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

April 30, 1976

The Hockey News April 30, 1976

<h2>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2><h3>Fri. April 9</h3>EDMONTON 3, WINNIPEG 7<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01295/3897127-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="583" height="500"></div>(Winnipeg leads best-of-seven senes 1-0)<h3>Sun. April 11</h3>EDMONTON 4, WINNIPEG 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02216/3897120-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="587" height="597"></div>(Winnipeg leads best-of-seven series 2-0)<h3>Wed. April 14</h3>WINNIPEG 3, EDMONTON 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03161/3897113-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="584" height="425"></div>(Winnipeg leads best-of-seven senes 3-0)<h3>Fri. April 16</h3>WINNIPEG 7, EDMONTON 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-04128/3897106-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="583" height="582"></div>(Winnipeg leads best-of-seven senes 4-0)<h2>Series &lsquo;B&rsquo;</h2><h3>Sat. April 10</h3>CALGARY 3, QUEBEC 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05110/3897099-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="575" height="350"></div>(Calgary leods best-of-seven series 1-0).<h3>Sun. April 11</h3>CALGARY 8, QUEBEC 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0693/3897092-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="581" height="174"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0783/3897085-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="581" height="546"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1636/3897078-1-eng-US/f0028-162.jpg" title="f0028-16" width="565" height="1647"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Winnipeg Jets got some unexpected firepower in the their first playoff series from defenseman Tommy Bergman, and Veli-Pekka Ketola as they eliminated the Edmonton Oilers in four straight games</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1730/3897071-1-eng-US/f0028-172.jpg" title="f0028-17" width="1169" height="1642"></div>(Calgary leads best-of seven series 2-0).<h3>Wed. April 14</h3>QUEBEC 2, CALGARY 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0875/3897064-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="583" height="103"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-0969/3897057-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="586" height="349"></div>Calgary leads best of seven series 3-0).<h3>Fri. April 16</h3>QUEBEC 4, CALGARY 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1066/3897050-1-eng-US/f0028-102.jpg" title="f0028-10" width="587" height="329"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1159/3897043-1-eng-US/f0028-112.jpg" title="f0028-11" width="580" height="103"></div>(Calgary leads best-of-seven series 3-1).<h3>Sun. April 18</h3>CALGARY 6, QUEBEC 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1255/3897036-1-eng-US/f0028-122.jpg" title="f0028-12" width="577" height="470"></div>(Calgary win best-of-seven series 4-1)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;C&rsquo;</h2><h3>Fri. April 9</h3>CLEVELAND 3, NEW ENGLAND 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1350/3897029-1-eng-US/f0028-132.jpg" title="f0028-13" width="577" height="475"></div>(New England leads best-of-five series 1-0)<h3>Sat. April 10</h3>NEW ENGLAND 6, CLEVELAND 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1443/3897022-1-eng-US/f0028-142.jpg" title="f0028-14" width="588" height="502"></div>(New England leads best-of-five series 2-0)<h3>Sun. April 11</h3>NEW ENGLAND 3, CLEVELAND 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1543/3897015-1-eng-US/f0028-152.jpg" title="f0028-15" width="580" height="475"></div>(New England leads best-of-seven series 3-0).<h2>SERIES &lsquo;D&rsquo;</h2><h3>Sat. April 10</h3>PHOENIX 2, SAN DIEGO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03174/3897008-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="599" height="458"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)<h3>Tue. April 13</h3>SAN DIEGO 4, PHOENIX 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04122/3897001-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="593" height="453"></div>(Phoenix leads best-of-seven series 2-1)<h3>Sat. April 17</h3>SAN DIEGO 2, PHOENIX 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0584/3896994-1-eng-US/f0030-052.jpg" title="f0030-05" width="588" height="299"></div>(Son Diego wins best-of-five series 3-2).<h2>SERIES E</h2><h3>Fri. April 16</h3>NEW ENGLAND 4, INDIANAPOLIS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0662/3896987-1-eng-US/f0030-062.jpg" title="f0030-06" width="587" height="381"></div>(New England leads best-of-seven series 1-0)<h3>Sat. April 17</h3>NEW ENGLAND 0, INDIANAPOLIS 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0749/3896980-1-eng-US/f0030-072.jpg" title="f0030-07" width="585" height="81"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0842/3896973-1-eng-US/f0030-082.jpg" title="f0030-08" width="588" height="300"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 1-1). &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

World Hockey Association Playoff Summaries

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05634/3895689-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg"></div><h2>Credit For Central Hockey Leaguers</h2>Everyone seems to write only about the major league clubs in your column. Well I would like to pay tribute to a team in the Central Hockey League, The Tulsa Oilers.The team has given its fans one of the most exciting seasons in a long while. They give 100 percent hustle and determination. They won the Central League Championship with just seven seconds left in their final home game. And if the players were good, the management was even better.Bobby Gilbert the GM and Orland Kurtenbach the coach provided superb leadership all season long and they deserve a team of top notch players who never gave up.So Bobby Gilbert, here is hats off to you and one great Hockey team. The Tulsa Oilers!BOBANGAROLA Tulsa, Okla.<h2>Habs Are Best Says Fan</h2>Despite all prediction that the &ldquo;Filthadelphia&rdquo; Flyers will win the Cup. I believe that the fantastic Habs will win the top prize.The Canadiens don&rsquo;t use brute strength (11th in NHL in penalty minutes), but merely the finesse of skating, shooting accurately and playing almost errorless hockey. defensively.The forwards led by Lafleur (NHL&rsquo;s highest scorer) and Mahovlich are a powerhouse of scorers. The superb defense is led by Lapointe. Savard and Don Awrey, who is one of the last truly defensive defenseman.The goaltending of Dryden and Larocque is second to none and this all adds up to Stanley Cup No. 8.STEPHEN GRUBOWICH Medicine Hat, Alta.<h2>Fan Proposes Hockey Merger</h2>Living in Cleveland. I have seen many WHA teams and I also view NHL games on Channel 10.It is my opinion, since the demise of the weak teams in the WHA that there is very little if any difference in the quality of play in the two leagues.I think a consolidation of the teams in both leagues combining some weak teams would create more feasible divisions such as.1) GREAT LAKES DIVISION: Cleveland. Detroit. Pittsburgh. Cincinnati. Indianapolis, and Buffalo.2) CANADIAN DIVISION: Montreal, Quebec, Toronto Leafs, Winnipeg, Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary in Edmonton, and Toros in Hamilton.3) EAST DIVISION: N.Y.Rangers. N.Y Islanders, Boston, New England: Philadelphia, Kansas City and Washington in Washington, and Atlanta.4) WEST DIVISION: I.A.Kings. San Diego and Phoenix in Phoenix. California Seals and Minnesota in Minnesota: Chicago: St. Louis. Houston.These divisions combine some weak teams and would be competitive. make for great rivalries, fill the arenas and save travelling expenses.JOEPOCH Mentor, Ohio<h2>Injury Bug Levelling Hawks</h2>Despite my habitat, I am a Chicago Black Hawk fan and have been ever since I heard of hockey. They have been slumping something awful and their defense has justgone&hellip; terrible!I stand in defense of Tony Esposito, however.The Black Hawks had lost Keith Magnusson for a spell. They lost Dick Redmond for awhile. I think the whole team is becoming discouraged because of injuries and lack of scoring drive.For nearly the entire season the Black Hawk&rsquo;s highest scorer had one point per game. Only two other teams, Minnesota and Washington had a highest scorer with less points than the Hawks&rsquo;.For the first 51 games the Black Hawks let in only 135 goals, an average of about 2.6 which isn&rsquo;t bad. And in the March 20 issue it was said that Esposito was &ldquo;Playing his best goalever&rdquo;.But in the last 24 games they let in 109 goals!! Almost five goals against per game! And Gilles Villemure only played six of those games!Something must be done and I suggest a trade to get someone who can score, and please no more injuries, huh Maggie?JOHN HEERSINK, Blenheim, Ont.<h2>NHL Expansion A Classic Blunder</h2>The recent series between the Soviet and North American professional teams has once again revealed that NHL expansion from the original six teams was a classic blunderWith the exception of the Flyers, Islanders. Canucks and Sabres the other expansion teams are all in financial difficulty and performing miserably on the ice to say nothing of the box office.Obviously expansion was an attempt by businessmen to find the quick buck and also by the players themselves to line their pocketbooks. Today the so-called NHL star is underplayed, overpaid and a big baby to boot.If expansion had never taken place the Soviets wouldn&rsquo;t have a chance in any NHL showdown. In fact the AHL and Central League would today be superior to anything the Soviets could put up.During the super series Philadelphia&rsquo;s Moose Dupont was quoted as saying to a Soviet player after waving his stick at him: &ldquo;The next time. I&rsquo;ll ram it through you&rdquo;. Yes North American ice hockey certainly has come a long way since expansion.Apparently North Americans were delighted by Dupont&rsquo;s sportsmanship. Nonsense! North American hockey fans, hang your heads in shame.RONZAGER, Selukwe, Rhodesia &#9632;

f0004-05

FAN FORUM

DETROIT&mdash;The Detroit Red Wings will be a more aggressive hockey club next year, says owner Bruce Norris anc the team could possibly have a new bench boss as well.Norris, commenting on the Red Wings&rsquo; 1975-76 season which saw them miss the playoffs for a sixth straight year, said he was disappointed in the general showing of the Detroit club. It was his feeling that the Wings had better talent than their record showed and he had hoped for a better finish in the Norris Division race. The Wings ended fourth behind Montreal, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh.Norris said he wants the Wings to ice a more aggressive hockey club next season. He added that he was particularly angry with the Detroit team when they beat Philadelphia one night and lost to lowly Washington the next. He said it showed an inconsistency on the club and he hoped to have the situation rectified next season.While he said he didn&rsquo;t plan too many major changes there is a distinct possibility Billy Dea may not be behind the Detroit bench as coach. General manager Alex Delvecchio said he, the scouting staff and coaches would sit down with Norris and evaluate the team and players before making any announcements. &#9632;

Detroit May Get Muscle, New Coach

<h2>NHL TEAMS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-04451/3895544-1-eng-US/f0002-042.jpg" title="f0002-04" width="472" height="752"></div><h2>WHA TEAMS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-05323/3895537-1-eng-US/f0002-052.jpg" title="f0002-05" width="470" height="460"></div><h2>OTHER LEAGUES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-06227/3895530-1-eng-US/f0002-062.jpg" title="f0002-06" width="476" height="334"></div><h2>COLUMNISTS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-07139/3895523-1-eng-US/f0002-072.jpg" title="f0002-07" width="474" height="210"></div><h2>OTHER FEATURES</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-0872/3895516-1-eng-US/f0002-082.jpg" title="f0002-08" width="478" height="128"></div> &#9632;

f0002-04

WHERE YOU’LL FIND IT ALL

WINNIPEG&mdash;The World Hockey Association, striving to head off trouble on the ice, cracked down on the most spectacular outburst of violence in the four year history of the league when it suspended one coach and a player indefinitely and slapped two warring teams with fines of $25,000 each.Ben Hatskin, the WHA&rsquo;s chief executive officer, dealt severely with the League&rsquo;s worst brawl in its short history when he suspended Calgary Cowboys&rsquo; coach Joe Crozier for the rest of the Calgary-Quebec series and possibly for the rest of the year; banned culprit Rick Jodzio of the Cowboys for the remainder of the season and possibly for all time for his unwarranted attack on Marc Tardif of Quebec; and announced that both Quebec and Calgary would be compelled to pay $25,000 each for failing to control their personnel in the WHA&rsquo;s wildest donnybrook ever. Fighting was so heavy 20 city policemen were called on the ice to help restore peace.The severity of Hatkins&rsquo; punishment were a capitulation to the demands of the Quebec Nordiques, who insisted Crozier be suspended for the rest of the year that Jodzio be outlawed from hockey for life and as a third concession that the WHA fire its vice-president Bud Pgile.Hatskin followed through with the Nordiques&rsquo; requests in order that the Quebec club would continue its Canadian Division semifinal series after Jodzio attacked and injured Tardif in the April 11 playoff game at Quebec.Tardif&rsquo;s injuries, which included shock and a concussion, will keep the WHA&rsquo;s point scoring champion out of action for the rest of the playoffs.While the Nordiques&rsquo; demands were met in principal by Hatskin, there was no word on Poile&rsquo;s status after the latter tendered his resignation as vice-president in charge of hockey operations. It was not accepted immediately and Hatskin said it would be referred to the league&rsquo;s board of governors first. Poile was the WHA&rsquo;s representative at the brawl-filled Quebec game in which Tardif was knocked unconscious and pummelled by Jodzio as he lay helpless on the ice.Coach Jean Guy Gendron of Quebec was also suspended for one game only but Gord Gallant of the Nordiques was suspended for the balance of the Quebec-Calgary series and Calgary&rsquo;s Danny Lawson was set down for one game only.Jodzio, Gallant and Lawson were fined an initial $200 on top of the automatic fines they received for game misconducts handed out after the bench-clearing brawl.Calgary&rsquo;s Warren Miller, Peter Driscoll and Pat Westrum; and Quebec&rsquo;s Pierre Roy, Curt Brackenbury and Steve Sutherland each was fined $200 for their part in the brawl.Hatskin said the action was sufficient to deter violence in the WHA playoffs and &ldquo;God help anyone who gets in a brawl from here on in.&rdquo;&ldquo;If any other players get involved in fights like that, it will mean the gate for good. We are not going to stand for that type of hockey in the World Hockey Association.&rdquo;Criminal charges were laid by the Quebec attorney-general&rsquo;s office against Jodzio and he was remanded until May 13 when he must appear in Quebec City court to answer a charge of causing bodily harm with intent to injure.Tardif had just completed a record breaking regular season with the Nordiques registering 148 points and scoring 71 goals. He had been expected to play a large part in Quebec&rsquo;s hopes for a WHA championship.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02878/3895454-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="547" height="592"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOE CROZIER &hellip;Lost Control</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-03656/3895447-1-eng-US/f0002-032.jpg" title="f0002-03" width="559" height="637"><figcaption class="caption-body">RICK JODZIO &hellip;Banned For Year</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0002-02

WHA Suspends Crozier, Jodzio Indefinitely, Fines Quebec, Calgary Clubs $25,000 Each

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-01966/3895485-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Rookie Mel Bridgman of the Flyers is making a big impact in his first Stanley Cup series. He scored twice against the Leafs in one game and found himself facing assault charges for his part in a penalty-box altercation with police. For details see page 18.</figcaption></div><h2>LLOYDS REJECT ORR</h2>BOSTON&mdash;Defenseman Bobby Orr has been turned down by the famous Lloyds of London insurance company because they consider his much-operated knees too big a risk. The Jacobs brothers said they would have gone to London in an effort to have Orr&rsquo;s $2.4 million dollar contract for five years insured but Lloyds decided against it.Orr has been negotiating with the Bruins for a new contract and if the Boston club doesn&rsquo;t meet his demands he&rsquo;ll be a free agent June 1 open to the highest bidder. The London insurance giant said it had investigated Orr&rsquo;s surgery and a company spokesman said the super Bruin defense star was just too risky to insure because of his nemerous knee operations. Eagleson said the Jacobs brothers must revise their recent offers upwards if they want Orr to remain in Boston.<h2>CZECHS UPSET RUSSIANS</h2>KATOWICE&mdash;The Czechs took a giant step towards winning the World Tournament championship from the Russians by defating the Soviets 3-2 to run their unbeaten record to 6-0 and a solid hold on first place. The defending champion Russians were in second place with a 4-2 mark.In the meantime, the U.S. team was dragging along in third place after defeating West Germany 5-1 but the Americans were slipping out of the title picture despite the presence of NHL pros Peter LoPresti, Lou Nanne, Steve Jensen and Mike Antonovich in their lineup. The U.S. had a 2-2-1 record and had scored 12 goals but gave up 17 in the tournament.<h2>TOROS ON THE LINE</h2>TORONTO&mdash;If the Big M is on the other end of the line when your phone rings these days, don&rsquo;t hang up and think it&rsquo;s some prankster. Frank Mahovlich and some of the other big named Toros are making a personal pitch to keep the WHA team in Toronto for next season and they are doing it by soliciting season ticket subscribers.The Toros have employed the team&rsquo;s stars to do a selling job and they hope to pull in 7,500 guaranteed ticket sales to insure next year&rsquo;s operation. Owner John Bassett says the Toros must reach their objective or else he would have to consider moving the team elsewhere for 1976-77. The Toros had the worst WHA record of all teams this year and lost a reported $ 1.5 million in operating costs.<h2>CAPS SWEEP TOUR</h2>TOKYO&mdash;The Washington Caps cleaned the board against the Kansas City Scouts on their four-game exhibition tour of Japanese cities. The Caps defeated K.C. 4-2 in the windup game after taking the other three matches 5-2 and 6-2 in Sapporo and 6-2 in Tokyo, a game which attracted over 10,000 fans. A mixed crowd of 9,000 Japanese and Americans watched the fourth game.It was the first time two NHL teams visited Japan and from all reports the fans were extremely receptive to the exhibitions although most of them were rather startled by the heavy body contact the two teams displayed in their games. Each member of the two teams picked up a $1,500 bonus plus expenses for making the trip. &#9632;

f0002-01

Deadline Stoppers

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-01972/3895582-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETE MAHOVLICH&hellip; Another 100 point Season</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;Coming off his greatest season, Peter Mahovlich has finally made the conversion to center, become perhaps the natural heir-apparent to Henri Richard as leader of the Canadiens, and, most importantly perhaps to him, escaped the shadow of his older brother Frank.In 1974-75, Peter Mahovlich finally established himself as the superstar the Canadiens had long thought he would and should be They fired home 35 goals and collected a staggering 82 assists for 117 points. The point total would have been a Canadian club record under normal circumstances except that Guy Lafleur flicked home 53 goals and finished with 119 points last season.But it was the development of Peter Mahovlich which may well have helped make Lafleur as well. Lafleur became only the third man in the long history of the Habs to crack the 50-goal mark following in the treads of Rocket Richard and Boom Boom Geoffrion. Lafleur himself gives much of the credit for his goal explosion to Mahovlich.&ldquo;Peter set me up on quite a few of those,&rdquo; says the wing. &ldquo;He lays down a neat pass and is always talking things up. In my first couple of seasons. I got down on myself at times, but Peter would always buck me up.&rdquo;It wasn&rsquo;t the first time Peter Mahovlich had served as a catalyst to generate a superior performance from another man on the Canadiens. Previously, it was his brother Frank whom he drove to achieve a maximum effort.In January. 1970, Frank Mahovlich. one of the highest scorers in the N.H.L.&rsquo;s history, was traded to the Canadiens by Detroit in exchange for, among others. Mickey Redmond. The Big M had been playing subpar hockey for the Red Wings but once he hit Montreal. Frank got back into the stride which made him one of hockey&rsquo;s greats.&ldquo;It was the younger brother who drove Frank on.&rdquo; says Canadiens&rsquo; coach Scotty Bowman. &ldquo;Frank is not as emotional or demonstrative as Peter. Peter was definitely the leader who goaded Frank into playing better hockey than he had in a long time.&rdquo;That year, the Boston Bruins were a runaway winner in the East Division of the NHL and figured to be the odds-on choice to capture the Stanley Cup. But in a grueling first-round series, the Canadiens eliminated the Bruins in seven games. They then went on to defeat Minnesota and the Chicago Black Hawks, winning the final series in seven games as well, bringing a somewhat unexpected Stanley Cup to the Montreal Forum.During the Cup games. Peter totalled 10 goals and 6 assists for 16 points while brother Frank set a playoff record, since broken, with an astounding 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points. During that regular season, Peter had 35 goals and Frank 31. most of them coming after the trade from Detroit.Now, the 38-year-old Frank is playing with the Toronto Toros of the World Hockey Association and Peter has the N.H.L. franchise entirely to himself among the Mahovlichs.In the first 54 games of the 197576 season, Peter picked up where he left off last season, scoring 23 goals and recording 50 assists. Although he once again trailed the high-scoring Lafleur in total points, no Canadien exceeded his assist total and. Lafleur aside, no other Hab was even close to approaching his 73-point production.Standing 6-foot-5 and weighing something over 205 pounds, Peter Mahovlich is the epitome of the pro athlete in appearance. He has raw-bone, almost chiselled features reminding observers of a mythical gunman from the Western shoot-&rsquo;em-up films. His constant profanity further reinforces this image. But his intense, driving spirit and will to win are in evidence both on the ice and in the dressing room. They were no small factors in the recent success of the Canadiens.Even the literate goaltenderlawyer Ken Dryden has a generally positive impression of Peter&rsquo;s value, although he says. &ldquo;I get angry at him some times. He is such an extrovert, he can be wearing. And he uses profanity for the sake of being profane at times. But on the ice he&rsquo;s no joke and I&rsquo;m really glad to have him on my side.&rdquo;A measure of the man came after the mid-season match between the Central Red Army, Russia&rsquo;s toughest club, and the Canadiens at the Forum. Mahovlich went on television after the game ended in a 3-3 tie and said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry we couldn&rsquo;t win. I apologize, but we tried. That goalie. (Vladislav) Tretiak was just too great. But we did our best.&rdquo;His spirit has largely contributed to his own improvement. A very tall man. he was an ungainly skater when he first came into the pros. Peter worked to overcome the handicap of his height and improve his skating. Then when he became a centerman. he struggled to became a capable faceoff man. He also worked hard to earn the plaudits of the fickle Forum fans who has an almost inbred distaste for non-French players. He has succeeded in overcoming all of these obstacles.His steady improvement has also reflected in the increase in his goal and point production. In the past five seasons, Mahovlich has turned in 35, 35, 21, 36 and 35 goal totals and overall point records of 61, 67, 59, 73 and 117. He has also curbed his penalty time from the enormous 181 minutes he accumulated in 1970-71, his first season as a full-time regular with Montreal.His career totals are now starting to approximate the ratio which his brother Frank recorded. The elder Mahovlich scored 533 N.H.L. goalsand added 570assists for 1,103 points in 1,181 games with Toronto, Detroit and Montreal. Peter now has 180 goals, 233 assists and 413 points prior to this season in 490 games and his present pace is somewhat above the point-a-game rate averaged by his brother.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m 29 and Frank is 38. That&rsquo;s a lot of goals he scored,&rdquo; says Peter. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I can catch him. but it&rsquo;s an idea, though, and it might keep me playing a bit longer in my late thirties.&rdquo;&ldquo;Peter is a super star.&rdquo; says Scotty Bowman, the often difficult-to-please coach of the Canadiens. &ldquo;Let no one doubt that. He can do it all now, is an amazingly good stickhandler, plays the points, kills penalties and can skate better than most fans think. We are a skating team, remember, and Peter keeps up with any of our speedsters. Most of the time he is playing with Jacques Lemaire and Steve Shutt, both of whom can really wheel.&rdquo;This is no little praise, indeed, from as difficult a task-master as Bowman.Despite all of this young potential, or perhaps because of it, Peter Mahovlich has become one of the major forces in the Canadien scheme of things. He was converted to a center originally, not because of the bulge of talent on the wings, hut rather because Bowman likes his ability to roam &mdash; or sometimes disliked it when he was supposed to be playing his wing.Regardless of the reasons, the shift has worked wonders for both Mahovlich and the Canadiens. Peter is not quite ready for the mantle of Jean Beliveau, but No. 20 is now one of the better centers in the N.H.L.&ldquo;I think the faceoffs were the hardest part of converting.&rdquo; Peter recalls about his shift from winger. &ldquo;A few weeks ago we moved Larry Robinson up front. He was doing alright as a wing, but he still thinks like a defenseman sometimes. The mental approach can be hard. Bowman likes to interchange men on his lines, like Fred Shero in Philadelphia and that has made Lemaire, Riseborough, Lafleur and myself all centers at different times. But now I feel I can handle anything I am asked to do.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02837/3895575-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="1169" height="1584"><figcaption class="caption-body">Admittedly Guy Lafleur of the Canadiens was the NHL scoring champion this season and justly so. He turned in a second 50-goal year and showed his class in the stretch run to beat out Bobby Clarke of Philadelphia. But much of Lafleur&rsquo;s success can be attributed to the playmaking of Pete Mahovlich, who this year was the set-up man for the NHL&rsquo;s second highest scoring line. The Habs looked to 6&rsquo;5&rdquo; Peter for leadership this season and he provided it.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0003-01

Pete Mahovlich Becoming Canadiens’ Leader

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011023/3895634-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="439" height="436"></div>&bull;HOCKEY FIGHTS and brawling are becoming rampant in the game today and the alarming part of it all is that it&rsquo;s happening at all levels, not only in the NHL and WHA. A junior playoff game in British Columbia recently became so violent, the RCMP was called in to lodge an investigation. It took two hours to play the first period alone&hellip;People like Ontario attorney-general Roy McMurtry are advocating the abolition of fighting entirely in hockey games. Many think hockey should adopt the ruling that a player who fights should automically be kicked out of the game. U.S. college teams employ the rule effectively. But diehard pros insist to ban fighting completely would have an adverse effect at the box of fice&hellip;Montreal Canadiens are the NHL&rsquo;s big cup winners in modern times. They&rsquo;ve won four in the last eight years and 11 in the past 20 seasons. They are heavy favorites to make it 12 in 21 years this time around. Of course they&rsquo;d get an argument from the Philadelphia Flyers on this point&hellip;Emile Francis&rsquo; appointment with St. Louis as GM-coach was hockey&rsquo;s worst kept secret. The Cat should do well with the Blues since he already has a good working nucleus&hellip;Look for former Pittsburgh coach Marc Boileau to return to coaching next season in the WHA&hellip;Young Danny Gare of Buffalo needs only one more overtime goal to tie a 25-year-old NHL playoff mark set by the great Rocket Richard. Richard scored three in extra time in 1951. Gare already has two during the current playoffs.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-02979/3895627-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="262" height="421"><figcaption class="caption-body">Danny Gore</figcaption></div>&bull;IT SEEMS strange watching NHL hockey these days without seeing one of the game&rsquo;s greats, Bobby Orr, not performing. Orr is through for the year with his injured knee still under wraps but on June 1 you can expect to see Orr and his legal adviser. Alan Eagleson, surface to negotiate Orr&rsquo;s new contract. The Boston super star will be a free agent on that date and his services are expected to go to the highest bidder. The Bruins are reportedly reluctant to meet Orr&rsquo;s new salary demands and he could go to a more affluent club like Chicago, which could stand his contract a lot better than Boston&hellip;One of hockey&rsquo;s most colorful figures, Harold &lsquo;Baldy&rsquo; Cotton retired at the age of 73 and he left the game with a rare distinction. He had been associated with hockey continually for 51 years, which along with King Clancy&rsquo;s is an outstanding record in professional hockey. Cotton has seen them all in his lifetime and he says he left the game still convinced that Howie Morenz was the greatest player to pull on a pair of skates&hellip;And speaking of oldtimers, word has reached Montreal of the death of Jules Dugal, who was secretary of the Canadiens for 25 years. Mr. Dugal tied recently in Lighthouse Point. Fla., at the age of 78&hellip;There has been a shift in the Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; stock with the retirement of Eugene Dixon Jr. Ed Snider now is in control of 80 percent and Joe Scott 20. Snider said there would be no drastic changes in the organization as a result of the stock change&hellip;One team the Flyers hope to avoid in the playoffs is the New York Islanders. They &lsquo;owned&rsquo; the cup champs this year winning four of six games between the clubs. Fred Shero is starting a personalized computerized coaching service intended for youngsters anxious to improve their hockey skills.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03875/3895620-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="268" height="403"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kurt Walker</figcaption></div>&bull;THE FAILURE of the U.S. team with so many Minnesota North Stars in their lineup, including Pete LoPresti. Steve Jensen and Lou Nanne. to do better in the current World tournament in Poland doesn&rsquo;t augur too well for Team U.S.A, when it faces the same teams in the September World Cup tourney, which will also feature a strong Team Canada squad. Tommy Ivan of Chicago and Bill MacFarland of Phoenix have been named co-ordinators of the American team&hellip; With all the troubled WHA hockey fran-Houston Aeros doing so well at the gate. The Aeros drew 727,323 fans home and away to become the first WHA team to go over the 700,000 mark. Aeros attracted 367,184 at home for an average of 9,177 per game. Leafs have surprised Philadelphia with their comeback hockey. One of the new Leafs is American-born Kurt Walker, who almost lost a leg three years ago because of an infected mosquito bite on his knee. Walker&rsquo;s parents, thrilled at the thought of their son playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs, travelled from Boston to Toronto to see him play against the Flyers. But Walker was ejected from the game after only three minutes following an altercation with Dave Schultz&hellip; The Toronto Toros are using their big name players like Frank Mahovlich to solicit season ticket subscribers for next season. Toros have laid it on the line with their Toronto fans. They must have a minimum of 7,500 seats sold to guarantee they&rsquo;ll operate or the club will fold&hellip; Marcel Dionne&rsquo;s playoff hat trick against Boston was a feat not seen too often in cup play. In fact in last year&rsquo;s 51 playoff games Guy Lafleur of Montreal turned in the only three-goal performance&hellip; And in response to several queries, there have been only six penalty shots called in Stanley Cup playoffs over the years and only one player &mdash; Wayne Connelly with Minnesota in 1968 &mdash; scored. Bill Barber of the Flyers had an opportunity to put his name in the record books last spring but was outguessed by Chico Resch of the Islanders.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04773/3895613-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="253" height="439"><figcaption class="caption-body">Wayne Connelly</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0004-01

PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01892/3895720-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">CESARE MANIAGO&hellip; Pondering retirement</figcaption></div>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;The worst thing that could happen to the Minnesota North Stars would be to have goalie Cesare Maniago file his retirement papers in the off-season.The 37-year-old Maniago (he&rsquo;ll be 38 midway through the next season) has indicated before he has weighed the possibility of bowing out of the game.He gave most serious consideration to the subject in the 1974-75 season when his knee, failed to responded to therapy after surgery and his goals-against average ballooned to 4.20, worst of his career that began in 1960-61.A diligent theraputic program after last season changed Cesare&rsquo;s mind, and he came this year to make himself the No. 1 candidate for the NHL&rsquo;s comeback-of-the-year award.Toward the close of this season, Maniago just wasn&rsquo;t sure what his decision would be, despite the fact that he has probably played as well as he ever has. Heading into the final week of the season, Maniago&rsquo;s goals-against average hovered around 3.30 in 46 games&mdash;quite an impressive total if you figure he is playing for a team that will end up with more than 50 losses and the third worst record in the NHL.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve had a good season,&rdquo; Cesare admitted after holding Philadelphia to a 3-3 tie recently. &ldquo;But, personally, it is disappointing to me when the team doesn&rsquo;t have a good year. It takes away from everything else. I think the years we were playoff contenders had to be more satisfying than this one.&rdquo;Which brings up the next, obvious question. What about next season?&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve already thought quite a bit about next season,&rdquo; said Maniago, who has been stopping pucks for the North Stars since their maiden season in the NHL in 1967-68. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know just yet what I&rsquo;m going to do. I&rsquo;ve still got the option year in my contract.&rdquo;Which means the North Stars are going to have to come up with a sizable increase in salary to lure Maniago out of a potential retirement.Until second-year man Pete LoPresti and rookie Paul Harrison develop into top level backstops, the North Stars need the steadying hand of a Maniago.Harrison, unfortunately, had worked only four games with the North Stars and three in the minor leagues heading in the final week of the regular season. He is going to need much more game experience to reach his potential.LoPresti, meantime, has shown considerable improvement when he has been given the opportunity to play two or three games in a row. His best week of the season came when the North Stars beat the New York Islanders, 3-1; lost to the New York Rangers, 3-1 and defeated the Kansas City Scouts, 4-1. The latter game was followed by a 6-3 loss to St. Louis with the Blues bombarding him with 47 shots.Stopping goals has been one problem. Scoring them has been another big drawback to the Stars this year.When the club broke out of a horrendous stretch of losing 20 of 23 games, some key players broke out of scoring droughts. Namely Bill Goldsworthy, who had scored only eight times since returning from a 12-game layoff in January until he counted two in the Kansas City victory.Bill Hogaboam, the swift center acquired from the Detroit Red Wings for Dennis Hextall, turned in his best week with the club when he tallied twice against the Flyers and picked up solos against Kansas City and St. Louis. The production left Hogaboam with a career high 27 goals and the probability of winning the team scoring title with four games still on the docket.During a 2-2-2 stretch of games, coach Ted Harris was pleased with the effort put forth by his team, especially in the games against the Islanders and Flyers, despite the fact that the North Stars have missed the playoffs for a third straight season.&ldquo;The boys have been coming to play,&rdquo; said Harris &ldquo;It&rsquo;s good to see it&rsquo;s there&hellip;it&rsquo;s a matter of drawing it out of them.&rdquo;That task would seem much more difficult without the presence of a Cesare Maniago next season.STAR DUST: Lou Nanne, who had assists on the tying goals against Los Angeles and Philadelphia, passed the 200-mark in career points&hellip;Dwight Bialowas returned from a leg injury&hellip; A wrist injury kept Tom Reid on the bench&hellip;Mike Antonovich a 5&rsquo;7&rdquo; center, picked up his first two NHL assists&hellip;The North Stars have 17 one-goal decisions, losing 14 of them&hellip;The Flyer game attracted the largest weeknight crowd of the season at Met Sports Center, 13,249. &#9632;

f0005-01

Stars Want Maniago Back, Hope Goalie Won’t Bow Out

<div class="byline">&#x2014; By Bill Libby</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011055/3895758-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="278" height="346"></div><h2>On The Outside&hellip;</h2>THE LONG SEASON, which started eight months back in September at training camp, is only now coming to its peak for those clubs who are contending for the Stanley Cup, in the glamorous madness of the playoffs. On the outside looking in are players who couldn&rsquo;t care less. They did not even make the playoff, their seasons ended several weeks ago. and they have slipped away in the shadows.They are part of the National Hockey League, too. and before we forget them for this season, let us see how the season ended for the two tearns who on the record are the worst ever to play this circuit.After twice going 17 games without a win last season, once losing all 17 to set a new NHL record, the Washington Capitals went 25 games without a victory this season to set another new NHL mark. They were 14 games into this streak when Milt Schmidt was moved out as manager and coach and Max McNab moved in as manager and Tommy McVie as coach late in December.They went 11 more winless starts before the eight-week drought which began late in November ended with a win late in January. They went on from there to win here and there. Their record was 3-27-5 when McNab and McVie took over, they went 8-32-5 from then on, and wound up at 11-59-10. which was a bit better than last season&rsquo;s 8-67-5.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-02813/3895751-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="820" height="934"><figcaption class="caption-body">With Scouts life wasn&rsquo;t easy for Denis Herron.</figcaption></div>Late this season, McNab said. &ldquo;Weshowed improvement. anyway. That&rsquo;s the most we hoped for.&rdquo; McVie added. &ldquo;The guys have been giving me a good effort. It takes heart.&rdquo; In a depressed dressing room following another defeat, yvon Labre said. &ldquo;We are playing better, but not good enough. We are winning some games, but still losing most. When we went without winning for two months it was terrible. When we found out we were near the record we maybe tried a little harder. but we were trying all along. The spirit suffers. Never winning is hard to handle. I hated it.&rdquo;At 27. he played professionally four years before making it in the majors. Drafted by Washington last season. he is one of the few Caps who has played for the team through its bad beginning season. The husky, mustachioed defenseman says. &ldquo;It seems like it took me a long time to make the majors and now that I am here I feel like I am on a team that is the butt of everyone&rsquo;s jokes and doesn&rsquo;t belong. I don&rsquo;t blame our fans for booing the way we play, but it hurts. It helps that only the odd kid knows who I am away from the arena. If the people recognized me I might be ridiculed.&rdquo;Consolation came in the form of his wife. Janice, and 16-month-old son, Cory. Yvon says, &ldquo;I try not to take the games home with me. What&rsquo;s to take home? Home for me is an escape. If I take it bad. Janice does. too. So we only talk about it when we win. We did not talk hockey much when we went two months without winning. I kept trying. I&rsquo;m not a super star. I can&rsquo;t carry a club. I did my best. But it&rsquo;s a team game. I&rsquo;m part of the team and so I&rsquo;m part of its failures. I try not to think about it. Otherwise it would get to me, mentally.&rdquo;Does he want to be traded?&ldquo;No. I&rsquo;ve been here for the bad part. I want to be here when it gets better.&rdquo;Was it hard, however, going to the arena to play the games the last month of the season or so?&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to answer that,&rdquo; he said.IT IS DOUBTFUL if it made it any easier, but while the Caps were starting to win one once in a while, the Kansas City Scouts were surpassing the record for most games without a win. It is incredible that this worst of records could be set and surpassed by two teams in the same season, but this is the kind of teams the NHL provided these cities with the most thoughtless expansion plan possible.Kansas City lost 14 straight early this season, but was 11-34-4 when manager Sid Abel replaced resigned coach Bep Guidolin with veteran amateur mentor Eddie Bush. Eddie won one early, but it turned out to be the only one he won in 31 starts. They wound up 12-56-12. which was even worse than last season&rsquo;s 15-54-11. After they had lost their next-to-last game of the season in Los Angeles to set a new winless standard of 26 games in a row. Bush stood outside his team&rsquo;s dressing room, colorfully attired and even smiling.A well-known name in hockey, he had waited a long time for a big league job and he was asked if he was sorry he took this one when it came along. &ldquo;No,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;You have to take the chance whenever it comes. I hoped I could do better, but I&rsquo;ve had bad times as well as good times before. I&rsquo;ve learned you have to take the bitter with the sweet. I would worry if worrying would help. I knew what I was walking into. We don&rsquo;t have enough good players. Also a lot of talk of the franchise being sold or moved has unsettled everyone. But the players haven&rsquo;t stopped trying. They&rsquo;ve just stopped winning.&rdquo;INSIDE, A GOOD GOALTENDER, 23-year-old Denis Herron, said. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want the record, that&rsquo;s for sure. It&rsquo;s something that will stick to you, I suppose. The goaler that&rsquo;s smiling is the one who isn&rsquo;t playing. I didn&rsquo;t play all the games, but I played most of them. I won 11 ofthe 12 we won. But I lost three or four times that many. I hope people think I&rsquo;m better than my record. We make so many stupid mistakes. I&rsquo;ve started to yell at the guys. I try to tell myself to just keeptrying, but it&rsquo;s hard not toget down. I&rsquo;m young yet and I hope I get a chance to prove myself with a better team. This one. ifit gets better.&rdquo;Gary Bergman, the 37-year-old defenseman. said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to take time for this team to get better and I don&rsquo;t know if I can wait. This has been my 16th and maybe my last season. Maybe it&rsquo;s time to give it up and start living a normal life. I can&rsquo;t inflict my misery on my family. I&rsquo;ve enjoyed good seasons, but this has been unbelievably bad. I don&rsquo;t care about the record. I just want to win. And I&rsquo;m very depressed after every defeat. Last week we had Washington 4-0 and blew it We can&rsquo;t even beat them,&rdquo; he said, sighing sadly.Young Gary Croteau, who endured dreadful seasons in Los Angeles and Oakland before coming to Kansas City last season, said &ldquo;This has been by far the worst. We lead and lose. We blow every opportunity. I guess we expect to lose so we lose. But we didn&rsquo;t expect to set that terrible record. Tonight we got it and I feel worse than ever. I can&rsquo;t wait to get away from the game for awhile. It&rsquo;s been a long season, but they pay you to play 80 games so you&rsquo;ve got to play them. Only one left now. I hope we win. It would be a little easier to go with a last win. anyway.&rdquo;They went into Vancouver and lost the next afternoon to make it 27 straight without a win. Then they went away. And they couldn&rsquo;t care less about the playoffs. &#9632;

f0006-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY ALAN TRUEX</div>ATLANTA&mdash;In a manner so much different from last year, the Atlanta Flames ended their season sort of like a marriage, in rancor and pouting and even a few tears.A year ago, the Flames survived elimination without a whimper or an angry word. They bravely stood their ground in the locker room and faced the menacing hordes of reporters.But this year, the situation was different. Whereas they were better prepared last season for defeat, this year they fully expected to beat the Los Angeles Kings and advance beyond the first round of the playoffs.Instead, the Flames were rubbed out in two games, 2-1 and 1-0.The final defeat was particularly disheartening, because the Flames played magnificently and lost in the final two minutes on a seemingly impossible goal by Bob Berry.The Kings&rsquo; left winger shot from the side of the net. with the puck barely missing Atlanta defenseman Pat Quinn&rsquo;s stick.The puck hit goalie Dan Bouchard&rsquo;s skate and scrapped the post before landing in the net.Some of the Flames were tearyeyed after the game. Some could hardly talk without choking. Some were angry, and almost all were in the foulest of moods.Some ofthe players, even after a cooling-off period of half an hour, also lashed out at the press. As the locker room opened to reporters, rookie Ken Houston yelled, &ldquo;You&rsquo;re not getting any stories outta here.&rdquo;It was, all around, a totally frustrating night for the Flames, who directed 27 shots, most of them good ones, at goalie Rogie Vachon, only to end up with nothing. In two games against the 5-7 goalie, the Flames scored just one goal. For the season, they faced him five times and lost all five games, scoring a total of six goals.In the playoff game in The Omni, attendance was appalling 10,450 &mdash; only two-thirds capacity. It was one of the smallest attendance figures of the entire season &mdash; one of the smallest in the past three seasons.When the Flames lost in four straight games to Philadelphia two years ago in the playoffs, the Omni was sold out a week in advance.The meagre turnout this year shows how far hockey has slipped in Atlanta, where two years ago it was thought to be the rising attraction.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-03568/3895789-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg" title="f0006-03" width="538" height="1072"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAN BOUCHARD &hellip; Super Goaling</figcaption></div>Flames&rsquo; management probably contributed to the attendance decline by charging ticket prices for the first round that were higher than all other first-round teams except the New York Islanders.Tickets for the playoff games cost a full 50 percent more than regular season rates, and most season-ticket holder refused to buy the playoff package.The Flames went for a big killing, and it back-fired. Not only did the club end up making less money from the playoffs than it should have, but the home ice for the second game ofthe series was not near the advantage it might have been.As Flames All Star Curt Bennett was saying before the series, &ldquo;The home ice isn&rsquo;t much of an advantage if you&rsquo;ve got 11,000 there instead of 15,000.&rdquo;FLAMES NOTES: Defensive-minded forward Rey Comeau and Tim Ecclestone missed the Stanley Cup playoffs with injuries. But the Flames got surprisingly good play from ex-Kansas City Scout Rickie Lemieux, who was called up from Nova Scotia to play against the Kings. Guy Chouinard, 19-year-old centerman, was also brought up as the team&rsquo;s other substitute, and he played creditably.Goalie Daniel Bouchard started both playoff games and was superb, saving 49 of 52 shots against him&hellip;The Flames&rsquo; defensemen lived up to their pre-playoff scouting report of being vulnerable to forechecking. Randy Manery gave up the puck in his end to allow Los Angeles to score 50 seconds into the first playoff game. Then in Atlanta, Ed Kea passed carelessly to set up Berry for the game&rsquo;s only goal. &#9632;

f0006-03

Flames Burned Up After Quick Exit From NHL Playoffs

<div class="byline">BY BILL FLESICHMAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-01942/3895820-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">REG LEACH&hellip; 61-goal &ldquo;Rifleman&rdquo;</figcaption></div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;Through the winter the Bicentennial city had agonized over such questions as plans for the United States&rsquo; 200 birthday, proposed tax hikes and busing.None of these issues, it is safe to say, affected Flyers&rsquo; fans as much as finding an appropriate nickname for the NHL&rsquo;s highest scoring line ever. Best efforts by the city&rsquo;s puck wits were tags such as &ldquo;the Main Line,&rdquo; after Philadelphia&rsquo;s blueblood area, and &ldquo;Hot Line.&rdquo; Only fair, eh?The problem was, with the exception of Reg Leach, none of the 141-goal line members had catchy nicknames. Leach is &ldquo;Reggie the Rifle,&rdquo; but Bobby Clarke is just &ldquo;Clarkie&rdquo; and Bill Barber is &ldquo;Arnie&rdquo; (after the resident porky of TV&rsquo;s &ldquo;Green Acres&rdquo; show). Someone in the Flyers&rsquo; organization took to calling the three the &ldquo;LCB Line.&rdquo; Nothing, right?Well, the search is over, sort of. Admittedly, the latest nomination isn&rsquo;t as eye-grabbing as &ldquo;French Connection Line,&rdquo; but the creator submits that the name sums up Clarke and friends perfectly:The &ldquo;Mutual Admiration Society.&rdquo;Add an &ldquo;H&rdquo; (for Hallelujah? or Hockey?) and you have &ldquo;MASH,&rdquo; which describes what the line did to the nerves of opposition goaltenders all season.Philly&rsquo;s Finest (hmmm, that&rsquo;s not too bad either) has never shown signs of discontent, as reported with Buffalo&rsquo;s French Connection Line. Clarke, Barber and Leach really do admire each other.Clarke was chasing Montreal&rsquo;s Guy Lafleur for the scoring title to the final weekend of the regular season, but seemed more interested in helping Leach hit the 60-goal level and Barber climb to 50. As we know, Leach and Barber were successful. Both can now open the NHL record book a few years hence and proudly show their grandchildren their names under 60 and 50-goal scorers.Leach and Barber will surely add, &ldquo;Son, if we hadn&rsquo;t played for the greatest center in the game, our names wouldn&rsquo;t be there.&rdquo;The only distressing note in the Spectrum celebrations was Clarke not surpassing his NHL record of 89 assists by a forward. The Flyers&rsquo; incomparable captain tied his record set last season. (Bobby Orr holds the league mark with 102 assists).When Barber scored his 50th goal against Buffalo, it was also the line&rsquo;s 141st, breaking the record held by Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Wayne Cashman. Naturally, Barber was pleased, but he said, &ldquo;I was really happy to see Reggie get 60. Only two guys have done that. Maybe 20 guys have scored 50.&rdquo;Maybe they have (the total is now 17 players with 50-goal credentials), but few two-way players like Barber are in the elite company. As for Leach, his two-season total for the Flyers, excluding playoffs, is now an astounding 106 goals in 160 games.Another Leach statistic worth noting is 33 of his 61 goals were netted on opponents&rsquo; ice.About the only dissent filed on the line during the season was some impatience from the coaching staff about Leach&rsquo;s devotion to 60-goal status. The coaches reminded the &ldquo;Rifle&rdquo; that while he is paid primarily to score goals, he shouldn&rsquo;t neglect feeding teammates when they were open.The game after Leach received his gentle reminders, he assisted on two goals. And in the victory over Buffalo that extended the Sabres&rsquo; Spectrum futility to 0-132, Leach&rsquo;s radar pass set up Larry Goodenough&rsquo;s goal.&ldquo;I kidded Reggie that I was surprised he passed the puck,&rdquo; Goodenough said. &ldquo;I told him it was a heckuva pass. All he said wasTm hot, I&rsquo;m hot.&rsquo;&rdquo;So was the Mutual Admiration Society.FLYERS FACTS: Biggest disappointment in the Flyers&rsquo; stretch run was Ross Lonsberry&rsquo;s failure to score his 20th goal. Lonsberry was blanked in the season&rsquo;s final 21 games, shooting 0-for-63. When he scored twice in a pre-playoff intrasquad scrimmage, friends hailed the &ldquo;20th&rdquo; achievement anyway&hellip;Among NHL records set by Flyers were most penalty minutes, 1,980. Flyers also tied League mark for longest home winning streak, 20 &hellip;Larry Goodenough&rsquo;s 42 points tied Tom Bladon&rsquo;s club record for points by a defenseman. &#9632;

f0007-01

Just Call Them The ‘Mutual Admiration Society’

<div class="byline">BY HOWIE MEEKER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011045/3895875-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="430" height="574"></div><h2>Don&rsquo;t Like The Heat&hellip;</h2>REMEMBER THAT CBC special, &ldquo;Stanlev Cup - the new season&rsquo;s How true! Amazing what a little checking does. It takes the offense from the big shooters and gives a tremendous advan tage to a smart, quick standup goaltender who only has to concentrate on stopping one shot not three or tour in a row It is shocking how many big scorers during the schedule wilt and become easy prey for the netminder. the second a little heat is applied in front of the net.Pittsburgh scored 339 goals during 80 games. That&rsquo;s over four per session. They had a grand total of two goals against Toronto&rsquo;s Wayne Thomas in three contests Buffalo, another tour goals a game club, ran into a blind switch and had Ed Staniowski, a kid from the West playing goal for St Louis, stone them blind.The hotshot Sabres scored just five goals in three regulation (60 minute) games. Twice they had to go into overtime to beat the Blues.Bob Pulford&rsquo;s L.A. team finally forgot owner Jack Kent Cooke&rsquo;s formula for winning (offense, offense, offense) and got back to Pulford&rsquo;s checking game. The result? Rogie Vachon&rsquo;s season&rsquo;s goals-against average, a mediocre 3.14, fell to an amazing half goal a game. Atlanta played the Kings check for check and Dan Bouchard almost matched Vachon&rsquo;s great goaltending display, but in 120 minutes of hockey L.A scored twice, Atlanta once. They still can&rsquo;t check and score goals at the same time and should bow out in five or six games against Boston.<h2>Islanders Too Classy&hellip;</h2>IN THE ISLANDER-VANCOUVER series, if you take away the first two goals scored by either team, a period in which neither Glenn Resch nor Vancouver&rsquo;s Curt Ridley could have stopped a pig in a bowling alley, they come down to respectable goals-against averages. But really the Islanders just had too much class in every department to be successfully challenged by the Canucks.There were 10 games played in the elimination series and just 40 goals scored That&rsquo;s four per game or two per team per game. It quickly points up that the Stanley Cup is a new season, where the crafty art of checking returns to take charge, and invariably takes control of the fellows who pop 40 or 50 goals a season in a league tuned for shotgun, fire-wagon and a wide open brand of hockey.Hey, the owners want to drastically reduce costs. Stanley Cup hockey during the schedule would bring those 40 and 50 goals shooters, claiming $ 150,000 plus salary contracts, down to 25 or 30-goal men. It wasn&rsquo;t too long ago the All Stars in that scoring range were getting $20,000, if they were lucky.<h2>Blues Surprised Sabres&hellip;.</h2>THE ONLY REAL SURPRISE in the preliminary round was the way St. Louis extended Buffalo. Rookie goalie Staniowski had to have great defensive help to force the high scoring Sabres into two overtime games before winning. During the season, St. Louis had a sputtering attack. Their 249 goals were the lowest of any of the playoff teamsand only Pittsburgh had more goals against. 339 to 290. Buffalo should have calmly skated to two easy wins. They didn&rsquo;t. How come? Well, new coach and GM. Emile Francis will have all spring to analyze his club&rsquo;s strengths and weaknesses and then make deals to improve St. Louis. It&rsquo;s very important for Emile to make the Blues a powerhouse.The New York Rangers collapsed under his guidance. Many people in the know claim that management forced Francis to make some of those questionable trades. Well the Cat took New York when they were down and out and made them a very competitive hockey club for a number of years. I am betting he can repeat that performance at St. Louis.Howie Meeker is a TV analyst on Hotkey Night In Canada, teaches young hockey players the finer points of the game through his CBC Howie Meeker Hockey School, television show and operates two summer hockey schools located at Trinity College School and Stanstead College. He is a former NHL rookie of the year winner and player on four Stanley Cup winners with Toronto Maple Leafs before retiring. &#9632;

f0008-01

HOW IT IS

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div>VANCOUVERTo the Vancouver Canucks, the first round playoff series with the New York Islanders could be boiled down to one goal post &mdash; the one Dennis Ververgaert hit in the third period of the second game.But I&rsquo;ve hit so may posts this year, what&rsquo;s another,&rdquo; said the 37-goal scoring right winger in the lost mortem of the Vancouver dressing room after the Islanders had won the best-of three series two games straight to advance to thequarter--finals.The post to which all the Canucks were to refer to later was hit by Ververgaert when the score was still 1-1 in a game eventually won by the Islanders 3-1 on goals by Garry Howatt and Clark Gillies just 32 seconds apart in the fast period.Canucks captain Andre Boudrias. who was playing only because Bobby Lalonde had suf lered torn knee ligaments in the first encounter in Uniondale, stole the puck from the Islanders&rsquo; defense and slipped a neat pass to Ververgaert.&ldquo;He had me beaten. I was lying on the ice waiting for the crowd to roar.&rdquo; said Islander goaltender Glenn Resch &ldquo;When I only heard a murmur. I knew it hadn&rsquo;t gone in.&rdquo;What had happened was that Ververgaert had lilted the puck up, over Resch, only to see the Canucks chances of taking the lead and possibly forcing a third game in New York go down the tube.&ldquo;I think Ververgaert was just a little cramped on the shot and he didn&rsquo;t quite hit it the way he wanted to.&rdquo; said Resch.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no question that a goal there would have made a big difference. said Canucks defenseman Dennis Kearns. &ldquo;But the Islanders are a tough club.&rdquo;But clearly the series couldn&rsquo;t be that easily kissed off by he Canucks, who were not expected to beat the more experienced Islan ders.They had the lead in the first game twice, and then let Lome Henning bag a shorthanded goal at 10 seconds of the second period to launch New York into a 3-2 lead which they later stretched to 5-2 and eventually won 5-3.&ldquo;A shorthanded goal that early in a period can kill you.&rdquo; said Vancouver goalie Curt Ridley, who was appearing in his first ever playoff game and suffered his second loss in 12 career starts in the NHL. &ldquo;That goal was the difference. I came out to stop it. but I couldn&rsquo;t get back across the crease in time. I saw it all the way and got a piece of it. but not enough. They were do to beat us (in that first game) it&rsquo;s been six games this year.&rdquo;The roof then fell in on the Canucks in the period as Resch made two great saves off Rick Blight with the score 3-2, allowing the Islanders time to get their offense in high gear.After the first game, Canucks coach and general manager Phil Maloney said he felt the psychological advantage would swing back to his club with all the cross continent travelling that would ve to take place if the series was to go three games.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re nomads, we&rsquo;re used to the travel and they call us the Vancouver Nomads. Now they&rsquo;ll find out what travelling is. We&rsquo;re not ready to fold up our tents yet.&rdquo;Maloney&rsquo;s words would certainly have rung home had the Canucks forced a third game and another tedious journey back to New York, but that was not to be.When a club logs over 72,000 miles in a season, travel, although always a problem, becomes more accepted by the players.But Ververgaert&rsquo;s post, or more accurately, Resch&rsquo;s post, saved the Islanders from having to go that third game.The work of Bob Nystrom led to the goal that eventually ended the Canucks season on a rough note.The Canucks had been using the defense pairing of Mike Robitalille and Harold Snepsts on the Islanders line of Nystrom, Andre St. Laurent and Garry Howatt all night and it had been working out very well. But the Canucks got messed up when that line was double shifted and the Vancouver defensive duo left the ice in favor of Tracy Pratt and John Grisdale.Nystrom lugged the puck down the right side and shot from 40 feet, Pratt blocked the shot, but had it slide around him into the corner. Nystrom beat him to the puck and centered it to Howatt who put it away.&ldquo;&lsquo;Were they every happy to see Harold leaving the ice with the Nystrom line still out there,&rdquo; said Maloney.&ldquo;I really don&rsquo;t think Pratt Could have done more than he did,&rdquo; said Nystrom, the former Calgary Centennial. I really didn&rsquo;t have any play. But fortunately the puck was in the right spot for my pass.&rdquo;&ldquo;We came off because we were tired,&rdquo; explained Robitalle. &ldquo;They double-shifted the Nystrom line.&rdquo;Clark Gillies then converted some hard work by Billy Harris to make the score 3-1, 32 second later and the Canucks had had the biscuit.It was Resch who paid tribute to the Canucks after it was all over.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think we&rsquo;ll have a tougher series than we did against these guys. And I&rsquo;m not saying that just to be Mr. Nice Guy. I know I won&rsquo;t be as nervous when we play another club.&rdquo; &#9632;

Canucks Sing Goal Post Blues After Ouster

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011010/3895906-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">EMILE FRANCIS&hellip; How Good Were His Moves?</figcaption></div>NEW YORK&mdash;Emile &ldquo;The Cat&rdquo; Francis lasted 16 years in the New York fishbowl, won 347 Ranger games, lost 209 and tied 98 as coach. That&rsquo;s a winning percentage of .606. When he took over as the New York general manager in 1965, the Rangers were playing in the old Madison Square Garden and were content with 4,500 season tickets. Now they play in a beautiful new building with 14,500 seasons tickets and 17,500 ducats purchased for every game.Still, the announcement that Francis had left the Rangers as vice president wasn&rsquo;t unexpected &mdash; and it brought more hurrahs from long time Ranger fans, than tears. His appointment as general managercoach of the St. Louis Blues was expected.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s good he&rsquo;s gone, that will clear the track for John Ferguson,&rdquo; said B.K.Head, a mezzanine regular. &ldquo;The Cat did a good job here, but he didn&rsquo;t win.Winning in New York isn&rsquo;t always the answer to keeping a job in sports management, but winning in New York is the only thing. In Big Town, second place might just as well be last place. If the Islanders don&rsquo;t win the big prize in the next two years they will find this out too.Still, Francis, through one means or another had three different stints as Rangers&rsquo; coach and was the general manager from Oct. 30, 1965 to Jan. 6, 1976. That&rsquo;s more time than any other non-winner ever had in New York. Yogi Berra won a pennant and took the Oakland Athletics to the seventh game of the World Series in 1973, and was gone in 1975. Charlie Winner won six straight for the Jets in 1974, and was gone a year later. Weeb Ewbank, the former general manager-coach got a lot of mileage out of his 1968 Super Bowl win. but even he.didn&rsquo;t last as long as Francis &mdash; and he was a big winner, with the Jets and the Baltimore Colts in 1958 and 1959.Bill Virdon almost won with the Yankees in 1974 and was gone in mid-season of 1975. Almost wasn&rsquo;t good enough, except with Francis. Emile is a superb general manager, one whose markerability shows with discussions with St. Louis, Chicago, Minnesota, Detroit and Los Angeles as to front office spots with their clubs. He built the Rangers up to serious cup contenders, but never had the best team and never won. His insistance on being general manager-coach with St. Louis shows his stubborness.Now, Ranger fans wonder as to the ability of the team Francis left behind for Ferguson. There are complaints about the trading of most of the Rangers&rsquo; young players. The Cat unloaded such talent as Curt Bennett, Jim Lorentz, Syl Apps, Don Luce and Dennis Hextail, for players who are no longer meaningful. But he was under pressure to win right now &mdash; and followed Leo Durocher&rsquo;s philosophy, let tomorrow take care of itself.&ldquo;At the time of those trades none of those players could play regularly with the Rangers,&rdquo; said Francis.Bennett, whose trade is resented by most Ranger fans, went to Atlanta for defenseman Ron Harris. Harris, unable to play except for three short appearances this year, scored key goals in two playoff series, but overall isn&rsquo;t as valuable as Bennett.Lorentz and Luce both were behind the troika of Jean Ratelle, Walt Tkaczuk and Pete Stemkowski at center ice and unable to get playing time. Luce was rated as lacking in stamina, Apps went for Glen Sather, whose physical appraoch the Rangers needed at the time, and Lorentz was rusting on the Ranger bench. He is being spotted now by the Buffalo Sabres. Hextall never fit in with the Rangers and was an overpriced player with Minnesota until traded to Detroit.Francis made the Trade, obtaining Carol Vadnais and Phil Esposito for Brad Park and Jean Ratelle, plus Joe Zanussi. He was still on the job, still alive although under heavy pressure from upper management to get the team moving. Esposito marked the first time he had departed from his stand against the super star, the one individual player whose presence could lift the team, even if hard to handle.The Trade benefitted Boston more that the Rangers, but most Ranger insiders will tell you that Park would not have blossomed in New York. He was challenged when dealt to the Bruins, and it saved his career.When Francis cleaned house and dealt away goalies Eddie Giacomin and Gilles Villemure, he was getting rid of huge salaries and avoiding the temptation to use either veteran instead of John Davidson, acquired from St. Louis in the off-season. Both would have helped J.D. this year, but neither would have meant the playoffs.&ldquo;There is no doubt the Cat never wanted Derek Sanderson,&rdquo; revealed a Ranger player. &ldquo;He showed it from Day One in Camp in 1974. Getting rid of Sanderson didn&rsquo;t help, although Derek never completely fit in with the Rangers. It will be interesting to see what happens to the Turk now.&rdquo;Walter Tkaczuk was kept over Sanderson &mdash; and Tkaczuk&rsquo;s slump in the last two years has reached epic proportions. If traded, Walter may bounce back &mdash; ala Park &mdash; and make the Rangers rue the day he goes. But. in New York, Tkaczuk is deeply rooted in a large sized rut.In a sense, the Cat saved the New York franchise, built it to genuine contention &mdash; and then because he knew his own limitation least &mdash; picked coaches who were pre-ordained to failure. His desire to coach once more.&ldquo;It was almost like he wanted them to mess up so he could step back in and take over again,&rdquo; said one Ranger season subscriber. He wanted to coach a cup winner himself.&rdquo;That may be unfair to Larry Popein. who has done well as Phil Maloney&rsquo;s assistant in Vancouver, and it may even be unfair to the outwardly bombastic Boomer Geoffrion. who coached so well in the Atlanta Flames&rsquo; first two years, but basically the shoe fits.Bill Jennings, the Rangers&rsquo; president said, &ldquo;Emile prefers to be where the action is, as general manager. It is a sad announcement for me to make. I have worked with Emile since 1960. Everyone at Madison Square Garden wishes him the best.&rdquo;St. Louis will be getting a darn good man, one who deserved a better fate than to be fired in mid season. He will be under pressure to win with the Blues - and he knows and wants it that way. He is chairman of the NHL general managers committee and respected by his peers.Pete Stemkowski, one of the players Francis &ldquo;stole&rdquo; from other NHL teams in trades often overlooked in the recent criticism, said, &ldquo;We should have been ashamed when the Cat was fired. We let him down. His main failure was loyalty to his players and people.&rdquo;That loyalty included players such as Giacomin, Ratelie, Park, and Tkaczuk. If they had played up to their full potential, the Cup might have rested in the Garden showcase. Instead the only trophy was the Cat&rsquo;s skin, carefully stretched to dry by fans, media and management. &#9632;

f0009-01

Francis Departs Rangers Without Producing Winner

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div>LOSANGELES&mdash;They used to say goaltending and defense were the secrets to success in Stanley Cup playoffs. Having heard it, newcomers to the NHL still say it, but the fact is that expansion, and the spreading thin of talent has opened up postseason play. However, in an old-fashioned series, the Los Angeles Kings defeated the Atlanta Flames in the first round of this season&rsquo;s playoffs because Rogie Vachon made only one mistake to a couple for Dan Bouchard.The Kings won at home, 2-1, and at Atlanta, 1-0. The Flames played more aggressively and carried the play to the Kings in both games, but Vachon stropped them short of victory. He did not have to make a lot of saves &mdash; 26 in the first game and 20 in the second, but he had to make some hard ones and he made them. He missed on only one shot.With the Kings ahead, 2-0, the chunky little guy with the big mustache tried to catch a low shot late in the third period, which he should have knocked out, and it glanced off his glove and into the net. He is the kind of person who does not alibi and he admitted his error later. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t have anyone near the corner and I was afraid to kick it, but I should have,&rdquo; he said.Otherwise, however, he was perfect. He was especially spectacular in the first period of both games when the Flames stormed his net and got off one good shot after another that were acrobatically blocked or caught.The Kings started slowly in both games and were outplayed by a little in both games, but Vachon was the difference. The Kings played well, but so did the Flames. There was not much difference between the two teams. A three-game series is too short to be a true test and the Flames got burned in this one.Dan Bouchard was brilliant, too. But when Tom Williams materialized in front of him with the puck in the first minute of the first game Bouchard seemed surprised and did not react fast enough when Williams wheeled and fired a shot which deflected off the goaler&rsquo;s leg.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011032/3895944-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="549" height="968"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOB BERRY &hellip;Game Winner</figcaption></div>Bob Nevin set it up by pressuring defenseman Randy Manery into giving up the puck behind the net and then feeding it in front as Williams arrived there. Early in the second period, Nevin beat Bouchard with a backhander from 10 feet in front to sett le it.The 38-year-old veteran who seemed to slow down this season, is a smart player who played superbly in both games.A 32-year-old veteran who also had a slow season, but also is a smart player, Bob Berry, settled the second game.With less than two minutes left in a tense, scoreless tie Berry had the puck behind the net with no one to pass to. He circled the net. There was a defender in front of Bouchard and Dan had his skate on the post so Bob could not jam the puck in. So Berry shot for the skates, sticks and legs and banked one in off the startled goaler&rsquo;s stick.It was not exactly a freak goal in that knowing Berry you could see he was going to try to do something like that. Doing it, he rated credit for it. &ldquo;I had to try,&rdquo; he says.At that point the series was won which might well have been lost as it was last year. Remember, the Kings won the first game from Toronto at home by one goal in overtime, but lost the second on the road by one goal in overtime, and then lost the decisive game at home by one goal.This second game looked like it was going into overtime and had Atlanta gotten one by Vachon last season&rsquo;s story might have had an encore. But because Atlanta didn&rsquo;t, the Kings, who had a better regular season last season than this by far, now will consider this a superior season as they went further in the playoffs.The 30-year-old Vachon may have been the best goaler in hockey last season. He was not as consistent this season, but he is a superb pressure performer. He went into the playoffs with the lowest goals-against average of any active netminder and in his 28th playoff performance scored his second shutout and lowered his mark to an amazing 1.86.This is a goaltender who was good enough to help mighty Montreal to a Stanley Cup crown in 1969 with a 1.42 mark and he is better now. A confident and gutty guy, despite an ailing ankle, Rogie says, &ldquo;The bigger the game, the more it seems to bring out in me. I like the challenge of stopping breakaways, say.&rdquo; He stopped three. He was the hero.However, coach Bob Pulford&rsquo;s team had to be at its best to beat Atlanta and the players played his clean, close-checking, conservative style to prevail. He did not, as he has not lately, use one of his more aggressive defenseman, Gary Sargent, presumably because Gary is an inexperienced rookie. He used Frank St. Marseille, as he has not all season, instead of Don Kozak in the first game, presumably because Frank is more experienced. The coach went with experience.He did not ask for an all-out offense. Marcel Dionne was not a factor. Defense was.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-02836/3895937-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="1756" height="1144"><figcaption class="caption-body">Goaler Rogie Vachon, left, of the Kings accepts THE HOCKEY NEWS&rsquo; Player of the Year award from columnist Bill Libby during recent presentation ceremonies in Los Angeles. Vachon&rsquo;s goaling was a big factor in the Kings&rsquo; success last season and he appears to be ready to pick it up again this year in the current Stanley Cup playoffs.</figcaption></div>Atlanta was the team the Kings wanted to draw in the opening round, rather than, say, Pittsburgh. The Kings have been beating Atlanta all season, but getting beat by Pittsburgh. Still, it was harder to beat Atlanta in the postseason that it was in the regular season, just as it was with Toronto last season.Just as it will be harder to beat a better team, Boston, than Atlanta in the second round this season. &#9632;

f0010-01

Vachon The Difference As Kings Cool Flames In Defensive Series

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03655/3896013-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">DON LUCE&hellip; Sent Blues Packing</figcaption></div>BUFFALO&mdash;The Don Luce-Craig Ramsay-Danny Gare line, which finished the Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; regular season with a flourish, was the big one as coach Floyd Smith&rsquo;s skaters won their Stanley Cup preliminary series against the St. Louis Blues.Because of a mixup in dates with the city&rsquo;s pro basketball team, the Braves, the Sabres opened the playoffs on the road, although they should have had home ice advantage because they finished higher than any other team in the preliminaries during the regular season.The Sabres played the first game against the Blues in St. Louis on a summery day, something they hadn&rsquo;t had in Buffalo.That might have had something to do with it, but mainly it was a tough checking game by the Blues and the goaltending of a 20-year-old rookie, Ed Staniowski, that produced an unexpected 5-2 victory for the home forces.The series then moved to Buffalo for the last two games. They turned into two of the longest, most pressure-packed contests seen in Buffalo&rsquo;s Memorial Auditorium in the Sabres&rsquo; six National Hockey League seasons.Both went into overtime.The Sabres won them both to advance to the Stanley Cup quarter-finals against the New York. Islanders and run their record in overtime playoff games to six wins in seven games.Gare, who scored three goals in the regular-season finale against the Toronto Maple Leafs to finish with 50 for the campaign, got the overtime goal in the first game, won by the Sabres, 3-2.Luce scored the overtime goal in the second, which finished 2-1.Ramsay also was a standout in the Sabres&rsquo; first win. The game was scoreless through the first two periods as Staniowski made spectacular stop after spectacular stop.Over the first 40 minutes, the Sabres had a 39-6 edge in shots and couldn&rsquo;t score.Then, early in the third period, Garry Unger scored for the Blues on a blistering 45-foot shot. Spirits of the 16,433 in the usual capacity crowd dropped. A goal like that would take the starch out of any team.To make matters worse, the Sabres got a penalty shortly thereafter. But Ramsay, penalty-killer par excellence, skated three-quarters the length of the ice to put in a shorthanded goal and tie the score.Gare then put Buffalo ahead with a low 35-foot shot that beat Staniowski, an old foe from junior days in the Western Canada League.The Blues came back, however, to tie in the final two minutes on a goal by Dave Hrechkosy and set the stage for Gare&rsquo;s overtime winner.Luce suffered a knee injury late in the third period of that game and was not on the ice for Gare&rsquo;s winning goal. He didn&rsquo;t know whether he would be able to play in the series finale when he reported to the rink.He tried the knee in the warmup and figured he could do spot duty. Fred Stanfield, who set up Gare on the winning goal that night before, started in his place.But after killing a couple of penalties, Luce decided he could play a regular shift. Good thing for the Sabres he did.ICE CHIPS: Jim Schoenfeld, the Sabres&rsquo; young captain, played through the St. Louis series with a painful and swollen left ankle, hurt in the last game of the regular season.Staniowski said he had watched the Sabres in the 1975 playoffs while visiting in Montreal and, at the time, figured he might be joining them because he &ldquo;heard they were looking for a goaltender.&rdquo;The Sabres took goalie Bob Sauve in the opening round of the draft, however. After the St. Louis series, John Andersen, Buffalo&rsquo;s director of scouting, admitted Staniowski is &ldquo;some goaltender&rdquo; but added, &ldquo;We thought Sauve was better when we drafted him and we still think so.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0012-03

Ramsay - Luce - Gare Line Makes Winners Of Sabres

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011006/3895982-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"></div><h2>The Great Mystery Call</h2>PERHAPS THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE should call in James Bond or Kojak or Beretta to solve the great telephone call mystery. Maybe John D.McDonald could write a mystery novel about it and a movie could be filmed of the book starring Robert Redford as Lloyd Gilmour, the referee, and Mickey Rooney as referee-in-chief Scotty Morrison.Anyway, what happened in Detroit that evening in April is the finest NHL caper in years.The situation was this. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings were playing at the Detroit Olympia in a rough game which degenerated into a sickening brawl early in the second period. The benches emptied and the whole affair lasted for almost 40 minutes from the time the first punch was tossed until referee Gilmour sorted out the penalties.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02850/3895975-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="578" height="586"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lloyd Gilmour</figcaption></div>The Red Wings&rsquo; bellicose little Dennis Polonich clearly led the charge off the benches. Leafs Darryl Sittier and Wings&rsquo; Dennis Hextall were involved in a scrap when Kurt Walker of Toronto joined in, punching Hextall from behind.Polonich left the bench and gave Walker a crack on the head with his stick. The Wings followed, so did the Leafs and as many as a dozen tussles were rolling at any one time, a sickening mess of NHL stupidity which NHL president Clarence Campbell called &ldquo;routine.&rdquo;The first player off the Leafs bench was Errol Thompson, a nonviolent type who hadn&rsquo;t been on the ice that evening because of an injured elbow. Thompson&rsquo;s 43 goals and low penalty total (10 minutes) made him a candidate for the Lady Byng Trophy as top effective gentleman in the NHL.When the fracas finally subsided, included in the long list of penalties and ejections Gilmour imposed was a double minor sentence and a game misconduct to Thompson, a serious blow to his Byng hopes.<h2>Who Dunnit?</h2>REFEREE GILMOUR had fingered Polonich as the leader of the bench exodus and handed him two minors for that plus a game sentence. Then the scorekeeper informed Gilmour that referee-in-chief Morrison, who was watching from the pressbox had telephoned down&rsquo;t say that Thompson should receive the same penalties as Polonich.Now Gilmour is not a man who disobeys his superiors so he gave the penalties to Thompson, even though he was very puzzled. Mid-game instructions from his boss were something he&rsquo;d never received before.Gilmour had tabbed Polonich as the first man off the bench and he&rsquo;d seen that Thompson, although first man to leave the Leaf bench because he happened to be sitting by the exit, had merely followed the Detroit player&rsquo;s example.It turned out that someone had telephoned the scorekeeper and, impersonating Morrison, instructed that Gilmour be informed of how the penalties were to be assessed.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d sure like to know who made that phone call to the timer&rsquo;s bench and said it was me,&rdquo; Morrison said. &ldquo;Nobody is admitting anything about it. Gilmour had no plans to penalize Thompson until he was told I&rsquo;d ordered it.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t blame Lloyd for what happened and we told Mr. Campbell that the penalties to Thompson were a mistake. The fact of the matter is that I would never make a call like that. I might point out some things to the officials between periods but never would I interfere in the middle of a period.&rdquo;<h2>What Next?</h2>NOW THE NHL IS FACED with an additional problem. The fake phone call could lead to a rash of such phoney messages. Perhaps the league will be forced to adopt code words to be used by any officials chatting on the phone. Maybe it was sabotage by the WHA or perhaps other Lady Byng candidates had agents planted in the Olympia to hamper Errol Thompson&rsquo;s bid for the trophy.Perhaps in the future, Morrison will be known as &ldquo;Agent 0000 o or have a code name which is changed for every game.Maybe even President Campbell will be forced to do the same. Imagine this conversation between Campbell and say, Ed Snider, president of the Philadelphia Flyers.&ldquo;Hello, Ed, This is President Campbell.&rdquo;&ldquo;A likely story. What&rsquo;s the code word for today? I don&rsquo;t want any phoney calling me up to tell me the Flyers are playing too rough.&rdquo;&ldquo;Today&rsquo;s code word is &ldquo;Cyclone Taylor.&rsquo; No, just a minute, that was yesterday&rsquo;s. No, it&rsquo;s &ldquo;Conn Smythe&rdquo;. That was last week&rsquo;s. Oh, darnit, I can&rsquo;t remember. But this is Clarence Campbell.&rdquo;&ldquo;Baloney. I won&rsquo;t talk to you until I hear the code word. For all I know this could be Sam Pollock, impersonating the president, trying to get us upset before the final for the Stanley Cup. You have five seconds to give the code word.&rdquo;&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got it, I&rsquo;ve got it. The code word for today is &lsquo;new president.&rsquo;&rdquo;&ldquo;Well, hello there. Mr. President, how are you?&rdquo; &#9632;

f0012-01

FRANK ORR SAYS:

<div class="byline">BY HARRY KLAFF</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0013-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-01967/3896051-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">GARRY HOWATT &hellip; Lays On Muscle</figcaption></div>LONG ISLAND&mdash;&ldquo;They&rsquo;re the key to our club&rsquo;s success. When they go out there and create all kinds of commotion, that&rsquo;s when we&rsquo;re playing at our best.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s how Islander coach Al Arbour described the importance of his trio of Garry Howatt, Andre St. Laurent, and Bob Nystrom at mid-season Although they make up the &ldquo;third line.&rdquo; Arbour is fullv aware that he cannot win without a strong effort from them.All in all, this wasn&rsquo;t a totally pleasing season for the young line. Nystrom finished with 23 goals, but didn&rsquo;t light the lamp in any of the club&rsquo;s final 13 regular season games. Howatt managed 21 goals, but only 13 assists. St. Laurent finished with nine goals after seeing spot duty for much ofthe season.Faced with the prospects of meeting the Vancouver Canucks in the best-of-three preliminary round playoff, the Islanders knew they would have to pull something out of the hat to lick a long standing jinx. Although the Islanders finished a full 20 points ahead of the Canucks, they hadn&rsquo;t beaten them in more than a year.<h2>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re Going To Have To Be More Physical&rdquo; &mdash; Arbour</h2>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to have to play a more physical game,&rdquo; said Arbour on the eve of the playoff. &ldquo;We have to play the body to keep them from getting out oftheirownend.&rdquo;And that&rsquo;s where Nystrom and company fit in. On a team where everyone is expected to play the man, they are the specialist.Both Howatt and Nystrom picked up a goal and an assist in the Isles&rsquo; two game sweep over Vancouver. But most important, they set the hitting style which was prevalent throughout both contests. And as Arbour reiterated,&rdquo; When we hit, we win.&rdquo;Things didn&rsquo;t look immediately promising for the Islanders in the first period of game one at the Coliseum. The entire club admitted to having the jitters, especially goaltender Glenn Resch, who watched a couple of long shots zip past him in the opening minutes. But the Isles perservered, and left the ice with a 2-2 deadlock after 20 minutes.Then they blasted the game wide open. First penalty killer Lorne Henning fired a shorthanded goal past Curt Ridley at the ten second mark. Another penalty followed, and Resch made up for his earlier shortcomings by making two incredible saves from close range to preserve the margin.By this time it was all New York. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t remember when we had a period like this with so much checking,&rdquo; said Jean Potvin afterward. Every time one of their guys touched the puck, somebody was there to hit him.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02806/3896044-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="502" height="1188"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOB NYSTROM &hellip; Broke Slump</figcaption></div>The flurry produced two more goals&mdash;one by spare winger Bill MacMillan on a backhander. and the other by Nystrom, who was left uncovered in the slot.&ldquo;We had a lot of stars tonight, but Garry, Bobby, and Andre were the key,&rdquo; said Resch afterward. &ldquo;They were the difference. And it was nice to see Nystrom break that scoringslump. He needed that.&rdquo;Vancouver coach Phil Maloney had vowed that his Canucks would be ready to give the Islanders a dose of their own physical medicine in the second game, and they started off by doing just that. And with captain Andre Boudrias out of the dog house to replace the injured Bobby Lalonde. Maloney had found a buzz bomb to neutralize the effectiveness of the Islanders&rsquo; freewheeling trio.<h2>&ldquo;When We Hit We Win&rdquo; And The Islanders Did</h2>J.P.Parise put the Isles on the board first when his 35-foot screamer from the left face-off circle eluded Ridley at the 3:13 mark oft he first period. But following a number of nearmisses. Chris Oddleifson finally evened the count for Vancouver when he tipped Bob Dailey&rsquo;s drive past Resch mid-way through thesecond.Then the commotion kids went to work. With less than nine minutes left in the third period. Nystrom somehow managed to backhand the puck into the slot after being tied up against the end boards. Howatt fired a 15-footer into the net to give the Islanders a 2-1 lead. while Clark Gillies&rsquo; slam-dunk rebound 32 seconds later iced the victory.&ldquo;I tried to take a shot, but it deflected into the corner,&rdquo; said Nystrom of his effort. &ldquo;I chased after it and backhanded it to Howie. Hedid the rest.&rdquo;ISLAND SOUNDS: Many Islanders couldn&rsquo;t understand why Vancouver benched Gary-Smith in favor of young Ridley. Smith had always played well against the Islanders&hellip;Denis Potvin was the Isles&rsquo; leading scorer against Vancouver with three assists &hellip;After surrendering the two goals in the opening moments of the first game, Glenn Resch virtually shut the door on the Canucks&hellip;. As was the case last year. Arbour made considerable use of a fourth line of Lorne Henning, Bill MacMillan, and Defenseman Jean Potvin at right wing. &#9632;

f0013-01

‘Commotion Line’ Leads Isles Past Canucks

<div class="byline">Bill Fleischman&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-01987/3896089-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="276" height="452"></div>HOW GOOD is the medical care NHL players receive?In nearly every case, the Bobby Clarkes and Guy Lafleurs are given the absolute best care. But doctors are like news: the bad arouses more curiousity than the good. &ldquo;Johnny has perfect school attendance&rdquo; isn&rsquo;t page-one news. &ldquo;Johnny sets school on fire&rdquo; is headlines.A family friend who is a respected cardiologist for one of Philadelphia&rsquo;s leading hospitals works bone-wearying hours. Concern for his patients is so great that he never sips an alcoholic beverage, even at parties on off-duty nights. He is well rewarded financially for his work, but people outside the hospital will never hear of him &mdash; unless he makes a mistake with perhaps, a celebrity patient or someone from an influential family. Then this gentleman whose daily life benefits people more than any attention-grabbing politician will be under suspicion.The alarming case of Paul Holmgren illustrates the dangers both athlete and physicians live with.By now you&rsquo;ve probably read how Holmgren underwent emergency surgery at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. At first, there was genuine concern over whether the Minnesota-born rookie would ever have complete vision in his right eye. A few days after the operation at the highly regarded Boston hospital, the reports were optimistic. Holmgren returned home to St. Paul looking forward to his first Flyers&rsquo; training camp.It would be easy to forget about Paul Holmgren until next September &mdash; unless you think seriously about what he endured for weeks.HOLMGREN WAS Philadelphia&rsquo;s fifth-round amateur draft choice last summer. At 6&rsquo;3&rdquo;, 215 pounds the blond right winger is the Flyers&rsquo; kind of player. However, he signed with the WHA Minnesota Fighting Saints. After opening the season with Johnstown of the NAHL, Holmgren was promoted and wound up with 1416-30 scoring figures and 121 penalty minutes in 51 WHA games.When the Saints went down fighting, the Flyers outbid WHA teams for Holmgren&rsquo;s services. The former University of Minnesota player made an impressive debut with the American League Richmond Robins, then was called up to the Flyers when Gary Dornhoefer was sidelined with viral pneumonia.In his only appearance with the Flyers, Holmgren, 20, skated a regular shift with Mel Bridgman and Dave Schultz in a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers at the Spectrum. Afterward, the Flyers&rsquo; braintrust smiled confidently. The player described by former Saints&rsquo; teammate Henry Boucha as &ldquo;another Clarke Gillies&rdquo; was a bonafide prospect. A levelling check on Phil Esposito reinforced management&rsquo;s opinion.What few knew at the time was Holmgren could see the Rangers out of only one eye. During a scuffle for Richmond against Springfield, Holmgren had suffered a scratched cornea. He played the next game, then was examined again in Hershey and advised to wear an eye patch. Holmgren then returned to Richmond&rsquo;s lineup before the phone call from Keith Allen came.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02824/3896082-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="1024" height="1150"><figcaption class="caption-body">Former Flyer Barry Ashbee (4) had his career aborted by an eye injury and has shown concern about hockey injuries.</figcaption></div>Holmgren accompanied the Flyers to Boston after the Ranger&rsquo;s game. At a team meeting he mentioned his eye was bothering him. Fortunately, assistant coach Barry Ashbee and captain Bobby Clarke reacted swiftly. They took the rookie to the Boston hospital where developments worthy of a television drama occurred.DIAGNOSIS WAS the outer part of the cornea was flattened and fluid from the iris was leading through the wound. Surgery was performed early the next morning, with terrifying effects. Complications and the anesthesia caused Holmgren&rsquo;s heart to enlarge and he went into convulsions.&ldquo;They said I almost died,&rdquo; Holmgren said later.Thankfully, Holmgren survived and was hoping to attend some Flyer&rsquo;s Stanley Cup playoff games &mdash; if the stitches in his cornea didn&rsquo;t trouble him.Next to Holmgren and his parents, perhaps the most relieved person was Ashbee. As his playing career was aborted at its peak by an eye injury, Ashbee&rsquo;s concern was understandable. Two days after Holmgren&rsquo;s operation Ashbee could hardly contain his anger. He felt that Holmgren, being a rookie, had perhaps received only superficial care at his AHL stops.The following week. Ashbee and Clarke met with Ed Snider, the Flyers&rsquo; board chairman. Holmgren&rsquo;s case was the latest in a bizarre health year for the Stanley Cup champions. First, Bernie Parent underwent neck surgery and agonized through a lengthy recuperation. Then, Tom Bladon struggled through a dazed period when medication prescribed by his personal physician for allergies conflicted with sleeping pills he was taking.Finally, Dornhoefer learned he had pneumonia &mdash; the day after playing the North Stars.&ldquo;Some of our players haven&rsquo;t been keeping doctors&rsquo; appointments,&rdquo; said Clarke. &ldquo;We just met with Mr. Snider to set up a system where the players must accept some responsibility.&rdquo;&ldquo;We just tried to improve our internal housekeeping regarding injuries,&rdquo; said Snider. &ldquo;I can understand Barry being emotionally involved in Holmgren&rsquo;s case, but I&rsquo;m sure he got excellent care. Very often kids want to play so much they&rsquo;re afraid to say exactly how they feel. As far as I know, none of our players has ever knowingly been put on the ice with an injury.&rdquo;Holmgren&rsquo;s case must serve as a reminder that no injury can be considered routine. At least Holmgren knows his new teammates &mdash; even rivals &mdash; care. Both Ashbee and Clarke returned to Boston to cheer up Holmgren. Other visitors included Buffalo coach Floyd Smith, Sabres&rsquo; captain Jim Schoenfeld and several Boston Bruins. &#9632;

f0014-01

Rookie’s Eye Injury Rap At Medical Care

<div class="byline">BY BILL HEUFELDER</div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;In their last seven playoff games, the Pittsburgh Penguins have scored seven goals. It&rsquo;s worth a note for Ripley&rsquo;s Believe It Or Not.In two severe lessons that cost them a sizable amount of money, both for the players and at the box office, the Penguins have discovered a powerful offense in the final work in playoff hockey.They fell to the New York Islanders a year ago in the quarter-final round after zipping to a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The Islanders&rsquo; goaltender Glenn Resch, performed brilliantly in the four straights wins and hasn&rsquo;t looked back since.With that lesson seemingly enough incentive to make further headway in the playoffs this season, the Penguins instead dropped out after one round.The knockout punch was delivered by the youthful, but highly motivated Toronto Maple Leafs, who put their home-ice advantage to excellent use, winning the final game, 4-0. In goal, Wayne Thomas was superb.In fact, the 29-year-old netminder, in his lone defeat, stopped 47 shots. The Penguins made a second-period goal by Lowell MacDonald stand up until they scored in an empty net during the dying seconds.With Thomas smothering whatever shots reached him, his tenacious teammates smothered Pittsburgh&rsquo;s two 50-goal scorers Jean Pronovost and Pierre Larouche. The high-scoring Penguin offense finished in a second-place tie for most goals among National League clubs this year and fourth last season.Pittsburgh coach Ken Schinkel had legitimate cause for concern as the Penguins headed into the playoff. They fell short of two objectives, to gain home-ice advantage for the opening round and to surpass second-place Los Angeles in the Norris Division standings.They led both Toronto and LA with seven games left, then squandered the playoff edge and second-place money by going 2-4-1 to the wire, including a 5-4 loss to lowly Washington in their final regular season game.As might be expected, Schinkel worried most about the club&rsquo;s checking.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03624/3896120-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="542" height="746"><figcaption class="caption-body">SYLAPPS &hellip; His Injury Hurt</figcaption></div>In game No. 1. the Penguins proved his fears were not unfounded. They were thumped, 4-1, with no mistake being made about which was the dominating team. The Leafs, with their inspiring checking and Thomas&rsquo; first of three spectacular performances, gave them little breathing room.Awakened to its precarious position, Pittsburgh came home for the second game with a renewed enthusiasm, a vital ingredient in the shutout victory that tied the series.It took some aggressiveness from a 35-year-old veteran with a knee that will require off-season surgery to light a fire under the club. Within a half-minute of the opening faceoff, Vic Hadfield traded punches with Darryl Sittier, the tough Toronto captain. MacDonald finally gave the Penguins the go-ahead goal midway through the second period.&ldquo;We finished one point ahead of Pittsburgh in the season,&rdquo; Toronto coach Red Kelly said after the defeat, &ldquo;so you don&rsquo;t think we&rsquo;re going to knock them off that easy. It&rsquo;s going to be a real battle.&rdquo;Kelly was wrong. The Penguins fell behind, 3-0 at the end of two periods and never seriously threatened to eliminate Toronto. While Thomas played sensationally in the Toronto net, his counterpart, Michel Plasse, was erratic through the series.The turning point of the deciding game came early. The Leafs wepe forced to play five minutes shorthanded when Tiger Williams cut Penguin defenseman Barry Wilkins after less than two minutes had been played. Setting a leisurely pace in organizing their power play, the Penguins presented a weak attack.To complicate their comeback, they lost Syl Apps early in the first period. Schinkel, left with only two centers after deciding to it out Ed Gilbert as an extra man, was forced to shift MacDonald to center.PENGUIN NOTES: During the regular season, the Penguins were 4-1 in Toronto series and outscored the Leafs, 32-18&hellip;A club that obviously lacked toughness, Pittsburgh is expecting newly signed Russ Anderson, a 210-pound University of Minnesota defenseman, will help solve the problem in the near future&hellip; Anderson signed a three-year contract recently&hellip;He broke the school record for penalties (52) and penalty minutes (111) in 39 games this season as the Gophers won the NCAA title.Larouche scored four goals in last two Pittsburgh games to wind up as leading goal scorer with 53, one more than Pronovost &hellip;The Penguins were 20-10-7 under Schinkel, who became the coach in mid-January. &#9632;

f0014-03

Prolific Penguins Lost Touch In Playoffs

<div class="byline">BY GEOFFREY FISHER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-01951/3896151-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">DENNIS MARUK&hellip; Choice of the Booster Club</figcaption></div>OAKLAND&mdash;Little Dennis Maruk, a jet-propelled, sawed-off tree trunk on ice skates, circled the rink brandishing the huge trophy high over his head. The spectators in the Oakland Coliseum roared their approval. It could be even a Stanley Cup championship would have motivated scarcely less enthusiasm.But this was no Stanley Cup champion - this California Golden Seals club, nor was the glistening trophy held by Maruk the famous Stanley Cup. The Seals had just defeated the Los Angeles Kings in the finale of the regular NHL schedule, had finished last in the Adams Division and had failed to make the playoffs for the seventh time in the nine years as a member of the NHL. And that big trophy being displayed by Maruk was awarded him by the Seals Booster Club as the &ldquo;most popular player.&rdquo;No team in the Seals history had stirred more interest, generated greater fan enthusiasm, broken more club records, and offered more hope for future greatness than did this 1975-76 brigade.The Seals set a new record every time they scored a goal, took a shot at an enemy net, connected on a power play, or registered a shorthanded goal. They wrote 27 all-time club records into the books and tied eight others. They hung up an all-time attendance mark of 277,977, 31,000 above the previous season high.In the end it was evident that Bay Area hockey fans were ready and anxious to demonstrate their appreciation that the Seals franchise had been saved in a last-minute rescue effort last summer. This was a club that began the season with new owners, a new coach, and a bunch of rookie players. With the package came a new spirit with which Bay Area hockey fans, who had suffered through the turmoil of new owners and disgruntled players, could easily identify.That spirit was exemplified by an incident involving Gary Sabourin, one of the few veterans on a squad loaded with rookies. As the Seals took the ice for the pre-game warmup before the final game of the season, the fans were startled to see Sabourin among the skaters. Just five days previous he had been operated on for a hot appendix.Sabourin did not get any game action but he explained later to this reporter that he had insisted upon being in uniform and in the pre-game warmup as his teammates closed out the season. &ldquo;This club is going places next season and I just wanted the guys to know that I was with them even though I couldn&rsquo;t play,&rdquo; he said. Despite the fact he missed the last two games, Sabourin, who was obtained from Toronto Maple Leafs last summer in a trade for Stan Weir, notched 21 goals and 28 assists for his best scoring mark in his nine-year NHL career.Certainly the trades engineered by GM Billy McCreary that brought Sabourin from the Leafs, and Wayne Merrick from St. Louis in exchange for Larry Patey, were major factors in the Seals&rsquo; vast improvement. Merrick fired 32 goals (25 after joining the Seals) to share the club&rsquo;s goal scoring lead with Al MacAdam, voted the club&rsquo;s &ldquo;most valuable player.&rdquo;But the big surprise package was rookie Maruk, the 21-year-old human lightning bolt from Rexdale, Ont., who rang up 30 goals and 32 assists to wipe out existing scoring marks for a Seals&rsquo; rookie.Defenseman Rick Hampton, who won&rsquo;t be 20 years old until June, proved beyond question that he is on the way to becoming one of the genuine stars of the NHL. Hampton&rsquo;s 14 goals and 37 assists broke the existing scoring mark for a defenseman set by Dick Redmond in 1971-72 and according to coach Evans was the key to the Seals&rsquo; power play total of 71 which was also a new club record.Considering the large collection of novice big leaguers he had to work with, the NHL coaching debut of Jack Evans was little less than brilliant. At one time or another the Seals were going to the wars with eight rookies in the lineup.While the rookies and the overall desire made this edition of the Seals one of the most exciting and unpredictably explosive clubs ever to represent the franchise, both Evans and McCreary are aware of some important needs.The Seals had a shortage of musclemen to skate shotgun when the going got heavy and the league&rsquo;s notorious bullies went into their menacing acts.Said Evans: &ldquo;We need more muscle&hellip; we simply have to be more physical. That means we will be looking for players who can back up our little guys.&rdquo;Even without the help of some qualified henchmen, the baby Seals made a strong run for a playoff spot. &#9632;

f0015-01

Seals Assault On Records Gives Fans Reason To Cheer

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01793/3896224-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="478" height="882"><figcaption class="caption-body">YVAN COURNOYER &hellip;Most Winners</figcaption></div>The following players led the NHL in what the league calls &lsquo;important&rsquo; goals &mdash; that is goals that decide the outcome of a game or influence the score:<h2>MOST GOALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02680/3896217-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="496" height="365"></div><h2>MOST ASSISTS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03543/3896210-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="495" height="331"></div><h2>POWER PLAY GOALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04426/3896203-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="493" height="269"></div><h2>SHORTHANDED GOALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05321/3896196-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="494" height="370"></div><h2>GAME WINNING GOALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06259/3896189-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="495" height="269"></div><h2>GAME TIEING GOALS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-07233/3896182-1-eng-US/f0016-072.jpg" title="f0016-07" width="492" height="230"></div> &#9632;

f0016-01

Top NHL Key Goal Shooters

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-08" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-08213/3896255-1-eng-US/f0016-082.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">WAYNE THOMAS&hellip;Credited Teammates</figcaption></div>TORONTO&mdash;The challenge to the Toronto Maple Leafs in their best-of&mdash;three Stanley Cup playoff preliminary round against the Pittsburgh Penguins was clear Leafs had to control the Penguins&rsquo; prolific offense or face quick elimination.Well, the Leafs, who were outscored. 32-18 by the Penguins in five regular season meetings during the National Hockey League schedule did more than control it. They choked off the Penguin attack completely in taking the series in three games.Backed by the extraordinary goaltending of Wayne Thomas, the Leafs allowed the Penguins only two goals plus one empty-nettally. The Leafs won the first game, 4-1, at Maple Leaf Gardens, dropped a 2-0 decision at Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Civic Arena, then advanced to the quarter-final against the Philadelphia Flyers with a convincing 4-0 victory in the third game at Toronto.The win was produced by everything coming together at once for the Leafs &mdash; Thomas&rsquo; excellence, some splendid work by the defense pairs of Borje Salming and Ian Turnbull and strong two-way play by all three forward lines.&ldquo;The Leafs did what they had to do &mdash; and did it well,&rdquo; said Penguin coach Ken Schinkel. &ldquo;In the two games at Toronto, they kept us from getting in tight on their net. Thomas was a big factor, too. He made the big saves at the right time.&rdquo;Two Thomas saves stood out. In game one with Leafs in front, 1-0, Thomas made an incredible stop on Penguins&rsquo; Pierre Larouche to preserve the Leaf lead.In the third game, there was no score in the first period when Penguins&rsquo; Simon Nolet drove a quick, 15-foot shot at what appeared to be two-thirds of an empty Leaf net. But Thomas kicked out his leg and booted the shot away. Leafs scored soon after that play and the Penguins were dead.Thomas refused to accept any personal credit for the win, brushing aside any accolades by saying it was a big team victory. All season, the Leafs have stressed the &ldquo;team&rdquo; appraoch, an all-for-one attitude with team captain Darryl Sittier and Thomas as the leaders in convincing the other players to think that way.&ldquo;Sure I was happy with the way I played against Pittsburgh,&rdquo; Thomas said. &ldquo;But the big factor was the total effort from every guy on the team. This is a young club which is just starting to mature and I&rsquo;m just happy to be part of it. I feel we&rsquo;ll accomplish a great deal in the next few seasons, maybe even in these playoffs.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s a great gung-ho attitude on the Leafs because of all the youngsters. Now maybe that approach sometimes is put down in pro sports where everything is supposed to be all business. But it&rsquo;s sorta nice to be involved in it.&rdquo;In addition to Thomas&rsquo; brilliance, the Leafs received superb play from all four defensemen with Salming outstanding. Rookie center Jack Valiquette did a strong job of checking the Penguins&rsquo; prolific young Larouche and the energetic Leaf forechecking gave the somewhat slow-moving Penguin defense considerable trouble.&ldquo;We had a game plan and we executed it well,&rdquo; said Leaf coach Red Kelly. &ldquo;We knew we had to keep the lid on their attack and we did it with good forechecking and thorough backchecking. Our kids showed a great deal of maturity.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s why we feel we have a good chance to give the Flyers a big battle in the quarter-final. We&rsquo;re much physically tougher than we were and we can play with discipline now.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0016-08

Thomas’ Extraordinary Goaltending Guided Leafs To Shot At Flyers

<div class="byline">BY JACK McCARTHY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0017-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01685/3896286-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOBBY ORR&hellip; It&rsquo;s Been A Frustrating Year</figcaption></div>BOSTON&mdash;While Bobby Orr ended almost a season of speculation on when he would return from two knee operations by returning to Parry Sound, Ontario, on April 7, it is sure that it will be revived shortly.Regarding his contract, which runs out with Boston in May, it is generally believed that Orr wants to stay in Boston, where he has spent his entire NHL career. The amount of money he would want from the Jacobs brothers, new Boston owners plus, of course, the condition of the knee, are key factors here.Boston fans have been up to their ears in speculation, and rumors have floated that Orr is headed for Los Angeles, Toronto or Detroit. And there was also rumor that Orr was not playing because of the negotiations.But this has been denied up and down, and GM Harry Sinden at the Bruins said when Orr left for Ontario, &ldquo;The negotiations had no bearing on this&hellip;&rdquo;Coach Don Cherry amplified this with, &ldquo;There never was any truth about Bobby not plaving because of the contract. He wanted to play very much.&rdquo; Cherry said that Orr had come to him in May and said that if he was ever going to be ready to play, he&rsquo;d have to go all out and see how the knee responded.Therefore, Cherry put on a full-scale scrimmage, a hard scrimmage, and Orr went all out. Said the Coach of the Year, &ldquo;Bobby looked all right, but the next day there was aggravation in the knee. He stayed off skates and rested for awhile after that. Then he asked for another test (April 5) and the knee reacted badly again.&rdquo; That, apparently, was that.After he had made his decision, Orr said,&rdquo; This has been a very frustrating season for me. The 1976 Bruins are a fine hockey team and I regret I have not been able to play with my teammates. The Bruins have been very good to me, and I was hoping to be ready for the playoffs. But the knee just isn&rsquo;t ready.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going home, because I&rsquo;d just get too tight hanging around here while the guys were in the playoffs. The Bruins&rsquo; doctors and I agree that the knee needs further rehabilitation, so I will be taking regular therapy in Toronto from Karl Elieff.&rdquo; Elieff is a Physiotherapist who treated Orr in 1972 following a June operation that year. He has had five.To refresh your memory, the last two operations were on the same knee, the left, with the first being performed on Sept. 20 and the second on Nov. 29, by Dr. Carter Rowe, famed surgeon of Mass. General Hospital.Orr played in 10 games for Boston, from Nov. 11 through Nov. 26. He had 18 points on five goals and 1.3 assists.So now the greatest player of his time is still in hockey limbo, although he said, as he has before, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be back. There&rsquo;s a lot of hockey left in me yet&hellip;&rdquo;Meanwhile, the Bruins&rsquo; other left knee, belonging to Brad Park, was not doing all that great, either, and it was not expected that the classy defenseman would be ready for the Stanley Cup quarterfinals.Brad underwent ligament surgery on March 4, and had been making good progress in drills. But on April 7, he said, &ldquo;It is not progressing as well as I had expected. I figured by now I&rsquo;d be skating in full stride.&ldquo;But, it is weaker than I thought. I know that it will be OK all of a sudden, but I can&rsquo;t predict whet her that will be in two days or two weeks&hellip;&rdquo; &#9632;

f0017-01

Cherry Denies Contract Kept Orr From Bruins After Knee Failed Tests

<h2>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-04306/3896456-1-eng-US/f0018-042.jpg" title="f0018-04" width="574" height="79"></div>(Buffalo wins best-of-three series 2-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Thu. April 6Buffalo 2 at St. Louis 5Thu. April 8St. Louis 2 at Buffalo 3Fri. April 9St. Louis 1 at Buffalo 2<h2>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-05231/3896449-1-eng-US/f0018-052.jpg" title="f0018-05" width="573" height="78"></div>(Islanders wins best-of-three series 2-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. April 6Vancouver 3 at N.Y. Islanders 5Thu. April 8N.Y. Islanders 3 at Vancouver 1<h2>SERIES &lsquo;C&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-06190/3896442-1-eng-US/f0018-062.jpg" title="f0018-06" width="568" height="79"></div>(Los Angeles wins best-of-three series 2-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. April 6Atlanta 1 at Los Angeles 2Thu. April 8Los Angeles 1 at Atlanta 0<h2>SERIES &lsquo;D&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-07165/3896435-1-eng-US/f0018-072.jpg" title="f0018-07" width="568" height="82"></div>(Toronto wins best-of-three series 2-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. April 6Pittsburgh 1 at Toronto 4Thu. April 8Toronto 0 at Pittsburgh 2Fri. April 9Pittsburgh 0 at Toronto 4<h2>SERIES &lsquo;E&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-08140/3896428-1-eng-US/f0018-082.jpg" title="f0018-08" width="570" height="77"></div>(Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. April 11Chicago 0 at Montreal 4Tue. April 13Chicago 1 at Montreal 3Thu. April 15Montreal 2 at Chicago 1Sun. April 18Montreal 4 at Chicago 1<h2>SERIES &lsquo;F&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-09121/3896421-1-eng-US/f0018-092.jpg" title="f0018-09" width="570" height="74"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Mon. April 12Toronto 1 at Philadelphia 4Tue. April 13Toronto 1 at Philadelphia 3Thu. April 15Philadelphia 4 at Toronto 5Sat. April 17Philadelphia 3 at Toronto 4<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. April 20Toronto at PhiladelphiaThu. April 22Philadelphia at TorontoSun. April 25Toronto at Philadelphia<h2>SERIES &lsquo;G&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-10108/3896414-1-eng-US/f0018-102.jpg" title="f0018-10" width="572" height="77"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. April 11Los Angeles 0 at Boston 4Tue. April 13Los Angeles 3 at Boston 2Thu. April 15Boston 4 at Los Angeles 6Sat. April 17Boston 3 at Los Angeles 0<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. April 20Los Angeles at BostonThu. April22Boston at Los AngelesSun. April 25Los Angeles at Boston<h2>SERIES &lsquo;H&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-11104/3896407-1-eng-US/f0018-112.jpg" title="f0018-11" width="572" height="74"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. April 11Islanders 3 at Buffalo 5Tue. April 13Islanders 2 at Buffalo 3Thu. April 15Buffalo 3 at Islanders 5Sat. April 17Buffalo 2 at Islanders 4<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. April 20Islanders at BuffaloThu April 22Buffalo at IslandersSun. April 25Islanders at Buffalo<h2>PLAYOFF SCORING</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-1295/3896400-1-eng-US/f0018-122.jpg" title="f0018-12" width="580" height="1620"></div> &#9632;

f0018-04

Stanley Cup Scoreboard

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03422/3896331-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">MARCEL DIONNE &hellip; First Playoff Hat Trick</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01702/3896338-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="188" height="336"></div>CHICAGO &mdash;The Montreal Canadiens. who sat and watched while the preliminary round of the Stanley Cup playoffs was contested, are going back to the role of spectators after breezing through their only postseason test against the Chicago Black Hawks.The Habs overwhelmed the Hawks 13-3 in goal-scoring as they swept the best-of-seven quarter-final series with Chicago to earn a berth in the semi-finals. Who the Canadiens will play in the next round is still confusing to the NHL season champions.It could be Los Angeles, Toronto, Buffalo or the New York Islanders for the Canadiens and not the Philadelphia Flyers or Boston Bruins. Should the Flyers and Bruins go all the way in their quarter-final series, Habs would meet the winner of the Sabres-Islanders&rsquo; go around. Series matchups are determined by regular-season point standings. The surviving team with the most points neets the survivor with the least and soon.The Canadiens, facing a six-day layoff until their next series, experienced little trouble with the Hawks winning 4-0 and 3-1 in Montreal before moving down to Chicago to wrap up the round in four straight with 2-1 and 4-1 victories. The Hawks&rsquo; lack of offense kept them from giving the powerful Habs much opposition.Goaler Ken Dryden backstopped all four wins including the first-game shutout and played superbly despite the fact the Hawks didn&rsquo;t mount much of an offense.Scoring wise. Guy Lafleur scored three times against the Hawks while Pete Mahovlich and Doug Jarvis each chipped in with a pair in the four games.While the Habs were coasting past the Hawks, the remaining three cup series continued to follow the home ice trend. In fact the home rink advantage was becoming a definite factor in this year&rsquo;s playoff games with NHL clubs enjoying an 80 per cent winning edge. Home teams have won 21 of the first 26 playoff games to date.The Philadelphia Flyers after winning two in the Spectrum found the Toronto Maple Leafs full of fire and desire once the teams moved to the Canadian city for games three and four. The Leafs shot a total of nine goals past goaler Bernie Parent as they won 5-4 and 4-3 to tie the series at 2-2.Following their brawling third game in which three Flyers were involved with fans in a penalty box altercation that led to criminal charges beind filed against three of the Philadelphia players &mdash; Don Saleski. Mel Bridgman and Joe Watson &mdash; the teams returned to playing hockey in game four and the outcome was utter excitement for 16.485 fans as the Leafs stuck to hockey and the Flyers attempted to police themselves after the game-three hostilities and many feel it cost them on the scoreboard.The Leafs, sparked by defenseman Borje Salming, dominated the positional play as Toronto capitalized on power plays to score two of their goals. The Flyers tried unsuccessfully to hobble Salming but the shifty Leaf blueliner, who was on the ice for nearly 40 minutes, scored once on a solo dash down the ice and stopped a puck with his chin to win the game&rsquo;s first star rating and a two-minutes standing ovation.Errol Thompson, Lanny McDonald and George Ferguson collected the other goals for the Leafs. Bridgman scored twice and Reg Leach once for the Flyers. In the fight-filled third game the Leafs had five different scorers and the Flyers four. Again Thomas starred but he didn&rsquo;t have the work Parent had. The Philly goaler handled 52-shots as the Leafs over ran the Philly defense.The Flyers had little trouble turning back the Leafs in the two games in Philadelphia. Leach, Orest Kindrachuk, Bobby Clarke and Gary Dornhoefer scored in the first game while Dave Schultz, Ross Lonsberry and Saleski counted for the Flyers in the second game.The Boston-Los Angeles series was probably the most surprising, of all. The teams persisted in losing on their home ice and winning in the other team&rsquo;s rink.Boston won the opener 4-0 in the Garden then lost 3-2 in overtime when Butch Goring scored after 27 seconds of play to give the Kings a 1-1 series tie. When the series swung to the West Coast, the Kings proceeded to win 6-4 with little Marcel Dionne scoring the first hat trick of the &rsquo;76 playoffs and his first in a playoff game to put L.A. on top 2-1 in the series. But the Bruins came back behind Gerry Cheevers&rsquo; shutout goaling to square the playoff at 2-2 with a 3-0 victory.The Buffalo-Islander series was following the home ice pattern as well. The Sabres took the first two at home 5-3 and 3-2 on Danny Gare&rsquo;s second playoff overtime goal but the Islanders were equal to the task once the teams moved to Long Island. The Isles won 5-3 and 4-2 with Billy Harris shooting three of the eight New York goals.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01368/3896324-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="1156" height="1752"><figcaption class="caption-body">Islanders&rsquo; Billy Harris, left, and Montreal&rsquo;s Doug Jarvis both were productive in the early playoff action. Harris had five goals in the Isles&rsquo; first seven games. Jarvis had two in four games for the Canadiens.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02284/3896317-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="1169" height="1328"></div> &#9632;

f0018-03

Canadiens Sweep Black Hawks Out In Four; Home Ice Proving Winning Playoff Edge

TORONTO&mdash;Three Philadelphia Flyers hockey players are scheduled to appear in a Toronto courtroom June 10, when trial dates will be set on the nine charges that resulted from incidents during the Flyers&rsquo; National Hockey League playoff game against Toronto Maple Leafs April 15.Joe Watson, Mel Bridgman and Don Saleski appeared in court the day of the fourth series game after surrendering to Metro police the night before.Watson faces two charges of common assault, two of assaulting a policeman and one of possession of a dangerous weapon (a hockey stick). Bridgman is charged with one count of assault causing bodily harm and Saleski faces two charges of common assault and one of possession of a dangerous weapon.The charges stem from incidents in and around the penalty box and on the ice during the playoff game. One Metro policeman standing near the penalty box was struck with a stick during a scuffle at the penalty box.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02563/3896369-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="548" height="1156"><figcaption class="caption-body">DON SALESKI</figcaption></div>The three players sat in the spectators&rsquo; gallery in courtroom at the Old City Hall for about 20 minutes waiting for their case to be called. They showed no emotion when the crown prosecutor announced the June 10 date for scheduling the trial.A small group of demonstrators, protesting against violence in hockey, picketed Maple Leaf Gardens urging subscribers not to buy season&rsquo;s tickets next year.&ldquo;It seems there&rsquo;s more fighting than playing. We want the people who sponsor it to be more responsible and stop the fighting,&rdquo; Thomas Wiik, one of the leaders of the protest, said in reference to National Hockey League owners.Some of the demonstrators were from Toronto&rsquo;s Scandinavian community. Several said they were particularly angered at the violent tactics employed by visiting teams against Borje Salming and Inge Hammarstrom, two Swedish players on the Toronto team.Several protesters carried Danish and Swedish flags. &#9632;

f0018-02

Brawling Flyers To Face Charges

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01673/3896732-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="744" height="974"></div>Warning: Health and Welfare Canada advises that danger to health increases with amount smoked - avoid inhaling Av per cigarette. Regular 16mg tar 12mg nicotine King 18mg &ldquo;tar&rdquo; 13mg nicotine.<h2>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2><h3>Tue. April 6</h3>BUFFALO 2, ST, LOUIS 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02552/3896725-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="583" height="403"></div>(St. Louis leads best-of-three series 1-0).<h3>Thu. April 8</h3>ST. LOUIS 2, BUFFALO 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03432/3896718-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="583" height="474"></div>(Best of seven seriesteed 1-1)<h3>Fri. April 9</h3>ST. LOUIS 1 BUFFALO 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-04369/3896711-1-eng-US/f0019-042.jpg" title="f0019-04" width="580" height="481"></div>(Buffalo wins best-of-three series 2-1)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</h2><h3>Tue. April 6</h3>VANCOUVER 3, ISLANDERS 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-05305/3896704-1-eng-US/f0019-052.jpg" title="f0019-05" width="589" height="509"></div>(Islanders lead best-of-three senes 1-0)<h3>Thu. April 8</h3>ISLANDERS 3, VANCOUVER 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-06235/3896697-1-eng-US/f0019-062.jpg" title="f0019-06" width="572" height="149"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-07206/3896690-1-eng-US/f0019-072.jpg" title="f0019-07" width="585" height="250"></div>(Islanders win best-of-three series 2-0)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;C&rsquo;</h2><h3>Tue. April 6</h3>PITTSBURGH 1, TORONTO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-08189/3896683-1-eng-US/f0019-082.jpg" title="f0019-08" width="578" height="225"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-09164/3896676-1-eng-US/f0019-092.jpg" title="f0019-09" width="582" height="181"></div>(Toronto leads best-of-three series 10)<h3>Thu. April 8</h3>TORONTO 0, PITTSBURGH 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-10145/3896669-1-eng-US/f0019-102.jpg" title="f0019-10" width="578" height="328"></div>(Best-of-three series tied 1-1)<h3>Fri. April 9</h3>PITTSBURGH 0, TORONTO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-11130/3896662-1-eng-US/f0019-112.jpg" title="f0019-11" width="585" height="361"></div>(Toronto wins best-of-three series 2-1)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;D&rsquo;</h2><h3>Tue. April 6</h3>ATLANTA 1, LOS ANGELES 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-12122/3896655-1-eng-US/f0019-122.jpg" title="f0019-12" width="338" height="60"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-13103/3896648-1-eng-US/f0019-132.jpg" title="f0019-13" width="584" height="280"></div>(Los Angeles leads best-of-three senes 1-0)<h3>Thu. April 8</h3>LOS ANGELES 1, ATLANTA 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1495/3896641-1-eng-US/f0019-142.jpg" title="f0019-14" width="582" height="356"></div>(Los Angeles wins best-of-three series 2-0)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;E&rsquo;</h2><h3>Sun. Apr. 11</h3>CHICAGO 0, MONTREAL 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1585/3896634-1-eng-US/f0019-152.jpg" title="f0019-15" width="586" height="386"></div>(Montreal leads best-of-seven series 1-0).<h3>Tue. April 13</h3>CHICAGO 1, MONTREAL 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1677/3896627-1-eng-US/f0019-162.jpg" title="f0019-16" width="584" height="409"></div>(Montreal leads best-of-seven series 2-0).<h3>Thu. April 15</h3>MONTREAL 2, CHICAGO 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1763/3896620-1-eng-US/f0019-172.jpg" title="f0019-17" width="584" height="384"></div>(Montreal leads best-of-seven series 3-0)<h3>Sun. April 18</h3>MONTREAL 4, CHICAGO 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1854/3896613-1-eng-US/f0019-182.jpg" title="f0019-18" width="586" height="231"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01392/3896606-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="574" height="180"></div>(Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-1945/3896599-1-eng-US/f0019-192.jpg" title="f0019-19" width="863" height="1875"><figcaption class="caption-body">Two of the stars of the Boston-Los Angeles series have been goaler Gerry Cheevers, left, and Butch Goring. Cheevers stopped the Kings in game four 3-0 and Goring connected for the Kings&rsquo; game-winning goal overtime to beat the Bruins in the second game of the series.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-2035/3896592-1-eng-US/f0019-202.jpg" title="f0019-20" width="865" height="1849"></div><h2>SERIES &lsquo;F&rsquo;</h2><h3>Mon. April 12</h3>TORONTO 1, PHILADELPHIA 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02300/3896585-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="578" height="429"></div>(Philadelphia leads best-of-seven series 1-0)<h3>Tue. April 13</h3>TORONTO 1, PHILADELPHIA 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03252/3896578-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="579" height="425"></div>(Philadelphia leads best-of-seven series 2-0)<h3>Thu. April 15</h3>PHILADELPHIA 4, TORONTO 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-04198/3896571-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="574" height="721"></div>(Philadelphia leads best-of-seven series 2-1)<h3>Sat. April 17</h3>PHILADELPHIA 3, TORONTO 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-05161/3896564-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="574" height="445"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 2-2)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;G&rsquo;</h2><h3>Sun. April 11</h3>LOS ANGELES 0, BOSTON 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-06127/3896557-1-eng-US/f0022-062.jpg" title="f0022-06" width="573" height="450"></div>(Boston leads best-of-seven series 1-0).<h3>Tue. April 13</h3>LOS ANGELES 3, BOSTON 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-07114/3896550-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="572" height="430"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)<h3>Thu. April 15</h3>BOSTON 4, LOS ANGELES 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-08103/3896543-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="568" height="326"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-0995/3896536-1-eng-US/f0022-092.jpg" title="f0022-09" width="567" height="148"></div>(Los Angeles leads best-of-sevenseries 2-1)<h3>Sat. April 17</h3>BOSTON 3, LOS ANGELES<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1084/3896529-1-eng-US/f0022-102.jpg" title="f0022-10" width="574" height="352"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied2-2)<h2>SERIES &lsquo;H&rsquo;</h2><h3>Sun. April 11</h3>ISLANDERS 3, BUFFALO 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1179/3896522-1-eng-US/f0022-112.jpg" title="f0022-11" width="577" height="226"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1274/3896515-1-eng-US/f0022-122.jpg" title="f0022-12" width="573" height="225"></div>(Buffalo leads best-of-seven senes 1-0).<h3>Tue. April 13</h3>ISLANDERS 2, BUFFALO 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1367/3896508-1-eng-US/f0022-132.jpg" title="f0022-13" width="573" height="456"></div>(Buffalo leads best-of-seven series 2-0)<h3>Thu. April 15</h3>BUFFALO 3, ISLANDERS 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1459/3896501-1-eng-US/f0022-142.jpg" title="f0022-14" width="572" height="73"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1557/3896494-1-eng-US/f0022-152.jpg" title="f0022-15" width="572" height="420"></div>(Buffalo leads best-of-seven series 2-1)<h3>Sat. April 17</h3>BUFFALO 2, ISLANDERS 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-1649/3896487-1-eng-US/f0022-162.jpg" title="f0022-16" width="574" height="423"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 2-2). &#9632;

f0019-01

Stanley Cup Playoff Summaries

<div class="byline">BY DONALD BERNS</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH & BRAOSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH & BRAOSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaST. LOUIS&mdash;There&rsquo;ll be a new look about the St. Louis Blues next season behind the bench. The invader is Emile (The Cat) Francis, a longtime hockey manipulator who has taken on the double portfolio of general manager and coach with the National Hockey League club.The 49-year-old Francis is the latest in a steady flow of bench coaches that seem to show up in the year-to-year operation of the Blues. In fact &lsquo;The Cat&rsquo; will become the 10th coach in the nine-year history of the St. Louis club. He will also assume the GM&rsquo;s duties, a job that seemingly was abandoned by Sid Salomon III, who also doubles as team president and managing director of the team. Salomon took the GM job briefly and then announced there would be no general manager and that he would call the shots from his executive seat. Now the chore has been thrust into the lap of Francis, who comes to the Blues after a 16-year association with the New York Rangers as vice-president, GM, coach and at one time as a goalkeepter in his playing days.Francis steps into the coaching position which has become a virtual graveyard for NHL men in recent years. He directly succeeds Leo Boivin, who took over from Garry Young, who replaced Lynn Patrick, and so on. Boivin, who was pulled up from his scouting assignment to become interim coach of the Blues in mid season, will return to his bird dogging role with the St. Louis organization.Francis comes into the Blues&rsquo; system with a little bit more going for him than some of the people before him. As an added inducement, Francis will become a shareholder in the Blues&rsquo; operation.&ldquo;As a shareholder,&rdquo; quipped Francis at a press conference called to introduce him as an executive vice-president of the Blues&rsquo; controlling Arena Corp., &ldquo;I&rsquo;m fooling around not only with someone else&rsquo;s money but my own. I always wanted to be a shareholder. It&rsquo;s a secure arrangement as far as I&rsquo;m concerned &mdash;to involve my own money.&rdquo;The 5&rsquo;6&rdquo; Francis said he has some definite ideas about what the Blues want and need and he&rsquo;ll be looking into them between now and the summer hockey meetings in June at Montreal.One encouraging note for &lsquo;The Cat&rsquo; has to be the goaling outlook for next season. The Blues, eliminated again in the first round of the playoffs, nevertheless were encouraged by the excellent playoff goaltending of 20-year-old Ed Staniowski. Francis admitted he was impressed.The Buffalo Sabres, finalists last season in the Stanley Cup playoffs, beat the Blues in the first round this year by winning the last two games of the series in overtime on home ice. The series was closely contested and easily could have been won by the Blues.The Blues last season were eliminated by the Pittsburgh Penguins in two straight games, and the Blues&rsquo; play was shabby. But this season the underdog Blues pushed the Sabres hard, and the Blues&rsquo; season ended on a much more respectable note than the previous year.The difference was Staniowski, who had played in only 11 National Hockey League games before the playoffs and never before had faced the Sabres. He played all three games against Buffalo and had fans on both sides talking about the obviously bright future of the young netminder.In the first game in St. Louis he stopped 37 of 39 shots as the Blues won, 5-2. In the second game in Buffalo the Sabres bombarded the Blues and outshot them, 57-16, but Staniowski kept the Blues in the game, which was forced into overtime before Danny Gare scored for a 3-2 Buffalo victory. In the rubber game in Buffalo Don Luce was the overtime hero, but Staniowski again was outstanding as he stopped 32 of 34 shots.During the traditional handshaking line after the third game there was a jam at Staniowski&rsquo;s spot in the line as virtually every member of the Sabres took a few moments to pay a longer-than-usual personal tribute to the young goalie. Staniowski was impressed that the members of the French Connection offered congratulations and predicted a great future for him. Staniowski had held the line of Gil Perreault, Rick Martin and Rene Robert to one goal inthe series.Gare, who got one of the overtime goals, was the only Buffalo player who had played against Staniowski prior to the series. The two were in junior hockey together. After Staniowski had shut out the Sabres on 39 shots over the first two periods of the second game, Gare said he asked himself, &ldquo;Why keep shooting?&rdquo;Eddie Johnston, the Blues&rsquo; 39-year-old veteran who had carried a heavy goaltending load during the season, said, &ldquo;I can take it easy next year; we&rsquo;ve got a goaltender.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01519/3896763-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="556" height="1072"><figcaption class="caption-body">ED STANIOWSKI &hellip;Hot In Playoffs</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0020-01

Francis To Wear Two Hats As New Manager-Coach Of St. Louis Blues

<div class="byline">BY RON WEBER</div>WASHINGTON&mdash;In our last chapter, sports fans, we were speaking of consistency and deploring the Capitals lack of it in just two consecutive games.Well, in the last two games, the Capitals were consistent. They were outshot by a potfull in each, permitted four goals in each and saw both decided by a one-goal margin.Did they win both? Naw, that wouldn&rsquo;t have been consistent. You see, they have never won two in arow. not unless you count exhibition games.(By the way, coach Tom McVie was counting on winning more than two in a row on the trip to Japan, saying. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be very, very unhappy if we don&rsquo;t win all four with the Scouts.&rdquo;)But now, back to our story &mdash; in Pittsburgh. Fresh off an embarrassment in Philadelphia, flattened 11-2 by the Flyers, the Capitals took on the Penguins. The hosts needed a win to preserve chances of home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffsThey didn&rsquo;t get it. Though outshot 52-27 the Caps gave goalie Ron Low enough help to win 5-4. A combination of the Pens polite play and referee Ron Wicks boys-will-be-boys philosophy left the Capitals without a power play for an entire game for the first time. It wasn&rsquo;t needed. Ace Bailey caromed in the winner off his skate. Except for a 1-1 tie, the Ice Caps led throughout, after having spotted their opponents at least a 1-0 lead in seven consecutive matches.So Low won his last regular season game as a bachelor and got a good seat at the end of the bench the next night as Bernie Wolfe went in against the big bad bleu, blanc and rouge from his hometown.The Canadiens special incentive for the season closer had nothing to do with playoff venues. It had long since been decided they would have the extra home game in every Stanley Cup series, having already marched to the highest point total in NHL history. What did remain was the chance to become THE winningest team since they pasted the National League together during the First World War. Montreal needed one more win to top the 1971 Boston Bruins total of 57.In the end they got it. At the very end.The Capitals, definitely outshot, perhaps outplayed but certainly not outworked led with three minutes to go. Steve Shutt had scored his seventh and eighth goals of the season against Washington late in the second period. That was more than equalized by Tony White&rsquo;s tip-in, Hartland Monahan&rsquo;s net-bender and Mike Lampman&rsquo;s two-on-one conversion (all assisted by Rick Bragnalo). On top 3-2, &hellip; deflected puck bounced into Yvon Lambert&rsquo;s forehand head-on from 15 feet and Peter Mahovlich outdrew Gerry Meehan as Guy Lafleur clubbed in number 56.Montreal had it when they had to, and deserved the victory and the record.ICE CAPS: Within 48 hours after the season&rsquo;s end Greg Joly took his wedding vows in his home area of Calgary&hellip;Low was to follow him to the altar shortly&hellip;The Capitals went out in a blaze of financial glory, drawing a full house for the Canadien clash &mdash; 18,130. It was their third sellout ofthe season in one of the biggest rinks on the continent, and (added to the Bullets capacity draw against NBA rival New Orleans that same afternoon) meant 37,205 paid their way into Abe Pollin&rsquo;s palace on the plains during the same p.m&hellip;Abe&rsquo;s persona plea-from-me-to-you approach appeared to have done some good as eight of the last ten home games had crowds in excess of 10,000. The forty games average fell just short of five figures&hellip;Bailey won the post-season players golf tournament&hellip; At the Fan Club&rsquo;s second annual banquet that very night, amidst charges he outcheated the others, he expressed concern he might not be able to go to Japan. &ldquo;The Masters wants me,&rdquo; said the Acer. The very well attended affair saw the following disposition of awards: Most Popular Capital: Ivan Labre; Most Promising: Joly; Most Valuable: Wolfe; and Unsung Hero: Ron Lalonde&hellip;Practice was held right up until the club left for their tour of Japan.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01358/3896794-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="565" height="616"><figcaption class="caption-body">ACE BAILEY &hellip;Caps&rsquo; Best Golfer</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0021-01

Caps Ended Campaign With Close Games

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0024-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01380/3896825-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Players like NHL &lsquo;bad man&rsquo; Steve Durbano of the Scouts could be playing their NHL hockey in a new environment next season. Durbano called the Scouts a &lsquo;bad club&rsquo; on the ice as he became disenchanted with their losing year.</figcaption></div>KANSAS CITY&mdash;The Kansas City Scouts foundered on financial rocks and the chances of them rescued to continue operating in the National Hockey League appeared more remote as the days wore on.The NHL Scouts were in default of a $300,000 loan from the league and when their treasury became empty they resorted to rare means for a professional sports organization &mdash; they laid off the office staff and relieved general manager Sid Abel and his assistant, Baz Bastien, of their jobs.Scouts&rsquo; president Ed Thompson, who has been waging a losing battle with season ticketholders, said he had no recourse but to lay off his employees when the funds ran out.&ldquo;It was depressing,&rdquo; admitted Thompson, who has been fighting city hall and the Kansas City business world for more support at the gate to keep the Scouts in Kansas City. Thompson set an objective of 8,000 season tickets for next season to ensure operation of the club and to date the campaign has fallen considerably short.The plight of the Scouts appears to rest in the hands of the NHL, who advanced the club the loan to allow the club to meet its payroll in the final months of the campaign. NHL president Clarence Campbell said nothing would be done for the moment. He added the league would probably have to consider moving the club if new owners are not uncovered to purchase the team. Campbell said he was firmly convinced the Scouts would have to be sold to new buyers to keep the team in the city.Thompson said he was willing to listen to offers for the franchise and would welcome a proposal by the pro basketball Kansas City Kings to purchase the hockey club. Both the Scouts and Kings share Kemper Arena for their home games.Thompson, who has been reported in the media to have been critical of the city sports fathers for not getting behind the club, said he sent Mayor Charles Wheeler a letter in an effort to clarify earlier criticism of what he termed a lack of city support for the Scouts&rsquo; season ticket drive.Thompson reiterated he wasn&rsquo;t mad at anyone. All he wanted was a chance to sit down with the basketball people and discuss a possible sale. If the deal fails to materialize, the Scouts most certainly will be moved elsewhere.The front office upheaval ap pears to have cost both Abel and Bastien their jobs. Abel was vacationing when the news broke in Kansas City and Bastien was on a tour of Japan with the club and the Washington Capitals.It seems the Scouts were getting better treatment in Tokyo than they were receiving in Kansas City although their luck on the ice hadn&rsquo;t changed. They lost the first three games of their eight-game Japanese tour to Washington 5-2 and 6-2 in Sapporo and 6-2 in Tokyo.But about 10,000 Japanese fans were on hand in Tokyo to see the third game, a crowd that would be most welcome back home in K.C. &#9632;

f0024-01

K.C. Dismisses Front Office Staff, Drops Abel, Bastien As Funds Run Out

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0025-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01322/3896856-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Leafs&rsquo; Darryl Sittier shows off the Molson Cup he won for leading the Toronto segment of the oMolson three-star voting conducted in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, Sittler also opocketed a check for $1,000 for his foot.</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;Being offensive minded can lead to riches. Ask Darryl Sittier. Guy Lafleur and Bobby Lalonde.The three National Hockey League scoring stars emerged as the respective winners of the Molson Cup in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver this season and for two of them &mdash; Sittier and Lafleur &mdash; it was 1975 all over again.Sittier, the Leafs&rsquo; dynamic captain and individual scoring leader this season with 41 goals and an even 100 points, captured his second straight Molson Cup award among Maple Leaf players and Lafleur did likewise with the Canadiens. For the diminutive Lalonde it was a first as the winner of the Vancouver segment of the three-star voting. Each player was presented with a cup and a check for $1,000 for their efforts.It was pretty evident from the start that Sittier was going to be the leader of the Leafs and when it was all over he finished as their top scorer and recorded a 100-point year, joining eight others this season in the NHL who achieved the century scoring plateau. But Sittier didn&rsquo;t have it easy in the Molson Cup voting. Linemate Lanny McDonald and goaler Wayne Thomas put up quite a battle before finishing second and third respectively in the Toronto balloting.Lafleur had command of the Montreal segment of the Molson voting from the beginning ofthe season. In fact the high-scoring Canadiens&rsquo; right winger had the title wrapped up with still five games remaining on the regular schedule. Lafleur had a fantastic year and it showed in the three-star voting as he was the continual first pick for his performance on the ice with the Canadiens. Lafleur turned in his second 50-goal season with the Habs and ended up as the NHL&rsquo;s point scoringchampion with 125.Lafleur&rsquo;s statistics were highly impressive this season. He had 56 goals, collected 69 assists and ended with 125 points to beat out Philadelphia&rsquo;s Bobby Clarke by six in a stirring stretch battle for the coveted Art Ross Trophy. Lafleur also tallied 18 power play goals and counted 12 game winners clearly indicating he scored scores when the goals are really-needed. The fast-skating, breakaway Montreal star was an easy winner of the right wing berth in the 29th annual HOCKEY NEWS&rsquo; All Star poll and is certain to duplicate his feat when the official NHL all Star teams are announced at the end of the season.Lafleur received more votes than any other member of the Canadiens with only his left wing linemate, Steve Shutt, and starry defenseman Guy-Lapointe, actually able to stay with him in the game-to-game voting. Both Shutt and Lapointe finished tied for the runner-upspot behind Lafleur.Out in Vancouver, Lalonde won a great battle against tougher odds having spent part of the season in the minor leagues with Tulsa of the Central Hockey League and some lime on the Canucks&rsquo; bench. But Lalonde shook off the adversity and proved his worth when given the chance to play regularly. Although he only-ranked seventh highest among Canuck scorers with 50 points, he managed to pass rookie Rick Blight, who won one segment and whose last few months&rsquo; effort to claim the Molson Cup earned him a second place finish overall in back of Lalonde. Blight still won $500 while Lalonde collected the $1,000 prize.The Molson Trophy voting was run off in five monthly segments and March winners were Lafleur in Montreal, defenseman Brian Glennie in Toronto and Mike Walton in Vancouver, who jumped back from the WHA to star with the Canucks in the last six weeks of theschedule. &#9632;

f0025-01

Sittler, Lafleur, Lalonde Capture Molson Cup Awards

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0026-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01331/3896911-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOBBY HULL &hellip; Five-Goal Series</figcaption></div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGERHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH & BRAOSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGERHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH & BRAOSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaWINNIPEG&mdash;The stage was set for the Canadian Division championship final and if the ease which both teams showed in reaching the semi-final round was any indication, then both the Winnipeg Jets and Calgary Cowboys will be starting off on an even footing.The Jets breezed past the Edmonton Oilers 4-0 in their best-of-seven series outscoring them 22-11 and the Cowboys were hardly extended as they won three games in Quebec City to oust the Nordiques 4-1 intheir best-of-seven series.It was a strange turn of events for the Nordiques, who were practically invincible on home ice this season. The injury to Marc Tardif in game two may have taken the steam out of the Quebecers as they scored only 15 times to 23 tallied by the inspired Cowboys.At any rate, the Jets and Cowboys go at it in a best-of-seven division final for the right to advance to the WHA championship series in the league&rsquo;s first Canada-U.S. title final.The Houston Aeros and San Diego Mariners are battling it out in the West Division final and the New England Whalers and Indianapolis Racers are still going at it in the East Division final series. The two survivors will meet in the U.S. final for the right to oppose the Canadian champions, either Winnipeg or Calgary, for the Avco World Trophy.The Jets, sparked by Bobby Hull&rsquo;s five-goal performance in the four games, had a relatively easy time with the Oilers, who didn&rsquo;t have the offense to match the powerful Winnipeg club. The Jets won the opener 7-3 and took the second game at home 5-4 on an overtimeperiod goal by Ulf Nilsson, a solo effort with the teams only 54 seconds into the extra period. It was Nilsson&rsquo;s second of the game. Hull counted once in each of the two Winnipeg games.When the series moved to Edmonton, the Oilers gave the Jets a real battle in game three before Hull broke a 2-2 tie in the third period to beat Edmonton much to the dismay of 7,800 fans. But the crowd wasn&rsquo;t too disheartened because 13,044 showed up two nights later to see the Oilers bow out 7-2 with Hull providing the momentum as he scored twice to lead the Jets&rsquo; four-game series sweep.The series started out as a war of words between Winnipeg coach Bobby Kromm and Edmonton&rsquo;s Bill Hunter. Kromm charged the Oilers didn&rsquo;t belong in the playoffs because of their final position, 23 points behind the third-place Calgary Cowboys, and he further accused Hunter of having the WHA playoff format changed to accommodate his club. Last season only the top two teams in each division were allowed in the playoffs. This year four clubs out of five made it in the Canadian division, three out of four in the East and all three in the West Division.The playoff fireworks was provided by the Calgary-Quebec series. The Cowboys took the initiative in the series when they won the first two games in Quebec 3-1 and the fight-filled 8-4 encounter in which Rick Jodzio attacked Quebec&rsquo;s WHA scoring champion Tardif, who suffered a concussion and shock. Tardif was out of the playoffs and so was Jodzio, who was suspended along with Calgary coach Joe Crozier, for failing to control his players. Jodzio went out for the rest of the year on suspension. Crozier was hoping to have his case reviewed to get back behind the bench for the final series with Winnipeg.The Cowboys won the third game 3-2 at home before the Nordiques snapped out of their lethargy and won the fourth game 4-3. But it was shortlived as the Cowboys came back in Quebec City in game five to bury the Nordiques 64 as Chris Evans punched in a pair for the Cowboys. Players like Gavin Kirk, Ron Chipperfield, George Morrison, who had an outstanding series. Lynn Powis. Peter Driscoll, Danny Lawson and Bernie Lukowich, all kept the Calgary offense hopping with their individual scoring efforts. The windup game attracted 12,675 in Quebec without an incident as referee Bill Friday whistled down only 10 penalties, all minors. &#9632;

f0026-01

Winnipeg-Calgary Showdown Set For Canadian Final

<div class="byline">BY DOUG McCONNELL</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0027-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01311/3896942-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">GORDIE HOWE&hellip;102-Point Year May Be Clincher</figcaption></div>HOUSTON&mdash;Gordie Howe retire as professional hockey&rsquo;s only playing president?Even Howe, who just celebrated his 48th birthday, isn&rsquo;t sure.&ldquo;There will be some questions to be answered in my own mind,&rdquo; he said after the final game of the regular World Hockey Association schedule.&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s say it&rsquo;s 80-20 I retire, but I&rsquo;m hedging a bit. Remember last year at this time, I said I was retiring.&rdquo;He changed his mind just before training camp opened, and got off to a slow start, but made up for it with 56 points in the last 33 games.He scored his 32nd goal of the season and added three assists in the final game, an 8-5 victory over the Phoenix Roadrunners. He finished the season with 102 points, nudging Andre Lacroix of San Diego out ofthe top 10.it was the third time in Howe&rsquo;s 28 years of pro hockey that he accumulated 100 points or more.&ldquo;That 100 points and the 30-goal season answers the question &lsquo;Was I helping the club?&rsquo;&rdquo; said Howe.Howe was named the Aeros&rsquo; player of the year and a crowd of 12,091 fans in The Summit sang Happy Birthday between periods.&ldquo;I kinda have to laugh,&rdquo; said Howe, after the game. &ldquo;Here I am celebrating my 48th birthday with a four-point night. I don&rsquo;t know what to think.&ldquo;My legs are tired and I&rsquo;m sore, but, the thing is I don&rsquo;t feel any worse than I did at this stage last year.&rdquo;&ldquo;The quy&rsquo;s amazing,&rdquo; said Aeros&rsquo; coach Bill Dineen. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to see him back next year, but that&rsquo;s strictly his own decision. I think he&rsquo;ll make up his mind in the near future.&ldquo;I think he&rsquo;s played as well the past few months as he has in his last threeyears here.&rdquo;The Aeros surged to a 13-5-0 finish to earn the home ice advantage in all phases of the playoffs. The Aeros and Winnipeg tied with 106 points, but Houston&rsquo;s win percentage is .663 and Winnipeg&rsquo;s .660.(Winnipeg was one of four teams to play 81 games in schedule juggling to make up for the demise of Denver and Minnesota).The Aeros also scored nine power play goals in their last 14 opportunities. It gave Houston a team and World Hockey Association record of 77 power play goals for the season.Houston scored 77 ties in 246-man advantage opportunities, a league record 31.1 percent. The record was 28.4 percent, set by Houston during the 1973-74 season.The Aeros have 212 power play goals during the past three seasons while allowing 154. The Aeros held the opposition to a club record 42 power play goals, low figure in the WHA this season.The Aeros were also a box office success at home and away, drawing an average of 9,177 fans per game at home (367,184 total) and including no-shows the figure is over 10,000 per game, according to vice president of administration and finance, Bob Keltie.The Aeros drew 727,323 fans, home and away, the first WHA team to play before more than 700,000 in a season. The Aeros held the previous record of 628,777, set in the 1974-75 season. &#9632;

f0027-01

Gordie Howe Feels He May Play Another Year In WHA

<div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01255/3897158-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="128" height="344"></div>PHOENIX&mdash;It started out as a &lsquo;homer&rsquo; series but the dramatic ending wasn&rsquo;t quite what the Phoenix Roadrunners expected.The Runners blew their best-of-five West Division semi-final series to the San Diego Mariners when the home ice advantage ran out in game five after each had won twice in their respective rinks. The Mariners won the deciding fifth game 2-1 after Phoenix had won game one 3-2 and game three 6-4 at home. San Diego took the second game 4-2 and the fourth 5-1 at the Sports Arena.The Roadrunners were supposed to follow form and win the fifth game in Phoenix and go on to meet the Houston Aeros in the best-of-seven divisional final. Instead the Mariners moved on and the Runners were sent packing for another disappointing year.An ironic twist to the fifth game was the fact the contest was played completly free of penalties, which must have delighted the World Hockey Association no end after what transpired in the Quebec-Calgary series.While a full 60 minutes of crucial playoff hockey failed to produce one single penalty, the Mariners proceeded to work on the Roadrunners and they received a big goaling performance from Ernie Wakely to pull it off. Alex Tidey opened the scoring for the Mariners in the first period before John Gray retaliated for Phoenix to set the stage for the game winner by Norm Ferguson of San Diego late in the second period. Wakely took over after Ferguson&rsquo;s goal and slammed the door shut on the Roadrunners.Meanwhile, veteran Andre Lacroix ofthe Mariners called the second game of the series a &ldquo;must game for us&rdquo; and San Diego responded by winning 4-2 to even the roundat 1-1.Lacroix&rsquo;s power-play goal was the clincher in the second game and he said: &ldquo;If Phoenix had won, we&rsquo;d have been dead. We haven&rsquo;t won in Phoenix all season and they&rsquo;d really have had the advantage, but now we have the momentum.&rdquo; As it turned out the Mariners made a prophet of Lacroix.Phoenix coach Sandy Hucul agreed that the Mariners picked up the momentum precisely at 6:48 of the third period of the second game.Fourteen seconds earlier, Jim Boyd&rsquo;s second goal of the game, had tied the score, 2-2, but the Mariners came right back with Norm Ferguson triggering the eventual winner as he was being driven to the ice by Phoenix captain Al McLeod&ldquo;You could just see our guys sag after that,&rdquo; said Hucul. &ldquo;They had battled back but were behind again before they know it.&rdquo;The Roadrunners, who allowed a WHA record 89 power play goals during the regular season, were shorthanded six times.&ldquo;The penalties hurt us,&rdquo; said Phoenix defenseman Jim Niekamp. &ldquo;We killed the first five, but it was just a matter of time until they scored on a power play.&rdquo;The Roadrunners were outshot 37-24, including 16-4 in the third period, and got some brilliant goaltending from Jack Norris.Norris also starred in the overtime victory in Phoenix and Wakely was equally brilliant in the San Diego nets.The winning goal, at 0:31 of overtime, was actually kicked in the net by Brent Hughes after Wakely had stopped Del Hall, a 47-goal scorer this season, on a clean breakaway.Ray Adduono scored the winner against the Crusaders at 7:49 of overtime to deny Cleveland first place in the WHA East. &#9632;</div>

f0029-01

Mariners Surprise Roadrunners Winning Series On Phoenix Ice

INDIANAPOLIS&mdash;The Indianapolis Racers figure they have as good a chance as anyone to win it all in the World Hockey Association playoffs and they&rsquo;ve based their optimism on a pair of young goalers who have the nerves of steel despite their new found exposure to major league hockey.Michel Dion and Jim Park are the rookie netminders in question and Racers&rsquo; coach Jacques Demers predicted his club would do all right for itself if the Indianapolis goaling holds up. Demers&rsquo; forecast was looking good after game two of the best-of-seven East Division final series.Park took over the starting role in the second game and promptly blanked the New England Whalers 4-0 stopping 25 shots in the process. Park relieved Dion in game one which the Whalers won 4-1.So with the series headed to Hartford for the next two games Demers is keeping his fingers crossed and his eye on his young goalkeepers.Park thrilled 10,111 Indianapolis spectators as he played brilliantly to turn back the big New England shooters as he stopped the Whalers on eight power-play opportunities.The goaling job broke the Whalers&rsquo; backs and the offense took over to nail down the first win of the series. Kerry Bond. Michel Parizeau, Renald Leclerc and Hugh Harris backed Park up with single goals as the Racers participated in their first playoff after drawing a first-round bye by virtue of finishing in first place. &#9632;

Whalers, Racers Split On Indy Ice

<h2>SERIES &lsquo;A&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02207/3897248-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="573" height="81"></div>(Winnipeg wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. April 9Edmonton 3 at Winnipeg 7Sun. April 11Edmonton 4 at Winnipeg 5Wed. April 14Winnipeg 3 at Edmonto 2Fri. April 16Winnipeg 7 at Edmonton 2<h2>SERIES &lsquo;B&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03138/3897241-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="575" height="79"></div>(Calgary wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sat. April 10Calgary 3 at Quebec 1Sun. April 11Calgory 8 at Quebec 4Wed. April 14Quebec 2 at Calgary 3Fri. April 16Quebec 4 at Calgory 3Sun. April 18Calgary 6 at Quebec 4<h2>SERIES &lsquo;C&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04104/3897234-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="570" height="73"></div>(New England wins best-of-seven series 3-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. April 9Cleveland 3 at New England 5Sat. April 10New England 6 at Cleveland 1Sun. April 11New England 3 at Cleveland 2<h2>SERIES &lsquo;D&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0595/3897227-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="573" height="79"></div>(San Diego wins best-of-seven series 3-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. April 9San Diego 2 at Phoenix 3Sat. April 10Phoenix 2 at Son Diego 4Tue. April 13Son Diego 4 at Phoenix 6Thu. April 15Phoenix 1 at Son Diego 5Sat. April 1 7Son Diego 2 at Phoenix 1<h2>SERIES &lsquo;E&rsquo;</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0674/3897220-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="570" height="80"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. April 16New England 4 at Indianapolis 1Sat. April 17New England 0 at Indianapols 4GAMES TO COMEWed. April 21Indianapolis at New EnglandFri. April 23Indianapols at New EnglandSat. April 24New England at IndianapolsTue. April 27Indianapols at New EnglandThu. April 29New England at Indianapols<h3>PLAYOFF SCORING</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-0759/3897213-1-eng-US/f0029-072.jpg" title="f0029-07" width="570" height="347"></div> &#9632;

f0029-02

Avco Scoreboard

<h2>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01291/3897279-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="596" height="1396"></div> &#9632;

f0030-01

WHA Leaders

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0030-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02230/3897310-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0030-02

NHL’s Top PP Scorers

<h2>(Final Standings)</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0934/3897341-1-eng-US/f0030-092.jpg" title="f0030-09" width="537" height="580"></div>*&mdash;withdrew from league. &#9632;

f0030-09

HOW THEY STAND

<div class="byline">BY RICH PASSAN</div>CLEVELAND&mdash;Never has one team come so close to winning a division championship yet been so far.All the Cleveland Crusaders needed to capture the East Division championship of the World Hockey Association for the first time ever was a victory on the night of April 6 at home.Their opponents were the San Diego Mariners, a club they had defeated, 4-2, three nights earlier. They came out and levelled 59 shots at goaltender Ernie Wakely and permitted only 21, just one in the third period.The Mariners, however, escaped with a 3-2 victory on Ray Adduono&rsquo;s overtime goal and the C&rsquo;s were in a best-of-five opening round series against their old nemesis, the New England Whalers.The Whalers professed to being &ldquo;relieved&rdquo; at facing the Crusaders and not the Indianapolis Racers, who backed into the throne-room, in the first round. The Racers had won eight and tied three of the 13 games the two clubs played during the regular campaign.The Crusaders, on the other hand, proved patsies for the Whalers, winning only three and tying one against New England in the regular season. That jinx carried over into the playoffs.The Harpoonists came out steaming in the first game and blitzed the C&rsquo;s for three goals in the first game in Hartford and went on to record a 5-3 victory, a margin that would have been larger had it not been for the fine netminding of Cleveland goalkeeper Bob Johnson.Cam Newton was between the pipes for the Clevelanders in the second game, but that made no difference as the Whalers romped again, 6-1, in frorft of a paltry Richfield Coliseum turnout of 4,243.Larry Pleau scored his second and third goals of the series to lead the triumph over the Clevelanders, playing without the services of ace defenseman Paul Shmyr. The WHA&rsquo;s best backliner suffered a broken bone in his foot a few games before the end of the regular season.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01267/3897379-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="552" height="588"><figcaption class="caption-body">CHRISTER ABRAHAMSSON</figcaption></div>Even with Shmyr in the lineup, it&rsquo;s doubtful the Crusaders would have won the first two games. The Whalers thoroughly dominated the C&rsquo;s with some good forechecking, confusing the young Cleveland defense.The Crusader offense, meanwhile, did not get off many good shots at New England goaltender Bruce Landon, who was tough when he had to be.Cleveland coach John Wilson prononunced his men &ldquo;mentally and physically tired. We&rsquo;ve had to play seven games in 10 nights.&rdquo;The consistently inconsistent Crusaders have had to battle back from adversity all season long. It wouldn&rsquo;t surprise their backers if they came back to win the last three games of this series, but that isn&rsquo;t very likely to happen.CINCINNATI: The Stingers went right down to the last game before bowing out of the playoff picture. They needed a victory in Cleveland in the last game of the season to retain a chance for postseason action, but lost, 6-3The Stingers scored the first three goals of the game before the Crusaders came back to score six unanswered goals, two off the stick of Jim Harrison. Two nights earlier, the Stingers blew out the C&rsquo;s, 5-2 in Cincinnati.Despite missing the playoffs, the Stingers wound up with a very successful inaugural campaign. CoachTerry Slater&rsquo;s crew blew hot and cold during the season, but never lost sight of first place, winding up only five points out of the top spot.Rick Dudley wound up as the Stingers&rsquo; leading scorer with 43 goals and 38 assists for 81 points. Soupy Campbell, who along with defenseman Mike Pelyk. sat out the final two games at the request of Slater, led the club in assists with 50. Campbell and Slater traded sharp words over the benching.With a few new faces next season, the Stingers should be right back in the East title chase.INDIANAPOLIS: The Racers had to win two of their final four games in order to have a shot at first place and they got them, both on the road.At home, the Racers lost, 4-1, to the Houston Aeros and 5-2 to the New England Whalers with Michel Dion between the pipes. It was Dion who had brought the Racers this far, but it was another rookie netminder, Jim Park, who got them into first place.Park, recalled from Mohawk Valley earlier this season, came up tough in a 3-1 victory in Toronto over the Toros, who were battling for a playoff spot themselves and a 4-2 triumph in Hartford over the Whalers.Paced by Park and Dion and a vastly improved defense, the Racers allowed the fewest number of goals in the league this season. They also scored the fewest, proving that defense can be used to great advantage.NEW ENGLAND: The Whalers received some good news when top flight defenseman Brad Sel-wood was given the green light and fellow rearguard Thommy Abrahamsson recovered sufficiently to play in the playoffs.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02213/3897372-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="1162" height="1171"><figcaption class="caption-body">LARRY PLEAU &hellip; Leads Whalers To 2-0 Edge</figcaption></div>The Whalers, who jumped out to a 2-0 lead in games on Cleveland in the opening round of their best-of-five series, were hopeful the rest the division champion Racers got would be more harmful than good. They figured the layoff would make the Racer stale.Goaltender Christer Abrahamsson missed the Cleveland series, but was expected to be ready for Indianapolis. The Swedish netminder suffered a bad neck injury in Phoenix several weeks ago. &#9632;

f0031-01

Cleveland Title Quest Crushed By Home Loss

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGERHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGERHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaRICHMOND&mdash;The Robins wiped out the frustration of three consecutive first round eliminations with a brilliant sweep of the first three games in their best-of-five series with New Haven.In the opener here at the Richmond Coliseum, Dave Kelly&rsquo;s two goals and the excellent goaltending of Mike Belhumeur served as the spurs in a 4-1 victory before a disappointing turnout.The Robins jumped out in front early as they outskated and outhustled the Nighthawks throughout.New Haven coach Parker MacDonald waited until just before game time to announce his choice for goaltending duties and it was somewhat of a surprise when he gave the nod to Pete McDutfe.It is not as though McDutfe is not capable, but many felt that Brian Holderness or Terry Richardson would get the call. Be that as it may, there was no holding the Robins in the opener.The second game in New Haven belonged to young Jerome Mrazek, coach Larry Wilson&rsquo;s goaltending selection for the Robins on the road.Young Mrazek, who played in Belhumeur&rsquo;s shadow much of the season was brilliant against the Hawks, and he had to be. since Holderness was equally adept in the New Haven nets.The Robin offense, a relentless force in the opener, had to contend with a fired up Hawk defense which gave their goaltender excellent support.The Robin backline likewise played tough in front of Mrazek and the Robin forwards found enough muscle to put two shots past Holderness in a 2-1 victory. Mrazek thwarted lour breakaways in breaking the back of the Hawk offense.Then it was back to Virginia and Wilson, playing the percentages, went back to Belhumeur for the first-round clincher.The veteran was never better and his team-mates provided him with an early lead that eventually produced a 4-1 victory duplication of their first game triumph.McDonald sent Richardson out as his starter in an attempt to prolong the series, but it was to no avail. The Robins peppered the young Detroit chattell with 51 shots as they dominated from the outset, enroute to a best-of-seven semi-final match against the Southern Division champion Hershey Bears.Despite their first round success, the Robins drew only 3,096 for the clincher against New Haven, and the rumors of a franchise move became louder and more prevelent.As the Robins prepared for the opener with Hershey, there were indications that a move to Philadelphia might be in the offing.It was reported that there had been some talks with Spectrum officials about the Robins playing in that arena. Richmond has been a farm club of the Flyers since the Robins began play in the AHL in 1971-72.The Philadelphia Firebirds, of the North American League, were Spectrum occupants along with the Flyers this past season, but there was talk that the Flyers would prefer Richmond as a fellow occupant.Should such a move be made it would follow a trend adopted by Montreal in 1969-70, when the Canadiens shared the Forum with their Voyageur farm club. However, poor crowds eventually sent the Voyageurs packing off to Nova Scotia.The Boston Bruins brought an AHL farm team called the Braves into the Boston Gardens in 1971-72 and it proved an instant success in hockey-mad Beantown where the Braves drew those fans who were unable to purchase tickets to the almost always sold out Bruin games. Unfortunately, the advent of the WHA brought the New England Whalers into existence and the Braves&rsquo; days were numbered, with Boston dropping out of the league following a fifth-place finish in 1973-74.In addition to the Richmond to Philadelphia report, there were other rumors that the Robins, estimating perhaps a $300,000 deficit, would entertain thoughts of switching to the Southern League, where player salaries and travel expenses are not as high.Against this somewhat &ldquo;iffy&rdquo; background the Robins were to make their stand against the best in the division, a Hershey team that was no stranger to playoff partici pation.Both clubs were at full strength for the seriesand Bear coach Chuck Hamilton was expecting a tough fight for survival, despite Hershey&rsquo;s favoritism and a 7-4-1 regular season advantage over the Robins.Undaunted by the talks of moving, the Robin momentum continued through the opener of the Hershey series as Richmond stunned the Bears on their own ice, 4-2. Although fans expected a lengthy series, it was not expected that Richmond would have much of a chance in Chocolatetown, where they failed to win in six starts in regular season campaigning.However, Wilsons luck held once again as he went with his &ldquo;road&rdquo; goalie Mrazek and was rewarded with a 4-2 victory.In that triumph, the Robins beat an old nemesis in Bear goalie Don Edwards, who had started all six of the Bear home games against Richmond, winning five and securing a tie in the other.But Hershey responded in kind the following night in Richmond, where the crowd improved to 4,165.Incensed by their opening game defeat, the Bears clawed back to deadlock the series in a 4-3 victory, achieved with Gordon Laxton in the goal.It had been thought that Hamilton would stick with Edwards for the first few games of the series, but the opening defeat prompted a change, that and the fact that Laxton had started all six regular season games in Richmond.The Bears ran off to a 3-1 first period lead on goals by Pete Laframboise. Jacques Cossette and ex-Robin Ron Jones.When Derek Smith made it 4-1 in the second period, Robin hopes seemed dashed A third period rally produced goals by Richard Nantais and Larry Fullan, Richmond&rsquo;s leading scorer throughout the regular season. The last minute removal of the goaltender was to no avail as the Bears, with Laxton the hero, holding on for the victory, sending the series back to Hershey for Game No. 3.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01271/3897417-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="576" height="798"><figcaption class="caption-body">LARRY FULLAN &hellip;Emerges From Slump</figcaption></div>As Wilson predicted, Fullan, in a late seaon slump, came out of it in time for the playoffs and along with Kelly, Wayne Schaab, the goaltending and a tough defense, was one of the major factors in the sweep of New Haven and the series opening victory against the Bears.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02204/3897410-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="558" height="788"><figcaption class="caption-body">DON EDWARDS &hellip; Robins&rsquo; Nemesis Defeated</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0032-01

Reversal Of Playoff Form Helps Robins To Advance Amid Franchise Shift Talk

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02187/3897710-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="582" height="327"></div>(*-awarded scored place for playoffs<h3>PLAYOFFS</h3>Quater-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03142/3897703-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="582" height="74"></div>(Rochester wins best-of-five series 3-3)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. April 4Providence 3 at Rochester 5Wed. April 7Rochester 3at Provdence 1Fri. April 9Providence 4 at Rochester 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-04115/3897696-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="580" height="76"></div>(Richmond wins best-of-five series 3-3)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sat. April 3New Hoven 1 at Richmond 4Sun. April 4Richmond 2 at Now Hoven 1Wed. April 7Now Hoven 1 at Richmond 4Semi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0591/3897689-1-eng-US/f0033-052.jpg" title="f0033-05" width="578" height="79"></div>(Novo Scotia wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Mon. April 2Rochater 2 at Novo Scotia 6Wed. April 14Rochater 3 at Nova Scotio 5Fri. April 16Novo Scotia 5 at Rochater 1Sun. April 18Nova Scotio 6 at Rochester 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0672/3897682-1-eng-US/f0033-062.jpg" title="f0033-06" width="579" height="74"></div>(Hershey wins best-of-seven serisi 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sat. April 10Richmond 4 at Hershey 2Sun. April 11Hershey 4 at Richmond 3Tue. April3Richmond 1 at Hershey 3Fri. April 16Hershey 7 at Richmond 5Sat. April 17Richmond 1 at Hershey 2<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0763/3897675-1-eng-US/f0033-072.jpg" title="f0033-07" width="592" height="180"></div>(*-awarded fourth place for playoffs because of more wins)<h3>PLAYOFFS</h3>Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0854/3897668-1-eng-US/f0033-082.jpg" title="f0033-08" width="580" height="81"></div>(Best-of-seven series tied 1-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. April 16Dalia 2 at Tuba 4Sat. April 17Dalia 4 at Tuba 3<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. April 20Tuba at DaliaThu. April 22Tuba at DaliaFri. April 23Dalia at TubaSat. April 24Tuba at DaliaTue. April 27Dalia at TubaSemi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0945/3897661-1-eng-US/f0033-092.jpg" title="f0033-09" width="586" height="76"></div>(Tuba wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wed. April 7Oklahoma City 2 at Tuba 5Fri. April 9Oklahoma City 3 at Tuba 5Sat. April 10Tuba 3 at Oklahoma City 0Wed. April 14Tuba 4 at Oklahoma City 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1041/3897654-1-eng-US/f0033-102.jpg" title="f0033-10" width="586" height="74"></div>(Dallas wine best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wed. April 7Salt take 1 at Dalia 3Fri. April 9Salt Lake 1 at Dalia 4Sat. April 10Dalia 6 at Salt Lake 7Mon. April 12Dalia 4 at Salt Lake 2Wed. April 14Salt Lobe 0 at Dalia 5<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1140/3897647-1-eng-US/f0033-112.jpg" title="f0033-11" width="583" height="356"></div><h3>PLAYOFFS</h3>Quarter-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1239/3897640-1-eng-US/f0033-122.jpg" title="f0033-12" width="580" height="80"></div>(Saginaw wins best-of-seven series 4-1).<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. March 30Sogmaw 3 at Muskegpn 4Fri. April 2Muskegon 3 at Saginaw 7Sat. April 3Saginaw 4 at Muskegon 0Sun. April 4Muskegon 1 at Saginaw 5Wed. April 7Muskegon 3 at Saginaw 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1328/3897633-1-eng-US/f0033-132.jpg" title="f0033-13" width="581" height="82"></div>(Dayton wins best-of-seven series 4-2).<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. March 30Kalamazoo 2 at Dayton 3Fri. April 2Dayton 4 at Kalamazoo 6Sat. April 3Kalamazoo 0 at Dayton 4Tue. April 6Dayton 3 at Kalamazoo 2Wed. April 7Kalamozoo 3 at Dayton 0Thu. April 8Dayton 4 at Kalamazoo 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1425/3897626-1-eng-US/f0033-142.jpg" title="f0033-14" width="579" height="78"></div>(Port Huron wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wed. March 31Flint 2 at Port Huron 5Fri. April 2Port Huron 6 at Flint 3Sat. April 3Hint 1 of Port Huron 3Sun. April 4Port Huron 6 of Flint 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1521/3897619-1-eng-US/f0033-152.jpg" title="f0033-15" width="579" height="76"></div>(Fort Wayne wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. March 30Toledo 5 at Fort Wayne 9Wed. March 31Fort Wayne 4 at Toledo 3Sat. April 3Toledo 3 at Fort Wayne 4Sun. April 4Toledo 4 at Fort Wayne 6Semi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1616/3897612-1-eng-US/f0033-162.jpg" title="f0033-16" width="583" height="77"></div>(Port Huron leads best-of-seven series 3-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sat. April 10Port Huron 3 at Saginaw 2Sun. April 11Port Huron 3 at Saginaw 1Wed. April 14Saginaw 4 at Port Huron 3Sat. April 17Saginaw 3 at Port Huron 2Sun. April 18Saginaw 3 at Port Huron 4<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Tue. April 20Port Huron at SoginawFri. April 23Port Huron at Saginaw<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1716/3897605-1-eng-US/f0033-172.jpg" title="f0033-17" width="579" height="79"></div>(Dayton leads best-of-seven series 3-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sat. April 10Fort Wayne 2 at Dayton 5Wed. April 14Dayton 5 at Fort Wayne 2Fri. April 16Fort Wayne 4 at Dayton 10Sat. April 17Dayton 5 at Fort Wayne 8<h3>GAMES TO COME</h3>Wed. April 21Fort Wayne at DaytonSat. April 24Dayton at Fort WayneSun. April 25Fort Wayne at Dayton<h2>NORTH AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1814/3897598-1-eng-US/f0033-182.jpg" title="f0033-18" width="580" height="358"></div>(*-suspended operations)<h3>PLAYOFFS</h3>Quarter-finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1912/3897591-1-eng-US/f0033-192.jpg" title="f0033-19" width="582" height="86"></div>(Beauce wins best-of-five senes 3-1)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-2012/3897584-1-eng-US/f0033-202.jpg" title="f0033-20" width="581" height="82"></div>(Syracuse wins best-of-five series 3-1)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-2111/3897577-1-eng-US/f0033-212.jpg" title="f0033-21" width="578" height="76"></div>(Johnstown wins best-of-five series 3-2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-229/3897570-1-eng-US/f0033-222.jpg" title="f0033-22" width="583" height="76"></div>(Philadelphia wins best-of-five series 3-2)Semi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-235/3897563-1-eng-US/f0033-232.jpg" title="f0033-23" width="583" height="76"></div>(Beauce wins bes t-of-se-en series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. March 26Syracuse 4 at Beauce 5.Sun. March 28Syracuse 7 at Beouce 10.Tue. March 30Beauce 6 at Syracuse 4.Thu. April 1Beauce 6 at Syracuse 4.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-245/3897556-1-eng-US/f0033-242.jpg" title="f0033-24" width="583" height="79"></div>(Philadelphia wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. March 28Johnstown 4 at Philadelphia 5Mon. March 29Philadelphia 3 at Johnstown 6.Tue March 30Johnstown 5 at Philadelphia 7.Thu. April 1Philadelphia 4 at Johnstown 3Fri. April 2Johnstown 10 at Philadelphia 14.Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-255/3897549-1-eng-US/f0033-252.jpg" title="f0033-25" width="586" height="82"></div>(Philadelphia wins best-of-seven series 4-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. April 6Philadelphia 7 at Beauce 5Wed. April 7Philadelphia 4 at Beauce 7Fri. April 9Beauce 1 at Philadelphia 6Sat. April 10Beauce 7 at Philadelphia 6Mon. April 12Philadelphia 6 at Beauce 4Wed. April 14Beauce 2 at Philadelphia 5<h2>SOUTHERN LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-264/3897542-1-eng-US/f0033-262.jpg" title="f0033-26" width="588" height="175"></div><h3>PLAYOFFS</h3>Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-274/3897535-1-eng-US/f0033-272.jpg" title="f0033-27" width="580" height="74"></div>(Charlotte wins best-of-seven series 4-1)Semi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-283/3897528-1-eng-US/f0033-282.jpg" title="f0033-28" width="581" height="82"></div>(Charlotte wins best-of-seven series 4-2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-293/3897521-1-eng-US/f0033-292.jpg" title="f0033-29" width="584" height="80"></div>(Hampton wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>(Final Standings)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-303/3897514-1-eng-US/f0033-302.jpg" title="f0033-30" width="581" height="298"></div>Semi-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-313/3897507-1-eng-US/f0033-312.jpg" title="f0033-31" width="582" height="79"></div>(Green Bay wins best-of-five series 3-2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-323/3897500-1-eng-US/f0033-322.jpg" title="f0033-32" width="583" height="79"></div>(Milwaukee wins best-of-three series 2-0)Quarter-Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-333/3897493-1-eng-US/f0033-332.jpg" title="f0033-33" width="581" height="83"></div>(Milwaukee wins best-of-three series 2-0)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-343/3897486-1-eng-US/f0033-342.jpg" title="f0033-34" width="580" height="79"></div>(Traverse City wins best-of-three series 2-0)Finals<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-353/3897479-1-eng-US/f0033-352.jpg" title="f0033-35" width="584" height="77"></div>(Milwaukee wins best-of-five 3-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Milwaukee 7, Green Bay 0Milwaukee 5, Green Bay 4Milwaukee 6, Green Bay 4 &#9632;

f0033-02

LOOKING AT THE MINOR LEAGUE SCOREBOARD

NHL: 1&mdash;Montreal. 2&mdash;Detrod 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;Indionopolis. 26&mdash;Minnesota. 27&mdash;New England 28&mdash;Phoenix 29&mdash;Quebec. 30&mdash;Son Diego. 31&mdash;Toronto. 32&mdash;Winnipeg. Inter-League: 33&mdash;N.Y Rangers (NHL) & St. Louis (NHL). 34&mdash;Montreal (NHL) & Atlonta(NHL) 36&mdash;Pttsburgh (NHL) & Buffalo (NHL). 37&mdash;New England (WHA) & Washington (NHL) 38&mdash;Detroit (NHL & Minresoto (NHL)39&mdash;Atlanta(NHL) & Vancouver (NHL)40&mdash;Phoenix, Houston & San Diego (WHA) 41&mdash;Los Angeles htil, & N.Y Islonders (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;Philadephia NHLi & Washington (NHL) 50&mdash; Boston (NHL) Son Diego (WHA) 51&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) & Toronto (WHA), 52&mdash;Montreal (NHL) & Toronto (WHA). 55&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) & Calgary (WHA) 56&mdash;Buffalo (NHL) & Cleveland (WHA). 57&mdash;NY Rangers (NHL) & St Louis (NHL) 58&mdash;Detroit (NHL & Edmonton (WHA). &#9632;

Minor League Affiliations

<div class="byline">BY AL FISCHER</div>ROCHESTER&mdash;While Richmond was eliminating New Haven in the South, the Rochester Amerks did likewise to the Providence Reds.The Amerks, who now will face the Nova Scotia Voyageurs in a best-of-seven semi-final series, made things painless for the Reds, eliminating them in three straight.The first game was an offensive affair with the Amerks finally prevailing. 5-3. That contest was to hardly set the trend for the remaining two games, at least not for Providence.Following the opening affair in Rochester, the series moved to Providence. where the Amerks had won only once in six tries during the regular season.The Reds went on top early, but Dave Hynes and Paul O&rsquo;Neil brought the Amerks back and when team captain Barry Merrell scored it was all over for the Reds. Hynes had a pair of goals in the opener and certainly displayed the form that earned him first team status on the HOCKEY NEWS All Star team.The concluding chapter of the Amerk-Red series came in Rochester, where once again the Reds got oft to the early lead on Doug Palazzari&rsquo;s score in the first six m inutes.But the ever present Hynes, with linemates Merrell and Gordie Clark, Rochester&rsquo;s leading scorer during the season, doing the heavy work, tied the count in that same first period.O&rsquo;Neil then took over and popped home two goals past goaltender Yves Belanger and the Reds went home early for their off-season vacation.Coach Dick Mattiussi used both goalies, Ken Broderick and Ross Brooks in the series, letting Broderick play the clinching contest.For the Amerks, it was just revenge for the regular season when the Reds posted a 6-5-1 advantage.It was also the second time in as many play-off meetings that the Amerks have prevailed over the Reds. The other occasion came in the playoffs following the 1956-57 campaign and also was a first round affair, with the Amerks prevailing, 4-1. Thus, in eight post-season meetings the Amerks boast a wide 7-1 margin, including a 27-12 bulge in goal scoring over the Reds.There were many heroes for the Amerks. The scorers, Hynes, O&rsquo;Neil, Merrell, Clark, the goaltending of Brooks and Broderick, the tough defense put up by the much-maligned Amerk defense, but above all. the astute&rsquo;moves of Mattiussi.There are rumors that Boston, the Amerks&rsquo; parent club, have not been satisfied with Mattiussi&rsquo;s player handling and that the likeable coach might be replaced next season.Perhaps the victory over Providence will belie those rumorsand perhaps the Amerks will have enough left to upset Nova Scotia to vindicate Mattiussi.The almost two-week lay-off by the Voyageurs while they awaited the out come of the Amerk Red confrontation, may have been a blessing in disguise tor the Amerks.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01242/3897448-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="568" height="590"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAUL O&rsquo;NEIL &hellip;Goals Eliminate Reds</figcaption></div>Two weeks without game action in many cases dulls the blades while the Amerks have had the advantage ol three hard-skating contests.Although the Voyageurs remain heavy favorites to heat the Amerks and reach the Calder Cup finals, a repeat of Rochester&rsquo;s 4-2 decision over Nova Scotia last year would not be too far fetched.The Amerks were the only team that gave the Voyageurs much trouble in the regular season, despite coming out on the short endofa 6-4-2 series.For Providence, the final-game defeat concluded a season of frustration and disappointment for the detending division champions and marked the second consecutive year the Reds have fallen victim in the first round.An early season victory string brought high hopes, but injuries and countless recalls, especially in the goaltending ranks, sent the Reds reeling and coach John Muckier must be commended for his patch up work in getting hisclub ready for the playoffs.With only one goalie. Yves Belanger available. Muckier&rsquo;s troops finally surrendered. but not without a fight fight.The Voyageur-Amerk series will be only the second post-season meeting between the two clubs. &#9632;

f0033-01

Amerks Dominate Reds In First-Round Sweep

<h2>FINAL LEADING SCORERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02208/3897852-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="581" height="292"></div><h2>TEAM SCORING</h2><h3>DALLAS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03159/3897845-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="587" height="507"></div><h3>FORT WORTH</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04104/3897838-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="584" height="525"></div><h3>OKLAHOMA CITY</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0566/3897831-1-eng-US/f0034-052.jpg" title="f0034-05" width="586" height="526"></div><h3>SALT LAKE</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0643/3897824-1-eng-US/f0034-062.jpg" title="f0034-06" width="584" height="553"></div><h3>TUCSON</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0737/3897817-1-eng-US/f0034-072.jpg" title="f0034-07" width="581" height="185"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0832/3897810-1-eng-US/f0034-082.jpg" title="f0034-08" width="584" height="366"></div><h3>TULSA</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-0922/3897803-1-eng-US/f0034-092.jpg" title="f0034-09" width="584" height="517"></div><h3>FINALGOALING RECORDS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-1020/3897796-1-eng-US/f0034-102.jpg" title="f0034-10" width="582" height="389"></div> &#9632;

f0034-02

Final CHL Statistics

<div class="byline">BY TOM LOBAUGH</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaTULSA&mdash;Two household hockey names around the Central Hockey League. Tulsa Oilersand Dallas Black Hawks, will square off in the championship final for the Adams Cup.Tulsa advanced to the final by taking the Oklahoma City Blazers out in four straight games. Dallas needed five to dispose of Salt Lake and assure the CHL of a wearer of the CHL playoff crown won by the Eagles last year.Diminutive goalie Bruce Bullock whitewashed the Blazers 3-0 in game three in the OC State Fair Arena. Four nights later the Oilers did it again, this time 4-1 to record their fourth straight win over the Blazers and a sweep of their best-of-seven playoff semi-final. The playoff triumphs tacked onto a near-record 10 straight victories at the end of the regular schedule, ran the Oilers streak to 14 in a row.The Oilers had outshot the Blazers by a total of 81-56 in racking up 5-2 and 5-3 playoff decisions at home. But Tulsa coach Orland Kurtenbach was happier with the victory in Oke City where the Oilers were outshot, 31-29.It wasn&rsquo;t just the shutout for the 5-7, 150 pound Bullock, his second since rejoining the Oilers in February. &ldquo;We played a tighter hockey game all the way around.&rdquo; said Kurt, after game three of the playoffs. I won&rsquo;t complain about the two games at home, after all. we won them, but we did have some lapses.Rookie left wing Brad Gassoff, who was Tulsa&rsquo;s top gunner against the Blazers during the regular schedule (14 goals in 19 games) jumped into the playoff series scoring lead, with two goals and four assists His linemate, league-leading scorer Jim Wiley, collected a goal in each of the three games.Bullock, who hadn&rsquo;t lost to Oklahoma City in four starts during the regular season, worked the first and third playoff games, Dan Brady the second.In the opener, an early advantage on Bill Plett&rsquo;s first-period goal vanished in the face of two Blazer quickies in the second period. But Wiley tied the score and defenseman Glen Surbey got what proved to be the winning goal before that period ended. Defenseman Richard Mulhern got an unassisted goal at the start of the third, and Rick Bowness scored into an empty net with 16 seconds left.The Oilers took charge on two early goals in the next game, again at the Tulsa Assembly Center, as Glen Richardson and defenseman Larry McIntyre tallied, the latter on a power play. Gassoff scored late in the first, but the Blazers had narrowed the count to 3-2 on two power goals before the session ended. Wiley scored early and Bowness late in the middle period. Brady was trapped behind the net and yielded an &ldquo;empty net&rdquo; goal to Blazer Kevin Kemp in the third.When the scene shifted to the State Fair Arena in Oklahoma City, there was no score in the first period. Glen Richardson (Norelation to the Blazers&rsquo; Ken Richardson) scored early in the second, but the tight-checking game wasn&rsquo;t settled until Wiley and Gassoff tallied midway of the third period.OKLAHOMA CITY: Blazer man ager-coach Ray Miron made hockey history, of a sort, for the third game of the playoff series against Tulsa. &ldquo;For the first time in my life I came to a hockey game without a tie.&rdquo; he observed. &ldquo;I had todosomething.&rdquo;After the Blazers suffered their third straight loss, Miron was asked if he would show up with a tie for game four. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; he quipped, &ldquo;I may show up in a bathing suit.&rdquo;As he had for much of the season. Miron moaned the Blazers&rsquo; lack of scoring punch, while giving due credit to Tulsa&rsquo;s &ldquo;great goaltending&rdquo;.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve scored only five goals in three games.&rdquo; he pointed out. &ldquo;and only one of them was by one of our top scorers. Tom Cassidy&rsquo;s goal in the second game.&rdquo;Miron was disappointed at the box office, too, as only 2,493 fans turned out for the game in OC, close to half of them from Tulsa, judging by the rooting noise. &ldquo;A lot of our fans just won&rsquo;t come out to the Arena,&rdquo; Ray observed.The Blazer players, too, have made a poor showing at the Fairgrounds. When they were forced out of the big downtown Myriad in January and February, the Blazers tied a CHL record by losing seven straight home games.The Blazers bolstered their defense by adding Boh Lorimer and Brian Derksen from Muskegon of the International League. Lorimer joined them for game two, and Derksen for game three. Both were on loan from the New York Islanders, and both had started the current CHL season with Fort Worth. Miron was pleased with both, especially with Lorimer. 6 foot. 190 pounder out of Michigan Tech, who showed muscle and a hard shot.With their arrival. Miron moved defenseman Kevin Kemp up to left wing. Guy Delparte. who had been playing both left wing and defense, was given permanent duty up front. Mike Korney, also a combination defenseman forward had already been installed at a regular right wing job when Scott Garland was called up by the Toronto Maple Leafs as the playoffs began.The Blazers had announced they were getting defenseman Larry Mave ty, a 13-year pro, who had been with Binghamton in the North American League (after three seasons in the World Hockey Association). But Mavety advised he was tied up in making a movie, and couldn&rsquo;t report.Ken Richardson tied the first game in Tulsa, and defenseman Bob Warner&rsquo;s power play score made it 2-1 in the second period, but the Blazers were through scoring for the night, the Oilers got four more goals.Power scores by defenseman Mike Ruest and Cassidy in the first period kept the score close in game two, but the Oilers clinched their 5-3 victory with two goals in the second. Kemp celebrated his move to left wing with his first professional goal in the third period, when he found Oiler goalie Dan Brady caught behind his net.Mike Palmateer was in the Blazer nets for the first loss. Pierre Hamel, making his first start since suffering a concussion Apr. 3, wasn&rsquo;t sharp in the second game, and was relieved by Palmateer when Jim Wiley got Tulsa&rsquo;s fourth goal at 2:01 of the second period.Palmateer was magnificent in holding down the swarming Oilers in that game He played creditably in game three, but his mates could do nothing against Oiler goalie Bruce Bullock, and lost a 3-0 shutout. The only shot that really had Bullock beaten was by Korney in the second period, and it caromed off a goalpost.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01263/3897765-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="546" height="1184"><figcaption class="caption-body">MOE L&rsquo;ABBE &hellip;Three Breakaway Goals</figcaption></div>DALLAS: Speedy Moe L&rsquo;Abbe playing his seventh season with Dallas, tallied three straight goals on breakaways to grab lamplighting honors as the Black Hawks moved ahead, 3-1. in their best-of-seven semi final series with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles.After winning 4-1 and 3-1 decisions in Dallas, the Hawks bowed in overtime at Salt Lake. 7-6. blowing a 6-2 advantage they mounted in the first 26 minutes. But they rallied for a 4-2 triumph in the Salt Palace, Apr. 12 and faced the pleasant prospect of playing all remaining series games at home, since the Palace was taken over by an ice show.Mike Veisor, 23-year-old mainstay in the Hawk nets, posted all three victories, while rookie Bob Volpe was stung for the overtime loss.Rob Palmer and Duane Wylie put the Hawks in front in the first period of the opener. Dan Hinton was credited with the insurance goal, with 49 seconds left, after breaking his stick on a shot.Eagle Denis Meloche&rsquo;s clearing pass hit Salt Lake defenseman Greg Smith in the leg, and bounced into the net. Hinton was the closest Hawk.Hinton&rsquo;s power play goal started the Hawks off in the second game at home, and Terry Smith made it 2-0 in the second period, when he stole the puck almost in the crease. When the Eagles began making noises like a rally, the 28-year-old veteran L&rsquo;Abbe took things in hand, scoring on breakaways five minutes apart in the third period.When L&rsquo;Abbe counted again in a similar manner at 1:16 of the first period in the Apr. 10 game in Salt Lake, it launched a six-goal flurry that seemed to put the Hawks in complete charge. Palmer and Ian McKegney also scored in the first, Randy Holt counted with 1:11 left in that period and again after 31 seconds of the next. Newcomer Kirk Bowman tallied to give Dallas a 6-2 advantage after 6:09 of the middle period. But the Hawks couldn&rsquo;t score again, and the Eagles came back to win in overtime.The Hawks tell behind at the start of game tour in Salt Lake, but rookie defenseman Mike O&rsquo;Connell fired in two goals in the come-from-behind Dallas victory. McKegney tied the game in the first period, and O&rsquo;Connell scored five minutes later. Michel Archambault got the winning goal on a second-period power assault, and O&rsquo;Connell scored again two minutes later, on a continuation of that power play, which had the Eagles short two men on penalties.SALT LAKE: The Golden Eagles kept rallying, but only once in four times did the rally bring victory in the playoff series against Dallas.Penalties against the Holt brothers (forward Gary of the Eagles and defenseman Randy of the Hawks) played big roles in two of the games. During a major high sticking penalty on Randy in game three, the Eagles scored twice to whittle away at Dallas&rsquo; three-goal lead. Gary got the tying goal that sent the game into overtime.However, Gary drew a game misconduct when he attacked Dave Logan on the Hawk bench in game four, and the Eagles weren&rsquo;t the same without the aggressive left wing.Ernie Miller was handling all the Eagle goaltending chores. Dallas outshot the Salt Lakers in both games in Texas, but the Eagles had the shooting advantage at home.Defenseman Brent Meeke&rsquo;s 60-foot slapshot was the only Salt Lake score in the 3-1 opening loss. Lyle Bradley counted on a power play in the next game, as the Eagles couldn&rsquo;t get to Hawk goalie Mike Veisor until the third period of each contest.At home. Apr. 10 Tom Price and Butch Williams forged a 2-2 first-period tie. but the Hawks added four more goals before Rick Kessell narrowed the gap to 6-3 midway in the second period.While Randy Holt was serving five minutes for a high stick which drew blood (from Price&rsquo;s earl. Greg Smith and John Martin scored Eagle goals. Gary Holt got the tying marker with 7:31 left in regulation time. Williams&rsquo; second goal, a deflection of Ken Desjardine&rsquo;s slap from the point, won the game after 1:51 of overtime. It was the fourth overtime victory the Eagles had scored against the Hawks, with three of them coining in last year&rsquo;s AdamsCup finals.The Eagle Ians hopes were dashed two nights later, however. Wayne King brought a quick Salt Lake lead, but it lasted less than two minutes. Trailing. 2-1, the Eagles were victimized by two quick Hawk power play goals in the second period, following Gary Holt&rsquo;s ejection. Kessell&rsquo;s third period goal was too little, too late, and the Eagles had their backs to the wall as they headed back to Dallas.DALLAS: Orland Kurtenbach, who guided the Tulsa Oilers to the regular season championship in his second year as a coach, was voted Central League Coach of the Year by his fellow mentors.Kurtenbach received 23 points in the balloting, with Gordon Fashoway of the Dallas Black Hawks getting 19.The 39-year-old Kurtenbach, who ended his 20-year playing career in 1974, after four season with the Vancouver Canucks of the National League, made his coaching debut last winter with the Canucks&rsquo; CHI. farm club at Seattle. The injury-plagued Totems finished last in the league&rsquo;s Northern Division on a 29-38-11 record.This season&rsquo;s Oilers, backed by the Canucks and Atlanta Flames, had eight holdovers from that Seattle club, four from last season&rsquo;s Omaha Knights, two veterans sent down by Vancouver, two rookies drafted by the Canucks, and two Flames&rsquo; draftees. The club linished first by seven points, posting a 45-21-10 record. &#9632;

f0034-01

Tulsa-Dallas Final Set For CHL As Blazers, Eagles Given Bounce

<div class="byline">BY JACK GATECLIFF</div>HAMILTONTwo coaches and two players were remanded for a july 19 trial in Hamilton following charges being laid as the result nt a brawl at the Forum during an Ontario Hockey Association Major Junior Agame Jan. 18.The coaches are Bert Templeton ol the Hamilton Fincups. coach of the year last season, and Angelo Bumbacco. a stand-in for regular Sault Ste. Marie coach Muzz MacPherson who was already under suspension at that time.Bum bacco is actually the Greyhound team manager.Although many players were-involved the only two charged were Hamilton&rsquo;s Joe Kowal and the Sault&rsquo;s Tony Horvath, a former Hamilton playerThe players each face one count of common assault. Templeton has two countsol assault and one of counselling assault while Bumbacco faces one count of assault, two of counselling assault and two of causing a disturbance.The charges were brought by Hamilton-Wentworth Regional Police after they had been called in to separate the combatants.The game was called off with a little more thana minute left to play.There is also a report that the Saultt&rsquo;s Tim (Couli&rsquo;s will face an assault charge in connection with an alleged attack on Oshawa Generals&rsquo; Paul Gardner during a playoff game.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0949/3897890-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="496" height="615"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOE CONTINI &hellip; Supplied Punch</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1041/3897883-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="565" height="591"><figcaption class="caption-body">MIKE FEDERKO &hellip; Solid On Defense</figcaption></div>Gardner lost a tooth, had two others loosened and suffered a severe facial cut when Coulis is said to have cross checked him after the play had been whistled downCoulis, who had already been suspended 21 games lor various reason.&rsquo; during the schedule, was set down fluid more games by OHA president Cliffe Phillips and OHA Junior A commissioner Tubby Schmalz following the incident in Oshawa.He missed three playoff matches and will serve the remainder of the sentence at the start of next season.On the coaching scene veteran Os hawa pilot Gus Bodnar, one-time Na tional Hockey League rookie-of-the year with Toronto Maple Leals (1944) has stepped down as coach.Bodnar is one of the most highly-respected men in Ontario junior A hockey and will continue as the club&rsquo;s general manager.He previously coached in St. Catharines and with Toronto Marlboros.Bodnar&rsquo;s successor is Sherwood (Sherry) Bassin. not too well-known in Canadian hockey, although he coached Pickering Panthers of the Metro oJunior B League three seasons, leading them totwogroup titles.Bassin is a lawyer and community college teacher but will probably give up those positions when he takes over the Generals next fall.&ldquo;He should do a good job.&rdquo; Bodnar said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s really gung-ho, has lots ol pep and I&rsquo;m sure he can transmit his enthusiasm tothe kids.&rdquo;The Generals finished fourth this season in the Leyden Division which was a credit to Bodnar as the club was not over-laden with talented personnel.On the ice. it was Hamilton and Sudbury in the championship final alter both teams skated relatively easy through the semi-final round.The Fincups took the Toronto Marlboros out in five games winning four of them and tying the other as they won the eight-point Emms Division final 9I in points. The Fincups who have been the class of the league all season, outscored the Marlies 28-17 as Joe Contini provided the offensive punch with three goals in the last two games.Hamilton&rsquo;s defense was outstanding in the series and continually thwarted the Marlboros. particularly in the last two games of the series, which Hamilton won 3-0 and 4-3. The Hamilton defense four of Mike Federko, Ted Long. Sean Sullivan and Willy Hubeistood tall behind the blueline and there was little the Marlies could do. Federko chipped in with a goal in the windup game and Long set up several Hamilton scores.First place Sudbury knocked the Ottawa 67s out in five games to advance against Hamilton in the OHA final, which should develop into a slam-bang series.The Wolves won the Leyden Divi sion title by disposing of Ottawa in live, and Sault Ste. Marie in seven games, winning four, tying one and losing two to the Hounds.The Sault reached the Leyden Division final by knocking over Oshawa 3-2 in games while Ottawa eliminated Kingston four wins to two with one tie.Immediately after the last playoff game. Kingston general manager Punch Scherer announced that coach jim Morrison had been signed toa new two-year contract. &#9632;

f0035-09

Four Face Trial After OHA Brawl; Hamilton, Sudbury Clash In Final

<h2>ONTARIO MAJOR LEAGUE</h2><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01253/3898012-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="580" height="84"></div>(Hamilton wins eight-point series 9-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Hamilton 9, Toronto 4Hamilton 7, Toronto 5Hamilton 5. Toronto 5Hamilton 3, Toronto 0Hamilton 4. Toronto 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02213/3898005-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="583" height="80"></div>(Sudbury wins eight-point series 8-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Ottawa 7, Sudbury 4Sudbury 7, Ottawa 3Sudbury 5. Ottawa 3Sudbury 6, Ottawo 3Sudbury 6. Ottawo 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03159/3897998-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="579" height="75"></div>(Hamilton wins eight-point series 8-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Hamilton 12, Kttchener 4Hamilton 7, Kitchener 1Hamilton 7, Kitchener 3Hamilton 4, Kitchener 0<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04128/3897991-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="579" height="75"></div>(Sudbury wins eight-point series 9-5)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sudbury 7.Sault Ste. Marie 3Sault Ste Marie 3, Sudbury 2Sudbury 11, Soutt Ste Marie 2Sault Ste Marie 4. Sudbury 2Sudbury 8, Sault Ste. Marie 0Su dbury 4, Sault Ste. Marie 4Sudbury 5, Sault Ste. Marie 2<h2>Preliminary Round</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0598/3897984-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="579" height="80"></div>(Kitchener wins six-points series, 6-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Kitchener 5, St. Catharines 3Kitchener 6. St. Catharines 3St Catharines 7. Kitchener 2Kitchener 7, St. Catherines 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0679/3897977-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="577" height="78"></div>(Sault wins six-point series6-4)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Chawa 5, Sault Ste. Mane 4Soult Ste Mane 6, Oshawa 2Ohawa 5, Saylt Ste. Marie 3SaultSte Mane 6, Oshawa 2Soult Ste Mane 6, Oshawa 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0770/3897970-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="574" height="82"></div>(Toronto wins eight-point series 8-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Toronto 4 London 2Toronto 6 London 1London 5 Toronto 2Toronto 5 London 2Toronto 6 London 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0852/3897963-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="574" height="76"></div>(Ottawa wins eight-point series 9-4)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Ottawa 4, Kingston 2Kingston 6, Ottawa 3Ottawa 5, Kingston 4Ottawa 3, Kingston 3Ottawa 6, Kingston 3Kingston 4, Ottawa 2Ottawa 3, Kingston 2<h2>ALLAN CUP</h2><h3>Eastern Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1136/3897956-1-eng-US/f0035-112.jpg" title="f0035-11" width="577" height="82"></div>(Barrie leads best-of-five series 1-0)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1229/3897949-1-eng-US/f0035-122.jpg" title="f0035-12" width="577" height="78"></div>(Gatineau leads best-of-five series 1-0)<h3>Eastern Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1325/3897942-1-eng-US/f0035-132.jpg" title="f0035-13" width="576" height="81"></div>(Barrie wins best-of-seven series 4-3)<h2>WESTERN INTERNATIONAL</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1423/3897935-1-eng-US/f0035-142.jpg" title="f0035-14" width="576" height="76"></div>(Spokane wins best-of-seven series 4-3)<h3>SEMI-FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1520/3897928-1-eng-US/f0035-152.jpg" title="f0035-15" width="576" height="77"></div>(Cranbrook wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Cranbrook 7, Kimberley 3Kimberley 1. Cronbrook 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1619/3897921-1-eng-US/f0035-162.jpg" title="f0035-16" width="576" height="77"></div>(Spokane wins best-of-seven series 4-1).<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Spokane 4, Trail 6Trail 4, Spokane 7Spokane 7, Trail 4 &#9632;

f0035-01

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaSAGINAW&mdash;The form chart remained true as Saginaw and Dayton joined Fort Wayne and Port Huron as the final four in the International Hockey League&rsquo;s Turner Cup playoffs.Saginaw, the North Division champion, ousted Muskegon in five games to qualify for the semifinals against Port Huron. Dayton, South Division and Huber Trophy Champions, qualified by eliminating pesky Kalamazoo in six games. Fort Wayne and Port Huron, second-place finishers in the South and North division, respectively, won their opening rounds in four straight games. The Komets ousted defending Turner Cup Champion Toledo while Port Huron disposed of Flint.Dayton, which set a league record of 104 points in skating to the overall league championship, had its hands full against the young Kalamazoo K. Wings, who made the playoffs in their second season by finishing ahead of Columbus, the fourth place team in the South. Two of the games were overtime, including the final game which extended into a second overtime session.The Gems outscored the Wings by just two goals in the six-game series. 18-16. Each team registered a shutout, the Gems taking the third game by a 40 score in Kalamazoo and the Wings rebounding with a 3-0 decision in the fifth game at Dayton. The victory was the first for Kalamazoo ever at Dayton and the shutout was the first suffered by the Gems this season.It was a pretty wild series, too. A king-sized brawl erupted following the first game in Dayton. It was featured by a scrap between the two coaches &mdash; Dayton&rsquo;s Ivan Prediger and Bob Lemieux of the Wings. Also, in game five the Kalamazoo players went into the stands after Wings &ldquo;bad guy&rdquo; Len Ircandia who was reportedly struck by an object thrown his way while he was serving time in the penalty box. There were considerable stick swingers among the spectators and a security guard resorted to the use of Mace to quell the disturbance.Brian Stapleton broke up the final game with a goal six minutes and 14 seconds into the second overtime session. &ldquo;Slater (Kalamazoo&rsquo;s Pete Slater) was trying to pass the puck, I think,&rdquo; said Stapleton, about his winning effort. &ldquo;I just reached over and shot it.&rdquo; The puck traveled about 35 feet and Stapleton admitted to some surprise the puck went into the net.Dayton had taken a 2-0 lead in the game and led again, 3-2. Al Genovy. the Wings assistant coach who doubles as a center, tied the game for the Wings with 2:35 gone in the final period.While the Wings were disappointed at the loss, Coach Lemieux was high in praise of his squad. &ldquo;We had a bunch of guys who are all guts and pride. We did arrive in &rsquo;75,&rdquo; Lemieux said.It was a successful season for the IHL&rsquo;s youngest club &mdash; and things look brighter for next year. The Wings drew 14,757 fans for three playoff games and in carrying the Gems to six games, snapped Dayton&rsquo;s 17-game undefeated string with a 6-4 triumph in the second game of the series.Ken Mann and Terry Ryan led the Kalamazoo playoff scoring with five points. Each had three goals and a pair of assists. Rookie Stan Jonathan had four goals for Dayton and Bill Riley three.After dropping the opening game of the Muskegon series, Saginaw swept the next four to stay alive in the trophy hunt. The pivotal game was game three at Muskegon &mdash; won by the Gears, 4-0. The Gears wrapped up the series in the fifth game at home, 5-3. Other Saginaw victories were by scores of 7-3 (game No. 2) and 5-1 (game No. 4).D&rsquo;Arcy Ryan paced the high-scoring Gear offense with seven goals in five games. Ryan&rsquo;s pace is in tune with that set last year by teammate Dennis Desrosiers who set an IHL playoff record for goals with 23 in 19 games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01230/3898043-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="564" height="664"><figcaption class="caption-body">D&rsquo;ARCY RYAN &hellip; Hot Playoff Scorer</figcaption></div>Ryan, who said he&rsquo;s not thinking about any record, credited his linemates &mdash; Center Paul Evans and right winger Dave Westner &mdash; for his success in the series with Muskegon. &ldquo;Westy and Crow (Evans) are working hard everywhere else and I&rsquo;m just in the right place at the right time.&rdquo;Last year Saginaw also bounced Muskegon from the playoffs &mdash; winning a seven-game series on the way to the championship series with eventual champion Toledo. &#9632;

f0036-01

Division Champs Dayton, Saginaw Win Series

FLINT&mdash;The stormy career of Ken Wilson as general manager ofthe Flint Generals of the International Hockey League has come to an end.Wilson, who joined the Flint staff last oluly, announced his resignation following a growing swell of protest over his role from Flint fans. At least 300 Flint fans had signed petitions they wouldn&rsquo;t renew season tickets if Wilson returned next season.The resignation was somewhat of a surprise in view at the fact wilson had previously agreed to terms of a two-year contract which would have kept him with the Generals through May of 1978. It was not revealed by the Flint front office if Wilson actually ever signed the new conract.Wilson. 52. was the personal choice of Frank Gallagher, who had been general manager at Flint for six seasons and one ofthe original owners. Gallagher and Tommy Ivan, the former&rsquo;s partner, sold their interest in the club last year to a four-man group from Flint, including current president Bob Stork who made the announcement about Wilson&rsquo;s resignation. Other owners are Dr. Gene Chardoul, Bernard L. McAra and Jack DeYonker.A much-travelled executive in minor league hockey, Wilson came to Flint after three seasons as general manager of the now defunct Des Moines franchise. Wilson built a Turner Cup champion in Des Moines two years ago.Wilson has held hockey positions in Fori Worth. Springfield. Mass.. Troy. O,. Omano. Neb. Grand Rapids. Muskegon. Toledo. Greensboro. N.C.. Vancouver and Oakland.Because of his success in Des Moines. Wilson was well received when he arrived in Flint. He was welcomed by Flint fans but the happiness began to fade when Wilson traded or otherwise dealt away some of the established stars such as Merlin Jenner, Doug Menchak and Larry Gibbons. The fans showed their protest at the box office as well as attendance dipped to a six-season low. Flint&rsquo;s early elimination in the playoffs (the Generals lost in four straight toPort Huron) was considered toalso be the death knell for WilsonStork said Wilson reacted to the decision &ldquo;like a gentleman. The decision to replace Wilson was made rather suddenly and there was no hint as to who might replace him. A possibility is coach Ken Carpenter. who may assume the dual role as coach-manager&mdash;a role Ted Garvin has filled in Toledo. Bob Lemieux in Kalamazooand Don Perry in Saginaw &#9632;

300 Flint Fans Force Wilson To Resign Post

<div class="byline">BY BRUCE PENTON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01203/3898105-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="564" height="598"><figcaption class="caption-body">FRED BERRY &hellip;Leads New West Scorers</figcaption></div><h2>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02157/3898098-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="583" height="703"></div>NEW WESTMINSTER&mdash;Ernie (Punch) McLean, coach of New Westminster Bruins, heavy favorites to represent the Western Canada Hockey League in the 1976 Memorial Cup playoffs, isn&rsquo;t asking much.Not only is McLean bidding to become coach of the third earn to win back-to-back WCHL titles, but the veteran coach says he&rsquo;d like a playoff sweep &mdash; undefeated through three rounds.&ldquo;That would be something, eh?&rsquo; McLean said after the Bruins kayoed Brandon Wheat Kings in five straight to open the 1975-76 playoffs. &ldquo;We could do it. We&ldquo;ve got the team. People would remember us. that s for sure.&rdquo;The Bruins ran roughshod over the sixth-place Wheat Kings, and only brilliant goaltending from All Star Glen Hanlon of Brandon prevented the scores from going into double figures on all five occasions.Whatever route the Bruins take to get to the Memorial Cup round, McLean wants to make sure his team doesn&rsquo;t duplicate its performance from last year, when they fell one game short of winning the cup.&ldquo;We lost in the final&hellip;sure, said McLean, &ldquo;But we had the same record as Toronto after it was all over. We both had two wins and a loss. They get the cup. It&rsquo;s stupid. This year, we&rsquo;ll do things differently once we get there.&rdquo;McLean says this year&rsquo;s Bruins are much stronger all-round than his 1974-75 WCHL champs.&ldquo;Last year, we got hot goaltending from Gordie Laxton and he alone won a couple of big games for us,&rdquo; McLean said. &ldquo;This year, some people have said our goaltending (Blaine Peterson and Carey Walker) is our weak spot. I don&rsquo;t agree, but you must admit we&rsquo;re stronger everywhere else. We&rsquo;ve got three lines that can score, we&rsquo;ve got the best defense in the league and our forwards can play offense and defense with anyone in the league.&ldquo;And we&rsquo;re physical Nobody&rsquo;s going to push us around.&rdquo;Brandon coach Dune McCallum said the Bruins are the best junior team he&rsquo;s ever seen. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way you can send a checking line out against them.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Who do you check? All their lines score.&rdquo;When cornered, McLean said he couldn&rsquo;t see any one team in the league giving the Bruins trouble.&ldquo;Saskatoon? One line,&rdquo; said McLean.&ldquo;Medicine Hat? One line.&rdquo;&ldquo;Kamloops? No trouble.&rdquo;The other team in contention is Patty Ginnell&rsquo;s Victoria Cougars, who, if for no other reason, would like to beat the Bruins because they have a score to settle with them. It was only last year that New West, third-place finishers in the Western Division, upset the highflying Cougars in the Western final. The Victoria loss was considered an upset. But that was last year. Should Victoria get by Medicine Hat in the quarter-final, the Cougars would go head-on against the Bruins in the semis.This year, an upset shouldn&rsquo;t happen. Although the Cougars are definitely playing much tighter hockey in the playoffs, they had only one victory in 10 games against New Westerminster to show for the regular season.If any team other than New West wins the WCHL, Western Canada bookies will take a bath. But an undefeated sweep for the Bruins? Don&rsquo;t bet against it.NEW WESTMINSTER: Bruins had two close games with Brandon in the B.C. city, winning 3-2 and 5-3. The other three were easy ones &mdash; 9-2 in New West. 9-4 and 7-4 in Brandon. Fred Berry led Bruin scorers with 12 points in the five games while his linemates, Harold Phillipoff and Kevin Schamehorn also chipped in offensively with 10 and eight points.BRANDON: The only bright spot for the Wheat Kings was Glen Hanlon, who faced 236 shots in the five games, stopping 203. Overage Dale McMullin and rookie Bill Derlago ed Brandon point &mdash; getters with six each in their aborted playoff season.VICTORIA: Mike Will four-goal, two-assist performance helped the Cougars eliminate Regina Pats in six games with a 9-3 triumph in he final contest. Victoria then went on fake a commanding 5-1 lead in points over Medicine Hat in a six-point series, winning and tying in the opening games in the Alberta city. Cougars got a tie in the second game (2-2) but scoring twice in the final four minutes of the game.REGINA: Pats only win against Victoria came in the fifth game when Jon Hammond scored three goals for a 6-4 triumph. Rob Tudor and Drew Cal lander had nine points each in the six games to spice the Regina attack. The 1975-76 campaign was a downer for Bob Turner&rsquo;s Pats but the veteran coach predicts his team will rebound in 76-77.SASKATOON: Blades had their hands full with underdog Lethbridge in the opening round of playoffs, before finally winning out in seven games. Broncos led 5-3 in points one stage, before Blades triumphed at home, earned a tie in Lethbridge with, wo late goals, and wrapped it up at home with a 6-1 win in the seventh game. Blair Chapman had 12 goals in the six games, while scoring champ Bernie Federko led all pointgetters with 19.LETHBRIDGE: Butch Eakin, a refugee from Winnipeg via a trade earlier in the season, led the Bronco point-getters with 10 as Mike Sauter&rsquo;s crew nearly pulled a big upset before finally succumbing to the Blades. With the series tied 5-5 in points after live games. Broncos led 6-4 in the sixth game with 2:30 to play, but gave up two goals and tied, opening the door or Saskatoon. Steve Tambellini (17) and Ron Delorme (20) also had productive series with nine points each.KAMLOOPS: Defensema Reg Kerr took over as Chiefs&rsquo; big point man as Kamloops got past the first round of playoffs with a 6-3 triumph over Winnipeg in the sixth game to take the eight-point series 8-4, Kerr, who lavs either forward or defense, picked up points in the six games. Ryan Waiter scored the tying goal in two tie ames in Winnipeg.WINNIPEG: Clubs&rsquo; most successful season since the start of the decade ended in Kamloops and coach Gerry Brisson said the team &ldquo;lost $2,000 by making the playoffs. But with a couple of breaks,&rdquo; Brisson said, &ldquo;we could have won. The big man in the playoffs for Winnipeg was the same man who ed the team during the season defenseman Kevin McCarthy, who ed noth teams with 13 points.MEDICINEHAT: Playing without injured Don Maroch for the first two games. Tigers eliminated Edmonton Oil Kings 8-2, taking the eigh point series with 7-2 win in the final game, marred by a third-period brawl. Defenseman John Hilworth was given a five-game suspension for his actions in he brawl.EDMONTON: Oil Kings rot in early edge against Medicine Harsheby taking the second game or Tigers&rsquo;s home ice, but then proceeded to blow the series by losing twice in row at home. Brent Peterson, in a season-long slump with just 22 goals after getting 17 in his rookie season, hit for that trick in the third game, a 6-5 Medicine Hat win. &#9632;

f0037-01

Back-To-Back WCHL Titles Foremost But Bruins Bid For Playoff Sweep

<h2>WESTERN CANADA LEAGUE</h2><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03116/3898185-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="577" height="78"></div>(New Westminster leads eight-point series 5-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>New Westminster 2, Victoria 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0493/3898178-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="577" height="79"></div>(Kamloops leads eight-point series 4-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Kamloops 5, Saskatoon 3Saskatoon 6, Kamloops 2Kamloops 7, Saskatoon 2<h3>QUARTER-FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0575/3898171-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="578" height="72"></div>(Victorio wins six-point series 7-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Victoria 3, Medicine Hat 2Victoria 2, Medicine Hat 2Victoria 5, Medicine Hot 4Victoria 5, Medicine Hot 4Preliminary Round<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0657/3898164-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="579" height="77"></div>(News Westminster wins 10-points series 10-0)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>New Westminster 3, Brondon 2New Westminster 9, Brandon 2New Westminster 5, Brandon 3New Westminster 9, Brandon 4New Westminster 7, Brondon 4<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0742/3898157-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="579" height="82"></div>(Saskatoon wins eight-point series 8-6)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Saskatoon 9, Lethbridge 4Saskatoon 3, Lethbridge 3Lethbridge 5, Saskatoon 4Lethbridge 4, Saskatoon 2Saskatoon 7, Lethbridge 2Saskatoon 6, Lethbridge 6Saskatoon 6 Lethbridge 1<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0837/3898150-1-eng-US/f0037-082.jpg" title="f0037-08" width="578" height="79"></div>(Kamloops wins eight-point series 8-4)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Kamloops 4, Winnipeg 2Komoloops 5, Winnipeg 2Winnipeg 8, Kamloops 5Kamloops 3, Winnipeg 3Kamloops 2, Winnipeg 2Komloops 6, Winnipeg 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0929/3898143-1-eng-US/f0037-092.jpg" title="f0037-09" width="576" height="80"></div>(Victoria wins eight-point series 9-3)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Victoria 3, Regina 1Regina 6, Victoria 4Victorio 9, Regina 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1024/3898136-1-eng-US/f0037-102.jpg" title="f0037-10" width="581" height="75"></div>(Medicine Hat won eight-point series 8-2)<h2>GAMES COMPLETED</h2>Victorio 3. Medicine Hot 2Victorio 2, Medicine Hat 2 &#9632;

f0037-03

<div class="byline">BY GARY CLARK</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaPHILADELPHIA&mdash;The Philadelphia Firebirds won the third annual Lockhart Cup championship by upsetting the Beauce Jaros four games to two in the playoff finals of the North American Hockey League.If you were among those that thought that the Firebirds and Jaros would scratch, claw, and battle their way through a whale of a series in the deciding round of the cup playoffs, you were right on.As possessors of the best regular season record in the league the favorite Beauce Jaros had the home ice advantage. The series opened at the Palais des Sports on April 6. That the Firebirds won the opener in the Jaros rink, 7-5, was aportent of things to come. Three of the six games ended in victories to the visiting team. The Firebirds collected two of the all important road wins, and thus the series.In game one, the Firebirds set the stage for their championship by stealing a page from the Jaros&rsquo; script: they fell behind early only to battle back to a come-from-behind win.Pierre Henry put the Firebirds on the scoreboard first at 1:24. Exactly two minutes later Luc Simard evened things at 1-1. Dwane Byers and Simard quickly followed with goals and Alain Caron scored late in the period to give the Jaros a 4-2 lead.When Firebird Randy Osburn was awarded a penalty shot at 6:41 of period two with the score 5-3, it looked like a pivotal point in the game and perhaps the series. Osburn missed.Did the Firebirds collapse? Goaltender Gaye Cooley would not let them. After Osburn&rsquo;s miss Cooley faced 29 shots and stopped every one of them.Philadelphia had to withstand four Jaros&rsquo; power plays in period three. On one of them Bob Collyard scored a shorthanded game winning goal. The Firebirds were outshot 51-31, but ended the Jaros six-game playoff winning streak.In game two, on April 7 the teams played the second game of the finals in Beauce. There were to be no come-froin-behind heroics for Philadelphia, although they had their chances.Led by two first period goals by Caron (giving the &lsquo;Boomer&rsquo; 13 over a five-game period), the Jaros rushed to a 5-0 lead before Osburn-finally broke the ice for Philly midway in period two. The Firebirds were able to fight back to 6-4 before Joe Hardy&rsquo;s empty net goal. The Jaros peppered Roger Kosar with 58 shots (18-20-20) in coasting to their 7-4 win.In game three, the series shifted to the Philadelphia Civic Center on April 9. The Firebirds won handily 6-1. A pattern which helped to decide the series crystalized in game three: The Firebirds capitalized on their power play opportunities while Beauce did not. The Firebirds scored four times when they had the advantage. The Jaros were completely throttled in four attempts.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01238/3898237-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="558" height="1178"><figcaption class="caption-body">GORDIE BROOKS &hellip; 15 Goals</figcaption></div>In game four, A Firebirds&rsquo; win would have put the Jaros in deep trouble. With a 6-4 lead and less than five minutes to play, the Birds were ready to do just that. But the Jaros turned to their patented closing scene script. Though dog-eared from over-use it worked again: a 7-6 overtime win for the Jaros.Talk about your see saw games! Philadelphia scored the first three goals. Beauce closed period two with four straight scores and a 4-3 lead. Philly built their 6-4 lead with three consecutive goals to open period three. Simard scored twice for Beauce to tie in regulation (the tying goal at 19:17), and Byers netted the winner at 1:42 of overtime.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02187/3898230-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="548" height="1182"><figcaption class="caption-body">DENIS PATRY &hellip; Scored 16</figcaption></div>The 7,638 in attendance (a playoff record which stood for four days) saw plenty of action. A total of 119 shots were directed at goaltenders Archambault and Cooley.In game five, back in Beauce on April 12, the Jaros only had to do what they had done so well all season to win the cup: win twice on home ice.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03139/3898223-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="564" height="1180"><figcaption class="caption-body">MIKE PENASSE &hellip; Unsung Hero</figcaption></div>But they ran into Cooley, who was both lucky and good, and into Philly&rsquo;s unlikely and unsung hero, Mike Penasse.Penasse had scored in each of the seri&rsquo;s first four games, but he had been over shadowed by the feats of team mates Collyard, Brooks, Patry et al. On April 12 the night was all his. He scored once in the first period to help the Birds to a 2-1 lead. Late in the second period Philly was still ahead 4-2 but was facing constant Beauce pressure. Penalties to Bousquet and Ferguson gave the Jaros a twoman advantage. It was then that Penasse did the unthinkable in what was undoubtedly the turning point of the series. Recovering a free puck at his own blue-line, he shoulder faked down the right side and blasted a shot past Archambault into the upper far corner.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0495/3898216-1-eng-US/f0038-042.jpg" title="f0038-04" width="558" height="1186"><figcaption class="caption-body">GREGG PILLING &hellip; Scalp Tingled</figcaption></div>It was then up to Cooley to hold the Jaros. With the aid of some dazzling and courageous blocks by Richard Campeau, he did just that. Final score: Philadelphia 6, Beauce 4.In game six, an NAHL record playoff crowd of 9,227 crammed their way into every corner of the 8,200-seat Philly civic center in anticipation of seeing their heros win the cup. At least several hundred more were turned away at the gates. Those that did get in stomped, sang, chanted, and roared at an ear shattering level. The tumult started before the game and did not end until well after the game was over.The crowd was not disappointed. They were treated to a classic championship match, tense and close. As Gregg Pilling described the atmosphere, &ldquo;My whole scalp was tingling, every hair on my arms was standing on end.&rdquo;The action started quickly. There were three goals in the first 1:10, one by Richard Grenier of Beauce and two by Philly star Collyard. Patry added a third Firebird goal late in period one. Daniel Beaulieu&rsquo;s goal at 4:47 of period two closed the score to 3-2. Then the nail biting started.The teams battled through nearly 34 minutes of scoreless hockey before Howie. Heggedal scored an insurance goal with only 1:18 left in the game.In that time the crowd saw it all. There was end to end play with great chances and miracle saves at both ends. There was a brawl touched off by the aggressive play of Ray Schultz, playing for the first time in 16 playoff games.When Heggedal&rsquo;s goal broke the tension, the crowd broke into a spontaneous celebration which delayed the game for several minutes. Included was a thunderous rendition of &ldquo;God Bless America&rdquo; (a la Kate Smith).An empty net goal made the final score 5-2. The Lockhart Cup was wheeled to center ice amid hundreds of delirious fans. The cup was hoisted over captain Dean Boylan&rsquo;s shoulders and Pilling was hoisted over several other Firebirds for the victorious parade around the ice. And the champagne flowed.PLAYOFF NOTES: Collyard led all playoff scorers with 37 points. Caron was runnerup with 34 points. Caron had 21 goals in 14 games, while Patry had 16 and Gordie Brooks had 15 in 14 games&hellip; Final round crowds of 6,466, 7,368, and 9,227 brought Philadelphia&rsquo;s playoff attendance to 46,609 for nine games, an average of 5,179&hellip; Philadelphia&rsquo;s penalty killers held Beauce to but three power play goals in 22 chances&hellip; Beauce accumulated 572 minutes in penalties in the playoffs for an average of over 40 minutes per game. Michel Garneau was their leading offender with 145 minutes all his own. &#9632;

f0038-01

Firebirds Turn Road Wins Into NAHL Cup Victory

QUEBEC CITY &mdash;Quebec Rempart coach Ron Racette was surprised. Cornwall Royal mentor Orval Tessier was shocked. The semifinal series in the Quebec Major Hockey League was over in four games, with Quebec on top.And while Racette admitted that he didn&rsquo;t expect his team to win four straight games, you could tell that a four-game sweep going against Cornwall was the worst thing that could have happened to Tessier.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m disappointed that we lost the series and even more disappointed that we went out in four games,&rdquo; said the Royals&rsquo; coach and general manager.&rdquo;&ldquo;Goals late in the third period and the failure of our power play are what made the difference in the series,&rdquo; suggested Tessier, &ldquo;but I&rsquo;m not blaming anyone, we have a young team and I&rsquo;m proud of them.&rdquo;The series clincher was a 3-2 game here before 4,508 which saw the Remparts hold one-goal leads in the second and third periods, with Cornwall tieing the contest each time before Denis Turcotte notched the winner at 16.38 of the final frame.Remparts applied the pressure throughout most of the second and third periods, but had trouble beating Royals&rsquo; goaler Barry Borrett, who was seeing action for the first time since the Montreal series.&ldquo;We had the chances to put the game away much earlier,&rdquo; sighed Racette, &ldquo;but Borrett was outstanding. We had four or five chances in the second period alone.&rdquo;Meanwhile in the other semi-final matchup, Sherbrooke Beavers headed home for game five where they wrapped up the series with a 9-2 victory over Trois-Rivi&egrave;res Draveurs sending them into the QMHL final against Quebec.Sherbrooke won game one 10-5, took the second 8-6, won the third 7-4 and appeared headed for a series sweep when the Draveurs won the fourth game in Trois-Riviers 7-6.Apparently, Draveurs&rsquo; coach Michel Bergeron felt that his team had to score more to stand a chance against the powerful Beavers. They fired 22 goals past Sherbrooke netminders in their first four match-ups.The only problem was Sherbrooke, in turn, had struck for 31 goals.Still, Bergeron had called the Beavers &ldquo;lucky&rdquo; after their second win, complaining that his team had missed too many chances.When faced with the fact that Sherbrooke had been able to capitalize on the weaknesses of the Trois-Rivi&egrave;res defense, Bergeron quipped, &ldquo;I guess that&rsquo;s the sign of a championship team.&rdquo;Among the leading scorers for this year&rsquo;s playoffs, Draveurs Richard Dalpe with 22 points, followed by Daniel Desjardins of Trois Rivieres and Draveurs&rsquo; Richard David with 21 points each.Defensive work done by Remparts&rsquo; forwards in stopping Cornwall&rsquo;s Danny Geoffrion and Pierre Brassard, played a great role in limiting the Royals&rsquo; offense.&ldquo;When you win a series four straight,&rdquo; said Racette. &ldquo;you like to give everyone credit&hellip; it was an effort by all 19 men.&rdquo; &#9632;

Remparts Advance Easily To Finals As Sherbrooke Eliminates Draveurs

<h2>QUEBEC MAJOR LEAGUE</h2><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01219/3898411-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="580" height="78"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sherbrooke 10, Trois-Rivieres 5Sherbrooke 8, Trois-Rivieres 6Sherbrooke 7, Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 4Trois-Rivieres 7, Sherbrooke 6Sherbrooke 9, Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 2<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02162/3898404-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="577" height="74"></div>(Quebec wins best-of-seven series 4-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Quebec 5, Cornwall 3Quebec 3, Cornwall 1Quebec 3, Cornwall 2Quebec 4, Cornwell 3<h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03124/3898397-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="580" height="77"></div>(Sherbrooke wins best-of-seven series 4-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sherbrooke 4, Hull 3Hull 7, Sherbrooke 5Sherbrooke 5, Hull 3Hull 6, Sherbrooke 4Sherbrooke 7, Hull 2Sherbrooke 4. Hull 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04105/3898390-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="528" height="78"></div>(Cornwall wins best-of-seven series 4-2)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Thu. March 25Montreal 4 at Cornwall 2Sun. March 28Cornwall 1 at Montreal 7Tue. March 30Montreal 2 at Cornwall 4Thu. April 1Cornwall 6 at Montreal 4Fri. Apr. 2Montreal 3 at Cornwoll 5Sun. April 4Cornwoll 5 at Montrel 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0582/3898383-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="526" height="77"></div>(Quebec wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. March 26Sorel 5 at Quebec 6Sun. March 28Quebec 4 at Sorel 6Mon. March 29Sorel 2 at Quebec 5Thu. April 1Quebec 4 at Sorel 3Fri. Apr. 2Sorel 3 at Quebec 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0666/3898376-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="528" height="80"></div>(Trois-Rivieres wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Fri. March 26Chicoutimi 2 at Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 7Sun. March 28Chicoutimi 2 at Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 12Tue. March 30Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 5 at Chicoutimi 8Thu. April 1Trois-Rivi&egrave;res 6 at Chicoutimi 4Sat. April 3Chicoutimi 2 at Trois-Rivieres 7<h2>CENTENNIAL CUP</h2><h3>Eastern Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0756/3898369-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="577" height="80"></div>(Choriottetown wins best-of-seven series 4-2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0850/3898362-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="578" height="79"></div>(Guelph leads best-of-seven series 3-1)<h3>Western Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0942/3898355-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="581" height="81"></div>(Spruce Grove wins best-of-seven series 4-1)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1038/3898348-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="580" height="81"></div>(Prince Abort leadsbest-of-seven series 2-1)<h2>HARDY CUP</h2><h3>Eastern Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1135/3898341-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="578" height="75"></div>(Embrun lsads best-of-five series 2-4)<h3>Western Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1232/3898334-1-eng-US/f0039-122.jpg" title="f0039-12" width="577" height="75"></div>(Best-of-five series tied 1-1)<h2>NEW YORK METRO JUNIOR</h2><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1328/3898327-1-eng-US/f0039-132.jpg" title="f0039-13" width="577" height="76"></div>(Americans win best-of-five series, 2-0, one tied)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1425/3898320-1-eng-US/f0039-142.jpg" title="f0039-14" width="578" height="79"></div>(Suffolk wins best-of-three series 2-0)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1523/3898313-1-eng-US/f0039-152.jpg" title="f0039-15" width="579" height="77"></div>(Bergen-Rockland wins best-of-five series 2-1, one tied)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1621/3898306-1-eng-US/f0039-162.jpg" title="f0039-16" width="575" height="80"></div>(Westsiders win best-of-five series 2-0, one tied)<h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1717/3898299-1-eng-US/f0039-172.jpg" title="f0039-17" width="578" height="59"></div>(Americans lead best-of-five series 1-0)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>N.Y. Americans 7, N.Y. Westsiders 3<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1813/3898292-1-eng-US/f0039-182.jpg" title="f0039-18" width="577" height="79"></div>(Bergen-Rockland leads best-of-five series 1-4)<h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Bergen-Rockland 4, Suffolk 3 &#9632;

f0039-01

<div class="byline">BY DOUG DOUGHTY</div>LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaLOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HIILERICH 8. BRAOSBY LTD Arnold Street Wallaceburg Ontario Sold in U S and CanadaGREENSBORO &mdash;The Southern Hockey League has become a longshot that somehow manages to win all its races. And, like the proverbial dark horse, the SHL is hoping that one day it might get its due.For three years now, the league has survived cn a shoestring and a prayer. However, in the mind&rsquo;s eye of commissioner Jack Riley, the key there is that the league has survived.&ldquo;Anybody can lose money in minor league sports,&rdquo; said Riley in a statement that must rank as one of the understatements of the year. &ldquo;But what is important is that we&rsquo;re keeping the thing going.&rdquo;As of its last meeting, the SHL was still a &ldquo;going&rdquo; concern. While the subject of expansion has been tabled for the present time, all six teams were represented at the meeting, which Riley interpreted as an outward sign of stability.Of course, there are still some chinks in the armor. League champion Charlotte, which captured the Jim Crockett Trophy for a second straight season, has announced that it will not continue to operate under the present ownership.Greensboro, meanwhile, did not even finish the season, forfeiting its final regular-season game to Roanoke.Despite financial problems throughout the league, Riley maintains that &ldquo;we&rsquo;re ready to go. In Greensbor&ograve; we have a gentleman named Bob Long who is primed to step in. Their group has about five or six people who want to bring the Generals back to the Greensboro Coliseum.&rdquo;For the past season, the Generals operated out of the Piedmont Sports Arena, a small building that seated less than 4,000 which Greensboro traditionalists were avoiding en masse.&ldquo;I think the building could make a big difference,&rdquo; observed Riley. &ldquo;The Piedmont Arena was a nice place to play but a lot of people wouldn&rsquo;t go there because it was too cold inside or because there weren&rsquo;t many backs on the chairs &mdash; little things like that.&rdquo;Under Long, a marketing and research executive, the Generals hope to move back to the spacious 16,000-seat Greensboro Coliseum. Long comes by his hockey interest naturally. His sonin-law, John Voss, was the Greensboro goaltender last season.While Riley professes optimism over the Greensboro situation, he is admittedly confused by goings-on in Charlotte. Al Manch, spokesman for a group that has run the Checkers since they entered the old Eastern League, has announced that his group wants out. &ldquo;Officially,&rdquo; said Riley, they&rsquo;re ready to let anyone have it.&ldquo;Obviously, Charlotte is still up in the air,&rdquo; continued the commissioner, voicing concern over what has become the SHL&rsquo;s most shaky franchise. &ldquo;Pat Kelly (the Checkers&rsquo; coach) attended our last meeting and said there was an outside group interested in moving in, but he assured he was not representing that group or the Manch group.&rdquo;It had also been rumored that golfer Arnold Palmer would buy into the Checkers, but Riley&rsquo;s tone of voice suggested he wasn&rsquo;t counting on it.&ldquo;Somebody asked him jokingly about buying into the Checkers while he was at the Masters,&rdquo; Riley confirmed. &ldquo;He said he was still interested but I don&rsquo;t think he wanted to talk about it anymore when he missed the cut.&ldquo;Still, my personal feeling is that there will be hockey in Charlotte next year.&rdquo;While Charlotte and Greensboro have closed their offices (&ldquo;I can understand why,&rdquo; admitted Riley), the other four league teams continue operations. Roanoke Valley has moved to smaller quarters and reduced its office staff, but three of the six clubs have already started an active season-ticket campaign for next year.&ldquo;Hampton, of course, is ready to go,&rdquo; said Riley of the SHL&rsquo;s runnerup for the second straight year. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve got a fairly stable situation down there.&rdquo;Continuing, Riley commented on the affairs of the rest of the teams.&ldquo;In Tidewater, the franchise lost a lot of money, both under the old operation and under the new owners as well. I understand they&rsquo;ve got some new stockholders and that&rsquo;s a healthy sign. I called Jim Crockett (owner of the Winston-Salem Polar Twins) and he said the office is never closed and thatthey&rsquo;re selling tickets, too.While expansion has not been dismissed forever, it does not rank high on Riley&rsquo;s list of priorities for the time being. &ldquo;If we could just start the season with the same six teams,&rdquo; said the commissioner. &ldquo;I would be perfectly satisfied.&rdquo;For those who still talk expansion, much attention is still centered around Richmond, where Claiborne Robins&rsquo; team is far removed from many of the other teams in the American League. Raleigh, too, has been mentioned.&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t visited Raleigh and, obviously, I&rsquo;m not about to visit Richmond in the middle of the playoffs.&rdquo; commented Riley. &ldquo;Unless they were positive of joining us. I don&rsquo;t think they would say anything at this point.&ldquo;I have not even talked with Richmond, although I have written them several letters. Mr. (Charles) Wornom (owner of the Hampton Gulls) has been up there a few times and has said they might be interested.&ldquo;As for Raleigh, I think somebody must have drawn that name out of a hat. The only facility in Raleigh is Reynolds Coliseum (on the campus of N.C. State University) and I understand ice-making facilities were taken out of there a long time ago.If there has been one issue that has characterized the past three off-seasons in the SHL, it has been expansion. Under its new commissioner, the league has made a significant decision this year to direct its attention toward consolidating its present format rather than chasing after prospective franchises.&ldquo;I think the league can do a better job in several areas,&rdquo; said Riley. &ldquo;First of all. I know we can do better in the field of public relations. The league office can do better &mdash; we&rsquo;re thinking of hiring a &lsquo;PR&rsquo; man &mdash; and I think the individual teams can do better.&ldquo;Greensboro is just one example. The only time the Greensboro paper gave the Generals a half-decent story all season was when the league was in trouble. I think we can work with these people and reach some sort of happy medium.&ldquo;We do play an exciting brand of. hockey in this league, I don&rsquo;t think anybody doubts that. Obviously, our biggest problem is just getting the fans to come out and watch it.&rdquo; &#9632;

Greensboro Back In Old Rink With New Owners

<div class="byline">BY JOHN ARNOLD</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0040-01155/3898466-1-eng-US/f0040-012.jpg" title="f0040-01" width="931" height="1239"></div><h2>SOLUTION IN MAY 7 ISSUE</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3>1. One of the St. Louis Blues.7. A Bruin forward, (init)9. An NHL coach.10. One of the Penguins, (init)11. A former Hawk forward, (init)12. Skating requisite.14. Led the NHL in goals scored.16. Denotes number worn by Hammarstrom.18. Neither.20. Nickname of former forward Camille Henry.22. Ex-NHL forward Fonteyne answers to this.23. National Hockey Association, (init)24. Former NHL forward Shack, (init)25. One of the Habs.30. Pictured player.31. 15th and 3rd letters of the alphabet.32. Each, (abbr.)33. Number worn by Jean Pronovost.<h3>DOWN</h3>1. One of the Seals.2. A Montreal defenseman. (init)3. An NHL general manager.4. Number of goals scored by Awrey this year.5. 20th and 21st letters of the alphabet.6. One of the Flames answers to this.7. Beverage.8. An NHL captain, (init)13. One of the Bruins.15. A Black Hawk forward.17. Denotes number worn by Lome Henning.19. Coaches Baltimore in AHL.21. Washington is located here.23. Wears No. 9 for Los Angeles.26. Number of times Jean Ratelle has won the Byng trophy.27. Initials of one of the Blues.28. Former NHL forward Ingarfield. (init)29. Body of water.32. Same as 11 across.<h2>LAST WEEK&rsquo;S ANSWERS</h2><h3>ACROSS</h3>1. HICKE.4. S.A.6. RACES.9. RALEIGH.10. OCT.11. ICE.13. SAN.14. J.A.15. V.O.16. TOR.17. ANDREA.20. HT.21. A.E.22. N.I.23. KENNEDY.28. O.K.29. ORBAN.<h3>DOWN</h3>1. HARRIS.2. CULLEN.3. ERIC.4. SCHOCK.5. A.E.7. A.G.8. SETH MARTIN.12. CARON.14. JOHN.15. VASKO.18. DAN.19. RENO.24. E.K.25. E.R.26. D.B.27. Y.A. &#9632;

f0040-01

HOCKEY CROSSWORD

<div class="byline">BY HOWIE STALWICK</div>CRANBROOK&mdash;Nearly seven months, 134 games and a million bus miles after it all began, the 1975-76 hockey season will finally come to a close for all but one Western International Hockey League club when Spokane and Cranbrook meet here in the final game of the Savage Cup playoffs.Regardless of who wins the 135th and final game, it will be almost coincidental, for both the host Royals and defending champion Flyers have put together one sensational exhibition of senior amateur hockey throughout the best-of-seven finals.The seventh game comes about now only after each of the series&rsquo; first four games were decided by but one goal (other than emptynetters). one overtime contest resulted only after a clear officiating error, the first shutout of the &lsquo;76 playoffs, and a dozen other little thrills.The guiding light throughout the playoffs and particularly the finals for Cranbrook has been All Star goaltender Leo Karchie, whose magnificent goaltending ironically was probably least exhibited when he had to make just 19 saves in the Royals&rsquo; 4-0 fifth-game victory.Karchie&rsquo;s lone letdown came in the third game, the first on Spokane ice. when he let in six goals in two periods of play before giving way in the third stanza to Wayne Doll with Cranbrook down 6-1 and seemingly out of all contention.But the Royals staged a magnificent comeback at their rival&rsquo;s home site, scoring three unanswered goals in the opening six minutes by overpowering the lackadaisical Flyers with hustling, non-stop forechecking. Only Ernie Care&rsquo;s second goal of the game at the 10:18 mark saved the Spokane triumph for a Coliseum throng of 4,191.Two nights later, a season-high WIHL crowd of 5.032 went home not quite so happy from the Coliseum when diminutive Royal pivot Marv Ferg gave Cranbrook a 2-2 tie in the series with an overtime goal at 6:50.Ferg&rsquo;sgoal made Karchie&rsquo;s often-spectacular 42-save goaltending effort a winning one and came after linemate Billy Martin had knotted the score at 3-3 with barely three minutes remaining in regulation time after linesman Doug Kilburn missed offsides and two-line pass calls on the play that were almost ridiculously obvious to all.The loss was a tough one which may have had something to do with the Flyers&rsquo; measly 19-shot performance the following night in Cranbrook. But perhaps the team simply could not unwind against the Royals&rsquo; tenacious checking work.Spokane also was hurt by a long series of short handed situations, including six staight minutes midway through the opening period. A third straight sellout crowd of 1.538 turned out at Cranbrook&rsquo;s Memorial Arena.Finally the series returned to the American side of the border, and again the Flyers seemed to be in solid control and on their way towards assuring a seventh game in Cranbrook by jumping to 3-0 and 5-1 leads at the end of the first two respective periods.But Chris Becker and-Jim Miller hit just 22 seconds apart in the opening moments of the third period to suddenly make a game of it. only to see the Flyers roar back with three tallies ofthe their own by Don Dirk. Jom Montgomery and Cary Vaughn for a final 8-4 verdict.Karchie was again outstanding in goal despite almost no support at times from his somewhat sluggish mates, making 25 of his 29 total saves in the first two periods.But this night Karchie more than met his match in little Spokane netminder Frank Turnbull, whose 41-save figure might have been a bit misleading, but not by very much.So, a hectic season comes down to a hectic finish, the second straight year that Spokane and Cranbrook have required a seventh game in the playoff finals.Somehow you just know that the winning team which goes on to the Allan Cup semi-finals will be the better team. &#9632;

The WIHL Scene

<div class="byline">BY MORLEY HOWE</div>MILWAUKEE&mdash;The United States Hockey League has a &lsquo;Cinderella&rsquo; champion in the Milwaukee Admirals, a team that managed to finish no better than fifth in the final standings over the regular season.Coached by Andre Carone and sparked by the fantastic goaling of Jean-Marie Pominville, the Admirals swept the Green Bay Bobcats in the best-of-five USHL championship final to capture the hearts of over 4,000 hometown fans. The Admirals beat the Bobcats, the overall league champions during the regular campaign, 6-4 in the windup game to take the Commissioner Trophy, emblematic of USHL playoff supremacy.The Admirals were simply spectacular once they headed into the post-season round winning seven straight games without a loss, a feat rarely achieved in playoff competition. But Carone had the Admirals really up for all three series in which they beat Sioux City and Traverse City 2-0 each and Green Bay 3-0.Caron attributed the Admirals&rsquo; great playoff showing to the brilliant goalkeeping of Pominville, who allowed the opposition only 25 goals in the seven games he started in the playoffs. The new USHL champions also received solid two-way performances from forwards Yves St. Denis, Jean Trottier and veteran Wayne Caulfield. St. Denis was the scoring hero of the playoffs counting 11 times to finish on top with 19 points.The Admirals also received a big boost in the playoffs when Carone reactivated former NHL and WHA veteran Reg Fleming from the team&rsquo;s reserve roster and the former Chicago hard-rock turned in an outstanding series to help Milwaukee win the title.The smooth-skating Bobcats fired 63 shots at the lanky Pominville in an all-out effort to stay alive and extend the series. Three Admiral power play goals, including the winner by Caulfield late in the second period, gave Milwaukee their first league crown.Referee Nick Argentine called 11 penalties in the cleanly played final game, with the winners being called for seven infractions.Following the contest, captain Mike Mallinger skated the entire ice surface displaying the prize trophy before the thrilled and partisan crowd.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0041-01129/3898521-1-eng-US/f0041-012.jpg" title="f0041-01" width="562" height="832"><figcaption class="caption-body">REG FLEMING &hellip; Helped Win Title</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0041-01

Fifth-Place Milwaukee Wins USHL

AMARILLO&mdash;The Amarillo Wranglers captured first place in the Southwest Hockey League&rsquo;s first season of action with a final record of 72 games played. 40 won, 30 lost, and two ties, giving them 82 points and the league championship.The Wranglers will watch the first three games of the Albuquerque-Billings playoff series with much interest inasmuch as Albuquerque ended up in second place in the regular season play. The Wranglers&rsquo; team is well in tact for the playoffs and have only one player that will not see action with Steve Bradford out for the season.ALBUQUERQUE: The Chap arrals ended a fine season of regular play but it was not good enough as Amarillo came from behind in the last few games and took the league championship from Albuquerque, who led the Southwest Hockey League thorugh most of the season and concluded league play with a record of 39 wins, 32 losses, and one tie, giving them 79 points, which was three behind the league winner, Amarillo. The Chaparrals play Billings twice with both playoff games beginning at the Tingley Coliseum. Albuquerque&rsquo;s Steve McDonald will undergo surgery for a separated shoulder and will be out of the playoff games.BUTTE: The Cupper Kings finished in third place two points ahead of Billings with 71 points. They square off against the Minot Raiders in the first game of round one of the playoffs. In a best-of-seven series. The Kings will have to start the game without the services of Garth Morgan and Murray Beck, who are serving a one-game suspensions. Butte came on strong towards the end of the regular playing season and were voted the most improved team in the Southwest League tor the 1975-76 season finishing their regular play with a record of 34 wins, 34 losses, and three ties.MINOT: The Raiders are in Butte preparing to open the best-of-seven game series with the Copper Kings. With the exception of Laurie Reno, all players are expected to see action lor Minot.BILLINGS: The Blazers play in Albuquerque in their first playoff games. They ended lhe regular season with a record of 33 wins, 34 losses and three ties in fourth place in the standings with a total of 69 points. &#9632;

SOUTHWEST LEAGUE ROUNDUP

BLOOMINGTON&mdash;For the second time in the last three years, the St. Paul Vulcans have captured the Clark Cup, symbolic of the Midwest Junior Hockey League play oil championship, after finishing third during the regular season.Three straight wins in the best-of-five finals against the Hennepin Nordiques after an overtime loss in the series opener, allowed the Vulcans to claim the crown in Cinderella&rsquo; fashion the second time in the three year history of the MJHL.In 1974, the Vulcans were also third-place finishers during the regular season, but came alive in the playoff rounds to cop the championship by defeating the Minnesota Junior Stars.From there, they went on to add the National Junior championship, a move they had hoped to duplicate this year in the round-robin competition, but were unsucessful as Springfield of the New England League won out.To reach the MJHL finals, the Volcans eliminated secondplace Bloomington Junior Stars, who had finished the season two points ahead of them in the standings, four games to two.Meanwhile, fourth-place Hennepin Nordiques, pulled the greatest upset of the playoff&rsquo;s, when they knocked off the Austin Mavericks, winners of the Anderson Cup, as first place finishers during the regular season.The Mavericks had finished 11 points ahead of the Nordiques during the regular season, but the playoffs obviously were a different story Hennepin need just five games to eliminate Austin in the best-of-seven semi-finalsFrom there, they posted a 6-5 overtime triumph against the Vulcans in the first match of the finals, but then the St. Paul club took over.St. Paul, which had led the league in both offense and defense in spite of their third-place position in the standings. rebounded for 6-3. 7-4 and 9-6 victories to wrap up the best-of&mdash; five finals. &#9632;

St. Paul Captures Midwest Honors

<h2>SOUTHWEST LEAGUE</h2><h3>Semi-finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0291/3898656-1-eng-US/f0043-022.jpg" title="f0043-02" width="577" height="78"></div>(Butte leads best-of-seven series 2-1)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0373/3898649-1-eng-US/f0043-032.jpg" title="f0043-03" width="577" height="78"></div>(Albuquerque leads best-of-seven series 2-1)<h2>FINAL STANDINGS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0457/3898642-1-eng-US/f0043-042.jpg" title="f0043-04" width="580" height="150"></div><h2>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0547/3898635-1-eng-US/f0043-052.jpg" title="f0043-05" width="589" height="746"></div><h2>MIDWEST JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0636/3898628-1-eng-US/f0043-062.jpg" title="f0043-06" width="579" height="79"></div>(St. Paul wins best-of-five series 3-1)<h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0734/3898621-1-eng-US/f0043-072.jpg" title="f0043-07" width="578" height="63"></div>(St. Paul winsbest-of-seven series 4-2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0826/3898614-1-eng-US/f0043-082.jpg" title="f0043-08" width="580" height="75"></div>(Hennepin winsbest-of-seven series4-1)<h2>NEW ENGLAND LEAGUE</h2><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-0925/3898607-1-eng-US/f0043-092.jpg" title="f0043-09" width="579" height="78"></div>(Springfield wins best-of-three series 2-0)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-1021/3898600-1-eng-US/f0043-102.jpg" title="f0043-10" width="582" height="78"></div>(Berlin wins best-of-three series 2-0)<h2>U.S. NATIONALS</h2><h3>Finals</h3>Springfield 5, Amherst 3<h3>Semi-Finals</h3>Springfield 4, Los Angeles 1Amherst 4, Rochester 3<h3>Second Round</h3>Skotie 7, St. Paul 3Rochester 7, Los Angeles 4Springfield 7, Fort Wayne 2Amherst 8, Detroit 3Los Angeles 6, St. Paul 4Rochester 4, Skokie 2<h3>First Round</h3>Detroit 5, Fort Wayne 3Springfield 5, Amherst 2Los Angeles 8, Skokie 5Rochester 4, St. Poul 1Amherst 8, Fort Wayne 3Springfield 12, Detroit 1 &#9632;

f0043-02

MINOR SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">BY BILL HILTS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-01127/3898687-1-eng-US/f0043-012.jpg" title="f0043-01" width="318" height="412"></div>The Springfield Olympics from Springfield, Massachusetts, regular season champs of the New England Jr. League, who lost in the finals last year to Ecorse, Michigan, are the new National Junior &ldquo;B&rdquo; Champions of the AHAUS. They had to come from behind to beat out the determined Amherst Knights, from Amherst, N.Y., the N.Y.Penn Jr. League and N.Y state Region Champs by a 5-3 score. The tournament was held ir Andy Laing&rsquo;s Lakeshore Rink at Rochester. N.Y.Coach Gary Dineen&rsquo;s Olympics played a good solid series, going undefeated the entire route, marking up a 5-0 record. In the Championship game though, they couldn&rsquo;t seem to get it all together early in the going, ending the first period on the short end of a 2-0 score. Amherst&rsquo;s Leo Lynett, who shot seven goals in the tourney, scored both markers, the first at 4:15 on a pass from Greg olantzi, then an unassisted marker at 4:21.Then the flashy, young Olympic center Bernie Croteau finally beat Knight goalie Mark Daniels at 7:08 of the second period on a pass from Dean Lombardi. At 7:35, Croteau dented the mesh again on a pass from defenseman John Bridge and from then on it was Springfield all the way. Tom Smith close out the scoring in the second at 18:57 with another assist from Bridge and Jeff Cristina.The final stanza saw Amherst make an early attempt to get back in the game when Tom Wilde fired a power play goal at 1:32 mark, on a pass from Dale Guynn. But the Olympics got an outstanding performance from goalie Bill DeRosia and he slammed the door on the frustrated Knights for the rest of the period. At 7:08 Croteau completed his hat trick, again with Bridge getting the assist. At 19:09 Ed Malone closed out the Springfield scoring with Gary Wojcik getting the assist. Amherst outshot Springfield 36 to 30.There was little doubt when the officials announced who had won the MVP Award &mdash; who else but Bernie Croteau. He piled up a total of eleven goals during the tourney and logged much ice time, not only scoring goals, but in working off penalties as well.In the semi-final round, the host team Rochester Monarchs, winners ofthe American Division, went at it against the Amherst Knights, second-place finishers in the National Division. In the companion game, the Springfield Olympics, winners of the National Division, faced the Los Angeles Jr. Kings, second-place finishers in the American Division.The Rochester vs. Amherst match, both N.Y. Penn League teams, proved to be one of the most exciting of the tournament, with a full house of about 1500 fans jammed into the Lakeshore arena. Amherst finally prevailed over the Monarchs by a 4-3 count, but it took a backhander by Greg Jantzi at the 19:14 mark of the final period to do it. Assists on the winner went to Lynett and Brownschidle. Jeff Brownschidle also collected a pair of goals with a single by Bob Barton. Gary Moss netted a pair for Rochester and a single by Pete Dawes. Rochester outshot Amherst 38 to 36.The companion game saw Springfield eliminate the LA Jr. Kings 4-1. Fran Pycko was the Olympics big gun by notching a hat trick and Croteau scoring the odd goal. Bill DeRosia turned in another steady performance in nets, making 28 saves, being beat only by Brian Loftus. The Olympics outshot LA 41 to 28.Mention must be made of the tournament staff which did an outstanding job in conducting one of the smoothest events we have ever attended. Robert Allen of Lake Placid, N.Y. was AHAUS Tournament Director. Fred Seedhouse was the workhorse of the event, filling the demanding Chairman&rsquo;s role, along with his vice-chairman Fred Lamb. Referee-in-Chief was Dan Guynn and Al Freestone did his usual excellent job as statistician for the event. To those fellows and of course all the guys and gals who made the show go, a lusty tip of the hockey helmet!The opening game of the twelve match qualifying round saw the Wayne (Mich.) Americans drop Fort Wayne (Ind.) Pepsi Komets 53. Goal scorers for the winners were Dave Herrst with two, Bob McGinlay, Ken McLean and Russ Baltazar Baltazar. Kerwin Short had a pair for the losers and Mike Thomson one. Ft. Wayne outshot the winners 40 to 38.The second game saw the eventual finalists in action and again Springfield edged Amherst 5-2. All single goals were shot in the game. The Olympic scorers were Glen Herdendorf, Melon. Pycko, Dan Ferioli and Chip Labonte. For the Knights it was Brownschidle and Paul Hamilton. The Olympics outshot Amherst 42 to 28.The LA Jr. Kings dropped the Skokie Chiefs 8-5 in the third match. LA scorers were Frank Salcido, Shaun Elder, Rich Herter, Steve Cameron, Chet Carlbom, Joey MacKenzie, Pat Galvin and John Fox. For Skokie it was Jay Whitehead, Rich Kohl, Ralph Af-frunti, John Zullo and Tony Divito. The Jr. Kings outshot the Chiefs by a 45 to 41 count.Game four saw Rochester beat West St. Paul (Minn.)Bor-Son Bruins 4-1. For the Monarchs it was Dave Bagley, Mark Burgholzer, Ron Weathers and Tim Hervey. Terry Goulet got the Bruins lone marker. The Monarchs outshot the Bruins 49 to 30.Amherst beat the Ft. Wayne (Ind.) Pepsi Komets 8-3 in game five. For the Knights it was Jantzi with two, Hamilton Brownschidle. Bob Barton, Wilde, Lynett and Stu Campbell. Komet scores were shot by Pat Fox, Gary Daniels and Luke Fletter. Amherst outshot Ft. Wayne 41 to 24.In game six, Springfield buried Wayne (Mich.) Americans 12-1. Croteau notched another hat trick, a pair each by Wojcik and Jeff Cristina, with singletons by Tom Smith, Ferioli, Mark Veto, Labonte and Wayne Christina. Brian Betterly scored for Wayne. The Olympics outshot the Americans by 54 to 21.Skokie beat St. Paul 7-3 in game seven. For the Chiefs it was Rick Kohl notching a hat trick, with a pair by Peter Snyder and singles by Affrunti and Zullo. St. Paul goals were shot by Chris Walker with two and one by Bernie Orhn. The Chiefs outshot St. Paul by 48 to 41In game eight. Rochester outscored LA by 7-4. Dave Bagley and Clint Campbell each had a pair for the Monarchs with singles by Gary Moss. Mark Burgholzer and Jerry Shorthouse. Jr. King scorers were a pair by Shaun Elder, with singles by Loftus and Salcido. Rochester outshot LA by a 40 to 34 count.Springfield took Ft. Wayne 7-2 in game nine. Gary Wojcik led the way with two, with singles by Croteau, Barry Ryan, Malone, Veto and Ferioli. Ft. Wayne scores were shot by Thomson and Jim Hoagland. The Olympics outshot Ft. Wayne 56 to 16.Amherst took Wayne (Mich.) 8-3 in game ten. Jeff Brownschidle registered a hat trick to lead the Knights with singles by Campbell, Jantzi. Lynett, Wilde and Hamilton Bob McGinlay got all three Wayne goals. The Knights outshot the Americans by 43 to 19.In game eleven, LA beat St. Paul. 6-4. Frank Salcido and Scott Hamilton each scored two to lead the winners, followed by Tom Durkin and Jim Herron. Steve Oster had pair for St. Paul, with singles by Bob Dupras and Tim Fink.In the final game of the elimination round, Rochester edged Skokie 4-2. Bob Weickgenannt led the way for the Monarchs with two, singles coming off the sticks of Weathers and Hervey. For Skokie it was Zullo and Jay Whitehead. The Monarchs outshot the Chiefs 44 to 25. &#9632;

f0043-01

Springfield Brings National Title To New England Junior Hockey Loop

Chuck Lefley and Derek Sanderson of the Blues combined to give St. Louis Blues the top penalty-killing unit in the National Hockey League this season.Lefley shook free for a league leading eight goals when his team was one or more players short, while Sanderson was the runnerup with six shorthanded efforts. As a team, the Blues totaled 21 shorthanded efforts. As a team, the Blues&rsquo; goals were seven more than the Philadelphia Flyers, who led the NHL for the 1974-75 season.Three players were tied for third place in the league short handed scoring honors, including Lanny McDonald of Toronto, rookie Dennis Maruk of California Seals and Butch Goring of the Los Angeles Kings, who each hqd five.There were also six players who scored four shorthanded goals in the 1975-76 season. Thet were: Bill Barber (Philadelphia!. Al MacAdam (California. Bohbv Clarke (Philadelphia). Dennis Hull (Chicago). Dave Forbes (Boston), and Lome Henning (New York Islanders). Henning, in fact, scored more than half of his total goals (seven) while killing penalties.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0043-1117/3898718-1-eng-US/f0043-112.jpg" title="f0043-11" width="564" height="756"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEREK SANDERSON</figcaption></div>Behind St. louis and Phila delphia in the team honors for shorthanded goals were Toronto and the Islanders who picked up 11 short handed goals and Boston. California. Chicago and Detroit who each had nine.As far a-penalty-killing percentages were concerned, the New York Islanders had the most successful percentage in defending against the opposition&rsquo;s power play, killing off 85.4 percent ofthe penalties.Montreal ranked second with 84.8 percent, followed by Atlanta. Boston and Buffalo. Somewhat surprisingly, the Blues had one at the worst penalty-killing percentages. as they only managed to successful defend against 73.9 percent of their penalties, a percentage which only Minnesota and Kansas City did not exceed.The Canadiens were the only NHL team not to allow a shorthanded goal. Kansas City and Minnesota allowed the most shorthanded goals, 17 and 16. respectively. &#9632;

f0043-11

Blues Finish NHL Season With Top Penalty Killers

<div class="byline">BY MIKE DENNIS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0044-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-01121/3898756-1-eng-US/f0044-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Islander defenseman Denis Potvin is a durable player who rarely ever misses a game. But even he must find the pressure of a 110-game season-exhibitions, league and playoffs &mdash; exhausting.</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;Picture this situation if you will: The time-any time in the not too distant future; The place-any one of some half-dozen cities in the United States and Canada; The event-the Stanley Cup playoffs are nearing completion after two months of post-season competition. They are now down to two finalists.It&rsquo;s 7.22 p.m. on a week night as the fans make their way to (choose two arenas) the Forum, the Spectrum, the Garden, wherever.After a brilliantly warm day, the sun is finally showing signs of a descent for the day, but the temperature remains in the high 70&rsquo;s. As the fans gather at the arena, handkerchiefs dab at pools of perspiration that build up on foreheads.It&rsquo;s been a long series. One finalist had a first-round bye but was forced to a seven-game series and then a six-game series before reaching the finals. The other played a three-game preliminary series, a five-game quarter-final and a semi-final, which lasted seven games.Needless to say, the players are tired. And the fans are restless, too, as they fidget in their seats.The Cincinnati Reds are making a shambles of the National League West, while the Montreal Expos have surprised more than a few hockey fans by getting off to their best start ever.Canadian Football League teams have reported to training camp and local golf courses are jammed. Even in the air-conditioned arenas, fans are grumbling about getting out for some air, but wait-they&rsquo;re almost ready for the opening faceoff.After the home team&rsquo;s official good luck charm has sung the National anthem, the teams are poised at center ice, ready for action.Suddenly, out of the rafters (or maybe a sack brought in by a fan) a strange creature wings its way over the ice surface. Is it-ah yeas, a bat, loose on a hockey rink, and the players breathe a sigh of relief. &ldquo;Thought it might be a vulture,&rdquo; quips one wag who&rsquo;s lost about 15 pounds since the start of the playoffs.Now the game is underway. The passing is sloppy, the stickhandling non-existent. Where is the team play that we&rsquo;ve been watching since October, the crisp passes, jarring checks?&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the ice surface,&rdquo; explains one honest hockey player, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s like mush out there&hellip; we&rsquo;re scraping the concrete half the time.&rdquo;Naturally the game goes into overtime. Now overtime is perhaps, one of the most exciting occurrences in sport. And the fans want to get their money&rsquo;s worth. But let&rsquo;s face it, this game (this imaginary game) has been a turkey, right from the start.Then it happens. Your team&rsquo;s top player is sent in on a clear breakaway. Well, not exactly clear, because from our vantage point, there&rsquo;s at least 25 feet of fog between the skater and the goaler.The hero moves in on net. He dekes, he shoots, he scores (so we&rsquo;re told). Seven teammates and 3,785 fans go wild (because they saw the play), but what&rsquo;s this?Referee &mdash; (insert your favorite here) says no goal.Here&rsquo;s the conversation that follows:Ref: No goal. I never saw the puck in the net.Player: But it was in, I swear it. I put it up in the top corner, it fell down into the mesh and the goalie swept it out.Ref: Sorry, but I can&rsquo;t allow it.Player: Well ask the goal judge.Ref to goal judge: was it in the net? Did the puck cross the goal line?Goal judge: What goal line? I can&rsquo;t even see the net.O&rsquo;K. maybe that&rsquo;s a little farfetched, but it&rsquo;s all based on true incidents and it could happen. It&rsquo;s not that far away from the realm of possibility.The problem in hockey then is that too many teams make the playoffs and the playoffs last too long.By the time the playoffs get down to the final rounds the fans have had enough. Even the players who have worked all season for the glory of the Stanley Cup are hoping for a quick end to the season.So let&rsquo;s take a look at the playoff systems of the other professional sports and put hockey in its proper perspective.Baseball, of course, has the lowest number of teams which advance to post-season play. Just four of 24 teams, the ones who finish first in their division enter the playoffs.The main emphasis has always been on the World Series, pitting the National and American league champions, supposedly the best two teams in the sport.But expansion to 24 teams forced the four-divisional alignment where division champs play a best-of-five series in their league and the two winners meet in the World Series.Football&rsquo;s a little more complicated with 26 teams in six divisions overall. These six divisional winners advance to the playoffs as do one runnerup from each of the two conferences, the wild card team.Thus you have eight teams playing single elimination football on three weekends (over a four-week period).Basketball is similar to hockey in a number of ways when it comes to playoffs. First of all, their seasons are almost parallel. Basketball (NBA) plays 82 games, NHL hockey 80.Playoffs in basketball are getting just about as involved as hockey, as well. Of 18 teams, 10 qualify for the playoffs. There are four divisions with two in each conference. Conference winners with the best record get a bye while the second and third place teams play a best-of-five and the third and fourth-place teams, determined by overall record, not placement in the standings, have a best of three.Conference winners then play a best-of-five against the winners of the best-of-three series. Then the two winners meet in a best-of-seven series to determine the conference champs. Finally the two conference champs meet.In hockey, two-thirds of the teams qualify for the playoffs. A total of 720 league matches are played to eliminate just six teams, 12 of 18 go on to post-season action.Winners of the four divisions receive byes while the remaining eight playoff qualifiers are ranked from one to eight on the number of points they have achieved in the season (a good idea).Team 1 meets 8, 2 vs 7, etc. with home ice advantage going to the club with the better record for a best of three series.The four survivors then join the divisional champs and are again ranked from one to eight. Four best of seven series are played. Then two, semi-final series then one. Sometimes it seems to take forever.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0044-0281/3898749-1-eng-US/f0044-022.jpg" title="f0044-02" width="1186" height="1732"><figcaption class="caption-body">Long hockey seasons take their toll on the players. Performers like Flyers&rsquo; Rick MacLeish, shown here being helped off the ice after breaking an ankle that has kept him sidelined two months, are vulnerable to injury due to weariness of playing too many games.</figcaption></div>Last season the playoffs started April 8, and finished May 27, a total of seven weeks. This year they started April 6, two days earlier, but don&rsquo;t bet they&rsquo;ll end much before the later part of May.There are some good aspects to the set-up the NHL uses. Here&rsquo;s what Brian O&rsquo;Neill, executive director of the NHL says about the system: &ldquo;I feel very strongly about the system we have developed&hellip; by placing the premium on points we have sustained interest right down to the end (of the season).&rdquo;&ldquo;What the system does is to transcend divisions,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Neill commented. &ldquo;It makes the teams keep working for points.&rdquo;Such was the case this year as Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Los Angeles fought down to the wire to get as many points as possible, and in the case of Toronto, win the homeice advantage for the preliminary round.Or like last year, when Philadelphia, Buffalo and Montreal all closed the season with 113 points, with Philly taking the home-ice edge due to the greatest number of wins.But though interesting as the race for points can be, it pales slightly when a team with 55 less points than the league leader has a chance to win the playoffs.And what about World Cup play in 1977?What about the NHL and the World Hockey Association, who will be in the midst of their playoffs in April 1977 when the World tournament is slated to begin?Will Canada and the U.S. be content to send a team comprised of players whose teams have been eliminated from Stanley Cup play? Certainly the whole format of the tournament isn&rsquo;t about to be changed just to allow the North American teams to complete their, if you&rsquo;ll pardon the expression, &ldquo;house-league playoffs.&rdquo;The most viable solution would be to shorten the playoffs, and better yet, go a step further and shorten (slightly) the regular season, as well.First, the playoffs. Let&rsquo;s keep the number of playoff participants down to eight, four from each conference (Prince of Wales and Clarence Campbell) arranged on an over-all basis by points, with the divisional leaders gaining automatic entry.In other words, you can keep the divisional rivalries going, and in fact strengthen them by making more games among each divisions, although it will cut down upon the number of times that the fans will see the non-divisional teams (in some cases good, in others bad) but it&rsquo;s one or the other.Next, up to the finals, no series should be more than five games. Having four quarterfinal, two semi-final and one final series with the possibility of seven game is dragging it out too much.The time has come for league officials to realize that people&rsquo;s interest in hockey evaporate rather quickly in the late spring sunshine.People want to be outdoors, more active, not sedentary in an arena winding out a long hockey season.Let&rsquo;s see fewer teams in the playoffs and a shorter playoffs, where quality hockey is rendered upon all of the sport&rsquo;s fans.It would be a beneficial move for hockey. &#9632;

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April 30, 1976

World Hockey Association Playoff Summaries

FAN FORUM

Detroit May Get Muscle, New Coach

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