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

January 2, 1976

The Hockey News January 2, 1976

<p>COLUMBUS&mdash;</p><p><b>The Owls, who are having more than their share of troubles winning on the ice, are losers off the ice as well.</b></p><p><b>While a recent reverse off the ice can hardly be blamed for the Owls troubles on the ice, it shows a pattern. The Owls were informed just recently that long awaited and much discussed plastic barriers to be installed above the rink boards, ended up in Columbus, la., by mistake.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

IN THIS ISSUE

Owls Lose Out Even Off Ice

<div class="byline">BY BOB VERDI</div><p>CHICAGO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>V</span>ie Hadfield, who has bumped noses with Cliff Koroll on many a shift, some years back was asked to liken the likeable Black Hawk to someone, somewhere, somehow.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;II tell you what the reminds me of.&rdquo; said Hadfield, who patrols left wing with excellence for the Pittsburgh Penguins. &lsquo;You know those big table hockey games where you pull the knob and the players just go up and down the wing?</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-01913/3496061-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="263" height="416"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Cliff Koroll</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;Well, that&rsquo;s Cliff Koroll. Up and down, never strays, always there, nothing flashy.&rdquo;</p><p>To the average player, saying he is not Charisma&rsquo;s Child comes off almost as an apology. Like when the guy who&rsquo;s being set up with a blind date is informed that the girl&rsquo;s looks are no bargain but. golly, she sure does have a nice personality.</p><p>Koroll. however, wears that &ldquo;no-flash&rdquo; label like a badge. Consistency is his most important product. and since day one in Chicago seven years ago he has gone from steady to steadier to steadiest.</p><p>&ldquo;Seven years&hellip;I can hardly believe it&rsquo;s that long.&rdquo; said Koroll. &ldquo;It really didn&rsquo;t hit me until the other night. I was talking with Grant Mulvey, and do you know that the last time I was back home 12 years ago. he was only 7?&rdquo;</p><p>Given an ounce of ham or a pound of baloney. Koroll could have become a more flamboyant character in a city craving for stars. Buthis seven-year itch pertains not to exposure, but to excellence and that the has achieved. So much so that people don&rsquo;t even remember him merely as Keith Magnuson&rsquo;s roommate anymore.</p><p>The sinewy right winger has averaged 23 goals a season, many of which have been highly important.</p><p>When the Black Hawks went a record 228 straight games without being shut out three years ago, Koroll often checked in with a goal in time just as a blank was about to be fired by the opposition&rsquo;s net-minder.</p><p>Then, when the Hawks started going in the reverse direction last season with three consecutive shutout losses on the road, in the fourth contest.</p><p>Game-winners have been his forte. the corners are more often than nothis home, and not only-does he rarely miss a game (he&rsquo;s gone three seasons, or well over 200Ml straight nights without calling in sick), but Koroll rarely misses a check. His cumulative defensive record in Chicago is a glittering plus-128.</p><p>In sum. the evenness of his performance tends to make Koroll easy to forget. But the is a fixture who ranks high in the pecking order with the Black Hawks, who pride themselves on recruiting not only good talent but good people.</p><p>&ldquo;You know,&rdquo; said he the other day. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t feel like I really had a place here until about my fourth season. And even now. you don&rsquo;t really feel secure. A trade could happen tomorrow, and it would really upset things.&rdquo;</p><p>It would because home is no longer Canora. Saskat chewan, but Chicago. Koroll has a stunning wife, two precocious kids, an off-season future building with two local companies&mdash;one a copier control System. Manitou. Inc., of which Koroll is a director.</p><p>Buthis hat size hasn&rsquo;t increased with his successes and Koroll needs no heart transplants.</p><p>While at Denver University. Koroll befriended an assistant hockey coach who later became financial advisor to himself, Magnuson and Hawk teammate John Marks. His name was Harry Ottenbreit. and not long ago he died of a heart attack. leaving behind a shocked widow plus children.</p><p>Koroll almost never talks about it. but the first thing those three players did upon signing their new Hawk contracts was to take a healthy chunk off the top and dispatch it to Val Ottembreit (about $60,000).</p><p>&ldquo;Harry had done all the groundwork for our negotiations, even though he wasn&rsquo;t around when we signed.&rdquo; said Koroll. &ldquo;The Wirtzes were super in helping us arrange for it. We didn&rsquo;t have to do it. max-be. but what&rsquo;s an extra $20,000 if you know that someone needs it more, like Val did. We couldn&rsquo;t have slept at night if we had&rsquo;t the helped Val.&rdquo;</p><p>Nothing flashy, you understand. Just Cliff Koroll.</p><p><b>PARTING SHOTS:</b> Defenseman Bill White, the veteran Hawk All Star who underwent surgery for a torn pelvic muscle Nov. 5. returned to the lineup in mid-December&hellip;Buthis place on the injured list was quickly taken by goalie Gilles Villemure. who fractured his left index finger and was expected to be sidelined for two weeks&hellip;Villemure. who is undefeated in six starts with Chicago since coming from the New York Rangers, lifted his left (stick)hand to stop a drive from Darcy Rota. The puck jammed beneath the blocker and crushed the linger against the stick&hellip;Pat Martin. petite wife of Black Hawk veteran Pit. gave birth to the couple&rsquo;s fourth girl&mdash;Noelle&mdash;one day-after Pit&rsquo;s birthday on Dec. 10.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0009-01

Consistency Is Hawk Koroll’s Most Important Ice Product

<p><b>THE INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLY</b></p><h2>NHL OPTIMISTIC THEY&rsquo;LL TOP RUSSIANS</h2><p>WHO WILL REPLACE THIS MAN AS NHL PRESIDENT?</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/cover-01604/3498696-1-eng-US/cover-012.jpg" title="Cover-01" width="768" height="1194"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>NHL PRESIDENT CLARENCE CAMPBELL</b></figcaption></div><h2>RICHARD MARTIN BUFFALO SABRES&rsquo; RED HOT SCORER</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/cover-02458/3498689-1-eng-US/cover-022.jpg" title="Cover-02" width="1478" height="1702"></div><p>JIMMY WATSON: AMONG TWO BEST IN THE NHL CLAIM FLYERS</p><p><b>WHA COWBOYS MAKE HARD WORK PAY OFF</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Cover-01

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">BY JIM KERNAGHAN</div><p>CALGARY&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>t the beginning of the current World Hockey Association season, mournful looks went towards the foothills, where the new transplanted Calgary Cowboys, reincarnated from the old Vancouver Blazers, were setting up shop.</p><p>Here was a team which had gotten rid of several of its stars trying to be competitive in the small Corralarena.</p><p>But there&rsquo;s no weeping for Cowboys now as they&rsquo;ve gotten together to fashion a strong third place club in the tough Canadian Division. Calgary has been beaten, but not easily.</p><p>&ldquo;Just plain, old-fashioned hard work,&rdquo; said general manager coach Joe Crozier in assessing his team&rsquo;s performance. &ldquo;If you look after the basics, you&rsquo;ll be okay.</p><p>Calgary is characterized by its tight checking, the major factor in its low goals-against. Other factors are Don (Smokey) McLeod and Wayne Wood.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got the best goaltender in the league.&rdquo; said Crozier of McLeod, &ldquo;and it doesn&rsquo;t give me much of a chance to play Wayne. But the&rsquo;s 4 and 0.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01230/3497145-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="557" height="1145"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DON McLEOD&hellip;Rates Coach&rsquo;s Praise</b></figcaption></div><p>When the team shifted from Vancouver to Calgary, the number of players who left or were traded was massive. There were Johnny McKenzie. Bryan Campbell. Mike Pelyk, Claude St. Sauveur. Don O&rsquo;Donoghue, Pat Price. In effeet, this year&rsquo;s Cowboys came in not too unlike an expansion team.</p><p>But excellent teamwork, plus the recent addition of Bobby Leiter. whom Cowboys got from the NHL Atlanta Flames for future considerations, has stood the club in good stead.</p><p><b>QUEBEC:</b> When a club is losing. the effects are immediately felt within and there was no shortage of turmoil besetting the Nordiques recently. It became full blown in Edmonton during a game when coach Jean-Guy Gendron and centre Serge Bernier had words during the game and both threatened to quit the team.</p><p>A meeting between the two and general manager Maurice Filion apparently healed the rift.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s all straightened out.&rdquo; said Gendron. &ldquo;I was frustrated over how the team was going and the players were, too. We had a long meeting and everything is okay now.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-0489/3497138-1-eng-US/f0025-042.jpg" title="f0025-04" width="224" height="412"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob Leiter</b></figcaption></div><p>Quebec and the Toros appear to be home clubs against each other as they split back to back games, each team now possessing a 2-2 record against the other.</p><p><b>TORONTO:</b> The Toros future can best be predicted by the goals-forand goals-against columns. Toronto&rsquo;s output per game, 4.5 goals, was the league&rsquo;s highest while the goals-against. 4.93 was the league&rsquo;s worst.</p><p>One thing Toros don&rsquo;t have a shortage of is goaltenders. Under contract are Les Binkley. Jim Shaw. Mario Vien and last week Toros added Dave Tataryn. former University of Toronto. Laurentian University and Niagara Falls Flyer player who&rsquo;d been attempting to make the team three years. Former Marlboro defenseman Greg Neeld. blinded in the left eye in a mishap two years ago. also was signed for three years.</p><p>Tataryn played standout hockey in a 6-5 overtime loss to Winnipeg Jets. facing 43 shots, including nine by Bobby Hull, and again against Quebec, in a game in which he saw 47 shots as Toros won. 6-4.</p><p>Moreover. Toros are attempting to sign Gilles Gratton, who left the NHL St. Louis Blues after a disagreement with former coach Garry Young. St. Louis hadn&rsquo;t puthis name on waivers as Gratton. who&rsquo;d left the Toros last spring, voluntarilv retired.</p><p><b>WINNIPEG:</b> Bobby Hull i-moving inexorably towards Gordie Howe&rsquo;s all-time goal-scoring record and is within 55 scores of eclipsing it. He won&rsquo;t likely make it this season but should next year. So far, Hull has been the set-up man on many occasions for hi.-high-flying linemates and was tied with centre Ulf Nilsson with 48 points off 19 goals and 29 assists.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe I should retire while Gordie still has the record.&rdquo; quipped Hull.</p><p>The Jets, with two games In hand, widened the gap created when Nordiques lost to Edmonton (7-4) and Calgary (4-1). bouncing to the Canadian Division lead with 21 wins and nine losses and in doing, maintained the lowest goals-against record in the league.</p><p><b>EDMONTON:</b> If it weren&rsquo;t for the Toronto Toros, the Oilers would be in bigger trouble than they&rsquo;re already in. Oilers poor record is beginning to reflect itself in poor turnouts at the magnificent Coliseum and nothing underlined the problem more dramatically than when the high-flying Jets attracted only 10.707.</p><p>Jets won big. 3-1. outshooting the hapless Oilers. 43-20, as Hull. Thommie Bergman and Hedberg did the damage. Mike Baird the lone Oiler scorer.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0025-01

Hard Work Paying Off For Cowboys; Nordiques’ Losing Ways Cause Turmoil

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01866/3495661-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Defenseman Jim Watson of the Philadelphia Flyers rates with some pretty select NHL backliners according to his defensive coach Barry Ashbee. Watson has been labelled as one of the league&rsquo;s best two defensemen. For details see page 14.</b></figcaption></div><h2>MARTIN HOT SABRE</h2><p>BUFFALO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>his was Richard Martin week in the National Hockey League. The hard-shooting left winger of the Buffalo Sabres went on a week-long scoring spree along with his teammates.</p><p>Martin banged in seven goals, including one three-goal game and a four-goal effort as the Sabres clobbered the hapless Washington Caps 14-2. In all Martin had an 11-point week and he did it all playing without his French Connection linemates, Gil Perreault and Rene Robert. Buffalo coach Floyd Smith moved Martin off the line and he really caught fire. The Sabres&rsquo; 14 goals against Washington was the highest scored by an NHL team since 1957.</p><h2>WHA ULTIMATUM</h2><p>ST. PAUL&mdash;</p><p>The Minnesota Fighting Saints of the WHA are still fighting financial adversity although you wouldn&rsquo;t know it on the ice. During the past weekend the Saints whipped the Canadian Division leading Winnipeg Jets twice, but off the ice they&rsquo;re submerged in financial problems.</p><p>The players have been asked to become partners in the Minnesota operation to keep the club alive. The Minnesota commerce department has given the WHA team 90 days to raise a half million dollars along with approval of a plan to try to raise another $2.5 million through the sale of partnerships to the players. The Saints have lost $4.9 million in just over three hockey seasons.</p><h2>OHA REJECTS RUSSIANS</h2><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p>The Ontario Major Hockey League has had enough of those touring Russian hockey powers. If they have their way they&rsquo;ll face only Soviet Junior teams in the future and not those power-packed Russian All Star teams who come over and knock the bejabbers out of their best clubs.</p><p>The OHA Major Junior Council met recently and commissioner Clarence (Tubby) Schmalz said it was decided to play Soviet junior teams from now on. The OHA wants Russian club teams to face their respective clubs without bolstering any of them. Moscow Selects, who have toured OHA cities, have won 9-6, 11-4, 7-1 and 3-2. A total of 12 members of the Selects will oppose NHL teams in the upcoming Super Series.</p><h2>FREE HOCKEY INSURANCE</h2><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p>The CCM sporting goods company has announced that it will offer free insurance starting Jan. 1 to hockey players in Canada and the U.S. who use the company&rsquo;s full headgear&mdash;helmet, eye shield and lower face&hellip;.</p><p>In an unprecedented move, CCM says the insurance policy will provide $2,000 dental coverage, $2,500 loss of sight indemnity and $5,000 accidental death insurance. The program has been dubbed the Parsons policy&rsquo; after George Parsons, a CCM vice-president who lost an eye in an NHL game for Toronto Leafs many years ago.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0002-01

Deadline Stoppers

<div class="byline">BY CHARLIE HALPIN</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he decision National Hockey League member clubs have been dreading for years is upon them with the disclosure that when the NHL&rsquo;s 18 governors convene next month at the annual All Star game in Philadelphia, the major topic of business will be where to find a new president?</p><p>The NHL has been operating for years under the pretext that Clarence Campbel1 was seemingly indestructible and would go on forever. Now the word is Campbell, who is 70 and head of the NHL since 1946, will be replaced.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02798/3495692-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="287" height="449"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Clarence Campbell</b></figcaption></div><p>Campbell will be stepping up and not down when he becomes chairman of the NHL board probably next June after the governors amend their constitution to allow Campbell to accept his new position and pave the way for the naming of a successor to the aging NHL president.</p><p>Who will be the next president? Speculation is that the appointment will likely be an internal one, an organization man knowledgeable in the ways and means of the NHL and undoubtedly one who would be acceptable to all 18 teams and probably personally recommended by Campbell himself.</p><p>Some names have been tossed about at various NHL meetings in recent years when word that Campbell&rsquo;s supposedly failing health would force him to throw in the towel. The NHL&rsquo;s chief executive has managed to resist such talk for years while names like Sam Pollock, Jim Cullen. Brian O&rsquo;Neill, Bob Sedgewick, Walter Bush and William Jennings have often been reported as being the next president of the NHL.</p><p>Campbell believes that his successor will come from within the NHL ranks. He has said that the man who would step into his giant-sized shoes should be a man raised in the game and has said that several people are capable of the job who are already within the league.</p><p>The NHL governors will decide in Philadelphia and the ensuing months leading up to the crucial summer hockey meetings next June in Montreal what kind of a man they want to replace Campbell. It is almost certain that whoever is chosen, will work hand in hand with Campbell for many months before stepping into the president&rsquo;s chair and making strategic decisions, something Campbell has been doing effectively for the past 29 Years.</p><p>Considering the hostility around the league and in pro hockey in general these days, the job of being president isn&rsquo;t an enviable one. The position will almost require a legal mind to keep the league on its proper course and it would seem that Campbell&rsquo;s availability as board chairman will be an almost must for any new NHL &lsquo;chieftan.</p><p>One major problem that will be facing a new president is bridging the gap between the NHL and the rival World Hockey Association in view of recent developments that some NHL club representatives have been secretly negotiating for a merger of the two pro leagues. The NHL Players&rsquo; Association has a critical five-year agreement with the member clubs and any association with the WHA would be in direct violation of this agreement points out NHLPA president Alan Eagleson.</p><p>Campbell said he sees no possible merger of the two leagues because of the anti-trust implications and because the players&rsquo; association would have to give their consent, something that isn&rsquo;t likely to be forthcoming for the next five years. For this reason, the current NHL president doesn&rsquo;t think the league can rush a new man into the chair without a waiting period. This will take time and Campbell may still have to call the shots for the NHL even should the league name his successor at the All Star game or the summer meetings. There is further speculation that the &lsquo;new man&rsquo; would act as an assistant to Campbell at first and be worked gradually into the top job.</p><p>There are numerous variations of naming a new president but Campbell said it is up to the senior governors to name his successor and they will screen their candidates in the months ahead.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0002-02

NHL Clubs Pondering New President With Campbell Moving To Head Board

f0003-02

Espo hoping series won’t become a political football

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-01871/3495730-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>NHL teams will encounter top netminder in Russian Vladislav Tretiak, who has twice before confronted NHL performers in Team Canada series.</b></figcaption></div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Phil Esposito, captain of the New York Rangers and spiritual team leader of Team Canada 1972, is worried over the upcoming series between eight seperate National Hockey League teams and the two representatives of Russian hockey.</p><p>&ldquo;I hope it doesn&rsquo;t become a political thing,&rdquo; said Phil. &ldquo;The Russians have been preparing for this since 1948 when they started playing hockey. Most of the NHL teams will get ready the day before because of their own NHL schedule. Yes, I&rsquo;m excited about it, but I would rather win the Stanley Cup. But, anytime you play the Soviets 1 get up automatically.&rdquo;</p><p>The Rangers meet the Soviets first, Dec. 28 at Madison Square Garden with the opposition being supplied by the Soviet Army team in the first of eight games between the two hockey powers.</p><p>&ldquo;The last time we played them we didn&rsquo;t know how good their goalie was, or how good they could skate or shoot. We had a bad scouting report. I think it was from Toronto Maple Leaf scouts. They wound up last, so maybe that&rsquo;s the reason. I expect they will be rougher this time, but I don&rsquo;t think the series will get dirty with high sticks or anything like that.&rdquo;</p><p>Esposito would still like to see an NHL All Star team, &ldquo;with Bobby Orr&rdquo; play against the best of the Russians. He doesn&rsquo;t think one game proves much.</p><p>And he was aghast when told that the Army team and Soviet Wings would be allowed to borrow or add six players from other Russian teams for the series.</p><p>&ldquo;We give in too much, all the time,&rdquo; said Phil.</p><p>A member of the Soviet Tass News Agency did straighten Espo out as to the fact that the Russians do have travel and schedule problems, amounting to a 40-game schedule, which, of course, is just half that of the NHL.</p><p>Phil countered with, &ldquo;I became friendly with Alexsander Yakushev, whom I consider their best player. I told him I could get him a $100,000 contract. He said he&rsquo;d get me a free apartment.&rdquo;</p><p>The exhibition aspect of the series was seconded by Ron Stewart, the Rangers&rsquo; coach, who pointed out that the was 1-1 with the Russians, having lost to them while coaching Portland in the WHL and having defeated them last year with Springfield.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03498/3495723-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="553" height="1172"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PHIL ESPOSITO&hellip;We Give In Too Much</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;This is my rubber match with them,&rdquo; said Stewart. &ldquo;I hear we start off with the Russian referee. I wonder what that will mean.&rdquo;</p><p>Stewart indicated that because the Russians move the puck around so well that the Rangers might have to play them one-on-one quite a lot.</p><p>Al Arbour, the coach of the New York Islanders, whose disciplined defense has been likened to the Soviets. said. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t given much thought to the series, because of the regular schedule. I did learn a bit in Russia when I visited there four years ago. The Russians do some things differently and so do the Czechs.&rdquo;</p><p>General manager Bill Torrey of the New York Islanders said, &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll be ready for them. It will be a heck of a game.&rdquo;</p><p>The Islanders play the next to last contest on the game schedule, meeting the Soviet Wings team on Jan. 10.</p><p>Tommy Ivan, the general manager of the Chicago Black Hawks, thought that Chicago might have a better shot than some of the other teams because, &ldquo;We play the Soviet Wings Jan. 7, and will be able to scout them in Pittsburgh Dec. 29, and in Buffalo Jan 4. That could help us.&rdquo;</p><p>Freddie Shero is on record as saying that the Philadelphia Flyers aren&rsquo;t necessarily the world champions until they meet and beat the Russian champion. That event will take place on Sunday Jan.&rsquo;11 in the afternoon, when NHL vice-president Don V. Ruck hopes, &ldquo;to have the largest TV audience ever in the United States for a hockey game.&rdquo;</p><p>Shero said, &ldquo;We can beat the Russians, but they are tougher than you might expect. They are disciplined, more disciplined than most NHL teams. I don&rsquo;t really consider a one-game shot as meaningful.&rdquo;</p><p>Marcel Pelletier, the Flyers personnel co-ordinator, said, &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll win because we are better and the best team wins. If we played them 20 times, we would win 15.&rdquo;</p><p>Gary Bergman, the Kansas City Scouts&rsquo; defenseman, who played for Team Canada 72, said, &ldquo;If our guys dig and work they can win the series, but they have to work. The best Russian player is Maltsev. He and Yakushev are the best. Kharlamov is flashier, but Maltsev and Yakushev do the job at both ends.&rdquo;</p><p>Brian O&rsquo;Neill, the NHL&rsquo;s executive director, who spent some time in Russia negotiating the series, revealed, &ldquo;We feel club hockey is the most meaningful way for an international series to develop. We hope this is the beginning of a steady relationship. In the future, this series will be conducted on a club basis, with no extra players being added to any of the Soviet teams.&rdquo;</p><p>Backing up Bergman&rsquo;s judgement, a glimpse of the Soviet Army roster shows that Alexander Maltsev and Valeri Vasilyev are the players assigned from other teams. The Soviet Wings added Sergei Glukoy, Aleksanndr Yakushev, Vladimir Shadrin and Victor Schlalimov. Maltsev and Yakushev are obvious additions.</p><p>&ldquo;Why can&rsquo;t we add Marcel Dionne.&rdquo; asked Esposito?</p><p>Be that as it may, the NHL teams will have their shot at the Soviets. Last year the Soviet Wings team beat the AHL 5-3-1, with their regular team, without extra players.</p><p>Tim Ryan, the voice of the New York Islanders, and play-by-play broadcaster for the NHL when the league was on the NBC game of the week in 1974-75, predicted, &ldquo;THE NHL teams will win five of the eight games. I think the Islanders, Buffalo, Chicago, Philadelphia and Montreal will win their games.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0003-01

Shero, Esposito Feel One-Game Test Not Meaningful Against Disciplined Russians

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-01923/3495813-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="449" height="453"></div><p>&bull; <b>BOBBY CLARKE,</b> captain and sparkplug of the Stanley Cup champion Philadelphia Flyers, believes the series against the Russians will have a positive effect on hockey in the United States. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to agree that people are losing interest in hockey in several areas in the United States. Look at the attendances in Minnesota, Washington, Kansas City, Oakland, Los Angeles etc.,&rdquo; stated the outspoken Clarke. &ldquo;This Soviet series should create a new interest in the game. We can&rsquo;t change our system but we have to stay out of the penalty box. We&rsquo;ll play our regular system and if we do that properly we&rsquo;ve got the personnel to beat them,&rdquo; added the Flyer captain&hellip;Frank Tor-pey, head of the NHL&rsquo;s security force, said his office is bracing for any eventuality during the eight-game tour of the two Soviet teams and police officials in the eight cities involved will take special precautions to make certain that security is tight and that there are no scenes by anti-Soviet groups to mar the series&hellip;Brad Park and Jean Ratelle are so happy about being with the Boston Bruins that both have bought homes in suburban Lynnfield&hellip;Denis Potvin, sensational defense star with the New York Islanders, looks like a shoo-in to capture the Norris Trophy as the league&rsquo;s best defenseman. The 22-year-old rearguard playing in his third NHL season, improves with every game&hellip;Pierre Larouche, handsome young center star with the Pittsburgh Penguins, is one of the few players in pro hockey who still has all his own teeth&hellip;Larouche, selected by readers of THE HOCKEY NEWS as the rookie-of-the-year for 1974-75, is a natural goal scorer and one of the most polished performers to move straight into the National Hockey League from junior ranks. The 20-year-old Larouche could hit for 50 goals this season with any kind of luck.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02879/3495806-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="281" height="365"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Pierre Larouche</b></figcaption></div><p>&bull; <b>BILL FRIDAY,</b> WHA referee-in-chief, plans to visit Sweden during the off-season to conduct clinics for officials. The World Hockey Association plans to work very closely with European officials&hellip;Four post-expansion NHL teams have retired sweater numbers and they were all players who have passed away. They were Bill Masterton, Minnesota; Wayne Maki, Vancouver; Tim Horton, Buffalo; and Michel Briere, Pittsburgh&hellip;Los Angeles Kings would like to get Rick Chartraw or Bill Nyrop loose from the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; organization. The Kings could use either one or both of these fine young defensemen&hellip;Fred Creighton is doing a masterful job in coaching the Atlanta Flames this season. Creighton is a class guy all the way and is really getting his club rolling of late&hellip;Pat Stapleton of the Indianapolis Racers is known as the Bobby Orr of the World Hockey Association&hellip;Walt Marlow, former WHA director of publicity, now has the same position with the Indianapolis club and has joined up with Jim Brow-itt, another former WHA executive. Jim is the vice-president-general manager of the Racers&hellip;Mike Hope, Bob Borgen and David Courtney have done an excellent job producing the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; media Guide for 1975-76 which features Rogie Vachon, THE HOCKEY NEWS Player-of-the year on the cover&hellip;When Walt Tkaczuk of the Rangers heard that the was going to be traded to Boston for Ken Hodge, he quipped: &ldquo;I must be leading the league in rumors&rdquo;&hellip;The Jacobs brothers, new owners of the Boston Garden, have announced plans to renovate the old building from top to bottom which no doubt will please New England hockey fans greatly&hellip;If the WHA moves a team into New York next season it will have to be a good one. Two clubs have failed to make a success of it in previous attempts. The WHA realizes it must ice a strong and colorful contender this time if the league is to survive in the media capital of the world&hellip;Boston Bruins credit their winning ways of late to the excellent play of all of their forward lines. Bobby Schmautz, Gregg Sheppard and Andre Savard are all playing the best hockey of their careers right now veteran Jean Ratelie has found his legs again and is playing better than he has for years.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03774/3495799-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="280" height="406"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Pat Stapleton</b></figcaption></div><p>&bull; <b>THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE</b>feels that long term contracts are hurting the game and will go all out to eliminate these in the years to come&hellip;Denis Potvin, the Islanders&rsquo; super star, negotiates a new contract at the end of this season&hellip;Bobby Orr is spending the Christmas season along with his wife and son with his parents at Parry Sound, Ont. He is wearing a cast on his bad knee&hellip;Dennis Maruk of the California Seals will be a strong candidate for NHL rookie of the year. Others high in the running are the New York Islanders&rsquo; Glenn Resch and Bryan Trottier&hellip;Leo Boivin, now acting as assistant coach to Lynn Patrick at St. Louis, is almost certain to be appointed regular coach of the Blues&hellip;Toronto Leafs will be bringing Claire Alexander up from their Oklahoma City club soon. They can&rsquo;t afford to leave a player with his talent in the minors&hellip;More and more junior coaches are rapping the slap shot and it is definitely on the decline&hellip;Philadelphia&rsquo;s Bobby Clarke, who has twice been voted the most valuable player in the NHL, was selected as Canada&rsquo;s male athlete of the year for 1975. The 26-year-old center star who has led the Flyers to two consecutive Stanley Cups was a runaway choice of the selectors&hellip;Father Athol Murray, colorful hockey figure in Western Canada for many years, passed away recently.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04672/3495792-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="256" height="401"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bobby Clarke</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0004-01

PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05543/3495844-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg"></div><h2>Install Shootout To Break Ties</h2><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>s an NHL observer for over 40 years, spanning the last game played by Howie Morenz in a Canadiens uniform, to the first home game of Marcel Dionne as an L.A. King, I would like to offer a simple but exciting solution to the plethora of the games.</p><p>The spectator is left with an unsatisfied feeling after a tie game. The players rightly maintain that overtime would be too much after 80 games, and in some cases, over 70,000 miles of travel in a season. Simply combine the excitement of a penalty-shot with the test of the best forward shooting one-on-one with the best goalie. As an example, suppose the L.A. Kings and Montreal are tied 2-2 at the end of regulation time. How about Marcel Dionne shooting on Ken Dryden with the game on the line, followed by Guy Lafleur breaking in all alone on Rogie Vachon? The coaches would designate the players involved in the shoot-out. If both or neither attacker scores, two different forwards would be named until one man scored and the other team missed. Only the actual winning goal would be counted and given credit in the scoring statistics.</p><p><b>DENNIS J. CROW,</b><br><b>Long Beach, Cal.</b></p><h2>Change Of Stations Necessity For Pens</h2><p>In a letter to &ldquo;THE HOCKEY NEWS,&rdquo; a fan from Jamestown. Pa. protested the shifting of Penguin radio coverage from the more powerful station that did the games last year to the network of smaller stations in the area doing the games this year. While I sympathize with his radio reception problems, the switch to the new arrangement, according to the Pittsburgh newspapers, was a necessity.</p><p>While the financial package the Pens received from the new station was certainly a major factor in the switch, the fact that they received nothing from the former station for broadcast rights, coupled with the team&rsquo;s financial problems, was probably just as important. More importantly, the Pens do not play second fiddle to other sports teams on the new station. Under their contract with the other station, the most crucial Stanley Cup and late regular-season games could and often were bumped to FM for meaningless exhibition and early season Pirate baseball games whenever conflicts arose. The arrangement was strictly second-rate and greatly angered Penguin fans. Since cancellation of the Pens by the old station, they have gone on to drop Duquesne University Basketball games and fire longtime Pirate broadcasters Bob Prince (15 yrs.) and Nellie King (9yrs.), two Pittsburgh sports institutions. These bush actions by the old station clearly demonstrate its preference for talk show gobbledygook over full and balanced sports programming, a callous attitude Pittsburgh sports fans are not likely to forget.</p><p>For the sake of the Jamestown fan. I hope the Penguin radio network expands to the Erie area, but I still insist the change of stations was needed. Hockey is major league and not only deserves first-class radio coverage, but also needs it to prosper especially in this area. The Pens have that kind of coverage now. Good riddance to the old station; they didn&rsquo;t deserve the Pens!</p><p><b>KENNKORNICK,</b><br><b>Pittsburgh, Pa.</b></p><h2>Ex-Ranger List Incomplete, Pointless</h2><p>If you&rsquo;re going to make a big fuss about the number of ex-Rangers playing for other teams you might as well include all of them. Your listing in the</p><p>December 12 issue left out such hockeygreats as Cesare Maniago, Gary Doak, Pierre Jarry, Steve Andrascik, Ted Hampson, Gord Labossiere, Mike McMahon and John McKenzie.</p><p>All of which is really as pointless as the original list. You could compile such a list for any team, and any team would be improved if it could have back any &ldquo;had&rdquo; trade. The point is the Rangers didn&rsquo;t win the Cup with what they had and maybe they still won&rsquo;t. We&rsquo;ll all see.</p><p><b>RICHARD M. MARVIN,</b><br><b>New York, N.Y.</b></p><h2>Flyer Fans Paying Price Of Popularity</h2><p>In the October 17th issue, Bill Valenta, Jr. wrote regarding the stoppage of partial ticket plans in Pittsburgh. The people of Philadelphia and I sympathize, for the Flyers organization has pulled a &ldquo;hat trick&rdquo; on us, too. Over the last few years, our 10-game pick-a-plan&rdquo; was discontinued and every seat in the Spectrum is now a season ticket. All All Star tickets are offered to season ticket holders first rather than put up for public sale. And. now to our outrage, the same thing is being done for the Flyers-Russia game in January. When our partial ticket plans were in effect, at least we had some rights. But now, we have no rights at all simply because we could not afford the outrageous price of a season ticket. With the Flyers being the team to beat, and the Penguins a maturing competitor, I guess this is the price fans will have to pay for popularity. If more fans wrote letters like Bill&rsquo;s, maybe we could make some waves and at least let our team&rsquo;s management know we don&rsquo;t like their tactics. Good luck. Bill, with the Penguins and thanks to THE HOCKEY NEWS for printing his long overdue letter.</p><p><b>CHRISTINE DORING,</b><br><b>Philadelphia, Pa.</b></p><h2>Rangers Were Right In Making Trades</h2><p>I am sick and tired of the abuse taken by Emile Francis for his trades. The Rangers team at the start of this season was just about the same team that could not win a pennant or Stanley Cup. So Francis shakes up the team and the reaction of the fans is that the broke up the best team in hockey.</p><p>Let&rsquo;s review the trades:</p><p>Ted Irvine had only one good year and has not provided the muscle like he should, Bert Wilson is not going to be a help to St. Louis. I have liked Jerry Butler but you must give to receive. Villemure would not have played much this year so his leaving should not hurt the Rangers. Giacomin is not &ldquo;Steady Eddie&rdquo; as nicknamed. He gets up for the big ones and when hot is great but to often is cold. Brad Park has not been the super defenseman of old, is grossly overpaid and has bad knees. He will help Boston if they can get him to put out But the has nothelped New York all that much for two years. Jean Ratelle will be missed as an individual but at 35 is slowing up and I have hoped for his trade all season so that Wayne Dillon could play. Anyone who really believes Derek Sanderson helped the Rangers is wrong. Yes he scored, killed the power plays and showed some muscle, but who emerged from the closed door meeting when Francis put the team on waivers and announced it to the press. That&rsquo;s Sanderson.</p><p>When Davidson, Wilson. Dillon, Hickey. Esposito. Vadnais, Collins and Jarrett lead the Rangers toward the Cup let&rsquo;s hear the reactions to the trades. Aren&rsquo;t these the same fans who booed Giacomin his last game as a Ranger and then the trade&hellip;</p><p><b>JOHN WILSON,</b><br><b>New York, N.Y.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0004-05

FAN FORUM

<p><b>OFFICIAL NATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLY</b></p><p>Founded October 1st, 1947</p><p>Vol. 29 No. 12 JANUARY 2,1976</p><p>Published weekly except monthly June through September by W.C.C. Publishing Ltd., 1434 St. Catherine Street West, Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7. U.S. c/o W.C.C. Publishing, 150 6-58th Street, New York, N.Y. 10022.</p><p><b>Kenneth W. McKenzie</b></p><p>President, Publisher and Advertising Director</p><p><b>Don Wall</b></p><p>Associate Publisher</p><p><b>Charlie Halpin</b></p><p>Editorial Director.</p><p><b>Keith Lawton</b></p><p>Administration Manager</p><p>Pat Beale</p><p>Advertising Co-Ordinotor</p><p><b>Ralph Bridgland</b></p><p>Asst. To Editor</p><h2>United States Advertising Representatives</h2><p>NEW YORK: BHI Hitzig, National Sports Publishing Corp.. 150 East 58th Street New York. N.Y. 10022. Telephone (212) 593-2100</p><p>CHICAGO: Hooper Jones & Associates, 3322 W. Peterson Ave., Chicago, III B0859. Telephone (oi2) 478-5544.</p><p>ATLANTIC STATES (Including New York, Boston, Buffalo & Philadelphia: Bob Bassinette. Bassinette/White, 50 East 42nd St., New York, N.Y. 10017. Telephone (212) 986-6210.</p><p><b>YEARLY SUBSCRIPTION RATES</b>: $9.50 in Canada $10.50 in the U. S. A. and $14.00 in Foreign Countries. Sec and class postage paid at New York, N.Y., 10001 and at additional mailing offices SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO 1434</p><p><b>ST. CATHERINE STREET WEST, SUITE 217, MONTREAL, CANADA H3G 1R7</b>. Second Class mad Registration No. 1327</p><p>All inquiries pertaining to subscriptions should be addressed to Subscription Dept, The Hockey News, 1434</p><p>St. Catherine St. W. Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7. Printed in Canada<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01834/3495906-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>WAYNE DILLON&hellip;Earns Spot On Regular Shift</b></figcaption></div><p>NEWYORK&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>t was Phil Esposito&rsquo;s return to the Boston Garden&mdash;and the Bruins fans treated him like the hockey royaltv he is&mdash;with a standing ovation for over a minute when he took the ice in practice, and another generous round of applause which stopped the public address announcer when the starting lineups were announced. And the Rangers, continuing their fine progress, whomped the Bruins 5-1. breaking a Boston streak of 14 unbeaten games. Coming on the top of the best game of the year at Madison Square December 10. a 22 tie with the Buffalo Sabres, it demonstrated the progress that Ron Stewart&rsquo;s troops were making.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02700/3495899-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg" title="f0005-02" width="272" height="442"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Gil Marotte</b></figcaption></div><p>But it wasn&rsquo;t Esposito who stole the show in Beantown, rather slim center Wayne Dillon, the WHA jumper who had done little more than sit on the bench with New York so far this year. Dillon got two goals, and one assist in breaking the contest open. The night before. against the Sabres. Wayne got just one shift because he is not noted for defense.</p><p>But Stewart put him out with Jerry Holland and Bill Fairbairn in the first period and Wayne hit the hot shooting Holland in front for a goal at 10:17. That made it 10 New York. With it 2-1, Rangers. Wayne broke the game open in the third period, when he rebounded home a shot set up by Fairbairn and Gilles Marotte. It came at 4:31 of the final and turned the game completely in the Rangers favor. The twenty year old, 6-0, 185 pound slickster, worked with Fairbairn for the final goal of the game, at 14:28, neatly finishing off a two on one rush.</p><p>Dillon has three two goal games to his credit and was 9-11-20 in very limited playing time. He got a full shift in the Rangers win over Detroit December 13, and in their sudden, down from the clouds, loss to Toronto, 6-1, December 14. In Detroit, his arithmetic added up to one&mdash;a goal scored on a rebound off Mickey Redmond.</p><p>&ldquo;He is an opportunist.&rdquo; said Stewart. &ldquo;He wants to play, but hasn&rsquo;t blown up over his limited ice time. I told him early in the year that we had a lot of centers&mdash;and to be patient.&rdquo;</p><p>With Dillon on a regular shift. Walter Tkaczuk became a left wing and later a right wing.</p><p>Dillon informed one and all that had stolen a big night from Gordie Howe, the first time Howe ever played in Ottawa in the WHA.</p><p>&ldquo;I had the nerve to get four goals that night.&rdquo; grinned Wayne.</p><p>As for King Phillipe, he got two assists in Boston and passed the magic 1.200 career point barrier, something that only six other NHL players had done. Espo was touched by the reception he got in Boston, but more concerned later when the Rangers lost toToronto.</p><p>&ldquo;That was our first loss in seven games,&rdquo; said Phil, &ldquo;If we do that all year it will all work out alright, won&rsquo;t it? Everyone would be satisfied, wouldn&rsquo;t they?&rdquo;</p><p>The loss to Toronto underscored the delicate balance on the Rangers defense. The Maginot Line of Carol Vadnais and Gilles Marotte was broken up when Marotte hurthis foot in the first period and was replaced by John Bednarski. Ski was on for two goals by Erroll Thompson in his first shift and the game turned right there. After that Vad and Ron Greschner tried to play catch up and got caught for a goal each.</p><p>When the oft maligned Marotte plays with Vadnais and Doug Jarrett works with Greschner. the New York defense is respectable. Stewart can look forward to at least a week or so without Marotte and maybe longer. In the wings are Nick Beverley whose had back still hurts and Ron Harris due back in January after knee surgery.</p><p>&ldquo;Marotte plays hurt as a matter of course.&rdquo; said Vadnais. &ldquo;But the got it that time.&rdquo;</p><p>Gilles&rsquo; X-rays were negative, buthis foot was placed in a piaster cast. It was one more problem for Stewart, who had felt in Detroit after the Rangers seventh game without a loss that, &ldquo;things are snowballing.&rdquo;</p><p>One plus has been the growing maturity of goalie John Davidson, who played in eight straight games after Dunc Wilson suffered a sudden appendicitis in Buffalo on December 4.</p><p>&ldquo;No pressure at all.&rdquo; claimed J.D. &ldquo;I like playing all the time.&rdquo;</p><p>Davidson is gradually improving. He has learned not to brood, over the odd soft goal. He still drifts left at times and goes down too soon sometimes. He also dumps rebounds in front, but overall is cool and is getting better.</p><p>Bucky Kane, the Buffalo Sabres scout, said &ldquo;John Davidson is go</p><p>ing through a learning process right now. But there are any number of NHL teams who would grab him in a minute. &ldquo;He is the best young goaler in the NHL.&rdquo;</p><p>BLUE CHIPS: Rookie winger Eddie Johnstone, up from Providence of the AHL scored his first NHL goal against Toronto December 14. He was the 32nd player used by New York this season&hellip;Rod Gilbert returned to action against Toronto after missing ten games with a bad knee suffered in Philadelphia November 22.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0005-01

Dillon Indicative Of Progress Rangers Making

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div><p>LOS ANGELES&mdash;</p><p>The first third of the current campaign has been a difficult one for the defense of the los Angeles Kings. They have won more games than they have lost, but they have given up more goals than they have scored. Some one-sided defeats have created some real lows to the overall performance of the club.</p><p>A notable high point came recently when in mid-December Los Angeles limited St. Louis to one shot in the first period and 19 in the three periods, King records, as the club blanked the Blues, 5-0.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-01954/3495937-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="544" height="982"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BOB MURDOCH&hellip;Defensive Leader</b></figcaption></div><p>Goaler Rogie Vachon had the softest shutout of his career because of a close-checking, persistent performance in front of him.</p><p>&ldquo;This was the best we have played defensively this season,&rdquo; afterwards said Bob Murdoch, who has assumed the role of leader of the defense since captain Terry Harper was traded along with Dan Maloney to Detroit for Marcel Dionne during the off-season.</p><p>It was a question last season whether offensive defenseman Murdoch or defensive defenseman Shelly Kannegiesser was the best of the backliners on the team, although the veteran Harper gave the club a lot of its guts. Possibly trying too hard, both have been inconsistent this campaign. A 13-goal scorer last season. Bob does not yet have a goal this season.</p><p>&ldquo;I may have been pressing a bit,&rdquo; observes Murdoch, a 28-year-old former Montreal Canadien. &ldquo;I feel I have a more responsible role now since I&rsquo;m about the most experienced defenseman on the earn. I&rsquo;m thinking more about leadership than I did when Harper vas here.</p><p>&ldquo;Also, I&rsquo;m playing against the better lines more now. Because of this, I&rsquo;ve had to restrain myself a bit offensively. I&rsquo;ve been making an adjustment. But I think I can carry it off,&rdquo; he concluded.</p><p>&ldquo;The trade altered the team. I think we can be a better team, but we are a different team and we all have adjustments to make. We know what we can and can&rsquo;t do. We&rsquo;re not like the Canadiens with so many stars we can win when a few guys play and the rest good off.</p><p>&ldquo;We have to work as hard as we can. When we do, we can beat anybody. When we don&rsquo;t, we can&rsquo;t beat anybody. We&rsquo;ve learned that this season. If we profit by the experience we can give the sort of consistent effort that carried this club into contention last season,&rdquo; he concluded.</p><p>Murdoch does not believe he wore himself out this summer building a log cabin in the Washington wilderness, near a lake and near the Pacific coast. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s been a boyhood dream of mine come true. As long as I can remember I always wanted to get away from it all with only my friends and family. I enjoyed the work. It was hard, but it gave me a lot, it didn&rsquo;t take anything from me,&rdquo; he says.</p><p>Murdoch, who was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, smiles, &ldquo;We started small with the idea of a simple four-wall cabin in the woods. By the time we got in what we wanted we were building something about as big as our home in the suburbs of Los Angeles. It&rsquo;s 50 feet long and takes in about 2,600 square feet.&rdquo;</p><p>Both his father-in-law and friends worked sun-up to sundown, 12 to 14 hours a day, lugging logs, some of which were 25 feet long and 250 pounds heavy, fitting them together like a giant toy. Their living conditions were basic&mdash;no running water, plumbing or electricity. They slept in tents.</p><p>After he had to leave to go to training camp, the others remained to finish putting on the roof, enclosing it to protect it from winter weather. Next summer, they&rsquo;ll return to put in the plumbing and wiring and complete the interior. Then his wife Doris, son Scott and daughter Stacey will move in.</p><p>&ldquo;I want my kids to grow up in nature, the way I did. I want them to know there&rsquo;s more to life than just the big city,&rdquo; he says.</p><p>In the meantime, the graduate of the University of Waterloo with the Fu Manchu mustache is making the money he needs to lead the life he likes playing hockey, hopefully soon the way he did when he was named to the midseason All Star game last season.</p><p>After four straight defeats, the St. Louis shutout make it five straight wins for the streaky Kings. Dionne had his second hat-trick. As he had two goals in the prior game against Detroit, this gave him five in two games and 20 in29 games, his best start yet.</p><p>The 3-2 defeat of Detroit represented revenge for a 4-1 loss in Detroit in which the fans cursed Dionne and his former teammates roughed him. By contrast, the fans cheered Harper and Maloney in Los Angeles, contributing to a calm contest instead of a rematch of a wrestling match. And an inspired Dionne was the difference.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0006-01

Murdoch Feels More Responsibility For Kings’ Defensive Performance

<p>Following are the leatest player movements in hockey:</p><h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2><p>WASHINGTON&mdash;<b>Stan Gilbertson</b>, forward, traded to Pittsburgh in exchange for <b>Harvey Bennett</b>, forward. <b>Gordie Lane</b>, defenseman, recalled from Dayton of IHL as replacement for injured <b>Bob Paradise. Bob Sirois</b>, forward, secured from Philadelphia in trade for player to be named later. Flyers recalled Sirois from Richmond of AHL to complete deal.</p><p>N.Y. ISLANDERS&mdash;<b>Ralph Stewart</b>, forward, recalled from Fort Worth of CHL.</p><p>ST. LOUIS&mdash;<b>Brian Ogilvie</b>, forward, sent to Providence of AHL on loan. <b>Ed Staniowski</b>, goalkeeper, recalled from Providence.</p><p>BUFFALO&mdash;<b>Gary Bromley</b>, goalkeeper, assigned to Providence of AHL on loan. <b>Terry Martin</b>, forward, recalled from Hershey of AHL.</p><p>DETROIT&mdash;<b>Bill Lochead</b>, forward, recalled from New Haven of AHL.</p><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;<b>Paul Bordeleau</b>, and <b>Bobby Lalonde</b>, forwards, assigned to Tulsa of CHLand later recalled</p><h2>WORLD HOCKEY ASSN</h2><p>TORONTO&mdash;<b>Greg Neeld</b>, defenseman, <b>Bob D&rsquo;Alvise</b> and <b>Jean-Luc Phaneuf</b>, forwards, sent to Buffalo of NAHL. <b>George Kuzmicz</b>, defenseman, and <b>Lou Nistico</b>, forward, recalled from Buffalo.</p><p>SAN DIEGO&mdash;<b>Dave Walter</b>, forward, traded to Phoenix in return for <b>Pete McNamee</b>, forward. McNamee later assigned to Tucson of CHL. <b>Mike Rouleau</b>, forward, assigned to Roanoke of SHL.</p><p>CLEVELAND&mdash;<b>Wayne Muloin</b> and <b>Paul Baxter</b>, defensemen, and <b>Mike Conroy</b>, forward, recalled from Syracuse of NAHL. <b>Ray McKay</b>, defenseman, and <b>Brian Bowles</b>, defensemen, sent to Syracuse as replacements.</p><p>QUEBEC&mdash;<b>Charles Constantin</b>, forward, assigned to Maine of NAHL.</p><p>NEW ENGLAND&mdash;<b>Danny Arndt</b>, forward, sent to Cape Codders of NAHL. <b>Bruce Landon</b>, goalkeeper, recalled from Cape Codders as backup netmin-der.</p><p>CINCINNATI&mdash;<b>Rich Coutu</b>, goalkeeper, assigned to Hampton of SHL. <b>Paul Hoganson</b>, goalkeeper, signed as free agent after release by New England. forward, recalled from Charlotte of SHL. <b>Denny McLean</b>, forward. recalled from Johnstown of NAHL.</p><h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2><p>PROVIDENCE&mdash;<b>Larry Huras</b>, defenseman, recalled from Port Huron of IHL under emergency conditions.</p><p>NEW HAVEN&mdash;<b>Glen McLeod,</b> defenseman, sent to Columbus of IHL on loan.</p><p>ROCHESTER&mdash;<b>Jim Pettie</b>, goalkeeper, returned to Binghamton of NAHL.</p><p>HERSHEY&mdash;<b>Kelly Pratt</b>, forward, placed on disabled list with shoulder separation.</p><h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2><p>SALT LAKE <b>&mdash;Bobby Geoffrion</b>, forward, secured on loan from California.</p><h2>SOUTHERN LEAGUE</h2><p>GREENSBORO&mdash;<b>Ray Woit</b>, forward, claimed on waivers from Roanoke of SHL.</p><p>ROANOKE&mdash;<b>Ken Ireland,</b> defenseman, signed as free agent. <b>Ray Woit,</b> forward, placed on waivers. <b>Morley Johnson,</b> forward, sent to Tidewater of SHL.</p><p>TIDEWATER&mdash;<b>Sam Clegg</b>, goalkeeper, secured from Saginaw of IHL.</p><p>WINSTON-SALEM&mdash;<b>Danny Sullivan</b>, goalkeeper, signed as free agent.</p><h2>NO. AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2><p>BEAUCE&mdash;<b>Gilles Tremblay</b>, goalkeeper, placed on disabled list and <b>Daniel Beaulieu</b>, placed on disabled list. <b>Mike Busniuk</b>, defenseman. and <b>Jim Troy</b>, forward, activated from disabled list. <b>Michel Garneau</b>, forward, signed as free agent and later placed on disabled list.</p><p>BINGHAMTON&mdash;<b>Denis Daigle</b>, forward, returned to Boston Bruins for reassignment. <b>Barny Brooks</b>, forward, placed on waivers.</p><p>BUFFALO&mdash;<b>Cliff Adcock</b>, goalkeeper, and <b>Steve Siba</b>, defenseman. placed on waivers. <b>Fred Hunt</b>, forward, placed on disabled list. <b>Bill Cheropita</b>, goalkeeper, activated from disabledlist.</p><p>MAINE&mdash;<b>Tom Pinder</b> and <b>Bob Murphy</b>, forwards, placed on disabled list. <b>Gary Gresdal</b>, defenseman. activated from disabledlist.</p><p>MOHAWK VALLEY&mdash;<b>Randy Burchell</b>, goalkeeper, placed on disabled list. <b>Eric Sanderson</b>, forward, placed on suspended list. <b>Jim Park</b>, goalkeeper, and <b>Ralph Hopiavouri</b>, defenseman. activated from disabled list.</p><p>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;<b>Danny Sullivan</b>, goalkeeper, placed on waivers. <b>Ray Schultz</b>, defenseman. and <b>Rejean Lemelin</b>, goalkeeper, placed on disabled list. <b>Dean Boylan</b>, defenseman. and <b>David Settlemyre</b>, goalkeeper, activated from disabled list.</p><p>SYRACUSE&mdash;<b>Jim Bolen</b>, goalkeeper, placed on waivers<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Movements of Players

<div class="byline">By Bill Libby</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-01943/3495999-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="290" height="359"></div><h2>The Uncommon Man&hellip;</h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>G</span>ARRY UNGER ARRIVED</b> in hockey&rsquo;s major leagues as a swinging playboy bachelor. He was one of the first to adopt shoulder-length hair and mod duds in gaudy colors. He dated beautiful young ladies, one of whom happened to be Miss America at the lime. He could play the game unusually well. but some wondered if he would take the time. He has taken the time He entered this season with 573 games in the NHL. the last 563 of them played without missing one.</p><p>At this writing his streak remains alive and if it does not die the determined and durable player, in his 10th year in the majors, will match Andy Hebenton&rsquo;s league record of 630 games on the night of March 9th in Long Island and surpass it the next night in Toronto. Of course, it may not last, Johnny Wilson made a run at the record but stopped at 580 games in 1960. Alex Delvecchio fell short at 548 games in 1964.</p><p>Along with a lot else luck is involved, not big, but tough, admits. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve not been benched or had the kind of broken bones or torn knees that would have made it impossible to play. Hopefully. I never will, but you never know. However. 1 have played with injuries. One year early in my career a teammate making a slap hot hit me above my eve with his-tick. I had to have 17 stitches to close the cut. the eye swelled shut and I couldn&rsquo;t see out of it. If I&rsquo;d had to play that night, I could not have. I had to play the next night and I did. I think if the coach had known I couldn&rsquo;t see out of the eye, he wouldn&rsquo;t have let me play, But the didn&rsquo;t ask and I didn&rsquo;t tell him.</p><p>&ldquo;The next year, I broke three bones on the side of my back just before training camp started. At the time I told the story that I&rsquo;d hurt it slipping off a swimming pool diving board. The truth is I was breaking a horse, the reins pulled free, he bolted through some trees, and I was thrown. I was afraid if 1 told the truth I&rsquo;d be barred from riding horses during the season and riding horses is an important part of my life. I didn&rsquo;t play the entire exhibition schedule. But I was started in the opening game of the regular season. I don&rsquo;t know why. But I got a goal and I got to stay in the lineup. I was handicapped by having to wear a brace on my back and it took a long time to get into shape, but I stayed in.</p><p>&ldquo;This year I hurt my foot the first week of training camp. I nursed it through the exhibition schedule, but I was able to play once the season started. If I can play, I will. It&rsquo;s my nature. I don&rsquo;t like to let the little things that happen in life to upset my life. I never have. I don&rsquo;t think I missed a day of school in my life. I wasn&rsquo;t always feeling well, but I went. I don&rsquo;t always feel well these days, but I play. If I have the flu, I try to forget it. I&rsquo;ve played with the flu. I feel lousy before the game. But once the game begins I forget it. I concentrate so hard on the game that I don&rsquo;t think about how I feel. As soon as the game is over, I feel lousy again.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-02844/3495992-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="294" height="589"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Garry Unger</b></figcaption></div><p><b>&ldquo;I DON&rsquo;T LIKE</b> to lay around in bed when I&rsquo;m sick. I get up and live life as best I can. If I planned to go riding or something and I broke my arm, I&rsquo;d get it set and put it in a cast and go riding or whatever it was I was planning to do. Don&rsquo;t get me wrong. A lot of people live their lives that way. They raise their children that way. I&rsquo;ll raise mine that way. I think you get the most out of life that way.</p><p>&ldquo;I think hockey players generally are brought up to play in pain. From the amateurs on up we&rsquo;re taught that if you get cut, you get stitched up and get back in the game. I&rsquo;ve only had about 50 stitches. I still have all my teeth. Everyone goes on, so you do. None of us finds anything unusual in it. In some other sports maybe baseball, players come up through the ranks learning that you lay out when you&rsquo;re injured, so they do. A lot of life and the way you live it is in the mind and in your attitude to it. But even in hockey you run into injuries you can&rsquo;t play with. So far, I&rsquo;ve been fortunate.&rdquo;</p><p>After two years in the minors at Tulsa and Rochester, Garry came up with Toronto. In the middle of his first season, he was sent to Detroit in a major multi-player deal. He played three full seasons in Detroit. In the middle of the following season he was sent to St. Louis in another major multi-player deal. He has played four full seasons in St. Louis before this one. At this point among the closest calls his consecutive-games streak has had have been off the ice.</p><p><b>A FREE SPIRIT,</b> Unger had several run-ins with Ned Harkness when he was the coach in Detroit and creating turmoil there with his harsh methods: &ldquo;It started with the length of my hair. He wanted me to cut it and I wouldn&rsquo;t. The length of my hair has nothing to do with the way I play. I played hard and I played well at Detroit. I didn&rsquo;t deserve to be treated like a baby. I wasn&rsquo;t the only unhappy player there. There were a lot of other things he did that made many of us miserable.</p><p>&ldquo;When I had my bad back and was going bad, I though the might sit me down. One day he came to me and said he knew I was doing my best and was going to stick with me. I thanked him. Then I got on a plane and read in the newspaper that the was going to bench me. And he didn&rsquo;t play me the first two periods of the next game. But the put me into the game in the third period, I scored a goal, we won, and I stayed in the lineup.</p><p>Still, by the time I was traded I wasn&rsquo;t happy about hockey, my mind was mixed up, and 1 was down. I thought I&rsquo;d take a week or so before reporting to get my head on straight. However, Scotty Bowman, coaching St. Louis then, called me and said they needed me and hoped I&rsquo;d come right in to help them the next night. I felt flattered and did what the asked. And so my streak continued.</p><p><b>&ldquo;HERE IN ST. LOUIS</b>I have been happy and have regained mv love of the game. Just before I left Detroit I was bothered by a finger that was so sore I couldn&rsquo;t grip a stick. They didn&rsquo;t know what was wrong with it and I was about to bench myself. I arrived in St. Louis and trainer Tommy Woodcock took one look at it, said it was out of joint, and pulled it back into place. It has not bothered me since. I&rsquo;ve had muscle pulls like groin injuries that bothered me so much during the warmup I didn&rsquo;t think I could play, but Tommy knows how to tape the sore muscles so the other muscles remain free and you can play. He deserves a lot of credit for my streak.</p><p>&ldquo;As I near the record, I try not to think about it. I don&rsquo;t want to play when I&rsquo;m hurt so I&rsquo;ll hurt the team. Winning matters more than any record. I don&rsquo;t ever want to make a token appearance just to keep the streak going. It would be a temptation I wouldn&rsquo;t want to give in to. I play because I like to play and it pays well. The game gives me everything I have. I give every game everything I&rsquo;ve got. When the game ends I get away from it.&rdquo;</p><p>The handsome blonde has traded in his mod duds for blue jeans and boots, his bachelor hood for a family consisting of a beautiful wife, Beverly, and a doll of a daughter, Kimmie. He has traded in his night life for farm days on a suburban spread outside of St. Louis, which team president young Sid Salomon helped him obtain. The Ungers have 50 head of cattle, seven horses, four dogs, a goat, chickens, rabbits and geese on 200 acres.</p><p>As a teen-age celebrity, he was asked abouthis swinging life. &ldquo;I feel sorry for those who don&rsquo;t have this sort of life at least once in their lives,&rdquo; he laughed. Now as a matured 29-year-old he says he is into something better. &ldquo;I found myself doing things because people expected it of me,&rdquo; he admits. &ldquo;Now I do what I really want to do. I live a real life for and with mv family.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>hen the Toronto Maple Leafs compiled a 9-5-4 won-lost-tied record to open the 1975-76 National Hockey League season, prospects were bright for coach Red Kelly and his young crew.</p><p>The team, which averages 24.3 years, performed with speed, discipline and aggressiveness. Sure, the Leafs lacked scoring punch, and they weren&rsquo;t the most muscular gang in the world. But they appeared to be on their way to a splendid season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03705/3496030-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="280" height="439"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Doug Favell</b></figcaption></div><p>Then came the doldrums. The Leafs were winless in their next ten games, acquiring only four ties. Instead of battling the Boston Bruins for second place in the Adams Division, the Leafs are facing a challenge from the California Seals for third spot.</p><p>The Leafs picture wasn&rsquo;t all black during the skid. The team battled back from two-goal deficits for ties against Boston and Chicago and played a strong game against the Montreal Canadiens, although they did surrender a 3-1 lead and had to settle for a tie.</p><p>&ldquo;In the early part of the season, we were executing the basic fundamentals well&mdash;and winning,&rdquo; Kelly said. &ldquo;We were doing things well such as taking the hit to make the proper pass and passing the puck up and out, not across, in our own zone. Then we stopped doing those things and we got into trouble.</p><p>&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have the talent, the big shooters, to win unless we execute those basics well. We simply have to get back to fundamentals and all our workouts have been in those areas, repetition of the drills.&rdquo;</p><p>While Kelly stressed patience with his young team and owner Harold Ballard said the same thing, Ballard was itching for some action on the trade market to bolster the team. But then Harold always is itching for some action to keep the pot stirred up.</p><p>&ldquo;We made the commitment to go with the young team and we have to give them time to develop,&rdquo; Ballard said. &ldquo;But patience isn&rsquo;t one of my greatest virtues. We&rsquo;ll give the kids every possible chance to do the job.&rdquo;</p><p>Leaf general manager Jim Gregory has been combing the market attempting to make deals but as one NHL GM said: &ldquo;The market is as dead as it&rsquo;s ever been. No team seems interested in making deals, especially for the few players who are available. They&rsquo;re mostly older guys with big contracts.&rdquo;</p><p>Gregory verifies that because in one three-week period, the Leafs scouted all 17 other NHL teams and talked trade with them.</p><p>&ldquo;There wasn&rsquo;t one player available who could help us more than the ones we have,&rdquo; Gregory commented.</p><p>When the Leafs talk trade, the first names mentioned by prospective customers are Darryl Sittler, Borje Salming and Ian Turnbull, three young Leafs who represent a large slice of the team&rsquo;s future.</p><p>One Leaf who is available is goalie Doug Favell. But the had surgery on his elbow in November and won&rsquo;t be ready for work until mid-January. Leafs are hopeful some needy team will take Favell&mdash;and his fat salary&mdash;off their hands. In fact, the Toronto team probably would pay part of the tab if a deal can be made.</p><p><b>NOTES:</b> Despite the winless streak, several Leafs continued to deliver strong individual performances. Goalie Wayne Thomas started all Leaf games and perfomed assorted miracles, rescuing ties where none existed. He was especially brilliant on his first return to Montreal&hellip;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-03

Trade Market Quiet, Maple Leafs Decide To Stick With Youth

<div class="byline">BY BILL HEUFELDER</div><p>PITTSBURGH&mdash;</p><p>For those who believed that Pittsburgh was just a little this side of oblivion for Vic Hadfield, they obviously showed poor judgement.</p><p>During the &lsquo;74 off-season, the New York Rangers dealt Hadfield, who had been their-captain, to the Penguins for defenseman Nick Beverley. All Hadfield, despite his 34 years, did for the Penguins last season was trigger 31 goals, add 42 assists and become a dominant force in the spirited performance of the club, which delivered its best record ever.</p><p>Rather than slowing down this season, Hadfield has burst from the gate, maintaining a scoring pace that could bring him the second 50-goal campaign of his National Hockey League career.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-01933/3496092-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="562" height="1154"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>VIC HADFIELD&hellip;Not Slowing Down</b></figcaption></div><p>On the subject of reaching the 50-goal mark again, he says, &ldquo;That doesn&rsquo;t really bother me that much. The important thing is that we get a little streak together and hopefully catch Los Angeles.&rdquo;</p><p>If the Penguins could match Hadfield&rsquo;s consistency&mdash;11 goals in as many games during a recent stretch&mdash;they&rsquo;d be about even with the Kings in the Norris Division. Instead, Pittsburgh is holding third place, where it finished last season, and being forced to look warily over a shoulder at Detroit.</p><p>In reflecting on the uneven performance of the Penguins, they absorbed back-to-back 3-2 losses at Kansas City and Detroit. Ironically, the Scouts, using Denis Herron, and the Wings, with Jim Rutherford in goal, relied on former Pittsburgh netminders to win.</p><p>The defeats followed an encouraging string of eight games in which Pittsburgh posted a 5-2-1 mark, Michel Plasse handling the goaltending exclusively. Gary In-ness, who relieved Plasse in the third period against the Scouts, started against Detroit.</p><p>For Hadfield, the regular-season opener at Washington represented an encouraging start when he scored in the 4-2 win over the Caps. He ran into trouble against Toronto, hitting the post three times without scoring, and apparently scored what represented a critical goal at Kansas City, but the referee disallowed it, saying the puck failed to go in the net.</p><p>Hadfield, who recalls a couple of streaks running 10 or 11 games in which he averaged a goal a game to bring him his 50-goal production in 1971-72, said, &ldquo;You really can&rsquo;t go into any type of slump if you score that many goals.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t seem to get goals in bunches,&rdquo; he noted, &ldquo;but I don&rsquo;t seem to go too many games without scoring.&rdquo;</p><p>Hadfield is playing with a less spectacular center in contrast to his Rangers days when Jean Ratelle was a fixture on the line with Rod Gilbert. With the Penguins, Ron Schock has been paired with him since the start and the results have been excellent.</p><p>&ldquo;Ron isn&rsquo;t going to alter his game that much,&rdquo; says Hadfield, referring to the centerman&rsquo;s superior checking ability, &ldquo;But the is constantly pressing the other team. So the puck pops up all the time.&rdquo;</p><p>Assessing his own flying start, Hadfield said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m skating and anticipating what&rsquo;s going to happen.&rdquo; Not to mention his heavy amount of ice time that includes a spot on the power play.</p><p><b>PENGUIN NOTES:</b> Colin Campbell returned to the lineup after missing nine games with an elbow injury that required surgery&hellip;Pittsburgh lost Lowell MacDonald for at least a week because of a broken thumb&hellip;The Penguins sold Bob McManama to the New England Whalers of the WHA after he had been waived through the National Hockey League.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

Hadfield Could Score 5O-Aaain

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-02781/3496123-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="961" height="735"></div><h2>Groin Exercise</h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>Y</span>our groin muscles are some of the most vulnerable in your body. It&rsquo;s easy to strengthen them so they won&rsquo;t keep you benched&mdash;unable to skate.</b></p><p><b>Here&rsquo;s an exercise;</b></p><p><b>Lie flat on your back on the floor, straddling the leg of a bench or heavy chair, with the leg of the bench against the inside of one foot. Be sure you can&rsquo;t move the bench with your foot.</b></p><p><b>Spread your free leg slowly, as wide as possible, until you feel a pulling in the muscles of your crotch. Bring the free leg back to a position close to the trapped foot and swing it wide again. Repeat several times, then switch legs so the groin muscles on the other side are exercised.</b></p><p><b>The slight muscle pain you feel can&rsquo;t possibly do you harm and repeated daily will help keep you off the injured list.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-02

MINOR HOCKEY TIPS

<div class="byline">BY JACK MCCARTHY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-01905/3496154-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="546" height="1451"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>KEN HODGE&hellip;Riding Bench</b></figcaption></div><p>BOSTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>P</span>hil Esposito returned to Boston Garden for the first time as a New York Ranger and received several standing ovations from the Boston fans-before the game. It was won by New York, 5-1, and snapped a Boston unbeaten string at 14 games. They were 9-0-5, all with Gilles Gilbert in the nets.</p><p>While Espo may have been the focal point of that night, there was a sidelight, if it can be called that, that has been a continuing source of interest with the club this season.</p><p>&ldquo;Espo got a standing ovation, all right, but later in the game, some of the fans began chanting,&rdquo; &ldquo;We want Hodge&rdquo;, which is really an ironic situation, since they have blistered him here for years.</p><p>Hodge was not dressed for the game - the second time in a row that had happened - and was seated away from the Boston bench. One of the reasons for that was that Hodge did not relish taking the bazoo from a segment of the populace which has been on him practically since he came to Boston.</p><p>Coach Don Cherry maintains the same line throughout any mention of the Hodge situation. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s not playing simply because I think others are playing better. I&rsquo;m not out to win popularity contests. I&rsquo;m out to win games and I&rsquo;m going to do what I think I have to do to win.&rdquo;</p><p>Cherry added that the expected that Hodge would play, but that the had to realize what the coach wanted from his players. Meanwhile, trade rumors flew thick and fast, as they have done around Hodge for several seasons.</p><p>Regarding this, Kenny said,&rdquo; They don&rsquo;t bother me. I don&rsquo;t pay any attention to them. They&rsquo;ve got to come to me first. I don&rsquo;t understand what it&rsquo;s all about. I&rsquo;ve been playing with Gregg Sheppard and Johnny Bucyk and I thought our line was going good.</p><p>&ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t scoring, but they were, and I&rsquo;ve cut down my goals against. Maybe a few times I pressed too much. But other players have had slumps. I remember once Alex Delvecchio went 30 games without a goal and then got three against us.&rdquo;</p><p>At the time, Ken had only two goals, but had 12 assists. &ldquo;But, I was getting scoring chances, and you don&rsquo;t get them unless you&rsquo;re working&hellip;&rdquo;</p><p>One of the reasons that Hodge, who had left the Garden in one earlier instance after being told he would not dress, was sitting away from the bench was,&rdquo; I&rsquo;m not going to sit there in street clothes with all those people. I&rsquo;m not one of their favorites and I don&rsquo;t have to take abuse&hellip;&rdquo;</p><p>Ranger injuries, coincidentally with their arrival in Boston, found the Blue Shirts hurting on right wing, therefore starting a burst of rumors that Hodge was going to New York. From time to time, he has been dispatched via rumor to Toronto, his hometown; to Pittsburgh, and to Detroit.</p><p>But the big right winger, who got 53 goals as recently as the 1973-74 season, commands a considerable salary, however, and this may be part of the reason he hasn&rsquo;t been traded, if such is really the Bruins&rsquo; intention.</p><p>The return of Esposito to the Garden, along with Carol Vadnais-their first appearance since the &ldquo;Trade&rdquo; with New York-brought out the Bruins&rsquo; second sellout crowd of the season. 15,003. The other sellout was for the Canadiens in the previous game. That game had the old-timers cheering hockey as it was played before expansion, and resulted in a 2-2 tie.</p><p><b>BOSTON BEANS:</b> Capt. Johnny Bucyk scored his 507th career goal against Montreal, beating Ken Dryden for the goal which tied him with the great Jean Beliveau for sixth place among the all-time NHL scorers&hellip;Esposito, getting standing ovations when he skated for the warmup and when he was introduced, assisted on two Ranger goals, which accounted for his 1,200th and 1,201st NHL points&hellip;Phil admitted that the reception got to him, and he responded by saying the Boston fans were super&hellip;&rdquo; I know these people, but I never expected anything like that. It was like when I scored my 100th point (first man to do it)&hellip;No, I didn&rsquo;t think they&rsquo;d boo me. They&rsquo;re good fans, super fans, but this was unexpected. I guess my face was white. At least the guys told me it was, and that&rsquo;s unusual for me. eh?&rdquo;&hellip;</p><p>The Bruins, meanwhile, on the strength of that 14-game unbeaten streak, hung tough behind the Sabres, while Bobby Orr was released from the hospital, and went home to Parry Sound for Christmas.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0011-01

But Burned Bruin Winger Cool To Gallery Chorus

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-01904/3496192-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"></div><h2>Demise Of A Team</h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>P</span>ERHAPS THE HIGH HOPES</b> were based on shaky premises but when the 1973-74 National Hockey League season opened, the future was very bright for the Minnesota North Stars. The previous season, the Stars and Philadelphia Flyers had given parity its biggest shot in the arm when they tied for second place in the old West Division eight points behind Chicago Black Hawks.</p><p>The two teams were the first from&rsquo; the expansion crop to have what appeared to be a good shot at the Stanley cup, the Flyers with their brash young roster of roughies. North Stars with a solid team of veterans and kids breaking through to the front ranks.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02780/3496185-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="459" height="411"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Jack Gordon</b></figcaption></div><p>Three years later, the Flyers are fawored to win their third consecutive Stanley Cup; the North Stars are trying to catch the Kansas City Scouts.</p><p>Attendance at the Met Center has dipped to 8,000 for games against teams which, three years ago, were a tough ticket. On the ice, North Stars hopes for the future are, at best, slim.</p><p>Only seven players remain from the team which tied Philly three seasons ago. When attendance dipped last season, the Stars dumped several high-priced veterans into the trade market and, in the view of most hockey men, received little in return. To make matters worse, the players whom North Stars dealt away became key men with their new clubs.</p><p>Jude Drouin and Jean-Paul Parise helped the New York Islanders immeasurably in their strong playoff showing; Fred Stanfield did the same on behalf of the Buffalo Sabres. Barry Gibbs went to Atlanta and Murray Oliver, who had a 19-goal season, wasn&rsquo;t offered a contract for &lsquo;75-76.</p><p>&ldquo;Those moves weren&rsquo;t based completely on economics, the way many people think,&rdquo; said Jack Gordon, North Stars&rsquo; general manager. &ldquo;That was just one of several factors. We didn&rsquo;t just dump guys because of the payroll. We felt we&rsquo;d gone as far as we could go with a group of players, we weren&rsquo;t winning so it was time to bring in some new faces.&rdquo;</p><h2>Saints Are Enemies, Too</h2><p><b>THE NORTH STARS FACE</b> tough opposition not only on the ice but they&rsquo;re one of only two NHL teams who share a town with World Hockey Association competition (Toronto is the other). The Fighting Saints, based in St. Paul, are battling the Stars for fan interest and both teams are suffering at the box office.</p><p>There&rsquo;s a feeling in the North Star front office that the team has only itself to blame for falling attendance, not the Fighting Saints.</p><p>&ldquo;The other team siphons off some interest but we&rsquo;re a losing team in an area which has never supported losers well in other sports. Gordon said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re certain that if we produce winning, reasonably entertaining hockey the fans will be back. We don&rsquo;t think the people who used to fill our rink are all over at the other team&rsquo;s games now. We feel they&rsquo;re just staying at home.&rdquo;</p><p>The Stars&rsquo; brass reacted angrily to suggestions by Alan Eagleson. executive director of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, that six weak NHL teams, including the Stars be combined into four competitive teams.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve hit a flat spot, that&rsquo;s all,&rdquo; said president Walter Bush. &ldquo;This is too good a franchise in a great hockey area to give up on it.</p><h2>Answers Are Difficult</h2><p><b>THE BIG PROBLEM NOW</b> facing Gordon and the North Stars&rsquo; administration is the approach to take which will bring the team back to contending status. The team has really only two star players&mdash;forwards Dennis Hextall and Billl Goldsworthy&mdash;and when they don&rsquo;t perform well the team is in trouble.</p><p>Gordon believes several young players on the roster could become competent front-line workers&mdash;goalie Peter LoPresti, defenseman Dwight Bialowas, forwards Dean Talafous. Tim Young and John Flesch. Gordon doesn&rsquo;t believe in trading away draft picks.</p><p>North Stars&rsquo; first-round selection in the 1975 amateur draft, defenseman Bryan Maxwell, was a top prospect. However, North Stars had to watch the budget and Maxwell signed with the WHA Cleveland Crusaders.</p><p>&ldquo;Of course, we have to think about the economics of any deal we make. Gordon confirmed. &ldquo;If we do trade a draft pick, then we add a player who represents a new salary. If the right deal comes along, we 11 make it but we&rsquo;ve always felt that retaining draft choices was the only way to do it these days.</p><p>&ldquo;Teams such as the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders became contenders very quickly because they retained their draft picks and built with those players.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s perhaps the slow route, but, in the end, that&rsquo;s the only way to go.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-01

FRANK SAYS:

<div class="byline">BY HARRY KLAFF</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03613/3496223-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>&lsquo;&lsquo;I&rsquo;m No Rookie&rdquo; Says Chico Resch Of Islanders</b></figcaption></div><p>LONG ISLAND&mdash;</p><p>Last year rookie Glenn Resch appeared in 25 regular season games for the Islanders. And because his 26th through 37th games came in the Stanley Cup playoffs, the talkative, little goalie is still a rookie this season.</p><p>&ldquo;Am I still eligible for the Calder Trophy? Gee, I sure hope not,&rdquo; commented the man called Chico after he had registered his second shutout in succession (and fourth of the year) by blanking the Minnesota North Stars 6-0 at the Coliseum on Dec. 9th. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d be embarrassed,&rdquo; he continued. &ldquo;They should have an age limit on that thing. Maybe 22 or 23. I spent three years in the minors. I&rsquo;m no, rookie.</p><p>&ldquo;Now take someone like Bryan Trottier. He should win it. He&rsquo;s only 19, I&rsquo;m a young 27. Boy, I sure remember when I was 19, that&rsquo;s when I lost my hair. What a depressing year that was.&rdquo;</p><p>Chico, of course, is as bald as a cue ball, and his toupee commercials have appeared all along the East Coast.</p><p>Rookie or not, Resch has proven thathis stellar performance in the playoffs last year was hardly-a fluke. His shutout against Minnesota lowered his goals-against average to better than 2.20. Only Montreal&rsquo;s Ken Dryden has a better record.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the way the team is playing,&rdquo; explains Resch. &ldquo;Like tonight, for instance. We have three lines playing good, solid hockey. I hardly had anything to do.</p><p>&ldquo;This was the kind of game you want to play; it&rsquo;s fun. Sure you look forward to a pressure game, but after a while you start asking yourself, &lsquo;What am I doing here?&rsquo; But afterward you&rsquo;re satisfied.&rdquo;</p><p>Unlike many of today&rsquo;s young hockey stars, Resch found his road a difficult one. While most NHL performers can look back to their boyhood and remember when they were the best skaters on the ice, Glenn&rsquo;s development was completely to the contrary.</p><p>&ldquo;I was terrible when I was a kid,&rdquo; he confesses. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s why I didn&rsquo;t have to make a difficult decision by the time I was 15 or 16. That&rsquo;s when many kids make up their minds to give up school and devote all their time to hockey.</p><p>&ldquo;Me? I didn&rsquo;t have much of a choice. I finished school and then I played my junior hockey at Saskatoon. And then I went on to college.&rdquo;</p><p>Even in college, Glenn found himself as a third or fourth choice. &ldquo;The University of Minnesota at Duluth needed a goalie&mdash;any goalie.&rdquo; explains Resch. &ldquo;They told me that this would be my ticket to the NHL. I didn&rsquo;t really believe it, but I stuck around and got my degree.&rdquo;</p><p>Upon graduation, Resch was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens, who needed another goaltender like Tiffany&rsquo;s needed diamonds. Consequently he was sent to the Islanders organization for the 1972-73 season.</p><p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s when I first started to learn how to be a goaltender,&rdquo; says Chico. &ldquo;The Islanders sent me to New Haven in the American League. Then it was on to Fort Worth the next year, and I was brought up to play a couple of games. I was making progress, but I still had a lot to learn.</p><p>&ldquo;If I still have one big problem, it&rsquo;s my concentration. I have to keep talking to myself constantly. When I let my mind wander, I&rsquo;m in trouble.&rdquo;</p><p>Chico&rsquo;s tried a number of devices, including posting cardboard signs in his cubicle. The cards gave him important reminders such as &ldquo;Think,&rdquo; and &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got a mouth, use it.&rdquo;</p><p>It&rsquo;s taken Glenn Resch longer than most to make it in the NHL. But it doesn&rsquo;t matter to him as long as he&rsquo;s here. Winning the Calder Trophy is one luxury he&rsquo;d just as soon as sacrifice.</p><p><b>ISLAND SOUNDS:</b> Bryan Trottier continues on his hot clip, posting 12 goals and 27 assists for 39 points in his first 29 NHL games. He has a wide lead in the rookie scoring race&hellip;Ralph Stewart was sent to Fort Worth for a week&rsquo;s reconditioning. He notched two goals and five assists in his three games with the Texans&hellip;The Kid Line of Garry Howatt, Andre St. Laurent, and Bob Nystrom has been playing its best hockey of the year. St. Laurent scored his first goal of the season against Minnesota&hellip;The Isles are one-two in defenseman scoring&hellip;Denis Potvin leads the list, followed by brother Jean&hellip;Jude Drouin appeared in his 400th NHL game against the North Stars.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-03

Isles’ Resch Still Rookie But Calder Not On His List

<div class="byline">BY RALPH BRIDGLAND</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>n these days of bully-boy tacics where intimidation is the norm rather than the exception, it&rsquo;s refreshing to see a man trying to make it as a hockey player in the rue sense of the word when he could just as easily be building a reputation with his fists.</p><p>Such a man is Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; defenseman Pierre Bouchard. The son of former Montreal great Emile &lsquo;Butch&rsquo; Bouchard, Pierre has proven when the need arises that the can outpoint most of the National Hockey League&rsquo;s so-called tough guys. But the doesn&rsquo;t go looking for fistic challenges.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t run after people,&rdquo; says he 6&rsquo;2&rdquo;, 200-pound rearguard. &ldquo;I try to hit legally. I try to play safe hockey and not get caught for unnecessary penalties.</p><p>&ldquo;Not too many guys run after me.&rdquo; Undoubtedly Pierre&rsquo;s reputation has a great deal to do with that fact.</p><p>He&rsquo;s managed to stay clear of the questionable penalties also as after five seasons with the Habs he had only 248 minutes in penalties with his highest single season total coming in 1972-73 when he accumulated 69.</p><p>As much as his penalty totals have been low, so have his point totals. In the same span of five seasons Pierre has a grand total of 45 points, including seven goals. After 32 games of the present campaign he had six points, all assists.</p><p>&ldquo;Sometimes I get the urge of going offensively,&rdquo; explains the Canadiens&rsquo; first choice, fifth overall, in the 1965 amateur draft. &ldquo;But if I go, I might score twice in 20 attempts. With other guys like Serge (Savard), Guy (Lapointe) and John (Van Boxmeer), who can do it better, there&rsquo;s no need for me to. Besides, I&rsquo;m not that fast to recover. You have to make up an idea of what way you&rsquo;re going to play.&rdquo;</p><p>And the way Pierre has performed so far this season has had observers claiming he is playing the best hockey of his career.</p><p>&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t played this much before,&rdquo; states Bouchard in reference to his improved performance. &ldquo;It had slowed down in the past few weeks but it&rsquo;s starting to pick up again. I never quit working and this year Scotty (coach Bowman) has been really good to me.&rdquo;</p><p>But Pierre has repayed Bowman for the confidence he has displayed in him with some excellent defensive work.</p><p>The 1974-75 record shows Bouchard with 79 games played, just one short of the full 80-game slate. But that is a misleading figure as a regular shift on the blueline was not a commonplace part of his hockey agenda. More often it was spot duty which earned him a mark under the GP-category.</p><p>Still he enjoyed his second-best offensive output last season recording three goals and nine assists for a dozen points. His best point total was amassed in 1973-74 with one goal and 14 assists for 15 points.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01879/3496254-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="542" height="1490"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PIERRE BOUCHARD&hellip;Best Hockey Of Career</b></figcaption></div><p>It looks like Pierre has earned regular duty on the Canadien defense corps and will continue to improve as the amount of ice time he sees keeps growing.</p><p>And a word to the wise. &ldquo;It takes quite a bit to get me upset, even in regular life,&rdquo; states Pierre. But it wouldn&rsquo;t be in the best interest of a person&rsquo;s health to push him to the breaking point. Ask the players who have!!!</p><p><b>HAB-BITS:</b> Van Boxmeer, who had been complaining about lack of ice time and asked to be traded, has finally seen some regular action and has impressed the Montreal staff from his blueline post. In just 16 games with the Habs this season he has three goals and eight points and has performed efficiently on the defensive side of things, too&hellip;Guy Lafleur scored his 150th career goal, 19th of the season, in 7-4 win over Pittsburgh at the Forum. In his first four years with the Canadiens he tallied 29, 28, 21 and 53 markers respectively&hellip;The Habs enjoyed a seven-point increase on last year&rsquo;s record after 31 games of the present campaign&hellip;Steve Shutt and Yvan Cournoyer lead club in game-winning goals with five apiece&hellip;The line of Bob Gainey, Doug Risebrough and Mario Tremblay has been giving the opposition trouble lately with their style of play&hellip;The Habs were unbeaten and untied against fellow Norris Division clubs (6-0-0) and had outscored the opposition 39-9. No wonder the Canadiens were 13 points up on runner-up Los Angeles in the division&hellip;Lapointe scored the weirdest goal witnessed this season at the Forum when he flipped the puck from his own side of the center red line past Pittsburgh goaler Michel Plasse. Plasse was caught between heading for the bench for an extra attacker and returning to the cage&hellip;Boos poured down on the Canadiens after Pittsburgh had scored three times in the first seven and a half minutes of the third period to take a 4-3 lead. The boos soon changed to cheers however, as Steve Shutttied the game up 30 seconds later and the Habs never looked back from that point&hellip;Defenseman Don Awrey sat out the game against the Penguins.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0013-01

Bouchard Combines Finesse With Muscle For Habs

<div class="byline">BY BILL FLEISCHMAN</div><p>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>s assistant coach in charge of the Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; defense, Barry Ashbee isn&rsquo;t a gabby sort. When the former second-team NHL All Star defenseman speaks then, people listen.</p><p>Ashbee was talking about the improvement of Larry Good enough who in less than one season has progressed from suspect number one draft choice to a reliable NHL rearguard. Relating Goodenough&rsquo;s advance to that of Jimmy Watson, Ashbee said, &ldquo;Look how fast Jimmy came along. Right now I&rsquo;d say Jimmy and (Denis) Potvin are the two best defensemen in the league.&rdquo;</p><p>Hmmm, that&rsquo;s classy company for Watson, a third-round 1972 amateur draft pick who prepped one season at Richmond (AHL). Watson was voted to last year&rsquo;s NHL All Star game for the Campbell Conference, but in the final All Star team balloting he tied for 16th place among defensemen with just six votes.</p><p>Since Ashbee isn&rsquo;t known for issuing brash statements, what credentials might Watson have to back up such praise? Well, the younger of the Flyers&rsquo; Smithers Brothers carries the puck with poise, whether he is maneuvering out of the Philadelphia zone or streaking into the opponent&rsquo;s end.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01888/3496292-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="272" height="450"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Barry Ashbee</b></figcaption></div><p>While offensive ability seems to be the first skill noticed in defensemen these days, Watson is as steady as his partner, veteran Ed Van Impe, in defending Philadelphia&rsquo;s goal. As a 6&rsquo;, 190-pounder Watson is strong enough to clear daring forwards from the goalmouth area.</p><p>Like all the Flyers, Watson does nothesitate to visit the corners pursuing the puck. He can handle himself should someone initiate a pursuing party, but the seldom contributes to the Flyers&rsquo; leading penalty total. The 23-year-old bachelor plays the man in the efficient fashion of an Ashbee or the late Tim Horton.</p><p>Watson finds All Star recognition an interesting possibility but doesn&rsquo;t worry himself gray over it.</p><p>&ldquo;Sure I think about it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It would be nice, but all that individual stuff is secondary to how the team does. When you&rsquo;ve won the Stanley Cup twice the way we have, you know the team must come first. We have to work together to have success.&rdquo;</p><p>With the reverence accorded the Flyers in Philadelphia, you&rsquo;d think someone of Watson&rsquo;s status would be staging a Derek Sanderson swinging single act. Watson does respond to the company of the many pretty young ladies in the vicinity, but the is basically a small-town lad who prefers the simple things in life. He and rookies Mel Bridgman and Jack McIIhargey are keeping Bobby Taylor&rsquo;s Medford Lakes, N.J., home warm while Taylor is serving his sentence with the AHL Springfield Indians.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just trying to enjoy life,&rdquo; Watson said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m a small town guy at theart. I go back to Smithers in the summers and play ball and fish. That&rsquo;s where my friends and relatives are. My roots are there.&rdquo;</p><p>Part of Watson&rsquo;s summers are spent playing for the awesome Smithers Glaciers in the Buckley Valley Baseball League. As an outfielder-third baseman Watson leads the Glaciers against the Houston Bees, Mauricetown Cubs and the Terrace must be the northern British Columbia league&rsquo;s answer to New York and Chicago.</p><p>Jimmy and brother Joe are the Flyers&rsquo; biggest baseball fans. At the drop of a trade rumor they&rsquo;ll comment. Both are Detroit Tigers&rsquo; fans, but somehow they manage to back nearly every team as a likely pennant winner.</p><p>Jimmy Watson is a contented young man. Although he isn&rsquo;t in the Bobby Orr-Brad Park-Borje Salming salary bracket, he has no complaints.</p><p><b>FLYERS FACTS:</b> Wayne Stephenson detoured through Winnipeg on the club&rsquo;s first West Coast trip. The valuable goaltender was visiting his father, who suffered a heart attack. Stephenson then reported to Oakland in time to play superbly in a 1-1 tie with the Seals.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02761/3496285-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="544" height="1088"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JIM WATSON&hellip;Steady Defender</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0014-01

Ashbee Ranks Flyers’ Jim Watson With Denis Potvin As NHL’s Best

<div class="byline">BY ALAN TRUEX</div><p>ATLANTA&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>f Rey Comeau can put the kind of second half he had last season with the first half he is having this season, he could establish himself as one of the finest two-way centers in the NHL.</p><p>Comeau&rsquo;s problem is that the never has been a consistent scorer. One reason is that during his three previous years with the Flames, he has had to spend more than his share of time on the bench.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01863/3496323-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="280" height="401"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Rey Comeau</b></figcaption></div><p>Flames management generally has doubted that Comeau, at 5-8, 170 pounds, could hold up over a full season of regular play.</p><p>The little guy works so hard that the comes close to exhausting himself. He is constantly fore checking, back checking and poking his nose into the corners.</p><p>&ldquo;From a technical standpoint,&rdquo; says Flames captain Pat Quinn, &ldquo;Rey is a perfect center.&rdquo;</p><p>Yes, but can he score?</p><p>In the past, the bess the&rsquo;s managed is 21 goals and 42 points, during the one season (1972-73) when he received a fair amount of ice time.</p><p>Last year, Comeau had an unbelievable nightmare which lasted the whole first half of the season. He did not score his first goal until the 43rd game of the year.</p><p>Then, amazingly, he suddenly became one of the Flames&rsquo; main offensive gunners. He scored 14 goals during those final 37 games.</p><p>Comeau sees no reason why he can&rsquo;t keep scoring.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe they think that because I work hard I can&rsquo;t score goals,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But look at Bobby Clarke.&rdquo;</p><p>To prove his point, Comeau has set a pace over the first third of the season that would bring him 25 goals even if he doesn&rsquo;t pick up in production the second half.</p><p>He scored eight goals in the first 25 games of the season. And he still wasn&rsquo;t getting a regular amount of ice time, because the Flames were playing five centers.</p><p>With the team&rsquo;s management making clear its intentions to move toward a bigger, stronger hockey club, there was some question about the future of the small but energetic Comeau.</p><p>Coach Fred Creighton, however, has tried to ease such doubts. &ldquo;There will always be room on this team for a worker like Rey Comeau,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care whathis size is.&rdquo;</p><p><b>NOTES:</b> Flames leading goal scorer of last season, Eric Vail, was due back Dec. 12 following his refractured left collarbone&hellip;</p><p>Atlanta has finallyAtlanta has finally started to get some solid offensive play, with Larry Romanchych&rsquo;s improved power play performance one of the keys&hellip;Curt Bennett has been playing even better than his All Star level of last year. He scored 13 goals in the first 26 games of this season&hellip;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-01

Comeau Making Impact With Two-Way Performance

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01694/3496480-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="325" height="635"></div><h2>ATLANTA FLAMES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02606/3496473-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="711" height="745"></div><h2>BOSTON BRUINS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03486/3496466-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="714" height="790"></div><h2>BUFFALO SABRES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04376/3496459-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="708" height="768"></div><h2>CALIFORNIA SEALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05277/3496452-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="707" height="713"></div><h2>CHICAGO HAWKS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06224/3496445-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="709" height="748"></div><h2>DETROIT RED WINGS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-07201/3496438-1-eng-US/f0016-072.jpg" title="f0016-07" width="712" height="674"></div><h2>KANSAS CITY SCOUTS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-08182/3496431-1-eng-US/f0016-082.jpg" title="f0016-08" width="710" height="736"></div><h2>LOS ANGELES KINGS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-09160/3496424-1-eng-US/f0016-092.jpg" title="f0016-09" width="709" height="757"></div><h2>MINNESOTA STARS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-10138/3496417-1-eng-US/f0016-102.jpg" title="f0016-10" width="718" height="725"></div><h2>MONTREAL CANADIENS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-11124/3496410-1-eng-US/f0016-112.jpg" title="f0016-11" width="715" height="728"></div><h2>NEW YORK ISLANDERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-12107/3496403-1-eng-US/f0016-122.jpg" title="f0016-12" width="711" height="732"></div><h2>NEW YORK RANGERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1396/3496396-1-eng-US/f0016-132.jpg" title="f0016-13" width="710" height="830"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA FLYERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1489/3496389-1-eng-US/f0016-142.jpg" title="f0016-14" width="706" height="712"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH PENGUINS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1579/3496382-1-eng-US/f0016-152.jpg" title="f0016-15" width="730" height="764"></div><h2>ST. LOUIS BLUES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1676/3496375-1-eng-US/f0016-162.jpg" title="f0016-16" width="716" height="714"></div><h2>TORONTO LEAFS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1768/3496368-1-eng-US/f0016-172.jpg" title="f0016-17" width="710" height="715"></div><h2>VANCOUVER CANUCKS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1861/3496361-1-eng-US/f0016-182.jpg" title="f0016-18" width="712" height="774"></div><h2>WASHINGTON CAPS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-1956/3496354-1-eng-US/f0016-192.jpg" title="f0016-19" width="708" height="704"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0016-01

NHL SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS

<p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>G</span>eneral manager Keith Allen of Philadelphia Fivers has no regrets about a deal he made Sept. 16. 1974; nor do any of the Flyers. That was the date Flyers acquired goaltender Wayne Stephenson from St. Louis Blues, giving in return their second-round Amateur Draft choice in 1975 (Jamie Masters) and amateur Randy Andreachuk.</p><p>At the time. Flyers did not know, of course, that they would be without regular goaltender Bernie Parent so far this season. Parent underwent surgery for a pinched nerve in his neck prior to the start of the season and is still out. His absence has not been missed as much as was first thought, mainly because of the work of Stephenson and the offense of Fivers&rdquo; big guns.</p><p>After 33 games, Flyers are two points ahead of their pace of last season when they won the Patrick Division&mdash;and the Clarence Campbell Conference title&mdash;by 25 points over New York Rangers. Today, with 51 points, they lead New York Islanders by seven points. The Flyers&rsquo; goals-against record is 17 goals more than at this time a year ago&mdash;86 compared to 69&mdash;but their goal-scoring is up 21 in their first 33 games. Stephenson has played in every game and has a respectable 2.61 goals-against average. compared to the team&rsquo;s 2.09 average a year ago. About the only area in which Stephenson is not close is in shutouts. He has one while Parent had six at this stage last season.</p><p>Stephenson&rsquo;s appearance in all 33 games to date marks the first time since 1966-67&mdash;or before the NHL expansion to 12 teams in 1967-68&mdash;that a goaltender has played that many consecutive games. Ed Giacomin. then with New York Rangers, played in 38 straight games from Nov. 12, 1966, through Feb. 11, 1967. The most since then was 32 by Giacomin and Gary Smith of California in 196970. &lsquo;</p><p>Offensively, Flyers&rsquo; five top goal scorers have accounted for the difference in the team&rsquo;s increased goal output. Reggie Leach, a 45-goal producer last season, has 23 now and shares the League lead with Jean Pronovost of Pittsburgh. Leach had 17 at this time last season. Bill Barber has 18 goals, three more than a year ago; captain Bobby Clarke, second in points (51) to Guy Lafleur of Montreal (53) and league leader in assists (35), has 16 goals compared to 10 in 1974; Rick MacLeish, with 16 goals, is three ahead of last season; and Gary Dor-nhoefer has 15 goals compared to six at this time last year. In addition, rookie Mel Bridgman, Flyers&rsquo; first choice in the 1975 Amateur Draft and acquired in a deal which sent Bill Clement to Washington, has 10 goals. Clement had nine a Year ago with Philadelphia.</p><p>A highlight of last week&rsquo;s action was the 14-2 drubbing Buffalo handed Washington Sunday. The 14 goals represented the most by a team since March 16, 1957. when Toronto blasted New York Rangers 14-1. Sabres&rsquo; 40 scoring points is a League record for one team in a game and their eight goals in the third period equals most goals by a team in one period. It is only the second time in five seasons that 16 goals have been scored in a game.</p><p>Atlanta defeated Vancouver 12-4 last March 21 at Atlanta.</p><p>A longevity streak also ended last week when Danny Grant of Detroit suffered an injury Friday, which forced him Saturday to miss his first game in 566, dating back to 1968-69.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

NHL WEEK-In Review

<div class="byline">BY DONALD BERNS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0017-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01593/3496542-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GILLES GRATTON&hellip;Couldn&rsquo;t Get Along With Coach</b></figcaption></div><p>.ST. LOUIS &mdash;</p><p>The chapter of Gilles Gratton&rsquo;s career with the St. Louis Blues was brief and puzzling.</p><p>Gratton&rsquo;s time with the Blues was less than six months, and half of that was during the off-season. During training camp and the first couple months of the season Gratton was missing twice.</p><p>The 23-year-old goalie managed to start six games in a St. Louis uniform. He took himself out of two of them. In the four he finished his record was unbeaten with two wins and two ties.</p><p>Now Gratton is back with the Toronto Toros in the World Hockey Association. He joined them as soon as he could make the trip from St. Louis to Toronto. There is speculation the Blues could block his return to the WHA as a result of a contract the signed with them.</p><p>In St. Louis the Blues&rsquo; management announced Gratton had &ldquo;resigned&rdquo; from the team. A statement, released by the Blues, announcing the so-called resignation also included a public apology by Gratton to former St. Louis coach Garry Young and the St. Louis players &ldquo;for his conduct.&rdquo;</p><p>The statement gave no explanation of Gratton&rsquo;s &ldquo;conduct,&rdquo; but presumably the apology extracted by Blues&rsquo; management was for 1) taking himself out of a game against the New York Islanders the previous Saturday night and 2) arguing with Young about the matter in front of his teammates before leaving the following Monday morning&rsquo;s practice.</p><p>The Blues acquired Gratton last June when they traded John Davidson to the New York Rangers. The Buffalo Sabres had the National Hockey League rights to Gratton, and the Blues never have said what they had to give the Sabres to obtain those rights. The trading of Davidson and the signing of Gratton were virtually simultaneous, and Blues&rsquo; officials said Davidson would not have been traded if Gratton or some other established major-league goalie had not been available to fill the gap left by Davidson.</p><p>The Blues started training camp with four goalies, Gratton, Yves Belanger, Eddie Johnston and rookie Ed Staniowski, destined for Providence.</p><p>Gratton was soon missing, and the explanation offered by the Blues&rsquo; management was that the had a stomach ailment and had gone home to Montreal to receive care. Observers wondered at the time why St. Louis, described in one medical survey as oversupplied with hospitals, could not handle Gratton&rsquo;s stomach problems, and subsequent information indicates the real reason for Gratton&rsquo;s two-week absence was the first of a series of disagreements with Young.</p><p>Gratton complained about Young&rsquo;s practices and said they were juvenile, but other St. Louis players say the problem with practices belonged to Gratton alone and was not the fault of Young or his hockey methods. Gratton also complained Young does not like French-Canadians, but other French players on the Blues say that again the problem was one perceived only by Gratton. The other French players in St. Louis agree their lot is satisfactory and defend Young from any accusations based on racial considerations.</p><p>When Gratton played for the Blues, he played well. After joining the Blues in the 12th game of the season his goals-against average was 2.49, lower than either. Belanger&rsquo;s or Johnston&rsquo;s and sixth-lowest in the NHL. The question was whether Gratton really wanted to play for the Blues or maybe whether he wanted to play hockey at all. Asked on occasion whether he considered the St. Louis population of three goaltenders a detriment to playing regularly, Gratton replied, &ldquo;I wish we could rotate six goalies; then I&rsquo;d have to play only every sixth game.&rdquo;</p><p>The beginning of the end for Gratton in a St. Louis uniform was a shot by Bob Nystrom which hit Gratton in the arm. Gratton, saying the arm was sore, skated off the ice after five minutes of the game with the Islanders and told Young he wanted to leave the game. Johnston, coming in cold, gave up eight goals, and Young accused Gratton the next day of letting down his teammates.</p><p>The argument between Young and Gratton at Monday&rsquo;s practice included some shouting, and Gratton cursed Young and walked out of the St. Louis Arena. Gratton holed up in his suburban apartment in St. Louis the next four days until the Blues arranged to settle his high-salary contract and released the carefully worded resignation statement.</p><p>The statement contained some praise for the Blues&rsquo; management and quoted Gratton as saying that if he &ldquo;ever did play hockey again I would want to play in St. Louis but I feel that a rest from hockey would be good.&rdquo; Three days later Gratton was pulling on the uniform of the Toros.</p><h2>TEAM PENALTIES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02516/3496535-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="586" height="658"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-01

Blues Say Goaler Created His Own Problems

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01603/3496573-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>CESARE MANIAGO&hellip;Victory Brings Back Confidence</b></figcaption></div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD</p><p>Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD</p><p>Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>TWIN CITIES&mdash;</p><p>The 1974-75 season for Cesare Maniago was, by far, his worst and most frustrating of the 16 years he has served as a professional goaltender.</p><p>Never fully recovering from knee surgery after the 1973-74 season, Maniago finished the year with a 4.20 goals-against average&mdash;the first time his National Hockey League record exceeded 4.00. &lsquo;</p><p>The 36-year-old native of Trail, B.C. thought very seriously of calling an end to his career. The lanky Cesare actually did pull himself off the ice during one home game against Montreal allowing an easy goal, and although he returned to play later in the season, he never showed his coolness and artistry around the net that the had in other years.</p><p>&ldquo;I was totally frustrated,&rdquo; Cesare remembered. &ldquo;I know what I had been capable of doing and I wasn&rsquo;t doing it.&rdquo;</p><p>Instead of filing his retirement papers, Maniago went to see a physical therapist with a long record of working with knee injuries. Under the supervision of Fred Zamberletti, who serves as trainer of the Minnesota Vikings&rsquo; football team, Maniago worked through the summer on improving his mobility.</p><p>Cesare passed the anniversary of stalking off the ice in early December without a ceremony. He went out and beat the Chicago Black Hawks 2-1 for his fourth stirring performance in a five-game span.</p><p>The effort lowered Maniago&rsquo;s goals-against average to 3.16 and truly showed that the has made a successful comeback. During this span, he had two one-goal games and a shutout as the North Stars showed signs of awakening from a terrible first two months of play.</p><p>The turnabout did not come until after the North Stars fell behind Washington 3-0, then came back to win 5-3.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care who you beat,&rdquo; said Cesare. &ldquo;A victory gives you confidence.&rdquo;</p><p>A 3-1 victory over Toronto followed with Maniago then turning in his 27th career shutout against Kansas City, 4-0. He and the North Stars slipped against the New York Islanders 6-0, but Minnesota rebounded behind Pete LoPresti to beat Kansas City 5-3 and then came up with its beat game of the season against the Hawks with Maniago athis best, as well..</p><p>More important, Maniago&rsquo;s confidence is showing again and there has been no problem with his knee.</p><p>The same cannot be said for Bill Goldsworthy at the moment, Minnesota&rsquo;s star right winger who injured his knee the following night in a 4-4 tie against Washington with Lo Presti in goal.</p><p>Goldy, who had scored 14 goals, tripped early in that game and suffered a hyperextension of his left knee&mdash;an injury that was expected to keep him out of action from 10 days to two weeks.</p><p>The injury came at a time when the North Stars had earned 11 points in eight games to make noises of vacating the Smythe Division cellar and perhaps making a bid for playoff consideration</p><p>One reason for the surge was the play of Bryan Hextall, who was centering a line with his brother Dennis at left wing and Goldsworthy on the right side. Bryan Hextall, when traded to the North Stars in November, had scored only four assists for Detroit.</p><p>Bryan&rsquo;s North Star production shows five goals and five assists in his first 10 games. The first night the was paired with his brother for the first time on the same line in their pro careers, Bryan had two goals and two assists.</p><p><b>NORTH STAR NOTES:</b> The North Stars traded away their NHL rights to Henry Boucha to the Kansas City Scouts for future considerations&hellip;The North Stars recalled center Blake Dunlop from New Haven where he had scored two goals and 10 assists in 10 games&hellip;Blake, who kept the lease on his Minnesota apartment, was back to score the tying goal against the Caps, his fifth of the season for the North Stars&hellip;The North Stars had issued the most short handed goals in the league, 10, and scored the fewest on the power-play&hellip;The victory against Chicago broke an eight-game Minnesota losing streak against the Hawks over the last year.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-01

Stars’ Maniago Makes Successful Comeback

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02490/3496611-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="580" height="2064"></div><h2>NHL Leaders</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03369/3496604-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="579" height="437"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0018-02

Looking At NHL Goalers

<div class="byline">BY HAL SIGURDSON</div><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;</p><p>Coaching the Vancouver Canucks is a more difficult job this season than it was during their first five in the National Hockey League.</p><p>The reason is simple. For the first time in their history more is expected of them than mediocrity.</p><p>Unfortunately for Phil Maloney, the man who is both their coach and general manager, mediocrity is mostly what this Canucks have been delivering.</p><p>Last season the Canucks surprised everyone, including themselves, by finishing first in the Smythe Division. Granted, it was a weak division, but the Canucks still won it, finishing two points in front of St. Louis and four ahead of favored Chicago.</p><p>Nor was it all done with mirrors. Even an outstanding season from goaltender Gary Smith wasn&rsquo;t the entire reason. Through trades and some judicious selections in the amateur draft, the Canucks have acquired some first rate talent over the past two or three seasons.</p><p>For instance: Bob Dailey, Dennis Ververgaert, Ron Sedlbauer, Harold Snepsts and Rick Blight from the last three amateur drafts. Good, big kids who could play for any team in the NHL.</p><p>Trades have added solid talent like Smith, Garry Monahan, Mike Robitaille and John Gould.</p><p>&ldquo;When we&rsquo;re playing our game we can beat anyone in the league,&rdquo; Maloney says.</p><p>But the Canucks have not often played &ldquo;their game&rdquo; this season. Halfway through the third month of it they still remained three games below the .500 mark. The Black Hawks, though not exactly burning up the league, were able to open up a substantial lead in the division.</p><p>&ldquo;At the start our trouble was all those injuries,&rdquo; said Maloney. &ldquo;Garry Monahan and Gerry O&rsquo;Flaherty, our best penalty killers, were out. We couldn&rsquo;t get set lines or defense pairs because someone was always getting hurt and we would wind up giving what figured to be our fourth line a regularshift.&rdquo;</p><p>Injuries, of course, continue to be a trouble spot, but as Maloney is first to point out, most of the players he considers as key performers are healthy again.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re all here, but still nothing&rsquo;s happening,&rdquo; he said after a goal by Bobby Schmautz with 32 seconds remaining pinned the Canucks with a 3-2 loss in Boston.</p><p>The big difference between this season&rsquo;s Canucks and last is their performance on the road. A year ago they won almost as often as they lost away from home. This season they had only two wins and four ties to show for 15 games on the road. Their wins came in Minnesota and Washington, not exactly league powers.</p><p>Why the decline? Maloney cites a couple of reasons.</p><p>&ldquo;For one thing we&rsquo;re not playing intelligently enough on the road,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Away from home you have to play the clock as well as the opposition. You should always be aware of exactly how much time is left in a period. You have to learn to bear down extra hard in the first couple of shifts and last couple of shifts in each period and we&rsquo;re not doing it.&rdquo;</p><p>For a second reason, Maloney turns to the physical side of the game. There was a time when the</p><p>Canucks couldn&rsquo;t exert much muscle simply because they didn&rsquo;t have any. But that too, has changed over the last few seasons. These days they can match (orsurpass) nearly all their rivals in size.</p><p>&ldquo;But six or seven of our big guys simply aren&rsquo;t using their bodies the way they should,&rdquo; Maloney insists. &ldquo;Everyone has to do what they do best and I expect the bigger players on our team to use their bodies effectively. But except for Harold Snepsts we&rsquo;re not doing it&hellip;not consistently, at least. Guvs who should be charging into the corners and creating loose pucks aren&rsquo;t doing it. and as a result were not scoring the way we could.&rdquo;</p><p>Recently. Maloney sent Bobby Lalonde and Paulin Bordeleau to Tulsa of the Central League for a week. Partly it was done to remind everyone there are places to play other than the NHL.</p><p>Unless he sees some sharp improvement, other players could wind up as surprise visitors to Tulsa.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01582/3496642-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="560" height="697"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>HAROLD SNEPSTS&hellip;Doing His Job</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0019-01

Canucks ‘Apathy On Road Keeps Club Down

<div class="byline">BY VARTAN KUPELIAN</div><p>DETROIT&mdash;</p><p>For better or worse, Alex Delvecchio is coach-of the Detroit Red Wings for the rest of the season.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got to get this club straightened out and into the playoffs,&rdquo; Delvecchio said the day he fired Doug Barkley as coach. &ldquo;We can&rsquo;t do that if I go out and hire another coach. There isn&rsquo;t enough time for the new guy to get settled and establish something.</p><p>&ldquo;And we can&rsquo;t do it under the pretense that I&rsquo;m just an interim coach until we find somebody else. I&rsquo;m going to coach the team.&rdquo;</p><p>For Delvecchio, it&rsquo;s the second turn in the dual role of general manager and coach. He held the dual jobs last season before hiring</p><p>Barkley, an old teammate, to handle the coaching.</p><p>&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t an easy decision,&rdquo; Delvecchio said of Barkley&rsquo;s dismissal. &ldquo;It looked for awhile like we had things turned around but in the last couple of weeks we lost our incentive and the play deteriorated. We were not making progress. A change had to be made. &ldquo;</p><p>Barkley was naturally disappointed but not bitter.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what the reasons were,&rdquo; Barkley said. &ldquo;I thought I would have more time to do the job. If I had known that I would have less than 30 games (26 to be exact) to build a winner, I wouldn&rsquo;t have taken the job in the first place.</p><p>&ldquo;Nobody had the right to expect a championship team overnight. But I thought the team was showing improvement.&rdquo;</p><p>Barkley said he did not have problems or quarrels with Delvecchio, or difficulties with the players, that might precipitate such a move.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m disappointed because this means the end for me as far as hockey. Now that I&rsquo;ve been fired twice, who&rsquo;s going to give me another chance,&rdquo; said Barkley, the 38-year-old former Red Wing defenseman who had his playing carter tragically ended in 1966 when he was hit in the eye by a stick.</p><p>Delvecchio announced the move as an aftermath of the 9-1 shellacking in Vancouver. But, he said, the key game was a Nov. 26 date in Pittsburgh. It was a pivotal game for the Wings in their battle to catch third-place Pittsburgh in the Norris Division.</p><p>&ldquo;It was a big game and we weren&rsquo;t ready for it,&rdquo; Delvecchio said. &ldquo;We came up flat. I feel we have a much better club than we&rsquo;ve shown.&rdquo;</p><p>It&rsquo;s a certainty the Wings will begin a &ldquo;coach hunt&rdquo; and hire one after the season. There are several possibilities but the foremost at the moment is Al MacNeil, the former Montreal coach. Delvecchio narrowed his search for a new coach last summer to Barkley and MacNeil before selecting Barkley.</p><p>Whoever takes the job must be warned, however, that there&rsquo;s a revolving door attached to the Red Wing coaches&rsquo; office. Only twice in the last seven seasons has the club gone through an entire season with the same coach. Johnny Wilson managed it in 1972-73 and Delvecchio went all the way last season. In that seven-season span, the club has had nine coaching changes with seven different men holding the job. Barkley and novi Delvecchio have had the job twice.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01426/3496673-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="535" height="732"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ALMacNEIL&hellip;Next Wings&rsquo; Coach?</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0020-01

Delvecchio Aims To Turn Wings Around

<div class="byline">BY RON WEBER</div><p>WASHINGTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>heir last names began with the same letter and they joined the Washington Capitals during Thanksgiving week, but otherwise they have little in common.</p><p>One is 31-years-old, the other is 21. One&rsquo;s a defenseman with 220 NHL games wonder his belt, the other&rsquo;s a forward, come to play his first game in the big time. One is married, the other single, one is American the other Canadian. The first has a surname that conjures up the image of South Sea Island, the other a place where you saddle horses. But the Capitals and their fans look for long-range, solid contributions from both Bob Paradise and John Paddock.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01270/3496711-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="284" height="432"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>John Paddock</b></figcaption></div><p>Paddock came first, On Monday, Nov. 24. At 6&rsquo;3&rdquo;, 195 pounds he was hard to overlook since becoming the Caps&rsquo; third round pick of their first amateur draft. Though the one, two and four choices made the big club last season, Paddock spent the entire &lsquo;74-75 season in Richmond. With 26 goals and 206 penalty minutes to show for it, then a playoff overtime game winning goal that sent the Robins into a seventh game with Hershey (that they lost). Paddock merited even closer study in this past training camp.</p><p>But, as John explains, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m always a slow starter, then there was this real bad chest cold.&rdquo; Hello again Richmond. Not that John really minded. &ldquo;I like Richmond, like playing there, lots of ice time. It was best Igo there. Might still be best for me.&rdquo; Paddock candidly admits.</p><p>Maybe. But the might never go back, too. Though he was called up for two reasons: He was going good and the Caps weren&rsquo;t. In fact, John was going great: three straight two-goal games, the last of which was viewed by coach Milt Schmidt and his assistant Lefty McFadden. In that one, Paddock got the game-tying goal against Springfield with two seconds to go and the winner 40 seconds into overtime. Both were from the slot where most of his scoring will come.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t have a great shot,&rdquo; says Paddock &ldquo;so most of my goals will come in the slot on rebounds or deflections.&rdquo; Of other facets of his game: &ldquo;Skating has to be the worst part, so I have to give fast left wingers a shot.&rdquo; Bob Berry of Los Angeles gave John a shot in his first game up, a blatant slash on the right wrist. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re testing me&hellip;Once around the league for sure. Same thing in Richmond where most of my penalty minutes last year were before Christmas.&rdquo; In Berry&rsquo;s case, Paddock skated away, wrist throbbing, played some hockey at the other end, then came back and scuffled.</p><p>Was John nervous that game? &ldquo;No, not like my first Caps exhibition or my first game in the AHL. But I was tight, and didn&rsquo;t contribute anything offensively for Nellie (Pyatt) and Blair (Stewart) that first period, just picked up my wingers.&rdquo;</p><p>Before the game was over he had an assist, and the Caps got their biggest victory margin ever in downing L. A. 7-2.</p><p>Paddock, the oldest of seven children grew up on a farm near Brandon, Manitoba. The even-ne-wer-comer. Bob Paradise had a less hockey conventional upbringing in St. Paul, Minnesota. After youth play he took a circuitous route to the NHL through St. Mary&rsquo;s College (Winona&rsquo; Minn), the U.S. Olympic team (1968), the U.S. National team, the IHL Muskegon Mohawks and a senior team in Rochester, N.Y.</p><p>At age 24, Paradise put aside school teaching (he was a speech and English major in college) and got down to some serious pro hockey&hellip;at Omaha, the Montreal Voyageurs and Seattle.</p><p>Then Atlanta plucked him in the expansion draft, traded him and Chuck Arnason to Pittsburgh for Al McDonough a year and a half later. On Nov. 26 came the word: He had been sent to Washington in exchange for a second round draft choice.</p><p>Paradise wasn&rsquo;t shocked. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to see something else happen (in Pittsburgh),&rdquo; says Bob who figured he&rsquo;d go to a team down in the standings, but preferred Washington to some of the other possibilities.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02199/3496704-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg" title="f0021-02" width="547" height="801"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BOB PARADISE&hellip;Trade No Shock</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0021-01

Caps Hoping Newcomers Make Quick Contribution

<p><b>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 22)</b></p><h2>NORRIS DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2318/3496990-1-eng-US/f0022-232.jpg" title="f0022-23" width="523" height="155"></div><h2>ADAMS DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2415/3496983-1-eng-US/f0022-242.jpg" title="f0022-24" width="525" height="132"></div><h2>CAMPBELL DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2510/3496976-1-eng-US/f0022-252.jpg" title="f0022-25" width="528" height="136"></div><h2>SMYTHE DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-266/3496969-1-eng-US/f0022-262.jpg" title="f0022-26" width="523" height="158"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 16</p><p>Kansas City 1 at Atlanta 3.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>Islanders 3 of Rangers 0; Philadelphia 4 at Chicago 2; Atlanta 2 at Minnesota 3; Montreal 2 at Los Angeles 1; Boston 3 at Washington 2, Pittsburgh 9 at California 2; Buffalo 1 at Detroit 3; Vancouver 5 at Kansas City 6; St. Louis 2 at Toronto 6.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 18</b></p><p>Toronto 2 of Islanders 4,&rsquo;Minnesota 2 at Buffalo 5.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Rangers 3 at Atlanta 8; Philadelphia 7 at Washington 5; Pittsburgh 1 at Vancouver 5; Detroit 1 at Kansas City 4; Chicago 2 at California 5.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Islanders 7 at St. Louis 1Montreal 2 at Vancouver 2; Pittsburgh 5 at Los Angeles 1; Detroit 3 at Minnesota 5; Kansas City 1 at Toronto 5; Buffalo 3 at Boston 5.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Minnesota 0 at Rangers 2, Islanders 2 at Chicago 5; St. Louis 3 at Philadelphia 8; Atlanta 2 at Boston 1; Montreal 2 at California 1; Washington 2 at Buffalo 14.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p>Mon. Dec. 22</p><p>Los Angeles at Toronto.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 23</b></p><p>Pittsburgh at N.Y. Rangers; Philadelphia at Atlanta, Los Angeles at Boston, St. louis at Chicago; Buffalo at Kansas City.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>N.Y. Rangers at Detroit; Pittsburgh at Atlanta; Minnesota at Washington Los Angeles at California; Boston at Buffalo.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Atlanta at Pittsburgh; Minnesota at Montreal; Kansas City at Los Angeles; Vancouver at St. Louis; Chicago at Toronto.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Boston at Philadelphia; Vancouver at Detroit; Buffalo at Chicago,-Kansas City at California.</p><p><b>Mon. Dec. 29</b></p><p>Atlanta at Toronto; Montreal of Washington; Los Angeles at Minnesota.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Philadelphia at N.Y. Islanders; Kansas City at Vancouver; California at Chicago.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 31</b></p><p>Atlanta at N.Y. Rangers, Washington at Detroit; Los Angeles at Pittsburgh; Boston at Minnesota, Californio at Toronto.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan. 1</b></p><p>Philadelphia at Kansas City; Los Angeles at Buffalo.</p><p><b>Fri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>St. Louis at Atlanta; Californio at Washington, Boston at Vancouver.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0022-23

LOOKING AT THE NHL SCOREBOARD

<h2>KANSAS CITY 1, ATLANTA 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01297/3496938-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="579" height="373"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 3, RANGERS0</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02223/3496931-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="569" height="306"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 4, CHICAGO 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03195/3496924-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="577" height="428"></div><h2>ATLANTA 2, MINNESOTA 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-04151/3496917-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="582" height="428"></div><h2>MONTREAL 2, LOS ANGELES 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-05126/3496910-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="578" height="377"></div><h2>BOSTON 3, WASHINGTON 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0699/3496903-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="581" height="429"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH 9, CALIFORNIA 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0786/3496896-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="581" height="429"></div><h2>BUFFALO 1, DETROIT 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0876/3496889-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="581" height="377"></div><h2>VANCOUVER 5, KANSAS CITY 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0968/3496882-1-eng-US/f0022-092.jpg" title="f0022-09" width="592" height="506"></div><h2>ST. LOUIS 2, TORONTO 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1058/3496875-1-eng-US/f0022-102.jpg" title="f0022-10" width="598" height="506"></div><h2>TORONTO 2, ISLANDERS 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1153/3496868-1-eng-US/f0022-112.jpg" title="f0022-11" width="576" height="418"></div><h2>MINNESOTA2, BUFFALO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1249/3496861-1-eng-US/f0022-122.jpg" title="f0022-12" width="581" height="474"></div><h2>RANGERS 3, ATLANTA 8</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1342/3496854-1-eng-US/f0022-132.jpg" title="f0022-13" width="592" height="456"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 7, WASHINGTON 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1434/3496847-1-eng-US/f0022-142.jpg" title="f0022-14" width="580" height="499"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH 1, VANCOUVER 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1532/3496840-1-eng-US/f0022-152.jpg" title="f0022-15" width="578" height="381"></div><h2>DETROIT 1, KANSAS CITY 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1626/3496833-1-eng-US/f0022-162.jpg" title="f0022-16" width="577" height="479"></div><h2>CHICAGO 2, CALIFORNIA 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1723/3496826-1-eng-US/f0022-172.jpg" title="f0022-17" width="582" height="430"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 7 ST. LOUIS 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1822/3496819-1-eng-US/f0022-182.jpg" title="f0022-18" width="584" height="475"></div><h2>MONTR&Eacute;AL 2, VANCOUVER 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1922/3496812-1-eng-US/f0022-192.jpg" title="f0022-19" width="581" height="352"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH 5, LOS ANGELES 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2021/3496805-1-eng-US/f0022-202.jpg" title="f0022-20" width="574" height="448"></div><h2>DETROIT3, MINNESOTA 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2121/3496798-1-eng-US/f0022-212.jpg" title="f0022-21" width="584" height="431"></div><h2>KANSAS CITY 1, TORONTO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2218/3496791-1-eng-US/f0022-222.jpg" title="f0022-22" width="592" height="383"></div><h2>BUFFALO 3, BOSTON 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01275/3496784-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="594" height="505"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 0, RANGERS 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02216/3496777-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="583" height="308"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 2, CHICAGO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-03166/3496770-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="590" height="379"></div><h2>ST. LOUIS 3, PHILADELPHIA 8</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-04132/3496763-1-eng-US/f0023-042.jpg" title="f0023-04" width="599" height="554"></div><h2>ATLANTA 2, BOSTON 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-05107/3496756-1-eng-US/f0023-052.jpg" title="f0023-05" width="589" height="349"></div><h2>MONTREAL 2, CALIFORNIA 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0694/3496749-1-eng-US/f0023-062.jpg" title="f0023-06" width="581" height="405"></div><h2>WASHINGTON 2, BUFFALO 14</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0780/3496742-1-eng-US/f0023-072.jpg" title="f0023-07" width="599" height="524"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0022-01

National Hockey League Summaries

<p><b>C&mdash;Captain</b></p><p><b>*&mdash;Rookie</b></p><h2>ATLANTA</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Don Bouchard</p><p>Phil Myre</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Pat Quinn C</p><p>Barry Gibbs</p><p>Larry Carriere</p><p>Ed Kea</p><p>Randy Manery</p><p>Jean Lemieux</p><p>Ken Houston</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Curt Bennett</p><p>Roy Comeou</p><p>Tom Lysiak</p><p>Gerry Meehan</p><p>Clayde, St. Sauveur</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Bill Flett</p><p>Tim Ecclestone</p><p>Com Batting</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Ken Houston</p><p>Dove Kryskew</p><p>Eric Vail</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Larry Romanchych</p><h2>BOSTON</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Gilles Gilbert</p><p>Dave Reece</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Gory Dealt</p><p>Darryl Edestrand</p><p>Al Sims</p><p>Dallas Smith</p><p>Brad Park</p><p>Jee Zanussi</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Jean Ratelle</p><p>Andro Savard</p><p>Gregg Sheppard</p><p>Doug Gibson</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Hank Nowak</p><p>Bobby Schmautz</p><p>Ken Hedge</p><p>Terry</p><p>O&rsquo;Reilly</p><p>L.WING</p><p>John Bucyk C</p><p>Dave Forbes</p><p>Wayne Cashman</p><p>Don Marcotte</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Earl Anderson</p><p>Bobby Orr</p><h2>BUFFALO</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Roger Crozier</p><p>Gerry Desjardins</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Jim Schoenfeld C</p><p>Jerry Korab</p><p>J. Guevromont</p><p>Bill Hait</p><p>Poul McIntosh</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Don Luce</p><p>Gil Perreault</p><p>Peter McNab</p><p>Jim Lorentz</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Danny Gare</p><p>Terry Martin</p><p>Fred Stanfield</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Richard Martin</p><p>Brian Spencer</p><p>Craig Ramsay</p><p>Jacques Richard</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Morns Titanic</p><p>Rone Robert</p><p>I KANSAS <b>CITY</b></p><p><b>GOAL</b></p><p>Denis Herron</p><p>Bill Oleschuk</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Claude Houde</p><p>Jean-Guy Lagace</p><p>Larry Johnston</p><p>Gary Bergman</p><p>Dennis Patterson</p><p>Ken Murray</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Guy Charron</p><p>Eddie Gilbert</p><p>Dave Hudson</p><p>Bob Murray</p><p>R. WING</p><p>Simon Nolet C</p><p>Wiff Paiement</p><p>Randy Rota</p><p>Buster Harvey</p><p>L. WING</p><p>Gary Croteau</p><p>Craig Patrick</p><p>Norm Dube</p><p>Rabin Burns</p><p>Germain Gagnon</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Denis Dupere</p><p>Bill McKenzie</p><h2>LOS ANGELES</h2><p>GOAL Regie</p><p>Vachon Gary</p><p>Edwards</p><p>DENFENSE</p><p>Bob Murdoch</p><p>S. Kannegiesser</p><p>Neil Komadoski</p><p>Dave Hutchison</p><p>Larry Brown</p><p>Gary Sargent</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Marcel Dionne</p><p>Gene Carr Vic</p><p>Venasky Whitey</p><p>Widing Butch</p><p>Goring</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Mike Murphy C</p><p>Mike Corrigan</p><p>Bob Nevin</p><p>Frank St. Marseill</p><p>Don Kozak</p><p>L. WING</p><p>Bob Berry</p><p>Tom Williams</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>None</p><h2>MINNESOTA</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Cesare Maniago</p><p>Peter LoPresti</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Tom Reid Dennis</p><p>O&rsquo;Brien Doug</p><p>Hicks Fred</p><p>Barrett Dwight</p><p>Bialowas</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Dennis Hextall</p><p>Tim Young</p><p>Dave Cressman Pierro</p><p>Jarry Bryan</p><p>Hextall Blake</p><p>Dunlop</p><p>R. WING</p><p>Bill Goldsworthy C</p><p>Doan Talafous</p><p>Craig Cameron</p><p>Lou Nanne</p><p>LWING</p><p>John Flesch</p><p>Ernie HickeGlen</p><p>Sather</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>None</p><h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Wayne</p><p>Stephenson</p><p>Bob Taylor</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Tom Bladon</p><p>Andre Dupont</p><p>Larry Good enough</p><p>Jim Watson</p><p>Jee Watson</p><p>Jack Mcllhargey</p><p>Ed Van Impe</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Bobby Clarke C</p><p>Rick MacLeish</p><p>Torry Crisp</p><p>Orest Kindrachuk</p><p>Mel Bridgman</p><p>R. WING</p><p>Gory Dornhoefor</p><p>Rog Leach</p><p>Don Saleski</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Bill Barber</p><p>Dave Schultz</p><p>Bab Kelly Ross</p><p>Lansberry</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Bernie Parent</p><p>PITTSBURGH</p><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Gary Inness</p><p>Michel Plasse</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Dove Burrows</p><p>Steve Durbano</p><p>Ron Stackhouse</p><p>Barry Wilkins Dennis</p><p>Owchar Colin</p><p>Campbell Mario</p><p>Faubert</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Ron Schock C</p><p>SylApps</p><p>Pierre Larouche</p><p>R. WING</p><p>Stan Gilbertson</p><p>Rick Kehoe</p><p>Joan Pronovost</p><p>Low Morrison</p><p>Jacques Cossette</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Vic Hadfield</p><p>Lowell MacDonald</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Chuck Arnason</p><h2>ST. LOUIS</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Yves Belanger</p><p>Eddie Johnston</p><p>EdStoniowski</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Barclay Plager C</p><p>Bob Plager</p><p>Bob Hoss</p><p>Bob Gass off Rick</p><p>Wilson Bruce Affleck</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Garry Unger</p><p>Chuck Lefley</p><p>Larry Patey</p><p>Derok Sanderson</p><p>R. WING</p><p>Pierro Plante</p><p>Claude Larose</p><p>Jerry Butler</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Floyd Thomson</p><p>Tod Irvine</p><p>Rod Berenson</p><p>Bert Wilson</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Nene</p><h2>CALIFORNIA</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Gilles Meloche</p><p>Gary Simmons</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Len Frig Rick</p><p>Hampton Mike</p><p>Christie Bab</p><p>Stewart George</p><p>Pesut</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Dove Gardner</p><p>Wayne Merrick</p><p>Ralph Klassen</p><p>Dennis Maruk</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Gory Sabourin</p><p>Wayne King</p><p>Bob Murdoch</p><p>LWING</p><p>Dave Hrechkosy</p><p>Al Mac Adam</p><p>Gary Holt</p><p>Bob Girard</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Jim Neilson</p><p>CHICAGO</p><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Tony Esposito</p><p>Michel Dumas</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Keith Magnuson</p><p>Dick Redmond</p><p>Dale Tallon</p><p>Bob Murray</p><p>Phil Russell</p><p>Bill White</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Ivan Boldirev</p><p>Bobby Sheehan</p><p>Pit Martin</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Cliff Koroll</p><p>Grant Mulvey J.P. Bordeleau</p><p>Alain Daigle</p><p>LWING</p><p>Dennis Hull</p><p>Darcy Rota</p><p>John Marks</p><p>Joey Johnston</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Gilles Villem&rsquo;re</p><h2>DETROIT</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Jim Rutherford</p><p>Ed Giacomin</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Jean Hamel</p><p>Rick Lapointe</p><p>Bryan Watson</p><p>Terry Harper</p><p>Barry Salovaara</p><p>Mike Korney</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Phil Roberto</p><p>Bryan Hextall</p><p>Walt McKechnie</p><p>Bill Hogoboam</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Michel Bergeror</p><p>Mickey Redmond</p><p>Dennis Polonich</p><p>J.P. Leblanc</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Danny Grant C</p><p>Nick Libett</p><p>Dan Maloney</p><p>Mike Bloom</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>None</p><p>MONTREAL</p><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Michel Larocque</p><p>Ken Dryden</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Don Awrey</p><p>Guy Lapointe</p><p>Serge Savard</p><p>Larry Robinson</p><p>Pierre Bouchard</p><p>John Van Boxmeer</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Pete Mahovlich</p><p>Doug Risebrough</p><p>Doug Jarvis</p><p>Jacques Lemaire</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Guy Lafleur</p><p>Mario Tremblay</p><p>Jim Roberts</p><p>Yvan Cournoyer C</p><p>L. WING</p><p>Yvon Lambert</p><p>Stove Shutt</p><p>Bob Gainey</p><p>Murray Wilson</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>None</p><h2>ISLANDERS</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Glenn Resch</p><p>Billy Smith</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Gerry Hart</p><p>Bert Marshall</p><p>Denis Potvin</p><p>Jean Potvin</p><p>Dave Lewis</p><p>Dave Fortier</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Eddie</p><p>Westfall C</p><p>Lorne Henning</p><p>Ralph Stewart</p><p>Bryan Trottier</p><p>Andre St. Laurem</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Jude Drouin</p><p>Billy Harris</p><p>Bob Nystrom</p><p>Garry Howatt</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Clark Gillies</p><p>J.P. Parise Billy</p><p>MacMillan</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>None</p><h2>RANGERS</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>John Davidson</p><p>Doug Soetart</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Carol Vodndis</p><p>Gil Ma rotte</p><p>Ron Greschner</p><p>Larry Socharuk</p><p>John Bednarski</p><p>Doug Jarrett</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Wayne Dillon</p><p>Walt Tkoczuk</p><p>Peter Stemkowski</p><p>Phil Esposito C</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Rod Gilbert</p><p>Bill Fairbairn</p><p>Rick Middleton</p><p>Ed Johnstone</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Stevo Vickers</p><p>Greg Polis</p><p>Pat Hickey</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Ron Harm</p><p>Bill Collins</p><p>Dune Wilson</p><p>Nick Beverley</p><h2>TORONTO</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Wayne Thomas</p><p>Gordon McRae</p><p>Deffence</p><p>Borja Salming</p><p>Rod Seiling</p><p>Jim McKenny Ian</p><p>Turnbull Brian</p><p>Glennie Dave</p><p>Dunn Bob Neely</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Darryl SitHer C</p><p>George Ferguson</p><p>Stan Weir</p><p>Don Ashby</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Blaine Stoughton</p><p>Lanny McDonald</p><p>Inge Hammarstron</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Dave Williams</p><p>Errol Thompson</p><p>Pat Boutette</p><p>Grog Hubick</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Doug Favoll</p><p>VANCOUVER</p><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Gary Smith</p><p>Ken Lockett</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Bob Dailey</p><p>Ab DeMarco</p><p>Mike Robitaille</p><p>Dennis Koams</p><p>Harold Snepsts</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Andro Boudrias C</p><p>Don Lovor Chris</p><p>Oddloifson</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>John Gould</p><p>Paulin Bordeloau</p><p>Gerry</p><p>O&rsquo;Raherty</p><p>Dennis Vervorgaert</p><p>Rick Blight</p><h3>L.WING</h3><p>Bobby Lalonde</p><p>Grogg Baddy</p><p>Ron Sedlbauer</p><p>Glen Richardson</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Tracy Pratt</p><p>Gurry Monahan</p><p>John GrisdaIe</p><h2>WASHINGTON</h2><h3>GOAL</h3><p>Michel Belhumour</p><p>Ron Low</p><p>Bernie Wolfe</p><h3>DEFENSE</h3><p>Yvon Labre</p><p>Grog Joly</p><p>Jock Lynch</p><p>Gordie Lone</p><p>Ron Jones</p><h3>CENTER</h3><p>Bill Clement C</p><p>Tommy Williams</p><p>Nelson Pyatt</p><h3>R.WING</h3><p>Blair Stewart</p><p>Bob Gryp</p><p>Hartland Monahan</p><p>Aco Bailey</p><p>Bob Sirois</p><p>I. WING</p><p>Miko Marson</p><p>Ron Lalonde</p><p>Tony White</p><p>John Paddock</p><h3>INJURED</h3><p>Ron Anderson</p><p>Bob Paradise<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

NHL Team Rosters

<div class="byline">BY ROY CRAIGIE</div><p>OAKLAND&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>t&rsquo;s unusual in this day and age where player development costs have been cut and most major league clubs share the sponsorship of minor league affiliates to see one organization not only doing things the old way, but most successfully.</p><p>That club, of course, is the California Seals, who have developed a farm system that has become literally second to none. Last season, two teams whose players are wholly-owned by the Seals&mdash;the Salt Lake City Golden Eagles and the Toledo Goaldiggers&mdash;captured the Central and International league championships, respectively.</p><p>It&rsquo;s been a long time since an NHL team could point to a farm system where all the hands went out and won titles (in fact, the Seals had several players on loan to Springfield, and the Indians copped the AHL crown), and it&rsquo;s a major accomplishment that is already starting to pay off for the parent club.</p><p>Seals&rsquo; coach Jack Evans, who piloted the Eagles to that CHL title, is now getting the benefit of the California development system that has been masterminded by club president Munson Campbell and general manager Bill McCreary.</p><p>Two of those benefits have come to Evans in the form of rookie wingers Bob Girard and Bob Murdoch. With first and second draft choices Ralph Klassen and Dennis Maruk gaining a major share of the spotlight in the big Seals&rsquo; revival, the work of Girard and Murdoch has been somewhat overshadowed.</p><p>&ldquo;We were not certain if they would even make the big club this year,&rdquo; relates Evans, who coached the pair at Salt Lake, &ldquo;but of course we were hopeful. We needed Girard&rsquo;s cheeking ability and his great work in the corners, and when we went looking for goals, we felt that we had to give Murdoch a chance.&rdquo;</p><p>As the portsider on a line with Ralph Klassen at center and Gary Sabourin on right wing. Girard has been filling the bill as a playmaker. After thirty games he had 10 assists to go along with this three goals. It was Evans who converted Girard. 26, from a defenseman to a left winger. &ldquo;When I came to Salt Lake last year we were allowed to carry 11 forwards and five defensemen. If you wanted to make up a fourth line, you had to use a defenseman. I put Girard up there one night and his line scored six goals.&rdquo;</p><p>Evans noted that Girard had been &ldquo;a good puck-carrying defenseman&rdquo; and he has never lost that ability. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a good skater, gets on the puck quickly and isn&rsquo;t afraid to go into those corners. That&rsquo;s what we were looking for.&rdquo;</p><p>In the 21-year-old Murdoch, the Seals have a man who chalked up some 33 goals for the Eagles in their title march last year. Settling in comfortably on the right side of the Seals&rsquo; &ldquo;3M Line&rdquo; with Maruk at center and Al MacAdam on the left, Murdoch has lived up to preseason hopes about this goal-scoring ability.</p><p>Through the Seals&rsquo; first thirty games, he had collected ten goals on the club&rsquo;s highest-scoring line. &ldquo;He could always score &lsquo;em, and it doesn&rsquo;t matter where.&rdquo; points out Evans. &ldquo;Last year he had more goals on the road (17) than at home.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re extremely pleased by the solid work of both players.&rdquo; says Evans, &ldquo;and they weren&rsquo;t even draft choices.&rdquo;</p><p>That&rsquo;s a direct benefit of having hockey&rsquo;s most successful development system.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Seals’ Development System Paying Dividends

<div class="byline">BY RICH PASSAN</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>HARTFORD&mdash;</p><p>In the past, the New England Whalers had always taken advantage of poor starts by members of the East Division to run away and hide by the time Christmas arrived.</p><p>Such is not the case this season, however. By coach and general manager Jack Kelley&rsquo;s admission, the Whalers are &ldquo;struggling&rdquo; this season. Struggling for victories and goals, too. The Harpoonists never had problems putting the puck into the net until this season. It&rsquo;s not that New England is playing poorly. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re not,&rdquo; Kelley made clear. &ldquo;A few of the guys have gotten off to hard-luck starts.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01281/3497076-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="267" height="501"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Rosaire Paiement</b></figcaption></div><p>Among them are Larry Pleau, unbelievably scoreless in his first 20 games. Here&rsquo;s a center iceman who scored 95 goals and assisted on 125 others in his first three World Hockey Association campaigns and he was oh-for-the-sea-son after 20 games. He had four in his next four games.</p><p>Then there&rsquo;s right winger Rosie Paiement. He&rsquo;s beaten enemy goaltenders just twice in 20 games after scoring 89 goals in his first three WHA seasons.</p><p>Rookie left winger Danny Arndt, the Whalers&rsquo; second-round choice in the amateur draft, had scored 134 goals with the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Canada Junior Hockey League. He had just three for the Whalers.</p><p>Where are they now? Arndt has been dispatched to the Whalers&rsquo; farm at Cape Cod of the North American Hockey League to restore his ebbing confidence.</p><p>Paiement the right winger is now at center ice. And Pleau the centerman is now on the left wing. With Paiement. Would you believe the results have been positive? Chalk up another brilliant move by Kelley.</p><p>&ldquo;We weren&rsquo;t scoring,&rdquo; explained Kelly. &ldquo;Rosie moves the puck very well and I want centers who move the puck, not that Pleausie doesn&rsquo;t.&rdquo; Together with right winger Tom Webster, they it rm the Whalers&rsquo; most potent line.</p><p>They combined for all three goals&mdash;Webster scored the game winner in a 3-2 victory over Minnesota&mdash;as the Whalers celebrated a return home from a disastrous four-game trip in happy fashion.</p><p>After beating Houston on the Aeros&rsquo; ice, the Whalers dropped decisions in Phoenix, San Diego and Denver. In Phoenix, the Harpoonists lost more than a game. They lost center Wayne Carleton to an appendicitis attack.</p><p>The big guy will be sidelined for a month. His place between left winger Ron Climie and right winger Doug Roberts has been taken by Bob McManama, the former Harvard University pivot who bought out this contract from the National Hockey League Pittsburgh Penguins and jumped to the WHA.</p><p>Kelley said his club has been pressing, but sees some positive signs as they begin to straighten out. &ldquo;The saving grace for us right now is that everybody in our division has been having a difficult time,&rdquo; Kelley said.</p><p>That could be fatal eventually. The Whalers are too good a team to be playing .500 hockey. They still rate as the team to beat in the East as they seek a fourth consecutive division championship.</p><p><b>INDIANAPOLIS:</b> Things are breaking just right for the Racers. They obtain right winger Blair MacDonald from the Edmonton Oilers and he scores the winning goal in his first game against Phoenix&hellip;The surprising Indiana skatrs reached the 500 mark and first place with that victory, the first time they&rsquo;ve been this high in their history so late into the seaton&hellip;Whether they stay there is another matter. A gruelling schedule has them playing nine games in 12 nights, five on the road. After that, new coach Jacques Demers will have a much better reading on his men, who have proved the surprise of the WHA this season.</p><p><b>CLEVELAND:</b> The Crusaders called defensemen Wayne Mu-loin and Paul Baxter from Syracuse of the North American Hockey League, along with rookie center Mike Conroy, and sent down veteran defenseman Ray McKay and rookie backliner Brian Bowles. They arrived just in time to help key the Crusaders to a 1-0 victory over the Minnesota Fighting Saints, snapping a five-game losing streak and a scoring skein for the Saints that had reached 200 games. Richie Leduc scored the only goal with less than five minutes to play Coach John Wilson held a &ldquo;penetrating meeting&rdquo; with his troops in Denver shortly before their fifth straight loss. It appeared to pay off against Minnesota.</p><p><b>CINCINNATI:</b> Rookie goal-tender John Kiely could be for real. The former University of Vermont netminder, called up when Norm Lapointe had his problems and Serge Aubry was hurt, has won four of his first six starts&hellip;The Stingers acquired Paul Ho-ganson, cut loose by New England earlier this season, to back up Kiely&hellip;One of Kiely&rsquo;s losses was a 6-4 job at Houston in a game which saw the Bees outshoot the Aeros, 50-34&hellip;Rookie Cincinnati left winger Claude Larose continues to inr press with 16 goals and 12 assists in 27 games. Fellow French Collection linemates Jacques Locas and Pierre Guite have also been playing well.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02216/3497069-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="1735" height="1154"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PRESIDENTIAL MOVE: The New England Whalers took advantage of American President Gerald Ford&rsquo;s recent visit to the new Hartford Civic Center to present him with a Whaler jersey complete with his name and number on the back. Shown at presentation from the left are President Ford, U.S. Senator Lowell Weicker, Howard L. Baldwin, president of the Whalers, and George Ducharme of the Whalers&rsquo; management staff. The president wore No. 76 during his former college football days at Michigan.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0024-01

Kelley Admits Whalers ‘Struggling’ To Stay Ahead

f0024-03

TORONTO TOROS SOUVENIRS

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02166/3497183-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="596" height="1525"></div><h2>WHA Leaders</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03117/3497176-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="583" height="375"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0025-02

Looking At WHA Goalers

<h2>SAN DIEGO 4, HOUSTON 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01236/3497361-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="582" height="395"></div><h2>CINCINNATI 2, DENVER 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02184/3497354-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="573" height="373"></div><h2>EDMONTON 3, INDIANAPOLIS 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03148/3497347-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="575" height="318"></div><h2>CALGARY 3, QUEBEC 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04113/3497340-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="577" height="445"></div><h2>WINNIPEG 4, TORONTOS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0590/3497333-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="582" height="470"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND 0, MINNESOTA 0</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0669/3497326-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="577" height="440"></div><h2>EDMONTON 3, CLEVELAND 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0758/3497319-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="582" height="424"></div><h2>INDIANAPOLIS 1, PHOENIX 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0850/3497312-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="583" height="443"></div><h2>CINCINNATI 3, SAN DIEGO 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0944/3497305-1-eng-US/f0026-092.jpg" title="f0026-09" width="593" height="466"></div><h2>WINNIPEG 4, QUEBEC 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1041/3497298-1-eng-US/f0026-102.jpg" title="f0026-10" width="584" height="523"></div><h2>CLEVELAND 4, INDIANAPOLIS 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1138/3497291-1-eng-US/f0026-112.jpg" title="f0026-11" width="586" height="623"></div><h2>EDMONTON 2, NEW ENGLAND 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1232/3497284-1-eng-US/f0026-122.jpg" title="f0026-12" width="580" height="393"></div><h2>CALGARY 5, TORONTO 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1332/3497277-1-eng-US/f0026-132.jpg" title="f0026-13" width="585" height="432"></div><h2>SAN DIEGO 3, DENVER 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1428/3497270-1-eng-US/f0026-142.jpg" title="f0026-14" width="585" height="447"></div><h2>WINNIPEG 3, MINNESOTA 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1525/3497263-1-eng-US/f0026-152.jpg" title="f0026-15" width="586" height="501"></div><h2>HOUSTON 4, PHOENIX 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1620/3497256-1-eng-US/f0026-162.jpg" title="f0026-16" width="580" height="423"></div><h2>INDIANAPOLIS 3, CLEVELAND 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1717/3497249-1-eng-US/f0026-172.jpg" title="f0026-17" width="594" height="529"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND 2, CINCINNATI 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1816/3497242-1-eng-US/f0026-182.jpg" title="f0026-18" width="581" height="401"></div><h2>CALGARY 7, QUEBEC 8</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1916/3497235-1-eng-US/f0026-192.jpg" title="f0026-19" width="590" height="522"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 3. WINNIPEG 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2014/3497228-1-eng-US/f0026-202.jpg" title="f0026-20" width="580" height="471"></div><h2>HOUSTON 1, SAN DIEGO 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2113/3497221-1-eng-US/f0026-212.jpg" title="f0026-21" width="578" height="345"></div><h2>TORONTO 4, EDMONTON 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2212/3497214-1-eng-US/f0026-222.jpg" title="f0026-22" width="579" height="386"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0026-01

World Hockey Association Summaries

<p><b>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 22)</b></p><h2>Canadian Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2311/3497406-1-eng-US/f0026-232.jpg" title="f0026-23" width="533" height="157"></div><h2>East Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-249/3497399-1-eng-US/f0026-242.jpg" title="f0026-24" width="529" height="128"></div><h2>West Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-258/3497392-1-eng-US/f0026-252.jpg" title="f0026-25" width="527" height="159"></div><h2>GAMES COMPUTED</h2><p><b>Tue. Dec. 16</b></p><p>Son Diego 4 at Houston 2; Cincinnati 2 at Denver 3, Edmonton 3 at Indianapolis 1; Calgary 3 at Quebec 7; Winnipeg 4 at Toronto 3.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>New England 0 at Minnesota 0; Edmonton 3 at Cleveland 2.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 18</b></p><p>Indianapolis 1 at Phoenix 3; Cincinnati 3 at San Diego 7; Winnipeg 4 at Quebec 5.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Cleveland 4 at Indianapolis 5; Edmonton 2 at New England 4; Calgary 5 at Toronto 3; San Diego 3 at Denver 6.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Winnipeg 3 at Minnesota 6; Houston 4 at Phoenix 3; Indianapolis 3 at Cleveland 5; New England 2 at Cincinnati 4; Calgary 7 at Quebec 8.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Minnesota 3 at Winnipeg 1; Houston 1 at San Diego 3. Phoenix at Indianapolis, postponed; Quebec 7 at Indianapolis 11; Toronto 4 at Edmonton 2.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p><b>Mon. Dec. 22</b></p><p>New England at Cleveland.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 23</b></p><p>Minnesota at Denver; Phoenix at Cincinnati; Quebec at San Diego; Toronto at Calgary; Winnipeg at Edmonton.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>Denver at Houston,-Cincinnati at New England; Calgary at Winnipeg; Edmonton at Toronto; Phoenix at San Diego.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Minnesota at Houston; Denver at Phoenix; Cincinnati at Indianapolis; Toronto at Cleveland; Edmonton at Quebec.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>San Diego at Minnesota; Phoenix at Denver,-Indianapolis at Cincinnati; Cleveland at New England; Winnipeg at Calgary, Quebec at Toronto.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Quebec at Minnesota; San Diego at New England; Indianapolis at Denver; Edmonton at Toronto; Winnipeg at Houston.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan. 1</b></p><p>Edmonton at Calgary.</p><p><b>Fri. 2</b></p><p>San Diego at Indianapolis; Denver at Cincinnati; Quebec at Cleveland; Calgary at Edmonton; Phoenix at Toronto.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0026-23

WHA SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">BY DOUG MCCONNELL</div><p>DENVER&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Denver Spurs announced an across the board reduction in ticket prices and the makeup of a 17-member advisory board, formed to concentrate keeping the franchise in Denver.</p><p>Complying with repealed requests by fans to lower ticket prices, the Spurs have dropped&rsquo; their lowest priced seats from $4.40 and $5.50 to $2.20 and their top-priced seat from $8.80 to $7.70. Box seats have been reduced from $13.20 to $9.90.</p><p>From the overall Advisory Board, a 10-member executive committee was formed to serve in a managerial capacity in such areas as team equity, tickets and marketing promotion. Those involved are all volunteers and will work directly with Spurs&rsquo; staff personnel.</p><p>The executive coinmitee makeup: Jim Kenney. Kenney Construction: Daniel H. Polsby. attorney: Terry Dreiseward. Phillips and Enter: John Haas. Johnny Haas Motors: Doug Spedding. Douglas Toyota: Morris L. McEntyr. Import Salvage: Andy Aicardi. Dreiling Motors: Tom Burns, attorney: Doug Poole. Multi Media Marketing: Bob Martin. KOA.</p><p>The remainder of the advisory board: Ralph Becker, president. Chevron Oil; Walter C. Emery, president. Bank of Denver: John A. Ezzard. M.D.: Peter Jensen. Haskins and Sells; Bruce Klaas, attorney: Edward Robinson. Roberts Dairy; Everit A. Herter.</p><p>On the ice. the Spurs moved to within a point of fourth place Phoenix and two points of third place San Diego with an overtime victory over the Cincinnati Stingers. Barry Legge picked up a loose puck in the slot for the winning goal at 5:25 of overtime to cap a Denver comeback. he Spurs had trailed 2-0 going into the third period but tied the game on goals by Rick Morris and Ralph Backstrom. for Backstrom his 14th at the season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01218/3497444-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="548" height="1153"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>MIKE WALTON&hellip;Fires Game Winner</b></figcaption></div><p>Earlier. Don Borgeson had scored two goals, his 15th and 16th. and assisted on two more by Backstrom in a 6-3 victory over the Cleveland Crusaders.</p><p><b>PHOENIX</b>:&mdash;The Roadrunners&rsquo; 4-1 victory at Denver was their largest margin of victory of the season and when they stopped the San Diego Mariners 4-2 at home the next night, they temporarily regained third place. The Roadrunners have a 3-0 record over the Mariners this season.</p><p>Jack Norris, in goal for both victories. reduced his goals against average to 3.20 and if he had played enough minutes, would rank fifth in the league. His 721 minutes are short of the required 840 for ranking.</p><p>The Roadrunners traded forward-defenseman Pete McNamee to San Diego for utility forward Dave Walter and assigned Walter to their farm club at Tucson of the Central League.</p><p><b>MINNESOTA</b>&mdash;The Fighting Saints traded the right&rsquo; to Greg Neeld for the rights to defenseman Bill Nyrop. Neeld, goes to the Toronto Toros but Nyrop, from Edina, Minn., has one year remaining on his contract with Montreal and is currently playing for Halifax of the American League.</p><p>Neeld is suing the National League for refusing to let him sign a contract with the Buffalo Sabre&rsquo;. He lost the sight in one eye in a hockey injury but came back to star as a junior.</p><p>The Saints managed only 14 shots on goal in a 1-0 shutout loss to Cleveland and lost on a freak power-play goal, 3-2, to the New England Whalers.</p><p>Tom Webster&rsquo;s shot from beyond the goal line kicked off Minnesota goaltender John Garrett&rsquo;s leg for his 12th goal of the season, ending Minnesota&rsquo;s two-game win streak.</p><p>Mike Walton&rsquo;s 14th goal of the season, midway through the final period, was the winner in a 5-3 triumph over Toronto.</p><p><b>HOUSTON</b>&mdash;Gordie Howe sat out the second game of his two-game suspension for roughing up referee Ron Asselstine, but this sons dark and Marty took over to combine for three goals and one assist in a 6-4 victory over the Cincinnati Stingers.</p><p>Mark &lsquo;s second goal broke a 4-4 tie with 6:24 left in the game.</p><p>The Aeros exploded for three quick third period goals to beat the Cleveland Crusaders 4-3. included had one of the comeback goals against Cleveland, scored another goal and assisted on two in the first period in a 4-2 win over the Indianapolis Racers.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02171/3497437-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="546" height="964"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RALPH BACKSTROM&hellip;Nets 14th Goal</b></figcaption></div><p><b>SAN DIEGO&mdash;</b>Center Andre Lacroix, coming back after a slow start, had his 16-game consecutive point scoring streak snapped and the San Diego Mariners settled for a 3-3 tie with the Indianapolis Racers.</p><p>The Racers had trailed 3-1 ening two while short handed.</p><p>Defenseman John Schella. who learing the final period but Blair McDonald and Nick Harbaruk scored within the first two minutes of the final period.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0027-01

Denver Reorganizes Cutting Ticket Prices; Roadrunners Regain Third Place With Spurt

<p>GP&mdash;Games played; G&mdash;Goals; A&mdash;Assists; P&mdash;Points;</p><p>PM&mdash;Penalty Minutes; SOG&mdash;Shots on Goal; SC%&mdash;Scoring Percentage</p><h2>CALGARY COWBOYS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01206/3497580-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="707" height="777"></div><h2>CINCINNATI STINGERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02144/3497573-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="707" height="740"></div><h2>CLEVELAND CRUSADERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03109/3497566-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="706" height="766"></div><h2>DENVER SPURS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0487/3497559-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="703" height="716"></div><h2>EDMONTON OILERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0573/3497552-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="699" height="765"></div><h2>HOUSTON AEROS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0659/3497545-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="707" height="720"></div><h2>INDIANAPOLIS RACERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0751/3497538-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="700" height="691"></div><h2>MINNESOTA SAINTS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0846/3497531-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="708" height="730"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND WHALERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0942/3497524-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="697" height="689"></div><h2>PHOENIX ROADRUNNERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1041/3497517-1-eng-US/f0028-102.jpg" title="f0028-10" width="716" height="721"></div><h2>QUEBEC NORDIQUES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1135/3497510-1-eng-US/f0028-112.jpg" title="f0028-11" width="705" height="743"></div><h2>SAN DIEGO MARINERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1232/3497503-1-eng-US/f0028-122.jpg" title="f0028-12" width="707" height="761"></div><h2>TORONTO TOROS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1328/3497496-1-eng-US/f0028-132.jpg" title="f0028-13" width="710" height="719"></div><h2>WINNIPEG JETS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1422/3497489-1-eng-US/f0028-142.jpg" title="f0028-14" width="711" height="716"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1522/3497482-1-eng-US/f0028-152.jpg" title="f0028-15" width="619" height="1246"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GAVIN KIRK&hellip;No. 3 On Toros</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1620/3497475-1-eng-US/f0028-162.jpg" title="f0028-16" width="602" height="1250"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ULF NILSSON&hellip;Top Jet Scorer</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0028-01

WHA SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div><p>BOSTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>ardly had the Eastern College Athletic Conference Division One hockey race gotten up a head of steam when examination break hit. allowing every team but two in the 17 team loop a respite from the ice wars before Christmas.</p><p>As expected, the field is well bunched as they round the clubhouse turn and make the climb up the January backstretch. All teams are holding true to form with the exceptions of St. Lawrence, lightly regarded in pre-sea-son polling, and Harvard and Vermont. Having their troubles after being picked as upper echelon occupants.</p><p>Powerful Boston University sports a 4-0 overall and league mark, although the Terriers could have looked better in three of their four wins. At this early date the only unbeaten team left, they slipped by Providence5-3, New Hampshire 6-5, and Dartmouth 5-3 before getting it together to whip crosstown foe Harvard 8-3.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01172/3497618-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="282" height="389"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Michel Lebeau</b></figcaption></div><p>The Crimson, off slowly to a 1-3 mark, kept the game close for a period before a four-goal explosion early in the second frame wrapped it up. Within a 3:12 span, Rick Meagher, Mike Eruzione, Ken Kuzyk and freshman defenseman Jack O&rsquo;Callahan tallied to run the count to 6-1. Brian Petrovek was superb in the Harvard nets with 35 saves, buthis young teammates couldn&rsquo; thelp him much.</p><p>&ldquo;We were beaten to the puck all night,&rdquo; sighed a dejected Billy Cleary.</p><p>Holding down second spot were the Rhode Island twins, Brown and Providence College, each with a 4-1 league slate. Brown dropped its opener to Boston College 5-4. then ran off four straight including a 7-2 rout of Cornell and an 8-5 pasting of Harvard at Cambridge. With this much of a jump over her two arch-rivals. Brown now looms the Ivv League favorite and could very well challenge BU for top spot.</p><p>It looked like a long year for young Providence College, starting out at 0-3 overall. Then back came junior de fenseman Ron Wilson from the Olympics and suddenly the record is 7-4, with the only league loss a narrow one at BU.</p><p>Providence is skating eight freshmen, including goalie Bill Milner, a walk-on who beat out both experienced goalies for the top job. He. captain Dan Kennedy, and the three Wilson brothers have been the main cogs for the Friars so far.</p><p>&ldquo;Getting Ron back really helped settle us down, especially the freshmen on the team,&rdquo; said coach Lou Lamoriello. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a great leader.&rdquo;</p><p>Brad Wilson scored twice in a 6-5-win over BC, then four times in a 7-5 job over Princeton which saw the Friars rebound from a 4-1 deficit.</p><p>St. Lawrence is wingingout with a 73 overall mark and 3-1 in the loop, with goalie Harry Aikens a big factor. The junior net minder turned back 46 of Vermont&rsquo;s 49shots in a 5-3 win at Canton.</p><p>New Hampshire has found a capable goalie in Dan Magnarelli and has run up a 5-2 league record, with their best game a 5-1 bouncing of Boston College at BC&rsquo;s McHugh Forum. Jamie Hislop and Bob Gould each scored a pair in that one. as the Wildcats have pulled together offensively in the absence of Olympian Bob Miller.</p><p>John Corriveau netted the overtime goal to tip North eastern for UNH in a game played at Harvard&rsquo;s Watson Rink. The Huskies haven&rsquo;t been able to call anywhere home since Boston Arena was taken over by the city of Boston. The old ice palace has yet to open, and the Huntington Hounds are bumming practice ice wherever they can. They are getting fine netminding from Jim Bowman, who had 48 saves in the overtime loss to UNH. And the Jim Martel-Charlie Huck-Dave Sherlock line has once again been scoring in bunches.</p><p>Dartmouth is a mild surprise at 2-1, with the big win a 7-6 road job over Vermont in Burlington. Freshman Mark Culhane scored a hat trick including the winner for new coach George Crowe, who&rsquo;s become a hero in a couple of weeks. Other games include a 5-3 loss to BU and an 8-7 win at Princeton.</p><p>Vermont took eight games to get a win, then routed Norwich 10-3 and Clarkson 10-4 to climb back to where they should be. UVM, thought by many to be a first place challenger, lost wing Bill Reber and suffered a flu bug through the squad, but still took a long time getting untracked. Michel LeBeau&rsquo;s four goals against Clarkson may signal the end of the drought</p><p>Boston College has been inconsistent, but has beaten an excellent Brown team and whipped Princeton 11-2 with freshman Joe Mullen netting the hat and rixikie rearguard Joe Augustine tallying twice. The Eagles. 2-2 in the league, were outplayed by UNH in the 5-1 loss but showed gumption in rallying from a 1-6 deficit to nearly tie Providence before losing 6-5. Freshman Paul Skidmore has apparently won the goalie job. and Len Ceglarski&rsquo;s experiment with moving Bob Ferriter to the backline seems to be working out. BC is on the upswing.</p><p>RPL 4-4 overall, is 1-2in ECAC competition and both losses have come in overtime. Clarkson started fast, with three straight ECAC wins before losing to RPI 5-3 and Vermont 10-4. The Golden Knights have been getting good production from Dave Taylor and Kevin Zappia.</p><p>Cornell, though 2-1, has been unimpressive in losing7-2 at Brown and nipping Yale 5-4 in New Haven. The Big Red were uncharacteristically unaggressive in their own zone against the swift Bruins. Winless (0-5) Yale actually outshot Cornell 34-32 but lost by a goal. Beginning the long road back from a 1-21-1 season, the Elis have been bombed twice&mdash;9-2 by Penn and 10-2 at Brown&mdash;but were reasonably close in losing to Cornell, to Colgate 85, and North eastern 6-4.</p><p>Princeton. 1-4 in the league, has been close every game except the 11-2 loss at BC. Their best effort was a 6-2 whipping of Penn in which Craig Dahl scored twice.</p><p>Penn has been on a roller coaster. Losing to Princeton. New Hampshire 13-5 and non-league Air Force didn&rsquo;t help Bob Crocker&rsquo;s ulcer any. But the Quakers looked tight in their 4-3 upset of Harvard in which Jamie Hodge&rsquo;s short handed goal proved the difference. Penn took a 4-1 lead and held on, with Carl Jackson making36saves.</p><p>Colgate, though 2-5 in the ECAC, has only lost by more than two goals once, with a 7-2 decision at Brown the worst defeat. New coach Jim Higgins has the Red Raiders moving, with their wins coming 8-5 at Yale and 5-4 over RPI in overtime.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02137/3497611-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="549" height="833"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BRIAN PETROVEK&hellip;Superb For Harvard</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0029-01

Top ECAC Teams Playing Up To Form

<p>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 15)</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0394/3497670-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="585" height="482"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Brown 10, Yale 2</p><p>St. Lawrence 7, Colgate 5</p><p>New Hampshire 7, Bowdoin 2</p><p>Princeton 6, Penn 2</p><p>Providence 6. Boston College 5</p><p>Boston University 8, Harvard 3</p><p>New Hampshire 3, Northeastern 2</p><p>Vermont 10, Norwich 3</p><p>Boston College 11, Princeton 2</p><p>Vermont 1D, Clarkson 4</p><p>Colgate 5, RPI 4</p><p>Brown 8, Harvard 5</p><p>New Hampshire 8, Northeastern 6</p><p>Providence 7, Princeton 5</p><p>Northeastern 6, Princeton 5</p><p>St. Lawrence 5, Vermont 3</p><p>Dartmouth 7, Vermont 6</p><p>Boston College 5, Brown 4</p><p>Boston University 6, New Hampshire 5</p><p>Harvard 5, Northeastern 4</p><p>Penn 9, Yale 2</p><p>Providence 10, Massachusetts 2</p><p>Boston College 10, St. Anselm&rsquo;s 1</p><p>Boston U. 5, Dartmouth 3</p><p>Brown 7, Cornell 2</p><p>Providence 5, RPI 4</p><p>Colgate 8, Yale 5</p><p>Brown 7, Colgate 2</p><p>RPI 5, Clarkson 3</p><p>Cornell 5, Yale 4</p><p>Penn 4, Harvard 3</p><p>New Hampshire 5, Boston College 1</p><h2>WCHA CONFERENCE</h2><p>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 1 5)</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0470/3497663-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="587" height="277"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>U.S. Nationals 9, Colorado College 2</p><p>U.S. Nationals 6, Denver 3</p><p>St. Louis 6, Colorado College 3</p><p>Michigan 8, Wisconsin 4</p><p>Minnesota-Duluth 5, Michigan State 2</p><p>Michigan Tech 11, Lake Superior State 1</p><p>Michigan 8, Wisconsin 3</p><p>Michigan State 8, Minnesota-Duluth 5</p><p>Michigan Tech 6, Lake Superior State 4</p><p>St. Louis 7, Colorado College 3</p><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0563/3497656-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="589" height="274"></div><h2>GOALING RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0648/3497649-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="582" height="155"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0029-03

ECAC CONFERENCE

<div class="byline">BY SCOTTHERRON</div><p>MADISON&mdash;</p><p>Make way for Michigan. No, not just the Wolverines, the Spartans and Huskies, too. The whole state is on the rampage.</p><p>After the second weekend of play in December (Dec. 12-13), the three Michigan schools were on top of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. State was in first with a 10-4 record and 20 points and Tech and the University of Michigan were tied for second, each with 8-4 records and 16 points.</p><p>The Wolverines gained a share of the runnerup spot by thumping last place Wisconsin 8-4, 8-3 before a two-night total of 16.801 fans at the Dane County Coliseum. And the throngs which boosted the Badgers&rsquo; home attendance to 67.093 this year, certainly got their money&rsquo;s worth.</p><p>Not that the zealous Wisconsin fans were pleased with what transpired as the struggling Badgers dropped their eighth and ninth league games of the season. But from the sheer entertain-mentofitall.</p><p>Always looking for a way to win, interim Wisconsin coach Bill &ldquo;Rocket Rothwell called the officials&rsquo; attention to the banana curve of a Michigan players&rsquo; stick in the first period of Friday night&rsquo;s game. Sure enough. The Rocket spotted too much hook and All-America goalie Robbie Moore was given a 10 minute misconduct.</p><p>Moore&rsquo;s departure didn&rsquo;t stymie the Wolverines&rsquo; attack. They scored four goals in each of the first two periods to ice the game. Moore&rsquo;s replacement, Rick Palmer, allowed two goals while making 16 stops.</p><p>At the other end of the rink, Wisconsin goalie Mike Dibble was obviously getting the worst of it. And 1:33 into the second period, after making just two saves in the game, Dibble skated off the ice. You can only take so much and the Dane County crowd is well known for its treatment of goalies. But their own?</p><p>Freshman Julian Baretta came off the bench to make 21 stops while giving up three goals, and Saturday night, although he allowed eight goals, he made 42 saves. Moore went the route with a straight-bladed stick, making 27 stops.</p><p>While the goalies and Michigan&rsquo;s hot shooting (Kris Manery had four goals and Angie Moretto three) entertained the Madison crowd, fans in Duluth got their own brand of excitement in the only other league series played.</p><p>Michigan State was in Duluth for two games with the Bulldogs and there were nearly as many unusual goings on as further south. The Spartans are well known for their power play, with league-leading scorers Tom Ross and Steve Colp helping them to convert almost one-third of their chances. But-State went 0-6 in the series opener, while Duluth made good on four of six and scored a 5-2 upset.</p><p>The Spartans had their best chance to score while having the man advantage in the first period. Ten minutes into the game Bulldog defenseman Dave Langevin was given a match penalty for kicking, presenting State with a five-minute power play. But minus Colp, who was sitting out an earlier 10-minute misconduct for arguing over a high stick infraction, and injured defenseman Pat Betterfly. the awesome Spartan power play lacked punch.</p><p>Koss, the WCHA scoring leader with 22 goals and 17 assists, quite often scores when State has the power play. But minus his sidekick for most of the first period and not playing up to par after a week of final examinations, he failed to score at least a point for the first time in 80 straight games. The streak went back to Dec. 19, 1973 in a game against Denver.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m kind of sorry to see the streak end, but it feels good not to have the pressure on me,&rdquo; said Ross, a senior from Dearborn. Michigan. &ldquo;I really wasn&rsquo;t into the game. We had finals all week and we really didn&rsquo;t get to skate that much.&rdquo;</p><p>Ross gothis streak going again the next nigbt when he scored a power-play goal to help State beat Duluth 8-5. But Colp&rsquo;s line, which also includes Daryl Rice and Rob Harris, did the most damage, accounting for four goals, three in the third period.</p><p>There was a miscounduct penalty in that game, too, to Duluth&rsquo;s Doug Spo-den, and an apparent tying goal by the Bulldogs early in the third period which would have made the game 5-5 was disallowed. Referee Fred Allen ruled the puck had been kicked in.</p><p><b>WCHA NOTES:</b> Said referee Gordy Lee of Langevin&rsquo;s kicking penalty: &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think he meant to kick the other fellow, but it doesn&rsquo;t have to be intentional to be a penalty. In fact, it&rsquo;s a penalty if you attempt it. Same thing with a.spear.&rdquo;&hellip;St. Louis University stretched its winning streak to 11 games by sweeping Colorado College 63. 7-3&hellip;That same week the U.S. Nationals beat CC 9-2 and stopped Denver 6-3.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Michigan Teams Dominate First Half WCHA Action

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>BALTIMORE&mdash;</p><p>The mark of a good team is the ability to win the close games, the one and two goal affairs or the sudden death contests.</p><p>The Clippers are not one of the better teams in this category. Of their 15 losses this year, 10 have been by one goal, including a few with an empty net score thrown in for insurance.</p><p>In overtime affairs the Clippers show a win, two losses and three ties, while the Baltimore club has won only two other one-goal decisions. Two of the primary reasons for Baltimore&rsquo;s failure to win the close ones, has been the recent problems the club has had in converting power play opportunities. In addition, the Clipper penalty-killing units have not been as effective as they were earlier in the campaign.</p><p>According to official scorers, the Clippers have outshot the opposition in 25 of their first 28 contests, but show only a 10-15-3 record, nine points be hind division leading Richmond and only three ahead of last place New Haven.</p><p>But statistics can be misleading. One diehard Baltimore fan commented that the Clippers never seem to have a man in the slot or near the net during the power play, and on those long slap shots, opposing goaliers are never screened and therefore have clear visibilty to make saves. &ldquo;It seems as if they&rsquo;re afraid to get in close, afraid to get hit or something,&rdquo; the fan remarked. &ldquo;You know, most goals are scored on deflections in close, but the Clippers don&rsquo;t get many of those because there&rsquo;s no one in close. They lack physical toughness. Oh, I don&rsquo;t mean fighting toughness, but real physical strength,&rdquo; the fan continued.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01202/3497732-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="262" height="428"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Derek Smith</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;That line of Stefaniw, Giannini and Sarrazin shouldn&rsquo;t even be out there together, they get muscled off the puck all the time.&rdquo;</p><p>Baltimore officials held a press luncheon early last week to discuss the problems of the team and also to reiterate that the club would remain in Baltimore for the entire season. &ldquo;And we are already looking ahead to next season,&rdquo; one of the owners remarked, although management is resigned to losing money this season.</p><p>The luncheon dispelled rumors that the Clippers would fold by Christmas, although owners are somewhat upset by the poor attendance figures to date.</p><p>The World Series in early October and then the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays were given as excuses for the low crowds, but they&rsquo;ve all been used before and the record gets tiresome.</p><p>A lost weekend in which the Clippers dropped two decisions to Hershey and another to Providence, all by one goal, did little to spur interest for the remainder of the pre-Christmas schedule..</p><p>The Clippers are also now battling a playoff fever in Baltimore, generated by the &ldquo;young tough&rdquo; Colts, who gave a sellout crowd an exciting overtime victory over Miami en route to a postseason berth.</p><p>It is the type of new, tough look that Clipper fans had been promised for their heroes, but as yet that type of club has not surfaced in the Monumental city.</p><p>Many promotions are planned in the New Year and the owners hope that the crowds will increase once the club starts to turn things around and begin a winning trend.</p><p>Injuries to Giannini and Bob Craig seriously hampered the Clippers agains thershey and Providence and playing-coach Kent Douglas was forced to move defensemen Jerry Ba-diuk and Ray Clearwater to forward posts to compensate for the injuries.</p><p><b>HERSHEY:</b> The Bears extended their winning streak to eight straight and moved into a first place tie with Richmond. However it was only temporary as the Robins responded to a head-to-head confrontation of co-leaders and deflated the Bear bubble, 4-0, behind goalie Mike Belhumeur.</p><p>The return from Pittsburgh of Wayne Bianchin was a shot in the arm for the Bear offense and he proved too much for Baltimore to handle in a home-and-home series, picking up five points in the two one-goal wins over the Clippers.</p><p>However, an injury to Buffalo&rsquo;s Rene Robert, was expected to result in the recall of a Hershey forward by the parent club, with Gary McAdam the likely candidate.</p><p>McAdam had scored 16 points in 13 games for the Bears and his loss would put somewhat of a crimp in the Bear forward units.</p><p>Right wing Kelly Pratt was also sidelined with a slight shoulder dislocation, a gift from Baltimore coach Kent Douglas in Baltimore where the Bears won 6-5. The next night in Hershey, the Bears went after Douglas the entire evening, trying to avenge their injured team-mate.</p><p>Goal production, once a major worry for coach Chuck Hamilton and general manager Frank Mathers, now appears to be a problem of the past. In their eight game streak the Bears scored 35 goals and went over the 100 mark for the season in the two-game series with Baltimore.</p><p>The Bear goaltending gets better and better. Gordon Laxton posted a 62-1 record since his return, while Don Edwards, following a brilliant performance against Baltimore, showed an8-3-l mark.</p><p>Both Derek Smith and Jean-Guy Gratton went into double figures in goals scored in the Baltimore series, while Bianchin boasts seven goals and 14 points in just 11 games.</p><p><b>RICHMOND:</b> The Robins, their first place status endangered by the onrushing Hershey Bears, were equal to the challenge and preserved their slim two point Southern Division lead with a 4-0 shutout of the Bears.</p><p>Mike Belhumeur did the honors in the Robin goal and recorded his second shutout in three games. It was also the third whitewash of the year (Jerome Mrazek had the other) for the Robins, tops in the league.</p><p>In the midst of a five-game winning streak the Robins had permitted only 4 goals, three in a 4-3 victory over Providence.</p><p>Their rise to the division lead includes a stretch of 13 games in which the Robins won 10, tied another and lost but two.</p><p>The Robins first banner night of the season was such a success that management officials decided to hold banner night for every remaining home game in December.</p><p><b>NEW HAVEN:</b> The Nighthawks continue to sink deeper into the Southern Division cellar and dropped all three starts last week as the losing streak reached six straight. Only a like Baltimore downswing kept the Hawks within reach of third place. r</p><p>Bill Lochead was returned to the Hawks by Detroit and Minnesota sent defenserhan Billy Plager to the New Haven club to shore up a porous rearguard that ranked third in most goals allowed.</p><p>In the losing streak, the opposition had struck for 35 goals, an average of six per game, while the Hawks were finding the goal scoring range but ten times.</p><p>The question is still bidding, &ldquo;Why is New Haven going so badly when the talent is among the best in the league?</p><p>Rumors of internal feuding run rampant, but that is usually the case when a club is failing.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02150/3497725-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="557" height="645"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>WAYNE BIANCHIN&hellip;Impressive Debut</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0030-01

Unlucky Clippers Bemoan Losses, Club Plans To Stay In Baltimore

<h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03112/3497770-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="582" height="526"></div><h2>GOALING RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0486/3497763-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="583" height="670"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0030-03

AHL Leaders

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div><p>PROVIDENCE&mdash;</p><p>What do you do when you lose two No. 1 draft choices that play the same position?</p><p>That was the quandry confronting Providence general manager Johnny Muckier last week, when the St. Louis Blues recalled goaltender Ed Staniowski, shortly after the New York Rangers co-working partner along with the Blues in Providence, pulled up their No. 1 pick, netminder Doug Soetarert.</p><p>Soetaert was recalled to replace Dunc Wilson, who underwent an emergency appendectomy and will be sidelined for six weeks. Staniowski was yanked away from the Reds on emergency conditions and Muckier was on the spot.</p><p>A phone call to his old friend Punch Imlach in Buffalo did not go unheeded and before the conversation was finished, Muckier had a goal tender.</p><p>Imlach immediately dispatched Gary Bromley to the Reds and the young goalie helped his new team to two victories in three starts as the Reds stayed slightly above the .500 mark.</p><p>Brian Ogilvie joined the team from St. Louis, somewhat compensating for the New York recall of Jerry Holland and the reassignment of Gerry Teeple.</p><p>Eddie Johnstone was also called up by the Rangers and his loss cost the Reds the services of their leading scorer.</p><p>With both St. Louis and New York experiencing difficulties, the Reds&rsquo; roster is not expected to remain intact for any length of time.</p><p><b>ROCHESTER:</b> The Amerks failed once again in their effort to overtake Nova Scotia for the division lead. The Amerks did win two of three, but fell three points off the pace when the Vess won all three of their starts.</p><p>Doug Gibson was still with Boston, but the Amerk offense managed 14 goals in the three games and even though Gibson was missed, others were picking up the slack.</p><p>A loss to Providence was a tough one to absorb as Red netminder Sta-niowksi celebrated his recall to St. Louis with a 54-save performance to completely baffle the Amerks.</p><p>Even 19 consecutive minutes of power play failed to pay off for the Amerks in that loss.</p><p><b>NOVA SCOTIA:</b> The Voyageurs continued on their merry way at the head of the division, winning all three starts last week.</p><p>Rich Lemieux and Ken Houston both had hat tricks in one game as The Vees fired 54 shots. Jean Lemieux remains in Atlanta, But the has hardly been missed by the high flying Voyageurs, who lead the league in both goal scoring and in the least amount of goals allowed.</p><p>Pierre Mondou and Guy Chouinard remain as the team scoring leaders, while Rick Chartraw is gaining stature as the defensive ringleader.</p><p><b>SPRINGFIELD:</b> The Indians finally halted a seven-game losing streak by surprising Southern Division front-runner Richmond, 5-3, but it still left them 10 points behind third place Providence.</p><p>The loss of Kansas City&rsquo;s top draft piek Don Cairns to surgery for a torn cartilage did not thelp matters for the beleagured Indians, with Cairns scheled to be sidelined for eight weeks.</p><p>The addition of tough guy Rick Jodzio from Calgary is expected to give the club a big lift and recent goal-scoring spurts by Pete Harasym and Jerry Kemp may bode well for the future.</p><p>Despite their last place standing the Indians were 1,613 fans ahead of last year&rsquo;s attendance after 10 home games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01183/3497801-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="539" height="605"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GARY BROMLEY&hellip;Came To Rescue</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0031-01

Reds Lose Top Goalers In NHL Recalls

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Fri. Dec. 26)</b></p><h2>NORTH DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02143/3497895-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="565" height="131"></div><h2>SOUTH DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03119/3497888-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="562" height="126"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Tue Dec 16</p><p>Springfield 5 at Richmond 3.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>Richmond 4 at Baltimore 2; Providence 8 at Hershey 8; Rochester 6 at New Haven 3.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Springfield 2 at Baltimore 1, New Heven 4 at Providence 6-Nova Scotia 7 at Richmond 3, Hershey 1 at Rochester 1.</p><p><b>Sot. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Nova Scotia 2 at Hershey 3; Providence 2 at New Hoven 6; Rochester 4 at Springfield 2.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Baltimore at Nova Scotia, postponed; Springfield 5 at Providence 9; Hershey 6 at Richmond 4; New Haven 4 at Rochester 2.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p>Fri. Dec. 26</p><p>Richmond at Baltimore; Springfield at New Haven; Hershey at Nova Scotia; Providence at Rochester.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Providence at Hershey; Baltimore at Richmond; New Hoven at Springfield.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Baltimore at New Haven; Rochester at Nova Scotia; Richmond at Providence.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Richmond at Hershey; Rochester at Nova Scotia.</p><p><b>Eri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>Hershey at New Haven; Baltimore at Providence, Nova Scotia at Rochester.</p><h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Thu. Dec. 25)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0494/3497881-1-eng-US/f0031-042.jpg" title="f0031-04" width="537" height="177"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p><b>Tue. Dec 16</b></p><p>Fort Worth 3 at Tulsa 5</p><p><b>Wed. Dec 17</b></p><p>Tulsa 2 at Dallas 2; Soft Lake 2 at Tucson 5.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Tulsa 3 at Forth Worth 2; Dallas 2 at Oklahoma City 5; Salt Lake 6 at Tucson 5.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Fort Worth 5 at Dallas 4; Oklahoma City 2 at Tulsa 2.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p>Thu. Dec. 25</p><p>Dallas at Fort Worth; Tulsa at Oklahoma City.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>Oklahoma City at Salt Lake,-Dallas at Tulsa.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Fort Worth at Dallas; Oklahoma City at Tucson.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Tulsa at Tucson</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Tucson at Salt Lake.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan 1</b></p><p>Oklahoma City at Fort Worth; Tucson at Salt Lake.</p><p><b>Fri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>Dallas at Oklahoma City; Fort Worth at Tulsa.</p><h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Dec. 23)</b></p><h2>NORTH DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0581/3497874-1-eng-US/f0031-052.jpg" title="f0031-05" width="588" height="153"></div><h2>SOUTH DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0658/3497867-1-eng-US/f0031-062.jpg" title="f0031-06" width="585" height="130"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Wed. Dec. 17</p><p>Saginaw 2 at Fort Wayne 6; Kalamazoo I at Dayton 3; Flint 4 at Columbus 2, Port Huron 1 at Toledo 2.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Muskegon 3 at Flint 3; Dayton 3 at Columbus 8; Saginaw 8 at Kalamazoo 1Fort Wayne 3 at Toledo 3.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Dayton 3 at Fort Wayne 4; Flint 4 at Muskegon 6. Columbus 3 at Port Huron 5; Kalamazoo 0 at Saginaw 3.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Kalamazoo 3 at Port Huron 8; Fort Wayne 2 at Dayton 5; Saginaw 3 at Flint 5; Muskegon 4 at Toledo 5.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 23</p><p>Fort Wayne at Kalamozoo; Columbus at Saginaw.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 25</b></p><p>Joledo at Fort Wayne.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>Saginaw at Dayton; Columbus at Toledo,-Flint at Kalamazoo.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Dayton at Fort Wayne; Saginaw at Muskegon; Toledo at Port Huron; Kalamazoo at Columbus.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Muskegon at Dayton; Port Huron at Flint; Fort Wayne at Saginaw; Columbus at Kalamazoo.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Toledo at Columbus.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 31</b></p><p>Kalamazoo at Muskegon; Flint at Port Huron; Toledo at Dayton.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan. 1</b></p><p>Muskegon at Saginaw,-Dayton at Flint.</p><p><b>Fri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>Fort Wayne at Kalamazoo, Saginaw at Toledo; Port Huron at Columbus; Kalamazoo at Fort Wayne.</p><h2>NORTH AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Dec. 23)</b></p><h2>EAST DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0746/3497860-1-eng-US/f0031-072.jpg" title="f0031-07" width="584" height="158"></div><h2>West Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0840/3497853-1-eng-US/f0031-082.jpg" title="f0031-08" width="583" height="154"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 16</p><p>Because 7 at Cape Codders 3; Maine 1 at Buffalo 8.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>Maine 2 at Syracuse 5; Johnstown 0 at Erie 4; Buffalo 4 at Binghamton 3.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 18</b></p><p>Maine 1 at Mohawk Valley 3. Because 3 of Philadelphia 6. 6.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Mohawk Volley 5 at Buffalo 6, Erie 1 at Johnstown 3; Binghamton 4 at Syracuse 5; Because 6 at Philadelphia 3.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Syracuse 1 at Maine 6; Binghamton 3 at Cape Codders 6; Philadelphia 4 at Mohawk Volley 3; Buffalo 2 at Erie 3.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Syracuse 7 at Because 2, Cape Codders 3 at Binghamton 5; Philadelphia 2 at Erie 3.</p><h2>GAMES TO COME</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 23</p><p>Maine at Because; Cape Codders at Buffalo.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>Johnstown at Mohawk Valley; Syracuse at Binghamton, Erieat Buffalo.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Mohawk Volley at Johnstown; Philadelphia at Maine, Because at Cape Codders; Syracuse at Erie.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Because at Maine; Syracuse at Johnstown, Buffalo at Cape Codders; Erie at Binghamton.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Binghamton at Mohawk Valley; Cape Codders at Because, Johnstown at Syracuse; Philadelphia at Buffalo.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 31</b></p><p>Mohawk Valley at Binghamton, Erie at Johnstown.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan 1</b></p><p>Binghamton at Maine; Syracuse at Cape Codders.</p><p><b>Fri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>Erie at Syracuse; Johnstown at Buffalo; Maine at Because.</p><h2>SOUTHERN LEAGUE</h2><p>(Standings on Tue. Dec. 23)</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0929/3497846-1-eng-US/f0031-092.jpg" title="f0031-09" width="588" height="178"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 16</p><p>Charlotte 3 at Tidewater 5.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>Charlotte 8 at Hampton 2; Tidewater 4 at Greensboro 2.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Hampton 3 at Tidewater 3; Greensboro 3 at Charlotte 7; Roanoke 2 at Winston-Salem 0.</p><p><b>Sot. Dec. 20</b></p><p>Winston-Salem 2 at Hampton 3; Tidewater 5 at Roanoke 2.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Hampton 3 at Roanoke 3; Charlotte 1 at Winston-Salem 4; Tidewater 3 at Greensboro 4.</p><h2><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h2><p>Tue. Dec. 23</p><p>Roanoke at Greensboro.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 26</b></p><p>Greensboro at Hampton; Winston-Salem at Tidewater; Roanoke at Charlotte.</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 27</b></p><p>Charlotte at Greensboro.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 28</b></p><p>Roanoke at Hampton; Winston-Salem at Greensboro.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 30</b></p><p>Greensboro at Roanoke.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 31</b></p><p>Tidewater at Greensboro.</p><p><b>Thu. Jan. 1</b></p><p>Tidewater at Winston-Salem.</p><p><b>Fri. Jan. 2</b></p><p>Greensboro at Tidewater; Hampton at Charlotte.</p><h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Wed. Dec. 1 7)</b></p><h2>NORTHERN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1023/3497839-1-eng-US/f0031-102.jpg" title="f0031-10" width="584" height="144"></div><h2>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1120/3497832-1-eng-US/f0031-112.jpg" title="f0031-11" width="586" height="163"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Tue. Dec. 9</p><p>Green Bay 6 of Milwaukee 5</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 11</b></p><p>Marquette 5 at Milwaukee 14</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 12</b></p><p>Marquette 2 at Central Wisconsin 7</p><p><b>Sat. Dec. 13</b></p><p>Marquette 0 at Green Bay 8; Central Wisconsin 8 at Traverse City 7; Milwaukee 9 at Sioux City 8,-U.S. Olympic Team 6 at Waterloo 3.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 14</b></p><p>Waterloo 3 at Central Wisconsin 2; Traverse City 7 at Green Boy 7<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0031-02

LOOKING AT THE MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD

<p class="dropcap"><b><span>N</span>HL: 1&mdash;Montreal 2&mdash;Detroit 3&mdash;Boston. 4&mdash;N. Y Rongers. 5&mdash;Chicago 6&mdash;Toronto 7&mdash;Los Angeles 8&mdash;Pittsburgh 9&mdash;California 10&mdash;Philadelphia. 11&mdash;Minnesota 12&mdash;St Lours. 13&mdash;Voncouvet 14&mdash;N. Y Islanders 16&mdash;Atlanta 17&mdash;Kansas City It&mdash;Washington WHA: 19&mdash;Calgary 20&mdash;Cincinnati 21&mdash;Cleveland. 22&mdash;Denver 23&mdash;Edmonton. 24&mdash;Houston 25&mdash;Indianapolis 26&mdash;Minnesota. 27&mdash;New England 28&mdash;Phoenix 29&mdash;Quebec 30&mdash;San Diego 31&mdash;Toronto 32&mdash;-Winnipeg Inter-Leogue. 33&mdash;N Y Rangers (NHL & St Lours NHL) 34&mdash;Montreal NHl & Atlanta (NHL, 36&mdash;Pittsburgh (NHL) & Buffalo (NHL) 37&mdash;New England (WHA) 8 Washington (NHL) 38&mdash;Detroit (NHL) & Minnesota (NHL) 39&mdash;Atlonto (NHL) & Vancouver (NHL) 40&mdash;Phoenix. Houston & Son Diego (WHA) 41&mdash;Los Angeles (NHL) ANY. Islanders (NHL) 43&mdash;Kansas City (NHp & N.Y. Rangers (NHL). 44&mdash;Boston (NHL & Washington (NHl 45&mdash;Mm-Mesotoil NMl & Vancouver&rsquo;NHli 46&mdash;Calgary WHAi. KonsasCityi NHi, A Minnesota (WHA, 47&mdash;Philadelphia NHI & Washington (NHL) 50&mdash;Boston (NHL). Son Diego (WltA) 51&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) & Toronto (WHAT&rdquo; 52&mdash;Montreal (Ndl) & Toronto(WHA). 55&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) A Calgary (WHA). 56&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) A Cleveland (WHA) 57&mdash;N. Y. Rongers (NHL) A Sf-Lours (NHL) 58&mdash;Detroit (NHL) A Edmonton (WHA).</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Minor League Affiliations

<div class="byline">BY TOM LOBAUGH</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>DALLAS&mdash;</p><p>Five victories in a row. three of them on foreign ice. vaulted Gordon Fashoway&rsquo;s Black Hawks into second place, only two points behind the front running Oklahoma City Blazers, after the first weekend of December. Fort Worth was three points out of first. Tulsa four. Salt Lake nine, and Tucson 26.</p><p>The Hawks had to come from behind to win their first three games in December, back-to-back victories in Tucson by identical scores of 5-3, followed by a home victory over the archrival Fort Worth. Texans, 4-3.</p><p>Defenseman Dave Logan returned from the parent Chicago Hawks and his muscle was a welcome addition. Rookie center Greg Vaydik remained in Chicago for observation of a knee problem, and center-Jim Koleff was recuperating from knee surgery.</p><p>Four goals in the final period al Tucson. two of them by Dan Hinton, pulled out the Dec. 4 game, after the Mavericks appeared headed for their first home victory in history. Terry Smith had scored for the Hawks in the first period, but the Mavs scored three in the second, two on power plays.</p><p>Hinton&rsquo;s pair, only two minutes apart, tied the score, and Michel Archambault got the winner at 9:10 of the third. Pierre Giroux completed the scoring less than two minutes later.</p><p>The Hawks didn&rsquo;t wait that long to rally the next night. Tucson had a 2-1 lead in the first period, as Smith again scored the early Dallas goal. Dave Elliott and Moe L&rsquo; Abbe provided a brief Hawk lead, but it was 3-3 after two periods. Rob Palmer notched the winning goal at 3:56 of the third. L&rsquo; Abbe&rsquo;s insurance goal with 2:04 left in the game was Dallas&rsquo; second short handed tally of the season.</p><p>Reggie Giroux got the tying and winning goals when the Hawks returned home to face the Texans. Duane Wylie and Mike O&rsquo;Connell provided first-period Dallas leads, but Fort Worth scored twice early in the second. Reggies power goal at 15:45 made it 3-3. Early in the third Pierre Giroux (no relation) stole the puck for a 2 on 0 break with Reggie. The triumph gave Dallas a lead in the turnpike series. 2-1-4.</p><p><b>SALT LAKE:</b> The Golden Eagles came back from a four game road trip (three losses and a tie), with the pleasant prospect of playing nine of their next 11 games at their own Salt Palace. To show how much they appreciated being home, they polished off the Tulsa Oilers. 4-2. Dec. 6.</p><p>Other December outings had not been that happy. They dropped a 7-5 decision to Fort Worth, scoring five straight goal-after giving up six straight to the Texans. A rematch three nights later proved a better hockey game, but the result was no better for the Eagles, as they bowed. 4-2.</p><p>Tim Jacobs scored late in the first period after the Texans had mounted their 6-0 margin. That lead didn&rsquo;t appear so awesome after the second period. in which Eagles Denis Meloche and Brent Meeke each scored twice. But Mike Kennedy clinched a hat trick with 1:40 left to insure the Fort Worth victory.</p><p>Butch Williams scored in the second period of the rematch, and Frank Spring tallied with 40 seconds left in the game. The only cheerful note of the two-game set in Fort Worth was Spring breaking a 10-game goal drought after scoring in seven straight games earlier.</p><p>Veteran Lyle Bradley, who had played the first 18 games without a goal, ran his count to six in six games. He had two big ones in the 4-2 home victory over Tulsa, tying the score at 11 early in the first, and providing what proved to be the winning goal early in the second. Tom Sundberg had made it 2-1 for the Eagles in the first, but Oiler Bill Plett gothis second goal of the game after Bradley&rsquo;s second. Jim Moxey provided Eagle insurance mid-way of the third.</p><p>That broke a four-game winless string for Salt Lake, and was the Eagles&rsquo; third straight win at home, but they hadn&rsquo;t won in six tries on the road. Bradley, the club&rsquo;s scoring leader, shared 10th place in the league race with 24 points. PaulTantardini ran his penalty total to 114 minutes. 15 ahead of Oklahoma City&rsquo;s Alf Handrahan. Center Rick Kessell a seventh-year pro. joined the Eagles from the parent California Seals.</p><p><b>TULSA</b>: Losing their only two games of the week, the Oilers dropped from a first-place tie to fourth place, and coach Orland Kurtenbach was having trouble putting a full lineup on the ice.</p><p>On Dec. 8. Atlanta Flames called up center Cam Botting. who owned the Oilers&rsquo; only two hat tricks of the season. That left Kurt with seven forwards, and only two centers. Andy Spruce was given a shot at center, and defensemen Bob Bilodeau and Glen Surbey were installed at left wing. Center Danny Gloor and left wing Barry Wilcox were hobbled by injuries, and left wing Glen Richardson was still up with the Vancouver Canucks.</p><p>The Oilers lost a chance to take over first place when the Oklahoma City Blazers came to town. Dec. 5. Although a tornado struck southeast Tulsa two hours before game time, there were 4.979 fans on hand to see the turnpike feud resumed.</p><p>But the Oilers gave up goals faster than they could score them, especially in a mistake-filled first period, which saw the Blazers mount a 4-2 advantage. Dan Seguin. Hotting. Brad Gas-soff and Leon Rochefort had the Oiler goals in the7-4 setback. The next night in Salt Lake Bill Plett scored two goals, but the Oilers dropped a 4-2 verdict.</p><p><b>TUCSON:</b> Players continued to shuffle in and out. the latest following a National League decision to help the stumbling World Hockey Association farm club.</p><p>The St. Louis Blues provided defenseman GeorgeTower. who had been at Columbus in the International League, and center Norm Cournoyer, who had been at Muskegon in the same league. Last year both were with Denverin the CHL.</p><p>Biggest news was the loan from the California Seals of veteran goalie Ray Martynuik, who was the CHL&rsquo;s top net minder for Salt Lake last season, but was dropped by the Eagles for ineffective performance this season. The WHA Denver spurs recalled goalie Nick Sanza from the Mavericks, and the San Diego Mariners took back forward Mike Rouleau.</p><p>Martynuik made his first start in Oklahoma City. Dec. 6. and played well, although the Mavs lost. 4-2. But the next night in Fort Worth he was surprisingly ineffective, being pulled by coach Adam Keller after the Texans had a 6-2 lead in the second period.</p><p>Roger Swanson was in goal for a pair of 5-3 losses in Dallas. In both games the Mavericks played well enough to win, but succumbed in the third period. Dennis Olmstead, Steve West and Grant Erickson provided a 3-1 second-period lead in the first game, but the Hawks scored four goals in the third. In the rematch Neil Lyseng and Gordie Titcomb each put the Mavs ahead in the opening period, Grant Erickson tied it at the end of the second, but the Hawks weren&rsquo;t to be denied.</p><p>The well-played game in Oklahoma City saw the Mavs rally for ties at 1-1 and 2-2 on goals by Peter McNamee in the first period and Tower in rhe second. but the Blazers salted away the victory in the third.</p><p>&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t understand it.&rdquo; said Maxcoach Adam Keller one night later. &ldquo;We played well at home, even looked good in Oklahoma City, then we come into Fort Worth and stink up the place.&rdquo;</p><p>Looking desperately for help from either of the two major leagues, the Mays had run their latest losing streak to six games, and had played 14 games since the season&rsquo;s lone victory. Oct. 28 in Fort Worth. They were winless in 13 tries at their own rink.</p><p><b>OKLAHOMA CITY</b>: A big 7-4 victory in Tulsa, followed by a 4-2 home decision over Tucson, gave Ray Miron&rsquo;s Blazers a two-point first-place margin, and an 11-game unbeaten streakin their own Myriad.</p><p>Miron credited &ldquo;great goaltending, that&rsquo;s the secret. The guys have confidence in Pierre Hamel and Mike Palmateer. and they take more chances. and wind up scoring more goals.&rdquo; The Blazers had a 4.20 offensive average. far ahead of the pack.</p><p>Amateur defenseman Kevin Kemp was lost after seven games of his pro trial. Kemp tripped over an untied lace in practice, crashing into the boards and both fracturing and dislocating a shoulder. He was expected to 10 miss six weeks of action.</p><p>Claire Alexander, Tom Cassidy and Scott Garland continued to be the CHL&rsquo;s top three scorers with 37. 35. and 29 points, respectively. Alexander&rsquo;s 17 goals were tops in that department. while Cassidy had 15. Garland shared the CHL assists leadership with Dallas&rsquo; Randy Holt at 21 each, while Alexander and Cassidy each had 20.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01184/3497950-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="540" height="763"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>LYLE BRADLEY&hellip;Eagles&rsquo; Top Scorer</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0032-01

Victory Skein Vaults Hawks Into Second; Oilers Drop Three Notches In Seven Days

<h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02129/3497988-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="585" height="360"></div><h2>GOALING RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-0380/3497981-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="580" height="354"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0032-02

CHL Leaders

<p>FORT WORTH&mdash;</p><p>In an unprecedented (for them) scoring spree, the Texans amassed three hat tricks in four December games. Mike Kennedy did it Dec. 2 in a 7-5 home victory over Salt Lake. Dave Salvian and Lorne Stamler each had three goals in the 11-, 3 romp over Tucson at home Dec. 7. In between the! Texans repeated their mastery over Salt Lake, 4-2, but dropped a 4-3 decision in Dallas.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-0454/3498019-1-eng-US/f0032-042.jpg" title="f0032-04" width="284" height="445"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Mike Kennedy</b></figcaption></div><p>Mike Usitalo, Pat Price, Salvian, and Bob Bourne joined Kennedy in the scoring in the first triumph over Salt Lake. After scoring six straight goals in the first period, the Texans allowed the Eagles to score five straight, but Kennedy&rsquo;s goal with 1:40 remaining in the game insured the victory. It was the Texans&rsquo; fourth power play goal of the game.</p><p>Bourne had two goals to open the scoring against the Eagles three nights later. Newcomer Ralph Stewart and Salvian counted in the third period. In Dallas Neil Nicholson scored in the first period, and Dennis Abgralland Jim Peters provided a 3-2 lead in the second, but Fort Worth couldn&rsquo;t make it stand up.</p><p>Although Tucson scored first in the D&eacute;c. 7 game (Norm Cournoyer in only 37 seconds), the Texans took charge on goals by Stamler and Peters in the first period. Bourne, Salvian, Stewart, Bart Crashley goals 10 seconds apart off relief goalie Bruce Aberhart in the third, then Stamler got two more, clinching his hat trick on a shorthanded goal with 29 seconds left.</p><p>Center Stewart returned to the New York Islanders after playing only three games, but collecting seven points. Goalie Rick Charron hurt an ankle in the Dallas game, and was expected to miss a few turns in coach Terry Gray s rotation. Bill Hughes was in the nets against Tucson, after each goalie had won a game against Salt Lake.</p><p>Right wing Ron Kennedy (no relation to Mike,) was shipped to Muskegon in the International League, proving a disappointment after two fine previous seasons with the Texans.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0032-04

Texans Shoot Three In Four-Game Span

<div class="byline">BY MORLEY HOWE</div><p>MILWAUKEE&mdash;</p><p>Milwaukee Admirals scored two wins in as many games with victones over Sioux City and Waterloo.</p><p>Waterloo&rsquo;s newest addition, goaltender Dan Griffin registered the league&rsquo;s first shutout to date as Black Hawks defeated Sioux City Musketters3-0.</p><p>Due to the recent folding of the Copper Country franchise. United States Hockey League team owners held an emergency meeting during the past week at Milwaukee.</p><p>A special draft of Chiefs&rsquo; players was conducted that saw Marguette, Waterloo and Central Winconsin select high scoring forwards Jim Crawford, Kim King and Jim Carter in the first round. The remaining seven teams also drafted a revised schedule which has all clubs playing 24 home games.</p><p>Player movements including the drafting of players from Copper Country Chiefs:</p><p><b>SIOUX CITY&mdash;</b>Drafted Jack Mahon, Gary Moores & Ron Baron from Copper Country.</p><p><b>MILWAUKEE&mdash;</b>Drafted Ken Hicks & Bill Rossini from Copper Country. Added Pierre Sarrazin. Don Claude to active roster. Placed Gaetan Legault, Rene Daze on active reserve.</p><p><b>CENTRAL WISC.&mdash;</b>Drafted Jim Carter, Lorne Goulet, Rich Riippi & Gary Haverty from Copper Country. Added Steve Gillies, Gerry Gobeil to active roster.</p><p><b>WATERLOO&mdash;</b>Drafted Kim King, Cal Kitching, Dave Klingbeil, Mike Siddon from Copper Country. Added Mike Farina, Dan Griffin to active roster. Placed Jack Barzee, Scott Murphy on active reserve.</p><p><b>TRAVERSE CITY&mdash;</b>Drafted Peter Salosky from Copper Country traded Peter Salosky to Central Wise, for future considerations.</p><p><b>GREEN BAY&mdash;</b>Drafted Bruce Coppo, Don Opland, Mike Martin from Copper Country. Sent. Coppo toMarquette on loan.</p><p><b>MARQUETTE&mdash;</b>Drafted Jim Crawford, Dave Heinonen, Lee Durocher & John Marino from Cop per Country. Added Clement Carriere, P. Ouimette to active roster.</p><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02123/3498081-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="525" height="534"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0033-02

The USHL Scene

<div class="byline">BY JACK GATECLIFF</div><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>O</span>ntario Hockey Association Major Junior A commissioner Clarence (Tubby) Schmalz has claimed that 14 professional hockey teams are delinquent in paying for players drafted from his league and may take legal steps to recover the amount the owners feel is owing.</p><p>&ldquo;To the best of our knowledge 24 players who were drafted by the two major professional leagues (National and World) have not been paid in full and we expect the money no later than Jan. 21, 1976,&rdquo; said Schmalz.</p><p>The commissioner will turn over the list of players to league lawyer Joe Kane who has been instructed to contact the teams in the National Hockey League and World Hockey Association and report back by the Jan. 21 deadline.</p><p>&ldquo;If there is not enough satisfactory payment by that time we will consider legal action.&rdquo; said Schmalz.</p><p>The players involved signed contracts obligating them to pay 20 percent of their first-year contract back to their junior teams but Schmalz says the league is taking the stand that the professional teams are equally responsible.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01163/3498050-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="259" height="392"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Larry Riggin</b></figcaption></div><p>The juniors could sue the pros for inducing the players to breach the one-year option clause in their last junior contract, according to Schmalz.</p><p>At the moment there is no agreement in force between the amateurs and professionals but Schmalz said the Western Canada Hockey League and Quebec Major have been accepting payments scaled according to the old pro-amateur contract instead of the 20 percent fee.</p><p>The old agreement stipulated that $20,000 to be paid for the first 50 draftees, $15,000 for the next 40, $10,000 for the next 30 and $5,000 for all others.</p><p>Apparently some half payments have been received from Minnesota North Stars of the NHL for Paul Harrison of Oshawa and from Washington Capitals for Pete Scamurra of Peterborough Petes.</p><p>Other teams, such as Buffalo Sabres, have paid in full.</p><p>One problem facing the junior teams is that so many drafted last year have been sent to the minors that they are not certain the number signed to professional contracts.</p><p>According to Schmalz players not paid for in Ontario include:</p><p><b>Boston Bruins:</b> Doug Halward, Stan Jonathan, of Peterborough; Gary Carr, Toronto Marlboros: Rick Adduono, St. Catharines.</p><p><b>California Golden Seals:</b> Jim Weaver, Kingston Canadians; Dennis Vlaruk, London Knights.</p><p><b>Minnesota North Stars:</b> Tim Young, Ottawa 67s.</p><p><b>Montreal Canadiens:</b> Paul Woods, Sault Ste. Marie.</p><p><b>New York Islanders:</b> Richie Hansen, Geoff Green, Sudbury; Dave Salvian, St. Catharines.</p><p><b>New York Rangers:</b> Bud Stefanski, Oshawe; Wayne Dillon, Toronto.</p><p><b>Philadelphia Flyers:</b> Rick Ste. Croix, Oshawa.</p><p><b>St. Louis Blues:</b> Rick Bourbonnais, Kitchener; Jamie Masters, Ottawa.</p><p><b>Toronto Maple Leafs:</b> Paul Evans, Peterborough.</p><p><b>Vancouver Canucks:</b> Glen Richardson, Hamilton Fincups.</p><p><b>Washington Capitals:</b> Alex Forsythe, Kingston; Craig Crawford, Toronto.</p><p><b>Edmonton Oilers:</b> Bobby Russell. Sudbury.</p><p><b>Minnesota Fighting Saints:</b> Bruce Boudreau, Toronto.</p><p><b>Toronto Toros:</b> Paul Crawley, Sudbury; Paul Heaver, Oshawa.</p><p><b>SUDBURY:</b> Freshman coach Jerry Toppazzini has the Wolves cruising along at a record (for them) clip and their 8-1 win over St. Catharines Black Hawks extended their unbeaten streak to an even dozen games&hellip;Rod Schutt scored three times against the Hawks as the Wolves sprinted to a 10-point first place margin over the only other Northern Ontario team, the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds&hellip;Brian McDavid, not noted for his scoring earlier in the season, scored twice and had a pair of assists which affords further proof of the Wolves&rsquo; over all strength&hellip;Earlier in the week Sudbury had defeated Oshawa 4-2 and tied Toronto Marlboros 3-3 in Maple Leaf Gardens&hellip;However before a packed arena they didn&rsquo;t have enough power against the touring Moscow Selects and were beaten 11-4.</p><p><b>SAULT STE. MARIE:</b> Lise his counterpart in Sudbury, new (as far as Ontario is concerned) coach Muzz McPherson is doing a fantastic job and has the Greyhounds as genuine contenders for the first time in their four-year history&hellip;Mike Kaszycki is haying a super season after being obtained from Toronto Marlboros for home-towner Cary Farelli and alternates, almost on a weekly basis, as league points leader with the Wolves&rsquo; Ron Duguay&hellip;The Sault scored back-to-back wins over St. Catharines 6-2 on the road and 6-3 at home then downed Windsor 7-4 for a perfect week.</p><p><b>KINGSTON:</b> Canadians still well within range of second place which isn&rsquo;t bad for a team only three years in the league&hellip;As mentioned before they have built the team from the ground up and this, is the season they must produce&hellip;They looked like they were warming up for even better things in the New Year by taking two decisive victories from Peterborough 6-1 and 62 in a home-and-home series&hellip;The big difference in the second game was a three-goal outburst in exactly 60 seconds during the third period and it ended a three-game losing streak at home&hellip;Ken Linseman and Mike Crombeen scored two each.</p><p><b>OSHAWA:</b> The Generals, who looked like they might finish as low as last (how low can you get?) continue to improve under veteran coach Gus Bodnar as evidenced by their 6-2 decision over Toronto Marlboros in Markham&hellip;Captain Greg Malone had his biggest game of his three-year junior A career scoring five of his team&rsquo;s six goals including three in the third period. Malone could be one of the few Ontario junior A players in whom the pro scouts are interested this season.</p><p><b>OTTAWA:</b> Team president and owner Howard Darwin told reporters the 67s would move unless attendance increased&hellip;Average crowd is in the 1,900 neighborhood which is not enough to pay the bills&hellip;Ottawa just hasn&rsquo;t drawn well since Denis Potvin left three years ago to join New York Islanders&hellip;The team was built around him and fans disappeared when he left&hellip;On the ice the 67s aren&rsquo;t doing all that badly and are still in the running for the playoffs.</p><p><b>PETERBOROUGH:</b> Despite a dismal year in which they seemed destined to finish last after the first few games coach Roger Neilson has been able to keep club morale up and the Petes still win a game here and there&hellip;One occasion was in Maple Leaf Gardens when they nudged the Marlboros 5-4 on a last minute goal by Bob Schnurr&hellip;The Marlies had led by period scores of 1-0 and 3-2&hellip;However the five goals was an unusually high total for the Petes who ar&eacute; far and away the weakest team offensively and when this was written were the only club which hadn&rsquo;t reached the 100 mark in goals scored.</p><p><b>HAMILTON:</b> Fincups seem to be gradually pulling into a safe lead in the Emms Division although London Knights have not given up the chase&hellip;One thing is certain&hellip;It will be one of those two teams to win the first Emms Division pennant&hellip;The league was just split into two sections this year&hellip;Fincups displayed unbelievable scoring punch and in one stretch had 43 goals in four games&hellip;They scored a modest five in London but that was still enough to beat the Knights in what was billed as the battle for top spot&hellip;The largest crowd in year, a complete sellout of 5,332 fans at the ancient Forum went away happy as Fincups got goals from Ric Seiling, Mike Keating, Cal Herd, Joe Kowal and Ed Smith to beat the Knights.</p><p><b>LONDON:</b> Important loss in Hamilton was a blow but Knights&rsquo; coachmanager Bill Long still insists his team can catch the Fincups&hellip;Some evenings they look great, others not so great but they are definitely in the running&hellip;Consistent Vern Stenlund had one of the two goals in Hamilton, Rick Green the other as they were outshot 42-27&hellip;Earlier in the week they had won at home 7-4 over Kitchener and 31 in Ottawa as Larry Riggin played important roles in each game.</p><p><b>KITCHENER:</b> Rangers are stranded in third place&hellip;They don&rsquo;t have much chance of going higher but, fortunately for them, the teams below</p><p>them are playing so poorly that they probably won&rsquo;t slip down even one notch&hellip;Their tie with Ottawa was accomplished on goals by Dwight Foster and Dan Djakalovic but Foster&rsquo;s greatest moments were 24 hours earlier when he had four goals and three assists in Rangers&rsquo; 11-8 win against Windsor.</p><p><b>TORONTO:</b> Marlboros are still having a thoroughly disappointing season after winning the Memorial Cup last spring&hellip;But they could still make the playoffs if St. Catharines doesn&rsquo;t start picking up a few points&hellip;It was a bad week for George Armstrong and his charges as they were beaten 5-4 by Peterborough, 11-2 in Hamilton and 62 at their part-time home Markham by Oshawa&hellip;John Smrke scored the only two Marlie goals in Markham and has been one of their few steady performers&hellip;Many had picked them to end well up in the league.</p><p><b>ST. CATHARINES:</b> Rumors persist that the Hawks will be sold or transferred by the Emms family but nothing concrete&hellip;No question something must be done as attendance is at all-time low since junior A started in St. Catharines 33 years ago&hellip;Even some Sunday night games have drawn fewer than 1,000 fans.</p><p><b>WINDSOR:</b> The Spitfires are at the bottom and will probably be there when the schedule ends but, being in the weaker division, there is still hope&hellip;They picked up a welcome two points by scoring a 9-8 upset victory in Kingston on Guy Losier&rsquo;s second of the game with 13 seconds left.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0033-01

Schmalz Singles Out Pro Clubs For Non-Payment Of Junior Stars

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD</p><p>Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario J</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD</p><p>Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario J</p><p>Sold in U.S and Canada</p><p>COLUMBUS&mdash;</p><p>AI Savill, Sr., apparently believes he&rsquo;s carried the Christmas Spirit as far as he can&mdash;even in the Christmas season. As a result Columbus hockey fans could find empty stockings on the fireplace by the next Yuletide.</p><p>Savill is currently in his third season as owner of the Columbus franchise in the International Hockey League and while his latest edition is struggling in last place, he feels he&rsquo;s giving Columbus fans good hockey.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01177/3498133-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="272" height="435"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Gary Ford</b></figcaption></div><p>Upset by lack of community support, Savill, who also is one of the owners of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League, admitted after a recent Columbus loss he will move the Owls to another city &ldquo;as soon as the right offer comes along.&rdquo;</p><p>Savill emphasized he was not shopping for a city to take the Columbus franchise to but said &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll listen to any offers.&rdquo;</p><p>Continuing, Savill said: &ldquo;There is no way I can continue to operate this club with these kind of attendance figures. We five the fans an exciting show. And yet we do not get support. &ldquo;</p><p>Savill, who bought the franchise from Charlie Finley before the 1973-74 season, was most critical of public officials and business leaders in Columbus. &ldquo;They tell me, they call me and plead that I keep the team here but they do nothing to encourage community support. Many of those same people have not even been to one game this year.&rdquo;</p><p>Savill said he would not fold the franchise before the end of the current season. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m no quitter. We will continue to play here if I do not receive an acceptable offer to move elsewhere. But rest assured, under present conditions there is no way I will be here next year.&rdquo;</p><p>The Owls, who finished second to Dayton in the South Division of the IHL last season, currently are a distant last in the South and have won just four of 28 games.</p><p><b>DAYTON</b>: The Gems continue to set a scorching pace in the South as well as setting the best example for either division. The Gems have lost but seven games in building a six-point lead over Toledo. The 18-7-2 log is the best mark in either division.</p><p>Bill Riley has led the recent Gem surge. He scored the winning goal in a the road victory at Saginaw, a game the Gems won by a 5-4 score with a three-goal explosion in the second period. Riley got the third goal in the spurt and it proved the margin as Saginaw rallied for a pair of goals in the final period. The winning goal was Riley&rsquo;s fourth for the Gems this season.</p><p><b>TOLEDO:</b> General manager-coach Ted Garvin is a gambler, and he&rsquo;s taken a big one with the recent acquisition of the injured Doug vlanchak from Flint. A 61-goal scorer last season for the Generals and one of the most popular players ever to wear a Flint uniform, Manchuk suffered a serious eye injury in a game at Fort Wayne on Nov. 8. Manchak recently underwent Laser treament on the eye in Ann Arbor, Mich., in an attempt to seal off a leaking retina which could cost him the sight of the injured eye.</p><p>Flint officials and commissioner Bill Beagan warned that Manchak may never play hockey again but Garvin is taking the chance he will. Garvin has been hunting for a left winger and Manchak certainly would fill the bill should he recover. Prior to his injury, Manchak had scored seven goals in just 12 games.</p><p>If Manchak fails to recover, Garvin will be out the $300 waiver price and Manchak&rsquo;s salary for the balance of the season.</p><p><b>FORT WAYNE:</b> Failure to win at home has slowed the Komets&rsquo; drive towards a higher resting place in the South Division. The Komets, after going eight straight games without a loss in the spacious Memorial Coliseum, have now gone three games without a victory. The string includes two losses and a tie.</p><p>Coach Ralph Keller has welcomed the return of veteran defensemen Terry Pembroke and Terry Thomson, each of whom missed several games because of injuries.</p><p><b>PORT HURON:</b> All good things must come to end and so has the Port Huron winning streak on home ice. The surging Muskegon Mohawks snapped the string at 12 straight, skating off with a 4-3 victory. The loss followed a 2-1 win over Flint at home and cut the first-place Flags&rsquo; lead over the Mohawks to just two points. In addition, Muskegon has a game in hand on Bobby McCammon&rsquo;s young skaters who certainly have been one of the major surprises thus far.</p><p><b>MUSKEGON:</b> The Mohawks, who have led the league in defense all season long, are finally getting some offense for a balanced attack. Major reason is the awakening of two key gunners&mdash;defending scoring champion Gary Ford and Ernie Moser.</p><p>In skating to three straight victories over Kalamazoo, Port Huron and Columbus, Muskegon&rsquo;s offense clicked for goals and the defense limited the opposition to just five. Pat DeMarchi had the three-goal hat trick in a win over Kalamazoo while Ford had a three-point game and Moser a pair of assists. DeMarchi now leads the Mohawks in scoring with 23 points on nine goals and 14 assists.</p><p><b>SAGINAW:</b> Gear coach Don Perry, who has been upset several times this season because of whathe terms a lack of total effort from his charges, certainly couldn&rsquo;t fault Saginaw&rsquo;s efforts during a three-game weekend even if the results an overwhelming success.</p><p>The Gears went to the well three times and managed just one point&mdash;a 2-2 tie with Toledo. In getting the tie and suffering one-goal losses to Toledo (on the road) and Dayton (at home) in two subsequent outings, the Gears blasted no less than 133 shots on goal. They fired 46 in the 2-2 tie with Toledo but goalie Pierre Chagnon made the critical stops. The Gears had a 2-1 lead but Don Westbroke&rsquo;s 300th goal in an illusterious IHL career forced the deadlock.</p><p>In dropping a 3-2 verdict at Toledo, the Gears had 47 shots at goalie Tom Wyzgowski. In a 5-4 loss to Dayton, the Gears shot 40 times on the net. Perry saw some encouragment in the efforts however. The Gears were down, 5-2, in the Dayton game but came back to just about pull it out.</p><p><b>FLINT:</b> Injuries remain one of the Generals&rsquo; main barriers. Recent additions include defenseman Bill Kestell who was injured in a game with Fort Wayne and underwent knee surgery. He&rsquo;s out for the balance of the season.</p><p>Durable Wayne Zuk missed weekend games with Fort Wayne also. He was expected back soon, however. Even without Zuk, the Generals whipped the Komets in Fort Wayne, 51, and then salvaged a tie on Kirk Bowman&rsquo;s power goal in the final minute of the rematch in Flint on Sunday.</p><p><b>KALAMAZOO:</b> The Wings helped equal an IHL record while also snapping a four-game losing streak. The K-Wings and Toledo hooked up in a scoreless duel&mdash;only the second such ending in the 31-year history of the IHL. The previous double shutout was played between Fort Wayne and Port Huron in Port Huron on Feb. 27, 1971.</p><p>Merlin Jenner for Kalamazoo and Pierre Chagnon for Toledo pitched the pair of shutouts. It was the second for Jenner since he came to the Wings from Flint.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02127/3498126-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="546" height="662"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DOUG MANCHAK&hellip;Could Lose Eye</b></figcaption></div><h2>IHL Leaders</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0398/3498119-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="580" height="430"></div><h2>GOALING RECORDS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0471/3498112-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="580" height="607"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0034-01

Savill Threatens To Move Owls Out; Dayton Sets Sizzling Division Pace

<p>KALAMAZOO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>O</span>utspoken Ted Garvin, the Toledo coach and general manager has spoken out again. This time he&rsquo;s taken a blast at IHL scheduling which features three-game weekends.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think fans get quality hockey for the third game. The players are tired,&rdquo; Garvin commented after watching his Goaldiggers and Kalamazoo play to a scoreless tie here. &ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t a very exciting game,&rdquo; Garvin pointed out.</p><p>Garvin blames the three-game weekends on the owners. &ldquo;Everybody wants a Friday, Saturday or Sunday game. If they&rsquo;d play a mid-week game, the fans would come out. They do in the National League,&rdquo; Garvin added.</p><p>Garvin also watched the last period of the game in question from the radio booth, doing color. He did play-by-play for the final minutes. Asked afterwards if he&rsquo;d try sports writing next, Garvin barked, &ldquo;Geeno, I can&rsquo;t type.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Garvin Levels Blast At Schedule Makers

<div class="byline">BY BRUCE PENTON</div><p>CALGARY&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>f the saying about a change being as good as a rest is true, then Dave Amadeo and his Calgary Centennials have been conserving a lot of energy so far this Western Canada Hockey League season.</p><p>The Centenials have changed in more ways than one since Amadeo puthis 1975-76 team into battle last October, on more than one occasion, looking like world beaters one night and super stars the next. And the faces! Amadeo almost needs a program to know who&rsquo;s doing the skating on behalf of the once-great franchise.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01165/3498219-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="290" height="367"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Rich Peter</b></figcaption></div><p>No less than eight new faces grace the present Centennial lineup, but it looks as if Amadeo has finally found a winning combination.</p><p>The season started on a bleak note for the Cents, with just one win in five games. They&rsquo;re presently playing.333 hockey, (9-18-1) good enough for fifth spot ahead of the disappointing Edmonton Oil Kings, but it has been the fashion that the .333 hockey has been attained that has made the season one surprise after another for Amadeo.</p><p>For instance: Friday, Nov. 28. Cents are beaten 11-9 at home by Brandon. They then go on the road and do something no other team has accomplished yet this season: back-to-back wins over high-flying New Westminster and Kamloops.</p><p>Cents&rsquo; feeble home performances have been the low-light of the season. After starting the season with a win over Victoria, Calgary lost nine straight at the Corral. On the road during the same period, the team was 6-9.</p><p>But, in going for 10 straight losses at home, Centennials beat Flin Flon 7-5. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve finally broken the home-ice jinx,&rdquo; said high-scoring over-age Jerry Bancks. one of the new faces. &ldquo;Now we&rsquo;re going to try for a record the other way,&rdquo;</p><p>Amadeo was cautious, however. &ldquo;They didn&rsquo;t play as well as they did on the road, but we&rsquo;ll take the two points,&rdquo; he said after the Flin Flon win. They still seemed a little tight, but maybe this victory will get them going. We&rsquo;ve got Kamloops in here next, and they&rsquo;ll be out for revenge after we beat them in their own rink (last week).&rdquo;</p><p>And the Cents struck. Not struck out. Struck out in vengeance, stopping the Chiefs 5-3 as rookie goalie Jerry Price was spectacular. Their unbeaten home record went to three two days later with a 4-4 tie against Victoria, salvaged by Bancks&rsquo; goal in the last minute.</p><p>There was yet another accomplishment in that Victoria game: Cougar centre Jim Gustafson, who had scored at least one point in his team&rsquo;s 27 games to set a new league record, was blanked for the first time by Price and the Cents.</p><p>The best teams in the league couldn&rsquo;t do it, yet Calgary did.</p><p>It&rsquo;s no surprise Amadeo is aiming at a playoff spot, and with good reason. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got only one game away from the Corral in December,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;d like to get a winning streak going. I want to get this club believing in themselves at home.&rdquo;</p><p>Bancks and sophomore Paul En-quist lead the club in goals with 19 while captain Rick Hodgson, leads the defense. The new acquisitions&mdash;Chris Dyer, Craig Topolnisky and Tom Williamson from Kamloops, Bancks and Bill Jobson from Lethbridge. Gary Rissling from Edmonton and Elmer Ray from Medicine Hat have fitted in well and turned the season abruptly around for Amadeo. Looking into the future, you just know that the Centennials will indeed have a Happy New Year.</p><p><b>VICTORIA:</b> Cougars went for muscle when they acquired Archie Henderson from Lethbridge for defenseman Rick Peter. But they were far from bullying in edging Edmonton 3-2 at home and then hanging on for a 4-4 tie with Calgary, a game in which they were out-shot 41-22.</p><p><b>NEW WESTMINSTER:</b> In a game sold out for two weeks in Bruins, Queens Park Arena, New West struck for three goals in the third to edge leading Kamloops 4-3. The next night, newly-acquired goalie Blaine Peterson had an easy debut as Edmonton was hammered 12-3, paced by Mark Lofthouse&rsquo;s four goals, giving him 31 on the season. Hitting the road, Bruins split, losing 6-3 in Medicine Hat and dumping Edmonton 7-4.</p><p><b>KAMLOOPS:</b> Chiefs were just four points ahead of New West, which had two games in hand, after losing two of three. The big one, of course, was the showdown in Bruinland. Kamloops led that one 2-1 going into the third, but lost 4-3. Don Moores&rsquo; two goals led the Chiefs to a 6-4 win in Edmonton, but the next night. Calgary stopped Har-vev Rov&rsquo;s gang 5-3.</p><p><b>MEDICINE HAT:</b> Centre Greg Carroll had a big week, picking up five goals and five assists in three games as the Tigers won three straight after a dismal road journey. Carroll had four points in a 6-3 win over New West and added four more in a 7-1 triumph over Flin Flon. Don Murdoch increased his goal total to 37 with three during the week.</p><p><b>EDMONTON:</b> Losing four in a row dropped the Oil Kings into the basement of the West Division. Ken Burdon, recently acquired from Regina, and 17-year-old Paul Mulvey led the week&rsquo;s scoring with five points apiece. One-fifth of Edmonton&rsquo;s remaining schedule (nine of 46 games) is against provincial-rival Calgary, the team they&rsquo;ll likely battle with for a playoff berth.</p><p><b>LETHBRIDGE:</b> Broncos were outscored 22-18 in four games, yet picked up just one tie&mdash;that a 4-4 battle in Flin Flon. The night before, Broncos lost 7-5 to the Bombers. Earlier in the week. Broncos lost twice by one goal&mdash;5-4 at home against Medicine Hat and 6-5 in Saskatoon. Defensemen Doug Gilliespie had four goals in the week, and rookie forward Willie Desjardins picked up eight points.</p><p><b>SASKATOON:</b> Winger Blair Chapman rampaged his way to 11 points in four games as the Blades lost once and tied another to go with two victories, Their loss was 5-4 to Brandon, but Blades turned the tables (5-3) on the Wheat Kings back in Saskatoon. Blades blew two three-goal leads and tied Regina 6-6 after stopping Lethbridge 6-5 at home. Defenseman Glen Leggott had his first goal of the season in the win over Brandon, while Bernie Federko staved off Champmans&rsquo; charges to maintain his league scoring lead. Blades&rsquo; unbeaten home record now stands at 15(13-0-2).</p><p><b>REGINA:</b> Rookie Keith Hertz, who started the year with Edmonton, got the hat trick in a 6-1 win over Winnipeg as the Pats took advantage by scoring five power-play goals. Then, they tied Saskatoon 6-6 by scoring twice in the final period. Jon Hammond scored in the final minute to salvage Pats the tie. Drew Callander took over the team scoring lead with a goal and five assists in the two games.</p><p><b>BRANDON:</b> Wheat Kings, with just two road wins this year, lost twice more away from home, 4-3 in Winnipeg and 5-3 in Saskatoon. Their lone win came when Dale McMullin scored twice in the third period to edge Saskatoon 5-4 at the Keystone Centre. Center Danny Bonar has scored a point in 16 straight games. Gerry Stoughton had four goals in the three games.</p><p><b>WINNIPEG:</b> Clubs, with just one win in 16 games, warmed up for their exhibition against Moscow Selects with a 4-3 win over Brandon as Guy Lash got the winner in the third period. Writer Wayne Parks of the Free Press came up with an interesting statistic, pinpointing the reason for Winnipeg&rsquo;s recent collapse. Clubs have outscored the opposition in the first (plus one) and third periods (plus eight), but</p><p>have been whipped (minus 30) during second periods. Defenseman Kevin McCarthy keeps doing his share, though, increasing his output to 51 points for a spot in the top 10.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02137/3498212-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="560" height="764"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GREG CARROLL&hellip;Five-Goal Week</b></figcaption></div><p><b>FLIN FLON:</b> After two losses on the road. Bombers went home and earned a win and tie against Lethbridge to stay barely ahead of lastplace Regina. Kevin Marinos gothis first two goals of the season in the 7-5 win over Lethbridge. Unheralded Jor-dy Douglas got four points in a 7-5 loss to Calgary, but the bulk of the team&rsquo;s scoring was still done by the big line of Rich Gosselin, Mark Davidson and Kim Davis. Steve Montgomery, on a pass from Davidson, scored at 19:05 of the third period to give Bombers a 4-4 tie with Lethbridge. Broncos led that one 4-1 with 6:10 to play.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0035-01

Changes Answer For Calgary Coach As Amodeo Turns Centennials Around

<p>ALBUQUERQUE&mdash;</p><p>Albuquerque&rsquo;s five-game win string enabled them to retain the top spot in the Southwest Hockey League this week.</p><p>The Chaparrals enjoyed home ice by sweeping El Paso and Butte, and downing second-place Amarillo 6-2 in a single game&hellip;Doug Christy&rsquo;s 42 points gave him the league point leadership, while Steve MacDonald&rsquo;s 21 goals paced league scorers&hellip;goalie Jerry Farwell used his second shutout of the season, a 3-0 job against Butte, to improve his goals-against average to a league-leading 3.11&hellip;the Chaps&rsquo; drew a season high 1.585 fans for a Saturday game against Butte.</p><p><b>AMARILLO:</b> Former Winnipeg Jet player Cal Swenson has guided his club to a 10-4 record and second place in the SWHL. The Wranglers have the best winning percentage in the league with 71&rsquo;Kelly Kehoe&rsquo;s 10 goals and 21 points pace a balanced Amarillo attack. The Wranglers continue to be the SWHL&rsquo;s top-per in home attendance with a League record 3,521 seeing Amarillo beat Albuquerque 3-1 on Nov. 21.</p><p><b>BILLINGS:</b> An absence of able bodies made it tough for the Blazers to get back on the win track. Billings heads into a five-games-in-five-nights southern road swing with a number of injuries at key positions. Goalie Tom O&rsquo;Toole is suffering from a neck injury, defenseman Howie Dupont has a bad back, and Rick Finlayson was suffering from internal bleeding. Former Cornell University goalie and U.S. Olympic hopeful Buzzie Sheian has been recruited out of Baltimore, Maryland, and looked impressive in his first outing.</p><p><b>BUTTE:</b> The Copper Kings went on the road with a four-game win streak and big expectations, but ran into a string of troubles last week. They lost a pair to Albuquerque. and also lost player-coach Doug Sauter for the season in the second game of that series. Sauter crushed a kneecap when he tumbled into the boards. Things didn&rsquo;t get any better when Butte headed south, as they dropped a pair of games to the rejuvenated El Paso Raiders, 4-2 and 8-5. Kelly Milford leads the club in goals with 11, and also leads the penalty parade. Newcomer Murray Beck has provided good scoring punch.</p><p><b>EL PASO</b>: All systems appear go with the revamped Raiders and the revolving door policy of player procurement seems to be at an end. Coach general manager Ron Wheele has finally had a group of players around long enough for them to be introduced to one another, and the results have made the rest of the league sit up and take notice. El Paso battled second-place Amarillo to the end in losing two to the Wranglers, then came back a week later to pin a pair of losses on Butte. Fan interest is on the upswing with the addition of such former Reno Bronco players as defensemen Carl Cureatz and Cal Land, and goaltender Kel Erickson.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

SOUTHWEST LEAGUE ROUNDUP

<div class="byline">BY GARY CLARK</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>BUFFALO&mdash;</p><p>Young Greg Neeld spent much of last summer fighting legal battles designed to allow him to play pro hockey in Buffalo. Now he is doing just that, even if it is not exactly as he envisioned it.</p><p>Neeld of course is the Sabres draft choice who has been barred from signing with the NHL team by a league rule which declares players who have suffered his disability ineligible. Neeld lost the sight of his left eye while _ playing an OHA game two seasons ago.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01145/3498288-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="273" height="411"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Rea Bechtold</b></figcaption></div><p>The right hand shooting defenseman has signed with the Toronto Toros and been assigned to Buffalo Norsemen. He played his first NAHL game in a 8-1 Norsemen victory over the Maine Nordiques. And while he did not score any points in that win. he showed flashes of the talent that made him a potential NHL first round pick before his injury.</p><p>Since the injury. Neeld has suffered setbacks to his attempted comeback but never has given up pursuit of his goal of a major league career.</p><p>He was prohibited from returning to OHA competition so he moved to Calgary to play his last year of Juniors with the WCHL Centennials where he was a 29-goal scorer. When he was barred from signing with the Sabres he at first decided to attend school and play semi-pro hockey with the Reno Broncos of the SWHL. When that team folded earlier this season he was left with no place to play at all. But the still was convinced that the could return too organized hockey.</p><p>Greg now wears a specially designed helmet with a protective mask that entirely covers his face. And after experimenting with a move to forward to see if that would ease his readjustment. he has returned to his natural position, defense.</p><p>Were there ever two teams that need a good defenseman they are the Toros and the Norsemen. The Toros have been desparate for capable major league defensemen. which made a gamble on Neeld all the more attractive.</p><p>Gilles Leger of the Toros explained his club&rsquo;s decision to sign the young seterthusly: &ldquo;At the time Greg was originally injured John Bassett (Toros owner) promised him that the could have a shot with the Toros if he wanted one. We need good major league defensemen and think Greg has the ability to be one.&rdquo;</p><p>Minnesota Fighting Saints held the WHA draft rights to Neeld. The Toros acquired him by giving Minnesota the WHA rights to Bill Nyrop. Leger is enthusiastic that the deal for Neeld will turn out to be a steal. &ldquo;He shoots well, skates well, and is very strong fundamentally. And he has already improved markedly in playing the body, playing the man.&rdquo;</p><p>Nevertheless Leger wants to give the youngster some time to adjust to the pros, thus his status as the newest Buffalo Norseman. That sits just finewith the Norsemen, who along with the Toros have been crying for defensive help, and it also sits just fine with the league itself.</p><p>Commissioner Jack Timmins stated, &ldquo;Neeld obviously has a lot of determination to make it in pro hockey and we are very happy that the is getting his first chance in the NAHL.&rdquo;</p><p>And how does Neeld feel abouthis rejuvenated pro career? He has no doubts now; he feels that the can completely compensate for his handicap. As he explained to Mike Billoni of the Tonawanda News, &ldquo;I had to learn to put my head to the left and look straight ahead. Now I can do it instinctively. I have gotten back my peripheral vision and my hearing has improved so much and is so crisp that I can tell exactly how far away other players are just by sound.&rdquo;</p><p>Coach Guy Trottier summed up succinctly, &ldquo;He is better than most hockey players with full vision.&rdquo;</p><p><b>BEAUCE:</b> The Jaros have lost only once in their last seventeen outings through their big December 16 win over the Cape Codders and it isn&rsquo;t hard to figure out why. The Jaros have taken command as the leading offensive powerhouse in the NAHL.</p><p>With 167 goals in 29 games the Jaros and averaging over 5.75 goals per game. They are filling NAHL nets at a clip that could see them become the first team in league history to score over 400 goals in a season. They might better the standing record of 398 by as many as thirty or fortv goals.</p><p>At last look the Jaros boasted the top three scorers in the league as well as the number ten scorer. Joe Hardy was far and away the league leader with 71 points. Despite the added responsi-bilites he has assumed as coach of the team, Hardv continues to amass points at a pace that would not only break Luc-Simard&rsquo;s NAHL record of 124, but would shatter it. Richard Grenier, Alain Caron, and Simard were the other Jaros among the leading scorers.</p><p><b>BINGHAMTON:</b> The Dusters continue to have a difficult time getting untracked. With Bill Gratton and Barry Brooks back from their injuries, Binghamton&rsquo;s once lenghty disabled list for a time dwindled to two, Rob Walton and Randy MacGregor.</p><p>Having a full complement of players was a luxury enjoyed very briefly by coach Wayne Clairmont however. An injury to Paul Laplante and misconduct suspensions to Rich Hart and Gary Jaquith left the Dusters with only two regular defensemen for games with Buffalo and Syracuse. The Dusters quickly signed free agents Mike O&rsquo;Hearn, who played briefly in the SHL last year, and Paul Stewart, from the University of Pennsylvania, to fill out the defensive corps during the emergency.</p><p><b>CAPE COD:</b> Cape Cod&rsquo;s inability to beat Beauce in their head-to-head confrontations with the Jaros has cost them their hold on first place and threatens to cost them their position as legitimate Eastern Division challengers. On December 3 the Codders traveled to Quebec only one point behind the first place Jaros, but they dropped a heartbreaking 5-4 decision. More recently the Jaros brought a nine-game winningstreak and a sevenpoint lead to the Cape Cod Coliseum and proceeded to ride a four-goal third period out burst to a 7-3 win. The Codders play Beauce twice more during the month of December, games that are absolutely essential to their remaining in the pennant chase.</p><p><b>ERIE:</b> Lynn Zimmerman set a new North American League record with his fifth assist of the season in the same game in which he posted his second shutout against Johnstown on December 17. With 44 games left on the schedule and Zimmy doing virtually all of the Erie netminding, the all time professional mark of 8 assists by a goalie in one season set last year by Don McLeod of the Vancouver Blazers should be well within his reach. Almost a certainty is the minor pro mark held jointly by McLeod and Gerry Gray at 6.</p><p>Denver Spurs gave more help to the Blades by reassigning right wing Mal Zinger from the Syracuse Blazers and by dispatching tough rearguard Denis Deslauriers. The Blades now seem set to go with the Spurs and the Islanders as their major league affiliations. Seemingly forgotten are the Los Angeles Kings, originally announced as one of the Blades parents.</p><p><b>JOHNSTOWN:</b> Center Reg Bechtold became only the third player in the history of the NAHL to score five goals in a single game when he accomplished the feat at the Central Maine Youth Center on December 9. Included in Bechtold&rsquo;s outburst was a &ldquo;natural&rdquo; hat trick. He scored three consecutive goals late in the opening period and early in the second. In fact Reggie had his fifth goal at the 6:18 mark of the second stanza and over 33 minutes in which to establish an all time mark of six, but to no avail.</p><p><b>MAINE:</b> The Nordiques are in the midst of an eight-game losing streak. They only recently ended a nine-game losing streak and on top that they opened the season by losing ten in a row. It all adds up to a disastrous first half season for the Maine sextet and general manager Maurice Ducharme is not happy.</p><p>&ldquo;The team we have will not be losing much longer, because if they do not start turning it around right now we are going to make changes.&rdquo; Ducharme added that the Nordiques would be &ldquo;willing to trade anybody on our roster if we thought the deal would help our club.&rdquo;</p><p>The Nordiques gave themselves at least a walking start at a house-cleaning when they traded Al Mackenzie to Mohawk Valley in an even exchange for defenseman Guv Provost.</p><p><b>MOHAWK VALLEY:</b> Familiar lit-tany though it may be. the Comets continue to be plagued by personnel problems. The latest loss centers around the possible defection of left wing Eric Sanderson. Sanderson was drafted by Indianapolis from a championship WCHL team, the Victoria Cougars, along with Junior teammate Kim Clackson. The Racers hoped that each would provide them with <i>a</i> much needed dose of muscle.</p><p>Clatkson has turned out to be much the player that the Racers expected while the huge (6&rsquo;5&rdquo;, 220 lbs.) Sanderson has had his problems in the NAHL. Now Sanderson is reportedly reconsidering his hockey future and is on the Comets suspended list.</p><p>All of which leaves the Comets with only nine forwards, two of them originally slated to be defensemen and one of them coming back from a broken ankle.</p><p><b>PHILADELPHIA:</b> Rejean Leme-lin, last season&rsquo;s Rookie of the Year in the NAHL, has been shuttling back and forth between the Firebirds and the Philadelphia Flyers, playing with the Birds whenever the Flyers are not scheduled and then returning to the big club to act as backup pending the return of Bernie Parent. Roger Kosar had been acquired from Maine on loan to be Ron Marlow&rsquo;s partner when Lemelin was unavailable, But the was recalled to the Nordiques after appearing in only one game for Philly. Since original Firebird Danny Sullivan cleared NAHL waivers and was dispatched to Winston-Salem of the SHL, trainer David Settlemyre was left exchanging his medicine kit for his goalie pads whenever the need arose.</p><p><b>SYRACUSE:</b> The Blazers made wholesale shifts in their defense, but after the dust had cleared everything remained pretty much the way it had been when it all started.</p><p>First Cleveland sent Wayne Muloin and Paul Baxter and recalled Brian Bowles. In the meantime the Blazers purchased Denver University grad Bob Young from Johnstown and placed veteran Terry Marshall on the disabled list. Then the Crusaders recalled Muloin and Baxter and returned Bowles and also gangly Rav McKay. No sooner had they done that when they abruptly-recalled McKay. The final box score: add Young and delete Marshall.</p><p>Danny Belisle was anticipating the return of Jim Marsh but was still looking for defensive help on his own, perhaps from the ranks of former Blazers.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02104/3498281-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="550" height="1186"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>LYNN ZIMMERMAN&hellip;Sets NAHL Record</b></figcaption></div><h2>NAHL Leaders</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0379/3498274-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="574" height="526"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0036-01

NAHL Opens Doors Of Pro Hockey To Neeld

<h2>Richard Grenier&hellip;Beauce</h2><p class="dropcap"><span>R</span>ichard Grenier of the Beauce Jaros began the 1975-76 season placing a new position, left wing, and playing without a major league contract for the first time since he was drafted and signed by the New York Islanders three years ago. He adjusted well. T hrough the first six weeks of the season he scored 17 goals.</p><p>Two week ago Grenier was returned to his natural center slot, and his scoring pace turned from hot to blistering. Last week the 23-year-old Montreal native scored six goals and five assists in four games. He was instrumental in helping the Jaros to extend their winning streak to nine consecutive games.</p><p>Perhaps a measure of any center&rsquo;s play equal to his own coring total&rsquo; is the performance of his linemates. Grenier has been in the pivot for wingers Luc Simard and Jim Troy and those two have been nearly as hot a their linemate. Simard picked up nine points last week to vault into the 10 spot of the NAHL scoring race. But even more startling was Troy&rsquo;s improvement. He entered the week with eight points in 19 game and ended it with 18 in 23..</p><p>The return to center has been a productive move for Grenier. All that remains is for his name to return to a major league contract. Should there be many more weeks like Dec. through Dec. 14 for the North American Hockey League player of the week it will be inevitabla<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

NAHL Player of the Week

<div class="byline">BY RALPH BRIDGLAND</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>omesickness has made a life in hockey tough for a few persons attempting to make a career of the sport. But the Montreal Juniors are suffering from a rare disease call 60-minute homesickness.</p><p>What coach Jacques Laperriere&rsquo;s troop is trying to overcome is remarkable at the inability to win on the road.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01135/3498343-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="280" height="441"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Jacques Laperriere</b></figcaption></div><p>The Juniors&rsquo; record at the Montreal Forum is remarkable at 12 wins and only one loss, that defeat coming on Oct 19, 4-3toComwall.</p><p>But on the road things are a lot different. Their 4-9-4 showing has been the only thing keeping them out of the pennant race in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League&rsquo;s West Division.</p><p>Laperriere may be understating the situation when he states, &lsquo;&lsquo;Here (at Forum) we&rsquo;ve played well. Our problems are on the road.</p><p>&ldquo;Some games we&rsquo;re not so good (especially in the opposition&rsquo;s arena). We could be better, we could be worse. It&rsquo;s a young team.&rdquo;</p><p>Therein may lie the problems which Laperriere and his charges are encountering. The Juniors are a solid third in the West within striking distance of runnerup Cornwall and not completely out of the run for the division pennant. Yet, Laperriere will have a mere two places to fill at the conclusion of this season after trading last-year goaler Benoit Perreault to Sherbrooke for future considerations.</p><p>So if you think the Juniors are a challenger this season, wait until 1976-77.</p><p>Defensively the Montreal squad is ahead of its nearest rival by 15 in the goals-against category which is a reflection on the effect Laperriere has had on the club.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re winning games because we keep the score low,&rdquo; emphasizes Laperriere. &ldquo;If you keep the goals-against down to three or less, you&rsquo;re going to win most games.&rdquo;</p><p>While the team is laden with youngsters, there are just enough veterans to set an example for the newcomers.</p><p>&ldquo;Six or seven guys are back from last year.&rdquo; states the former NHL All Star defenseman. &ldquo;If they play well, the rest will follow.</p><p>&ldquo;This is a young team that can&rsquo;t play like the Russians,&rdquo; continues Laperriere. &ldquo;We just play basic hockey. If you make too many mistakes there are too many goals against.&rdquo;</p><p>Actually if not for the defense, the Juniors could very well be trailing the pack as their 151 goals-for ranks in a tie for fourth in the QMJHL.</p><p>&ldquo;The defense is playing better,&rdquo; states Laperierre. &ldquo;Picard (captain Robert) is a big guy for us. He uses his strength to advantage. It&rsquo;s a game of checking so he has to use his size.&rdquo;</p><p>The Juniors played two games this past week, one at home and the other on the road, and, you guessed it, beat Trois-Rivieres 8-3 at the Forum and then dropped a 3-1 decision on the Draveurs&rsquo; home ice.</p><p>Frank Donnelly, Christian Drolet and Normand Dupont had two goals apiece in win over Draveurs while Garth McGuigan notched the Juniors&rsquo; lone tally in Trois-Rivieres.</p><p>No matter what the outcome of the 1975-76 season, Laperriere says, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a good bunch of kids.&rdquo; And undoubtedly the players feel the same way about their coach.</p><p><b>SHERBROOKE:</b> Beavers continue to hold upper hand in West Division as they split two games&hellip;Daniel Chicoine led club to 6-1 home ice win over Chicoutimi with a pair of markers&hellip;Beavers dropped surprising 9-4 verdict in Sorel despite outshooting Black Hawks 45-42&hellip;Peter Marsh has increased his league lead in points to 10 with 39 goals and 34 assists&hellip;Fernand Leblanc (27-33&mdash;60) and Robert Simpson (25-33&mdash;58) also in top point-getters.</p><p><b>CORNWALL:</b> Royals gained a little ground on leading Beavers with pair of home ice victories&hellip;Started with 10-2 win over Trois-Rivieres and followed with 9-2 shellacking of Chicoutimi&hellip;Pierre Brassard and Bill Wells recorded hat tricks against Draveurs and Gord Botting and Cam MacGregor scored two apiece in thumping Sague-neens&hellip;Dan Geoffrion and Brassard in top ten of league points race.</p><p><b>HULL:</b> Picked up three of a possible four points to stretch bulge over last place Laval to nine points&hellip;Glen Sharpley scored three times and JeanMarc Grandmaitre twice as the Festivals downed Shawinigan 7-5. Hull had to score four times in last nine minutes to overcome 5-3 deficit&hellip;Festivals had to settle for 5-5 home ice draw with Laval as Nationals&rsquo; tied contest with only 27 seconds left&hellip;Denis Pomerleau had two goals to lead the way against Laval&hellip;Glen Sharpley has moved up into fifth spot in league points race with 25 goals and 37 assists for 62 points.</p><p><b>LAVAL:</b> Club now under direction of new coach Andre Boivin, who started season with St. Jerome of the Quebec Junior A Hockey League&hellip;Michel Bossy scored three goals, his last coming with only 27 seconds left in the game, as Nationals tied Festivals 5-5 in Hull&hellip;Bossy improved on that performance with four goals in another 5-5 sawoff, this time at home against Shawinigan&hellip;Laval now trails fourth place Hull by eight points, but do have two games in hand.</p><p><b>TROIS-RIVIERES:</b> Draveurs maintained slim hold on topspot in the East by splitting home-and-home series with Montreal&hellip;Dropped game at Forum 8-3 but bounced back to win on home ice 3-1&hellip;Guy Dupuis tallied twice and Daniel Desjardins added a single while Serge Ayotte blocked all but one of 30 shots senthis way&hellip;Gaetan Boucher still holding down second place in league points derby with 63. 30 goals and 33 assists.</p><p><b>QUEBEC:</b> Stayed right on Draveurs&rsquo; heels despite winning only once in two outings&hellip;Eddy Godin had hat trick as Remparts downed Sorel 8-4&hellip;Then Quebec lost 5-3 to Shawinigan before hometown crowd of over 3,300&hellip;Remparts outshot Dynamos 4531 but still came out on the short end of the score&hellip;Club just one point behind Trois-Rivieres and has two games in hand on leaders.</p><p><b>SOREL:</b> Moved four points up on fourth place Chicoutimi and within four points of Draveurs after splitting two games&hellip;Dropped 8-4 decision in Quebec as Benoit Gosselin tallied twice for the losers&hellip;Bounced back to surprise West leaders Sherbrooke 9-4 before 2,277 fans in Sorel&hellip;Yvon Blais and Deblois both registered hat tricks against visiting Beavers.</p><p><b>CHICOUTIMI:</b> Sagueneens suffered fruitless week dropping both games, 6-1 in Sherbrooke and 9-2 in Cornwall&hellip;Defensive record proving to be Sags&rsquo; downfall as their 194 goals-against is the second worst mark in the entire league&hellip;Trail third place Black Hawks by four points but have a game in hand&hellip;Sylvain Lucas remains amongst top QMJHL point-getters with 53,30 goals and 33 assists.</p><p><b>SHAWINIGAN:</b> The Dynamos, under new coach Marc Picard, who lefthis position with the Beauce Jaros of the North American League, gained three out of a possible six points in the past week to move back within a reasonable distance of Chicoutimi&mdash;10 points&hellip;Picard&rsquo;s debut in Shawinigan was spoiled as Hull downed his club 7-5&hellip;But then Dynamos bounced back to defeat Remparts 5-3 in Quebec and tie Nationals 5-5 in Laval&hellip;Jean-Marc Bonamie had hat trick in loss to Festivals, added two more in tie with Laval and had a single marker in win over Quebec.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0037-01

Juniors Excellent Record At Home Overshadowed By Troubles On Road

<h2>ONTARIO MAJOR LEAGUE</h2><p>(Standings on Sat. Dec. 20)</p><h2>Errimi Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02104/3498458-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="581" height="177"></div><h2>Leyden Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0374/3498451-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="581" height="153"></div><h2>GAMES COMPUTED</h2><p>Sun. Doc. 13</p><p>Windsor 4 at Sudbury 12; Oshawo 8 at Kingston 3; Kitchener 7 at Toronto 7; Peterborough 2 at St. Catharines 2.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 16</b></p><p>Sudbury 3 at Hamilton 7, Ottawa 5 at Kingston 9; Kitchener 4 at Oshawo 8.</p><p><b>Thu. Doc. 18</b></p><p>Hamilton 4 at Peterborough 2; Oshawo 5 at St. Catharines 7; Sudbury 7 at Windsor 7.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>St. Catharines 4 at Kitchener 9. Ottawa 4 at Toronto 2, Sudbury 3 at London 2; Hamilton at Kingston 6.</p><h2>WESTERN CANADA LEAGUE</h2><p>(Standings on Sat. Dec. 13)</p><h2>Eastern Division</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0459/3498444-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="582" height="182"></div><h2>WESTERN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0545/3498437-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="581" height="176"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Sat. Doc. 6</p><p>Rin Ron 1 at Medicine Hat 7; Kamloops 3 at New Westminster 4; Edmonton 2 at Victoria 3.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 7</b></p><p>Flin Ron 5 at Calgary 7; Winnipeg 1 at Regina 6; Edmonton 3 at New Westminster 12; Medicine Hat 5 at Lethbridge 4; Saskatoon 4 at Brandon 5.</p><p><b>Tue. Doc. 9</b></p><p>Brandon 3 at Winnipeg 4; Lethbridge 5 at Saskatoon 6, Kamloops 6 at Edmonton 4</p><p><b>Wed. Doc. 10</b></p><p>Lethbridge 5 at Flin Flan 7; Saskatoon 6 at Regina 6; Kamloops 3 at Colgary 5.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 11</b></p><p>Lethbridge 4 at Rin Ron 4; New Westminster 3 at Medicine Hat 6,</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 12</b></p><p>Victorio 4 at Calgary 4; New Westminster 7 at Edmonton 4; Brandon 3 at Saskatoon 5.</p><h2>MIDWEST JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 7)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0637/3498430-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="529" height="131"></div><h2>LEADING SCORES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0729/3498423-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="585" height="574"></div><h2>QUEBEC MAJOR LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 22)</b></p><h2>EAST DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0825/3498416-1-eng-US/f0037-082.jpg" title="f0037-08" width="578" height="158"></div><h2>WEST DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0922/3498409-1-eng-US/f0037-092.jpg" title="f0037-09" width="579" height="155"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2><p>Mon. Dec. 15</p><p>Sahwinigan 5 at Laval 5.</p><p><b>Tue. Dec. 16</b></p><p>Quebec 3 at Trois-Rivieres 4; Hull 5 at Chicoutimi 5.</p><p><b>Wed. Dec. 17</b></p><p>Shawinigan 4 at Sherbrooke 16.</p><p><b>Thu. Dec. 18</b></p><p>Quebec 4 at Cornwall 4.</p><p><b>Fri. Dec. 19</b></p><p>Trois-Rivieres 4 at Laval 9; Quebec 0 at Sherbrooke 10; Montreal 5 at Shawinigan 4; Sorel 4 at Chicoutimi 4</p><p><b>Sat. Doc. 20</b></p><p>Hull 6 at Trois-Rivieres 8.</p><p><b>Sun. Dec. 21</b></p><p>Laval 4 at Montreal 3; Cornwall 4 at Quebec 6; Sherbrooke at Hull, postponed; Chicoutimi 6 at Shawinigan 5; Trois-Rivieres 6 at Sorel 5.</p><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1019/3498402-1-eng-US/f0037-102.jpg" title="f0037-10" width="582" height="280"></div><h2>SOUTHWEST LEAGUE</h2><p><b>(Standings on Fri. Dec. 12)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1113/3498395-1-eng-US/f0037-112.jpg" title="f0037-11" width="579" height="154"></div><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1212/3498388-1-eng-US/f0037-122.jpg" title="f0037-12" width="584" height="483"></div><h2>New England Junior</h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Dec. 15)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1310/3498381-1-eng-US/f0037-132.jpg" title="f0037-13" width="572" height="207"></div><h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1410/3498374-1-eng-US/f0037-142.jpg" title="f0037-14" width="578" height="287"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0037-02

The Amateur Scoreboard

<div class="byline">BY STEVE WAID</div><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U. S. and Canada</p><p>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario</p><p>Sold in U.S. and Canada</p><p>ROANOKE</p><p>When new management took over the Roanoke Valley Rebels this season, it determined that the team would have toget much more physical tor the upcoming SHI. season.</p><p>The Rebels had drifted into nearoblivion last season for a number of reasons. Primarily. however, the team simply didn&rsquo;t give as i much its it took on the ice. That, figured new management. simply had to change.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01159/3498510-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="257" height="381"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Brian Cousineau</b></figcaption></div><p>To that end. high on the priority list of players needed to re-stock the team was a tough, physical player who would hopefully inspire the rest of the team to do some hit ting and who would also intimidate some otherwise rugged opponents.</p><p>The search ended when John Huber, a veteran hockey player from Calgary, signed to play for the Rebels. Huber&rsquo;s entire hockey career has been bed on hitting, and he does it frequently and with finesse. Realizing his limitations as a goal scorer. Huber has made ithis business to keep the opponents honest.</p><p>&ldquo;Playing physical hockey is the way I&rsquo;ve always played.&rdquo; said the 26-year-old Huber. &ldquo;I really don&rsquo;t know why. I know a lot of people can&rsquo;t believe I&rsquo;m the same guy off the ice as I am on the ice. I&rsquo;ve never been in a fight off the ice. For me. I get a-much of a thrill throwing a good check as 1 do-coring. but then. I don&rsquo;t score much.&rdquo;</p><p>Huber builthis body for physical hockey while at Mount Royal College in Calgary and at Lakehead College in Thunder Bay. He was a collegiate wrestler, also, which has helped him immeasurably in scuffles on the ice.</p><p>Huber&rsquo;s career has taken him through Des Moines ofthe International League to the Omaha Knights of the Central League.</p><p>He joined Omaha under an Atlanta Flames&rsquo; contract. It was in Omaha, under coach Fred Creighton, that Huber&rsquo;s physical skills became apparent.</p><p>&ldquo;I was put on a checking line at Omaha and we would be on the ice against another team&rsquo;s best line or maybe to slow the other team down.&rdquo; said Huber. &ldquo;We forechecked well but I think maybe the three of u-got only 50 goals between usall season.&rdquo;</p><p>A quiet man. Huber almost didn t return to professional hockey this season because he deemed it lime to get out of the game and find a long-term job with a future. He almost had one with a cigarette company, but while this offer was under consideration, he was barraged with offers from minor league teams.</p><p>When the cigarette offer didn&rsquo;t pan out. Huber took his best hockey otter-Roanoke&rsquo;s. He had negotiated with Philadelphia and Syracuse of the NAHL. among other.</p><p>&ldquo;The SHL i&rsquo; not an overly physical league.&rdquo; said defenseman Huber. &ldquo;Right now. there are may be two guys on every team who will get tough on the ice. I respect them and they respect me. But I think most players in the league know me well enough to know that if we go into the corners, they&rsquo;d better keep their heads up.&rdquo;</p><p>Although Huber, like most good, physical players, won&rsquo;t the sitate to fight on the ice if the situation calls for it. he rejects cheap tactics designed to injure another player.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02113/3498503-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="548" height="796"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JOHN HUBER&hellip;Plays It Tough</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;There is a difference in earning respect and being afraid of a player, said Huber. &ldquo;I understand that in some minor leagues, you can get speared or hit with a stick in a lot at situations. That doesn&rsquo;t go with me. 1 play clean, not dirty.&rdquo;</p><p>Huber&rsquo;s philosophy of hockey&rsquo; is exactly what the Rebels are looking for this season. &ldquo;A good check or physical play is important.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It can get things going for a team. A good team has to have everything, but sometimes a team can be lifted by some good body checks.&rsquo;&rsquo;</p><p>Huber&rsquo;s philosophy has been put into practice often. He&rsquo;s spent over 100 minutes in the penalty box so far this season, but a lot of other players in the league have joined him there.</p><p>The Rebels went through the week of Dec. 2 with a 2-1 mark, beating Charlotte 5-4 Dec. 2 and Winston-Salem 6-3 Dec. 6. The team has needed some help up the middle and management has gone out and grabbed it up.</p><p>Signing with the Rebels during the week were two veteran centers. Ken Ireland and Mike Rouleau. Ireland had 46 points in 37 games for Long Island at NAHL last season while Rouleau spent time in Quebec. Michigan and San Diego of WHA. Rouleau was under San Diego contract when Mariners sent him to Rebels. He&rsquo;s a former Charlotte</p><p>Checker, who had 100 points and 200 penally minutes for Charlotte in each of the 1970-71.1971-72 seasons.</p><p>To make room for the players, veteran winger Ray Wait. slowed by a shoulder injury, was released and quickly picked up by Greensboro.</p><p><b>HAMPTON</b>: Gulls must have one of hockey&rsquo;s most unique unbeaten streaks going. The team hasn t been beaten in its last nine games, but has tied six of them in the process. 1 he Gulls&rsquo; nine-game record is 3-0-6. The team tied all four games during week of Dec. 2. Three of those games, against Charlotte. Greensboro and Winston-Salem. were identical 2-2 tie-. all played consecutively.</p><p>Player swaps with parent Cincinnati Stingers continue. Gull-got back goalie Rich Coutu, but also got goalie Norm Lapointe, defenseman Bruce Abbey and forward Don 0 Donoghue. Gulls ended the week just four points behind first-place Charlotte and one point ahead of third-place Roanoke.&rsquo;</p><p><b>CHARLOTTE</b>: The Checkers still rule the SHL&rsquo;s roost, but must&rsquo;ve suffered embarrassment of the first order in the loss to Roanoke Dec. 2. In the stands watching the game was Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; general manager Punch Im-lach, who came to see what some of his players w ere up to.</p><p>Charlotte&rsquo;s hockey wasn&rsquo;t sharp in that game, as goalie Bob Sauve was hit for five goals by Rebels, who beat him for first time this season.</p><p>Checkers bounced back quickly, though. They whacked Tidewater 7-0 and then tied Hampton. Yvon Dupuis. Charlotte veteran, punched in 23rd goal during the week to lead the SHL by a healthy margin. Checkers, in fad. havesixoftheSHL&rsquo;sstop lOscorers., GREENSBORO: Generals still having injury problems, as flashy rookie forward Bob Russell joined the list of the injured. The injuries are telling on Generals, also. The team gave up 15 goals in two losses, during week of Dec. 2. Winston-Salem w hacked Generals 8-1 on Generals&rsquo; ice and Tidewater followed w ith a 7-1 w in.</p><p>Generals followed that with. a 4-1 loss at Charlotte Dec. 9 to give them 03-1 record over last four games. I he team was comfortably in fourth place in SHL. but is now threatened by Winston-Salem and Tidewater, teams which have occupied cellar most of vear.</p><p>Veteran Wally Sprange. however, still lead-SHL scorers. He has 10 goals and 29 assists for 39 points in 28 games. Cam Colborne is the only other Gener-al in top 20 scorers with four goals and 19 assist&rsquo;.</p><p><b>WINSTON-SALEM</b>: Getting a revival has helped Twins a great deal. Since the team was taken over by the city and then a Charlotte promoter. The Twins have come on strong.</p><p>They scored 14 goals in successive wins over Greensboro and Roanoke Dec. 2 and 6. They suffered only loss of week at Roanoke Dec. 6 by 6-3 count and then tied Hampton.</p><p>The line of center John Campbell and wingers Jamie Kennedy and Bobby Geoffrion producing for Twin&rsquo;. The trio scored all three goals and gathered all six assist-in loss to Roanoke. Campbell has moved into second place in SHL scoring with 12 goals and 25 assists while center Angus Beck i-fifth with 16 goals and 17 assists. 1 wins still tied for last place in SHL with Tidewater. but both teams closing in on Greensboro.</p><p><b>TIDEWATER</b>: Sharks went through week of Dec. 2 with 2-1-1 mark to keep pre-sing Greensboro. Mist impressive win was 7-4 conquest of Generals in Greensboro.</p><p>Shark&rsquo; helped by goalie Brian Cousineau. who joined the team from Charlotte when Checkers got Sauve.</p><p>Cousineau spelled regular goalie Jim Watt, posting 3.51 average in the process and beefing up Sharks&rsquo; defense.</p><p>Sharks haven&rsquo;t had stable two-man goalie situation until Cousineau arrived.</p><p>Steve Doll off. Tidewater center, has 11 goals and 17 assist&rsquo; to lead the team in scoring. He&rsquo;s the only Shark on SHL&rsquo;s top20scoring list.</p><h2>SHL Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0381/3498496-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="582" height="406"></div><h3>GOALING RECORDS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0456/3498489-1-eng-US/f0038-042.jpg" title="f0038-04" width="571" height="285"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0038-01

Huber’s Physical Play Gives Roanoke Lift

<div class="byline">BY JOHN ARNOLD</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0543/3498541-1-eng-US/f0038-052.jpg" title="f0038-05" width="930" height="1270"></div><p><b>SOLUTION IN JANUARY 9 ISSUE</b></p><h2>ACROSS</h2><p>1. 1967-68 HartTrophy winner.</p><p>5. Morning.</p><p>7. Pictured player hails from this province.</p><p>9. High scoring veteran in NAHL.</p><p>11. Pronoun.</p><p>13. Former Vancouver forward.</p><p>13. 13th and 9th letters of alphabet.</p><p>14. Hotel.</p><p>15. Nickname of one of the Capitals.</p><p>17. Type of shot.</p><p>18. A U.S. State. (Abbr.)</p><p>22. 1960-61 Stanley Cup champs.</p><p>25. Pictured player used to play for this team.</p><p>26. Hank Nowak hails from here.</p><p>28. Montreal defenseman. (Init)</p><p>29. Former Atlanta coach.</p><h2>DOWN</h2><p>1. Coaches Halifax in AHI.</p><p>2. CoachesTulsa in CHI.</p><p>3. One of the Hawks answers to this.</p><p>4. 1st and 14th letters of alphabet.</p><p>6. Gordie Howe was born in this month.</p><p>8. Pictured player.</p><p>10. 15thand 1st letters of alphabet.</p><p>12. First name of one of the Flames.</p><p>16.No. (Fr.)</p><p>18. Former NHL defenseman.</p><p>20. Ex-Chicago Hawk.</p><p>21. Montreal center answers to this.</p><p>23. This amount of NHL games are played on the road.</p><p>24. 9th and 23rd letters of alphabet.</p><p>27. Borje Salming was born in this month.</p><h2>LAST WEEK S ANSWERS</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3><p>1. PLANTE</p><p>7. A.S.</p><p>9. ARBOUR.</p><p>10. L.M. HEN.</p><p>12. ICE.</p><p>14. LEACH.</p><p>16.11.</p><p>18. NOR.</p><p>20. EEL.</p><p>22. VAL.</p><p>23. N.H.A.</p><p>24. E.S.</p><p>25. ROBERTS.</p><p>30. VADNAIS.</p><p>31.O.C.</p><p>32. EA.</p><p>33. NINETEEN.</p><h3>DOWN</h3><p>1. PAPPIN.</p><p>2.L.R.</p><p>3. ABEL.</p><p>4. NONE.</p><p>5.T.U.</p><p>6. ERIC.</p><p>7. ALE.</p><p>8. S.M.</p><p>13. CHEEVERS.</p><p>15. HULL.</p><p>17.10.</p><p>19. REARDON.</p><p>2 LEAST.</p><p>23. NEVIN.</p><p>26. ONCE.</p><p>27. B. A.</p><p>28. E.I.</p><p>29. SEA.</p><p>32.E.N.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0038-05

HOCKEY CROSSWORD

<p>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Hennepin Nordiques pulled off the surprise of the week when they upset top-ranked Austin 8-0 Dec. 14 on the Mavericks&rsquo; home ice. Goalie Keith Johnston of Hennepin kicked out 27 shots in the shutout, first of the midwest Junior Hockey league Season.</p><p>It was Hennepin&rsquo;s second visit to Austin and the second time the club has come home with a win over the league leaders. The third line of Duke</p><p>Johnson, Mike Hoberg and Randy Larch scored five of the Nordiques&rsquo; eight goals. Ron Carlson also got a pair. The contest also marked the debut of Hennepin owner Sonny Sundquist and GM Don Gorman as coaches. Mike Menard has left the team for personal reasons.</p><p><b>BLOOMINGTON:</b> Although the Junior Stars can&rsquo;t seem to put together a winning string, coach Doug Monroe sees some hopeful signs. &ldquo;Our defense is really coming on now. It&rsquo;s been tough for our freshmen blueliners, but they are working hard and looking stronger all the time,&rdquo; he said&hellip;After losing to Austin 6-3 Dec. 9, the Stars turned around to tally a 6-1 victory over St. Paul&hellip;It was a big game for goalie Dick Bain who looked sharp with 40 saves. Steve Nichols got two of three open net goals in the last 80 seconds of the contest&hellip;The bad news for Bloomington is the loss of left wing Paul Green, who went out with a head injury Dec. 9, and right wing Mitch Anderson, sidelined with a knee injured Dec. 14. Green will be out at least a week, Anderson about two weeks.</p><p><b>AUSTIN:</b> It&rsquo;s back to basics for the Mavericks, who are having their ups and downs after a powerful season start&hellip;Mike Mielke&rsquo;s two goals paced a slick performance against Bloomington Dec. 9&mdash;a 5-3 decision&mdash;and goalie Bill Fedoryk made 39 saves&hellip;Nothing went right for Austin Dec. 14 against St. Paul, though. Fedoryk let in five goals in the first two periods. and Austin&rsquo;s usually able scorers couldn&rsquo;t get anything in&hellip;Crowded now by Bloomington, four points out with two games in hand, Mavericks will be under the gun in games this week against St. Paul and the Kostka Seniors.</p><p><b>ST. PAUL:</b> Playing like the new team they are, the Vulcans show a lot of potential but are having problems with consistency&hellip;Losses to Weber Seniors (6-2) and Bloomington (6-1) last week make it three straight for St. Paul. Vulans still have best scoring record in the MJHL, averaging 5.9 goals per game&hellip;Right wing Russ Welch continues to lead them and league-scoring with 47 points (22 goals and 25 assists) in 21 games played. Welch tallied both of Vulcan&rsquo;s goals in Weber contest Dec. 12, and Joe Schaefer got a pair for the seniors.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Hennepin Routs Mavericks For Second Time In MJHL

<div class="byline">BY BILL HILTS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01142/3498596-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="330" height="412"></div><h2>New England League</h2><p class="dropcap"><span>C</span>oach <b>Bob Sylvia&rsquo;s</b> surging South Shore Braves snapped Springfield&rsquo;s nine-game unbeaten streak but then ran into a club even hotter, as the Braves were upended by the Tyngsboro Huskies in New England Junior Hockey League action.</p><p>Two third-period goals by <b>Frank Guest</b> the second with 1:22 lifted the Braves to a 5-4 win over Springfield despite 39 saves by Olympics goalie <b>Bill Derosia</b> and two goals by <b>Mark Veto.</b> But the following night the Huskies erupted for four goals in a 1:47 span late in the middle period and continued on to a 7-3 win over the Braves for the Huskies fourth straight triumph which moved them into a virtual deadlock for third place with Berlin and Berwick. <b>Jeff Morris</b> scored two goals for the Huskies, and <b>Dave Regan</b> kicked out 47 shots in a losing effort.</p><p>The Huskies also coast the Fitchburg Wallopers an opportunity to gain ground on the first-place Olympics by posting a 6-4 victory as <b>Jim Collins</b> and <b>Bob MacLeod</b> each scored two goals and <b>Jim Browder</b> turned away 37 shots.</p><p>The Wallopers bounced back against the Berwick Viking 8-6 as <b>Chuck Pappas</b> drilled in five goals to raise his total to 34 and <b>Brian Fitzpatrick</b> passed out four assists. <b>Rich Campisi</b> notched his 34th and 35th goals for the Vikings to run his league-leading point total to 65, and <b>Bob Francis</b> also added two goals.</p><p>Springfield got back on the winning trail by swamping the Berlin Maroons 14-7 in a high-scoring contest to protect its five point margin over Fitchburg. <b>Dan Ferioli</b> sparked the Olympics with three goals and <b>Mark Veto, Jeff Cristina,</b> and <b>Ed Malone</b> had two apiece. <b>Marc Turcotte</b> netted three goals for the Maroons and <b>Butch Poirier</b> two while <b>Gerry Ging</b> ras handed out six assists.</p><p>The Maroons rallied for three goals in the final five minutes to nip the luckless Tri-Valley Squires 8-7 as <b>John Normand</b> scored four goals&mdash;including the gamewinner with 1:03 left&mdash;and set up three others. <b>Scott Huna</b> and <b>Paul Soullier</b> each tallied twice for the Squires.</p><p>Tri-Valley then lost another heartbreaking decision to Berwick 7-6. Rich Campisi fired in six goals and assisted on the game-winner for the Vikings, and Bob Francis had five assists. <b>Bill Jankowski</b> had two goals for TriValley and underrated goalie <b>Mark Hansen,</b> who had 55 saves against Berlin, kicked out 43 Berwick shots. Hansen&rsquo;s 6.21 goals against average is belied by his .872 save percentage and league-leading 42.5 saves per game.</p><h2>OHA Golden Horseshoe</h2><p>The first-place St. Catherines Falcons dropped a hotly contested 6-5 game to the Hamilton Fincup B&rsquo;s. The Falcons have only managed to mark up just one win in six games against the second place Fincups.</p><p><b>Kevin White</b> led the way for the Fincups with a three goal performance. Two of White&rsquo;s goals came on the same shift. He also scored the first goal of the game. Other Hamilton marksmen were <b>Gerry Hruska</b> with two goals and a singleton by <b>John Bowker.</b> St. Catharine scorers were <b>Paul Grossi, Petter Grossi, Ted Lis, Wayne Briscall and Roy Kerling.</b></p><h2>Southern Ontario League</h2><p>The Guelph Platers notched their 14th consecutive victory at home in Southern Ontario Junior Hockey League action with an 8-5 defeat of the Niagara Falls Flyers. Big gun for Guelph was Phil Tunney who popped a hat trick. <b>Dan McCafferty</b> scored twice and single goals went to <b>Mike Yosurack, Larry Wilson</b> and <b>Carl Reinhart.</b> The Flyers scorers were led by <b>Kevin Flynn</b> with two goals. Also blinking the red light were <b>Connie Marcotte, John Bialis</b> and <b>Larry Landon.</b> Guelph outshot the Niagara Falls skater 55-32.</p><h2>Mid-Atlantic League</h2><p><b>The Roc-Ice Meteors of the Mid-Atlantic Hockey League travelled to Bristol. Pa. to face the Red Lion Hockey Club and came home with a 4-2 victory.</b></p><p>Coach <b>Bob Dyroff</b> felt the results reflected a good team effort by all. He made special mention of goaltender, <b>Robb Zan Fagna.</b> He really gave us a good performance,&rdquo; coach Dyroff said, &ldquo;and we seem to be coming together now. I think this club is one ofthe better teams in the league and we should be able to prove that in up-coming games.&rdquo;</p><p>Roc-Ice scorers were Matt Dyroff with two goals, Brian Riley, who had a goal and an assist, Mike Stehlik, scoring one goal and Ivar Leetma with two assists.</p><p>Red Lion goaltender. <b>Ron Sansone,</b> singlehandedly kept the score as low as it was for Roc-Ice.</p><h2>Los Angeles League</h2><p><b>Current standings in the Los Angeles, California Junior Hockey Association has Bay Harbor with eight wins and one loss for 16 points. Their closest contenders are the San Deigo Mariners who have five wins and three losses for 10 points. West Covina has five points and Coach Cities has just three points.</b></p><p>Bav Harbor boasts the top three scorers in the league. <b>F.Salcido</b> with 21 points, B. Cameron 19 points and S. Elder 19 points. Fourth place is held by M. Spuehler of San Diego with 18 points. Then the pendulum swings back to Bay Harbor for the next three top scorers <b>T. Durkin 17. M. Horne</b> 14. and R. Carmichael 13. Top scorers for Coast Cities is T. Ulfig with nine points and for West Covina it&rsquo;s <b>D. Craig</b> who also has nine points.</p><p>Hat tricks have been recorded by Bay Harbor players <b>G.Dupuis,</b> B.Cameron, M Horne and F.Salcido; San Diego players <b>J. Farquar</b> and <b>M.Spuehler;</b> West Covina players <b>G.Thomas, D.Berry</b> and D.Craig: Coast Cities players <b>M.Golden</b> and <b>P. Young.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0039-01

JUNIOR JOTTINGS

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div><p>BUFFALO&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Buffalo Sabres have a new French Connection. Or, at least, they did have one for their first visit of the season to Madison Square Garden.</p><p>French Connection II had Jacques Richard replacing Rick Martin at left wing with Gil Perreault and Rene Robert of the old Connection. Martin played left wing on a line with Pete McNab and Jim Lorentz.</p><p>How long this new combination would last was anybody&rsquo;s guess. Coach Floyd Smith and his predecessor, Joe Crozier, have broken up the Perreault-Martin-Robert line before and always the three French-Canadian speedsters have gotten back together again after a few games.</p><p>And, usually, have started scoring with their usual verve.</p><p>They haven&rsquo;t been filling the nets with pucks this season, however, as thev did most of the time over the last</p><p>three years. Coach Smith broke them up late in November for a game and a half. He had Craig Ramsay, from the Don Luce checking line (high-scoring Danny Gare is the right winger) replace Martin and had Rick play with Luce and Gare.</p><p>That didn&rsquo;t work very well, however, so the original Connection was reunited. But that didn&rsquo;t work very well, either. So Smitty broke them up again.</p><p>Going into the game against the Rangers, the Connection had scored exactly four goals in the seven games since the club went into a decline on a trip to the West Coast. The Sabres won two, lost three and tied two of those games and found the Boston Bruins moving up from behind.</p><p>In a week-end home-and-home series against the New York Islanders, Martin got only two shots on goal. The Sabres won the first game, 3-2, with Gerry Desjardins doing some spectacular goaltending as he blocked 51 shots. The next night, at home, however, the Sabres lost to the Islanders for the first time ever and were shut out, no less, by Glenn Resch.</p><p>Martin said he figured the change in line personnel was a good thing.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care who I play with as long as we win hockey games,&rdquo; said Rick. &ldquo;Somehow we have to get going again, so it&rsquo;s a good idea to shake up the lines. Other teams do it when they&rsquo;re in a slump, so why shouldn&rsquo;t we?</p><p>&ldquo;I can put up with my not scoring goals if we&rsquo;re winning but when we&rsquo;re not winning, it really bugs me. I figure if I scored a couple in a game it might turn a loss into a win.</p><p>&ldquo;I get paid for scoring goals. If I don&rsquo;t score them, I&rsquo;m not doing my job.&rdquo;</p><p>Richard knew he faced a difficult task, playing on a line with Perreault and Robert. The 23-year-old winger can skate with the other two, though, and he can shoot.</p><p>Richard was a 71-goal scorer in his final junior season, with the Quebec Remparts, But the never was a big goalgetter in his three seasons with the Atlanta Flames, who picked him first in the 1972 amateur draft.</p><p>He scored 13 goals his rookie year, then 23 and last season, when he missed 13 games because of injury and wasn&rsquo;t in top shape much of the time he did play, he fell to 17. The Sabres acquired him from the Flames for defenseman Larry Carriere.</p><p>French Connection II scored both Buffalo goals in its first start together, a 2-2 tie with the Rangers. Perreault got one and Richard the other, with Perreault setting him up. But the line was on for both goals against.</p><p>ICE CHIPS&mdash;Jerry Holland, who played with Gare for the Calgary Centennials, outdid the spectacular Sabre blond bomber in the Ranger game. He assisted Walt Tkaczuk on the first New York goal and scored the second. Gare, who was the first player in the National Hockey League to get 20 goals this season, was shut out, although he had five shots on the net. Gare&rsquo;s line stopped Phil Esposito, however, with but a single shot after Espo had scored six goals and assisted on three in his last previous five games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c4-01199/3498627-1-eng-US/c4-012.jpg" title="C4-01" width="549" height="812"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JACQUES RICHARD&hellip;New Line Member</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

C4-01

Martin Feels Splitting French Connection Will Help Club

<div class="byline">BY KEN RUDNICK</div><p>KANSAS CITY&mdash;</p><p>Gary Bergman calls home often. Most of the time the calls make life away from his family a little easier. But on some occasions they make it harder.</p><p>&ldquo;We were talking on the phone and my son started crying because he missed me,&rdquo; Bergman says. &ldquo;Then my eyes started filling up. I told him to puthis mother on the phone and I said, &lsquo;Janie, get him a plane ticket and send him down here.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c4-02175/3498658-1-eng-US/c4-022.jpg" title="C4-02" width="288" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Gary Bergman</b></figcaption></div><p><b>So early this season Blake Bergman, age nine got to spend a few days in Kansas City, where his daddy is playing hockey for the Scouts after spending all except one of his 11 previous National League seasons in Detroit.</b></p><p>Gary Bergman, age 37, and feeling it, is still alive&mdash;if not perfectly well&mdash;in the NHL, a fact of which he could not be certain in mid-November. He had suffered a strained right knee in Atlanta at the start of a 7-game road trip. The next stop was Detroit. He was given permission to undergo treatment at home and rejoin the club in New York.</p><p>Six days later, leaving his wife, Blake, 7-year-old Gary, Jr., and 4-year-old Brandee Lee behind, he climbed on a plane to New York, but only after considering the alternative of remaining in Detroit and calling it a career.</p><p>&ldquo;I think anyone would feel that way when they&rsquo;re home and see their kids again,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Plus, you don&rsquo;t want to get into that injury syndrome. I&rsquo;ve had a lot of nagging things. And at my age, that&rsquo;s what they are&mdash;nagging.&rdquo;.</p><p>What may well be the last year of Bergman&rsquo;s hockey life started with a bruised left knee he suffered in the final pre-season exhibition game. It continued with a severe cut on the left side of his face that, when it was reopened, required patchwork by a plastic surgeon. Then came the knee injury in Atlanta followed by a badly bruised right elbow and forearm he sustained in Chicago.</p><p>Still, he plays on, although any resemblance between Gary Bergman and 01&rsquo; Man River is purely non-existent. By the third period on most nights, there is no little extra to reach back for.</p><p>&ldquo;My behind&rsquo;s dragging at the end of a game,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;But I don&rsquo;t mind the ice time. I came here with a positive attitude and all I can say is it&rsquo;s getting more positive. I think we&rsquo;ve obtained much greater respect than anyone thought we could.&rdquo;.</p><p>One of the reasons for that is Bergman, himself, who is providing exactly those qualities the Scouts expected from him when they obtained him from the Red Wings over the off-season. And he is doing that while pushing his creaking bones through a regular shift in virtually every game.</p><p>&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t &lsquo;spot&rsquo; a Gary Bergman with this club&rdquo;, says Bep Guidohn, the Scouts&rsquo; coach. &ldquo;Remember one thing: This guy&rsquo;s been around hockey umpteen years. We had problems last year on defense and we got Gary because we figured he&rsquo;d go great with the younger guys. Look, a tired Gary Bergman is better than an inexperienced defenseman who&rsquo;s gonna cost us goals LOOSE PUCKS: The Scouts edged Pittsburgh, 3-2, in Kansas City Dec. 9, cutting to three (Philadelphia, Buffalo and Atlanta) the number of teams they have failed to beat in their first two NHL seasons. Four nights later they played a strong game against the Canadiens in Montreal, outshooting the Habs, 37-31, but running into a hot Ken Dryden and losing, 41. Sandwiched between those two positive efforts, however, was a 5-3 loss to Minnesota, another in a series of frustrating outings against the league&rsquo;s weaker teams. Their combined record this season in games against Minnesota, Washington and Detroit is 1-6. the only victory coming in Washington&hellip;Denis Dupere, who suffered a broken left collarbone in practice the dav after the season opener, was expected to return to the Scouts line-up shortly before the turn of the year&hellip;At this writing, the Scouts had tiled suit in U.S. District Court in Minnesota seeking to have Henry Boucha released from his contract with the Minnesota Fighting Saints of the World Hockey Association. The Scouts and Boucha&rsquo;s attorney, Bryan Smith, claim his contract has been breached by the W.H.A. club. If Boucha is released, he would presumably join Kansas City immediately, giving the Scouts needed help at center.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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January 2, 1976

Owls Lose Out Even Off Ice

Consistency Is Hawk Koroll’s Most Important Ice Product

The Hockey News

Hard Work Paying Off For Cowboys; Nordiques’ Losing Ways Cause Turmoil