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.

March 5, 1976

The Hockey News March 5, 1976

CALGARY&mdash;There seems to be a contlict of opinion what course the World Hockey Association is going to take for next season but at least one person is ada-. mant the WHA won&rsquo;t fold.He&rsquo;s Jim Pattison, head of the company which controls the Calgary Cowboys of the WHA. Pattison says the WHA is here to stay and warns that league directors should be extremely careful in examining the stability of persons at tempting to buy their way into the WHA.Pattison told a Calgary Chamber of Commerce meeting that despite the continuing rumors of its imminent demise, the WHA is in existence to stay.&ldquo;One of the reasons is that there is a large number of responsible, stable owners in this league,&rdquo; said Pattison. &ldquo;Another is that fan support is growing in many of the most important cities. You don&rsquo;t hear about financial difficulties in Houston or Cincinnati or Indianapolis or Calgary or Winnipeg or Quebec,&rdquo; added Pattison. &ldquo;And New England is selling tickets to maximum capacity in its arena in Hartford.&rdquo;Pattison said WHA at tendance figures have increased from 2.5 million in the first year of the league to 4.1 million in the third year and there has been another five percent increase this season.While Pattison was sounding the clarion for the WHA, one of the loop&rsquo;s top stars, Bobby Hull, recently said that after four years of enduring bickering back and forth, he is getting impatient at the lack of action in merging the National Hockey League with the WHA.Hull says a merger is needed now for the good of the game. &ldquo;The best thing that could happen to hockey fight now is for everybody to sit down at the same table and say what is good and what is bad for hockey and look at the teams hurting the game on the ice and get on with it.&ldquo;The two leagues have got to get together, if for no other reason than the people most important to the game, the fans.&rdquo; Hull said the players&rsquo; associations have to get rid of the people who are in the game for a &ldquo;quick buck.&rdquo;TORONTO: The Toros have a new head coach in Gilles Leger, who has stepped up from his GM role to replace Bobby Baun. The Toros gave Baun his walking papers when the club continued to drop down in the Canadian Division playoff race. Many felt Baun did the best job with the talent at hand&hellip;Things haven&rsquo;t changed for the club, however. They recently lost their 1.5th straight game&hellip;On the brighter side, big Frank Mahovlich needs two more goals to join Bobby Hull and Gordie Howe as hockey&rsquo;s only 600-goal scorers.QUEBEC: The Nordiques continued their relentless drive to unseat the Winnipeg Jets. They beat San Diego and New England in their only two starts but the leading Jets refused to let up either. The Winnipeggers tied Edmonton 4-4, beat Phoenix 4-3 and the Oilers 4-2 for five out of six points. The Nords have four games in hand on the Jets.EDMONTON: The Oilers continued to battle Calgary for the third and final playoff spot. They salvaged three out of six points to the Cowboys&rsquo; two out of four. But the Oilers were still 13 back and had played five games more than Calgary&hellip;Defenseman Barry Long rifled in a blueline shot tor the winning goal in the third period to defeat Minnesota 4-3.CALGARY: The Cowboys made two roster changes in their stretch drive. Lynn Powis was purchased from Providence of the AHL and goaler Ed Humphreys was recalled from Springfield of the same league&hellip;The Cowboys picked up Bob Leiter midway in the hockey year when he was turned loose by At lanta Flames and they haven&rsquo;t regretted the move. Leiter was among the most productive performers last week with six points.WINNIPEG: The Jets were still an imposing crew at the top of the division with 41 victories, the most in the WHA, and 268 goals, also a league high&hellip;Coach Bobby Kromm insisted his club was giving up too many goals despite its winning record. He called for a tightening of the defense in front of Joe Daley and Curt Larsson.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02194/3612199-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="271" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Barry Long</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

Calgary Owner Says WHA Here To Stay; Baun Fired By Toros

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div>BOSTON&mdash;The old king is back on the throne of the Land of Bean pot.After an exile of eleven years, Boston College won itself a Beanpot Tournament championship. The Eagle, who&rsquo;d been wandering &lsquo;round the walls of the Causeway Street Castle since 1965, soared home on the strength of brilliant goaltending and an inspired team effort to dump heavily favored Boston University 6-3 before a near capacity crowd in the Boston Garden.Freshman netminder Paul Skidmore was sparkling in the BC nets, turning aside 44 Terrier bids. Another rookie from the New York Metropolitan League by the name of Joe Mullen scored a pair of goals, added to two by junior Bob Ferriter and single tallies by Richie Smith and Kevin Bartholomew. Terry Meagher countered twice for BU and Gary Fay had the other marker.For Boston College, it was the ninth Beanpot crown, but their first in eleven years. Only twice since the 5-4 win over BU in 1965 had BC even made the final round, to be ousted both times by their arch rivals from down Commonwealth Avenue. In that stretch. BU had taken the beans eight times with Harvard winning the other two.The Terriers had already edged BC earlier and were heavy favorites on February 10 with a record of 16-2 overall and a league-leading 15-1 ECAC Division One mark. The Eagles, meanwhile, were showing steady improvement but their 11-9-1 overall and 9-6-1 league slates hardly portended a challenge to BU in the Terriers&rsquo; favorite local event. In fact, Boston College had finished fourth in the 1974 and 1975 Bean pots along with missing the playoffs those two years, so all the recent tradition had swung away from them.Nor were any of the 12,250 on hand ready to change any bets on the game after the first stanza. A goal at 19:58 by defenseman Kevin Bartholomew gave BC a 1-0 lead at the first intermission. But the Terriers had hurled 18 tough shots at Skidmore to BC&rsquo;s nine on Brian Durocher. The best chance came when junior Mike Eruzione wheeled in alone and Skidmore blocked the near post with his pads while getting his claw up in time.At 3:19 of the second frame Bartholomew was whistled off for slashing, whereupon Boston College scored two shorthanded goals, by Smith and Ferriter, to forge ahead 3-0. Meagher deflected home a drive from the point on a BU power play a few minutes later to make it 3-1, where the score remained through the second intermission. BU had 13 shots to BC&rsquo;s ten in that period.A quick penalty on BC and a blast from the point by Fay made it 3-2 at 1:38 of the third, but Ferriter widened the lead at 5:48 when he was sent in alone by Paul Barrett. Nearly ten scoreless minutes passed before Meagher scored again through a screen just after BC had killed off a five on three penalty. It was 4-3 and BU was swarming all over the Eagle zone.With less than four minutes to play. Tourney MVP Skidmore repulsed a threat and Mullen, whose father drives the Zamboni at Madison Square Garden, sent Albrecht away with a neat pass through the BU defense. The BC captain beat Durocher but hit a post, and the puck caromed through the crease to Mullen following up the play. The former Westsider flipped it home, added the empty net tally at 18:56, and the long drought ended for Boston College fans.The triumph was a vindication of the rebuilding program of coach Len Ceglarski, now in his fourth year at BC after 14 seasons at Clarkson. At the outset of practice, he&rsquo;d set qualification of the playoffs as a criterion for a successful year by his young team. That objective seems at tainable, barring a collapse.&ldquo;I just feel happy for Richie (Smith) and Mark (Albrecht),&rdquo; he smiled in the dressing room. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re the only seniors we have and they&rsquo;ve tried so hard to make this team believe in itself. We&rsquo;ve been talking all year about playing the perfect game and we came as close to playing one tonight as we possibly could.&rdquo;Everyone agreed that the win would do wonders for Ceglarski&rsquo;s recruiting efforts, especially in the Boston area. The Hub is a schoolboy hockey nerve center, and those same schoolboys who move onto college rost ers each year had gotten pretty used to a BU-Harvard final in the Beanpot.&ldquo;I was sick and tired of everybody talking about the Harvards and the BU&rsquo;s,&rdquo; exulted Albrecht, a diminutive digger who&rsquo;s pointing toward a career asa Certified Public Accountant.&ldquo;Somebody even wrote in the paper that they should start seeding the teams for the first round, so BU could always play Harvard in the final. You know, we&rsquo;ve been up and down all year but we&rsquo;ve finally beaten a big team in a big game.&rdquo;The first-round game this year paired BC and Northeastern and Harvard against BU. The Eagles needed an empty net goal to nail down a 5-3 win against a stubborn Northeastern team, while a similar tally clinched BU&rsquo;s 6-5 win over Harvard. In the consolation, Harvard nipped the Huntington Hounds and mathematically eliminated them from playoff consideration.&ldquo;This is just unbelievable,&rdquo; grinned Smith, who could have been in Innsbruck with the Olympic team.&ldquo;This win makes up for the past two years when we missed the playoffs.&rdquo;His shorthand goal early in the second period was Smith&rsquo;s 186th career point, establishing him as the all-time scoring leader at Boston College ahead of Tim Sheehy. He missed the first semester this season due to academics, but quickly vaulted to the scoring lead upon returning.Albrecht was the last to strip off his soggy togs and head for the shower.&ldquo;When I get older. I&rsquo;m going to be able to look back and say &lsquo;I won a Beanpot.&rsquo;&rdquo;For at least the next year, boasting rights in Beantown will indeed be Boston College&rsquo;s. The throne room in Causeway Castle looks much the same, but the world has changed a lot since that night in 1965. BC fans agreed, it was great to be back.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01199/3612282-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="549" height="577"><figcaption class="caption-body">Joe Mullen</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02163/3612275-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="289" height="418"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAUL SKIDMORE&hellip;Sparkled In Goal</figcaption></div><h2>College Races</h2><h3>WCHA CONFERENCE</h3>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 16)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03112/3612268-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="583" height="291"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Michigan 7. Bow-ling Green 3North Dakota 6. Minne-&gt;ota-Duluth2Wisconsin 4, Colorado College 3MChigan Tech 6 Michigan 4Denver 3 Notre Dame 2Michigan State 4, Minnesota 2Mmnesota-Duluth 5. North Dakota 2Wisconsin-2, Colorado College 2Michigan Tech 6 Michigan 4Notre Dame 4, Denver 2Mchigar State 5, Minnsota4<h2>ECAC CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Thu. Feb. 12)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0484/3612261-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="583" height="473"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Harvard 6. Princeton 1RPJ 6, Clarkson 6Boston University 13. Colgate 3B&gt;own 8, Penn 5Providence 12, Colgate ICornell 5 Dartmouth 3New Hampshire 13. Yale 3St Lawrence 6. RPI3Vermont 10, UMass 4Dartmouth 4, Providence 2Vermont 9, St. Lawrence 3Cornells Horvoid4Pnnceton 7, Army 3<h2>BEANPOT TOURNAMENT</h2>Boston College 5 Northeosten 3Boston U&#2404; iversity 6. Hat vord 5<h3>Consolation</h3>Harvard 4. Northeastern 2<h3>Championship Final</h3>Boston College 6 Boston University 3 &#9632;

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Boston College Upsets BU For Ice Title

<div class="byline">BY RON WEBER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01916/3611123-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="565" height="889"><figcaption class="caption-body">JEAN LEMIEUX&hellip;Surprise Of Deal</figcaption></div>WASHINGTON&mdash;The Capitals trade with the Flames doesn&rsquo;t compare with the trade between Boston and the Rangers but it is the biggest swap to date in Washington&rsquo;s short NHL life.We&rsquo;re speaking of the Jan. 22 deal with the Flames that stripped the Capitals of their center, captain and team leader, Bill Clement, but got them center Gerry Meehan defenseman Jean Lemieux and a number one draft choice.Nearly a month later no squawks have sifted north from Georgia so they must be content with the barter. Evidently, Clement has continued his sweeping skating and tenacious forechecking throwing in his first career hat trick for good measure.But if the Flames are happy, the Capitals are doubly so. General manager Max McNab and coach Tom McVie have two players to smile over. Meehan ran in five goals in his first seven games as a Cap, took extra face-offs and manned the left point on the power play. If his play didn&rsquo;t measure up to Clement&rsquo;s it was certainly close enough that Lemieux more than made up the difference.But then, Lemieux has been the key to the trade right from the start. Everybody knew what kind of a player Meehan was and what Clement&rsquo;s skills were. Gerry at 29 wasn&rsquo;t going to get any better and Bill after four years in the NHL was pretty close to his zenith. However, the jury was (and is) still out on the 23-year-old Lemieux. Early evidence indicates that Jean has a long and productive big league career ahead of him.He certainly got off to the right start. On his second shift in the red, white and blue he took his first shot at the goal, a bash from the right point on the power play. Bingo, over Dunc Wilson&rsquo;s left shoulder and into the goal, starting Washington toward a 7-5 triumph over the Rangers in the fray that broke the 25-game winless streak. Jean admitted he was surprised it went in, saying a shot like that should be kept low, for tip-ins sake.Lemieux is averaging two shots on goal a game, not bad for a defenseman, especially for the Capitals, who let the other team have the puck for extended periods. He has added value being a righthand shot, something the Capitals have been short of since day one.Jean still summers in his hometown, Noranda, in northern Quebec. A quiet, pleasant, good-looking bachelor he attributes his shooting ability to lots of practice, some of it in 45 degrees below zero weather in his early teenage days. He played junior hockey in Sherbrooke, was the Flames third round draft pick in the summer of &lsquo;72. He performed under present Atlanta coach Fred Creighton at Omaha in his first pro year, with 10 goals and 42 points but his offensive statistics sagged the next two seasons. &lsquo;73-74 was split between Halifax and Atlanta with three goals in each, and he had only three more last season in 75 Flames games. But he did amass 24 assists and seemed to be moving more into the Atlanta scheme of things when the trade hit.ICE CAPS: The pick in the draft that came with Lemieux and Meehan was originally Buffalo&rsquo;s, so it figures to be down near the end of the first round&hellip;Despite a 20 shutout administered by Ed Johnston and St. Louis, the Capitals goals against average dipped below five per game for the first time since December. Last season they permitted over five and a half goals per contest&hellip;Bernie Wolfe was a big reason for the pleasan&rsquo; decrease, permitting only 16 goals in six games. In four of those starts the opposition got exactly two scores. Bernie gained only one win and one tie, though, as the Caps missed some easy chances at the other end&hellip;Ron Low netminded a 4-4 stalemate in Toronto. Darryl Sittler looked sluggish. It was their next game when the Maple Leaf center got those 10 points&hellip;Brian Kinsella was brought up from Dayton for three games. The smiling rookie, who had a good camp last September, got six shots on goal in his first game but his only point was an assist in his last match&hellip;Kinsella played both center and right wing&hellip;Mike Lampman returned from 10 games on the shelf with damaged knee ligaments&hellip;Gerry Meehar and the Blues center Derek Sanderson hit three straight faceoffs into the crowd. &#9632;

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Meehan, Lemieux Prove Instant Hits

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0028-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01234/3612230-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg"></div>GP&mdash;Games played; G&mdash;Goals; A&mdash;Assists; P&mdash;Points;PM&mdash;Penalty Minutes; SOG&mdash;Shots on Goal; SC%&mdash;Scoring Percentage. &#9632;

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WHA SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS

<div class="byline">BY BILL FLEISCHMAN</div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;The ice isn&rsquo;t the only place Mel Bridgman has progressed in his first NHL season. The 20-year-old lad the Philadelphia Flyers distinguished as a number one amateur draft selection has loosened up considerably off the ice.First impressions of Bridgman were: here&rsquo;s a pleasant young man with an alert mind. However, in interviews he was cautious, saying all the right things and appearing properly awed.Lately, as the Flyers have relied upon him more, Bridgman has displayed more self-assurance&mdash;on and off the ice. A sense of humor has also surfaced. Example: asked about Victoria teammate Kim Clackson, now the WHA&rsquo;s penalty terror, Bridgman replied, &ldquo;He was tough, but no tougher than me.&rdquo;Although the 6-foot, 185-pound Trenton, Ont., native has proven fistically capable in disputes with Mike Corrigan, Rick Chartraw, Dave Forbes and Bob Nystrom, please note that a toothless smile appeared on his face moments after his reply. After his fight with L.A.&rsquo;s Corrigan, someone asked if it was his first victory.&ldquo;Yeah, in about three years,&rdquo; said the grinning rookie.Bridgman, son of a Canadian government meteorologist, has smiled often since joining the Flyers. He took his inititation haircut, courtesy of the Moose Dupont Guillotine Hairstyling School, in good spirits. He grins when he slips on striped slacks and someone asks if he is entertaining later in a vaudeville show. In other words, Bridgman has fit into the Flyers&rsquo; close family.All this leads to the point that, with Rick MacLeish injured Bridgman is now a vital part of the Flyers. In fact, some think that if the Flyers are to win Stanley Cup III, Bridgman&rsquo;s success in replacing MacLeish will be the vital factor.Coach Fred Shero wasted no time directing Bridgman to MacLeish&rsquo;s spot between Ross Lonsberry and Gary Dornhoefer. And Bridgman responded with a four-point night against St. Louis and a two-goal game against the Rangers during a five-game winning streak.&ldquo;We knew he had talent,&rdquo; said Shero. &ldquo;But on a Stanley Cup champion you don&rsquo;t just automatically have a job. Sometimes you&rsquo;ve got to wait. We werent&rsquo; exactly losing before he got a shot.&ldquo;He was patient and we were patient. We need him now, that&rsquo;s why he&rsquo;s playing regularly.&rsquo;Even when he was only a parttimer, Bridgman impressed most observers with his poise, playmaking and strength. Now he says that early Bridgman was partially a facade.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01895/3610537-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="569" height="1263"><figcaption class="caption-body">ROSS LONSBERRY&hellip;Under Pressure</figcaption></div>&ldquo;When I first came here, I was scared to even handle the puck. Now I have almost 200 percent more confidence.&rdquo;Naturally, Bridgman is sorry to see MacLeish injured. The Stanley Cup playoffs&rsquo; leading scorer the past two seasons suffered torn knee ligaments on a clean check by Vancouver&rsquo;s Harold Snepsts and won&rsquo;t be available for ice duty until late April at the earliest.&ldquo;Everyone wants to play regularly, but you never want to see anyone get hurt,&rdquo; said Bridgman. &ldquo;You hope they&rsquo;ll play you because of your ability. But accidents do happen.&rdquo;The accident that sidelined MacLeish has put Bridgman on the spot. Pressure will also be on Lonsberry and Dornhoefer, two steady, persistent and underrated veterans. However, neither winger expressed concern over their new center. In the Flyers&rsquo; 6-1 trouncing of the Rangers at the Spectrum, Lonsberry and Bridgman combined on a silky smooth give-and-go 18th goal for the rookie. You&rsquo;d think only two long-time linemates could manage such precision timing.&ldquo;Ah, that&rsquo;s just part of Freddie&rsquo;s system,&rdquo; explained Bridgman. &ldquo;When a man passes the puck in that situation, his next job is to go toward the net.&rdquo;Maybe Bridgman won&rsquo;t succeed in plugging the huge gap created by MacLeish&rsquo;s absence. Maybe it&rsquo;s asking too much. But at the moment, the &ldquo;Kid,&rdquo; as Shero calls him, looks like he can handle the assignment.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02822/3610530-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="1187" height="1423"><figcaption class="caption-body">MEL BRIDGMAN&hellip;His Patience Paid Off</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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SOME NHL NO. 1 DRAFT PICKS FALL FLAT BUT NOT FLYERS’ MEL BRIDGMAN

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-01951/3610589-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="445" height="423"></div>&bull; A YEAR AGO, Gary Bromley was the No. one goaltender of the Buffalo Sabres, a club that was far out in front of the NHL&rsquo;s Adams Division and on its way to the Stanley Cup finals. Now, Bromley is looking for a job. With Gerry Desjardins and Al Smith handling the Sabres net minding chores, &ldquo;Bonesy&rdquo; has been let know he doesn&rsquo;t figure in the club&rsquo;s future plans. The ironic part is that Bromley always has been a winner. He starred in goal for Charlotte when they won the Southern League regular season and playoff titles and with Cincinnati Swords of the American League when that team won a divisional title and Calder Cup. He had a 26-11-11 won-lost-tied record with Buffalo last season&hellip;Another Fred Shero innovation saw assistant coaches Mike Nykoluk and Barrv Ashbee run the team from behind the bench in Flyers&rsquo; 5-3 win over the Rangers while Shero watched the game from the press box and conferred with his aides between periods. The Flyers plan future dual-coaching assignments. Players liked the idea, especially the defensemen (Ashbee&rsquo;s specialty)&hellip;Billy Reay of the Chicago Black Hawks is the only coach since expansion to remain in that position with the same club&hellip;Phil Esposito had his 34th birthday the other day&hellip;Bob Gainey has to rate as one of the unsung heroes of the Montreal Canadiens this season&hellip;Denis Potvin, All Star defenseman with the New York Islanders, has confided to friends that he would like to be an actor when his hockey career is finished&hellip;Ted Cumming, executive vice-president of Avco Financial Services and a former star hockey player himself, is impressed with the close battle for the top spot in each of the three WHA Divisions this season&hellip;Cincinnati Stingers have been coming on strong of late and have a good chance to overtake New England Whalers for first place in the East Division.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02907/3610582-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="251" height="410"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gary Bromley</figcaption></div>&bull; DON CHERRY credits the bench strength with his Boston Bruins great showing this season. &ldquo;In so many games we&rsquo;ve had a player come off the bench to play a key role in a win&rdquo;&hellip;Several members of the Buffalo Sabres are into transcendental meditation&hellip;Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; Mike Wong is the sole Chinese player in the NHL right now. Larry Kwong was the first Chinese player to perform in the league and he played briefly with New York Rangers during the 194748 season&hellip;Greg Polis of the Rangers has given up on pregame steaks. &ldquo;I feel better. Less sluggish when I do,&rdquo; he explained&hellip;Walt Tkaczuk is wearing a helmet for the first time. The big Ranger forward was hit in the temple during practice recently and decided to wear a helmet for awhile&hellip;Gerry Moore, who did such a fine coaching job with Dayton, Tulsa and Oklahoma City over the years, is in the market for a coaching job and would be a real find for a junior or minor league club. Gerry may be reached in Indianapolis at 844-2415&hellip;Marcel Pelletier, director of player personnel of the Philadelphia Flyers, played goal for more teams in more different leagues than anyone in history. One of the Flyer originals, Marcel is one of the most respected front-office men in the game&hellip;Doug Keenan, well-known former player and executive in Montreal hockey circles, passed away in Westlake Village, California the other day. He had been managing the Westlake Village Inn for a number of years after moving to California in the 1950s&hellip;Toronto Toros have had four coaches in their three years of existence. The Toros, with their highly-paid help, have been one of the WHA&rsquo;s biggest disappointments&hellip;Several fans have written urging a best-of-three series between the winners of the Stanley Cup and the Avco World Trophy with the series taking place in late May&hellip;Bobby Taylor won his first three games playing goal for the Richmond Robins of the AHL&hellip;Brad Park lost close to 15 pounds since joining the Bruins and is a strong candidate to win the Norris Trophy as the NHL&rsquo;s top defenseman. He&rsquo;s played super hockey with the Bruins. His closest rival for the top defenseman&rsquo;s award would appear to be Islanders&rsquo; Denis Potvin&hellip;Derek Sanderson, the former playboy who is now a serious student of the game, plans to marry his long-time girl friend this summer.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03802/3610575-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="247" height="415"><figcaption class="caption-body">Marcel Pelletier</figcaption></div>&bull; SIX TIMES as many television viewers saw the United States beat Finland in the Olympic games over ABC-TV than saw last year&rsquo;s Stanley Cup finals on NBC. More than 30 percent of the entire U.S. viewing audience witnessed the Czech-Russian gold medal final and in U.S. rating circles any show that hits 30 percent of the market is considered a solid hit&hellip;Johnny Esaw and his CTV network did a first-rate job in bringing the Winter Olympics to Canadians&hellip;Most all arenas in hockey today are using Polar Ice Paint to color the ice surface. Polar Ice Paint is manufactured by Bondex International and is available at hardware, paint and wallpaper stores and home centers&hellip;Don Lever of the Vancouver Canucks has played in 297 consecutive NHL games&hellip;Kansas City Scouts may play a series of exhibition games in Japan at the end of this season&hellip;Minnesota Fighting Saints are attempting to trade goalie Mike Curran to the Toronto Toros. John Garrett is the No. one goalie for the Saints and Curran is trade material.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04700/3610568-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="249" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body">Don Lever</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05569/3610620-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg"></div><h2>Russians Violent In Olympic Play</h2>The Russian Nationals have done it again. Another gold medal in Olympic competition due to an undefeated string of games. Enroute to gold, Mr. Kulagin and company met the West German team and exemplified what violence in hockey is all about.In the historic Flyers-Red Army game, if the Soviets had performed the way they did against Germany, the Flyers would have left the ice. It was the result of heavy checks by Barber and Dupont and ultimately a check by Ed Van Impe on Valeri Kharlamov which caused the Reds to run and hide in the dressing room. It was later pointed out by excitable Howi Meeker that Barber had not been charging, Dupont had let the Reds finish a long pass and Kharlmov had ducked into Van Impe&rsquo;s elbow.Let us now travel to Innsbruck, Austria; to that Russia-West Germany game. A member of the German Nationals was coming in on his wing, playing the offensive. He crossed paths with the same Mr. Kharlamov and was promptly cross-checked to the ice. The official did not hand out a cross-checking penalty so the German player thought it best to give Kharlamov a friendly warning of his own. No sooner was he on his feet than he was knocked back down by an obviously intentional elbow which opened up a gash underneath one eye. He had to be aided up and off the ice by his team mates.I think that it is rather ironic that the same player who was so &ldquo;brutally molested&rdquo; in Philadelphia should do such brutal molesting of his own in Innsbruck. The Flyers were depicted in the Russian press as cave men carrying clubs instead of hockey sticks. Perhaps the West German press should depict the Soviets as another tribe bearing hammers and sickles.W. WESLEY JANNSSON, Pine Falls, Man.<h2>Minnesota Fans Demand Quality Hockey</h2>Being the complete hockey people that you are, I had the feeling you would print something in relation to the Fighting Saints&rsquo; effort this year. I&rsquo;m referring to the letter of Mr. Hartwell in the Feb. 6 issue.His feelings are like those of many people in this state, not only about the Saints but the North Stars as well. At the outset of the season expectations were high for both. The Saints were to be a powerhouse in the WHA and the Stars were finally going to be playoff bound.So far neither pro team is living up to advance billings and the media around here has been unkind to them to say the least.Kind words are usually saved for the Minnesota Gophers who consistently play solid winning hockey. The only problem is the fact that Williams Arena is always sold out and tickets are next to impossible to get.The point is that the people of this state have always wanted, if not demanded, quality hockey at all levels. They will pay the price to see it and accept nothing less. The Fighting Saints organization is already finding this out and whether the North Stars rebuilding program can produce wins on the ice and fans in the stands remains to be seen.The fans should come with the wins but if the Stars can stay above water until then is another question.MIKE PUKAY,&nbsp; Minneapolis, Minn.<h2>Ranger Fortunes On The Upswing</h2>Since the beginning of the &lsquo;75-76 season, the New York Rangers have been taking written and spoken criticism about their playing ability so far this season. Don&rsquo;t you think it&rsquo;s about time someone came to their defense?Has anyone noticed that since the season began the team has had two new coaches, a new general manager and only about ten of the players on the team now were on the team at this time last year?The players must learn to play the style of hockey that their coach wants them to play and after they&rsquo;re used to playing one type of game it must not be easy to change styles. Their so-called &ldquo;porous defense&rdquo; is made up of first or second year men that haven&rsquo;t had the experience others have. As for their goaltending, I think that John Davidson, Dunc Wilson and Doug Stoetaert have done well for the team.Since the addition of John Ferguson a noticed improvement is coming on and the team&rsquo;s confidence can be seen reappearing again.Why not call this a rebuilding year, as the true fan can forsee many Stanley Cups and great Ranger teams in the future.M.F.&D.K.&nbsp; Cresco, Pa.<h2>Disagrees With Three Star Selections</h2>I have just finished listening to the game between the Montreal Canadiens and the Philadelphia Flyers. The reason for this letter is to express my opinion on the foolishness of the three star selections.The three stars selected were: Bill Barber, Jacques Lemaire and Wayne Stephenson. The final score was 2-1 for Philly. Lemaire scored the only goal for the Canadiens and that is about all.Meanwhile, Ken Dryden was stopping 39 deadly Philly shots and wasn&rsquo;t even selected as a star.The reason the selections are foolish is that on Monday December 29 the Canadiens shut out Washington 6-0. In that game Dryden stopped 27 Washington shots. He played a good game and was deserving of a first star selection.But there seems to be a difference between 27 Washington shots and 39 Philly shots.It upsets me very much that Dryden isn&rsquo;t getting the credit he deserves for his outstanding work in the Canadiens nets this year.WENDY LOW, Ottawa, Ont. &#9632;

f0004-05

FAN FORUM

Founded October 1st, 1947Vol. 29 No. 21 MARCH 5, 1976Published 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 E. 58th Street, New York, N.Y. 10022.Kenneth W. McKenzie President, Publisher and Advertising DirectorDon Wall Associate PublisherCharlie Halpin Editorial DirectorKeith Lawton Administration ManagerPat Beale Advertising Co-OrdinatorRalph Bridgland Asst. To EditorUnited States Advertising RepresentativesNEW YORK: Bill Hitzig, National Sports Publishing Corp., 150 East 58th Street, New York, N.Y. 10022. Telephone (212) 593-2100.CHICAGO: Hooper Jones & Associates, 3322 W. Peterson Ave., Chicago, III 60659. Telephone (312) 478-5544.ATLANTIC STATES (including New York, Boston, Buffalo & Philadelphia: Bob Bassinette, Basslnette/Whlte, 50 East 42nd St, New York, N.Y. 10017. Telephone (212) 986-6210.YEARLY SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $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 ST. CATHERINE STREET WEST, SUITE 217, MONTREAL, CANADA H3G 1R7. Second Class mail Registration No. 1327. All inquiries pertaining to subscriptions should be addressed to Subscription Dept, The Hockey News, 1434 St. Catherine St. W. Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7. Printed in Canada. &#9632;

The Hockey News OFFICIAL NATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLY

<div class="byline">BY HAL SIGURDSON</div>VANCOUVER&mdash;Ever since he placed Gary Smith, his veteran goaltender, under indefinite suspension, Phil Maloney has been promising a speedy solution to the dilemma.However, on the way to resolving the problem the Vancouver Canucks&rsquo; coach and general manager has run smack into Murphy&rsquo;s law. Namely, &ldquo;nothing is as easy as it looks.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01849/3610675-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="267" height="441"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ken Lockett</figcaption></div>Maloney may have taken the easy way out by reinstating Smith after one week&rsquo;s idleness.A little background music is in order.On Feb. 8 the Canucks were playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at home in a game the Penguins were eventually to win 7-3. Midway into the second period the score had reached 5-1 and Maloney decided it was time to change goaltenders.&ldquo;The team was playing badly in front of him,&rdquo; Maloney was to explain later, &ldquo;and I didn&rsquo;t see any reason to leave Smitty in there and let him be embarrassed further.&rdquo;As a result, he sent in Ken Lockett to take over.However, instead of coming to the bench, Smith went directly to the dressing room. There he quickly shed his equipment, showered, put on his street clothes and vanished. When the second period ended, Smith was gone.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t blame Smitty for being upset,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;1 have a great deal of respect for the guy. but he put me in a position where I had to make a decision.&rdquo;That decision led to Smith&rsquo;s suspension.Maloney&rsquo;s idea for resolving the issue was to trade his talented goaltender to another National Hockey League team, something that on the surface wouldn&rsquo;t seem to pose much of a problem.Smith had perhaps his finest NHL season in 1974-75. He led the Canucks to a Smythe Division pennant, recorded a 3.09 goals against average and rang up six shutouts. He was a genuine contender for the Hart Trophy as the league&rsquo;s most valuable player.But after a week of trying, Smith remained untraded.&ldquo;I thought we were going to make a deal a couple of times,&rdquo; Maloney reported, &ldquo;but then everything cooled off.&rdquo;Suddenly, though, breaking the impasse has become more urgent for the player than the team.While he&rsquo;s under suspension, Smith doesn&rsquo;t collect his substantial salary. The team, meanwhile, has been doing nicely, thank you, without him.With Smith at least temporarily out of the picture, Maloney called up Curt Ridley from Tulsa, his Central League farm team and gave Lockett the starting assignment in Vancouver&rsquo;s next two games.Lockett was outstanding as the Canucks edged the tough New York Islanders 3-2 on home ice. He was solid again as his teammates out-scored the Montreal Canadiens 6-4 at the Forum, marking the first time Vancouver had beaten Montreal in a league game.In 30 games prior to that the Canadiens had won 25 while five others ended in ties.Now Maloney decided it was time to find out what kind of a goaltender he had in Ridley, the 24-year-old he obtained from Atlanta at the expense of a first round 1976 amateur draft choice.He handed him the starting assignment against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the team that had demolished the Boston Bruins 114 just a week earlier, a game in which Darryl Sittler set all sorts of records by scoring six goals and four assists.Adding to the pressure was the fact the game was televised nationally in Canada.Ridley handled the pressure and the Leafs in fine style. Vancouver won 4-3 and in his debut as a Canuck he came across as a poised stand-up goaltender with a quick gloved hand.&ldquo;Now people can see why we gave up a first round draft choice to get him,&rdquo; Maloney beamed. The early returns strongly suggest the Canucks could get along just fine with Lockett and Ridley as their goaltenders. But no one knew better than Maloney the Smith situation had to be satisfactorily resolved in a hurry.And the solution had to be fair to their big goaltender.More than any other single player, Smith has made the Canucks respectable. Maybe Maloney had this in mind when he reinstated the big goaltender. &#9632;

f0005-01

Canucks Got Along Just Fine Without Big Goaler

Following are the latest player movements in hockey:<h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>BOSTON&mdash;Doug Halward, defenseman, recalled from Rochester of AHL. Al Sims, defenseman, sent to Rochester as replacement.BUFFALO&mdash;Ken Breitenbach, defenseman, recalled from Hershey of AHL.CALIFORNIA&mdash;Ralph Klassen and Charlie Simmer, forwards, and Tom Price, defenseman, recalled from Salt Lake of CHL.MONTREAL&mdash;Bill Nyrop, defenseman, recalled from Nova Scotia of AHL. Rick Chartraw, defenseman, returned to Nova Scotia as replacement.N.Y. RANGERS&mdash;Doug Soetart, goalkeeper, returned to Providence of AHL.TORONTO&mdash;Don Ashby, forward, sent to Oklahoma City of CHL.VANCOUVER&mdash;Paulin Bordeleau, forward, sent to Tulsa of CHL. Ron Sedlbauer, forward, re-called from Tulsa.<h2>WORLD HOCKEY ASSN.</h2>CALGARY&mdash;Lynn Powiss, forward, secured from Providence of AHL for future considerations. Rob Walton, forward, signed as free agent.CLEVELAND&mdash;John Voss, goalkeeper, returned to Greensboro ofSHL.<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>BALTIMORE&mdash;Dick Sarrazin, forward, placed on voluntary retired list.NEW HAVEN&mdash;Tommy Williams, forward, signed as free agent. Glen Burdon, forward, placed on disabled list indefinitely after suffering injuries in auto accident.PROVIDENCE&mdash;Bob Sauve, goalkeeper, returned to Charlotte of CHL.<h2>CENTRALLEAGUE</h2>SALT LAKE&mdash;Jim Weaver, goalkeeper, and Bobby Geoffrion, forward, recalled from Toledo of IHL.<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>FLINT&mdash;Jim Johnston, forward, and Glen McLeod, defenseman, secured from Saginaw of IHL in exchange for Wayne Zuk, forward.MUSKEGON&mdash;Gary Ford, forward, quit the team and was placed on suspended list by club.COLUMBUS&mdash;Marty Feschuk, defenseman, sent to Toledo of IHL in return for Tommy Thomson, defenseman. Gordon Duncan, forward, picked up on waivers from Toledo.<h2>SOUTHERN LEAGUE</h2>CHARLOTTE&mdash;Mike Rouleau, forward, secured from Roanoke of SHL. Brian Cousineau, goalkeeper, and Jean Landry, defenseman, assigned to Roanoke of SHL.GREENSBORO&mdash;Barry Randall, forward, signed as free agent. Craig Crawford, Cam Colborne and Alvin White, forwards, left team.HAMPTON&mdash;Wayne Mosdell, defenseman, signed as free agent after release by Roanoke. &#9632;

Movements of Players

<div class="byline">BY ALAN TRUEX</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-01983/3610730-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAT QUINN&hellip;Doesn&rsquo;t Venture Over Blueline</figcaption></div>ATLANTA&mdash;Following a victory in The Omni, the Atlanta Flames crowd into a small room adjoining their dressing quarters, and they relish filmed replays of the game&rsquo;s highlights.They did this Feb. 5, after they beat California 4-1. Unfortunately, the most picture-perfect play of the game&mdash;if not the season&mdash;wasn&rsquo;t in the picture.&ldquo;Of all the times for the video tape not to be working.&rdquo; Flames coach Fred Creighton complained, &ldquo;but the guy couldn&rsquo;t get the play on film.&rdquo;Too bad it&rsquo;s gone and can&rsquo;t be saved, because it&rsquo;s unlikely the Flames ever will see a repeat of Pat Quinn breaking on net to score an unassisted short handed goal.Quinn scored the game&rsquo;s first goal after intercepting the puck from the Seals&rsquo; Bob Murdoch. &ldquo;The puck bounced out in front of me,&rdquo; the Flames&rsquo; captain said, &ldquo;and I thought I&rsquo;d take a run at it.&rdquo;He skated with shocking speed (for him. since Quinn is no Peter Mueller) and made a sharp move across the slot to backhand the puck under goalie Gilles Meloche.&ldquo;I guess when I score a goal it&rsquo;s headlines,&rdquo; joked Quinn, unaccustomed to being the featured speaker in postgame press conferences.In an eight-year NHL career. Quinn has scored only 17 goals. And until his goal against California. only one short handed one.The 6-3, 215-pound Irishman is a knock-em-down style of defenseman who rarely advances past the opponents&rsquo; blueline. Because he seldom scores points (six this season), Quinn tends to be noticed only for defensive mistakes or penalties.But his effectiveness at his own blueline and in the slot is appreciated by Flames general manager Cliff Fletcher. &ldquo;Opposing forwards give Pat a wide berth,&rdquo; Fletcher says. &ldquo;They don&rsquo;t like to go in against him.&rdquo;Quinn has been an intimidating player this season, living up to his reputation. He is one of only three or four Flames&rsquo; players who are willing body-checkers.The 33-year-old defenseman says. &ldquo;They don&rsquo;t give me a contract based on how many points I scored.&rdquo;If they did. he would be applying for welfare.Actually, he probably could find another job rather easily. A sharp analytical thinker, Quinn went to college during about 10 off-seasons to earn a degree in economics from Toronto&rsquo;s York University.He now spends his off-seasons in Atlanta, helping out several charity drives and making frequent speaking appearances in behalf of hockey, a sport struggling for acceptance in the South.Quinn and his family live year-around in their home in North Atlanta, and he considers himself an. American although he was born in Hamilton, Ont.&ldquo;This is my home,&rdquo; he says of Atlanta, &ldquo;and my daughters talk with Southern accents.&rdquo; He plans to remain in Atlanta when retiring from hockey.For now, Quinn is interested in inspiring his teammates to a strong finish. The Flames did not play well during January, and the club was still dragging somewhat in early February.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not playing particularly well,&rdquo; Quinn said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re having little letdowns. One guy one time and another guy another time, and that just breaks the whole thing down.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re quite confident that we&rsquo;ll get rolling again.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re just a hair away from going the way we were in late November and December. Hopefully we&rsquo;ll get hot by playoff time.&rdquo;NOTES: Dan Bouchard&rsquo;s goaltending kept the Flames alive during a stretch in which the club wasn&rsquo;t playing well. In early February, Bouchard turned in three straight exceptional games, tying the New York Islanders 2-2, losing 2-1 to Chicago and beating Toronto 5-2. &#9632;

f0006-01

Replay Machine Misses Rare Feat As Quinn Scores Shorthanded Goal

<div class="byline">BY JACK MCCARTHY</div>BOSTON&mdash;Hail to The Chief.As the Bruins, faced with the imminent return of Bobby Orr and further bolstered by the return of prodigal son Gerry Cheevers, begin to zero in on the Stanley Cup, leave us pause for moment to contemplate Johnny Bucyk.The big Bruin left winger, in his 41st year (birthday in May), began this season as the sixth-highest scorer in NHL history. He has since jumped over some pretty fair players, among them Norm Ullman. Stan Mikita and Alex Delvecchio, and now sits in the second spot in total points&mdash;behind Gordie Howe.Bucyk also reached the 500-goal plateau this season, which is his 21st in the NHL and his 19th as a Bruin.Howe, of course, is the top man with 1,809 points in 1,687 games. Big John, as this is written, has 1,283 points (regular season) in 1,361 games. The chances of him catching Howe are dim, but Bucyk, who is playing on a one-year contract, could conceivably do it, if he chooses to go on, and on.If Ron Andrews, the statistical demon of the NHL, ever gets around to it, there may be a record category known as, &ldquo;most posts hit&rdquo;&mdash;if this is ever done, many will claim the crown, in fact, everybody, but Bucyk would have had 3,000 points if he had shot just a hair one way or another. He is the undisputed post-hitter champ on the Bruins.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-01889/3610761-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="577" height="582"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOHN BUCYK&hellip;Second To Howe</figcaption></div>Chief&rsquo;s point total is remarkable in that his early years in Boston were spent digging the puck out of the corner so Bronco Horvath could score. That was in the days of the Bruins&rsquo; famed &ldquo;Uke Line&rdquo; of Bucyk, Horvath and big Vic Stasiuk.He was matched with Horvath and Stasiuk when he came to the Bruins from Detroit, and Lynn Patrick remembered that he had once scored 30 goals in the Western League playing with the same pair.He has gone on to become a Bruins&rsquo; mainstay ever since, making his own conditioning program; battling the weight and the bruises which are inevitable. John had only 29goals last season after a sizzling start, but this was due to a hip injury which bothered him over the last half of the season. And, at one time several years ago, he had a back problem that threatened his career, but he overcame it&hellip;For a long-time Bucyk-watcher, there are many memories, one of which is renewed almost every game in Boston Garden when the fans go into their chant of &ldquo;Chief, Chief, Chief&rdquo; for the likeable player.Another is watching John, twice winner of the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct, hit an unsuspecting miscreant with a devastating check. Bucyk is of the old school, and young squirts who mess around with him don&rsquo;t realize that he weighs in the vicinity of 225 and has a long memory. They are forcefully reminded some night when they run into that rear end of his with their heads down, and have to crawl to the bench. Chief commands respect.With all the speculation of the make-up of the Bruins this year, and especially with Bucyk&rsquo;s advancing age, there were those who had written him off. Not so those who know that, playing the left corner on the power play, he is something else.John can make the dangerous diagonal pass from the left corner back to the right point like it had eyes. He and Bobby Orr teamed on this move often, with Orr sometimes taking a wind-up on the shot while the puck was enroute from Bucyk&rsquo;s stick.Then there is the fondest memory of all&mdash;Bucyk skating around Boston Garden in the spring of 1971, holding the Stanley Cup aloft while the fans went crazy, and small boys jumped onto the ice to follow the big guy around.The next time he did this was 1973, but that skate was in Madison Square Garden, and all John got for his trouble that afternoon was a shower of debris from those darlings in New York.So, he has, after a long drought, played on two Stanley Cup winners, and is looking to make it three.All of which was just a gleam in the eye of a kid who was rookie of the year in the Western Hockey League with Edmonton in, gulp, 1954-55Chief, Chief, Chief&hellip; &#9632;

f0007-01

Bucyk Amazing Scorer In 19th Bruin Season

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03544/3610792-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg" title="f0007-03" width="592" height="657"><figcaption class="caption-body">Quick Starts</figcaption></div><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02756/3610799-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="117" height="157"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div>Being able to take off fast from a standstill is one of the most important abilities of any hockey player. Learned early, it will become automatic, so you&rsquo;ll never have to think about it.Here are a few tips for fast starters.The first few steps should be fast and choppy, your blades as close to the ice surface as possible. Don&rsquo;t lift a skate high while the other one is bearing down on a stroke. The thrust stroke should shift your body weight just enough to lift the other skate a fraction off the ice.Keep your upper body relaxed when you start off. Don&rsquo;t flail your arms around like a windmill; that only throws you off balance and slows you down.Hold your stick in one hand, at least until you&rsquo;ve gained three-quarter speed. Starting with a two-handed grip twists your body so you&rsquo;re not getting maximum thrust with both legs. &#9632;

f0007-03

MINOR HOCKEY TIPS

<div class="byline">By Bill Libby</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-01972/3610837-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="288" height="359"></div><h2>What Makes Wren Run&hellip;</h2>GUYS LIKE WREN BLAIR are the guts of this game of hockey. They live for this sport. Without it, they would wither away. They believe they know it better than anyone else. They spend every waking hour every winter trying to out-maneuver the next guy. Insult them and they shrug it off. Cry for them and they laugh at you. Knock them down and they bounce right back up. As Blair says, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re in a jungle and we&rsquo;ll do everything and anything, we&rsquo;ll spend our guts to survive.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-02872/3610830-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="277" height="376"><figcaption class="caption-body">Wren Blair</figcaption></div>Somehow, for almost 30 years now, Wren has survived. Out of Oshawa, he didn&rsquo;t have a dime to begin with. He made ends meet with a milk route. As a player he was poor, so he made a business of his sport. He started with a senior amateur team in the sticks and he begged backers and borrowed players until he had built the Whitby Dunlops, who won a couple of Canadian championships and took the world title from Russia in Norway in 1958.Boston brought him into its organization and he managed and coached the Clinton Comets of the Eastern League for them, which was a long way from the big time. But he won a few championships there, too. He made a name for himself when he signed at the age of 14 a super prospect, Bobby Orr. Others wanted him, but Blair got him by talking faster and hustling harder than the others. Blair put together an entire team for Bobby in Oshawa so he could play near his home. When Bobby grew up, he took the Bruins from rags to riches.Blair can out-talk and outhustle almost anyone. but the Bruins somehow didn&rsquo;t see him in the majors, so when the majors expanded into Minnesota and Walter Bush offered him an opportunity there, Blair grabbed it. That was in 1966, he managed like a madman for eight years, coached most of that time, and made them one of the most successful of the new franchises, on and off the ice. He had part of his lungs cut out in 1971. but six weeks later he was back in business. When you said it was good they didn&rsquo;t cut out his ego. he laughed.He has an enormous ego. but he knows it. You can&rsquo;t insult him by mentioning it. He&rsquo;s been rapped for talking to the writers but he isn&rsquo;t afraid to talk because he doesn&rsquo;t double-talk, he tells it as it is, which few will do.Speaking of the talent the establishment provides expansionists, he says. &ldquo;They don&rsquo;t give you a thing. They give you the guys who are too old to do the job any more. They give you the clubhouse lawyers, as long as they can&rsquo;t play good. I screamed at the guys, I used every dirty trick I could think of to get one good year out of each of them. When I got it, I traded them for someone better. I used them, then dumped them. I&rsquo;m ashamed of it, but it kept us alive. One by one. I replaced this guy and that guy with guys a little better, and little by little our team got better and better.&rdquo;Wren says, &ldquo;I made deals under the table, under the rug, deals with the guys who had more good players than they could use. guys who owed me a favor, guys I could use because they figured they could use me. I didn&rsquo;t put &lsquo;em On paper. I figured if I was the only guy who knew where the bodies were buried, they couldn&rsquo;t fire me.&rdquo; It didn&rsquo;t work out that way.He had a harsh view of owners. He called them &ldquo;little dandies who strut around.&rdquo; He said they &ldquo;made money in business, but didn&rsquo;t know the hockey business.&rdquo; He said they &ldquo;hired guys to manage and coach for them, then wouldn&rsquo;t let them manage and coach. They poke their fingers in the pie, and when it gets messed up, they blame the other guy.&rdquo;THAT WAS IN 1974. &ldquo;You got to expect it.&rdquo;Blair shrugged, and went on his way, down to Saginaw, Michigan, where he had invested in a new International League franchise with a new arena. This was way down, but he has made money in the hockey business here. And he has made money in other businesses. He is president of a company in Saginaw and another in Haliburton, Canada. He is half-owner of the Haliburton Boys Haven hockey camp. He is building a hotel and golf course there. He has a handsome home there, complete with a tennis court, near a lake. He was more to be envied than pitied.But, still, he hungered to get back to the big leagues. In the International League, he met Albert Savill, a midwesterner who has made a lot of money in mortgage banking and investments and owns the Columbus, Ohio, hockey team They put together a group that tried, but failed to purchase another team before they succeeded in buying the Pittsburgh team last summer. They brought in Otto Frenzel, an Indianapolis banker, to look into the bankruptcy situation of the Penguins. When he found out his own bank held Penguin paper, Frenzel went into it with them.It has been written that Blair became the first man to move from a managerial role into ownership, but it has been done before. Connie Smythe, for one, did it at Toronto. Wren says, &ldquo;Well, I consider myself more a business man than a hockey man now. I better be. This team had three different ownership groups before ours. Some of those guys messed the operation up pretty good. And some sold out at a profit. We had to sell the league on the thought that we weren&rsquo;t in it for a fast buck. We had to convince a court and the IRS that we were responsible before the franchise was released to us and they gave us the keys to the office and took the padlocks off the doors.&rdquo;HE IS BACK to wheeling and dealing, but this first season has been troubled. The players griped that they had succeeded as an offensive team, but got off to a slow start because they were murdered to play defense. Attendance isn&rsquo;t bad but isn&rsquo;t good enough at 11,000 a game. Wren says, &ldquo;I think we made the right move because the price was right, but it turns out to be a tough nut to crack. The town goes wild over winners like the Steelers and Pirates, but it&rsquo;s been spoiled. Even the Triangles&mdash;that World Team Tennis outfit&mdash;won their title. The fans won&rsquo;t get behind a team that&rsquo;s still trying to get to the top. One basketball team after another has flopped here. They&rsquo;ve never had a successful franchise in the indoor arena. Well, we could move, but we don&rsquo;t want to until we&rsquo;ve given it our best shot here.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve cut operating costs a million bucks from $4.6 million to $3.5 million a year. The players are spoiled. If they want the good dough, they&rsquo;ve got to earn it. It was my idea to go for defense, but my coach, Marc Boileau, agreed with it. If the players don&rsquo;t want to play my way, they can play somewhere else. I play to win and defense is the way to win. Maybe they don&rsquo;t know it. And maybe they don&rsquo;t know how to win.&ldquo;Some people thought I waited too long to fire Boileau. I had to do it because he&rsquo;d lost control of the team, but I had to give him a chance to get it back. Ken Schinkel has the team under control now and we re winning more, but I don&rsquo;t know who will coach next season. I don&rsquo;t think he wants to continue as coach. He likes the front office. I may need a coach and a manager. I&rsquo;ve got to free myself to get people in the seats. I owe that to the owners. And I&rsquo;m one of &lsquo;em now.&rdquo;Blair says he isn&rsquo;t bitter about having been bounced around, and takes no satisfaction from the way the Minnesota franchise has fallen since he left: &ldquo;Hey, I&rsquo;m human. At first I like seeing &lsquo;em flop. But after awhile I started to feel terrible about it. Bush gave me my chance. And it&rsquo;s a good town and I have a lot of friends there. I&rsquo;d like to see them do well. But I&rsquo;ve got my own team to worry about now.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0008-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY RALPH BRIDGLAND</div>MONTREAL&mdash;No news is better than bad news as Jacques Lemaire will most certainly agree.Last season Lemaire had criticism flung his way from many directions, the fans and press being the most vocal.His reluctance to hit opposing players and a seemingly total disregard for the physical aspects of the game got Montreal Forum paying patrons&rsquo; dander up while the press found poor defensive play and playmaking to be his shortcomings.From the sound of it Lemaire wasn&rsquo;t doing much right at all. Yet, he was on the way to recording the second best point total of his NHL career, 36 goals and 56 assists for 92 points. (He had 44 goals and 95 points in 1972-73).It got to the point where Jacques boycotted the three-star selections opting to head for the showers rather than take the customary skate when he was chosen as one of the game&rsquo;s top performers.But this season Lemaire is playing in relative anonymity and as far as he&rsquo;s concerned that&rsquo;s just fine.&ldquo;Since I&rsquo;ve been here I&rsquo;ve felt a lot of pressure. This season I feel better than any other year. It&rsquo;s always nice to get goals or they (fans and press) don&rsquo;t think you&rsquo;re playing.&rdquo;The &lsquo;72-73 campaign, while being a milestone in his career, may not have done much to help take the pressure off his shoulders. Sure he scored 44 goals that year but just because you do it once doesn&rsquo;t mean you&rsquo;re going to do it every season. The hockey loving public of Montreal was expecting bigger and better things from him with each succeeding season.Perhaps it is surprising that Lemaire has not been singled out this season since his goal total stands at 16 after having appeared in 39 games. Jacques missed a month of action with a cracked thumb but since his return early in February has counted four goals and eight points in six games.&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t bother me when I play,&rdquo; said Lemaire referring to the thumb which he still has covered with a protective shield. &ldquo;In practice I tried it without the protector and it&rsquo;s a little sore. It feels better with it on.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03731/3610868-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="561" height="637"><figcaption class="caption-body">JACQUESLEMAIRE&hellip;Pleasing The Fans</figcaption></div>While Lemaire was able to stay in pretty good physical condition during his layoff, shooting, which is one of his principal weapons, suffered. &ldquo;I was skating every day. I did an hour&rsquo;s skating which is a lot. But I couldn&rsquo;t shoot.&rdquo;However, it was obvious upon his return that the booming slapshot that has become Lemaire&rsquo;s trademark had not escaped him. In his first game back he fired two shots from the point past Chicago&rsquo;s Gilles Villemure.While he has gone on an offensive spree since returning to the lineup, Lemaire has changed his style this season along with a number of other Canadiens.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m getting more defensive than I was,&rdquo; Jacques explained. &ldquo;If we play well in ourown end we&rsquo;ll get chances to score. If we play defensively the other team thinks more offensively.&ldquo;We have a number of guys who are good scorers,&rdquo; said Lemaire in a classic example of understatement.As much as anything the Canadiens&rsquo; changed attitude towards the game has been largely responsible for their standing atop the NHL.&ldquo;Playing defensively changes the attitude,&rdquo; opined Lemaire. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re thinking more of the other guy. Off the ice the attitude has been the same since I&rsquo;ve been here. It&rsquo;s always pretty good.&rdquo;At 30 years of age and in his ninth season with the Canadiens, Lemaire has never really received the credit due him. But perhaps the lack of attention paid him in the 1975-76 campaign is an indication of better things to come. &#9632;

f0008-03

Pressure Off Lemaire As Veteran Responds With Sparkling Year

<div class="byline">BY BILL MAKI</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02832/3610930-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0009-02

CARTOON CORNER

<div class="byline">BY BOB VERDI</div>CHICAGO&mdash;Pictures speak louder than words, Keith Magnuson has learned to his utmost distress.The courageous defenseman, whom you always knew would break his back for the Chicago Black Hawks, darn near succeeded in a Feb. 4th game at Montreal. Doctors say it will be Magnuson&rsquo;s last of his hockey season. If it was up to Magnuson he would return to the lineup no later than the day after yesterday.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-01941/3610899-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="283" height="361"><figcaption class="caption-body">Joey Johnston</figcaption></div>&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t hurt that much&hellip;Only when I breathe,&rdquo; Magnuson was saying of a broken vertebra in his back, the offshoot of a vigorous&mdash;but clean&mdash;check by Doug Jarvis of the Canadiens early in the second period of that Forum contest which wasn&rsquo;t really much of a contest after all (8-3 Montreal).&ldquo;I was sort of curling around in my own end with the puck on one skate.&rdquo; recalled Magnuson. &ldquo;I was thinking about where I was going to pass the puck and was busy admiring it when he hit me.&rdquo;Magnuson went into the corner boards, head first, neck second and back third, and then was stenciled into the woodwork when Jarvis, who had also lost his footing, tumbled on top of him.Magnuson, usually the picture of perpetual motion, was still briefly, then wheeled off the ice on a stretcher. It looked bad, until Canadiens&rsquo; physician Dr. Doug Kinnear examined Magnuson&rsquo;s X-rays and pronounced him &ldquo;clean as a whistle&hellip;he&rsquo;s likely to have no more than a headache tomorrow.&rdquo;Magnuson&rsquo;s real headache occured a couple tomorrows later when he returned to Chicago and coach Billy Reay sent him for a second set of pictures.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s really no way the doctor in Montreal could tell there was a break because he had no X-rays of me tocompare them with,&rdquo; said Maggie. &ldquo;Plus, a lot of times these things don&rsquo;t show up on the X-rays for a couple days, anyway. I was really upset when they told me I&rsquo;d be out for the rest of the season.&ldquo;I had hoped, after I went the first 30 games of the season with out injury, that I could play a full season. But I keep running into things (or things keep running into him). I still think I&rsquo;ll be back for the playoffs.&rdquo;If he isn&rsquo;t. Les Black Hawks will miss him. He&rsquo;s the team&rsquo;s spiritual leader, a fellow whose mistakes have all been zealous ones, an athlete who has always believed in an honest day&rsquo;s work for an honest day&rsquo;s pay, a competitor who never met a man he didn&rsquo;t like until he stepped iceward.Magnuson&rsquo;s departure coincided with a mini-facelift of the Hawks occasioned by the reappearance of Chico Maki and the reassignment of Joey Johnston.Maki, a 36-year-old loyalist who also adheres to the work ethic, un-retired in early February and picked up where he left off. Checking his man. The veteran handyman came down to Detroit Jan. 31st to watch his former mates play, decided he didn&rsquo;t want the boys to be his former mates anymore, and two weeks later was taking regular shifts in his Feb. 11 Chicago Stadium curtain call.&ldquo;You can only shovel snow so long,&rdquo; said Maki, who retired to his Simcoe, Ont., farm on November. 1974. for family reasons. &ldquo;Ever since that day I left, I&rsquo;ve thought about coming back. All I needed was a little push.&rdquo;Maki was next seen at right flank for Ivan Boldirev, an offensive stylish whose goal-scoring proclivities have to burgeon with Maki beside him as aide de check.Johnston, meanwhile, was shipped to the Hawks&rsquo; Dallas farm club for a tuneup&mdash;something that probably should have been tried much, much earlier in the season.The popular left-winger, who was an All Star not long ago. had a traumatic time trying to return from a near-fatal automobile accident during the summer. Hawk management, which has a reputation for benevolent patience, was all of that with Johnston. So much so that there were long stretches of time when he simply didn&rsquo;t get enough ice to break the ice.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s got to go someplace where he can play and get his confidence back,&rdquo; Reay finally decided. &ldquo;Two or three weeks of regular work down with Dallas will do him a world of good. He&rsquo;ll be back.&rdquo;PARTING SHOTS: With Dick Redmond idled following knee surgery, and with Magnuson grounded, John Marks dropped back from left wing to assist the Hawks&rsquo; depleted defense cordon&hellip;Two of Chicago&rsquo;s valuable behind-the-scene employees were grounded briefly during February. Paul Ruck Sr;, who does a splendid job of supervising Stadium minor officials, suffered a heart attack, but was resting comfortably at press time&hellip;The same could not be said of Lou Varga, the Hawks&rsquo; hard-working trainer. A disc problem had him squirming in pain at a local hospital&hellip;Michel Dumas, Chicago&rsquo;s No. 3 goalie who sees about as much action as the Statue of Liberty, had been told he&rsquo;ll remain with the parent club for the rest of the season. The Chicago brass was trying to spot him someplace in the NHL or perhaps the minors, but a deal could not be made, according to general manager Tommy Ivan&hellip;The Hawks last summer paid off the Cincinnati Stingers for Dumas after the goalie had signed a four-year contract with the WHA club&hellip;He looked to be Chicago&rsquo;s No. 2 goalie behind Tony Esposito until Gilles Villemure was obtained from the Rangers. &#9632;

f0009-01

Season Ends Early For Black Hawks’ Magnuson

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div>BUFFALO&mdash;It looks as though two refugees from the World Hockey Association will be handling the Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; goaltending chores the rest of the season.A little more than a year ago, Gerry Desjardins quit the WHA&rsquo;s Baltimore Blades, claiming his contract had been breached when the franchise was moved from Detroit. The Sabres acquired Gerry&rsquo;s National Hockey League rights from the New York Islanders and signed him to a contract.He played nine games at the end of the season, winning six, losing two and tying one, then goaled the Sabres through 15 of their 20 playoff games.This year, Al Smith came out of retirement late in January, tried out with the Sabres and signed a contract. They acquired his NHL rights from Detroit. Smith had been idle since terminating his contract with the New England Whalers at the end of the 1974-75 season. He was the winningest WHA goaltender at the time, with 31, 30 and 33 victories over his three years in the league.Smith made his debut with the Sabres on a West Coast trip, as had Desjardins, and also in Los Angeles, where Gerry broke in with the Buffalo club. Where Desjardins came out with a tie in his first Sabre game, Smith finished a winner, 4-3.Smith made his home debut against the Detroit Red Wings, the last team he played for in the NHL. Again he was a a winner, 42.Did the game mean a little something extra to Al, seeing as he was playing against his old team?&ldquo;No,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;there aren&rsquo;t three guys on the club who were with it when I played. Three, no, just one that I can think of, Nick Libett.&ldquo;Oh, I was nervous, all right; it&rsquo;s good to get the first home game over with. I was probably scared witless before that Los Angeles game, too, but I don&rsquo;t remember now. I can be real cool about it as long as we won.&rdquo;How does he feel about returning to the NHL, where he played for Toronto and Pittsburgh, as well as Detroit?&ldquo;I&rsquo;m just happy to be playing again. After all, tending goal is my job and it&rsquo;s good to be working at it. Whatever I can do to help the club is good. After all, Gerry has played 42 games. He&rsquo;s the No. 1 man. I&rsquo;m certainly not going to take over from him? But whenever they need me, I&rsquo;ll be ready.&rdquo;Oddly enough, Desjardins was the No.l goaltender with Smith behind him once before. It was in Junior A hockey, with the Toronto Marlboros. Desjardins, one year older than Smith, was the Marlies&rsquo; top net minder in 1964-65 and Smith was his backup. The following season, when Desjardins had turned pro, Smith was the Marlies&rsquo; regular goalie.With Desjardins and Smith handling the netminding chores, what happens to the other Buffalo goaltenders&hellip;Roger Crozier.&hellip;Gary Bromley?Crozier, whose stomach started acting up again during December, apparently is on a prolonged vacation. The Sabre brass is evasive when asked about Roger but does indicate that the veteran netminder doesn&rsquo;t figure in future plans. Koger can&rsquo;t be reached in Buffalo and reportedly has left town.As for Bromley, he&rsquo;s the third goaltender and apparently doesn&rsquo;t figure in future plans, either. It&rsquo;s a tough break for the slender young netminder from Western Canada. He did the bulk of the goaltending to get the Sabres into the playoffs last season, then didn&rsquo;t play in a single Stanley Cup game.This season, with Crozier making a somewhat unexpected comeback, Bromley has played in only one Sabre game. He was sent to the minors for a brief spell before Crozier took sick again.General manager Punch Imlach and the other Sabre brass seem to figure on two rookies in the American League as the Sabre goaltenders of the future. Don Edwards, with Hershey, and Bob Sauve, with Providence, both first-year pros, are doing very well.ICE CHIPS: The Sabres couldn&rsquo;t seem to gain on the Boston Bruins, Adams Division leaders, no matter how well they did. The victory over Detroit extended the Sabres&rsquo; home unbeaten streak to eight games and they had lost only one of their last 10 overall, yet they still trailed the Bruins by six points.The Sabres became the first NHL club to have three 30-goai scorers when Gil Perreault scored his 30th. Rick Martin and Danny Gare preceded Gil to that level.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-01962/3610961-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="555" height="909"><figcaption class="caption-body">AL SMITH&hellip;Out Of Retirement</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0010-01

Recycled WHA Goalers Desjardins, Smith Left To Carry Sabres’ Hopes In Stretch

<div class="byline">BY HARRY KLAFF</div>LONG ISLAND&mdash;For the Islanders, it was clearly a case of deja vu.Earlier in the season with the club off to a great start, there was all sorts of talk about going the whole way on an even keel with the Phi1a delphia Flyers in the Patrick Division. But an extended five-game road trip put a quick damper on that. The: record? A dismal 1-4-0 and about 8,000 wasted miles.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-01929/3610992-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="250" height="404"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ed Westfall</figcaption></div>Months of hard work and a ten-game non-losing streak, combined with a Flyer cold snap in early February, put the Islanders hot on the heels of the division leaders once again. But the schedule pointed to another road spin, which has traditionally spelled nothing but trouble for the young Islanders.Statistically, the February trip was a little bit better than the earlier one, but for all intents and purposes, it put the Islanders just about out of contention for first place honors. Anything can still happen, and Al Arbour&rsquo;s charges are far from playing out the string, however the standings on Lincoln&rsquo;s Birthday placed the Isles 11 points behind PhiladelphiaThe Islanders opened the road show at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 4th for their third meeting with the Rangers, and first since John Ferguson took over the older club. After trailing 3-0 mid-way through the second period, the Isles turned on the offensive guns and pulled out a 6-5 victory to run their unbeaten skein to 10. a club record.Usually a 10-game unbeaten string indicates that a club is playing solid, powerful hockey. But this didn&rsquo;t seem to be the case this time. They weren&rsquo;t overpowering the opposition as they did earlier in the campaign. Only an 8-1 rout over Detroit, and a 5-0 whitewash against Los Angeles two nights later could have been called strong performances.On the rest of the nights though, it appeared the Islanders were fortunate to escape with their lives, let alone the two points. It took a comeback from a 3-0 deficit to defeat the Minnesota North Stars on Jan. 27th. and a goal by Ralph Stewart with minutes remaining to topple the Maple Leafs at Toronto on Jan. 28th.There were three 2-2 ties during the stretch, and on each occasion the New Yorkers were the &ldquo;tie-ees&rdquo; rather than the &ldquo;tie-ers.&rdquo; The night before the Ranger game, they were knotted by the Flames with seconds remaining.After finally disposing of the Blueshirts, the Islanders journeyed to Detroit to make up the game that was snowed out on Dec. 26th. Two somewhat tainted Red Wing goals in the third period ultimately provided the margin as the streak came to an end, 4-3.Then it was on to Philadelphia for a &ldquo;must win&rdquo; game at the Spectrum. The Islanders were flat, but were kept in the game by an outstanding performance by goalie Glenn Resch. They had their chance to tie the game when Terry Crisp went off for a double minor penalty mid-way through the third period, but the Isles couldn&rsquo;t even manage a shot on goal. The Flyers later got one more to win, 4-2.Now it was on to Vancouver to play a team that has given the Islanders fits over the past couple of seasons. Jean-Paul Parise and Bob Nystrom&mdash;playing on a new line centered by Jude Drouin&mdash;gave the visitors a 2-0 lead after the first period, but two Vancouver tallies in the final stanza amounted to another loss, this time 3-2.The only salvation for the trip came at the final stop, Kansas City, where the best the Isles could do was pull out a 2-2 tie, despite outshooting the Scouts 29-19. And it was a come-from-behind effort at that, with Denis Potvin&rsquo;s 23rd goal of the season with a two-man advantage providing the equalizer.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had this problem for the past few games,&rdquo; was the only way that Arbour could describe the situation. &ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t gotten too excited, we seem to be suffering a lull. We have to get out of it quickly because we have a tough schedule a head of us.&rdquo;ISLAND SOUNDS: Ed West tall finally broke his 0 for 18 goalless string with tallies in successive games against Detroit and Philadelphia. His place on the &ldquo;checking line&rdquo; was taken by Bob Nystrom, who responded quickly with a couple of goals himself&hellip;Arbour has been using his goalies for longer stretches. First he used Billy Smith in four straight, and followed him up with Resch for three. Lately they&rsquo;ve been going at least two or three at a clip. &#9632;

f0011-01

Islanders’ Flag Hopes Slide With Poor Road Showing

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-01933/3611030-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"></div><h2>A 1970&rsquo;s Hockey Rarity</h2>IN AN NHL ERA WHEN young players face a make-or-break situation in a very short period where their big league careers are concerned, Ed Kea of the Atlanta Flames is from another time.These days, youngsters come out of junior hockey and if they don&rsquo;t achieve success within, at the most, three seasons, they re history. Few are permitted to plug away in the minor league for several seasons, learn their craft, then move to a big league job. Releases are handed very quickly to those who can&rsquo;t hack it quickly.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02804/3611023-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="595" height="662"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ed Kea</figcaption></div>Kea, however, is a reminder of a more settled time in hockey. He toiled in the minors for seven seasons before earning a spot with the Flames. This season, at 28, he&rsquo;s been one of the team&rsquo;s best defenders, a tribute to his hard work through seasons when an NHL job seemed a long way away.In fact, it&rsquo;s a trifle astonishing that Kea had a pro career of any kind. He didn&rsquo;t enter organized hockey until he was 18, missing that long age-group apprenticeship which the vast majority of players served.Kea was born in Holland and his family migrated to Canada when he was four. They settled on a dairy farm near Collingwood, Ontario.&ldquo;There was much work to do on the farm and that didn&rsquo;t leave a great deal of time for hockey,&rdquo; Kea said. &ldquo;I learned to skate on farm ponds and played a little pick-up hockey. I was 18 before I tried organized hockey with the Junior C team in Collingwood.&rsquo;Kea spent two seasons at that level and played a few games with Collingwood seniors. His brother-in-law, Marc Brunet, who was a Toronto Maple Leaf chattel at one time, got him a tryout with the Jacksonville team in the old Eastern League.&ldquo;I ended up with Jersey Devils in that league for two seasons,&rdquo; Kea added. &ldquo;Then I spent a really enjoyable season with the team in St. Petersburg. It was great because of the weather.&rdquo;<h2>Creighton Spotted Him</h2>FRED CREIGHTON, THE COACH of the Flames now, coached Charlotte in the EHL and spotted Kea, noting his steady improvement. When the Flames entered the NHL in 1972 and Creighton moved to their farm team at Omaha, he recommended that thev invite free-agent Kea to camp.Two seasons with Omaha and one at Tulsa of the Central League supplied additional opportunity for Kea to improve. The Flames promoted him for a few games near the end of the &lsquo;73-74 season, then he earned a regular spot last season.&ldquo;I would have thought it crazy if anyone had told me that the Kea we had at our first camp in &lsquo;72 would be a fine defenseman for us in &lsquo;75-76,&rdquo; said Cliff Fletcher, the Flame general manager whose shrewd drafting of players who had been overlooked in the minors was an important ingredient in the team&rsquo;s quick climb up the NHL ladder.&ldquo;I like to think that hockey still affords a big-league chance to the late-bloomer. a guv like Kea who works hard and learns his job.&ldquo;All too often these days the player who hasn&rsquo;t made it at 22 or 23 is written off when maybe all he needs is the chance to play in the minors and develop a little more. Maybe we&rsquo;re too quick to make a decision that a player doesn&rsquo;t have it. &ldquo;<h2>Happy To Be There</h2>KEA ACKNOWLEDGES THAT many times during his seasons in the sticks a big league career seemed impossible.&ldquo;I was happy to be in hockey when I thought about my background in the game,&rdquo; Kea said. &ldquo;I enjoyed the Eastern League and thought it was a good break when an NHL team showed an interest in me and gave me a chance to play in the Central League.&ldquo;But I worked as hard as I could and tried to learn as much as possible. A big feature in my sticking with it was the fact that my wife was a very positive booster. She encouraged me to keep on plugging away.&ldquo;This has been a very pleasing season for me, all-in-all, because I&rsquo;ve had the chance to play regularly although I know I have to play with more consistency. &#9632;

f0012-01

FRANK ORR SAYS:

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div>TORONTO&mdash;As the Toronto Maple Leafs headed into the concluding 25 games of their 1975-76 National Hockey League schedule, the ambition they carried was a rather modest one.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03629/3611061-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="272" height="416"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stan Weir</figcaption></div>The Leafs would like to finish in sixth place in the overall standings at the conclusion of the season. For openers, that would give them some home-ice advantage in the suicidal best-of-three preliminary playoff rounds. It also would indicate that the Leafs have made some progress in their season of re-construction, a year when they stripped their roster of older players and rebuilt with kids.Last season, the Leafs finished 12th overall, lurching into the final playoff spot from where they upset the Los Angeles Kings in a three-game series before losing in four games to the Philadelphia Flyers in the quarter-final.In the Adams Division, the Leafs were in a limbo similar to the one they enjoyed last season&mdash;too far behind the second-place Buffalo Sabres to entertain thoughts of moving up, safely in front of fourth-place California Seals.Thus, the overall standing supplied the Leafs with inspiration. To climb to the top six, they have to overhaul Chicago Black Hawks, Los Angeles Kings and Atlanta Flames. The target varied from five to eight points in front of the Leafs but coach Red Kelly remained otimistic that the team could pull it off.&ldquo;The big feature we have to develop is consistency down the stretch,&rdquo; Kelly said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had a streaky season, stretches of solid work interspersed with stretches of ordinary work. We expected that from a young club but we&rsquo;ve had two-thirds of a season to jell and now is the time when things should start to fall into place.&ldquo;To pass the three clubs between us and sixth place, winning the games against them is a must.&rdquo;The return of center Stan Weir following a month on the sidelines with torn ankle ligaments was a boost for the Leaf ambitions. At the time Weir exited from the lineup. he was pivoting a solid line with Lanny McDonald and Errol Thompson on the wings.Kelly tried several centers in that slot, including rookie Don Ashby and George Ferguson, but failed to find the proper combination. Then he placed his top forward, Darryl Sittler, between Thompson and McDonald, sticking all the Leaf scoring eggs in one basket.The line worked well together, although they had some defensive problems in a few games. In their first four games as a unit, the line produced 12 goals and 14 assists, the total, of course, boosted considerably by Sittler&rsquo;s record six-goal, four-assist performance against the Boston Bruins.Weir&rsquo;s return to spot duty until he had a chance to work himself into playing condition placed Kelly in a slight quandary. Should he keep his three big shooters together or try for a more balanced attack?&ldquo;Weir had worked well with McDonald and Thompson while Sittler is a strong enough player to be productive with lesser wingers,&rdquo; Kelly said. &ldquo;We want the most balanced attack we can have but if necessary I&rsquo;ll leave our three leading scorers together as a line.&rdquo;LEAF NOTES: Winger Jim McKenny, out since late November with a knee injury, likely will rejoin the Leafs in early March&hellip;Rookie center Jack Valiquette continued to improve following his recall from Oklahoma City Blazers, counting 17 points in his first 21 NHL games&hellip;Defenseman Dave Dunn missed several games with pulled stomach muscles. The Leafs summoned Claire Alexander from Oke City to replace him. &#9632;

f0012-03

Leafs Aiming For Sixth in Overall NHL Finish

<div class="byline">BY GEOFFREY FISHER</div>OAKLAND&mdash;When you swap a 50-goal hockey player for a pair of obscure spear carriers you can expect ugly reactions from the folks in the gallery. Unless, that is, one of those spear carriers turns out to be someone with the skills of Reginald Alan MacAdam.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01906/3611092-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="297" height="453"><figcaption class="caption-body">Al MacAdam</figcaption></div>MacAdam skated into the igloo of the California Golden Seals at the out-set of last seasonfollowing a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers that sent Reggie Leach to Stanley Cup Champs in exchange for MacAdam, center Larry Wright, and amateur draftee Ron Chipperfield. When Chipperfield elected to go with the Calgary Cowboys of the WHA, the Flyers completed the deal by giving the Seals defenseman George Pesut.There were those who insisted that the Seals were guilty of treason in trading Leach, claiming the Seals had given a cannon for a pop gun. If MacAdam, a six-foot, 187-pound wing from Charlottetown, P.E.I., is a pop gun then a Sherman tank is made out of peanut butter.What is more important in the NHL future of the Seals is that Leach didn&rsquo;t want to skate for them and MacAdam typifies the kind of player that is expected to lead them out of the NHL wilderness under the banner of new hometown owner Mel Swig.Leach will get his 50 goals or more for the Flyers, but the Seals were seeking more than goals as they rebuild their ice legion from the ruins of a dismal past.The Seals wanted the kind of player who could go both ways&mdash;the kind who could put the frozen wafer in enemy nets while helping to keep it out of his own. With MacAdam they pulled out a bonus&mdash;a performer who goes three ways, offense, defense and common sense. Says Seals&rsquo; general manager Billy McCreary: &ldquo;Al MacAdam is a super athlete who has the added asset of being able to out-think the opposition. He&rsquo;s the kind of player who scores the big goal in the clutch.&rdquo;Modest in manner and soft-spoken, MacAdam chooses his words thoughtfully when engaged in conversation. His slender, wiry build camouflages a physique that McCreary likens to &ldquo;soft steel&rdquo;.Seals&rsquo; coach Jack Evans calls him a team leader on the ice and in the dressing room. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s Mr. Steady for us,&rdquo; says Evans.MacAdam&rsquo;s toughness came as a surprise to Evans who recalls the first time he saw him challenged to a fight by a Vancouver played during training camp.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a quiet type who won&rsquo;t look for trouble but if he is challenged he&rsquo;ll be quick to prove that he can&rsquo;t be pushed around. It&rsquo;s a rare game that he has not played up to par. He&rsquo;s got a great future in the NHL,&rdquo; says Evans.At the age of 25 and in his second season in the NHL, MacAdam has proven his durability in his role as the club&rsquo;s ace penalty killer, an assignment he shares superbly with Dennis Maruk, the Seals&rsquo; brilliant rookie. Last season he was one of three Seals who played the full 80-game schedule.By his own admission, MacAdam has a philosophy about the game that is noteworthy.He says his big goal, from the time he started flopping around the frozen ponds of Charlottetown, was to make the National Hockey League. It&rsquo;s a dream come true for a kid who started skating at the age of four.&ldquo;Now,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;my goal is to stay in the NHL. I&rsquo;d give up the game if I was in the minors. Once I lose my desire to play hockey, I&rsquo;ll get out. Money won&rsquo;t keep me in the game and I won&rsquo;t be one of those who hang on to collect a pension.&rdquo;MacAdam claims he didn&rsquo;t catch the eyes of NHL scouts because of his goal scoring.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never been a noted goal scorer,&rdquo; he says, a statement that NHL goaltenders will no doubt dispute since he had notched 22 goals with nearly a third of the season remaining to be played.&ldquo;I like to kill penalties, I like to break up an opponent&rsquo;s attack, and I like to out-think the opposition. What I enjoy most about the game are the big challenges.&rdquo;McCreary will attest to that, noting that MacAdam&rsquo;s interest in a game appears to dwindle when the Seals have a big lead, something the Seals have not experienced often enough this season so that it would become habitform i ng for MacAdam.After this campaign MacAdam will complete his studies for a degree at University of Prince Edward Island. He and his wife, Anne, became parents of a baby girl six months ago. His wife claims to be MacAdam&rsquo;s No. 1 fan.That is a claim that will have to be shared with a lot of followers of the Seals in the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Area. &#9632;

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Sophomore Winger MacAdam Seals’ “Mr. Steady”

<div class="byline">BY STEVE MAR ANTZ</div>KANSAS CITY&mdash;Drowning in a sea of red ink, the Scouts are hoping it will somehow part in the next two months so they can continue in operation for next season.That was the judgment given by Ed Thompson. Scouts president, when he met Feb. 11 with city officials and civic leaders to discuss the financial plight of the second-year expansion franchise.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01887/3611154-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="283" height="465"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ed Thompson</figcaption></div>Thompson said a decision would be made sometime between April 15-30 as to whether the Scouts could open the 1967-77 season. It will depend, he said, on the rate of season-ticket sales in the next two months.And what amount must the Scouts sell to bail themselves out? A mere 8,000 season tickets, or twice the amount they sold for this season. It appears to be a tall order for the Scouts, as they are attracting an average crowd of 6,100 this season, a drop of 1,000 a game from their first season.With the sagging attendance, the Scouts have lost an estimated $ 1-million this season. For some franchises with tycoon-type owners that could be easily absorbed, but in the Scouts case it remains to be seen how it will be handled.The Scouts are owned by a group of about 30 investors, all but three are from the Kansas City area. Twice in the last six months the owners have dug into their pockets to subsidize the operation. Apparently Thompson does not feel he can continue to ask them to do that, or he would not have gone to city officials and asked for help in selling tickets.The city has a strong interest in the financial health of the Scouts because the hockey team is the principal source of rental income at Kemper Arena. If the team were lost to Kansas City either through bankruptcy or transfer, the city could lose more than $500,000 in income. Some of this could be made up by renting the arena to other attractions, but the hockey team pays a high rental and occupies the building for 40 dates. If the hockey bond income were lost, the city would have to meet any deficits in revenue payments from its general operating fund.Management had anticipated a deficit operation the first year, but had hoped to approach the breakeven point in the second season. The gate sale has remained constant this season, but while the Scouts have been able to hold their hard core of fans they have had little success in developing a broader base of fan support.Compounding the problem are the payments the Scouts must resume making next season to the league. The team still owes about $4.8 million of its $ 6 million expansion fee, the sum of which must be paid over the next 10 years starting in 1977. The Scouts also must make payments to the St. Louis Blues for the $ 1 million territorial rights the Blues claimed.Thompson said recently that the partners are still enthusiastic and are not about to throw in the towel. He also said he had offers for the franchise from groups in Miami and New Orleans neither of which he was considering. But you have to wonder how far enthusiasm will stretch in the next two months if the Scouts don&rsquo;t attain their goal of 8,000 season tick-ets.Given an interesting team and another year or two of exposure to the NHL there is reason to believe that Kansas City will support the Scouts. Yet. if Thompson and his group are at the point where they cannot sustain another big deficit, the league might find itself in the same situation it did with California and Pittsburgh.LOOSE PUCKS: It was Eddie Bush&rsquo;s third game as coach when the Scouts stopped a losing streak at 14. earning a 4-4 tie against the Penguins Jan. 31 in Kemper. Inspired. the Scouts tied their next game with St. Louis then beat the Capitals to set a club record for consecutive games without a loss. &#9632;

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Scouts Hope For New Deal As Expansion Payments Near

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01723/3611185-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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NHL SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div>LOS ANGELES&mdash;It has been Gary Edwards&rsquo; contention that his statistics suffer by comparison with the regular Kings&rsquo; goaltender Rogie Vachon because he works irregularly and draws most of his assignments against tough foes on the road.The records support this. After 58 games this season, Edwardshad started 22 games to 36 for Vachon. Edwards had started 13 games on the road and only nine at home.Edwards had faced Montreal once, Philadelphia twice and Boston another time at home.Three times he was idle for three-game stretches, twice for four games, once for five. Only once has he played more than two games in a row.Last season, Vachon and Edwards had the second and third best goaltending records in the circuit. Vachon had a 27-14-13 record with a 2.24 goals-against average, while Edwards had a 15-3-8 record with a 2.34 average.This season, Vachon and Edwards are well down the list. Vachon is 19-14-3 with a 3.1 average, while Edwards is 10-10-2 for a 3.6 average.After 58 games last season, the Kings had surrendered only 126 goals, but at this-point this season they have given up 172. This is a dramatic drop in defense of close to one goal a game.To this observer it seems as though the responsibility rests less with the goalers than the rest of coach Bob Pulford&rsquo;s team. This is not the same team as last year&rsquo;s Kings.The Kings are a notably inconsistent group of players this season, especially on defense. They forecheck and backcheck aggressively some games, not others.When they do not, they are defeated.They lack leadership on the front line and back line. Under pressure, the back line players start to scramble and are caught out of position. Several of these defensemen are young and inexperienced.Vachon got off to a bad start and it has hurt his statistics But he long since has recovered his form. Both he and Edwards have been under heavier pressure this season, and at times they have cracked.But, by and large, they have played extremely well without receiving the same recognition as last season. Goalers are at the mercy of their support. Statistics do not measure them accurately. But, generally, they are judged on the numbers.The rivalry between Gary and Rogie is a realistic one, far from unfriendly, Edwards is a realist. He would like to be number one goaler and Edwards may be the best back-up on the tour.Since Gary&rsquo;s numbers were so good last year, his value has gone up and he has been discussed in trades which have not materialized. Even recently he was considered for a deal which would have brought Ken Hodge, from Boston. But the return of Gerry Cheevers to the Bruins&rsquo; net ended those talks.Edwards says, &ldquo;I would like to be number one, but I would rather be number two on a good team than number one on a bad team. I am not unhappy in Los Angeles. I can&rsquo;t control trades so I try not to think about them.&ldquo;Right now I&rsquo;m concerned about the inconsistency of the club,&rdquo; he concluded.The Kings may never have been better than they were in a 7-3 victory over visiting Montreal. They were pretty good in a 4-3 loss to Buffalo. But they may never have been worse than they were in a 7-3 loss to Pittsburgh. Edwards suffered that one, as the Kings were bumping into one another in front of him.They went into Washington and settled for a 2-2 tie with the worst team in the league. Then they turned around and were extremely effective in a 7-4 victory in Chicago and a 2-2 tie in Montreal, both of which featured fine goaltending by Edwards,They held a 2-1 lead in Montreal from late in the first period to late in the third. Unfortunately they went into a defensive shell in that last session, which they should know by now never works. Montreal applied pressure until finally they fired the tying goal by Gary.Too late, the Kings carried the fight to the Canadiens after that. Had they done so all the way they would have won.As it is, they had lost only three of their last dozen games at mid-February.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01620/3611216-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="556" height="634"><figcaption class="caption-body">GARY EDWARDS&hellip;Wants To Be No. 1</figcaption></div>KINGS THINGS: Marcel Dionne had the hat trick in Chicago, but two of his three goals went into an empty net. He had only two goals in the preceding 13 games. The four-goal game Mike Murphy had against Toronto gave him his only goals in a dozen games before he scored one each in four straight games. Frank St. Marseille has not had a goal in 18 games. Bob Nevin went 11 games before he got a goal. Juha Widing had one in 20 games and two in 31&hellip;The Kings and Lakers are televising home games to subscribers on a limited cable hookup under the Home Box Office name. Ron Oakes is doing hockey play-by-play with Stu Nahan handling color on some games. &#9632;

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Kings’ Edwards Solid As Backup But Yearns For Consistent Play

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02536/3611254-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="616" height="2241"></div><h2>Team Penalties</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03437/3611247-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="600" height="651"></div> &#9632;

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Looking At NHL Goalers

<div class="byline">BY DONALD BERNS</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in US and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in US and CanadaST. LOUIS&mdash;The name of Rick Smith can be added to the list of players who jumped to the World Hockey Association and back to the National Hockey League.Smith, a steady defensive defenseman, played four seasons with the Boston Bruins and slightly more than one season with the California Seals before jumping to the Minnesota Fighting Saints in 1973. Now he&rsquo;s back in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues.A series of maneuvers brought Smith from Minnesota to St. Louis after Smith decided last summer he wanted a long-term contract for himself somewhere. The Fighting Saints are in financial trouble, and Minnesota was not a likely place for Smith to settle permanently.The Blues last fall bought Smith&rsquo;s NHL negotiating rights from the Seals, then started negotiating. In November the Blues announced Smith had signed, negotiating a long-term contract commencing with next season. Then the Blues believed there was the possibility they could get Smith early if the Saints collapsed under the weight of their fiscal problems.Finally, the Blues negotiated directly with the Saints, who apparently had fewer financial problems after the Blues finishing negotiating. A change in ownership of the Saints&rsquo; franchise apparently speeded the negotiations, inasmuch as the previous owners were unwilling to barter away one of the team&rsquo;s top talents while the team was on the selling block.&ldquo;I had to live up to my contract in Minnesota,&rdquo; said Smith. &ldquo;Everybody was good to me in Minnesota, and I wish that franchise the best.&rdquo;As soon as the Minnesota-St. Louis transaction was complete, Smith reported to the Blues, but there was one slight hitch before he could play for his new team. Smith had to clear waivers in the WHA, and one WHA team, the Toronto Toros, was reluctant to cooperate. The Toros wanted Gilles Gratton in their goal, but Gratton, who left the Blues earlier this season after a dispute with former coach Garry Young, had not been placed on NHL waivers by the Blues, who spent a lot of money to get Gratton and were in a position to keep him from playing hockey elsewhere. The Toros were blunt: If the Blues waived Gratton. Smith&rsquo;s waivers would sail through the WHA.Smith began playing with the Blues one game later. In his second game with the Blues his shot from the point was deflected by Chuck Lefley past Phil Myre for the winning goal in a 5-3 win over the Atlanta Flames.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re happy to have him,&rdquo; said St. Louis coach Leo Boivin. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s going to steady our defense, especially in our own end.&rdquo;The 27-year-old Smith, who was Bobby Orr&rsquo;s partner in Boston has been playing with Bob Hess, and Boivin hopes the two will be a natural pairing with Hess the team&rsquo;s best rushing defenseman.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a smart defenseman,&rdquo; says Hess. &ldquo;He has a lot of experience and he&rsquo;s already helped me.&rdquo;Smith, although a more defensive player, had 32 assists with Minnesota in slightly more than half a season.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll rush occasionally&mdash;just when they don&rsquo;t expect it,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But that many assists also means a lot of luck.&rdquo;With Minnesota he also had one goal and took some kidding about that because it was the only goal he could show for 101 shots on the net.&ldquo;Ah, but what a beautiful goal it was,&rdquo; he joked in return. &ldquo;It was on an empty net.&rdquo;Smith finds a couple of old Boston teammates, Derek Sanderson and Eddie Johnston, on the current St. Louis team. The three were with Boston when the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 1970.&ldquo;I was just a kid then,&rdquo; Smith said with a grin. &ldquo;E.J., already had been around for years.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01631/3611285-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="547" height="839"><figcaption class="caption-body">RICK SMITH&hellip;Steadying Defense</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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Looking For Security In Long-Term Contract Rearguard Smith Jumps Back To NHL Blues

<div class="byline">BY VARTAN KUPELIAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01604/3611337-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="577" height="691"><figcaption class="caption-body">MIKE BLOOM&hellip;Always Working</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02498/3611330-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="567" height="677"><figcaption class="caption-body">J.P. LEBLANC&hellip;Jumped At Chance</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03389/3611323-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="571" height="815"><figcaption class="caption-body">BUSTER HARVEY&hellip;Gained Confidence</figcaption></div>DETROIT&mdash;It started out as a makeshift trio, forced together by injuries. But in time, the line of Mike Bloom. J.P. LeBlanc and Buster Harvey proved it was no accident.The unit has given the Detroit Red Wings some steady two-way hockey in recent weeks and the reason, according to general manager Alex Delvecchio, is simple.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just a matter of hustling and working.&rdquo; Delvecchio said, puffing on his ever-present cigar.&ldquo;Every time out on the ice. they&rsquo;re trying awfully hard. They&rsquo;re very offensive minded and they&rsquo;re making things happen.It&rsquo;s true about the offense, but the unit&rsquo;s defense shouldn&rsquo;t be shortchanged. In its irst seven games together, the line was on the ice for one-repeat, one-goal against. Offensively the production isn&rsquo;t what you&rsquo;d expect from, say. the French Connection but with that kind of defensive showing any offense is a plus.The line reached its present form when LeBlanc. a center, moved into the pivot to replace rookie Dennis Polonich who suffered a shoulder separation on Jan. 24.Bloom got his chance to play regularly earlier in the season when capt. Danny Grant suffered a thigh injury which required surgery. Harvey stepped into a regular right wing job when he was acquired in a trade with Kansas City.&ldquo;We knew Harvey had it in the past but for some reason his game suddenly went sour.&rdquo; Delvecchio said.&ldquo;But with us. he fit in real well. He got a chance to play regularly and Billy Dea (assistant coach who works the Red Wing bench) uses him to kill penalties. The added responsibilities have helped him. They&rsquo;ve given him confidence.&ldquo;As for Bloom, he&rsquo;s always working at it. trying to improve himself. He&rsquo;s come a long way this season. That line is going out there wit ha job to do and they&rsquo;re accomplishing it.&rdquo;Bloom came to the Wings from Washington on the eve of the trading deadline for the 1974-75 season. in exchange for Blair Stewart. What he lacks in talent, he makes up for in enthusiasm, desire and hard work.LeBlanc joined the Wings earlier this season from the nowdefunct Denver Spurs of the World Hockey Association. LeBlanc spent most of the previous season in Detroit playing for the Michigan Stags, another of the WHA&rsquo;s bitter memories. He has a home and friends in Detroit and jumped at the chance to play for the Wings.Walt McKechnie and Danny Maloney, the Wings&rsquo; top two scorers are the chief penalty killers but with the club second only to Philadelphia as the most penalized in the National Hockey League, there are plenty of opportunities to kill off penalties. That&rsquo;s where LeBlanc and Harvey, one of the back-up penalty killing sets, come in.MOTOR CITY SHORTS: Dennis Polonich returned to action on Feb. 18 after missing 10 games&hellip;Goalie Eddie Giacomin. sidelined a month with a broken hand, won his first game back, 3-2. in Minnesota before being bombed by the Capitals in Washington. 85&hellip;Walt McKechnie, with 23 goals, 39 assists and 62 points surpassed all his previous NHL highs with more than 20 games remaining.<h2>NHL Leaders</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-04330/3611316-1-eng-US/f0019-042.jpg" title="f0019-04" width="599" height="909"></div> &#9632;

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Wings’ Makeshift Line Playing Well Both Ways

DETROIT&mdash;The Mickey Redmond controversy continued as of this writing. The sequence of events was as follows:The report from the Mayo Clinic gave Redmond three alternatives: 1) to retire from hockey; 2) continue playing as he was, but with some pain and discomfort and not up to 100 percent capacity; or 3) take extensive treatments and therapy for the injured back in an attempt to rehabilitate it.Later, he was placed on waivers by the Wings but that was countermanded by NHL President Clarence Campbell, who cited an agreement between the Wings and Redmond&rsquo;s agent. Alan Eagleson, that no action would be taken until Eagleson&rsquo;s return from Innsbruck, Austria.Redmond then agreed to be examined at the University Hospital in Ann Arbor by Dr. Robert Bailey and Dr. James A. Taren, who performed the operation on Redmond&rsquo;s back on Dec. 18, 1974. Hopefully, they would find the proper therapy. &#9632;

Redmond Controversy Continues As Campbell Halts Waivers

<div class="byline">BY BILL HEUFELDER</div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;A dependable right winger with a knack for scoring, Simon Nolet has been one of hockey&rsquo;s most travelled players the past month.The 34-year-old veteran joined the Pittsburgh Penguins Jan. 10 after they acquired him and young Eddie Gilbert in a deal with Kansas City that sent Steve Durbano and Chuck Arnason to the Scouts.Twenty-four hours later, Nolet was in Buffalo with the Penguins, who were on the first leg of a weeklong road trip. When the All Star break allowed most of the National Hockey League to rest, he hustled back to KC to pick up his wife and three children.Nolet and his family stayed briefly in a Pittsburgh hotel until their furniture caught up with them, then settled into a townhouse. A few days later, Nolet was packing again, this time accompanying the Penguins through a long swing that included three games on the West Coast.In his best French Canadian accent, Nolet says, &ldquo;I felt like a gypsy.&rdquo; He stabilizes Ron Schock&rsquo;s line with Vic Hadfield on the left side. &ldquo;I play my wing,&rdquo; Nolet says, &ldquo;Vic is big and strong on the boards and Ron is a worker. I knew their styles pretty good. &ldquo;Even when I was in Philly, I remember than Ron was always on you.&rdquo;This happy combination figured prominently in Pittsburgh&rsquo;s encouraging surge after Ken Schinkel was named the new coach.Each member of the unit has responded with five goals and Hadfield has delivered 12 assists. Schock has assisted on nine goals and Nolet knows why he&rsquo;s added only four assists.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s funny,&rdquo; Nolet observed. &ldquo;The plays start on the other side and I end up getting the goals. I just head for the net. I&rsquo;m skating a lot better now. The first two guys don&rsquo;t hesitate to go deep and that&rsquo;s my game. I&rsquo;m staying back as much as I did in KC.&rdquo;A respected two-way player, Nolet, while not a flashy scorer, never has been timid with the puck. Reaching the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers, he was fortunate to skate through a couple of long stretches with Bobby Clarke.Nolet, promoted from the Quebec farm club in December of Clarke&rsquo;s rookie season, finished with 22 goals while playing alongside the tireless little center.In the Flyers&rsquo; first Stanley Cup campaign, he took advantage of Clarke&rsquo;s playmaking to deliver 13 goals in the first 17 games before an eye injury sidelined him for six weeks. When he came back, Bill (Cowboy) Flett had his job.Coach Fred Shero still kept him happy. &ldquo;He told me to be ready,&rdquo; Nolet mentioned. &ldquo;He said he knew I could come off the bench. There were a couple of guys he said weren&rsquo;t going good, but if he sat them down, they wouldn&rsquo;t come back.&rdquo;After five and a half seasons with the Flyers, they left him unprotected in the latest expansion draft and Kansas City selected him, eventually making him its team captain.Nolet was an 11-goal scorer with the Scouts when they sent him to Pittsburgh. Buoyed by his recent spurt, he has improved his total to 16 and should register the third 20-goal campaign of his big-league career.The only traveling that interests Nolet now is helping the Penguins stay on the road to the playoffs.PENGUIN NOTES: Lowell MacDonald, returning to fulltime duty again, responded with four goals in as many games before the string was snapped in 4-4 tie at California&hellip;Penguins made impressive West Coast trip with two victories and the tie&hellip;Pierre Larouche, with31 goals and 37 assists through 51 games, equalled the totals for his rookie year&hellip;After falling to 17th in goals-against average, the Penguins have climbed past two clubs and are closing in on two more while compiling a 7-2.3 record under Schinkel.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01452/3611392-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="559" height="669"><figcaption class="caption-body">SIMON NOLET&hellip;Man On The Move</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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Newcomer Nolet Has Penguins Moving

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div>TWIN CITIES&mdash;A few days before the 1975-76 season opener the Minnesota North Stars gave their 23-year-old defensive slapshot specialist, Dwight Bialowas, quite a shock.They gave the Regina, Sask., youngster a one-way plane ticket to New Haven in the American League, a surprise to Bialowas because he thought he had won a job on the North Star defense.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t feel the move was justified because I thought I was better than some of the defensemen that stayed with the club.&rdquo; Bialowas said. &ldquo;The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the trip to New Haven did the a lot of good. It was the way of straightening out my attitude.&rdquo;Bialowas, acquired along with Dean Talafous in the trade with Atlanta in January 1975 for Barry Gibbs, spent his time getting squared away while the North Stars lost 16 of their first 20 games. Then, he was recalled as the team made a series of moves to jar the team out of that slump.In his first 35 games back with Minnesota, Bialowas passed every other defenseman on the team in scoring, and some forwards as well, with his big slapshot from the point. Coach Ted Harris uses the 5&rsquo;11&rdquo;, 195-pound Bialowas on the power play, where he has scored four of his goals. Only Ernie Hicke, in 19 more games, had more, five.&ldquo;My natural golf swing accounts for that,&rdquo; Bialowas jested. &ldquo;Seriously, I&rsquo;m a different player than I was before the experience in New Haven. It made me want to play the game more after I got my head straightened out.&rdquo;Often, Harris adds, a player is not fully aware that he might not be playing up to his potential.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a funny game&mdash;sometimes I think a player needs 80 percent of common sense and desire and 20 percent ability,&rdquo; said the rookie coach. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been through the same thing. While you&rsquo;re on the ice. you may not be fully aware of how horrible you have done a particular shift.&rdquo;Bialowas had scored five goals and 19 assists in 88 NHL games with Atlanta and Minnesota before this season. He will surpass that figure this season despite playing one-fourth of the schedule in New Haven before the North Stars made that plane ticket a round trip back.The development of Bialowas this season has been almost as satisfying to Harris as the solution to his first major crisis as a coach.That crisis developed in Toronto in early February when he ordered Cesare Maniago to keep his mouth shut during a scolding the goalie was giving his teammates. Maniago refused, was replaced in the nets and told he would be fined for leaving the team without a backup goalie in the game against the Leafs.When the 37-year-old goalie, who has enjoyed an outstanding sesaon tor the fourth-place Stars, declined to pay the fine, he was suspended indefinitely without pay.The suspension lasted all of one game until Maniago and Harris met to straighten out the disagreement. Maniago agreed to pay the fine, if the money was donated to the Minnesota Heart Fund, which was helping promote a game at Met Sports Center. Harris accepted.&ldquo;It was a satisfying meeting,&rdquo; said Maniago, who has lowered his average more than one full goal from last season&rsquo;s disastrous 4.20. &ldquo;Ted saw my point of view and I saw his. What I did originally, try to perk the team up between periods, was right. But what I did after, to leave the bench, was wrong.&rdquo;Harris added, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad he&rsquo;s back. I&rsquo;ve known Cesare a long time and we have never had any major disagreements before.&rdquo;STAR DUST: Pete LoPresti started in Maniago&rsquo;s place the one game Cesare was under suspension and played spectacularly in stopping 38 Boston shots&mdash;trouble was, the oncoming Bruins, down 21 late in the second period, finished with a 5-2 victory&hellip;&rdquo;The North Stars have definitely improved from the early season,&rdquo; said Boston coach Don Cherry. &ldquo;We had our hands full&mdash;they are showing much more life than they used to.&rdquo;&hellip;The North Stars called up Paul Harrison from Fort Wayne of the International League after Cesare&rsquo;s suspension and said he would stay with the club&hellip;Harrison, 20-year-old rookie, has played in only four games all season, one with Minnesota (a 9-5 loss to the Flyers) and three at Providence&hellip;The North Stars planned to confer with U.S. Olympic standout Steve Jensen after his return from Innsbruck&hellip;Jensen was a fourth round draft pick last summer.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01296/3611423-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="561" height="875"><figcaption class="caption-body">DWIGHT BIALOWAS&hellip;Shocked By Demotion</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0021-01

Bialowas Admits Fast Trip To Minors Matured Him For Stars’ Defense Role

(Standings on Mon. Feb. 23)<h2>NORRIS DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2427/3611786-1-eng-US/f0022-242.jpg" title="f0022-24" width="585" height="166"></div><h2>ADAMS DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2517/3611779-1-eng-US/f0022-252.jpg" title="f0022-25" width="585" height="133"></div><h2>PATRICK DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2611/3611772-1-eng-US/f0022-262.jpg" title="f0022-26" width="578" height="140"></div><h2>SMYTHE DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-276/3611765-1-eng-US/f0022-272.jpg" title="f0022-27" width="580" height="169"></div><h2>GAMESCOMPUTED</h2>Mon. Feb. 16Toronto 5 at Washington 1; California 2 at St. Louis 4Tua. Feb. 17N.Y. Rangers 3 at N.Y. Islanders 1; Philadelphia 2 at Vancouver 2; Kansas City 1 at Pittsburgh 6; Minnesota 1 at Los Angeles 2.Wed. Fob. 18Washington 4 at N.Y. Rangers 11; N.Y. Islanders 5 at Detroit 3; Montreal 7 at Toronto 5; St. Louis 2 at Los Angeles 2; Buffalo 4 at Chicago 4; Minnesota 3 at California 6; Boston 3 at Kansas City 3; Philadelphia 6 at Vancouver 4.Thu. Feb. 19Atlanta 1 at Buffalo 3; Toronto 5 at Pittsburgh 7.Fri. Feb. 20N.Y. Rangers 3 at Montreal 5; Philadelphia 5 at California 4; At lanta 3 at Kansas City 1; Minnesota 0 at Vancouver 7,Sat. Feb. 21Boston 2 at N.Y. Islanders 1; Philadelphia 3 at Los Angeles 3; Washington 5 at Detroit 1; Chicago 1 at Pittsburgh 10; St. Louis 4 at Vancouver 5; Buffalo 4 at Toronto 6.Sun. Feb. 22Boston 5 at N.Y. Rangers 2; N.Y. Islanders 4 at Washington 0,- Montreal 4 at Buffalo 2; Pittsburgh 2 at Detroit 2; California 5 at Chicago 2; Minnesota 6 at Kansas City 3.<h2>GAMESTO COME</h2>Mon. Feb. 23AtlantaatTorontoTue. Feb 24N.Y. Islanders at Minnesota; Philadelphia of Washington; Montreal at St. Louis; Chicago at Vancouver.Wed. Feb. 25California at N.Y. Rangers; At lanta at Pittsburgh; Montreal at Kansas City, Detroit at Toronto.Thu. Feb. 26Kansas City at N.Y. Islanders, Minnesota at Philadelphia, California at Detroit; Chicago at Los Angeles; St. Louis at Boston; Toronto at Buffalo.Fri. Feb. 27Boston at WashingtonSat. Feb 28N.Y. Rangers at Minnesota; Chicago at N.Y. Islanders; Philadelphia at St. Louis; At lanta at Montreal; Vancouver at Pittsburgh; Los Angeles at Detroit; Buffalo at Kansas City; CaliforniaatToronto.Sun. Feb. 29Montreal at N.Y. Rangers; California at Philadelphia; Chicago at Washington; St. Louis at Pittsburgh; Los Angeles at Buffalo; Vancouver at Boston.Mon. Mar. 1Minnesota at Toronto.Tue. Mar. 2CaliforniaatN.Y. Islanders; Pittsburgh at Minnesota.Wed. Mar. 3Vancouver at N.Y. Rangers; Detroit at Atlanta; California at Montreal; Boston at Los Angeles, Toronto at St. Louis.Thu. Mar. 4Vancouver ot N.Y. Islanders; Philadelphia at Kansas City; Chicago at Buffalo.Fri. Mar. 5N.Y. Rangers at At lanta, Boston at California. &#9632;

f0022-24

LOOKING AT THE NHL SCOREBOARD

<h2>Mon. Feb. 16 TORONTO 5, WASHINGTON 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01322/3611734-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="593" height="452"></div><h2>CALIFORNIA 2, ST. LOUIS 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02246/3611727-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="593" height="427"></div><h2>Tue. Feb. 17 RANGERS 3, ISLANDERS 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03214/3611720-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="593" height="373"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 2, VANCOUVER 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-04168/3611713-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="591" height="366"></div><h2>KANSAS CITY 1, PITTSBURGH 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-283/3611706-1-eng-US/f0022-282.jpg" title="f0022-28" width="596" height="461"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 1, LOS ANGELES 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-05142/3611699-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="581" height="216"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-06114/3611692-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="588" height="165"></div><h2>Wed. Feb. 18 WASHINGTON 4, RANGERS 11</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-07101/3611685-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="587" height="597"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 5, DETROIT 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0891/3611678-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="585" height="493"></div><h2>MONTREAL 7, TORONTO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0983/3611671-1-eng-US/f0022-092.jpg" title="f0022-09" width="588" height="133"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1073/3611664-1-eng-US/f0022-102.jpg" title="f0022-10" width="589" height="415"></div><h2>ST. LOUIS 2, LOS ANGELES 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1168/3611657-1-eng-US/f0022-112.jpg" title="f0022-11" width="588" height="355"></div><h2>BUFFALO 4, CHICAGO 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1264/3611650-1-eng-US/f0022-122.jpg" title="f0022-12" width="587" height="456"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 3, CALIFORNIA 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1357/3611643-1-eng-US/f0022-132.jpg" title="f0022-13" width="577" height="182"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1449/3611636-1-eng-US/f0022-142.jpg" title="f0022-14" width="592" height="283"></div><h2>BOSTON 3, KANSAS CITY 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1547/3611629-1-eng-US/f0022-152.jpg" title="f0022-15" width="585" height="357"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 6, VANCOUVER 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1641/3611622-1-eng-US/f0022-162.jpg" title="f0022-16" width="589" height="608"></div><h2>ATLANTA 1, BUFFALO 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1737/3611615-1-eng-US/f0022-172.jpg" title="f0022-17" width="583" height="169"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1836/3611608-1-eng-US/f0022-182.jpg" title="f0022-18" width="589" height="322"></div><h2>TORONTO 5, PITTSBURGH 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1936/3611601-1-eng-US/f0022-192.jpg" title="f0022-19" width="585" height="625"></div><h2>Fri. Feb. 20 RANGERS3, MONTREAL 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2035/3611594-1-eng-US/f0022-202.jpg" title="f0022-20" width="589" height="466"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 5, CALIFORNIA 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2135/3611587-1-eng-US/f0022-212.jpg" title="f0022-21" width="584" height="454"></div><h2>ATLANTA 3, KANSAS CITY 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2231/3611580-1-eng-US/f0022-222.jpg" title="f0022-22" width="589" height="396"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 0, VANCOUVER 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-2332/3611573-1-eng-US/f0022-232.jpg" title="f0022-23" width="517" height="85"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01303/3611566-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="559" height="367"></div><h2>Sat. Feb 21 BOSTON 2, ISLANDERS 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02237/3611559-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="586" height="396"></div><h2>PHILADELPHIA 3, LOS ANGELES 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-03183/3611552-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="590" height="478"></div><h2>WASHINGTON 5, DETROIT 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-04148/3611545-1-eng-US/f0023-042.jpg" title="f0023-04" width="586" height="373"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-05123/3611538-1-eng-US/f0023-052.jpg" title="f0023-05" width="586" height="85"></div><h2>CHICAGO 1, PITTSBURGH 10</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-06109/3611531-1-eng-US/f0023-062.jpg" title="f0023-06" width="586" height="489"></div><h2>ST. LOUIS 5, VANCOUVER 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0795/3611524-1-eng-US/f0023-072.jpg" title="f0023-07" width="589" height="527"></div><h2>BUFFALO 4, TORONTO 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0880/3611517-1-eng-US/f0023-082.jpg" title="f0023-08" width="590" height="536"></div><h2>Sun. Feb. 22 BOSTON 5, RANGERS 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-0966/3611510-1-eng-US/f0023-092.jpg" title="f0023-09" width="559" height="63"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1056/3611503-1-eng-US/f0023-102.jpg" title="f0023-10" width="586" height="380"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 4, WASHINGTON 0</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1143/3611496-1-eng-US/f0023-112.jpg" title="f0023-11" width="583" height="349"></div><h2>MONTREAL 4, BUFFALO 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1235/3611489-1-eng-US/f0023-122.jpg" title="f0023-12" width="587" height="431"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH 2, DETROIT 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1330/3611482-1-eng-US/f0023-132.jpg" title="f0023-13" width="583" height="457"></div><h2>CALIFORNIA 5, CHICAGO 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1428/3611475-1-eng-US/f0023-142.jpg" title="f0023-14" width="585" height="91"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1524/3611468-1-eng-US/f0023-152.jpg" title="f0023-15" width="595" height="317"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 6, KANSAS CITY 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1622/3611461-1-eng-US/f0023-162.jpg" title="f0023-16" width="580" height="79"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-1716/3611454-1-eng-US/f0023-172.jpg" title="f0023-17" width="583" height="426"></div> &#9632;

f0022-01

National Hockey League Summaries

<div class="byline">BY DOUG MCCONNELL</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaPHOENIX&mdash;Earl Eller said he is encouraged by the early response to his appeal to the business community for help, but acknowledged the Phoenix Roadrunners are an endangered species.Eller, president of Combined Communications and one of the five owners of the Roadrunners, said four or five calls &ldquo;to banks and other businesses produced 150 season ticket sales.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01310/3611824-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="289" height="417"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jack Norris</figcaption></div>The Roadrunners need a base of 7,000 season ticket sales for 1976-77 by the end of the current season to continue to operate in the World Hockey Association, said Eller at a press conference called to outline the team&rsquo;s position.That base, he estimated, would produce an average of 9,500 per game, up about 3,400 from their present average.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s what we project we need to break even next season,&rsquo;&rsquo; said Eller, pointing out that is down about 1,000 from this season.Team president Bill MacFarland said he plans reductions in salaries and in the number of players on the payroll, plus &ldquo;getting the cost of our farm team operation at Tucson down to zero dollars.&rdquo;The current season ticket sale is approximately 3,000 (with 900 more tradeouts and comps), but is without much support from the business community.&ldquo;We have 66 business firms with 405 tickets, just 15 percent of our season ticket sale.&rdquo; said Eller.&ldquo;This is where we need help. We feel we have all the help we can expect from the man on the street.&rdquo;Still, he said, the club is trying to make things easier for the man on the street by lowering the lower priced tickets and raising the higher-priced seats, &ldquo;because we think the business community is best able to handle it.&rdquo;Eller said a team of six or eight, including all five owners would begin immediately making direct contacts with the corporation executives.&ldquo;This is something we should have done two years ago,&rdquo; Eller said, &ldquo;but we mistakenly thought the product would sell itself.&rdquo;If the appeal does not produce the needed sales, Eller said there were three alternatives:1. To keep operating with large losses to the owners, losses in excess of $ 1 million each year;2. Move the team elsewhere;3. Close the doors on the operation.&ldquo;We just can&rsquo;t keep throwing hard earned bucks away,&rdquo; said Eller. &ldquo;Our present revenue doesn&rsquo;t even pay the interest on loans we&rsquo;ve taken out.&ldquo;Moving the team is unfavorable. We all went into this because we felt it was good for Phoenix. We felt we&rsquo;d lose money, but not this much. We re Phoenicians and don&rsquo;t want to operate a team somewhere else.&ldquo;The third alternative, closing the doors, is also unfavorable. We&rsquo;ve poured a $ 6 million investment into this.&ldquo;We feel we owe it to the community to keep the club here, but the owners aren&rsquo;t willing to sit still. We haven&rsquo;t taken any money out of the operation. We&rsquo;ve all taken our losses, substantial ones, but we are willing to sit still if we can see a light at the end of the tunnel.&rdquo;Eller said he also hoped to stimulate ticket sales for the remaining eight home games this season, but the broad appeal is for season ticket sales for 1976-77.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to finish this season.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no danger of that.&ldquo;This isn&rsquo;t like Denver or Minnesota. There&rsquo;s no trouble making the payroll or paying our bills.&rdquo;MacFarland said, &ldquo;Contrary to what you read, our salary package is the third or fourth lowest in the WHA. We don&rsquo;t have any salary over $ 100,000.&rdquo;If players aren&rsquo;t agreeable to salary cuts, said MacFarland. &ldquo;some will go where they get the most dollars, but those watering holes are drying up. Several National League teams are having the same problems.&rdquo;The Kansas City Scouts of the NHL also announced, the same day, that they will move if they don&rsquo;t double their season ticket sales to 8,000.On the ice, the Roadrunners lost a 21 defensive battle to Michel Dion, the Racers&rsquo; goaltender who was celebrating his 22nd birthday, and returned to Phoenix to have their nine-game unbeaten home-ice streak broken by the Houston Aeros, 4-1.With 19 of their remaining 27 games on the road, the Roadrunners were faced with a difficult task but met it by winning the first two of a five-game road trip. They stopped the Minnesota Fighting Saints 5-2 and the Edmonton Oilers 4-2.Gary Kurt made 44 saves and Jim Boyd scored two goals against the Saints.Jack Norris made 33 saves at Edmonton and saluted Oiler general manager Bill Hunter with stick and mask at game&rsquo;s end. Hunter declared Norris excess baggage early last season and since then Norris has posted a 6-1-1 mark against Edmonton in a Roadrunner uniform.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02242/3611817-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="553" height="653"><figcaption class="caption-body">JIM BOYD</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0024-01

Runners Cutting Back On Expeditures As Owners Encouraged By Ticket Drive

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01257/3611855-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="604" height="1683"></div> &#9632;

f0025-01

Looking At WHA Goalers

<div class="byline">BY RICH PASSAN</div>HARTFORD--There&rsquo;s nothing that would make the coaching life a little easier to take than a cessation of injuries for Don Blackburn of the New England Whalers.Blackie, who took over the bench chores when Jack Kelley resigned as coach and general manager of the Whalers shortly before last Christmas, still has his troops on top despite an inordinate rash of injuries.First, there was All Star defenseman Rick Ley with nagging groin problems. Second, fellow All Star defenseman Brad Selwood suffered ankle damage. Then top scoring right winger Tom Webster went to the sidelines with back miseries.&ldquo;There were some games when I dressed 17 guys and hoped everything went for the best,&rdquo; said Blackbum. &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t manufacture people if you don&rsquo;t have them.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just trying to keep ourselves in shape until everybody gets back,&rdquo; continued Blackie, who welcomed left winger Nick Fotiu off the injured list on Friday the 13th of February.Blackbum has adjusted well to his new role. &ldquo;I like working with the guys,&rdquo; the erstwhile 37-year-old left winger declared. &ldquo;I miss playing, of course. But there are so many things involved with coaching, I have no time to worry about my personal feelings.&rdquo;Blackburn is not your typical ulcer-ridden coach. No way. &ldquo;My own personal makeup is not one conducive to getting ulcers,&rdquo; he said firmly. &ldquo;You can do only so much. There&rsquo;s no use staying up all night worrying about something.&rdquo;Blackbum, who has a contract that runs through the 1976-77 campaign, was having trouble getting production from most of his forwards until a trade and two acquisitions from the defunct Denver-Ottawa franchise.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02185/3611893-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="291" height="391"><figcaption class="caption-body">Don Blackburn</figcaption></div>Until Mike Rogers, Don Borgeson and Ralph Backstrom arrived, the Whalers received 90 percent of their scoring from the front line of Rosie Paiement. Larry Pleau and Webster before he was injured.&ldquo;At one point, 43 of 49 goals we scored were scored by these three and the other six were scored by defensemen,&rdquo; Blackbum pointed out. Now, with Rogers, Backstrom and Borgeson, the opposition won&rsquo;t be able to concentrate on just one New England line.Rogers, secured from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for fellow center iceman Wayne Carleton, has been dynamite for the Harpoonists, scoring eight goals in his first 11 games in the Green, Black and White.&ldquo;That whole line has been a big plus,&rdquo; said Blackburn, still searching for a solid third forward line.The ironic part of Blackburn&rsquo;s selection as coach of the Whalers is that he never had any notions about coaching. &ldquo;I always had negative thoughts about coaching,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve had enough travelling.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a hectic job. Instead of getting just yourself prepared for a game, you have to get 18-20 guys ready. Then again, I wanted to stay in hockey in some capacity. I had to be realistic,&rdquo; he said.&ldquo;When you&rsquo;re 37-years-old, you get to a point where, when you are with an organization you like, you accept the position when it&rsquo;s ottered to you. It might not have been there in the future.&rdquo;CLEVELAND: The Crusaders have begun playing with renewed energy and started making loud noises in the direction of first place in the WHA East. Since Gerry Cheevers left, the C&rsquo;s picked up goaltenders Bob Johnson and Cam Newton from the old DenverOttawa club and both have sparkled in the nets. Johnson is 3-1&hellip;Jacques Caron was signed to a contract through next season and will stay with Syracuse of the North American Hockey League through the playoffs unless an emergency exists in Cleveland&hellip;It looks as though Bob Whidden, number two goalie after the defection of Cheevers, will have to undergo disc surgery for the second time in six years&hellip;Former Cleveland defenseman Wayne Hillman is suing the Crusaders for $600,000. claiming breach of contract.CINCINNATI: The Stingers&rsquo; Pierre Guite and Kim Clackson, the bad boy defenseman of the Indianapolis Racers are developing quite a feud. It seems that every time these two teams play, these two hockey players tangle. The Feb. 7 tussle was something else. In Indianapolis, Guite had apparently decisioned the rookie Indy backliner when Clackson suddenly bit Guite&rsquo;s ear.&rdquo; I&rsquo;ll bet it wasn&rsquo;t a wisdom tooth he bit my guy with,&rdquo; cracked Stingers&rsquo; coach Terry Slater. Some observers said Guite had his fingers in Clackson&rsquo;s mouth shortly before the biting incident. Guite received a tentanus shot for being on the receiving end&hellip;Rick Dudley celebrated his return to the lineup following a two-game suspension and two games out with an injury by scoring in a 4-2 loss in Cleveland. He also climbed into the stands when a fan taunted him after referee Steve Dowling hung a 10-minute misconduct on him.INDIANAPOLIS: The flu bug has struck the Racers, notably defensemen Whitey Stapleton, and Dick Proceviat and left winger Al Karlander. In order to beef up the defense, Michel Dubois was recalled from Mohawk Valley and center Randy Wyrozub was sent down to replace him&hellip;Rookie goalie Michel Dion continued to wax extremely hot for Indianapolis, burning the Phoenix Roadrunners3-1, for his fourth straight victory. The 22-year-old native of Granby, Quebec, is now 6-10 with a brilliant 2.45 goals-against average. He has had three one-goal games and only twice has allowed as many as four goals in a game. His emergence has relegated veteran Swedish import Leif Holmquist to the No 3. slot behind Dion and veteran Andy Brown. Dion played his junior hockey with the Montreal Red, White and Blue of the Quebec Junior league.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03125/3611886-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="555" height="561"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOB JOHNSON&hellip;Sparkles In Net</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0025-02

Whalers Still On Top Despite Injuries As Coach Blackburn Happy In New Role

<h2>Sat. Feb. 14 HOUSTON 1, SAN DIEGO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01262/3612085-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="593" height="426"></div><h2>PHOENIX 5, MINNESOTA 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02209/3612078-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="587" height="427"></div><h2>Sun. Feb. 15 PHOENIX 4, EDMONTON 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03172/3612071-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="592" height="394"></div><h2>Tue. Feb. 17 WINNIPEG 4, EDMONTON 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04131/3612064-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="587" height="595"></div><h2>SAN DIEGO 2, QUEBEC 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05105/3612057-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="587" height="448"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 6, TORONTO 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0682/3612050-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="595" height="548"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND 3, HOUSTON 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0771/3612043-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="590" height="417"></div><h2>Wed. Feb. 18 CALGARY 0, CELVELAND 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0862/3612036-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="588" height="286"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-0956/3612029-1-eng-US/f0026-092.jpg" title="f0026-09" width="563" height="55"></div><h2>PHOENIX 3, WINNIPEG 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1053/3612022-1-eng-US/f0026-102.jpg" title="f0026-10" width="586" height="379"></div><h2>Thu. Feb. 19 NEW ENGLAND 3, INDIANAPOLIS 10</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1150/3612015-1-eng-US/f0026-112.jpg" title="f0026-11" width="591" height="622"></div><h2>CLEVELAND 3, HOUSTON 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1244/3612008-1-eng-US/f0026-122.jpg" title="f0026-12" width="583" height="214"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1344/3612001-1-eng-US/f0026-132.jpg" title="f0026-13" width="588" height="263"></div><h2>Fri. Feb. 20 MINNESOTA 6, CALGARY 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1440/3611994-1-eng-US/f0026-142.jpg" title="f0026-14" width="588" height="478"></div><h2>EDMONTON 2, WINNIPEG 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1537/3611987-1-eng-US/f0026-152.jpg" title="f0026-15" width="588" height="418"></div><h2>SAN DIEGO 6, TORONTO 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1630/3611980-1-eng-US/f0026-162.jpg" title="f0026-16" width="595" height="523"></div><h2>Sat. Feb. 21 INDIANAPOLIS 2, CLEVELAND 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1726/3611973-1-eng-US/f0026-172.jpg" title="f0026-17" width="589" height="406"></div><h2>SAN DIEGO 2, CINCINNATI 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1825/3611966-1-eng-US/f0026-182.jpg" title="f0026-18" width="587" height="229"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1925/3611959-1-eng-US/f0026-192.jpg" title="f0026-19" width="579" height="158"></div><h2>TORONTO 2, CALGARY 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2022/3611952-1-eng-US/f0026-202.jpg" title="f0026-20" width="585" height="444"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 3, EDMONTON 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2120/3611945-1-eng-US/f0026-212.jpg" title="f0026-21" width="589" height="502"></div><h2>PHOENIX 6, INDIANAPOLIS 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2219/3611938-1-eng-US/f0026-222.jpg" title="f0026-22" width="554" height="549"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND 0, QUEBEC 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2317/3611931-1-eng-US/f0026-232.jpg" title="f0026-23" width="581" height="401"></div><h2>Sun. Reb 22 HOUSTON 1, CLEVELAND 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2414/3611924-1-eng-US/f0026-242.jpg" title="f0026-24" width="582" height="373"></div> &#9632;

f0026-01

World Hockey Association Summaries

(Standings on Tue. Feb. 24)<h2>CANADIAN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-2512/3612130-1-eng-US/f0026-252.jpg" title="f0026-25" width="575" height="157"></div><h2>EASTERN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-269/3612123-1-eng-US/f0026-262.jpg" title="f0026-26" width="573" height="134"></div><h2>WESTERN DIVISION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-278/3612116-1-eng-US/f0026-272.jpg" title="f0026-27" width="577" height="138"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Tue. Feb. 17Winnipeg 4 at Edmonton 4, Son Diego 2 at Quebec 5; Minnesota6 at Toronto 3; New England 3 at Houston4. Wed. Feb. 18 Calgary 0 at Cleveland 4; Phoenix 3 at Winnipeg 4.Thu. Feb. 19New England 3 at Indianapolis 10; Cleveland 3 at Houston 5.Fri. Feb. 20Minnesota 6 at Calgary 3; Edmonton 2 at Winnipeg 4; San Diego 6 at Toronto 4; Phoenix 1 at Cincinnati 4.Sat. Feb. 21Indianapolis 2 at Cleveland 3; Son Diego 2 at Cincinnati 3.Sun. Fob. 22Toronto 2 at Calgary 4; New England 0 at Quebec 4; Minnesota 3 at Edmonton 4; Phoenix 6 at Indianapolis 5; Houston 1 at Cleveland 2.<h2>GAMESTO COME</h2>Tue. Feb. 24Calgary at Edmonton; Houston at Quebec; Cincinnati at Toronto.Wed. Feb. 25Edmonton at Calgary; Cleveland at Winnipeg; New England at Cincinnati; San Diego at Minnesota.Thu. Feb. 26Houston at New England.Fri. Feb. 27Cleveland at Calgary; Edmonton at Winnipeg; Houston Toronto; San Diego at Phoenix.Sat. Feb. 28Winnipeg at Quebec; Indianapolis at New England; Minnesota at Cincinnati.Sun. Feb. 29Phoenix at Calgary; Winnipeg at Toronto; Cleveland at Edmonton; Indianapolis at Cincinnati; Houston at Minnesota.Tue. Mar. 2New England at San Diego; Indianapolis at Phoenix; Quebec at Toronto.Wed. Mar. 3Houston at Minnesota; Cleveland at Cincinnati; Calgary At Edmonton.Thu. Mar. 4New England at San Diego; Cincinnati at Indianapolis; Quebec at Calgary.Fri. Mar. 5Phoenix at Houston; Quebec at Edmonton. &#9632;

f0026-25

WHA SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">BY DOUG MCCONNELL</div>ST. PAUL&mdash;The Minnesota Fighting Saints don&rsquo;t know where their next paycheck is coming from or even if there will be one. but that doesn&rsquo;t seem to have affected their play.They swept a home-and-home series with the San Diego Mariners and took a comeback 6-4 victory from Quebec to remain tied for third, two points behind Phoenix in the World Hockey Association&rsquo;s Western Division.An east coast group, looking for money on the west coast to buy the financially troubled Saints is the latest rumor floating around St. Paul.Wayne Belisle, the former Saints&rsquo; president who sits in the owners&rsquo; box at the arena although not officially part of the club again, says this time it&rsquo;s going to be some big Boston money that is the salvation of the franchise.&ldquo;I have confirmation by phone of a deal with a group from Boston to provide $1.5 million,&rdquo; said Belisle. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re out in California now talking with their bankers.&rdquo;Belisle was ousted two weeks ago when he couldn&rsquo;t come up with the money to meet the payroll and a group of six area businessmen scrapped together $030,000.&ldquo;The new owners came in here and told everybody how great it would be,&rdquo; said Belisle. &ldquo;They patted themselves on the back and took bows&mdash;and have hardly been seen since.&rdquo;Of that group, at least two have already indicated they&rsquo;re begging off, but Belisle is confident.On the ice Mike Walton and Dave Keon scored two goals apiece in a 6-3 victory over San Diego, to snap Minnesota&rsquo;s five-game winless streak, and the following night Keon authored a hat trick to down the Mariners 4-2.The Saints spotted the high-scoring Nordiques a pair of goals and came back with five goals on a 19-shot second period barrage to post a 6-4 victory.The Saints employed the same tactics, including 19 shots on goal in the second period, but Gary Kurt turned back 44 shots to give the Roadrunners a 5-2 victory.HOUSTON: &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t he a great goaltender?&rdquo; enthused Houston coach Bill Dineen.The Phoenix Roadrunners had to agree Ron Grahame is as the Aeros&rsquo; All-Star netminder made 32 saves, including &ldquo;some big saves,&rdquo; in Dineen&rsquo;s words, for a 4-1 victory to put an end to a nine-game Phoenix Roadrunner home-ice unbeaten streak.It was the only victory in a three-game week for the Aeros, however. They were blitzed 5-1 at San Diego and went home to a rare loss in The Summit, 4-2 to Quebec.Serge Bernier&rsquo;s two goals in the first period started the Aeros on the way to their fifth loss, as compared to 23 victories on home ice.The Aeros seem a cinch to top their own record of 28 homeice victories and could top the league record of 31, set by the New England Whalers in WHA Year One.The move from the smaller ice surface (185 &times; 85) of the Sam Houston Coliseum, where the Aeros were 78-36-4 over three seasons, to the larter $200 &times; 85) Summit hasn&rsquo;t hurt the Aeros.&ldquo;If we were still an older team I don&rsquo;t think we would be doing as well,&rdquo; said the team&rsquo;s 48-year-old playing president, Gordie Howe. The smaller ice surface compensated the older players, but it hurts the younger players.&ldquo;But we&rsquo;ve added some young legs now in (Terry) Ruskowski, (John) Tonelli (Rich) Preston. And we&rsquo;ve got younger player who are on their second time around.&ldquo;The bigger surface helps them. Mark (Howe), for example. I think he got most of his goals on the road the first two seasons.&rdquo;SAN DEIGO The San Diego Mariners, realizing they have to win on the road, opened a six-game road trip with a 3-2 victory at Indianapolis.Defenseman Brent Hughes scored his sixth goal of the season and assisted on both the other Mariner goals as Ernie Wakely stopped 28 shots to remain unbeaten against the Racers.Wakely made 25 saves as the Mariners clipped the Aeros 5-1 in San Diego. The Mariners erupted for four goals in the second period to end a three-game losing streak.The Mariners had been victimized by Dave Keon earlier in the week. Keon scored a hat trick in the Minnesota victory.The Mariners have won 12 and tied two of their last 16 home games but own an 8-17-l road mark.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01245/3612168-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="284" height="426"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dave Keon</figcaption></div><h2>WHA Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03142/3612161-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="586" height="756"></div> &#9632;

f0027-01

Money Troubles Not Affecting Saints’ On-Ice Showing

<div class="byline">BY SCOTT HERRON</div>HOUGHTON&mdash;Winter Carnival time at Michigan Tech University is a winterland&rsquo;s Mardi Gras, complete with the frivolity and gaiety of New Orleans&rsquo; fabulous festival.Winter weeks aren&rsquo;t uncommon to most northern colleges that abound with snow and ice and where students annually seek a gay relief. But Tech&rsquo;s version always seems the best, the engineering students creating marvelous castles and statues of ice that are architechtural wonders.And at Tech, the construction-helmeted students often can count upon their national champion hockey team, the Huskies, to add to the celebration. It did again this year (Feb. 6-7) by defeating Michigan 6-4. 6-4 and increasing its lead in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association to six points.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0576/3612313-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="285" height="415"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Zuke</figcaption></div>As if sensing that their team would perform extraordinary feats for this special occasion. Tech fans turned out in record numbers for the series at the Student Ice Arena, the weekend crowd totalling 9,131. And they certainly weren&rsquo;t disappointed. Tech rallying to win both games.In the opener, the Huskies stunned the Wolverines by scoring three times in the last minute and a half to win. Leading scorer Mike Zuke tied the game 18:28, Warren Young fired in the game-winner at 19:06 and Dave Joelson. a freshman from Virginia, Minn., voted the Winter Carnival series MVP, hit an open net at 19:33.If that first loss wasn&rsquo;t enough, Michigan received an even greater shock in the afternoon conclusion of the series the next day. After a scoreless first period, the Wolverines took a 4-0 lead, only to watch the Huskies come growling back.Tech&rsquo;s second straight comeback was remarkable to say the least, but what preceded it was even more in credible. Michigan&rsquo;s Kip Maurer scored the game&rsquo;s first goal 2:43 into the second period, paving the way for teammate Dave DeBol to score a hat trick in a 59 second span. DeBol scored on a deflection at 6:36, fired in a 25-footer at 6:52 and skated the length of the ice to tally the third at 7:35, goalie Robbie Moore getting an assist on the play.But DeBol&rsquo;s amazing play wasn&rsquo;t enough. Lou Drazenovich and Dana Decker scored for Tech before the end of the period, and in the third. Decker, Stu Ostlund, Zuke and Jim Mayer put in four more.Michigan coach Danny Farrell, a former Tech player and assistant to Husky coach John MacInnes, came away aptly impressed.&ldquo;Tech has won the conference.&rdquo; he said with four weeks to go in the regular WCHA season. &ldquo;They have so much more class than the rest of us in the league. They should have been beaten Friday night, but weren&rsquo;t. They were down 4-0 Saturday and should have lost, but didn&rsquo;t. That&rsquo;s why they&rsquo;re going to win&mdash;they have so much character. I see no other team that can catch them.&rdquo;It does seem doubtful that Tech will be caught. Even Michigan State, which has won five of its last six games including its two latest triumphs over Minnesota, doesn&rsquo;t appear in position to overhaul the Huskies. And if the coach of Michigan, which plays five of its last eight games at home, doesn&rsquo;t think it can be done, it probaby can&rsquo;t.Interestingly, the Huskies&rsquo; apparent shoo-in situation worries Maclnnes. He&rsquo;d rather have the WCHA race remain close so that his club would enter post season play at its best, rather than coasting.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to think that we&rsquo;re in a good position. &ldquo;MacInnes said. &ldquo;But the last thing I want to do is cinch this thing early. That&rsquo;s what we did two years ago. We tailed off and didn&rsquo;t come back.&rdquo;When a team is closing in on a good championship, it often becomes paranoid, afraid that some unknown variable will unexpectedly block its path. That prospect concerns MacInnes, too.&ldquo;The thing that scares me is that every team has had a letdown this year,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;State had a six point lead on us then went into a slump. I&rsquo;m concerned about doing hat the last couple of weeks.&rdquo;Tech&rsquo;s schedule seems to favor it to win its second league championship in three years. It finishes the season against Notre Dame, North Dakota. Wisconsin and Minnesota-Duluth, the latter three lower division clubs. The NorthDakota and Wisconsin series are at Tech.&ldquo;Those teams are all fighting for playoff spots,&rdquo; Maclnnes cautions, however. &ldquo;They have everything to gain&hellip;But I think if we at least split the rest of our series, we can win the league.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0029-05

Record Carnival Crowds Thrilled As Tech Sweeps Tourney Honors

<h2>HERSHEY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02175/3612424-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="583" height="545"></div><h2>PROVIDENCE</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03130/3612417-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="584" height="515"></div><h2>ROCHESTER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0499/3612410-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="580" height="520"></div><h2>RICHMOND</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0570/3612403-1-eng-US/f0030-052.jpg" title="f0030-05" width="585" height="517"></div><h2>BALTIMORE</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0655/3612396-1-eng-US/f0030-062.jpg" title="f0030-06" width="586" height="494"></div><h2>SPRINGFIELD</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0744/3612389-1-eng-US/f0030-072.jpg" title="f0030-07" width="586" height="494"></div><h2>NOVA SCOTIA</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0837/3612382-1-eng-US/f0030-082.jpg" title="f0030-08" width="588" height="544"></div><h2>NEWHAVEN</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0929/3612375-1-eng-US/f0030-092.jpg" title="f0030-09" width="587" height="572"></div> &#9632;

f0030-02

AHL Team Scoring Records

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in US and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in US and Canada<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01230/3612344-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="559" height="1064"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVE REECE&hellip;Off On Right Foot</figcaption></div>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;Apologies are due Indian coach Jim Anderson, termed a &ldquo;puppet&rdquo; for owner Eddie Shore a few weeks ago when the Indians were having a run of losing luck. Anderson decided to take things into his own hands and with some forward line juggling, an exchange of a player or two, and his own hard work and discipline, Anderson got his charges on the right track.The Tribe ran off a streak of 11 without loss at home before Nova Scotia ended the string with a 6-5 decision. It was a fair exchange for the Voyageurs, whose own ten-game unbeaten home streak was ended by the Indians the week before.However, Anderson had his crew back on the winning side of the ledger the next night to derail Providence, 52, halting the Reds&rsquo; bid to close the gap to second place,An early-week 4-2 loss in Rochester had ended a brief victory streak for the Indians, qho who but 21 games remaining. have little hope of gaining a playoff berth.They trail third-place Providence by 15 points, and the Reds appear to have snapped a losing slump and look ready to challenge for second place.Thus, the Tribe continues in the role of spoiler and Anderson revels in the role. His patience and teaching is finally paying off, although a bit too late.An exchange of forwards sent Germain Gagnon to New Haven, while the Indians obtained the services of hardnosed winger Richard Nantais.Little Bob Poffenroth, one of the most popular players to ever wear Springfield colors, was the hero in the win over Providence. Along with linemates Jerry Kemp and Pete Harasym, the trio accounted for 10 scoring points.Another plus for Anderson was the acquisition of goaltender Dave Reece from the Boston Bruins.Reece became expendable when Gerry Cheevers rejoined the Bruins from the WHA and quickley established himself as one of the NHL&rsquo;s best with a shutout in his first performance.With Ross Brooks and Ken Broderick performing quite admirably at Rochester, the Bruins chief farm club, Reece was sent to Springfield to get playing time. He turned in an excellent job in his first start in the win over Providence.ROCHESTER: The Amerks&rsquo; chances of catching the Nova Scotia Voyageurs for the Northern Division title may well depend on the three games remaining between the two clubs, two of them in Halifax.Both teams have played the same number of games and the Voyageurs own a seven-point bulge over the Amerks.In addition, the Amerks may well be looking over their shoulders at on-rushing Providence, which closed to within seven points of the Amerks at week&rsquo;s end.A four-game road trip is in the offing for the Amerks, beginning in Hershey. They were not due home until Feb, 27 and a big test with Nova Scotia.In their season series with the Voyageurs, the Amerks are the only club in either division to boast a winning record, showing a 4-3-2 edge.Paul O&rsquo;Neil finally returned to the lineup after a shoulder separation had sidelined him since Jan. 9. The fastskating forward had missed 25 games because of three different injuries.Defenseman Harry Shaw has been lost to the club indefinitely with a reinjured groin and team captain Barry Merrell missed two games with a bruised shoulder.PROVIDENCE: The Reds had a profitable week in winning three of four and moved to within striking distance of second place.They have four games remaining with the second place Rochester club, three of them on Providence ice. So Red chances, although a longshot right now, are somewhat brighter than they were a few weeks ago.Team captain Lynn Powis, who had been in a slight scoring slump and dropped from first to 11th in the race, went on a slight tear last week and hit the 30-goal mark for the season.Greg Holst continues to give chase to leader Jean-Guy Gratton in the scoring race and closed to within three points at week&rsquo;s end.A 22-goal output in four games marked a return for the Reds to the potent offense of early season and they ranked second only to Nova Scotia in goals scored. Ten of the goals came in a 10-6 decision over New Haven, when both teams forgot about defense.In a victory over Baltimore, Ed Staniowski was the lone goalie available to the Reds, due to the recalls of both Paul Harrison (Minnesota) and Bob Sauve (Buffalo). Coach John Muckier was forced to list defenseman Larry Huras as the backup.NOVA SCOTIA: Like Hershey in the South, the Voyageurs continue to roll as the Northern division leaders and last week expanded their lead to seven points over runner-up Rochester.Dave Elenbaas continues his superlative work in the Vees goal as they won two of three. The loss came in Glace Bay. a makeup against Baltimore and the Clippers weathered the trip a little better for a 2-1 decision. &#9632;

f0030-01

Coach Takes Things Into Own Hands, Anderson’s Indians Back On Track

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01210/3612455-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="564" height="775"><figcaption class="caption-body">DICK SARRAZIN&hellip;Calls It Quits</figcaption></div>NEW HAVEN&mdash;The Nighthawks bid to overtake Baltimore in the drive to a playoff berth hit a snag last week when the Hawks had to settle for a 2-2 standoff with the Clippers before the defense completely collapsed in a 10-6 loss to Providence.Net result: one standings point and a four-point deficit to make up with 22 games remaining, and only one with Baltimore, on the season&rsquo;s closing weekend.The loss to Providence continued a streak of non-winning performances for the Hawks, the skein now having reached six straight games.Coach Parker MacDonald&rsquo;s club experienced some more personnel changes during the week, just when it appeared the Hawks would remain intact for awhile.Germain Gagnon, only recently as signed to Springfield by Kansas City, suddenly became a Nighthawk and Richard Nantais went to the Indians in exchange.In fact, the week&rsquo;s results left the Hawks with the poorest record in the league, as the suddenly rejuvenated Springfield club passed the Hawks in total standings points.The loss to Providence was the second in three games for the South against their Northern rivals, who hold an ever-expanding winning margin of 63-36-13 over the South.Except for the six goals in the loss to Providence, the Hawk offense has suddenly gone cold and their total of 177 is second only to Richmond&rsquo;s 175 in the least number scored.The Hawks still share the league lead in one category, hat tricks, with eight, the same number that Providence has posted.The Hawks show a 12-10 home advantage in the remaining schedule, but a poor 9-15-2 record on New Haven ice. is certainly little evidence that the Hawks can reverse the trend.The return of goalkeeper Pete McDuffe shunted Doug Grant out of the picture and MacDonald now expects McDuffe and Brian Holderness to share the netminding duties the rest of the way.RICHMOND: The Robins were scheduled for only two games last week, and the first one, against Rochester was postponed, when most of the Richmond club came down with the flu.The Robins had just returned from a disastrous three-game, all losses, road trip, and were anxious to perform before the partisan home folks, but the bug, highly virile in the South, hit full force.The Robin hold on second place was tenuous to say the least. Only a single point separated them from third place Baltimore, and they were only five in front of last place New Haven.Right-wingers John Paddock and Serge Lajeunesse. certainly vital plugs in the Richmond scoring machine, remain on the sidelines. Paddock&rsquo;s virus has him hospitalized, while Lajeunesse is the victim of damaged ligaments in his left hand. They are sidelined for an undetermined length of time.Like New Haven, the Robins have 23 games remaining and also like the Hawks. 13 are at home. Here again, the likeness issimilar, although the Robins have at least hit the. 500 mark at the Richmond Coliseum with a 12-12-1 mark. However, 500 at home is not the easiest road to the playoffs.BALTIMORE: Terry Reardon&rsquo;s first two weeks as the new Clipper coach could hardly be termed a success, in the matter of wins and losses, but the Clippers appeared to be playing better, with the exception of a 6-1 loss at home to Nova Scotia.Reardon&rsquo;s record as coach read 3-51, a mark that included a victory and a tie over New Haven, the team in immediate pursuit of the Clippers.With their third place edge trimmed to a single point over the Hawks, the Clippers traveled to the cold regions of Glace Bay and a makeup game with Nova Scotia, a game that Reardon almost said he would forfeit if the Voyageurs did not pay expense for the trip.The trip was worthwhile, the Clippers coming off witha2-l decision.Well-travelled Dick Sarrazin retired at week&rsquo;s end. An opportunity for fulltime employment with Air Canada in Montreal precluded further hockey for the popular veteran who acknowledged he was having an off year with just 27 points in 54 games.HERSHEY: The Bears have little else to do but sit back and watch everybody else beat each other behind them.CoachChuck Hamilton&rsquo;s club has 23 games remaining and holds a whopping 18-point bulge over runner-up Richmond.The Bears play 11 of the remainder at home, where they have been practically unbeaten of late (a single loss in 11 games).Hershey enjoyed the week off from competition after losing three of four the week before. Of the final 23 games, 12 are with their own Southern Division rivals, whith whom the Bears have had much success this seasonWith the offense, guided by league scoring leader Jean-Guy Gratton, and help from Mike Deziel, Derek Smith, Wayne Bianchin, and Pete Laframboise, now in high gear, it now appears that the Bears will return to the championship throne in the division after a five-year absence. &#9632;

f0031-01

Nighthawks’ Playoff Bid Sputtering With Losing Skid

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 25)<h3>NORTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02167/3612549-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="587" height="164"></div><h3>SOUTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03140/3612542-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="598" height="158"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Mon. Fob. 16Nova Scotia 7 at Richmond 1.Too. Fob. 17Novo Scotia 5 at Baltimore 2, New Haven 7 at Providence 5.Wod. Fob. 18Rochester 4 at Hershey 5; Providence 1 at New Haven 3.Thu. Fob. 19Baltimore 1 at Richmond 3.Fri. Fob. 20Nova Scotia 1 at New Haven 4-Rochester 3 at Providence 5; Hershey 3 at Springfield 4.Sat. Feb. 21Baltimore 1 at Hershey 6; Rochester 5 at Springfield 2.Sun. Fob. 22Hershey 3 at Baltimore 4; Rochester at Nova Scotia (postponed); Springfield 2 at Providence 1; New Haven 4 at Richmond 4.<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Wed. Feb. 25Hershey at Novo Scotia; Baltimore at Richmond.Fri. Feb. 27Hershey at Baltimore; Richmond at New Haven; NovaScotia at Rochester; Providence at Springfield.Sat. Feb. 28Richmond at Hershey; New Haven at Springfield.Sun. Feb. 29Hershey at New Haven; Springfield at Nova Scotia; Baltimore at Providence; Richmond at Rochester.Tue. Mar. 2Richmond at Baltimore.Wed. Mar. 3New Haven at Hershey; Rochester at Providence; Nova Scotia at Richmond; Baltimore at Springfield.Thu. Mar 4New Haven at Rochester.Fri. Mar. 5Nova Scotia at Baltimore; Rochester at New Haven.<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 23)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-04112/3612535-1-eng-US/f0031-042.jpg" title="f0031-04" width="589" height="179"></div><h3>GAMESCOMPLETED</h3>Mon. Feb 16Tucson 0 at Salt Lake 8Tue. Feb. 17Tulsa 3 at Fort Worth 5.Wed. Fob. 18Tucson 4 at Salt Lake 10FH. FEb.2OTulsa 4 at Dallas 2; Fort Worth 3 at Oklahoma City 0Sat. Fob. 21Fort Worth 3at Dallas 7; Tulsa 4 at Oklahoma City 3.<h3>GAMESTO COME</h3>Man. Fab. 23Tulsa at Tucson.Tua. Fob. 24Salt Lake otFort Worth; Tulsa at Tucson.Fri. Fob. 27Tucson at Fort Worth; Dallasat Oklahoma City; Salt Lake at Tulsa.Sat. Fob. 28Dallas at Fort Worth; Salt Lake at Oklahoma City; Tucson at Tulsa.Mon. Mar. 1Oklahoma City at Salt LakeTue. Mar. 2Tucson otFort Worth.Wod. Fob. 3Oklahoma City at Salt LakeFri. Fob. 5Fort Worth at Dallas; Salt Lake otTucson; Oklahoma City at Tulsa.<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Feb. 24)<h3>NORTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0598/3612528-1-eng-US/f0031-052.jpg" title="f0031-05" width="587" height="190"></div><h3>SOUTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0674/3612521-1-eng-US/f0031-062.jpg" title="f0031-06" width="592" height="169"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wod. Fob. 18Port Huron 6 at Fort Wayne 1; Flint 4 at Kalamazoo 2; Muskegon 2 at Columbus 4.Fr. Feb. 20Kalamazoo 4 at Muskegon 7; Fort Wayne 4ot Flint 3; Toledo 2 at Saginaw 3; Dayton 6 at Columbus 3.Sat. Feb. 21Columbus 1 at Fort Wayne 8; Toledo 6 at Muskegon Kalamazoo 1 at Port Huron 7; Dayton 3 at Saginaw 3.Sun. Feb. 22Dayton 2 at Fort Wayne 3; Saginaw 2 at Port Huron Toledo 3 at Flint 1; Columbus 3 at Kalamazoo 6.<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. Feb. 24Columbus at Fort Wayne.Wed. Feb. 25Flint at Fort Wayne; Muskegon at Port Huron; Saginaw at Kalamazoo.Fri. Feb. 27Dayton at Muskegon; Port Huron at Saginaw; Columbus at Flint; Toledo at Fort Wayne.Sat. Feb. 28Flint at Muskegon; Columbus at Port Huron; Fort Wayre at Dayton; Kalamazoo at Saginaw.Sun. Feb. 29Toledo at Dayton; Muskegon at Flint; Fort Wayne at Columbus; Saginaw at Kalamazoo.Tue. Mar. 2Muskegon at KalamozooWed Feb. 3Port Huron at Dayton.Fri. Feb. 5Muskegon of Port Huron; Fort Wayne at Saginaw; DaytonatKalamazoo; Flint at Toledo.<h2>NORTH AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Standingson Tue. Feb. 24)<h3>EAST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0762/3612514-1-eng-US/f0031-072.jpg" title="f0031-07" width="589" height="179"></div><h3>WEST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0855/3612507-1-eng-US/f0031-082.jpg" title="f0031-08" width="592" height="210"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Mon. Feb. 16Erie 8 at Beauce 7.Tue.Feb. 17Syracuse 6 at Maine 10.Wed. Feb. 18Beauce 5 at Mohawk Valley 7; Johnstown 2 at Buffalo 4; Philadelphia 1 at Erie 6.Thu. Feb. 19Mohawk Valley 5 otPhiladelphia 10.Fri. Feb. 20Beauce 3 at Syracuse 2; Binghamton 3 at Erie 4; Philadelphia 3 at Johnstown 12.Sat. Feb. 21Beauce 6 at Mohawk Valley 3; Buffalo 4 at Erie 3; Binghamton 2 at Johnstown 8.Sun. Feb. 22Binghamton 4 at Buffalo 0; Johnstown 4 at Erie 2; Mohawk Valley 6 at Syracuse 2; Beauce 7 at Maine 1.<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue.Feb.24Buffalo at Maine, Beauce at Johnstown.Wed. Feb. 25Erie at Binghamton; Philadelphia otSyracuse.Thu. Feb. 26Maine at Mohawk Valley.Fri. Feb. 27Erie at Buffalo; Philadelphia at Beauce; Binghamton at Johnstown.Sat. Feb. 28Binghamton at Syracuse; Philadelphia at Maine, Buffalo at Johnstown; Beauce at Mohawk Valley.Sun. Feb. 29Johnstown at Binghamton, Maine at Mohawk Valley; Buffalo at Erie; Syracuse at Beauce.Mon. Mar. 1Johnstown at Erie.Tue. Mar. 2Binghamton at Philadelphia.Wed. Mar. 3Mohawk Valley at Syracuse, Buffalo nt Binghamton;Beauce at Philadelphia.Fri. Mar. 5Erie at Buffalo; Johnstown at Philadelphia, Binghamton at Beauce.<h2>SOUTHERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standingson Tue. Feb. 24)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0943/3612500-1-eng-US/f0031-092.jpg" title="f0031-09" width="583" height="183"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Tue. Feb. 17Winston-Salem 2 at Charlotte 6; Greensboro 5 at Tidewater 4.Wed. Feb. 18Winston-Salem 1 at Hampton 3; Charlotte 0 at Roanoke 4.Thu. Feb. 19Roanoke 3 at Charlotte 3.Fri. Feb. 20Hampton 4 at Tidewater2; Greensboro 0 at Charlotte 5.Sat. Feb. 21Charlotte 1 at Hampton 4; Winston-Salem 4 at Greensboro 2.Sun. Feb. 22Charlotte 3 at Tidewater 1; Roanoke 3 at Hampton 3; Greensboro 4 at Winston Salem 6.<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tvo. M. 24Roanoke at Tidewater; Hampton at Greensboro; Winston-SalematCharlotte.Thu. Feb. 26Tidewater at Winston-Salem.Fri. Feb. 27Winston-Salem at Tidewater; Hampton at Charlotte; Greensboro at Roanoke.Sat. Feb. 28Roanoke at Greensboro.Sun. Feb. 29Charlotte at Tidewater; Greensboro at Roanoke; Hampton at Winston-Salem.Mon. Mar. 1Winston-Salem at Tidewater.Tue. Mar. 2Tidewater at Hampton; Roanoke at Winston-Salem.Thu. Mar. 4Charlotte at Greensboro, Hampton at Winston-Salem; Tidewater at Roanoke.<h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 18)<h3>NORTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1035/3612493-1-eng-US/f0031-102.jpg" title="f0031-10" width="591" height="134"></div><h3>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1131/3612486-1-eng-US/f0031-112.jpg" title="f0031-11" width="585" height="157"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Wed. Feb. 11Green Bay8 at Milwaukee 7Thu. Feb. 125 at Marquette 2; Central Wisconsin 3 at Milwaukee 5.Sat. Feb. 14Central Wisconsin 3 at Waterloo 7; Marquette 1 otSioux City 13.Sun. Feb. 15Treverse City 6 at Green Bay 8; Marquette 1 at Waterloo 11; Central Wisconsin 7 at Sioux City 10. &#9632;

f0031-02

LOOKING AT THE MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD

NHL: 1&mdash;Montreal. 2&mdash;Detroit. 3&mdash;Boston 4&mdash;N.Y. Rangers. 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. louis. 13&mdash;Vancouver. 14&mdash;Buffalo. 15&mdash;N.Y Islanders. 16&mdash;Atlanta 17&mdash;Kansas City. 18&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;Son Drego 31&mdash;Toronto. 32&mdash;Winnipeg. Inter-League: 33&mdash;NY Rangers (NHL) & St Louis (NHL). 34&mdash;Montreal. (NHL) & At lanta (NHL) 36&mdash;Pittsburgh (NHL) & Buffalo (NHL). 37&mdash;New England (WHA) & Washington (NHL) 38&mdash;Det rort (NHL) & Minnesota(NHL) 39&mdash;Atlanta(NHL) & Vancouver (NHL) 40&mdash;Phoenix, Houston & Son Diego (W^A, 41&mdash;Los Angeles (NHL) & N.Y Islanders (NHL) 43&mdash;Kansas City (NHL) & N.Y. Rangers (NHL). 44&mdash;Boston (NHL) & Washington NHL) 45&mdash;Minnesota (NHL) & Vancouver (NHL) 46&mdash;Calgary (WHA), Kansas City (NHL) & Minnesota (WHA). 47&mdash;Philodephia (NHL) 4 Washington (NHL). 50&mdash;Boston (NHL) Son Diego (WHA). 51&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) 4 Toronto (WHA). 52&mdash;Montreal (NHL) 4 Toronto (WHA). 55&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) 4 Calgary (WHA) 56&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) 4 Cleveland (WHA), 57&mdash;N.Y Rangers (NHL) & St. Louis (NHL). 58&mdash;Detroit (NHL) & Edmonton (WHA) &#9632;

Minor League Affiliations

<div class="byline">BY TOM LOBAUGH</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBV ITO Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBV ITO Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U.S. and Canada<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01209/3612611-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="562" height="861"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRUCE ABERHART&hellip;Gets His Chance</figcaption></div>TUCSON&mdash;Bruce Aberhart has seen more action from the bench, the press box. or somewhere in the stands this season than he has in the nets for the Tucson Mavericks. But suddenly, in February, he posted two straight Sunday night victories in Oklahoma City&rsquo;s State Fair Arena, and coach Bob Barlow would have no problem deciding which of his three goal tenders would start the next game against the OC Blazers.Through Jan. 31 the fair-haired 21-year-old Aberhart. who divided last season between the CHL Tulsa Oilers and the Fort Wayne Komets of the International League, had the worst record among league goalies. Playing just 229 minutes in portions of eight games, he was carrying a 7.07 average and had lost his only three starts. Ray Martynuik and Roger Swanson were minding the Maverick nets, and only occasionally was Bruce on the bench as backup goalie.Aberhart requested the starting assignment in Oke City, Feb. 1. and came through with a great performance, as the Mavs won a 4-3 game.Swanson suffered a 5-2 loss in Tulsa, Feb. 4, and Martynuik was beaten in Dallas, 7-3, two nights later. Sunday came round again, and the Mavs had another date in the Oklahoma City arena.This time Aberhart was even more impressive. &ldquo;Fantastic&rdquo; was the word OC manager-coach Ray Miron used. &ldquo;He stood on his head to stop shots.&rdquo; When it was over, Bruce had turned back 45 of 47 Blazer shots, as Tucson prevailed. 3-2.Defenseman Bruce Abbey, a Michigan Tech product who had been playing for Hampton in the Southern League, scored in the first and third periods of that game in OC, with Dan Mandryk tallying in the second.In Tulsa the Mavericks had taken a 2-1 lead when Bob Liddington scored in the first period and Dennis Olmstead early in the second. But the Oilers regained the upper hand with two unanswered goals in the middle period and two more in the third. In Dallas Gordie Titcomb and Dave Walter provided brief leads in the first period, but the Hawks scored five straight times before Olmstead got the last Mav goal in the finalperiod.The Mavericks lost right wing Mike Sleep on a callup by the parent Phoenix Roadrunners at the end of the week, and defenseman Mike Stevens returned to the Houston Aeros on an emergency basis. Center Mike Hobin, just returned from Phoenix, suffered a knee injury at Oklahoma City, and could miss a couple of weeks.DALLAS: With sharp goaltending from Mike Veisor and Boh Volpe, the Black Hawks won twice at home to preserve their five-point margin in first place over the challenging Tulsa Oilers. Oklahoma City was 12 points off the pace. Salt Lake 15. Fort Worth 21, and Tucson 37.Volpe won his seventh straight game with a 7-3 decision over Tucson, Feb. 6. Veisor worked a 5-2 victory over Fort Worth the next night, giving the veteran a 5-2-1 record over an eight-game span. The Hawks were building a new home victory string after their Feb. 1 upset by Salt Lake. But on the road coach Gordon Fashoway&rsquo;s men hadn&rsquo;t tasted defeat in eight starts since a Dec. 26 setback in Tulsa.Center-left wing Rob Palmer, who had filled in on defense while injuries struck the Hawks, was himself on the absentee list, after aggravating a leg injury. The parent Chicago Hawks sent down left wing Joey Johnston to work himself into condition after an injury. The 26-year-old veteran played the past four seasons with the California Seals before going to Chicago in a summer trade.SALT LAKE: The Golden Eagles broke even in a pair of rough games at home against Fort Worth, losing 6-4 and winning 6-5. But more alarming than the loss was the discovery that top scorer Denis Meloche had mononucleosis.The 23-year-old center missed the victory. Doctors explained his illness was not the most serious type, but that his return to the lineup would be dependent upon day-to-day examinations.Getting one assist in the Wednesday loss, Meloche clung to a tie with Oklahoma City&rsquo;s Tom Cassidy for the league scoring leadership, with 59 points, including the league-leading 43 assists. Butch Williams was fifth with 53 points, Frank Spring sixth with 52, and Lyle Bradley tied for 10th with 47. Paul Tantardini added 19 minutes to his league-leading penalty total, reaching 265 minutes for a margin of 71 over runnerup Brad Gassoff of Tulsa.Bradley scored one goal he&rsquo;d just as soon forget. With the score tied at 1-1 in the first period of the Wednesday game, the veteran tried to put the puck behind his cage, and only succeeded in catching the top corner. The goal was credited to the Texans&rsquo; Phil Hoene.Dave Hrechkosy and Spring scored for the Eagles in the first period, but the Texans had a 5-3 lead before Charlie Simmer broke through with a pair of third-period tallies. With a twoman advantage on penalties in the last minute, Eagle coach Marv Edwards pulled goalie Larry Hendrick to send six skaters against three Texans. But that strategy backfired, when Bob Bourne scored a shorthanded empty-net goal with 41 seconds left.Four straight goals in the Friday rematch gave the Eagles a 5-2 lead after two periods. But with Ron Kennedy scoring the last two goals of a hat trick, the Texans tied the score with 4:29 left. Hrechkosy got the winner for Salt Lake on a power play with 1:15 to go.Simmer had opened the scoring with a shorthanded Eagle goal. Two goals by Spring, after singles by Tom Price and Bradley, mounted the big lead.TULSA: After scoring their second straight victory on Oklahoma City ice, the Oilers returned home to suffer a 5-4 loss to those same Blazers.Coach Orland Kurtenbach&rsquo;s crew opened the week by rallying to trim the Tucson Mavericks at home, 5-2. then posted a 3-1 victory in the OC State Fair Arena. In both games the goaltending of Dan Brady was oustanding.The Mavericks took 35 shots at Brady. the Blazers 38, and in each case the Oilers couldn&rsquo;t get their at tack in gear until late. After Jim Wiley scored an early Tulsa goal, the Mavs took a 2-1 lead before Rick Bowness and Leon Rochefort tallied in a three-minute span late in the second period. Barry Wilcox, who had seen limited service after coming back from a broken foot, added two goals in the third.Captain and center Dan Seguin was lost with a knee injury in the fifth minute of that game. Haif a minute later right wing Bill Plett drew a game misconduct as the third man in a fight, and Kurtenbach had to juggle forwards the rest of the way.In Oklahoma City Brady held the Blazers to a single power-play goal in the first two periods. Rochefort, Bowness and newcomer Ron Sedlbauer scored in the third, with Sedlbauer getting the Oilers&rsquo; fourth shorthanded goal of the season.At that point Brady had started four straight games, while partner Curt Ridley was recovering from a flu at tack. and had allowed just eight goals.But the Brady bubble burst the next night in Tulsa, as the Blazers scored four times in the second period, then hung on for the victory.<h2>CHL Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03100/3612604-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="589" height="306"></div> &#9632;

f0032-01

Mavericks’ Aberhart Plays Up To First-String Role

FORT WORTH&mdash;With players moving in and out in wholesale numbers, the Texans of coach Terry Gray broke a six-game road winless streak by puncturing Salt Lake. 6-4. then lost a 6-5 rematch in the Salt Palace and took a 5-2 drubbing in Dallas.First defenseman Pat Price and then center Bob Bourne were called to the New York Islanders, because of injuries on the parent club. Defenseman Joe Girardin, the Islanders&rsquo; No. 2 draft choice in 1974, was brought up from the Erie Blades of the North American League, while defenseman Ken McPhail and right wing Mike Kennedy came back after a two-week stint with the same club. Defenseman Bart Crashley was about ready to come back from his knee injury.Bourne got two goals, including a shorthanded empty-netter, in the victory at Salt Lake, the Texans&rsquo; first road triumph since Dec. 20 in Dallas. Ron and Mike Kennedy and Lorne Stamler also put pucks in the net, and Phil Hoene was credited with a goal when Eagle Lyle Bradley put one into his own net.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02154/3612642-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="283" height="385"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bob Bourne</figcaption></div>Ron Kennedy had the hat trick, including two late goals in the third period of the Friday game. Walt Ledingham and Neil Nicholson also scored, but the rally proved futile when the Eagles won the game with a late power goal. Nicholson drew a one-game suspension for leaving his bench to engage in a battle late in the third period!OKLAHOMA CITY: The Blazers won on the road, a pleasant 5-4 triumph in Tulsa, but lost their only two home games for the week, bringing their dismal streak to three straight setbacks at home.Coach Ray Miron was moaning about a lack of scoring punch, and then lost one of his few potent scorers, when sharpshooting defenseman Claire Alexander went up to the Toronto Maple Leafs. As the week ended, Miron was expecting Alexander back and possibly a forward, but had nothing definite from Toronto.Les Burgess&rsquo; power-play goal in the first period was all the Blazers could muster in a 3-1 loss at home to Tulsa. Feb. 6. The next night in Tulsa Burgess again started things with a power score. But it was a four-goal burst in the second period by Blaine Stoughton, Mike Kelly, Gerry Teeple and Mark Heaslip that decided the game.Returning home, the Blazers moved ahead quickly on Ken Richardson&rsquo;s goal against Tucson, then couldn&rsquo;t score again until Stoughton drilled one with 2:03 left. By that time the Mavericks had taken charge, in spite of a 47-30 Blazer shot advantage.Kevin Kemp, brought up as a defenseman, finished his 10-game pro trial and was signed to a contract, with Miron using the youngster at left wing. Center Paul Daigle was almost ready to return to duty after a knee injury.Blazer center Tom Cassidy, held to a lone assist, still remained in a tie for the CHL scoring lead with 59 points, equalling Salt Lake&rsquo;s Denis Meloche. Alexander had 56 points, good for fourth place, before leaving for Toronto. &#9632;

f0032-02

Player Shuffling Leaves Texans Struggling In Race

<div class="byline">BY JACK GATECLIFF</div>OHA MAJOR HOCKEY LEAGUESUDBURY&mdash;For at least a month there has been doubt as to the pennant winners in her division of the Ontario Hockey sociation Major Junior A League. Hamilton Fincups lead the Emms vision by 21 ints, exactly the ne margin held Sudbury olves over Ottawa 67s in the yden Division. The only question as far as the ders were connecedd was which am would finish he 63-game hedule with ost over-all points.And to all intents the Wolves settled that on home ice when they edged the Fincups 6-4 to move eight points ahead of Hamilton.What difference does it make?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01189/3612673-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="287" height="381"><figcaption class="caption-body">Larry Skinner</figcaption></div>Plenty if the two clubs happen to meet in the finals&mdash;which seems to be highly possible.The team with more points during the schedule would get the extra home game in the championship round&mdash;just as in the National Hockey League&mdash;and with clubs as closely-matched as the Wolves and Fincups this could be the deciding factor.Both are big. tough, well-coached teams and regardless of which team wins the Ontario title (unless there are upsets along the way) they&rsquo;ll have a good shot at the Memorial Cup which was won last year by Toronto Marlboros.In what was billed as the &ldquo;showdown&rdquo; a capacity Sudbury crowd of more than 5,000 watched the Wolves lead 2-0 in the first period, then carry that edge the rest of the way with a 4-2 lead in the second and the final 6-4 score.Rod Schutt, Rod Duguay, Wes Jarvis, Dave Hunter, Hec Marini and Alex McKendry scored the Sudbury goals, Dale McCourt, Ed Smith, Cal Herd and Mike Keating replied for the Fincups.And it&rsquo;s worthy of mention that neither team had a two-goal marksman. They have balance which has carried them a long way this season and should set up a spectacular final.Earlier in the week Fincups had knocked off St. Catharines 5-3, London (their closest rivals) 6-4 and Sault Ste. Marie 4-3.For their part, the Wolves downed Windsor 6-2 in their only other outing before beating the Fincups.LONDON: Any lingering hopes the Knights might have harboured regarding catching first place Hamilton vanished when they were beaten 6-4 by the Fincups at the Hamilton Forum&hellip;They are now mathematically out of the race and must look over their shoulders at the fast-charging Marl-boros&hellip;Mike Keating had two of the Hamilton goals while Ron Zanussi. Dan Eastman and Dwight Schofield counted for London&hellip;Earlier in the week Knights had taken a 7-2 win out of Oshawa thanks in part to Eastman&rsquo;s three goals but their chief aim now is to hold the runner-up position.TORONTO: The past month or so Marlboros have been one of the hottest clubs in the league&hellip;After having one win-streak halted 7-4 by Kingston they promptly started another, beating Peterborough 5-3 just 24 hours later, then St. Catharines 4-2 after being behind 4-2&hellip;Kevin Walton continues to shine in goal and Cary Farelli, although still not as sharp as when he was in Sault Ste. Marie, is coming along well and should be in top shape for the playoffs&hellip;George Armstrong&rsquo;s well-known patience as coach seems to be paying off.KITCHENER: The Rangers, with third place almost clinched at one time, now find themselves fourth with little hope of going higher in the final weeks of the schedule&hellip;Their slump continued with two more losses&mdash;7-4 in Kingston and 5-3 at home to Oshawa&hellip;No one seems to be able to pinpoint the problem but they seem to fade all too often late in their games&hellip;Against the Generals, not known as a powerhouse, they gave up two goals late in the third period after being tied 3-3&hellip;Les Campbell had two of their goals earlier&hellip;The only bright part of the week was captain Danny Djakalovic scoring his 100th career goal in the 74 loss to Kingston.ST. CATHARINES: Brantford Blue Line Club, which sponsored Toronto Marlboros&rsquo; appearances in Brantford last season, made bid to buy Black Hawks and move team into their city&hellip;However initial offer was rejected by Hawk owner Hap Emms&hellip;Attendance still low and talk continues a local group may purchase team and keep it at Garden City Arena&hellip;On ice Hawks are doing poorly&hellip;They&rsquo;re fifth, lost four in a row and haven&rsquo;t won in eight starts&hellip;Suspensions for two games to Ron Wilson and Doug Caines didn&rsquo;t help but captain Greg Craig playing his best hockey of season.WINDSOR: Spitfires retained their slim hopes of catching St. Catharines for the final playoff position in the Emms Division by beating the Hawks 4-3 in front of 2,435 Windsor fans&hellip;The victory followed four decisive losses which meant just about the difference between the clubs for fifth place&hellip;Charlie Skjodt scored twice against Hawks and Ted Bonham played fine two-way game&hellip;Coach Wayne Maxner seemed to inspire team when he first took over and this has held on to some extent&hellip;However playoff spot is still remote.OTTAWA: Still a very tight race for runner-up in the Leyden Division with Ottawa leading the pack at the moment&hellip;However Kingston, Sault Ste. Marie and Oshawa are still very much in the running&hellip;67s won their only game of week decisively 9-2 over Peterborough which mathematically eliminated Petes from playoff contention&hellip;Larry Skinner, who has been coming on like gangbusters tor coach Brian Kilrea, had most productive night of his career with four goals and two assists&hellip;Peter Lee, all-time league goal and point-scoring champion (career) scored his 66th goal of season and 2(X)th since coming into Major Junior A&hellip;Oddly enough he is still not given as much credit as he deserves despite the feats.KINGSTON: Canadians stuck in there for second by picking up five of a possible six points&hellip;They downed Toronto 7-4, Kitchener by the same score and tied Oshawa 3-3&hellip;Mike Crombeen scored twice late in the game with Marlies to clinch the win as eight goals were produced between the two teams in the last period&hellip;Canadians came from behind three times to earn draw in Oshawa with Ken Linseman picking up a pair and Tony McKegney scored three times in win over Kitchener&hellip;Like Sudbury and Hamilton, Canadians have balance and could be a real threat in playoffs.SAULT STE. MARIE: Greyhounds are still having their high points and low points&hellip;They crushed Windsor 14-4 but then had difficulty scoring and were def eated 4-3 by Hamilton&hellip;Their win at home bef ore 3,198 gave them 61 points, highest since joining the league four years ago and clinched a playoff spot for the first time. Mike Kasycki still playing extremely well after being acquired from Marlboros for Cary Farelli&hellip;He added six points and leads entire league. Sellout of 4,434 watched them lose 4-3 to Hamilton but support has been simply tremendous this year.OSHAWA: Generals have slipped a little off the pace but at least they&rsquo;ll make playoffs which is not all that bad as coach Gus Bodnar hasn&rsquo;t his best personnel, by a long shot, since taking over in Oshawa&hellip;They split right down the middle, winning one, losing one and tying one&hellip;Their victory 5-3 in Kitchener was especially satisfying as they haven&rsquo;t won that many on road. Paul Gardner and Glenn Kirkham had two goals each in that one and Gardner also scored once in the 7-2 home ice loss to London and again in the 3-3 tie with Kingston.PETERBOROUGH: It&rsquo;s been a thoroughly disappointing season in Peterborough where the Petes have missed the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade&hellip;They just never got cracking after losing too many players through the age limit&hellip;However coach Roger Neilson has big plans for rebuilding next season and has already tried out several rookies. &#9632;

f0033-01

Wolves Rip Fincups For Eight-Point Bulge; streaking Marlies Put Pressure On London

<div class="byline">BY MORLEY HOWE</div>SIOUX CITY&mdash;While the Sioux City Musketeers are setting their sights on winning the United States Hockey League title, a couple of high-scoring Musketeers are taking aim at established league records.With five games remaining in the regular schedule, the forward unit of Rick Kennedy, Dave Kartio and Sean Coghlan have collected 263 scoring points, only 12 off the USHL mark set by the Thunder Bay Twins line of Barry Hogan. Jack Byerley and Chuck Kelner.Kennedy, a former college star, currently leads all point-getters with 99 points, six short of the alltime scoring record held by Byerley. This past week saw him break the rookie point total of 93, set by Phil Wittliff of Milwaukee during 1973-74.Linemate Kartio, a six-year veteran in the USHL. has 48 goals to date, and needs only three more to tie Cliff Purpur&rsquo;s league mark. The ex-Green Bay star established that total last season before retiring.Brother Bob Purpur, who recently joined Green Bay, may see his assists record of 64 fall, as Kennedy now has 59. Bob&rsquo;s entry into the record books was made during the 1973-74 season when he was with the Madison Blues.Green Bay Bobcats were the best team of the week, scoring wins bver Milwaukee, Marquette and Traverse City, and now have an 11-point lead in the Northern Division. They need only three wins in their remaining nine games to clinch their second straight Northern title.The top individual performance of the week was achieved by Waterloo&rsquo;s Kim King, who scored his first league hat trick as he fired four goals and added two assists to lead the Black Hawks to an 11-1 victory over Marquette.<h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0489/3612718-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="535" height="426"></div><h2>HOW THEY STAND</h2><h3>WESTERN INTERNATIONAL</h3>(Standings on Tue., Feb. 10)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02144/3612711-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="588" height="157"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03107/3612704-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="587" height="281"></div> &#9632;

f0033-04

Around The USHL

COLUMBUS&mdash;Columbus and Toledo, currently involved in a bitter battle for third place&mdash;the final sure playoff position in the four-team South Division of the International Hockey League, apparently have no trouble agreeing when it comes to the trade mart.The two clubs completed a second trade within a two-week period with the Owls sending defenseman Marty Feschuk to the Diggers for defenseman Tom Thomson. In addition, Columbus also picked up Toledo center Gordon Duncan on waivers.Just two weeks ago, Toledo sent Wild Willie Trognitz to the Owls in exchange for center Gary Winchester and left winger Dave Johnson.Feschuk, who is 21, has scored eight goals and has 13 assists in 45 games. Thomson, who was purchased by Toledo earlier this season from Saginaw. hasthreegoalsand21 assists.<h2>IHL Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCOREERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02152/3612780-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="584" height="431"></div> &#9632;

f0034-02

Owls, Diggers Active Traders As Clubs Make Second Deal

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario&rsquo;s Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg. Ontario&rsquo;s Sold in U.S. and CanadaKALAMAZOO&mdash;Life in the International Hockey League is a five-day week, Wednesday through Sunday. Game days basically are Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Few teams escape a three-game outing and there are many four-game weeks.For Bob Lemieux and his Kalamazoo K-Wings the week of Feb. 11 was the week that was. It was the week the young Wings, closing in on their second season in the International Hockey League, established a trio of club records and won recognition as a definite threat for post-season playoff activity.Ridiculed earlier for adopting the &ldquo;system&rdquo;, based on the style of hockey used by European hockey teams, Lemieux might soon have requests from rival coaches for his playbook. The Wings skated through a perfect week, posting three straight victories including a most convincing 4-1 romp at Toledo.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01204/3612749-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="250" height="400"><figcaption class="caption-body">Willie Trognitz</figcaption></div>It marked the first time in the Wings&rsquo; young history they had managed a winning streak of such dimensions. The three wins boosted the team&rsquo;s victory total to 20&mdash;three more thank Kalamazoo managed durings its maiden voyage a year ago. And the win at Toledo was the sixth road tnumph of the season&mdash;another team high water mark.Speaking about the &ldquo;system&rdquo; after the Toledo victory Lemieux said: &ldquo;The idea is to try to be deliberate. That&rsquo;s the key. You&rsquo;re supposed to capitalize on the chances you get. We haven&rsquo;t come anywhere near perfecting it. It&rsquo;s difficult to implement at this level of hockey.&rdquo;Following a subsequent 6-2 romp over South Division leader Dayton in Wing Stadium, Lemieux talked as if the system had been perfected&mdash;for at least the one game at any rate.&ldquo;We can win the Turner Cup,&rdquo; he boasted. &ldquo;That is, we can win it if we play up to our full capabilities in the system in every game. The minute we stop, we can have it shoved down our throats. But I think we learned our lessons last week,&rdquo; he added.The recent winning surge has put the Wings right in the thick of a four-team scrap for the final playoff posit ion with Fort Wayne, Toledo and Columbus. The K-Wings ended the &ldquo;Week that was&rdquo; with 47 points, one less than Columbus, two behind Toledo and three in arears to Fort Wayne.Schedule-wise, the K-Wings appear in an enviable position in relation to the path charted for Columbus. Of the Wings&rsquo; final 22 games, half are at home. Columbus, on the other hand, must play 14 of its final 21 on the road.There was one somber thought for the Wings in the wake of their most successful week in history. Veteran center Al Genovy was injured as the Wings&rsquo; chalked up the third straight win&mdash;a 6-3 waltz over Port Huron. Genovy received a back injury when he rammed into the goalpost on a breakaway at tempt.The extent of his injuries were pending. The loss of Genovy for any length of time would be a severe blow to the Wings&rsquo; determined drive for an eventual playoff position.SAGINAW: A two-game swing through the South Division was fruitless for the North Division leaders. The Gears opened the trip with a 6-2 thumping at Dayton and then dropped a 4-2 decision at Columbus. A win and a tie over North Division rival Muskegon completed the week on a happy note.Paul Evans pumped in a pair of goals as the Gears nipped the Mohawks, 4-3, in Muskegon. Muskegon managed a 44 tie the next afternoon in Muskegon.Reflecting on the loss at Dayton&mdash;Saginaw&rsquo;s final trip there of the season, coach Don Perry remarked: &ldquo;I hope we come back here again.&rdquo; If the Gears do return, it would be in the finals of the Turner Cup playoffs.Despite winning only once in four games, Saginaw held on to its firm lead in the North&mdash;eight points up on second-place Port Huron.PORT HURON: The Flags have enjoyed better success than over the recent four-game grind. There were nd victories, just a pair of ties in the schedule which included three road games. The Flags played a 4-4 tie at | Muskegon, lost by identical 6-3 scores at Toledo and Kalamazoo and sal vaged a 4-4 tie against Flint at home The tie preserved the Flags&rsquo; one-point margin over the third-place Generals.FLINT: A 7-2 romp at Columbus featured the Generals&rsquo; week which also included a 4-4 tie at Port Huron and a 4-1 decision over Dayton at home. The Generals have lost but once over the last nine games and have closed to within a point of second while expanding their lead over fourth-place Muskegon to two.Jim Johnston and Scott Hudson led the at tack at Columbus with a pair of goals. The seven-goal explosion was the most goals scored by the Generals away from home since they ripped Fort Wayne, 11-5, on Dec. 7,1975.MUSKEGON: The Mohawks hit their offensive peak of the season in whipping Fort Wayne, 9-0. It was also the third time this season the Komets had been blanked on Muskegon ice.Following the romp over Fort Wayne, the Mohawks fell victim to the Saginaw jinx again, losing a 4-3 thriller. Saginaw built up a 4-1 lead and the Mohawks just fell short with a late rally.DAYTON: Barring a complete breakdown&mdash;like losing the franchise&mdash;the Gems are a shoo-in for a second straight South Division title. The Gems boosted their lead over second-place Fort Wayne to a fat 20 points with a 5-3 victory&mdash;their fifth straight over the Komets on home ice. But the Gems do have one problem&mdash;finishing ahead of the North Division champion which would provide a playoff advantage should the Gems be successful in surviving the post-season party in the South.FORT WAYNE: The Komets are looking forward to their return to the Memorial Coliseum following two weeks on the road. The club played five games during that span and managed just three points&mdash;one victory and a tie.Despite the rather slim pickings on the road, the Komets came home still in second place. The grip is a little pre carious&mdash;one point over Toledo.TOLEDO: The Diggers opened a lengthy road swing by dropping a onesided, 10-3 decision at Columbus. The loss was the 15th for the Diggers in the last 17 road assignments. The record forthat span isO-15-2.Prior to the thumping at Columbus&mdash;where the Diggers last won on the road way back on Dec. 7&mdash;Toledo won a pair of home games, 6-3 over Port Huron and 3-2 over the Owls. The game with Columbus marked the return for the first time of Willie Trognitz, traded to Columbus earlier in the season. Wild Willie was gone before the game was over. He was given the bounce after his third fight of the might. Willie&rsquo;s homecoming was a financial success for the Diggers, too. A crowd of 5,507 showed up to give him a &ldquo;warm&rdquo; welcome.COLUMBUS: The Owls, who had been skating up a storm in recent weeks, went sour in losing a 7-2 decision to the suddenly warmed-up Flint Generals. If there is a good time to &ldquo;blow one&rdquo; at home, this was it for the Owls. The season&rsquo;s smallest crowd witnessed the fiasco, 1,472. &#9632;

f0034-01

K-Wings Win Recognition As Definite Threat

<div class="byline">BY BRUCE PENTON</div>WINNIPEG&mdash;Gerry Brisson, Winnipeg Clubs&rsquo; oach, is not one for using fancy words, He&rsquo;d need the thickest Webster to find he pronunciation and spelling of the roper superlatives to describe his senational 18-year-old defenceman, so he shoots freight from the ip and says: &ldquo;Kein McCarthy is he best junior ockey player in Canada today.&rdquo;And although risson may reeive slight argument from Ernie McLean, JackieMcLeod and Jack Shupe, who think hey have fairly talented players in lew Westminster (Barry Beck, Rick Shinske), Saskatoon (Bernie Federko, Hair Chapman) and Medicine Hat Don Murdoch) respectively, Brisson vill have to rely on this summer&rsquo;s amaeur draft to conclusively prove his point.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01193/3612839-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="285" height="359"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kevin McCarthy</figcaption></div>McCarthy is only 18 and although he NHL (through Clarence Campell) has said its teams won&rsquo;t touch uner-age players, it&rsquo;s almost guaranteed McCarthy will be earning big money ext season doing his imitation of ockey&rsquo;s next superstar.McCarthy, a Winnipeg native play-mg his third season in the WCHL, has average height, but that&rsquo;s where his so-soqualities stop.He&rsquo;s an exceptionally smooth skater with great speed. He throws the nicest pass in the league, always on the ice and on target. He&rsquo;s got a quick wristshot and deadly accurate slapper from the point.But perhaps his greatest at tribute is his grey matter; he has perhaps more hockey sense than anyone in the league, or as Brisson would say, &ldquo;in Canada.&rdquo;McCarthy sometimes looks like he&rsquo;s making a mistake when in reality he&rsquo;s doing something one step ahead of what a team-mate is expecting.But he dominates. Already, with 17 games to go in the regular season, he has 28 goals and 65 assists. The league record for points by a defenceman (102, by Ron Greschner of New Westminster) will surely be his by season&rsquo;s end, as will the mark for most assists by a defenceman (71, by Greg Joly of Regina).&ldquo;And something we have to remember,&rdquo; Brisson says, &ldquo;is that Kevin is doing all this as an 18-year-old, while the other guys did it in their graduating years.&rdquo;Brisson is so high on McCarthy that he measures him against New York Islanders&rsquo; Denis Potvin.&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t get me wrong. I&rsquo;m not comparing them as they are today,&rdquo; Brisson says, &ldquo;but there&rsquo;s no doubt that Kevin is just as good a junior hockey player as Potvin was. Maybe better.&rdquo;Although McCarthy has no individual league records of his own at this writing, he tied a mark held by 16 others for most assists in one game&mdash;six as the Clubs stormed back from a 5-0 deficit at home to bounce Bert Olmstead&rsquo;s Calgary Centennials 10-7. Five of those assists came in the second period. He also scored a goal in that game to move him into 10th place in the league scoring race. Ahead of him are all forwards. The closest defenceman in the scoring derby is Barry Beck, with 76 points.The shame of it all is that McCarthy usually plays in front of 9,000 empty seats at the Winnipeg Arena, playground of the WHA&rsquo;s Winnipeg Jets. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s too bad there&rsquo;s rarely big crowds here to see this kid play,&rdquo; says Brisson. &ldquo;For my money, he puts on the best one-man show in Western Canada.&rdquo;Brisson says he &ldquo;won&rsquo;t stand in Kevin&rsquo;s way&rdquo; if McCarthy is wooed to the professionals after this season. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;re here for, to send players to the pro teams, and I&rsquo;m convinced that Kevin is the next Potvin or Orr,&rdquo; Brisson glows.For that statement Brisson will likely receive 11 &ldquo;Thank You&rdquo; cards&hellip;from his rival coaches in the WCHL.FLIN FLON: Mark Davidson, playing with a broken jaw, started scoring again and the Bombers opened a six-game journey in B.C. with a 3-3 tie in Kamloops as Davidson scored twice to give him 35 on the season. The next night, Bombers suffered a fate similar to most of their league rivals, a trouncing (12-4) in New Westminster. Prior to the western swing, Bombers dropped two close ones, 4-3 in Lethbridge and 5-3 in Regina.BRANDON: Last-minute heroics won games on consecutive nights for the Wheat Kings, losers of just two of their last 10. In Regina, defenceman Wayne Ramsey scored with 15 seconds left for a 4-3 win, and the next night at home, Dale McMullin and Mike Bradbury tallied in the final minute for a 5-3 comeback victory over Calgary. Things finally caught up to Dunc McCallum&rsquo;s crew, though, as they were lambasted 10-3 in Saskatoon, their worst loss of the season.REGINA: Pats unbeaten streak went to five games with a 5-3 decision over Flin Flon, but Ramsey and the Wheat Kings snapped it. Edmonton added another loss to Regina, 5-3, but the Pats hung on to 10th place in the over-all standings.SASKATOON: Blades were handed only their second home-ice loss in 25 games when they were stunned 7-3 by Western Division tail-enders, Calgary Centennials. But they more than made up for it three days later, hammering Brandon 10-3 as Fred Williams picked up five assists in his 301st regular-season game as a Blade, breaking Ralph Klassen&rsquo;s team record of 300. Blair Chapman&rsquo;s two goals in that game gave him 129 for his career, tying the Blade record held by Danny Arndt, now with New England of the WHA.LETHBRIDGE: Under coach Mike Sauter, the rejuvenated Broncos are 72-2, and have an eight-game unbeaten streak on home ice. No. 7 was a 4-3 win over Flin Flon and No. 8 was a 7-4 triumph over Edmonton, as rookie Mike Boychuk hit for the hat trick. Earlier, Broncos doubled up on Calgary 4-2 in Cowtown. Boychuk had one goal in each of the other two games, giving him 17 on the season.MEDICINE HAT: Don Murdoch pushed his league-leading goal total to 62 with three in a 7-5 loss in Kam-4 in Victoria) of three B.C. games. Earlier, they were slammed 8-1 by powerful New Westminster. Although overlooked due to the exploits of Murdoch, Greg Carroll and Morris Lukow-ich, Tigers&rsquo; Tom Bast is probably the league&rsquo;s most underrated player. Bast, lined up last year with Murdoch and Lukowich on Tigers&rsquo; big line, has been relegated to second-line duty this season, but is the sparkplug on Medicine Hat&rsquo;s power-play.CALGARY: Coach Bert Olmstead was fuming after the Centennials blew games in Brandon and Winnipeg. In the former, they were up 3-2 with two minutes left, but lost 5-3. Against Winnipeg, Cents were ahead 5-0 early in the second, yet lost 10-7. Cents opened their eastern sojourn with a 7-3 upset win in Saskatoon as Dave Colbome picked up four points. Colbome had 10 points in five Calgary games during the week.EDMONTON: Doug Lecuyer had his second straight four-point night in a 5-3 Oil Kings&rsquo; win over Regina, but was apparently put on &ldquo;probation&rdquo; recently, due to his penchant for picking up game misconducts. True to form, Lecuyer was given the heave-ho the next night in a 7-4 Edmonton loss in Lethbridge. Wayne Babych, still the team scoring leader, had five points in the two games.KAMLOOPS: At one point the hottest team in the league, Chiefs are now struggling. They out-shot Flin Flon 26-5 in the third period, but scored only once for a 3-3 tie. That came four days after a humiliating 6-1 loss at home to Victoria, a game Cougars&rsquo; Patty Ginnell said he was going to boycott unless assault charges against Victoria&rsquo;s Archie Henderson were dropped. Neither the dropping of charges, nor boycott, took place. Al Young scored a hat trick in Chiefs&rsquo; lone win of the week, 7-5 over visiting Medicine Hat.NEW WESTMINSTER: After averaging 10 goals a game in three easy wins, the steam-rolling Bruins now need less than two goals a game to break the record for one season (Regina&rsquo;s 377 in 1973-74). Two Bruins Rick Shinske and Fred Berry&mdash;went over the 100-point mark, while two others, Steve Clippingdale and Mark Lofthouse, are closing in on the century plateau.VICTORIA: The adversity of losing leader Jim Gustafson for six-to-eight weeks with a separated shoulder spurred on the Cougars, who skated into Kamloops and earned a 6-1 win, paced by Al Hill&rsquo;s and Curt Fraser&rsquo;s two-goal performances. Jeff McDill&rsquo;s two goals helped Victoria tie The Hat 4-4, but nothing helped, least of all Patty Ginnell&rsquo;s ejection from the game in 10-6 loss to New West, which led 8-2 after 20 minutes.<h2>HOW THEY STAND</h2>ONTARIO MAJOR LEAGUE(Standings on Tue. Feb. 24)<h3>EMMS DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02159/3612832-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="581" height="218"></div><h3>LEYDEN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03118/3612825-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="579" height="210"></div><h2>GAMESCOMPLETED</h2>Fn.Feb. 13St. Catharines 2, Toronto 4; Oshawa 5, Kitchener 3; Peerborough 2, Ottawa 9: Hamilton 4, Sudbury 6; Windsorondon 10.Sat. Feb. 14London 5, Toronto 2; Kingston 7, Soult 7.Sun. Feb. 15Hamilton6, Toronto 3; Ottawa 5, Kitchener 3, Windsort. Catharines 7; Peterborough 2, London 4; Sudbury Kingston 2.Mon. Feb. 16Sudbury 5, Oshawa 2; Ottawa 4, Windsor 2Tue.Feb.17Toronto 5, Kingston 2; Sudbury 1, Hamilton 6.Thu. Feb. 19Kingston 9, Windsor 2; Kitchener 8, St. Catharines iault 5, Oshawa 5; Hamilton3, Peterborough 3.Sat. Feb. 21Oshawa 5, Peterborough 2.Sun. Feb. 22Peterborough 4, Windsor 2; Oshawa 7, St. Catharines itchener 5, London 4; Sudbury 8, Toronto 4; Ottawa iault 3.<h2>WESTERN CANADA LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Sat. Feb. 14)<h3>Eastern Division</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0495/3612818-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="580" height="201"></div><h3>Western Division</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0574/3612811-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="580" height="201"></div><h2>GAMESCOMPLETED</h2>Sat. Feb. 7Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 2; Medicine Hat4 at Victoria 4.Sun. Feb. 8Medicine Hot 1 at New Westminster 8; Flin Flon 3 at Regina 5; Winnipeg 5 at Calgary 3; Victoria 6 at Kamloops 1Tue. Feb. 10Flin Flon 3 at Lethbridge 4; Calgary 7 at Saskatoon 3; Medicine Hat 5 at Kamloops 7; New Westminster 10 at Victoria 6.Wed. Feb. 11Brandon 4 at Regina 3.Thu. Feb. 12Regina 3 at Edmonton 5; Calgary 3 at Brandon 5; Flin Flon 3 at Kamloops 3.Fri. Feb. 13Flin Flon 4 at New Westminster 12; Edmonton 4 at Lethbridge 7; Brandon 3 at Saskatoon 10; Calgary 7 at WinniPeg<div class="sidebar">Western Canada Hockey League &#9632;</div>

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Clubs’ McCarthy Lauded As No.l Junior; Olmstead Fumes As Calgary Lets Down

<div class="byline">BY GARY CLARK</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario I Sold in U.S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street. Wallaceburg. Ontario I Sold in U.S and CanadaWILLIAMSVILLE&mdash;North American Hockey League Commissioner Jack Timmins has announced that coach Ted McCaskill and player Kerry Bond of the Mohawk Valley Comets have each been fined one thousand dollars and suspended for the balance of the 1975-76 season, including playoffs, for their part in an on-ice assault of referee Eric Manship and linesman Bill Gargano during the first period of the game Sunday February 15, Mohawk Valley at Binghamton.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01172/3612884-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="278" height="414"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kerry Bond</figcaption></div>Mohawk Valley immediately appealed the penalties and that appeal is to be heard at a special NAHL Board of Governors meeting set to convene on Wednesday February 25 in Syracuse.The penalties were believed to be the most severe levied for such an incident since Western Hockey League player Connie Forey was suspended for two years and fined ten thousand dollars for striking a referee during the 1973-74 season.The incident occurred at the 8:06 mark of the first period in the aftermath of a fight between Duster Bill Goldthorpe and Comet Ross Smith. In protesting the penalties assessed by Manship, Bond, a Comet assistant captain, reportedly threw linesman Gargano into the boards and then repeatedly struck referee Manship.McCaskill reportedly left the player&rsquo;s bench, crossed the ice to the official&rsquo;s circle, and also struck Manship. The Comets were ahead 2-0 at the time of the incident but lost in overtime 5-4.The referee and linesmen needed a police escort to reach their dressing room, which is near the visiting dressing room in the Broome County Arena, after the game, and also to leave the building afterwards.On the day following the incident Commissioner Timmins had announced immediate and indefinite suspensions for McCaskill and Bond pending a review of the case. Written reports submitted by Manship, Gargano. and linesman Terry Coogan, and verbal reports submitted by Manship in phone conversations and in a personal interview with the commissioner led to the later ruling.McCaskill is in his first season of North American Hockey League coaching, although he played in the league last season, ironically with the Dusters. McCaskill has previously coached in the World Hockey Association, with the then Los Angeles Sharks in 1973-74.This is Bond&rsquo;s first season in the NAHL, although he too has major league experience. Playing right wing, left wing, and defense for the Comets, Bond had collected 18 goals, 24 assists, and 105 penalty minutes in 55 games at the time of his suspension.In an unrelated matter Buffalo Norsemen player-coach Guy Trottier also received a one thousand dolar fine and suspended indefinitely for conduct unbecoming an NAHL coach and conduct detrimental to the best interests of the league. Trottier is charged with making remarks to a Buffalo newspaper reporter that led to a major story containing unsubstantiated allegations derogatory to the league. A hearing was scheduled for Trottier at the NAHL league office on Saturday February 21.BEAUCE: Might the mighty Jaros be cracking a bit? Only a couple of weeks ago one would have been hard pressed to find anyone willing to bet against the Jaros capturing the Lockhart Cup. Now there are whispers that maybe the Jaros can be had come playoff time.The reason? The Jaros have lost both muscle and goaltending and some believe they are susceptable because of it.More than any other team in hockey, Beauce has been adversely affected by Gary Smith&rsquo;s walkout on the Vancouver Canucks. Sound strange? The Canucks recalled Curt Ridley from Tulsa and he is doing just fine in the NHL. The reassigned Bruce Bullock from Beauce to Tulsa and he is performing ably there. That leaves Yves Archambault alone in the Beauce nets. Archambault is capable, but&hellip;The effect of the loss of Jim Troy and possibly Gilles Bilodeau, tough guys both, also remains to be seen. Troy was acquired from the Jaros by New England Whalers after Nick Fotiu&rsquo;s injury. Toronto Toros are dickering with Jaro GM Andre Veilleux for Bilodeau.Muscle has been one of the Jaros&rsquo; strong suits all season. Needless to say Hardy, Caron, et al are great scorers. But their abilities have been enhanced by having a lot of room to maneuver. Offered one NAHL coach, &ldquo;Without those guys (Troy and Bilodeau) they are not as good a team as they think they are.&rdquo; _BINGHAMTON: The most effective Dusters have been Steve Stirling and Larry Mavety. Mavety has ed an NAHL goal scoring record for defensemen with 17 in but 39 games. Stirling had a nine-point week in games against Mohawk Valley and Philadelphia. &ldquo;Silver&rdquo; rifled home a third period hat trick to lead the Dusters back from a 40 deficit to a 5-4 overtime win against the Comets.BUFFALO: Norsemen should have their goaltending straightened out with the acquisition of Jim Makey from the defunct Cape Codders.In his first start Makey inspired his new teammates to their finest game in weeks, a 4-2 win over first place Johns-town. The victory ended a five-game Norsemen losing streak at the Tonawanda Sports Center. GM Willie Marshall, who was subbing for the suspended Guy Trottier behind the bench, simply said, &ldquo;Makey won it for us.&rdquo;The game was doubly important as Johnstown looms as a likely first round playoff opponent for the Norsemen and Buffalo had lost to them five straight times.ERIE: The Blades have rebounded neatly from a mid-season slump during which they lost 12 of 13 games. A 6-1 beating of the Firebirds on February 18 was the Blades&rsquo; fifth win in a row and also ended the Firebirds&rsquo; own eightgame winning streak. The first four wins of the Blades&rsquo; string were all captured on the road, all by one-goal margins, three in overtime.The demise of the Denver/Ottawa team may end up helping the Blades more than it hurt them originally. The Blades have signed former spurs Jim Sherrit and Peter Mara, giving them six natural centers (Hansen, Marchinko, Teal, Talbot, Sherrit, Mara). Sherrit was teamed on a line with Robbie Neale and both immediately went on a scoring tear.JOHNSTOWN: If looking for a reason for Johnstown&rsquo;s continued success, look no farther than balanced scoring. The Jets will shortly have thirteen players who have scored 40 or more points.Linemates Bruce Boudreau and Henry Taylor fashioned personal consecutive game scoring streaks. Boudreau&rsquo;s ended at 15 games but Taylor extended his to 12 games in the 4-2 loss at Buffalo. The game was the first in which Boudreau did not score atleast one point since his return from the WHA.MAINE: The addition of John Cunniff, Dan Cowley, Yvan Bouillon, and John Blaylock from Cape Cod makes last place Maine an altogether different team. It also meant the loss of jobs for Kevin Troy and two-year vet Claude Dupuis.Cunniff notched six assists in his second game with the Nords, the second time that record performance has occurred in less than four weeks. An oddity: three of the four six-assist record holders now play for Maine; Cunniff, Paul Larose, and Dan Cowley.MOHAWK VALLEY: The loss of center John Sheridan has hurt the Comets dearly. Sheridan asked out of his contract with Indianapolis though the deal still had a year-and-a-half to run. Sheridan reportedly wants to negotiate with his home town Minnesota North Stars, who drafted him in the NHL. The Comets lost seven of eight immediately after Sheridan&rsquo;s departure.Brian Coates is the latest line partner of Bobby Jones and Frank Hamill, who have lost no efficiency while searching for a permanent mate. Jones now ranks ninth in league scoring and Hamill sixteenth, despite the fact that he played only sporadically at the beginning of the season with Binghamton and Erie.PHILADELPHIA: The Firebirds are scoring up a storm. Thru February 19 they scored 301 goals, just 10 behind their 74-game total of a season ago. Bob Collyard has already broken his team point scoring record with 105, while Michel Plante has broken Collyard&rsquo;s team goal scoring record wi 43. Rychard Campeau is a defin threat to Butch Barber&rsquo;s record tota for a defender of 63 assists and points. Of the league&rsquo;s top twenty-fi scorers the Birds have six; Collyar Plante, Gordie Brooks, Denis Patr Campeau, and Pierre Henry.SYRACUSE: The Blazers could strengthened considerably should Krezanski and Mike Boland be avaiable for the stretch drive.Krezanski, a first team All Starf Syracuse last season, was assigned Syracuse by the league when Cape C folded. However. Krezanski had a week contract with Cape Cod. his yea round home, which called for prom tional work during the off-season. Th contract will have to be renegotiate before Reg rejoins the Blazers.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0393/3612877-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="525" height="701"><figcaption class="caption-body">TED MCCASKILL&hellip;Assaulted Officials</figcaption></div><h2>NAHL Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02125/3612870-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="591" height="577"></div> &#9632;

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McCaskill, Bond Fined, Suspended For Seasor

For the first time since the North American Hockey League began recognizing a player of the week it has a two-tme winner. Michel Plante, who first won the award in early November, is again being honored as the league&rsquo;s weekly star.The Philadelphia center&rsquo;s statistics tell the whole story. Four games played, all of which were won by Philadelphia. Six goals and six assists. Two game-winning goals. Five game-winning goals in the Firebirds&rsquo; last seven games. A six-point game against Binghamton that tied a team record. A week in which he tied or set Firebirds&rsquo; season records for goals scored (42), power-play goals (14), and gamewinning goals (9).In addition he climbed into sixth place among NAHL scoring leaders with 91 points. His 42 goals are the fifth highest total in the league, behind only four Beauce players in this year of the Jaro.Some players contributions can be measured only in terms of intangibles. At least for last week, such is not the case for Michel Plante. The two-year Firebird veteran, who also logged a full season at the Philadelphia Civic Center with the WHA Philadelphia Blazers, is very obviously the choice for North American Hockey League player of the week for February 9 thru February 15. &#9632;

Michel Plante Philadelphia

<div class="byline">BY RALPH BRIDGLAND</div>CHICOUTIMI&mdash;Defense used to be a dirty word in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. But this season it has become the key to several teams&rsquo; success.Take the Chicoutimi Sagueneens for example. Struggling along in third place in the QMJHL&rsquo;s East Division for the better part of the 1975-76 campaign, they have moved into the thick of the battle for second place.They have lost only once in their last eight games and appear to be peaking just at the right time as the playoffs draw near.What can make such a drastic change in a team that has had trouble staying respectable through most of the season?&ldquo;Since Christmas we&rsquo;ve been playing better defensively,&rdquo; states Chicoutimi mentor Yvan Gingras.Defense, which used to take a rumble seat to the almighty offense, has brought the Sageneens to a. 500 record, something which looked pretty unlikely earlier on.&ldquo;Our defensemen are good skaters,&rdquo; continues Gingras. &ldquo;But they were carrying the puck too much.&ldquo;I told them to play more defensively. If there was no difference we would have gone back to rushing the puck. Now they&rsquo;re playing safe, staying behind the forwards and covering up forthem.&ldquo;Because of the defense we have improved all over.&rdquo;Trailing the second place Trois-Rivieres Draveurs by eight points and having a game in hand makes moving into the runnerup spot a definite possibility for the Sags. But Gingras has a great deal of respect for the club he is trying toovertake.&ldquo;Trois-Rivieres is very good,&rdquo; says Gingras. &ldquo;They have a good offense and a big defense. We have a 50 percent chance of catching them. Both teams (East-leading Quebec and Trois-Rivieres) want to get first place. But with just a bit of bad luck everything could turn around.&rdquo;While his club has come a long way since mid-way in the season, there are still aspects of the game which Gingras wants his club to shore up.&ldquo;I want more passing,&rdquo; he reveals. &ldquo;We need more power on the power play. We don&rsquo;t score enough with a man advantage.&ldquo;I want to get very defensive, no 2-on-1s or breakaways against us.&rdquo;And in the end it&rsquo;s going to be defense which spells success or disaster in the playoffs.&ldquo;We should be able to get to the semi-finals if we play better defensively,&rdquo; Gingras opines. &ldquo;We have only six veterans. With 14 rookies I can&rsquo;t ask for much more. But, if we&rsquo;re lucky we might even reach the finals.&rdquo;It isn&rsquo;t difficult to tell when the Chicoutimi defense has broken down. Their only loss in the past nine games was to the Draveurs by the astronomical count of 17-6.Their latest win, 7-6 over the Montreal Juniors, brought out another situation which will have to be cured. The Sagueneens led 4-0 late in the first period, fell behind 5-4 after two and then came storming back in the third with three straight markers to take the two points.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re more used to coming back than taking the lead,&rdquo; said Gingras. &ldquo;We were satisfied and confident when we were leading 4-0 but we have to work for 60 minutes.&rdquo;If the Sags continue to play as well as they currently are, they&rsquo;ll soon be used to protecting a lead.QUEBEC: Enjoyed a relatively easy a home-and-home series by identical 9-week in dumping lowly Shawinigan in 3 counts. Remi Levesque led the at tack with a total of four goals while Denis Turcotte added three. Turcotte continues to lead club in scoring with 40 goals and 47 assists for 87 points. Remparts hold four-point advantage on runnerup Trois-Rivieres and have a game in hand on the Draveurs.TROIS-RIVIERES: Moved a little closer to Remparts with three wins and a tie in their four games. Knocked off Shawinigan 12-5, Sorel 7-3 and Hull 83 while drawing 3-3 in Montreal. Richard David and Yves Richer had hat tricks in dumping of Shawinigan while David and Richard Dalpe led the way with two goals each against Sorel. Draveurs now only four points out of first place and own second best offensive mark in league. Dalpe heads QMJHL scoring list with 57 goals and 128 points.SOREL: Lost two of three but came up with big win over Laval, 3-2, to increase hold on final playoff spot to five points. Garry Platt, Gilles Parenteau and Alain Chaput supplied offense in win over Nationals. Setbacks were at home to Trois-Rivieres, 7-3, and in Sherbrooke, 10-3. Lucien Deblois leads club in scoring with 88 points, 46 of them goals.SHAWINIGAN: Another fruitless week for the Dynamos as they were outscored 45-13 and lost all four starts, 12-5 in Trois-Rivieres, successive 9-3 defeats to Quebec and 15-1 pasting in Sherbrooke. Jean-Marc Bonamie continues his fine play as he scored five of the Dynamos&rsquo; 13 goals which gives him a rookie total of 49.SHERBROOKE: Beavers won three and lost one as they continued to pile up the wins and put 21 points between themselves and West Division runnerup Cornwall. Defeated Sorel 103, Shawinigan 15-1 and split a pair of games with Royals, winning 7-1 and losing 8-4. Peter Marsh running second in league points race with 126, including league-leading 62 goals.CORNWALL: Royals moved step closer to securing second spot by splitting pair of games with Sherbrooke and downing third place Montreal, 6-3, in important contest. Club now leads Montreal by two points and has a game in hand on the Juniors. Pierre Brassard club scoring leader with 105 points comprised of 54 goals and 51 assists.MONTREAL: Inconsistency has kept Juniors in third place and unless performances improve club seems destined to finish right where it is. Won two, lost two and tied one in busy week. Victories were in Hull, 3-1, and in Laval, 6-3, while setbacks were at home to Chicoutimi, 7-6, and in Cornwall, 6-3. Tied Trois-Rivieres 3-3 at Forum. Normand Dupont fifth in league scoring race with 109 points, including 57 goals.HULL: Suffered back-to-back home losses but have playoff spot all locked up. Dropped 3-1 verdict to Montreal and 8-3 decision to Trois-Rivieres. Festivals trail Montreal by 11 points and lead last place Laval by 10. Captain Glen Sharpley still among league points leaders with 110.LAVAL: Lost three straight games but the one that really hurt was 3-2 setback in Sorel which left Nationals five points out of final playoff spot and Black Hawks have three games in hand. Other defeats were 5-2 in Chicoutimi and 6-3 at home against Montreal. Michel Bossy second in QMJHL goal totals having counted 61 thus far.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01158/3612960-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="275" height="385"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jean-Marc Bonamie</figcaption></div><h2>HOW THEY STAND</h2>QUEBEC MAJOR LEAGUE(Standings on Mon. Feb. 23)<h3>WEST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02122/3612953-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="589" height="191"></div><h3>EAST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0391/3612946-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="589" height="191"></div><h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Mon. Feb. 16Montreal 6 at Laval 3; Shawinigan 1 at Sherbrooke 15.Tuo. Feb. 17Sherbrooke 8 at Hull 6; Quebec 3 at Trois-Rivieres 4; Sorel 9 at Chicoutimi9.Thu. Feb. 19Shawinigan 1 at Cornwall 12.Frid. Feb. 20Trois-Rivieres 4 at Quebec 5; Cornwall 5 at Chicoutimi Sorel 9 at Shawinigan 2; Hull 3 at Sherbrooke 5.Sun. Feb. 22Sherbrooke 6 at Montreal 3; Trois-Rivieres 2 at Cornwall 4; Chicoutimi 3 at Sorel 5; Quebec 1 at Hull 7; Shawinigan at Laval 11.<h2>LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0475/3612939-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="592" height="352"></div><div class="sidebar">Quebec Major Hockey League &#9632;</div>

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Defense Key To Sags’ Improved Play As Rookie-Laden Team Playoff Bound

QUEBEC CITY&mdash;Five of the ten Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams show an increase in at tendance compared with last season.In statistics released by the QMJHL office, league at tendance is up 27,564 at the conclusion of January to an overall total of 645,117.Leading the increase are the Quebec Remparts who have drawn 106,120 fans up from 81,971 a year ago. The Sorel Black Hawks are next in the plus bracket having at tracted 16,226 more paying patrons.On the negative side of the board, it looks as though continually winning can turn people away as the Sherbrooke Beavers, far and away the league&rsquo;s top team, have suffered the biggest decrease in at tendance, 7,793, despite leading the loop in total at tendance at 115,140.<h2>ATTENDANCE FIGURES ON FEB. 1/76</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0559/3612991-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="964" height="465"></div> &#9632;

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Remparts, Black Hawks Lead QMJHL At tendance Increase

<div class="byline">BY DOUG DOUGHTY</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Streel Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Streel Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaCHARLOTTE&mdash;No super stars, the lowest payroll in the Southern Hockey League, a bunch of old men&hellip;Winners.&ldquo;I guess we re just well-balanced, that&rsquo;s the only way I can explain it,&rdquo; said Charlotte captain Jack Wells. &ldquo;Our goal-tending has been good and our defense is the best in the league, but basically we just play well together.&rdquo;For the past three seasons, in a league where success stories are few and far between, the Charlotte Checkers have been the Horatio Algers of the SHL.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01186/3613029-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="249" height="439"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jack Wells</figcaption></div>Not that the Checkers have been making money&mdash;nothing would be farther from the truth the last two years&mdash;but they are in first place again after winning the Jim Crockett Trophy in 1975.Ask Pat Kelly for the reasons and he is hard-pressed to account for the Checkers&rsquo; overwhelming usuccess. But one name always seems to ceep into the conversation, that of Jack Wells.Wells is not playing center any longer (&ldquo;It took me a little while to adjust to wing this year.&rdquo; he admits) but he is providing the same kind of leadership he has since coming to Charlotte in 1972. In fact, for the Checkers he is almost like another coach on the ice.That isn&rsquo;t so hard to believe, especially since Wells served as playercoach of the Checkers during the 197273 season. However, that was a trying experience for the rookie coach, as the Checkers finished third in the South Division of the Eastern League. &ldquo;For one thing, we didn&rsquo;t get the players from Buffalo we do now,&rdquo; he observes.Looking back, the dual role wasn&rsquo;t exactly what Wells might have envisioned. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of difficult to be a player coach, especially as a forward,&rdquo; he reflects three years later. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a little easier for a defenseman; but, for a forward there&rsquo;s too much stuff that goes on behind you.&rdquo;Wells left the Checkers when Kelly replaced him as coach, packing his bags for Omaha. He returned to Charlotte last year, however, and had one of his best seasons (20 goals and 41 assists) for the man who took his place. &ldquo;It never really bothered me to play for Pat,&rdquo; he contends.Despite the loss of several stars from the championship club, the Checkers have been back in first place almost from the opening faceoff this year. Charlotte lost high-scoring center Dave Gilmour early but the Checkers recently picked up Mike Rouleau and the return of goalie Bob Sauve should set them for the playoffs.&ldquo;Rouleau (a center) has really helped the people he&rsquo;s playing with,&rdquo; offered Wells. &ldquo;Bob Smulders and Neil Korzack were playing all right, but he&rsquo;s helped pick them up. And, most of all, getting Rouleau freed Barry Burnett for defense, where he&rsquo;s one of the best in the league.&rdquo;Obviously, Wells has few gripes these days. The Checkers are playing well, he&rsquo;s playing well (17 goals, 34 assists) and the only matter that really concerns him is the state of the league.&ldquo;The SHL was really well-balanced until recently,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but I imagine the players in Roanoke and Greensboro must find it tough not knowing from one day to another whether they&rsquo;ll be paid or not. 1 don&rsquo;t think it would affect me very favorably.&rdquo;Even in Charlotte, long the financial bellwether of the SHL, there have been at tendance problems. &ldquo;In a word, it&rsquo;s overexposure,&rsquo;&rsquo; Wells remarked. &ldquo;People don&rsquo;t want to come out and see the same four or five teams.&rdquo;It&rsquo;s a shame, too, for some of the old er players like Wells who have staked their careers on hockey&rsquo;s success in the south. &ldquo;I just don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; sighed the former coach. &ldquo;If things stay this way, with talk of clubs folding all the time, I don&rsquo;t see how the SHL can keep up.&rdquo;HAMPTON: It was a simple matter of appetite, that&rsquo;s all. &ldquo;We just seemed to get hungry mid-way through the season,&rdquo; said coach John Brophy, whose streaking Gulls have pulled within seven points of Charlotte&hellip;Frequent call-ups hurt team early, but loss of Frank Beaton may have been blessing in disguise&hellip;&ldquo;Beaton was a great hockey player,&rdquo; said Brophy, &ldquo;but we signed Steve Andrascik and he has really helped our club &ldquo;.ROANOKE VALLEY: In a com plicated arrangement. Rebel players agreed not to receive salary tor remainder of regular-season, voting instead to take all their money from playoffs&hellip;In a slump since Christmas, Roanoke Valley went eight games without a victory and had a 2-10-4 record over 16-game stretch&hellip;Team went 62 games without a hat trick until Jerry Butler scored three times against Tidewater.WINSTON-ALEM: Polar Twins missed out on a chance to move ahead of Rebels when they lost to Charlotte 62&hellip;When asked to explain team&rsquo;s success over last half of season, coach Forbes Kennedy quickly replied that there have been no injuries. Stable ownership has also helped, as Jim Crockett&rsquo;s group has turned W-S into one of league&rsquo;s more successful franchises&hellip;Polar Twins&rsquo; unsung hero has been Ron Hindson, who has played aggressive hockey (139 penalty minutes) and scored well. too. Hindson had 16 goals and 39 assists to rank 10th in SHL.TIDEWATER: Sharks continued to vie for playoff berth as general manager Kevin Johnson maintained. &ldquo;There is no question in my mind that we will beat out either Winston-Salem or Roanoke, probably Roanoke&rdquo;&hellip;Johnson praised defenseman Morley Johnson, who is with his third SHL club. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s been the real surprise of this hockey club,&rdquo; said the Sharks&rsquo; GM. &ldquo;Under the tutelage of John Hanna, he has become one of the top four or five defensemen in the league.&rdquo;GREENSBORO: Although team appears certain to finish season, general manager Pat Shetler describes future as bleak. &ldquo;Our rink (the Piedmont Ice Arena) was not as elaborate as the Greensboro Coliseum, but the crowds have been closer knit. If we were ever going to make it, this was the year,&rdquo; he said.<h2>SHL Leaders</h2><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02138/3613022-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="585" height="675"></div> &#9632;

f0038-01

Veteran Wells Supplying Leadership For Checkers

<div class="byline">BY JOHN ARNOLD</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03101/3613060-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="940" height="1255"></div><h2>SOLUTION IN MARCH 12 ISSUE</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3>1. Former Montreal All Star defenseman.5. One of the Whalers, (init)7. Canoeing requisite.8. Golf term.9. One of the Capitals answers to this.11. First name of one of the Canucks.13. To make mistakes.14. 1 down is one. (abbr.)15. Distress signal.17. 15th and 12th letters of the alphabet.18. Former Montreal coach Blake answers to this.20. Number worn by Gordie Howe.24. Former Hawk defenseman.25. Initials of former Leaf Exinicki.27. Ex-Leaf right winger Ellis.28. An NHL general manager.30. Plays forward for Tucson.<h3>DOWN</h3>1. One of the Toros.2. Pictured player.3. Former NHL forward Fonteyne answers to this.4. Period of time.5. A Nova Scotia center, (init)6. Former NHL forward.8. Played 15 seasons with Canadiens.10. 9th and 10th letters of the alphabet.12. Pronoun.16. Recently retired Minnesota forward.19. A former WHL rookie award winner.21. Not applicable, (abbr.)22. Initials of Shack.23. Girls name.26. Former NHLer Nesterenko, (init)27. Same as 27 across.29. 22nd and 15th letters of the alphabet.<h2>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S ANSWERS</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3>1. PRICE.3. NEB.6. PERU.7. ANGOTTI.9. DALEY10. ERR.12. R.A.F.13. OO.15. V.I.16. NIL.18. ALE.19. L.A.20. HILLMAN.23. C.D.24. A.C.25. J.R.26. H.H.27. KELLY.29. CRISP.<h3>DOWN</h3>1. P1AGER.2. INGARFIELD.3. NEILSON.4. E.R.5. BUCYK.6. P.T.A.8. TO.11. RABUCH.14. OIL.17. LARRY.18. A.H.21. MAKI.22. ACES.25. J.L.26. HI.28. LP. &#9632;

f0038-03

HOCKEY CROSSWORD

<div class="byline">BY HOWIE STALWICK</div>CRANBROOK&mdash;&ldquo;If only he could play like his brother&hellip;&rdquo;That comment is one which many a Western International League coach has been heard to mutter under his breath more than once the past few years, and a glance at the WIHL playing rosters quickly explains why.Spokane pilot Tom Hodges is a particularly frustrated mentor, since the Flyers include a pair of players with major league relatives in Ernie Gare and Derek Spring.The injured Gare is the older brother of Buffalo (National League) sensation Danny and the son of the former WIHL defense stalwart by the same name who also coached the Nelson Maple Leafs at the start of this season.Spring also comes from an impressive hockey stock. Brother Danny is active with the Flyers&rsquo; parent affiliate Edmonton of the World Association, oldest brother Frank is a former California performer now playing with the NHL Seals&rsquo; Central League farm at Salt Lake City, and Frank, Sr. is the president of the British Columbia Amateur Hockey Association.And if that&rsquo;s not enough to drive Hodges nuts, recently-departed centerman Jim Stanfield is the younger brother of both Fred (who plays with Danny Gare at Buffalo) and Houston front office official Jack Stanfield, and a younger brother Vic is at Roanoke Valley of the Southern League.Elsewhere in the league, Trail&rsquo;s Doug Bentley, Jr. is the son of the former NHL superstar, Aurel Beaudin of Kimberley is the brother of Norm of Winnipeg in the WHA, and on-again, off-again Cranbrook left winger Geoff Powis can look up to his brother Lynn at the former NHL&rsquo;ers present home in Providence of the American League.CRANBROOK: The Royals downed Trail in a clutch 5-2 decision to move back into a first-place tie with the Smoke Eaters with 44 points, and Cranbrook has a pair of games in hand over the charging Trail six.KIMBERLEY: Like all other goaltenders in the league, the Dynamiter&rsquo;s Barrie MacKay only recently looked completely out of the picture for goaltending honors behind Cranbrook&rsquo;s Leo Karchie, but the veteran puckstopper put two consecutive shutouts together and now has a nifty 3.21 goals-against average to lead Karchie&rsquo;s 3.52 mark by a sizeable margin.NELSON: The Leafs upset the Royals 6-3 to again tie Kimberley for that all-important fourth-place position. Defenseman Bob McIvor had a goal and two assists in that game, injury-plagued rookie Ken Price returned to action from his latest knee problems to score a goal and one helper, and Ted Hargreaves also tallied to bring his sixth-ranked scoring totals to 1828-46.SPOKANE: The shorthanded Flyers are still waiting for star centerman Bob Trembecky to recover from his eye injury, and things weren&rsquo;t helped any when bad-man Don Dirk was suspended two games for picking up a pair of gross misconducts in a recent double with Trail.TRAIL: The BCAHA came down hard on Smokie goaltender Ty Langton for jostling an official in Cranbrook recently, suspending him for the balance of the season in what amounts to 17 games. That leaves the netminding load entirely on the shoulders of second-year man Glenn Bueckert. &#9632;

The WIHL Scene

<h2>MANITOBA EASTERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Sat. Fob. 14)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01169/3613234-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="585" height="134"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02122/3613227-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="581" height="335"></div><h2>ONTARIO COLLEGES</h2>(Final Standings)<h3>East Division</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0395/3613220-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="583" height="176"></div><h3>Central Division</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0478/3613213-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="583" height="176"></div><h3>West Division</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0562/3613206-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="583" height="176"></div><h2>QUEBEC COLLEGES</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0652/3613199-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="585" height="153"></div><h2>PLAYOFF RESULTS</h2>Concordia 10, Bishop&rsquo;s 3(First game of best-of-three semi-finals).UQTR 6, Laval 3(First gome of best-of-three semi-finals).<h2>MARITIME COLLEGES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0744/3613192-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="582" height="266"></div>(Standings on Sat. Feb. 21)<h2>NEW YORK COLLEGES</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 18)<h3>DIVISION I</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0838/3613185-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="578" height="181"></div><h3>DIVISION II</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0932/3613178-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="578" height="177"></div><h3>DIVISION III</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1028/3613171-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="578" height="177"></div>DIVISION IV<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1126/3613164-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="578" height="177"></div><h2>NEW YORK METRO JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 16)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1223/3613157-1-eng-US/f0039-122.jpg" title="f0039-12" width="589" height="253"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1319/3613150-1-eng-US/f0039-132.jpg" title="f0039-13" width="589" height="439"></div><h3>SOUTHWEST LEAGUE</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1416/3613143-1-eng-US/f0039-142.jpg" title="f0039-14" width="586" height="161"></div><h3>Loading Scorers</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1515/3613136-1-eng-US/f0039-152.jpg" title="f0039-15" width="585" height="591"></div><h2>ONTARIO SENIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Fri. Feb. 20)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1614/3613129-1-eng-US/f0039-162.jpg" title="f0039-16" width="589" height="210"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1712/3613122-1-eng-US/f0039-172.jpg" title="f0039-17" width="582" height="505"></div><h2>SOUTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 18)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-189/3613115-1-eng-US/f0039-182.jpg" title="f0039-18" width="580" height="184"></div> &#9632;

f0039-01

Amateur Races

<div class="byline">BY BILL HILTS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-197/3613265-1-eng-US/f0039-192.jpg" title="f0039-19" width="312" height="397"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOHN MARKS&hellip;Fastest Two Goals</figcaption></div><h2>New York-Penn League</h2>The Amherst Knights continue to set the pace, but the Rochester Monarchs and Southtown Cougars are starting to make up some lost ground and the gap is closing. The fifth place Buffalo Blades are also making a move and are slowly closing the point-spread between them and the fourth-place Niagara Falls Mangs Sharks, the final playoff position.The Blades dumped the Sharks 4-1 with Paul Pitman firing a pair of goals to lead the Buffalo juniors. Rob Sanders and Ray Nuchereno each shot a goal and an assist. Sam Crogan got the lone Shark tally. The night before the Sharks encounter, the highflying Blades forced the league-leading Am herst Knights to come from behind to force a 5-5 tie. Greg Jantzi&rsquo;s marker with two minutes remaining saved the Knights from a loss. Pat McCrossan led the Blades at tack with a goal and three assists.Jay Boudreau, currently one of the hottest scorers in the league, registered a hat trick and added three assists to lead the Southtown Cougars to a one-sided 15-3 win over the last-place Syracuse Stars. The previous night, the Stars fell victim to the Rochester Monarchs by a 4-2 count. Captain Dave Bagley led the winners with two goals while Dave Trevor and Ron Weathers shot singletons. Rob Hameline and Harry Burns scored for Syracuse.<h2>New England League</h2>Coach Huskey Poirier&rsquo;s Berlin Maroons knocked the Fitchburg Wall-opers out of a first place tie by sweeping a doubleheader and closed to within three points off the top spot themselves in New England Junior Hockey League action.After being stopped by the South Shore Braves 7-6, the Maroons came back to deal the Wallopers a double defeat. Hank LeClerc registered two of his three goals in the third period to break a 5-5 tie and provide Berlin with a 7-5 victory in the completion of suspended game. Chuck Pappas and Mickey Rego each notched two goals for Fitchburgh. In the regularly scheduled game the Maroons fired seven goals in the final period to smother the Wallopers 13-5 as John Normand pumped in four goals to run his total to 60. Gerry Gingras scored three times and Jim Griffin twice. Rego scored two more goals for Fitchburg to raise his total to 41.The Springfield Olympics regained sole possession of first place by coming from behind in the final five minutes on goals by Dan Ferioli and Gary Wojcik&mdash;the latter with just 26 seconds left&mdash;to deadlock Fitchburg 7-7. It was the third straight tie between the two clubs on Walloper ice. Ferioli wound up with four goals for the Olympics and Fran Pycko a pair. Pappas scored two goals&mdash;including the 150th of his junior career&mdash;for the Wallopers while Brian Fitzpatrick also tallied twice. Springfield then turned back the Tri-Valley Squires 10-6 as Bernie Croteau fired in five goals to spoil a 48 save performance by Tri-Valley&rsquo;s Mark Hansen. Scott Huna netted three goals for the Squires and Rich Cavallaro added two.The Tyngsboro Huskies won twice, tripping the Berwick Vikings 62 and Tri-Valley 4-2. Chip Bettencourt and defenseman Kevin Girouard each scored two goals against Berwick as red-hot goaltender Jim Browder came up with 37 stops. Browder then turned aside 32 more drives against the Squires. Browder has a 12-3 record and a 3.27 GA average since Nov. 21st. Mark Hansen made33 saves for the Squires.Defenseman Steve Hennessey scored two goals and Charlie Ryan netted his 20th as South Shore beat Berlin 7.-6. Bob Clark kicked out 42 shots for the Braves. Mike Saseen had two goals for the Maroons. The Braves were then overwhelmed by Berwick 12-4 as Rich Campisi surmounted the 50-goal plateau with three goals and Bob Francis and defenseman Paul Wilkins also scored three times each. Campisi and Francis also went over the 100-point mark during the weekend. Don Mulligan shot two goals for-South Shore.<h2>Mid-Atlantic League</h2>The Roc-Ice Meteors of the Mid-Atlantic Junior Hockey league broke a three game winning streak by dropping two games. The Philadelphia Quakers of Westtown, Pa., managed to put one more tally on the board to win 3-2, in what was a frustrating effort for Roc-Ice as evidenced by the 44 shots on goal they delivered, compared to 19 by the Quakers. Philly goalie Tommy DeNafo did everything right while Meteor net minder Robb Zan Fagna sawtwo goals deflect, off his own men. Roc-Ice scorer was Brian Riley with two goals, assisted by defensemen Rob McKinley, Jim Giordonello and Chris La Prade. Bill Schmidt did all the scoring for the Quakers, logging a hat trick in the second period. In the second game the Hershey, Pa., Icers posted a 4-0 win over the Meteors. This was a well-played game by both teams and the score was 2-0 until 11 minutes into the third period. Hershey goalie Willie Good expertly handled 44 shots while Roc-Ice puck-stopper Norm Fleischer made 47 stops. Hershey&rsquo;s Tom Malloy was top scorer with two goals and an assist.<h2>Metropolitan N.Y. League</h2>The Western All Stars, led by a third-period hat trick by Joe Lagatutta, defeated the Eastern All Stars 7-4 in the eighth Annual Metropolitan Junior Hockey Association All Star Classic.The East led throughout the first two periods, but constant pressure by the West finally resulted in a five-goal outburst in the third period that put the game away. Lagatutta received the Most Valuable Player Award for his efforts, while Kevin Henry of the West and Dave Drew of the East received Honorable Mention for their two-goal efforts.In regular season play, the NY Americans jumped back into first place by downing LIAC 8-4 behind Jeff Bloom&rsquo;s hat trick. The Amerks have nowwon 22 of their last 24 outings to rise from the middle of the pack to the top.Suffolk stayed close behind by nipping Essex 7-6. Dave Drew and Dennis O&rsquo;Connor each scored twice for the Royals, whole John Sheeran and Dan Grum each had a pair for the Rockets. The Royals led 7-2 late in the second period, but Essex almost pulled it out by scoring four times in the last 21 minutes. The Rockets did pull out a win at New Hyde Park, over-taking the Arrows 6-4. John Hooper, this week&rsquo;s MJHA Player of the Week, had the hat trick, Including the winning goal in the third period. New Hyde Park had earlier beaten LIAC 8-6, behind a six-point effort by John Jaskul. &#9632;

f0039-19

JUNIOR JOTTINGS

<div class="image-hero"><img title="c0004-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-01117/3613296-1-eng-US/c0004-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOHN MARKS&hellip;Fastest Two Goals</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;As the National Hockey League enters its final quarter of the 197576 regular schedule, a myriad of league and club records have been broken and tied and more should be eclipsed before the season ends April 4. Already, six league marks have been set and another five tied. A total 31 club records have fallen and 21 have been tied.Two records which appear safe, however, are those set by Phil Es-posito with Boston in 1970-71 when he scored 76 goals and 152 points in the 78-game schedule. The current points leader, Guy Lafleur of Montreal with 93. would have to score 60 points in Canadiens&rsquo; remaining 19 games to eclipse that mark and Reggie Leach of Philadelphia, who is the goal leader with 43, would have to score 34 goals in 20 games. However, the race for the leadership in both points and goals is far from decided. Lafleur has four-point lead over runner-up Bobby Clarke of Philadelphia, whose 89 points includes a league-leading 62 assists. Actually, only nine points separates the top five players. Bill Barber of Flyers and Pete Mahovlich of Montreal are tied for third with 85 points each and Pierre La-rouche of Pittsburgh is fifth with 84.The most spectacular record so far, of course, was the 10 points by Toronto center Darryl Sittler against Boston. Feb. 7, at Toronto during Leafs&rsquo; 11-4 victory. That performance earned the Leaf captain the NHL record for points in a game plus a tie for most goals in a game in the modern era and most points in a period. It was also Toronto team records for points and points in a period plus a tie for the club mark for goals in a game.Buffalo Sabres were involved in five records, including most points by a team in a game (40, Dec. 21, during a 14-2 win over Washington at Buffalo). The eight goals by Sabres in the third period of that game and the 23 points in that period tied league marks. Sabres and Vancouver Canucks tied a record at Buffalo, Jan. 8 during an 8-5 Sabre win when the two teams scored 10 goals in the third period. The other record tied and involving Buffalo was at California, Feb. 1, when the Seals and Sabres scored three goals in 18 seconds in the third period. Jim Moxey of Seals, at 19:38, Wayne Merrick of California, at 19:45, and Danny Gare of Buffalo, at 19:56, were the scorers as Sabres won the game 95.At Philadelphia, Nov. 13, Chicago&rsquo;s John Marks set the league team and individual records for fastest two goals from the start of a game when he scored at 14 and 33 seconds. The teams played to a 4-4 tie.Club records for most points in a game have been set by four different players. Besides Sittler, Gilbert Perreault of Buffalo (seven). Steve Vickers of New York Rangers (seven) and Wayne Merrick of California Seals (six) broke their team marks. Marcel Dionne of Los Angeles has broken the Kings&rsquo; record for points in a season. He now has 73 and he also set the assist record for one game&mdash;five. Bryan Trottier of New York Islanders has broken the team record for points in a season by a rookie and his 73 points are four short of the league record set by Dionne with Detroit in 1971-72. Clark Gillies has broken the Islander mark for goals in a season with 29 and Glenn Resch the shutout record for the Islanders with six. Resch, incidentally, now owns the best personal average among NHL goaltenders with 2.05 but Montreal Canadiens lead teams with a 2.21 average. &#9632;

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March 5, 1976

Calgary Owner Says WHA Here To Stay; Baun Fired By Toros

Boston College Upsets BU For Ice Title

Meehan, Lemieux Prove Instant Hits

WHA SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS