organizers for not permitting Canada to compete over player eligibility rules.</p><p>Finland provided the big surprise of the tournament with their refreshing new approach to the game, the result of some long-range coaching and aid from NHL star Carl Brewer.</p><p>Among the individual awards, Urpo Ylonen of Finland carried off the IIHF&rsquo;s selection as the big goaler in the tournament. Lennart Svedberg of Sweden was judged the best defenseman and Alexander Matlsev, who won the individual tournament scoring championship with 21 points, was chosen as the best forward.</p><p>The Russians placed three men on the first All-Star team and three on the second. Sweden had one on the first and four on the second. Victor Konovalenko of Russia was the goaler on the first team, with Jan Suchy of Czechoslovakia and Svedberg of Sweden on defense; Vaclav Nedomansky of Czechoslovakia, whose pro hockey rights are still owned by the New York Rangers, was the center with Maltsev at right wing and Anatolij Firsov, another Russian, on the left.</p><p>The second team comprised Holmquist of Sweden in goal; Sjoberg and Abrahamsson of Sweden on defense; Starsjinov of Russia at center; Lars Nilsson of Sweden at left wing and a tie on the right side between Velerij Charlamov and Boris Michailov, both Russians.</p><h2><b>HOW THEY STAND</b></h2><h3><b>WORLD HOCKEY (Final Standings)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02434/2736128-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="590" height="236"></div><h3><b>Leading scorers</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03344/2736121-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="596" height="285"></div><h2>ICE QUIPS&hellip;&hellip;By MAKI</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01508/2736114-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="1212" height="1349"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>&ldquo;I Finally Figured Out What&rsquo;s Lacking In This Team!&rdquo;</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0016-02

Russian Win Clouded As Canadians Missed

<p><b>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD. Arnold Street Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S and Canada</b></p><h2><b>AHL PLAYOFFS</b></h2><h3><b>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01423/2736173-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="584" height="159"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Tues. April 7</b></p><p>Baltimore 0 at Montreal 4</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Baltimore 3 at Montreal 6</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Montreal 3 at Baltimore 4</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Montreal at Baltimore</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Baltimore at Montreal</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Montreal at Baltimore (if necessary)</p><p><b>Sun. or Mon. April 19-20</b></p><p>Baltimore at Montreal (if necessary)</p><h3><b>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02374/2736166-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="582" height="171"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Quebec 2 at Buffalo 1</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Quebec 3 at Buffalo 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Buffalo 2 at Quebec 3</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Buffalo at Quebec</p><p><b>Thurs. April 16</b></p><p>Quebec at Buffalo</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Buffalo at Quebec (if necessary)</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Quebec at Buffalo (if necessary)</p><h3><b>SERIEC &lsquo;C&rsquo;</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03308/2736159-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="580" height="144"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED Wed. April 8</b></h3><p>Hershey 2 at Springfield 1</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Hershey 2 at Springfield 3</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Hershey 6 at Springfield 3</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME Tues. April 14</b></h3><p>Springfield at Hershey</p><p><b>Thurs. April 16</b></p><p>Springfield at Hershey</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Springfield at Hershey (if necessary)</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Hershey at Springfield (if necessary)<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0017-01

AMERICAN LEAGUE

<div class="byline">BY CHARLEY BARTON</div><p>BUFFALO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>G</span>uy Trottier and Wayne Maki were 1-2 on the Buffalo Bisons&rsquo; sick parade as Coach Fred Shero readied the Western Division champions for the American Hockey League&rsquo;s Calder Cup playoffs.</p><p>Trottier, who led the league with a recordequaling 55 goals, sustained an eye injury when struck by a deflected puck with 10 minutes remaining in the regular-season finale at Providence.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-04241/2736211-1-eng-US/f0017-042.jpg" title="f0017-04" width="279" height="413"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ron Buchanan</b></figcaption></div><p>The 29-year-old Trottier, who led the AHL with 45 goals a year ago, posted his record-tying goal in a 6-3 win over the Reds. The loss kept the Rhode Islanders out of the playoffs and provided the Quebec Aces with a berth as the Bisons&rsquo; opponents.</p><p>Torn blood vessels in the front chamber of the left eye were expected to keep Trottier out of the first three games. He was ordered to remain off skates for a week, and was hospitalized for four days.</p><p>&ldquo;He will make a complete recovery, we&rsquo;re confident of that, and there are no facial fractures,&rdquo; said Dr. Joseph Dowling Jr. of Providence.</p><p>Maki suffered a severely sprained wrist in a 4-2 loss at Hershey, the club&rsquo;s second-last game of the regular season.</p><p>&ldquo;We may be without Maki for the first series,&rdquo; said Shero.&rdquo; It looks like a real bad sprain. It&rsquo;s a bad stroke of luck for him and the team.&rdquo;</p><p>Also on the injured list were defenseman Roger Cote (groin ailment); forward Forbes Kennedy (recovering from knee surgery) and center Ed Hoekstra (recovering from wrist fracture).</p><p>The Bisons enrolled Ron Buchanan of the Kansas City Blues for the playoffs, and the angular center was scheduled to make his debut in a Buffalo uniform against the Aces. Buchanan played 11 games with the Quebecers a year ago.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-05197/2736204-1-eng-US/f0017-052.jpg" title="f0017-05" width="1749" height="1058"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Western champion Buffalo Bisons started the Calder Cup playoffs without their ace scorer GUY TROTTIER, shown above at top of action scoring one of his record 55 goals this season. Goaler is ANDRE GILL of Hershey. Others are defenseman RALPH KELLER (3) of Bears at left and Buffalo&rsquo;s DON BLACKBURN (6). Trottier suffered eye injury in final game.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-04

Eye Injury To Trottier Blow As Bisons Limp Into Playoffs

<p>Hockey Players For WIHL Nelson Maple Leafs Senior &ldquo;A&rdquo; Team</p><h2>WE CAN OFFER YOU</h2><p>&bull; Full Scholarships At Notre Dame University</p><p>&bull; Training Plans At B.C. Vocational School</p><p>&bull; Employment Opportunities</p><p><b>DIRECT ALL INQUIRIES TO BOX 311 NELSON, B.C.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

WANTED

<p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>M</span>ontreal Voyageurs, who combined a devastating attack with a stingy defense, carried their dominance over into the playoffs as they jumped out in front of the Baltimore Clippers in the best-of-seven Calder Cup quarter-final series.</p><p>The Voyageurs, who dominated the American Hockey League statistically throughout the 72-game regular schedule, blanked the Clippers 4-0 in the opening game of the series and won again handily 6-3 in the second game before the teams moved to Baltimore ice.</p><p>They put together a tremendous first game defensively as goalie Jack Norris turned back 28 shots to chalk up the shutout. The defense formed a strong wall in front of Norris and the forwards did a great job of backchecking, forcing the Clippers to take long shots.</p><p>But playing-coach Al MacNeil warned that the Clippers, third in the league&rsquo;s Western Division during the regular schedule, won&rsquo;t always be that ineffective.</p><p>&ldquo;They (the Clippers) can do better than that,&rdquo; the coach said. &ldquo;1 think that had we given it anything less than we did, we might have been hard pressed,&rdquo; he said, referring to the opening playoff game.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01429/2736266-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="260" height="446"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Guy Charron</b></figcaption></div><p>The Voyageurs went into the series with all but right winger Ron Roberts healthy. Roberts is out with a groin injury and his availability for the series against the Clippers was doubtful.</p><p>Dennis Hextall scored once in the opening game and he set up Jean Gauthier for one. Gauthier was playing in his first game with the Voyageurs after being recalled by the Montreal Canadiens as an emergency replacement for Serge Savard, who broke his leg March 11.</p><p>Guy Charron and Phil Roberto notched the other Montreal goals against Baltimore goalie Joe Daley. The Clippers gave up a couple of soft goals but that was no fault of Daley&rsquo;s, who got little support from his defensemen.</p><p>It was the same story in game two of the series as the Voyageurs turned up their scoring power and the Clippers finally found the range but it proved inadequate.</p><p>Charron was the pace-setter in the game with two goals but Gauthier surprised by scoring again in the second contest. The Vees also got a goal from defenseman Pierre Bouchard indicating the Montreal defense was flexing its scoring muscles to enhance the already overpowering Montreal offense.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-01

Voyageurs Dominate Playoffs

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK SANTANIELLO</div><p>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;</p><p>&ldquo;Mr. Hustle&rdquo; of the Springfield Kings never knows what it means to coast or take it easy in a game or drill. He is always skating, working in the corners, covering his man or setting up a goal. And he has even become a goalgetter this season.</p><p>That would be Randy Miller, better known as &lsquo;Jake&rsquo;. Any young man who would like to learn what pro hockey is all about should watch this hustling, 29-year-old veteran in action. Much younger players have a pretty rough time trying to keep up with the scrappy winger.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02342/2736297-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="245" height="438"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Kandy Miller</b></figcaption></div><p>This was his best season in pro hockey with the Kings. This marked his second year with the locals and he has been producing in the scoring department with 18 goals. Randy hates to sit out games. We sometimes wonder what keeps him going, this man in motion. He will undoubleddy see action in the current playoff series at Hershey.</p><p>Sometimes Miller works too hard. Last season, that was the case. He pressed early and just could not get untracked. Thus, his goal production was way off and after such a slow start, he was sent to the Denver Spurs of the Western League for the rest of the winter.</p><p>It is getting tough for the Randy Millers of hockey. He&rsquo;ll be 30 before another season starts and with development teams and emphasis on younger players, many like him will be out of the game.</p><p>Miller is known around the American Hockey League as one of the finer two way players. He is a checker, skater and digger. He will always give that hard, honest effort in a game. He is considered the best winger in the league going into the corners for the puck.</p><p>Married with a son and daughter, Jake was turned pro by the Boston Bruins. He played three seasons with the Kingston, Ontario club in the now disbanded Eastern Pro League. In 1963 he was traded to the Springfield Indians in a multi-player trade.</p><p>Along with Miller, the Bruins sent Bruce Gamble, Dale Rolfe and Terry Gray here for Bob McCord. Jake&rsquo;s two best pro years came in 1966 and 1967 when he potted 42 goals. This was his best season in the scoring column since then.</p><p>Miller counted a hat trick on March 29 against Providence. He is one of those players who finds his scoring touch late in the season. In 1967, he hit for a hat trick against Hershey Bears on the final night of the schedule. His return here has been hailed and appreciated by Springfield hockey fans.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-02

Miller’s Ice Hustle ‘Plus’ For Kings In Playoff Series

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03249/2736342-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg"></div><h2><b>TEAMS&rsquo; OVERALL SEASON RECORDS</b></h2><h3>AGAINST EACH OTHER</h3><h3><b>HOME GAMES</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-04197/2736335-1-eng-US/f0018-042.jpg" title="f0018-04" width="588" height="385"></div><h3><b>AWAY GAMES</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-05145/2736328-1-eng-US/f0018-052.jpg" title="f0018-05" width="588" height="387"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0018-03

How Season Play Went

<div class="byline">BY HANS TANNER</div><p>ROCHESTER&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span> record-breaking whirlpool of futility rather than a blaze of glory is the way the Rochester Americans wound up their most dismal American Hockey League season ever.</p><p>The Amerks set no fewer than seven club records for &ldquo;badness&rdquo; and tied another.</p><p>And they did all of this with a stretch drive in re verse that saw them fail to win a game since Feb. 27.</p><p>Rochester went through its final 14 games without a single victory losing 10 of them and tying four. That wiped out the record of 13 straight without a win set by the 1962-63 club. And they made it eight straight losses &lsquo;to close the schedule&mdash;two more than the previous mark of six also set by the &lsquo;62-63 squad and matched by the 1967-68 Amerks.</p><p>This season&rsquo;s team also wound up with the fewest wins of any Rochester team in the city&rsquo;s 14 years in the AHL. The Amerks won 18 games compared to the previous lowest of 24, again set in &lsquo;62-63.</p><p>They had only 52 standings points, compared to 57 by the 1962-63 team. Rochesiter allowed 315 goals this season. That&rsquo;s 20 more than the previous high of 295 given up last year when the season was two games longer. The most goals al lowed previously over a 72 game slate was 270 in 1962-63.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Americans Go Winless In Last 14

<div class="byline">BY JOHN TRAVERS</div><p>HERSHEY&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>t was a banner American League season for the Hershey Bears, both financially and in their late pulsating drive for second place in the Western Division which sealed a Calder Cup playoff spot for the 13th time in 14 years under the expert coaching of Frank Mathers.</p><p>In 36 home games, Mathers & Co. drew 202,448 fans, marking the eighth straight year the club has topped the 200.000 standard.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02354/2736404-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="258" height="443"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>John Henderson</b></figcaption></div><p>The Bears faced the Springfield Kings in the first round in defense of the Calder mug, a prize captured by Mathers&rsquo; clubs three times, 1957-58, 1958-59 and 1968-69. Six times Mathers has guided Hershey into the Cup finals. Through the years his teams show a post-season playoff mark of. 500&mdash;53 wins, 53 defeats.</p><p>And for a change the outfit opened the playoffs in sound physical condition. Three top performers, wingers Roger DeJordy, Michel Harvey and goalie John Henderson all are ready to play if needed. DeJordy had a back problem; Harvey a broken shoulder and Henderson a knee ailment which required surgery in Jan.</p><p>It was Henderson&rsquo;s fantastic goal play last season that paced the Bears to the Cup in 11 games. Hershey upset Buffalo in the opening round, then wiped out Quebec in five games to take all the hardware.</p><p>The Bears closed with the finest stretch drive in club history, losing only three of their last 20 games, a record unmatched in any pro league this season.</p><p>The goal play of both rookie Joe Junkin and veteran Andre Gill was outstanding. They alternated in the nets through the final three months and at one stretch went unbeaten in 11 games. In fact, the Bears closed their 36-home game stand without a setback in the final 11 contests.</p><p>And the phenomenal work of the line of center Bob Leiter and his wingmen. Bud Debrody and Stan Gilbertson, through the last 20 games was the key to the Bears whirlwind finish. From Feb. 18 to Apr. 4, the trio combined for 28 goals and 41 assists for 69 points, better than three points a start.</p><p>However, the highlight of final home game had to be defenseman Larry McNabb scoring his first goal in 133 AHL games with the Bears. He beat Buffalo goalie Gilles Villemure on a rebound to tie the game, 2-2, and moments later rookie Bill Lesuk nailed the game winner in a 4-2 victory.</p><p>The Bears entered the Springfield series with three balanced scoring lines: Mike Nykoluk, Chuck Hamilton, Jean Gratton and Gil Gilbert, Ted Snell and Lesuk, Nykoluk&rsquo;s line in 71 games had 116 points on 35 goals and 81 assists, while Gilbert&rsquo;s crew showed 54 goals and 81 assists for 135 points. Should Dejordy rejoin the Nykoluk line, he. will give it an added boost. In 64 games he posted 19 goals and 29 assists for 48 points.</p><p>Defensively, Mathers can count on Ralph Keller, Barry Ashbee, Mike Mahoney, Bob Barber, Pete Ford and McNabb, six guys whom their coach has confidence can give solid protection to the goaltenders.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01406/2736397-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="543" height="447"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>LARRY McNABB&hellip;Waited 134 Games</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0019-02

Bears Roll Into Playoffs With Full Head Of Steam

<h2><b>Tues. April 7 BALTIMORE 0 AT MONTREAL 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03287/2736491-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="591" height="431"></div><h2><b>Wed. April 8 QUEBEC 2 AT BUFFALO 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-04245/2736484-1-eng-US/f0019-042.jpg" title="f0019-04" width="601" height="455"></div><h2><b>HERSHEY 2 AT SPRINGFIELD 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-05204/2736477-1-eng-US/f0019-052.jpg" title="f0019-05" width="585" height="536"></div><h2><b>Thurs. April 9 QUEBEC 3 AT BUFFALO 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-06159/2736470-1-eng-US/f0019-062.jpg" title="f0019-06" width="592" height="695"></div><h2><b>BALTIMORE 3 AT MONTREAL 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-07138/2736463-1-eng-US/f0019-072.jpg" title="f0019-07" width="597" height="748"></div><h2><b>Sat. April 11 HERSHEY 2 AT SPRINGFIELD 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-08124/2736456-1-eng-US/f0019-082.jpg" title="f0019-08" width="587" height="576"></div><h2><b>Sun. April 12 HERSHEY 6 AT SPRINGFIELD 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-09104/2736449-1-eng-US/f0019-092.jpg" title="f0019-09" width="598" height="703"></div><h2><b>BUFFALO 2 AT QUEBEC 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1089/2736442-1-eng-US/f0019-102.jpg" title="f0019-10" width="592" height="657"></div><h2><b>MONTREAL 3 AT BALTIMORE 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01115/2736435-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="597" height="560"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0019-03

Calder Cup Playoff Summaries

<div class="byline">BY BOB ELMER</div><p>BALTIMORE&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>aving upset &ldquo;tradition&rdquo; by gaining a berth in the AHL&rsquo;s post-season Calder Cup championship playoffs for the second straight year, the Baltimore Clippers were looking to their parent NHL Pittsburgh Penguins for help as the &ldquo;payoff&rdquo; series got under way.</p><p>By making the playoffs, this year&rsquo;s Clipper team did something unusual and apart from their immediate precessors. Heretofore, Baltimore teams made the post-season parade on alternate years. This was supposed to be the &ldquo;year&rdquo; they wouldn&rsquo;t. But, a final flurry of wins and ties in the waning days changed all that.</p><p>As for help from the Penguins, Coach Rudy Migay was looking for the return of two of his better scoring forwards, veteran George Swarbrick and rookie Rick Kessell. The latter missed Baltimore&rsquo;s last ten games of the regular season when recalled by Penguin GM Jack Riley to replace Bryan Hextail, who suffered a broken wrist.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01251/2736522-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="268" height="451"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>George Swarbrick</b></figcaption></div><p>About ten days after Kessell&rsquo;s recall, the Pens had to fetch George Swarbrick back when Kenny Schinkel suffered a hairline ankle fracture. These defections along with the injuries to defenseman Wally Chevrier and veteran pivot Willie Marshall decimated the Clippers ranks.</p><p>However, Riley promised Clipper GM Terry Reardon and club president Jake Embry, that he would return Kessell and he kept his word. The youngster arrived in time for the series start with Montreal.</p><p>Kessell, the recently turned 21-year-old center from Toronto, came on like gangbusters for the Clippers during the second half of the current season. He wound up with 36 points on 15 goals and 21 assists in 53 games. Swarbrick was also playing about as well as he ever had at the time of his recall and logged 19 goals and 22 assists for 41 points in 56 appearances. The Penguins finally sent Swarbrick, too, after the AHL playoffs got underway.</p><h2><b>CLIPPER CLIPPINGS&hellip;</b></h2><p>Sandy McGregor, popular exClipper who retired last summer after seven standout seasons in Baltimore livery, visited with his former mates last week for the first time this winter and club responded with close-checking 21 win over Providence&hellip;Battle for the club&rsquo;s leading scorer went right down to the final game with Jim Bartlett, Jean-Marie Cossette, Bob Rivard and Ron Snell blanketed as tight as a four horse dead-heat&hellip;Jean Guy Lagace stirred the French-Canadian followers of the Quebec Aces with his aggressive play in The Colisee at season&rsquo;s end&hellip;Andy Brown came through with some of the finest goaltending of the winter in backstopping Clippers to key late seasons wins over Providence and Quebec and a stalemate in Cleveland&hellip;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0020-01

Penguins Return Rick Kessell To Aid Clippers For Playoffs

<h2><b>Sat. April 4 PROVIDENCE 3 AT BALTIMORE 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-03146/2736602-1-eng-US/f0020-032.jpg" title="f0020-03" width="598" height="557"></div><h2><b>ROCHESTER 5 AT CLEVELAND 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-04113/2736595-1-eng-US/f0020-042.jpg" title="f0020-04" width="593" height="763"></div><h2><b>BUFFALO 2 AT HERSHEY 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0554/2736588-1-eng-US/f0020-052.jpg" title="f0020-05" width="590" height="539"></div><h2><b>MONTREAL 0 AT SPRINGFIELD 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0638/2736581-1-eng-US/f0020-062.jpg" title="f0020-06" width="584" height="379"></div><h2><b>Sun. April 5 BUFFALO 6 AT PROVIDENCE 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0733/2736574-1-eng-US/f0020-072.jpg" title="f0020-07" width="597" height="660"></div><h2><b>HERSHEY 5 AT SPRINGFIELD 9</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0826/2736567-1-eng-US/f0020-082.jpg" title="f0020-08" width="596" height="952"></div><h2><b>CLEVELAND 6 AT ROCHESTER 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-0918/2736560-1-eng-US/f0020-092.jpg" title="f0020-09" width="598" height="749"></div><h2><b>QUEBEC 2 AT MONTREAL 7</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-1015/2736553-1-eng-US/f0020-102.jpg" title="f0020-10" width="594" height="693"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0020-03

Final AHL Summaries

<p><b>SOLUTION IN APRIL 31 ISSUE</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02178/2736633-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="839" height="1129"></div><h2><b>ACROSS</b></h2><p>1&mdash;1963-64 Vezina Trophy winner.</p><p>4&mdash;An injured Ranger answers to this.</p><p>6&mdash;Denotes number worn by Doug Mohns.</p><p>7&mdash;Initials of one of the Habs.</p><p>8&mdash;A Minnesota forward.</p><p>11&mdash;Number worn by Harris of Montreal.</p><p>12&mdash;An NHL coach.</p><p>14&mdash;Initials of a former Hawk forward.</p><p>15&mdash;An ex-Red Wing.</p><p>17&mdash;Initials of a North Star forward.</p><p>18&mdash;Last year&rsquo;s Norris Trophy winner.</p><p>20&mdash;Initials of an ex-Hab.</p><p>21&mdash;Salt Lake City forwards.</p><p>25&mdash;Scored 49 goals in 196869.</p><p>28&mdash;A former Leaf Captain.</p><h2><b>DOWN</b></h2><p>1&mdash;Pictured player.</p><p>2&mdash;Scored 5 goals for Oakland this year.</p><p>3&mdash;Plays goal for Hershey.</p><p>4&mdash;One of the Penguins.</p><p>5&mdash;1965-66 Smythe Trophy winner.</p><p>7&mdash;Initials of one of the Rangers.</p><p>9&mdash;21st and 5th letters of the alphabet.</p><p>10&mdash;5th and 25th letters of the alphabet.</p><p>13&mdash;Wears No. 6 for Chicago.</p><p>14&mdash;First name of one of the Kings.</p><p>16&mdash;To make mistakes.</p><p>19&mdash;First name of NHL General Manager.</p><p>22&mdash;Maurice Richard never won this trophy.</p><p>23&mdash;Initials of Leiter of Hershey.</p><p>24&mdash;One of the Hawks.</p><p>26&mdash;2 down was born in this month (abbr.)</p><p>27&mdash;55-56 Prince of Wales Trophy winners.</p><h2><b>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S ANSWERS</b></h2><h3><b>ACROSS</b></h3><p><b>1&mdash;SMITH.</b></p><p><b>5&mdash;CAB.</b></p><p><b>8&mdash;READ.</b></p><p><b>10&mdash;S.U.</b></p><p><b>11&mdash;MAVETY.</b></p><p><b>12&mdash;H.C.</b></p><p><b>13&mdash;SELBY.</b></p><p><b>14&mdash;RON.</b></p><p><b>15&mdash;EK</b></p><p><b>16&mdash;CE.</b></p><p><b>17&mdash;ERE.</b></p><p><b>21&mdash;IAN.</b></p><p><b>22&mdash;GENDRON.</b></p><p><b>25&mdash;IV.</b></p><p><b>27&mdash;G.A.</b></p><p><b>28&mdash;E.I.</b></p><p><b>29&mdash;RENE.</b></p><p><b>30&mdash;CENTER.</b></p><h3><b>DOWN</b></h3><p><b>1&mdash;ST. MARSEILLE.</b></p><p><b>2&mdash;IRVIN.</b></p><p><b>3&mdash;TEE.</b></p><p><b>4&mdash;HATS.</b></p><p><b>6&mdash;ASHBEE.</b></p><p><b>7&mdash;BUCYK.</b></p><p><b>9&mdash;DYE.</b></p><p><b>16&mdash;CURRIER</b></p><p><b>18&mdash;B.A.</b></p><p><b>19&mdash;ENG.</b></p><p><b>20&mdash;FINDER.</b></p><p><b>23&mdash;EGAN.</b></p><p><b>24&mdash;N.A.</b></p><p><b>24&mdash;VIC.</b></p><p><b>26&mdash;VIC.</b></p><p><b>29&mdash;R.E.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0020-02

Hockey Crossword

<div class="byline">BY ALEX HARDY</div><p>WINNIPEG&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>uge crowds in the Winnipeg-Flin. Flon playoff for the Western Canada League&rsquo;s Eastern Division title have assured a healthy bank balance for Winnipeg Jets&rsquo; owner Ben Hatskin. Jets&rsquo; newfound winning ways in the East semi-finals against Estevan also helped boost attendance at spacious Winnipeg Arena.</p><p>Equally happy is Calgary Centennials&rsquo; ownercoach Scotty Munro. In addition to tremendous crowds in the Western Division final against Edmonton, he got an unexpected windfall when his team&rsquo;s semi-final against Saskatoon Blades went the full seven games. Centennials finished first and were expected to win fairly easily over Blades, who were a poor last.</p><p>But Blades, who improved all year, took a 3-2 lead in the series. A standing-room only crowd of 4,551 in Saskatoon saw Calgary win the crucial sixth game despite being badly outshot, and 7,239 watched the final game in Calgary, in which Centennials eked out a one-goal win.</p><p>They Said it Dept: Estevan Bruins&rsquo; coach Ernie McLean after Winnipeg fans threw eggs at his players during the playoffs: &ldquo;They treat us like dogs. Can&rsquo;t they show us a little respect?&rdquo; Injured Estevan player Warren Harrison had an egg splatter all over his coat&hellip;Edmonton owner and general manager Bill Hunter prior to the West Division finals against Calgary: &ldquo;Scottv Munro has never beaten me in the playoffs and never will. The only time he was best man was at my wedding.&rdquo;</p><p>Laurie Yaworski was a tower of strength in a losing cause for Saskatoon in the Western semis. He scored nine goals, prompting Calgary&rsquo;s Scotty Munro to remark: &ldquo;If I had my choice of two players from Saskatoon, I&rsquo;d take Yaworski twice.&rdquo;</p><p>Meanwhile, Brian Cadle was the early playoff hero for Winnipeg, scoring 10 points in 5 games against Estevan. &ldquo;He intimidated us, confessed Estevan manager Bill Shinske. &ldquo;Our guys were useless when he stepped on the ice.&rdquo; Bruins even put a shadow on him. to no avail.</p><p>Bob Briscoe, knowledgeable writer for The Edmonton Journal, says there is no chance of a playoff between the WCHL and Western Ontario junior champions this year. Last year&rsquo;s inaugural series between the leagues ended on a sour note when St. Thomas, Ont., Barons withdrew, claiming dirty play by Flin Flon Bombers.</p><p>Estevan owners insist they&rsquo;re moving their franchise. It will likely be to Regina rather than Vancouver, says Reyn (Winnipeg Free Press) Davis&hellip;Bob Mowat has been named Winnipeg Jets&rsquo; most popular player. The team&rsquo;s MVP is Chris Oddleifson, whose 95 points during the regular season placed him third in league scoring. The total (including a league-high 64 assists) broke Jets&rsquo; scoring record by 2 points.</p><p>The WCHL, despite the fact its players are drafted as amateurs in the NHL draft, is a junior-pro league. Owners make no attempt to deny this fact. For years the top junior clubs in the West have been paying players, but never as much as this season.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Winnipeg Jets Pack Them In As Club Bounces Into Final

<p><i>&ldquo;In The Heart Of The Beautiful Canadian Rockies&rdquo;</i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0283/2736702-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="362" height="305"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DIRECTOR</b> Glen Sather Pittsburgh Penguins</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0351/2736695-1-eng-US/f0021-032.jpg" title="f0021-03" width="363" height="301"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JOHN BUCYK Boston Bruins</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-0443/2736688-1-eng-US/f0021-042.jpg" title="f0021-04" width="363" height="289"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DEAN PRENTICE Pittsburgh Penguins</b></figcaption></div><p>&bull; 10 NHL instructors</p><p>&bull; 3 hours ice time per day</p><p>&bull; Adult supervised dormitories</p><p>&bull; 4 ten day sessions</p><p>&bull; Swimming, soccer, touch football and other sports</p><p><b>FOR INFORMATION AND BROCHURES write; Glen Sather Holiday Hockey School Box 1076 Banff, Alberta</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0021-02

GLEN SATHER

<p><i>&ldquo;you like 7up 7up likes you&rdquo;</i></p><h2><b>WHL Playoffs</b></h2><h3><b>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01132/2736740-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="589" height="166"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Tues. April 7</b></p><p>Son Diego 1 at Vancouver 7</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>San Diego 5 at Vancouver 4</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Vancouver 6 at San Diego 3</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Mon. April 13</b></p><p>Vancouver at San Diego</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>San Diego at Vancouver</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Vancouver at San Diego (if necessary)</p><p><b>Tues. April 21</b></p><p>San Diego at Vancouver (if necessary)</p><h3><b>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0275/2736733-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="571" height="171"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Seattle 0 at Portland 6</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Portland 3 at Seattle 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Portland 2 at Seattle 6</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Seattle 0 at Portland 5</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Seattle at Portland</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Portland at Seattle</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Seattle at Portland (if necessary)<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0022-01

WESTERN LEAGUE

<div class="byline">BY DOUG MCCONNELL</div><p>SAN DIEGO&mdash;</p><p>Len Ronson was named the San Diego Gulls&rsquo; most valuable player, but if making the award was left up to the 33-year-old leftwinger from Brantford, Ontario, he&rsquo;s probably give it to his centerman, Alex Faulkner.</p><p>Faulkner missed 12 games with a broken bone in his foot this season and in that span, Ronson scored just two goals. In the other 60, he triggered 49 to lead the Western Hockey League and break the club record by six that he had shared with Fred Hilts.</p><p>Ronson&rsquo;s 51st goal came in the final game of the season, a 3-1 loss to the Phoenix Roadrunners who were battling for a playoff spot. For Ronson, it capped a seven-game goal scoring string and gave him a total of 88 points, tying the team record set by Warren Hynes last season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0362/2736771-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="273" height="459"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Len Ronson</b></figcaption></div><p>Ronson increased his value to the team as a two-way performer.</p><p>The Gulls&rsquo; season-end awards were presented before a crowd of 11,141, pushing the Gulls&rsquo; total attendance to 334,895 or an average of 9,303.</p><p>The Gulls, who finished third for the third consecutive year, opened the first round of the playoffs against the pennantwinning Canucks with two games in Vancouver.</p><p>Faulkner, the 34-year-old from Bishops Falls, Newfoundland, wound up with 17 goals and 48 assists for 65 points in 59 games, and was named player-of-the month for March.</p><p>Kevin O&rsquo;Shea, the large (6-2, 205, 22-year-old rightwinger wound up the season with 12 goals and 22 assists for 34 points and was named the Gulls&rsquo; rookie-of-the-year.</p><p>The Sandy Awards, given to the forward and defenseman, providing the most inspirational play, went to Al Nicholson whose 28 goals marked the ninth consecutive year he made the 20-goal circle and tied his personal career high, and to defenseman Al Lebrun.</p><p>The Gulls voted Mary Ann Escamilla the WHL&rsquo;s outstanding vocalist and presented her a suitable award.</p><p>Warren Hynes was second in team scoring with 22-54-76 and tied a team record, set by Ronson in 1966-67, for most gamewinning goals.</p><p>Johnny MacMillan enjoyed his greatest season ever and the twoway performer finished with 1948-67.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0022-03

Len Ronson’s 51-Goal Year Wins Vet Gulls’ MVP Award

<div class="byline">&#x2014;WHITE</div><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>V</span>ancouver winger Pat Hannigan was suspended from the Canucks&rsquo; final three games of the regular season and from the playoffs as the result of a stick-swinging incident.</p><p>Hannigan also was fined $300 by Western Hockey League President Eugene Kinasewich after a hearing in Seattle.</p><p>The suspension and fine resulted after Hannigan on March 27 smashed his stick down on the head of Portland defenseman Connie Madigan.</p><p>Hannigan was one of two WHL players handed suspensions by Kinasewich for stick-swinging incidents. Defenseman Roger Lafreni&egrave;re of Denver was ordered out of play for the balance of the season and fined $200 for his involvement in a stick light during a recent WHL game against San Diego.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0733/2736802-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="508" height="599"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PAT HANNIGAN</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0022-07

Hannigan’s Stick Swing Results In Season Ban

<p>PORTLAND&mdash;</p><p>He&rsquo;s never even been invited to a major league training camp.</p><p>But then there were some normally shrewd judges of hockey talent who years ago said he couldn&rsquo;t even play professionally.</p><p>Regardless, the scoring champion of the Western Hockey League for the third straight season and the fourth time in his pro career is Art Jones of the Portland Buckaroos.</p><p>This time Jones went all the way with a new all-time WHL record of 127 points.</p><p>He bettered the previous high of 122 points held by Guyle Fielder when he was with the Seattle Totems back in 1956-57.</p><p>Jones&rsquo; new record is noteworthy in more respects than just the total itself.</p><p>For one thing, he scored 56 points on the road to break Portland&rsquo;s all-time record of 48 away from home that Jones, himself, set back in 1960-61, his first season with the Buckaroos.</p><p>If anyone in WHL history has scored more road points, no one has disclosed the fact.</p><p>Secondly, Jones, while he drew a Portland record of 84 assists, also scored 43 goals.</p><p>No center in the last decade has scored more goals than the captain of the Buckaroos.</p><p>Jones now has scored 241 points in his last two seasons with Portland and at the age of 34 he has plenty of campaigns left. WHITE</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0448/2736847-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="554" height="1277"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ART JONES&hellip;Point Champ Again</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>HOW THEY STAND</b></h2><h3><b>WESTERN LEAGUE (Final Standings)</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0540/2736840-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="587" height="327"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED Mon. April 6</h2><h3><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0633/2736833-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="593" height="660"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0022-04

Jones Wins 4th Title, Sets New Scoring Mark

<div class="byline">BY JOHN WHITE</div><p>SEATTLE&mdash;</p><p>The National Hockey League wasn&rsquo;t the only circuit in North America with a dramatic windup.</p><p>In the Western League, Seattle and Phoenix wound up tied for fourth place and had to play off to advance to the playoffs.</p><p>The Totems made it, on home ice, with a come-from-behind 3-1 effort. They trailed Phoenix, 1-0, after two periods, then bounced back with three final-period goals (the last into an empty net) to win.</p><p>So the playoffs were all set&mdash;Vancouver&rsquo;s first-place Canucks against the third-place San Diego Gulls in one best-of-seven series and the second-place Portland Buckaroos against Seattle in the other.</p><p>Vancouver rated as heavy favorites to whip San Diego. The Canucks, who set a league record of 100 points in the standings to finish first by 11 points over Portland, dominated the Gulls in the regular-season series.</p><p>The Canucks won eight, lost three and tied one and outscored the Gulls 51-32.</p><p>That sounds like domination enough by a club that scored an all-time league record of 334 goals. But there&rsquo;s a catch. It&rsquo;s really worse.</p><p>The Gulls, while the Canucks were getting organized, where unbeaten in their first three games of the season against Vancouver&mdash;two victories and a tie.</p><p>Vancouver won eight of the last nine games played.</p><p>The Portland-Seattle series, meanwhile, really was a tossup. Portland won seven and lost five in regular-season action against Seattle. But the Buckaroos won the first five in a row. Seattle came back to capture five of the last seven.</p><p>The playoff meeting was a first between Vancouver and San Diego.</p><p>It was the third playoff series between Portland and Seattle. The Buckaroos defeated the Totems in the finals, four victories to two, to capture their first Lester Patrick Cup in 1961.</p><p>But in 1968, Seattle won the Cup by defeating Portland, four victories to one, in the final series.</p><p>Seattle and faced 16 of the last 24 games on the road, fantastic odds.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Seattle Topples Phoenix To Grab 4th Place

<h2><b>DENVER 4 AT SALT LAKE 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0277/2737003-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="583" height="703"></div><h2><b>Sat. March 28 SALT LAKE 3 AT DENVER 10</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0357/2736996-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="583" height="807"></div><h2><b>PORTLAND 5 AT SEATTLE 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0445/2736989-1-eng-US/f0023-042.jpg" title="f0023-04" width="586" height="572"></div><h2><b>SAN DIEGO 4 AT PHOENIX 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0532/2736982-1-eng-US/f0023-052.jpg" title="f0023-05" width="589" height="572"></div><h2><b>Sun. March 29 PHOENIX 3 AT SAN DIEGO 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0627/2736975-1-eng-US/f0023-062.jpg" title="f0023-06" width="591" height="629"></div><h2><b>SEATTLE 4 AT PORTLAND 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0723/2736968-1-eng-US/f0023-072.jpg" title="f0023-07" width="588" height="503"></div><h2><b>Tues. March 31 DENVER 3 AT PHOENIX 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0820/2736961-1-eng-US/f0023-082.jpg" title="f0023-08" width="587" height="503"></div><h2><b>Wed. April I VANCOUVER 7 at SALT LAKE 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0915/2736954-1-eng-US/f0023-092.jpg" title="f0023-09" width="587" height="768"></div><h2><b>SAN DIEGO 3 AT PORTLAND 11</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1012/2736947-1-eng-US/f0023-102.jpg" title="f0023-10" width="589" height="906"></div><h2><b>Thurs. April 2 VANCOUVER 2 AT DENVER 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-118/2736940-1-eng-US/f0023-112.jpg" title="f0023-11" width="591" height="613"></div><h2><b>SAN DIEGO 7 AT SEATTLE 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-126/2736933-1-eng-US/f0023-122.jpg" title="f0023-12" width="593" height="641"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0023-02

Western Hockey League Game Summaries

<p>PHOENIX&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Phoenix Roadrunners didn&rsquo;t make it into the WHL post-season playoffs but their whirlwind finish not only caught the imagination of WHL fans, but it had a moving effect on coach player-coach Sandy Hucul.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never seen anything like it,&rdquo; admitted Hucul.</p><p>The 900-1,000 fans who greeted the Roadrunners at 1 a.m. at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport voiced the same sentiments.</p><p>The Runners were returning from San Diego and a 3-1 upset of the Gulls which put them into a sudden-death playoff in Seattle with the Totems for the Western Hockey League&rsquo;s fourth playoff berth. It was unfortunate they had to lose it, they had come so far.</p><p>The victory over the Gulls capped a remarkable comeback since Hucul took over as player-coach and of course beating Seattle for a playoff would have been the climax. The team Hucul inherited was 12 points behind</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01113/2736902-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="246" height="441"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Morris Stefaniw</b></figcaption></div><p>Hucul doesn&rsquo;t profess to own any secret formula. &ldquo;I just let the guys play the hockey I know they could,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I think coaching is 90 per cent handling of men and 10 percent strategy.&rdquo;</p><p>The five times WHL all-star defenseman had been able to get improved performances out of his players and when team points leader Larry Lund was lost for the final four games with a strained shoulder, Morris Stefaniw stepped in.</p><p>The 22-year-old mod Mr. Versatility, who had been playing left and right wing and some on defense, took over as center on the &lsquo;Go Go Line&rsquo; and kept it going.</p><p>Rookie Frank Hughes scored three goals and three assists, Andre Hinse three goals and two assists and Stefaniw a goal and five assists in the four games.</p><p>Hinse finished with a career high of 31 goals. Hughes, one of the WHL&rsquo;s outstanding rookies, broke Walt McKechnie&rsquo;s team rookie record of 24 goals and 30 assists with a final 27-40&mdash;67 mark.</p><p>Lund&rsquo;s 33-40&mdash;73 figures broke the team record of 68 points set by Del Topoll in the 1967-68 season.</p><p>Milan Marcetta, although hitting a season-ending slump, finished with 34 goals to break Bob Charlebois&rsquo; team mark of 31, set last season.</p><p>The Roadrunners finished with a total attendance of 243,933 for 36 home games, an average of 6,776.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0023-01

Phoenix ‘Comeback’ Tribute To Hucul

<p><b>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD. Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S. and Canada</b></p><h2><b>CHL PLAYOFFS</b></h2><h3><b>FINALS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01123/2737048-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="588" height="165"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p>Omaha 6 at Iowa 2</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Omaha 1 at Iowa 3</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Iowa at Omaha</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Iowa at Omaha</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Iowa at Omaha</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Omaha at Iowa (if neccessary)</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Iowa at Omaha (if necessary)</p><h3><b>Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0275/2737041-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="593" height="164"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. March 25</b></p><p>Omaha 1 at Fort Worth 2</p><p><b>Fri. March 27</b></p><p>Omaha 2 at Fort Worth 3</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Fort Worth 1 at Omaha 5</p><p><b>Sun. March 29</b></p><p>Fort Worth 1 at Omaha 3</p><p><b>Tues. March 31</b></p><p>Fort Worth 1 at Omaha 6</p><p><b>Wed. April 1</b></p><p>Omaha 4 at Fort Worth 5</p><p><b>Fri. April 3</b></p><p>Fort Worth 0 at Omaha 3</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0351/2737034-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="587" height="153"></div><p><b>(Iowa wins best-of-seven series 4-2)</b></p><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. March 25</b></p><p>Tulsa 2 at Iowa 4</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Tulsa 1 at Iowa 2</p><p><b>Sun. March 29</b></p><p>Iowa 0 at Tulsa 5</p><p><b>Tues. March 31</b></p><p>Iowa 6 at Tulsa 2</p><p><b>Wed. April 1</b></p><p>Tulsa 5 at Iowa 3</p><p><b>Fri. April 3</b></p><p>Iowa 4 at Tulsa 0<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0024-01

CENTRAL LEAGUE

<h2><b>Wed. March 25 OMAHA 1 AT FORT WORTH 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0530/2737107-1-eng-US/f0024-052.jpg" title="f0024-05" width="593" height="613"></div><h2><b>Fri. March 27 OMAHA 2 AT FORT WORTH 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0626/2737100-1-eng-US/f0024-062.jpg" title="f0024-06" width="593" height="512"></div><h2><b>Sat. March 28 FORT WORTH 1 AT OMAHA 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0723/2737093-1-eng-US/f0024-072.jpg" title="f0024-07" width="598" height="653"></div><h2><b>Sun. March 29 FORT WORTH 1 AT OMAHA 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0820/2737086-1-eng-US/f0024-082.jpg" title="f0024-08" width="594" height="534"></div><h2><b>IOWA 0 AT TULSA 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0918/2737079-1-eng-US/f0024-092.jpg" title="f0024-09" width="591" height="504"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0024-05

CHL Playoff Summaries

<h2><b>FIRST TEAM</b></h2><p>Goal: <b>Serge Aubry,</b> Tulsa.</p><p>Defense: <b>Mike Robitaille,</b> Omaha</p><p>Defense: <b>Gordie Nelson,</b> Tulsa.</p><p>Center: <b>Don Luce,</b> Omaha.</p><p>Right Wing: <b>Oscar Gaudet,</b> Dallas.</p><p>Left Wing: <b>Jack Egers,</b> Omaha.</p><p>Coach: <b>Marcel Pronovost,</b> Tulsa.</p><h2><b>SECOND TEAM</b></h2><p>Goal: <b>Peter McDuffe,</b> Omaha.</p><p>Defense: <b>Andre Dupont,</b> Omaha.</p><p>Defense: <b>Barry Wilkins,</b> Oklahoma</p><p>Center: <b>Bill Orban,</b> Iowa.</p><p>Left Wing: <b>Danny Johnson,</b> Tulsa.</p><p>Right Wing: <b>Danny Seguin,</b> Iowa.</p><p>Coach: <b>Doug Barkley,</b> Fort Worth.</p><p>MVP Award&mdash;Danny Johnson, Tulsa.</p><p>Rookie Of Year&mdash;Andre Dupont, Omaha.</p><p>Top Defenseman&mdash;Mike Robitaille, Omaha.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

CHL All-Star Teams

<div class="byline">BY BOB LINDLEY</div><p>OMAHA&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he reason for Omaha&rsquo;s great success in the 1969-70 Central Hockey League season has been reflected in the Knights&rsquo; domination of the year-end honors voted by the seven CHL coaches.</p><p>The Knights, who finished atop the league during the regular campaign, claimed eight of the 17 honors, including three of the five individual awards and five berths on the two AllStar squads.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-0439/2737138-1-eng-US/f0024-042.jpg" title="f0024-04" width="268" height="458"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Danny Johnson</b></figcaption></div><p>Led by Jack Egers, the 42-goal sniper, Omaha grabbed three spots on the first All-Star team, putting Egers on left wing, Don Luce at center and Mike Robitaille on right defense.</p><p>Andre Dupont and goalie Peter McDuffe were named to the second unit.</p><p>Dupont, the rugged left defenseman who handled the role of team &ldquo;cop&rdquo; with great expertise thanks to his 220-pound frame, also was voted rookie of the year.</p><p>Robitaille, whose 12 goals and 46 assists led all scoring for defensemen, walked off with most valuable defenseman honors, and Egers, with 90 total points, was the league&rsquo;s top scorer.</p><p>Hard-working Danny Johnson, the veteran who almost singlehandedly led the Tulsa Oilers into the playoffs with 33 goals and 46 assists, was named the CHL&rsquo;s most valuable player and claimed a berth on the second all-star unit as the left winger.</p><p>Serge Aubry, the other half of Tulsa&rsquo;s one-two punch, wound up as the league&rsquo;s leading goaltender with a fine 2:53 goals against average and got the nod for the first All-Star team.</p><p>Joining Robitaille as the AllStar defensemen was Tulsa&rsquo;s dependable Gordie Nelson. The right wing spot went to Dallas&rsquo; reliable &ldquo;old pro&rdquo; Oscar Gaudet, who led the league in assists with 53 and finished third in scoring with 78 points.</p><p>Barry Wilkins, in All-Star selection last year, made it again this season by grabbing a second team defensive spot. The tough guy of the Oklahoma City Blazers joins Tulsa&rsquo;s Johnson as the only repeat honorees from last season.</p><p>Marcel Pronovost, made his debut as a coach a successful one by being named coach of the first team. The long-time National League defensive star also had a hand in Tulsa&rsquo;s success as a stellar performer on the ice.</p><p>Doug Barkley, former teammate of Pronovost&rsquo;s at Detroit, and like Marcel a defenseman in his playing days, was selected coach of the second team.</p><p>Both coaches took rookie-loaded squads and molded them into contenders, earning berths in the post-season playoffs with lineups consisting mostly of a &ldquo;bunch of guys named Joe.&rdquo;</p><p>What tipped the scales in Iowa&rsquo;s favor during its first-round playoff victory over the Tulsa Oilers?</p><p>Balance did it.</p><p>&ldquo;We did it as a team,&rdquo; said general manager John Muckier of his club&rsquo;s triumph by a 4-2 margin over the Oilers. &ldquo;We did it with balanced scoring, getting help from the guys who have been doing the job for us all season.&rdquo;</p><p>The 19 goals the Stars scored in the six games were chalked up by nine different players, none getting more than three.</p><p>Grant Erickson, Joe Johnston and Bob Whitlock each tallied three, Bill Orban, Jim Benzelock, defenseman Dick Redmond and Mike Chernoff chipped in with a couple each, and Danny Seguin and veteran Walt McKechnie added solo counters.</p><p>But McKechniee topped all scorers with seven points and Seguin followed with six.</p><p>While the offense lived up to its reputation (Iowa led the league in goals scored during the regular season), goalie Fern Rivard won two very big games on Tulsa ice to make it possible for the Stars to gain the championship round against the Omaha Knights.</p><p>&ldquo;Fern stepped in and did a heck of a job,&rdquo; Muckier said. &ldquo;He started only two games, both of them at Tulsa, and won both, including a 4-0 shutout in the game that clinched the playoffs.&rdquo;</p><p>Gilles Gilbert, the rookie goalie, also won a pair of games.</p><p>In looking ahead to the Adams Cup finals against the tough Knights, Muckier said the club was healthy and in good spirits, and confident they could go all the way.</p><p>&ldquo;Omaha gets the odd game at home,&rdquo; Muckier said, &ldquo;but I think we&rsquo;re capable of winning at least one on their ice. We did it once during the regular season, and we&rsquo;re playing our best hockey ever right now.&rdquo;</p><p>It will certainly take that to overcome the tremendous odds that face the visiting team at Omaha&rsquo;s Ak-Star-Ben Coliseum, where the Knights won all four games in eliminating the Fort Worth Wings by four victories to three.</p><p>When the New York Rangers called up Jack Egers after the Knights had dropped the opener in their first-round playoff series with Fort Worth, the Knights swallowed a big lump in their throats and resigned themselves to the fates.</p><p>Their fears were groundless, it turned out.</p><p>The Rangers sent veteran Wayne Rivers as a replacement, and it turned out to be the best swap the Knights had made all season.</p><p>Rivers was one of the major reasons the Knights managed to stave off the Wings over the seven-game route, getting three goals and four assists in his six games.</p><p>But the real heroes of the series were goalie Peter McDuffe and forward Jim Krulicki.</p><p>McDuffe played every minute of every game and wrapped up the series by shutting out the Wings 3-0 in the final game.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0024-04

Knights Dominate CHL A wards, Grab Five All-Star Berths

<div class="byline">BY HARVEY POLLOCK</div><p>CLINTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>f Don Perry, New Haven skipper, believes the Clinton Comets have a jinx on his club, not much of an argument can be given him after the Eastern Hockey League&rsquo;s Northern Division playoffs.</p><p>For the third straight year Clinton eliminated New Haven in the Eastern finals, in a seven-game series. The past defeats were galling enough to Perry, but this year&rsquo;s loss hurt even more when it allowed Clinton again to reach the Walker Cup finals against Greensboro.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0817/2737200-1-eng-US/f0025-082.jpg" title="f0025-08" width="277" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Pat Kelly</b></figcaption></div><p>The Blades looked absolutely dead when Clinton captured the first three games and appeared en route to a clean sweep. Then Perry&rsquo;s forces came to life as goalie Dave Hainsworth tossed three straight shutouts against Clinton to knot the series and put the whole affair on the line for the final game here.</p><p>It looked as if New Haven&rsquo;s impossible dream was about to material ze when the Blades jumped off to a 2-0 lead. But Clinton rallied, and eventually a goal by Don Herriman with 15 seconds to play gave the Comets a 4-3 win.</p><p>As a consequence, bottles of champagne remained unopened in the Blade&rsquo;s dressing room. Pat Kelly, Clinton mentor, said the series was the toughest in which he&rsquo;d engaged in his EHL career. Pat was surprised by Herriman&rsquo;s goal for he was resigned to overtime.</p><p>Perry just couldn&rsquo;t say enough about Hainsworth&rsquo;s goaltending in the pressure-packed series including over 203 consecutive minutes of scoreless action. Dave credited his defensemen for stopping shots and his forwards for picking up loose pucks, but the consensus of opinion was that the goalie was mainly responsible for the whitewashings.</p><p>Perry was delighted that Kelly lost his cool during the three-game losing streak. Pat slammed doors on reporters and wasn&rsquo;t fit to live with during the shutout siege.</p><p>Kelly&rsquo;s temperament wasn&rsquo;t improved when his Comets, obviously weary from the New Haven series, lost the first two games of the Greensboro finals. Perry thus may have some consolation if Clinton loses to Greensboro since the tough series with the Blades may have sapped the Comets.</p><p><b>GREENSBORO:</b> Gens only had one home game in final playoffs. Gens had much younger club than Comets. Ron Spong expected a less physical series with Clinton than he would have experienced with New Haven. Don Burgess was club&rsquo;s top scorer in preliminary playoffs with 20 points. Gens offered to pay $1,000 a day penalty to keep their Coliseum open for playoffs but their offer was refused.</p><p><b>NEW HAVEN:</b> Blades upset when fifth game of series was called off while club was struggling to get through snowstorm to reach the site. Club&rsquo;s bus had more problems to cause delay. Don Perry also upset when Comets refused his club permission to work out. Dave Hainsworth will undergo operation on his left wrist to fuse a bone and doctors forecast five months in a cast.</p><p><b>CLINTON:</b> Don Herriman has been a standout through playoffs especially with his speed and scoring. Comets held scoring king Ray Adduono, of Syracuse, to one goal in their series and then did the same thing to Mike Hornby of New Haven, the runner-up, in the Blade series. Comets were blanked for first time in three years in playoffs.</p><p><b>CHARLOTTE:</b> Tom Trevelyan has been suspended until next Jan. 1 for pushing referee Howie Newstate. On a plea by Keith Allen of Philly Flyers, Tom was allowed to join Seattle for WHL playoffs. Checkers plan to appeal. Tom only had 33 penalty minutes during regular season. If Fred Creighton returns as coach of the club, it will surprise a lot of folks who feel sure he will get higher job.</p><p><b>NASHVILLE:</b> Lloyd Hinchberger has signed for another season as pilot of the Dixie Flyers. He&rsquo;s been watching junior playoffs in Canada, seeking young talent. Owner Mark Parrish says club needs a veteran goalie, two defensemen, a right wing and a couple of centers &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have any untouchables,&rdquo; he said. Flyers plan some deals with IHL in October.</p><p><b>SALEM:</b> Colin Kilburn still upset over the fight that Hal Willis of Charlotte instituted against Rebel Pete Shearer. He blamed Fred Creighton for sending Willis after Shearer. He also ripped Charlotte fans including the one who spit on Lynn Margarit. Kilburn will be working full-time with the Rebels in his new GM duties starting next month. He intends to do some speaking here.</p><p><b>LONG ISLAND:</b> Blake Ball, former player-coach of Ducks, has been suspended until Jan. 1 for striking a linesmen in Syracuse on Mar. 5. Blake says it was an accident. Blake wasn&rsquo;t due back anyway for Ed Stankiewicz was signed as a bench coach. Blake says he&rsquo;s had offers from Johnstown and Syracuse but the suspension may send him back to Canada. Ball will appeal suspension at league meeting.</p><p><b>SYRACUSE:</b> Ray Crew offered Ball a job strictly as a defenseman. Crew however says he hasn&rsquo;t made up his mind as to whether he&rsquo;ll return as the Blazers&rsquo; coach. Club felt its biggest failing this year was strong defensemen. Goalie Bill Yeo one of two EHL netminders to play in every game.</p><p><b>JOHNSTON:</b> Jets feel Reg Kent was the circuit&rsquo;s best scorer even though he finished third in the race with 125 points, nine behind leader Ray Adduono. Kent played nine less games than Adduono.</p><p><b>JERSEY:</b> Brian Caley, Bill Christodal, Jamie Kennedy and Wayne Kitchen are staying here during the off season. Club was 10-30-4 under Lou Jankowski and 10-18-2 under Kitchen. Its 18-145 home record was offset by a 234-1 road log.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0913/2737193-1-eng-US/f0025-092.jpg" title="f0025-09" width="559" height="597"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DAVE HAINSWORTH&hellip;Gave Comets Trouble</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0025-08

Did Tough New Haven Series Expend Clinton’s Resources?

<h2><b>EASTERN LEAGUE FINALS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01103/2737273-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="575" height="134"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Sat. April 4</b></p><p>Greensboro 5 at Clinton 7</p><p><b>Sun. April 5</b></p><p>Clinton 2 at Greensboro 7</p><p><b>Tues. April 7</b></p><p>Greensboro 7 at Clinton 8</p><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Greensboro 0 at Clinton 3</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Greensboro 2 at Clinton 4</p><h2><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h2><p><b>Tues. April 14</b></p><p>Greensboro at Clinton</p><p><b>Thurs. April 16</b></p><p>Greensboro at Clinton (if necessary)</p><h2><b>NORTHERN DIVISION</b></h2><p><b>FINALS</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0263/2737266-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="584" height="146"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Sat March 21</b></p><p>New Haven 2 at Clinton 5</p><p><b>Tues. March 24</b></p><p>New Haven 2 at Clinton 3</p><p><b>Thurs. March 26</b></p><p>Clinton 3 at New Haven 0</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Clinton 0 at New Haven 2</p><p><b>Mon. March 30</b></p><p>New Haven 2 at Clinton 0</p><p><b>Tues. March 31</b></p><p>Clinton 0 at New Hoven 3</p><p><b>Wed. April 1</b></p><p>New Haven 3 at Clinton 4</p><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0342/2737259-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="584" height="136"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. March 11</b></p><p>Syracuse vs Clinton (at Utica, postponed)</p><p><b>Thurs. March 12</b></p><p>Syracuse 3 at Clinton 8</p><p><b>Sat. March 14</b></p><p>Syracuse 1 at Clinton 2</p><p><b>Sun. March 15</b></p><p>Clinton 2 at Syracuse 1</p><p><b>Tues. March 17</b></p><p>Clinton 8 at Syracuse 5</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0432/2737252-1-eng-US/f0025-042.jpg" title="f0025-04" width="584" height="168"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPUTED</b></h2><p><b>Tues. March 10</b></p><p>Johnstown 4 at New Haven 5</p><p><b>Wed. March 11</b></p><p>Johnstown 4 at New Haven 5</p><p><b>Wed. March 11</b></p><p>Johnstown 4 at New Haven 7</p><p><b>Thurs. March 12</b></p><p>New Haven 5 at Johnstown 3</p><p><b>Fri. March 13</b></p><p>New Haven 4 at Johnstown 2</p><h2><b>Southern Division</b></h2><h3>FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0531/2737245-1-eng-US/f0025-052.jpg" title="f0025-05" width="575" height="170"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Sat. March 21</b></p><p>Charlotte 2 at Greensboro 5</p><p><b>Sun. March 22</b></p><p>Greensboro 3 at Charlotte 6</p><p><b>Tues. March 24</b></p><p>Charlotte 1 at Greensboro 4</p><p><b>Wed. March 25</b></p><p>Greensboro 1 at Charlotte 2</p><p><b>Fri. March 27</b></p><p>Greensboro 4 at Charlotte 3</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Charlotte 3 at Greensboro 4</p><h3><b>Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0621/2737238-1-eng-US/f0025-062.jpg" title="f0025-06" width="599" height="132"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. March 11</b></p><p>Charlotte 2 at Salem 1</p><p><b>Fri. March 13</b></p><p>Charlotte 4 at Salem 5</p><p><b>Sun. March 15</b></p><p>Charlotte 6 at Salem 5</p><p><b>Tues. March 17</b></p><p>Salem 4 at Charlotte 5</p><p><b>Wed. March 18</b></p><p>Salem 2 at Charlotte 6</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0720/2737231-1-eng-US/f0025-072.jpg" title="f0025-07" width="572" height="133"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0025-01

EHL PLAYOFFS

<div class="byline">BY BOB REED</div><p>DAYTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he International Hockey League did not play overtime games during the regular season, electing to allow tie games to stand. But a couple of overtime contests were necessary in the IHL playoffs and one of them proved to be the key contest as the Dayton Gems took out the favored Muskegon Mohawks in the series between the champions of the two divisions.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01111/2737311-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="558" height="590"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ALAIN BEAULE&hellip;In Good Books Again</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0718/2737304-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="279" height="477"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob McCammon</b></figcaption></div><p>The win sent the Gems into the Turner Cup finals against the Port Huron Flags, who made it by eliminating Des Moines Oak Leafs 3-2 in a best-of-five semi-final playdown. The Gems are the defending IHL champions.</p><p>Dayton&rsquo;s overtime win came in the second game of the series and although it was early in the set it was regarded as the game the Gems needed to survive the first playoff. In the first place, it was on Muskegon ice, where the Gems hadn&rsquo;t won in five appearances all season and where it was certain they would have to take at least one in the playoffs.</p><p>Then, the Mohawks had taken the first meeting on their home ice. It was only 2-1 and the Gems, playing well enough to win, knew they couldn&rsquo;t afford another well-played loss. They rallied for a pair of goals in the third period to tie and won it with a goal at 2:31 of the overtime by Al Beaule, a defenseman who had been in Coach Larry Wilson&rsquo;s doghouse late in the season because of weight problems.</p><p>This win enabled the Gems to go to their own ice even up and they virtually sewed it up with two decisive triumphs, 7-2 and 9-1. The Mohawks were able to extend the series when they took the fifth game at home, 7-3 but the Gems were not to be denied and closed it out on their home ice winning 4-1.</p><p>The Gems stole the thunder from the offensive-minded Mohawks, who had by far the best goal-scoring record in the league. They outscored their opponents by 29-17 in the six-game set. Coach Wilson&rsquo;s shift of Dave Simpson and Mike Sauter from defense to the front lines finally paid off and Simpson, who hadn&rsquo;t scored a goal for the Gems in 25 games, had a hat trick in the decisive 9-1 triumph that swing the series in Dayton&rsquo;s direction.</p><p>Don Westbrooke, who clinched the league scoring title in the closing games, also scored a hat in the fourth game. Mike Dumas, the young French-speaking goalie who has been a bulwark for the Gems all season, was in the nets for all six games.</p><p>Muskegon failed to capitalize on its great line of Gary Ford, Andre Pronovost and Bernie Blanchette, which had accounted for 132 goals and 326 points during the regular season and which was a disappointment almost all the way. Bruce Mullett started in goal in all six games and had brief relief in the fourth game from rookie Norman Hann.</p><p>An overtime battle was also a key contest in the Des Moines-Port Huron series and it required a third extra session to decide it. This was the second meeting of that set, in which the home town Flags had beaten the Oak Leafs, 3-1 in the opener. Flag veteran Bob McCammon scored the winner at 2:21 of the third overtime. It was his fifth goal in playoff action this season.</p><p>The Flags went with three defenseman, with McCammon moved up to the front line after an injury to Bob Cunningham.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0026-01

Overtime Win Key For Dayton As Gems Face Flags In Final

<p>TOLEDO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he International Hockey League passed the one million mark in paid attendance when a crowd of 4,200 attended the Muskegon-Day ton playoff game in Dayton April 1, 1970. The crowd lifted the league&rsquo;s total paid attendance for regular-season and playoff to 1,003,457. With the possibility of 12 more playoff games to draw from, league commissioner Bill Beagan is hoping to pass the 1,040,000 mark in attendance.</p><p>This is the first time the IHL has ever surpassed the one-million mark in attendance. The previous high for the IHL was 900,000 achieved twice.</p><p>The league drew a total of 974,849 fans during the regular season, an average of 3,385 per game. Fort Wayne led in total attendance with 186,494, an average of 5,181 per home date. Dayton was next with a total of 157,668. an average of 4,380; Flint totalled 123,308, an average of 3,425; Muskegon 118,157, an average of 3,282; Des Moines 110,236, an average of 3,062; Toledo 106,422, an average of 2,056; Columbus 97,576, an average of 2,70; Port</p><p>Huron 74,988, an average of 2,083. Only Columbus showed an appreciable drop in attendance while most of the other seven clubs enjoyed substantial gains.</p><p>&ldquo;This attendance supported my theory people are interested, in sustained speed and action,&rdquo; commissioner Beagan said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve taken the brutality out of the sport and left the violence in, and the people have shown by their response it was the right thing to do.&rdquo;</p><p>For 15 playoff dates thus far, the league has drawn approximately 45,000 fans. This figures to an average of around 3,000 per game, up from previous figures. And the average should increase as crowds grow larger for the final series.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0817/2737342-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="278" height="442"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill Beagan</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0026-08

IHL Passes Million Mark In Attendance For Season

<h2>FINALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0264/2737401-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="572" height="134"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Thurs. April 9</b></p><p>Port Huron 1 at Dayton 5</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Dayton 0 at Port Huron 3</p><h3><b>Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0348/2737394-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="572" height="136"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Thurs. March 26</b></p><p>Dayton 1 at Muskegon 2</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Dayton 5 at Muskegon 4</p><p><b>Sun. March 29</b></p><p>Muskegon 2 at Dayton 7</p><p><b>Wed. April 1</b></p><p>Muskegon 1 at Dayton 9</p><p><b>Fri. April 3</b></p><p>Dayton 3 at Muskegon 7</p><p><b>Sat. April 4</b></p><p>Muskegon 1 at Dayton 4</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0433/2737387-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="575" height="131"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tues. March 31</b></p><p>Des Moines 1 at Port Huron 3</p><p><b>Thurs. April 2</b></p><p>Des Moines 3 at Port Huron 4</p><p><b>Sat. April 4</b></p><p>Port Huron 2 at Des Moines 5</p><p><b>Mon. April 6</b></p><p>Port Huron 4 at Des Moines 10</p><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Des Moines 3 at Port Huron 5</p><h3><b>Quarter-finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0529/2737380-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="571" height="137"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tues. March 24</b></p><p>Fort Wayne 3 at Port Huron 5</p><p><b>Thurs. March 26</b></p><p>Port Huron 3 at Fort Wayne 1</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Fort Wayne 4 at Port Huron 6</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0620/2737373-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="585" height="173"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. March 25</b></p><p>Des Moines 4 at Toledo 2</p><p><b>Fri. March 27</b></p><p>Des Moines 2 at Toledo 1</p><p><b>Sat. March 28</b></p><p>Toledo 3 at Des Moines 5<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0026-02

IHL PLAYOFFS

<p>ORILLIA&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Orillia Terriers will have to rely on home ice to fulfill their dream of another Allan Cup championship for the Ontario Senior Hockey League this season.</p><p>The OHA champions found the going rough in the start of their best-of-seven Eastern Canada finals against the Victoriaville Tigers and ended up on the short end of a 2-0 deficit after losing twice on Quebec ice. Victoriaville reached the finals by disposing of St. John&rsquo;s, Newfoundland Capitols.</p><p>The Tigers, who bounced into Allan Cup play after being declared Quebec champions because there was no one to challenge them, won 8-7 and 6-3 to grab a commanding two-game lead. The series moved back to Orillia for the next two games where the OHA titleholders hope to recoup.</p><p>The Terriers have been superb in their own rink this year sweeping to a league championship and then beating the Galt Hornets out of the playoff title in six games. They also bounced the Sault Ste. Marie Canadians in three straight games in the all Ontario senior final.</p><p>The winner of the Victoriaville-Orillia series will represent the East against the Western champion, which will be decided in a clash between St. Boniface, the Manitoba-Thunder Bay champions, who eliminated Yorkton Terriers, the Saskatchewan winners, and the Spokane Jets, who swept it all in the Western Interprovincial Senior Hockey League.</p><p>The Jets are truly unique. They are the only American team playing in the Canadian national senior hockey playdowns.</p><p>Spokane completed the Western Canada semi-final series with the Calgary Stampeders winning in three straight games. After taking the first two on Calgary ice, the Jets returned home and skated to a 5-2 triumph for their 10th straight win.</p><p>In game three the Stampeders came out skating and checking and the Jets had trouble getting out of their own end of the ice for the first five minutes of the game. The Jets then started skating and took control of the game. The Jets were led by two goals each from Gail Holden and Ron Houston. Holden scored at 9:25 of the first period to give the Jets an early lead. However, Carl Forster tied the game at 19:58 while Spokane was a man short.</p><p>The Jets came out flying in the second period and scored three unanswered goals that took the life out of the Stampeders. Ken Gustafson scored on a fine feed by Jim Little at 2:27. Houston followed with two red lamps later in the period following some fine checking and beat Stamps goalie Gary Simmons for a 4-1lead.</p><p>Holden completed the Jets&rsquo; scoring at 13:23 of the final period when he steered home Gustafson&rsquo;s cross-goal pass. Late in the period the Stamps&rsquo; Jim Hunt beat Seth Martin at 18:52 to end the scoring. Martin played all three games of this series and allowed only three goals.</p><p>WIHL rookie of the year Peter Vipond along with Huston and Jim Chow turned in excellent checking games and drew raves from the crowd of 6,009 fans.</p><p>With this series sweep, it would appear that Al Rollins&rsquo; Spokane Jets are the definite favorite in the upcoming Western finals against St. Boniface in the drive to the Allan Cup</p><p>In Memorial Cup action, the big Eastern threats&mdash;Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Marlboros&mdash;continue to remain in the running. The Canadiens hold a one-sided 3-1 edge over the Marlies in their best-of-seven Junior OHA final and could wrap up the league championship on home ice in the fifth game. Should they achieve this, they will advance into the Eastern semi-finals against the winner of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. The Hounds captured the Junior NOHA title by besting the Sudbury Wolves in the finals with the windup game a 10-9 scoring marathon.</p><p>The winner of the OHA-NOHA semi-final gets a berth in the Eastern finals against the winner of the Charlottetown Islanders-Quebec Ramparts&rsquo; series. The Islanders took the opener of the best-of-seven affair 3-1.</p><p>In the West it will be the Westfort Hurricanes from the Thunder Bay area, and the Weyburn Red Wings, champions of the Saskatchewan Junior League, in the finals for the right to play the East. The Forts made it by disposing of the Manitoba winners, Dauphin, 4-2 in a best-of-seven series. Weyburn did likewise by beating the Alberta titleholders. Red Deer Rustlers, 4-2 in a similar series.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Orillia, Victoriaville, Spokane On Cup Trail

<h2><b>ALLAN CUP Eastern</b></h2><p><b>Teams Ontario&mdash;Orillia Terriers, Sault Canadiens.</b></p><p><b>Quebec&mdash;Victoriaville Tigers.</b></p><p><b>Maritimes&mdash;St. John&rsquo;s Capitols.</b></p><h2>Western Teams</h2><p><b>Saskatchewan&mdash;Yorkton Terriers.</b></p><p><b>Manitoba&mdash;St. Boniface.</b></p><p><b>Alberta&mdash;Calgary Stampeders.</b></p><p><b>B.C.&mdash;Spokane Jets.</b></p><h2><b>MEMORIAL CUP</b></h2><p><b>Eastern Teams Quebec&mdash;Quebec City Remparts.</b></p><p><b>Ontario&mdash;Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Marlboros, Sault Greyhounds, Sudbury Wolves.</b></p><p><b>Maritimes&mdash;Charlottetown Islanders.</b></p><h2><b>WESTERN TEAMS</b></h2><p><b>Thunder Bay&mdash;Westfort Hurricanes.</b></p><p><b>Manitoba&mdash;Dauphin.</b></p><p><b>Saskatchewan&mdash;Weyburn Red Wings.</b></p><p><b>Alberta&mdash;Red Deer Rustlers.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

AMATEUR SURVIVORS

<div class="byline">BY SPENCE CONLEY</div><p>OAKLAND&mdash;</p><p>Funny, how things worked out: The team the Oakland Seals were fighting like the devil, turned out to be a benevolent angel.</p><p>Thanks to the Minnesota North Stars, the Oakland Seals not only made the playoffs in the National Hockey League&rsquo;s West Division, but they also got a match with the team they wanted to play.</p><p>Ironically, the team they wanted to play&mdash;the second-place Pittsburgh Penguins&mdash;wiped out the Seals in four straight games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c4-01179/2737616-1-eng-US/c4-012.jpg" title="C4-01" width="257" height="451"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Earl Ingarfield</b></figcaption></div><p>But go back a little, say to about mid-March.</p><p>At that time, the Seals and the North Stars were scrapping tooth and nail to beat each other out of the playoffs. Oakland would get a point hold on fourth place and then Minnesota would leap-frog them almost on the very next night.</p><p>Never mind Philadelphia, which seemed to have at least third place locked and was trying to overtake the Penguins.</p><p>Then with three or four games left in the season, the North Stars went into Los Angeles and dropped a game they could have used badly. At the same time, Oakland was beating St. Louis.</p><p>The next night, the angry North Stars (there was a lot of grumbling by the Minnesotans that Blues&rsquo; coach Scotty Bowman didn&rsquo;t use four of his top players and then didn&rsquo;t pull his goalkeeper in the final seconds to try for a tie) blew into Oakland and blew the Seals right out of the Coliseum Arena, 8-3.</p><p>All of a sudden the Seals were fighting for their lives. And unexpectedly, so were the Flyers.</p><p>But the Seals hung in tough: they tied St. Louis in St. Louis, 2-2 and came back two night later (April 3) to crush the Kings, 4-1 in a game that meant the playoffs. Earl Ingarfield set the pace with two goals.</p><p>The next day, without lifting a stick or lacing on a skate, the Seals made the playoffs while pacing nervously about the lobby of the Sheraton Inn in Los Angeles.</p><p>Carol Vadnais collected a quarter from everybody to finance the call and he telephoned the Spectrum in Philadelphia. He got the score, Minnesota 1, Philadelphia 0 and the Seals couldn&rsquo;t believe it.</p><p>They shook each other&rsquo;s hands and the management troika&mdash;VP Bill Torrey, GM Frank Selke, and coach Fred Glover&mdash;puffed on big cigars.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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April 24, 1970

NHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

North Stars Rebound As Threat To Blues

Looking At The Playoff Races

two minute hockey quiz