Team Penalties

Flyers’ Fire Too Much For Czechs; Espo Raps NHL’s Xmas Scheduling

PHILADELPHIA— The National Hockey League’s 1977-78 version of the ‘Super Series’ went off without too much hitch on the ice as the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers earned the league a win and a tie in the kickoff of the 13-game international series but off the ice the flack was flying. Only minutes after the determined Flyers clearly demonstrated to 17,077 Spectrum fans that they were in a class by themselves as far as the touring Pardubice team was concerned by overpowering the Czechs 6-1, Rangers’ captain Phil Esposito seized on the opportunity to blast the NHL and his own NHL Players’ Association. The Rangers had struggled off the ice after battling back from a 4-1 deficit to tie the Kladno team of Czechoslovakia 4-4 before a disappointing turnout of 10,123 at…

The NHL Scoreboard

(Standings on Tue. Dec. 27) NORRIS DIVISION ADAMS DIVISION PATRICK DIVISION SMYTHE DIVISION GAMES COMPLETED Mon. Dec. 19 Vancouver 2 at Los Angeles 3 St. Louis 4 at Toronto 4 Tue. Dec. 20 Colorado 1 at N.Y. Islanders 9 Atlanta 2 at Vancouver 2 Wed. Dec. 21 Washington 5 at N.Y. Rangers 5 Philadelphia 4 at Cleveland 0 Montreal 3 at Toronto 2 Buffalo 5 at Detroit 3 Minnesota 1 at Los Angeles 8 Chicago 6 at St. Louis 2 Colorado 3 at Boaton 6 Thu. Dec. 22 St. Louis 3 at N.Y. Islanders 6 Pittsburgh 3 at Buffalo 3 Los Angeles 4 at Chicago 0 Fri. Dec. 23 Cleveland 4 at N.Y. Rangers 5 N.Y. Islanders 5 at Montreal 7 Philadelphia 1 at Boston 6 Atlanta 6 at Colorado 2 Detroit 2 at Washington 3 Toronto 6 at Pittsburgh 2 Minnesota 7 at Vancouver 5 Mon. Dec. 26 Pittsburgh 5 at Toronto 4 Pardubice (Czechs) 1 at Philadelphia 6 Kladno (Czechs) 4 at N.Y.…

Habs Respond To Adversity With Year’s Best Efforts

MONTREAL— At a time when the Montreal Canadiens appeared to be catching a glimpse of light at the end of a long tunnel after fighting through a team bout with the flu and an extended road trip, a freak deflection put a damper on the celebrations of victories over the Philadelphia Flyers and the Toronto Maple Leafs when Guy Lapointe was forced to undergo surgery for an eye injury. In the closing moments of the second period of the Dec. 21 game in Maple Leaf Gardens with the Canadiens battling to hold, a 1-0 lead, Lapointe was struck in the left eye by a shot which deflected off the stick of defensemate Larry Robinson. The next afternoon Lapointe was operated on, successfully, in Toronto, and an immediate prognostication called for his return…