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

January 5, 1979

The Hockey News January 5, 1979

<div class="image-hero"><img title="Cover-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/cover-01691/4250994-1-eng-US/cover-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

Cover-01

IN THIS ISSUE

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">BY MARTY KNACK</div>LOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY. LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg. Ontario Sold in U.S. and Canada<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01311/4250787-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="554" height="670"><figcaption class="caption-body">GEORGE KOTSOPOULOS&hellip;Spectacular Return</figcaption></div>PETERBOROUGH&mdash;A good record early in the season has created a minor problem for Peterborough Petes, but general manager coach Gary Green isn&rsquo;t complaining too loudly.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had some games where we&rsquo;ve been complacent,&rdquo; says Green. &ldquo;But you never have an easy game in this league, no matter who you&rsquo;re playing. We&rsquo;re not ready for some games.&rdquo;Petes far surpassed Green&rsquo;s wildest expectations, however, taking a sizeable lead in the Leyden Division of the Ontario Major Junior League that has diminished only in the last two weeks.Three losses in four games cut into Petes&rsquo; lead, especially since one of those losses was their first in seven meetings this season against the runner-up Oshawa Generals&mdash;and right in Peterborough, where the Petes showed a 13-5-1 record in their first 19 home games.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t be down on them too much,&rdquo; says Green. &ldquo;In the last 24 games, we&rsquo;ve lost only four.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a matter of the guys being a little too easygoing, but I&rsquo;m confident they&rsquo;ll come back down to earth.&ldquo;Our goal expectations at the first of the season were to be .500 at Christmas, so I&rsquo;ve got to be pleased.&rdquo;The Petes were 22-11-3 after 36 games and, with the Generals reducing their lead to three points, Green&rsquo;s hope that the players would &ldquo;come back down to earth&rdquo; were certain to be realized, because there&rsquo;s little doubt they would like to be back in the Memorial Cup finals again next spring.&ldquo;The only reason we win is because we play disciplined hockey and give 110 percent,&rdquo; says Green, the youngest GM-coach in the league, and a very successful one in his relatively short term.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got a lot of Don Cherry lunch-bucket players. As long as they keep plugging, we&rsquo;ll be all right. If we get away from that and start depending on talent alone, we&rsquo;ll be in trouble.&rdquo;Green is from the Roger Neilson school of coaching, having been Neilson&rsquo;s assistant in Peterborough before Neilson moved up to Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League, and that&rsquo;s why he stresses discipline so much. The Petes often put the fans to sleep with their dull style, but they also put the opposition to sleep and then capitalize for a high percentage of their wins.Strong goaltending by Georges Gagnon, who stopped 36 shots, and three goals in the last two minutes and 28 seconds, when Petes&rsquo; discipline obviously disintegrated completely, enabled the General to end Peterborough&rsquo;s 1978-79 hex over them with a 6-4 win.Dan Lane broke a 4-4 tie with 1:54 remaining and Bob Kucheran then provided Oshawa with an insurance goal with 52 seconds to play.&ldquo;Oshawa&rsquo;s got a good hockey club,&rdquo; says Green. &ldquo;Almost all of them (Petes&rsquo; six wins in an many tries earlier) were one-goal games. Their problem is that sometimes they&rsquo;re a little too offensive-minded.&ldquo;Our guys really get up for the games and I&rsquo;m sure they do, too. At the first of the season, though, I didn&rsquo;t agree with us having to play them 12 times because they were the No. 1 team in the league.&rdquo;The Generals were rated as the team to beat before the season started and may be coming into their own now. But Green wouldn&rsquo;t want to give up one of the better rivalries in the league, either, because the two cities are close together in Ontario&rsquo;s lake country and fans from both centers can easily make it for the &ldquo;road&rdquo; games to add to the rivalry and, along with it, the gate receipts.Green places so much emphasis on the team game that he told statistician Judy Tredgett earlier this season to get his three players out of the top 20. He was probably only half kidding, and really does like it better when the team has the best possible balance.&ldquo;I hope to have nine 20-goal scorers again,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s our aim. It&rsquo;s important to us&mdash;we&rsquo;ve got to have that balanced scoring.&rdquo;Tim Trimper, Bill Gardner and Bob Attwell, the three Petes in the top 20, had 32, 22 and 20 goals, respectively, through 36 games and Chris Halyk was only one short of 20. Others quickly closing in on the magic 20 are defenseman Greg Theberge, with 14, Mark Reeds with 13, Terry Bovair with 12 and Carmen Cirella with 11.&ldquo;Theberge has got to be labelled the best in the league,&rdquo; says Green, boasting about his &lsquo;veteran&rsquo; defenseman. &ldquo;Offensively he&rsquo;s really strong and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on himself to play better defensively. His defense has really improved.&rdquo;OSHAWA: One night after rallying to beat the Petes, the Gens came from behind again, this time with three third-period goals and one by John Liprando in overtime for a 7-6 decision over Ottawa 67s in Ottawa. The goal was Liprado&rsquo;s second of the night and 25th of the season and he also assisted on the goal that created overtime, by defenseman Lee Norwood with 15 seconds left in regulation time. Norwood had scored with 1:06 to play to pull the Gens close, too, as they won for the third straight time and improved their record to 22-13-0.SUDBURY: Norm Stefan stretched his goal-scoring streak to five games as the Wolves beat Brantford Alexanders 5-3 with two third-period goals, then Sudbury ran its string to four consecutive wins on the road with a last-minute 8-7 come-from-behind victory over Niagara Falls Flyers. Mike Hickey and Dave MacQueen scored in the last two and a half minutes in the win over Brantford and Shane Swan and Mike Foligno had the late goals in the decision in the Falls. Swan scored with 58 seconds left and Foligno with just 11 seconds remaining as the Wolves held on to third place in the Leyden Division.KINGSTON: Terry Thompson made 37 saves for only the second shutout by a Kingston goalie in the team&rsquo;s six-year history. Dave Clement scored two goals to lead the way offensively in the 5-0 win over Toronto Marlboros and the Canadians stretched their undefeated streak to seven games, in which they&rsquo;ve been 6-0-1, as they remained a solid fourth in the Leyden.SAULT STE. MARIE: John Goodwin&rsquo;s third goal of the night, with only 39 seconds left in overtime, gave the Greyhounds a 6-5 win over London Knights after the Soo had been humiliated 10-2 by Windsor Spitfires the previous night. It was an important victory for the Greyhounds because it gave them a four-point lead over last-place Ottawa in the Leyden Division.OTTAWA: Defenseman Steve Marengere had two goals, to hit 20 for the season, and defenseman Larry Elson also had two, but they were wasted in the 67s&rsquo; fourth straight loss when Liprando did his overtime damage.NIAGARA FALLS: The Flyers lost two straight for only the second time this season and their Emms Division lead over London was cut to eight points. Niagara lost 2-0 to the Knights and then got stung by the Wolves for just their third home-ice loss against 15 wins and a tie.LONDON: Barry Heard made 25 stops for his first shutout of the season and Jim Egerton and Bill Carroll shot the goals in the crucial win over the Flyers. Rookie Egerton then ran his goal total to 17 with two against the Soo and defenseman Pat Crombeen also scored twice, but Knights&rsquo; overtime record slipped to a disastrous 2-7-1.WINDSOR: The Spitfires are the hottest team in the Emms Division, with three successive victories and four in their last five games. Blair Barnes ran his goal-scoring streak to five games with two goals in the 10-2 win over the Greyhounds and one when Roland Melanson made 39 saves for his first shutout of the season in a 5-0 decision over Kitchener Rangers. The Spitfires continued a hex over Kitchener, improving their record to 15-3-1 in their last 19 meetings dating back to the 197677 season, including a three-game sweep in the &lsquo;76-77 playoffs. Left winger George Kotsopoulos continued to help, with a goal and two assists against Rangers as he padded his totals to four goals and 10 points since returning five games ago from Muskegon Mohawks of the International League to become the team&rsquo;s over-age player. Veteran defenseman Jerry Ingram and Daryl Holmquist were also a plus as Spitfires tied Kitchener and Toronto for third place in the Emms Division.KITCHENER: Barclay Haddad scored twice as the Rangers earned only their third road win of the season, an important 6-4 decision over the Marlies. Jody Gage, Haddad and Paul Reinhart had goals in the last five minutes and 46 seconds and Jim Sidwell made 39 saves in a strong goaltending performance as Kitchener dealt the Marlies their second straight loss at home.TORONTO: The Marlies&rsquo; losing streak reached four with the defeats against Kitchener and Kingston. Brian Paion, Dan Barber, Pat Graham and Jim Peplinski had the goals against the Rangers.BRANTFORD: Sudbury&rsquo;s late goals stretched the Alexanders&rsquo; winless streak to nine games. Mike Bullard, defenseman Brian Cross and Greg Terrion scored for the last-place team in the Emms Division. Brantford is now nine points out of a playoff position after going 0-8-1 in its winless streak. &#9632;

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Petes Exceed Green’s Expectations With Disciplined Hockey Approach

<div class="byline">BY PATRICK LYON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04156/4250756-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="542" height="855"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVE JOHNS&hellip;Solid In Goal</figcaption></div>MANCHESTER&mdash;It looked like a happy marriage when it started. The city of Manchester was to be the home of the state&rsquo;s first professional hockey team, the New Hampshire Freedoms.But, three months later the happiness is gone and the marriage is over. The New Hampshire Freedoms have changed their town and changed their name.When Freedoms&rsquo; owner Sandy Reiss joined the Northeastern Hockey League as the circuit&rsquo;s fifth team just weeks before the season began, he saw nothing but rosy things for his new hockey club and the city of Manchester. He was promised a new building if he would be patient and play in the old John Fitzgerald Kennedy Coliseum. He went one better than that and announced that he would play 10 games in sister city Concord. Along came a four-station radio network to carry the Freedoms games with Ted Sobel at the microphone. But all these things are now a thing of the past. &ldquo;I was promised a new building within three years, if I brought my team here,&rdquo; said Reiss. &ldquo;Now the honorable mayor of Manchester, Richard Stanton, has informed me that there will be no new facility. The civic center here was voted down.&rdquo;Reiss had heard enough. He didn&rsquo;t like playing professional hockey in a building that used mesh screens around the rink instead of the normal plexiglass and he didn&rsquo;t like the place where he called every seat in the house a bad seat. Add to the fact there was only one locker room and one penalty box and it was time for Reiss to move on to greener pastures. It just wasn&rsquo;t a place to house professional hockey.Reiss went to work and after settling things with Ed Fruean, owner of the Cape Cod Coliseum, announced at a press conference that his New Hampshire Freedoms would now be known as the Cape Cod Freedoms and play in the 5,000 seat capacity Cape Cod Coliseum. The structure, located in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts, has been the home of teams in the old Eastern and North American Hockey League and sits in an area of some 125,000 people.&ldquo;In Manchester, the Freedoms weren&rsquo;t even considered first,&rdquo; Reiss related. &ldquo;The high school hockey program came first, junior hockey came second and the Freedoms fame third when it concerned the arena. There was not future in Manchester, so we are moving to the Cape on a permanent basis.&rdquo;Though they were given only an informal approval, Reiss expects no problem getting the final OK on switching the franchise. &ldquo;We anticipate no problem,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;this will be nothing but a positive move for the league. The new Cape Cod Freedoms are hoping to play their first game in their new home against the Erie Blades in late December.Erie Blades&rsquo; owner and NEHL secretary Dr. John Caruso said the final approval should be coming at a league meeting in Johnstown. &ldquo;The thing that we (league officers) were most concerned about was that Sandy leave Manchester with the league still having a good name,&rdquo; said Caruso. &ldquo;We wanted all financial responsibilities taken care of before the Freedoms left and Sandy assured me that everything was properly taken care oL&rdquo; Among the other cities rumored to be considered were Lewiston, Maine; Braintreee, Mass, and Baltimore, MD.Meanwhile back on the ice, the Freedoms split a pair of games during the week, losing to Erie 6-2 in a read contest and defeating Johnstown 5-1 for their fifth win over the Wings in six tries. Player-coach John Cunniff was second in the league in scoring when this issue went to press with 13 goals and 28 assists for 41 points.UTICA: The Mohawks went 1-2 on the week as they split a home series with the Wings, winning 9-5 and losing 7-6 in overtime, before being blasted 8-1 in a road contest in Cherry Hill against the Aces. The overtime setback was a bitter pill for the Mohawks to swallow since they led in the contest 6-5 with under five minutes remaining. The following night relieved some of the misery, Utica winning big on the strength of a hat trick by Ed Smith, two goals by Tim Sheehy and four points (one goal, three assists) by newcomer Ken Yackel. Yackel has been impressive in his short stint with the club as he also got credit for the only goal in the defeat to the first place Aces.Utica general manager and coach Chuck Catto is expected to come to terms with former Andy Whitby, a former winger with the old Mohawk Valley Comets. Defenseman Skip House, a graduate from Boston College, has decided to retire from hockey and enter into business.Hank Nowak continues his domination of the scoring leadership as he paces the entire NEHL with 18 goals and 30 assists for 48 points. Playmaker Terry West is closing in on his teammate with nine goals, 34 assists for 43 points.NEW JERSEY: The high scoring league leading Aces dropped an emotional 7-4 loss to the Blades on the road, but rebounded very strongly, blasting both Utica and Johnstown by identical 8-1 counts at home.Jim Bales upped his season&rsquo;s record to 8-4 and lowered his goals against average to just 3.58. Bales also, has picked up two shutouts. Dave Hynek, who totaled seven points in three games, earned a hat trick against the Wings and top scorer Larry Billows added two goals and two assists vs. the Johnstown crew. Brian Gustafson also had a productive week with two goals and four assists for six points.JOHNSTOWN: After beating Utica 7-6 in overtime to snap a three game losing skein, the Wings immediately went into a tailspin and lost their next three games. Vern Campigotto&rsquo;s game tying goal late in the final period got the Wings even at 6-6 and Doug Johnson took over from their ripping home a winner at 3:58 of the overtime.Traveling proved rough on the Wings as the rugged road trip took its toll in losses at Utica 9-5, New Hampshire 5-1 and New Jersey 8-1. Coach Dick Roberge is still looking for consistency in his young team that never seems to lack hustle.ERIE: The Blades secured a hold on second place with a pair of home wins that marked their first back-to-back weekend sweep in front of the home fans. Erie claimed a 7-4 triumph over the Aces as they broke open a 4-4 contest with three goals within a three minute span in the third period and then came back the following night with a 6-2 nod over the Freedoms.Erie has been by-far the hottest team in the NEHL winning five of their last six games including two big road wins and have a glossy 8-2-1 record over an 11 game stretch as they have picked up 17 points of a possible 22.Lynn Zimmerman, who handled the goaltending chores for the Blades in two seasons and is now enjoying retirement, received a warm reception from Erie fans when he was introduced at a recent game. Zimmerman was able to view young David Johns as he extended his record to 11-6-1 and lowered his goals against mark to 4.38 as one of the most durable goalies in the league. Stan Gulutzan, with a hot month of December, took over the goal scoring leadership that includes three winners, while Dave Dornseif is tops in scoring for defenseman with 17 points. Chest and neck injuries have slowed leading scorer Brad Rhiness, but he is slowly rounding back into top form.The Blades are nearing an end to their two month promotion with the American Heart Association called the Queen of Hearts and Blades. In their first 20 games, the Blades scored the first goal of the game just six times. &#9632;

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Freedoms Moving Team To Cape Cod Site

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0010-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011122/4248772-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg"></div>DO YOU HAVE AN OPINION ON HOCKEY?Write to:AN FORUM,The Hockey News,1434 St. Catherine St., W.,Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7<h2>Where Are Critics When Stars Shining</h2>Much hope was written in the skies for Minnesota at the beginning of this year with the merger with Cleveland.There was plenty of flack handed out by sportswriters and critics for the Stars&rsquo; rocky start, 4-l4-2 after 20 games. What these sportswriters and critics didn&rsquo;t realize is that it would take lime for the players to get to know each other and jell as a team. Patience was a word the Stars possessed but, unfortunately, the sportswriters and critics didn&rsquo;t.Now that the Stars have gotten off to a fast start in December, (4-0-1) with wins over a division leading team (Atlanta, at the time), a shutout of a very hot Los Angeles team, another shutout, of the hapless Colorado Rockies and finally coming from two goals behind twice to tie Boston. What happened fellas? Where are those pens now?Probably swallowing them just like your words, huh? Give credit where credit is due. It is no longer the Minnesota &ldquo;No Stars&rdquo; but rather the Minnesota North Stars.JOHN PJESCICH,Minneapolis, Minn.<h2>Leafs Pretenders In Adams Division</h2>When the Toronto Maple Leafs got off to such a good start this season, it prompted Hockey Night In Canada TV commentator Brian McFarlane to make an absurd prediction that they would win the Adams Division.I agree that the Leafs are stronger with the addition of Dave Burrows, but you must remember that they finished 21 points behind the Bruins last season. Did you think the Bruins would roll over and play dead? Already Boston has opened up a 12-point lead over Toronto playing most of the season without All Star defenseman Brad Park.Perhaps Mr. McFarlane, when the Leafs are ready to part with some of their goons for some quality forwards to help Darryl Sillier and Lanny McDonald score goals then they might become legitimate contenders. Until then Toronto will just be pretenders.TERRY CARPENTER,Galt, Ont.<h2>Ferguson Deserves Some Belated Credit</h2>The New York Rangers have been the biggest and I must say most pleasant surprise in the NHL this season. Most of the credit has been given to coach and general manager Fred Shero and though he is most deserving of his accomplishments I still feel a major person responsible for the Ranger comeback is John Ferguson.I say this because it was he who brought in the young talent they have now such as Ron Duguay, Lucien DeBlois and Dave Maloney. Let me also remind fans that it was Ferguson who brought the two super Swedes, Ulf Nilsson and Anders Hedberg to the Broadway Blues.With the addition of these two and the maturing of the younger players the Rangers have established themselves as a legitimate threat in the league, something they haven&rsquo;t been since the early 70s.But Ranger fans don&rsquo;t forget who helped in making that threat a reality. My compliments to Ferguson.DENNIS ISOTTI,Sudbury, Ont.<h2>Flyers&rsquo; Holmgren Got Off Lightly</h2>I am very upset at how the NHL handled the Carol Vadnais-Paul Holmgren incident at Madison Square Garden. I felt that Holmgren should be suspended for the 1978-79 season.The spearing was an accident because Holmgren was pushed into Vadnais&rsquo; stick, but he (Holmgren) retaliated with a stick across Vadnais&rsquo; helmet.Another time he kicked Terry O&rsquo;Reilly with his skates and I feel that after two suspensions a player should be done for the season.HOWARD TEITEL,Middle Village, N.Y.<h2>Merger Opposer Changes Her Mind</h2>I was an adamant disbeliever of the merger between the NHL and the WHA, but I looked at both sides of the issue and merger is the only answer if hockey is going to stay healthy in the future.Merger would mean only one league without the constant bickering which has gone on between the two leagues, no more signing of underage juniors, or stealing other players with inflated salaries.Looking on the other side, it would mean an all-ready oversized league, the additional travel to WHA cities with the cumbersome 80 game schedule, but for the sake of hockey, one league seems the only healthy solution.HELEN FLEGEL,Claybank, Sask.<h2>Bruins Warned Don&rsquo;t Lose Cherry</h2>There are rumors that the Bruins do not plan to rehire Don Cherry as coach when his contract runs out at the end of the season. This would be a big mistake.The Bruins no longer have players who dominate a game like an Orr or an Esposito, yet they remain as one of the powers of the NHL. The main reason the Bruins are doing so well is that their players work so hard at the game, typified by a Terry O&rsquo;Reilly or Stan Jonathan.Too often the coach is biamed when a team loses but when they win he is taken for granted. Don Cherry should get the credit he deserves.JOHN WHEATLEY,Wellesley, Mass.<h2>Thanks Again To Punch Imlach</h2>Thank you Punch Imlach for everything you did for hockey in Buffalo. You gave us good and exciting hockey before we even expected it. You brought in great players like Gil Perreault and Rick Marlin. You made mistakes but we all do.The hockey world has already lost two of its greatest players this year and now two of the greatest general managers in Sam Pollock and Punch Imlach.I feel hockey fans are going to miss Punch a lot. I hope you get another job in hockey, but please Punch, be easy on the Sabres when you come back.GARY AROMOLA,Buffalo,.N.Y.<h2>Game Needs Sudden Death Overtime</h2>I am writing in response to a letter written by a Bill Lloyd of Philadelphia, Pa. I disagree with his views on a very hot issue in the NHL today, to overtime or not to overtime.In Mr. Lloyd&rsquo;s letter he says: &ldquo;When a team like the Washington Capitals or the Minnesota North Stars tie the Canadiens or the Bruins they deserve at least a point for holding off the leagues powerhouses.&rdquo;If the Capitals or any other &ldquo;lowly&rdquo; team can hold off a team such as Montreal for a whole 60 minutes I think they deserve an extra 20 minutes to beat the team and get two points and a lot of recognition instead of one point and a worthless tie. A tie displeases a lot of fans, no one wants to go to see a tie.One example is early this season when the Blues were in Pittsburgh. The score was 6-4, in favor of the Pens with 28 seconds left in the game. Then bang, the Blues pumped in two, tie game. The Blues deserved a chance to win in overtime. They had the momentum and probably would have.CHRIS CAPRA,Pittsburgh, PA. &#9632;

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FAN FORUM

NEW YORK&mdash;Denis Potvin of the Islanders has jumped into the lead in the National Hockey League&rsquo;s All Star voting for defensemen.The Islanders&rsquo; brilliant rearguard has polled 18,772 votes to knock Rangers&rsquo; Ron Greschner out of first place in the balloting among NHL defensemen.Other leaders in the early Wilkinson Sword ballot returns are goaltender Tony Esposito to of Chicago, center Ulf Nilsson of the Rangers, right wing Guy Lafleur of Montreal, and Rangers&rsquo; Pat Hickey at left wing.Hickey is the leading vote-getter with 22,027. The young Ranger leads; Islanders&rsquo; Clark Gillies at left wing by nearly 10,000 votes.With over a quarter of a million votes tabulated, the results are as follows:LEFT WING: 1. Pat Hickey (N.Y. Rangers) 22,027; 2. Clark Gillies (N.Y. Islanders) 12,229; 3. Steve Shutt (Montreal) 10,184; 4. Bill Barber (Philadelphia) 7,486; 5. Richard Martin Buffalo) 6,140.CENTERS: 1. Ulf Nilsson (N.Y. Rangers) 12,658; 2. Bryan Trottier (N.Y. Islanders) 9,429; 3. Bobby Clarke (Philadelphia) 7,970; 4. Ivan, Boldirev (Chicago) 7,532; 5. Dennis Maruk (Washington) 4,738.RIGHT WING: 1. Guy Lafleur (Montreal) 17,719; 2. Anders Hedberg (N.Y. Rangers) 16,979; 3. Mike Bossy (N.Y. Islanders) 9,991; 4. Bob Sirois (Washington) 6,426; 5. Terry O&rsquo;Reilly (Boston) 4,509.DEFENSE: 1. Denis Potvin (N.Y. Islanders) 18,772; 2. Ron Greschner (N.Y. Rangers) 16,273; 3. Larry Robinson (Montreal) 15,318; 4. Phil Russell (Chicago) 12,803; 5. Robert Picard (Washington) 11,502; 6. Brad, Park (Boston) 10,472.GOALIES: 1. Tony Esposito (Chicago) 13,413; 2. Bernie Parent Philadelphia) 10,760; 3. Ken Dryden (Montreal) 9,783; 4. Bernie Parent (Philadelphia) 6,630; 5. Mike Palmateer (Toronto) 5,874.<h2>Pat Kelly Named Rochester Coach</h2>ROCHESTER&mdash;Pat Kelly, the deposed coach of the Colorado Rockies is back in business.The Rochester Americans recruited Kelly to coach their AHL team for the next two years. Kelly replaces Gary Darling, the chief bird dog of the Boston Bruins who was sent in as the interim coach of the Americans. Darling took over when Duane Rupp was relieved of the Rochester coaching job.<h2>Esposito Scores 650th NHL Goal</h2>NEW YORK&mdash;Phil Esposito of the Rangers reached another scoring milestone when he counted his 650th NHL career goal the night of Dec. 22 against Detroit. Counting playoff goals, Espo now has 700 overall.Espo is still 136 goals behind the all-time leader Gordie Howe, who left the NHL after scoring 786 goals.In other NHL milestones, Ron Ellis scored his 600th career point and his 311th NHL goal in a four-point splurge against St. Louis while Stan Mikita notched his 527th goal as the Black Hawks beat Philadelphia 5-2. &#9632;

Potvin Leading Defense All Stars

<h2>THE NHL&hellip;</h2>Atlanta&hellip;&hellip;11Boston&hellip;&hellip;7Buffalo&hellip;&hellip;19CKHICAGO&hellip;&hellip;20Colorado&hellip;&hellip;17Detroit &hellip;&hellip;18Los Angeles&hellip;&hellip;9Minnesota&hellip;&hellip;15Montreal&hellip;&hellip;2N.Y. Islanders&hellip;&hellip;3N.Y. jrangers&hellip;&hellip;5Philadelphia&hellip;&hellip;4Pittsburgh&hellip;&hellip;12St. Louis&hellip;&hellip;13Toronto&hellip;&hellip;6Vancouver&hellip;&hellip;10Washington&hellip;&hellip;8<h2>THE WHA&hellip;</h2>Birmingham&hellip;&hellip;24Cincinnati&hellip;&hellip;25Edmonton&hellip;&hellip;28New England&hellip;&hellip;24Quebec&hellip;&hellip;24Winnipeg&hellip;&hellip;27<h2>OTHER LEAGUES&hellip;</h2>Colleges&hellip;&hellip;29American&hellip;&hellip;32Central&hellip;&hellip;33International&hellip;&hellip;34North Eastern&hellip;&hellip;35Ontario Major&hellip;&hellip;36WHL&hellip;&hellip;37Quebec Major &hellip;&hellip;39<h2>COLUMNISTS&hellip;</h2>Ken McKenzie&hellip;&hellip;4Bob Verdi&hellip;&hellip;2Bill Libby&hellip;&hellip;8Bill Fleischman&hellip;&hellip;12<h2>FEATURES&hellip;</h2>Player Movements&hellip;&hellip;5Fan Forum&hellip;&hellip;10Hockey People&hellip;&hellip;14NHL Scoreboard&hellip;&hellip;22WHA Scoreboard&hellip;&hellip;26Minor Scoreboard&hellip;&hellip;35Amateur Scoreboard&hellip;&hellip;38 &#9632;

Where To Find It…

HARTFORD&mdash;Aetna Life and Casualty Co., which holds 25 percent of the stock of the New England Whalers, has made an offer to the National Hockey League to finance its proposed expansion into World Hockey Association cities.Donald Conrad, chief financial officer of the Hartford, Conn, company will be meeting early in the new year with members of the NHL&rsquo;s expansion committee to outline plans for the expansion which would include the Whalers, Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, Quebec Nordiques and possibly the Cincinnati Stingers.Not only would the insurance company, which reported a net income of $569 million a year ago, underwrite the cost of the expansion, but it would also meet compensation payments for the clubs not involved with expansion.NHL president John Ziegler commented: &ldquo;Aetna&rsquo;s willingness to stand behind the WHA and Whalers is obviously a big plus. Their wish to get involved is impressive and their financial strength cannot be questioned.&rdquo;Howard Baldwin, president of the WHA and managing general partner of the Whalers said: &ldquo;Aetna and our other partners (several companies including Connecticut General Life and Travellers Insurance Co.,) believe in the expansion plan&hellip;we do have a sizeable committment. Whalers will not just die and go away.&rdquo;NHL Board of Governors must reach three quarters agreement for the proposed expansion to take place, meaning that l3 of the 17 governors must vote in favor of the proposal. &#9632;

Insurance Company May Finance Merger

<div class="byline">BY MIKE DENNIS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0002-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-011055/4248193-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Photo by Bruce BonnettSTEVE SHUTT&hellip;Worked Way Out Of Slump</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;It was a Rick Chartraw &ldquo;hat trick&rdquo; which proved to be the winning goal in a 5-1 triumph which allowed the Montreal Canadiens to split their season&rsquo;s series with the Chicago Black Hawks and extend their unbeaten streak to 11 games with just one loss in their last 15 games.For Chartraw, it was his third goal of the season, second in two games mind you, which brought to mind a phrase he had coined last year calling it &ldquo;a hat trick for the season&rdquo; when he was notching his third goal in the middle of March.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got hat trick and it&rsquo;s only December,&rdquo; Chartraw kidded a member of the press following the Chicago game.Then he described his goal: &ldquo;Bo (Bob Gainey) and I were both breaking into the zone. He had the puck and went a little wide and so did 1. Then I broke for the net and he flipped it over to me. I tried to hit it just as it was reaching the ice, but then the net was coming up so I had to turn and I didn&rsquo;t see it go in. When I was past the net I saw it just laying there in the back of the net.&rdquo;It was a goal born of continuous effort, of skating to create the two-on-one break, of timing the deflection, of fighting off the defender who attempted to take him out of the play. It was a goal that was scored because advantage had been taken of a momentary lapse by the opposition, a scoring opportunity had been converted by a player who before this season didn&rsquo;t know if he&rsquo;d be playing forward, defense or press box.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s my job to be ready to play anywhere,&rdquo; Chartraw explained, &ldquo;but I enjoy playing with Bo and Dougie (Jarvis). We certainly aren&rsquo;t great goalscorers by any means, but we know that we&rsquo;re counted on to stop the other team from scoring, although it&rsquo;s nice to help out with a few goals. Lately, for the past five games or so, I&rsquo;ve been getting two or three good scoring chances every game, so it&rsquo;s good to see a few of them going in.&rdquo;All this from a guy who is reputed to have asked to have been traded away from the Canadiens as often as he missed early morning practices in his first couple of years with the club. But all reports now indicate that Chartraw has a perfect attendance record at Canadiens&rsquo; workouts this year. He did admit, however, that the uncertainty about where he was going at the beginning of the season due to Canadiens&rsquo; overabundance of talent, bothered him.&ldquo;It has to bother you,&rdquo; said Chartraw, &ldquo;but I decided it wasn&rsquo;t going to do me any good worrying about it, so I just decided to work as hard as I could, just do my job, and let things take care of themselves&rsquo;.&rdquo;Steve Shutt is another of the Canadiens who decided early this season that he was going to concentrate on working and let the worrying become the responsibility of someone looking for an ulcer.Normally, hockey players who have scored 109 goals in the last two regular seasons as Shutt has done, don&rsquo;t have to worry about too many things other than which hand to sign autographs with, but then players who hold the National Hockey League record for most goals by a left winger, as Shutt does, don&rsquo;t normally score three goals in their first 15 starts in any given season.Shutt did. Score only three goals, that is, but he refused to let it bother him. He was &ldquo;demoted&rdquo; from the Jacques Lemaire-Guy Lafleur line and reemerged with Pierre Mondou as his center and an assortment of players making up the right side of the line.For whatever reasons, the shifty Mondou and the sharpshooter Shutt hit it off as a combo right away. Shutt&rsquo;s assist total climbed as Mondou became the club&rsquo;s runner-up in goal-scoring to Lafleur and then Shutt, too, finally began to hone his shooting touch.He scored three times in a four game stretch and then after going without a goal for four consecutive games followed with nine goals in an 11-game stretch, including a pair of goals in each of the two games sandwiched around the Chicago contest, where he scored once.His pair in the first 10 minutes of a 3-2 win over the Colorado, Rockies pushed Shutt into second place in the club goalscoring department, edging him one ahead of Mondou, 15 to 14.Shutt, though, is still looking for his first hat trick on the season, even though he has now had three two-goal games. Chartraw is working on his second &ldquo;hat trick&rdquo; of the season.As far as scoring goals is concerned, you&rsquo;d have to go a long way to find two more dissimilar scorers than Chartraw and Shutt. But they both chose the same road towards getting into form to help their club and they have to be praised for their efforts. &#9632;

f0002-01

Chartraw, Shutt Follow Same Path In Helping Habs

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011062/4248303-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Not only can Denis Potvin score, but he is also one of the best and hardest body-checkers in the league as he shows here.Photos by Bruce Bennett</figcaption></div>LONG ISLAND&mdash;&ldquo;Denis Potvin is the best I defenseman in the NHL,&rdquo; claims Bill Torrey, the New York Islanders&rsquo; general manager. &ldquo;He can play defense when he has to and he can get you a couple of goals if that&rsquo;s what the situation demands. He is clearly the best.&rdquo;Potvin, 25, has captured the Norris Trophy two of the last three I seasons. After leading the Islanders in scoring four straight years, the Hull, Quebec native finished second to All Star center Bryan Trottier in 1977-78. He logged &ldquo;only&rdquo; 94 points compared to Trots&rsquo;123.&ldquo;I think I am the best defenseman in the NHL and I think the Islanders will prove they are the best team,&rdquo; says Denis. &ldquo;We did pretty well on I our late November&mdash;early December road trip and established ourselves as the first place team in the Patrick I Division.&rdquo;Al Arbour, the Islanders&rsquo; coach has had a lot to do with molding I Potvin into a rearguard who could play defense as well as put points on I the scoreboard. Without Arbour&rsquo;s I tutelage, the 1973-74 rookie of the year might have become just another prolific point producer who was always being caught up ice.&ldquo;Thanks to Al, I have learned to I play defense the right way,&rdquo; says Potvin, &ldquo;while still retaining my value as an offensive defenseman. That&rsquo;s the way I play best and it&rsquo;s I the way the club feels I&rsquo;m most effective. I don&rsquo;t worry about points anymore. I worry about things on a I game to game basis.&rdquo;Potvin has one burning desire&mdash;to &rsquo; play on a Stanley Cup winner.&ldquo;I see a Cup victory for this team as a real possibility,&rdquo; insisted Denis. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re winning now, but the reason I feel this way is because of our personnel, the way we are together on and off the ice&mdash;and the fact we are getting the big goals every night. Not just by one or two guys you expect to score, but by different guys. Everyone is working hard&mdash;and we are effective in every aspect of the game, the power play, penalty killing, scoring, defense.&rdquo;Potvin seemingly is well on the way to capturing the Norris Trophy again, having scored 13 goals and 25 assists after 30 games.He is one of the better body checkers on the Islanders and racked up Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; Kevin McCarthy with a blueline belt that damaged the Flyer defenseman&rsquo;s knee in a game last February.&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t been in a fight in two years,&rdquo; said Denis. &ldquo;I like to think other players respect me as a relatively clean hockey player. I check hard, without elbows or dirty shots.&rdquo;But no one pushes Potvin or the Islanders around. He knows that&rsquo;s part of being a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. As the heir apparent to the mantle dropped by Bobby Orr when his knees game out, Denis has been subject to some criticism. When he came in second to Orr as the MVP of Team Canada&rsquo;s win in the 1976 Canada Cup, he blasted the award&mdash;claiming that sentiment played a major part in the verdict.For a time two years back he seemed to have alienated some of his teammates, but that was mostly because he tried living in Manhattan for a time&mdash;and drifted apart from the rest of the Islanders who live in the suburbs.Last summer, when the Islanders were undergoing a re-organization financially, there were recurring rumors that Denis would be sold to the Boston Bruins for $ 3.2 million. That amount was the figure which was needed to square up the team&rsquo;s debts.&ldquo;I never heard from Bill Torrey about it and I never became overly concerned,&rdquo; said Potvin. &ldquo;If I thought there was something to it, I knew Bill would get to me. I am happy here&mdash;all I want to do is stay here and play with the Islanders. I have everything here I could ever want on this club. However, if I had been traded I would have still had my career wherever I was sent.&rdquo;ISLAND SOUNDS: Lome Henning hurt his left knee and will miss at least two weeks of play&hellip;Bill Torrey made a mature choice in picking the experienced Scotty Bowman to coach the NHL All Stars. Bowman has previous experience in international hockey and won the 1976 Canada Cup while directing Team Canada. Some Islander fans thought that Bill would lap Al Arbour, but Al was never considered.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02915/4248296-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="507" height="1173"><figcaption class="caption-body">His outspoken nature and choice of residence away from the majority of teammates have supposedly put Potvin at odds with his peers in the past, but winning a Stanley Cup with the Islanders seems to be foremost in his mind at this stage of his career.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0003-01

Islander Ace Takes Aim At Stanley Cup Goal

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03619/4248334-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0003-03

Top Scoring Defensemen

<div class="byline">Ken McKenzie&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011113/4248393-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="456" height="457"></div>&bull; WINNIPEG JETS are trying their best to sign Don Murdoch as soon as his NHL suspension is lifted&hellip;Jake Milford will remain in the Vancouver Canucks operation but not as general manager after this season. He will be replaced by a younger man and the leading candidates are Scotty Bowman and Don Cherry&hellip;They say Emile Francis is on shaky ice at St. Louis and could be replaced next season by Bowman (how that man gets around) with Jim Roberts as his coach&hellip;Joe Watson, whose career was ended when he suffered a shattered bone in his leg playing for Colorado Rockies in St. Louis, heard Hi good news the other day. Instead of being two to three months in traction, Watson expected to be HI fitted with a leg cast and sent home before Christmas. The popular Watson continues to If receive a steady flow of mail from hockey fans in the United States and Canada&hellip; Some of the New York Ranger superstars are complaining that they I aren&rsquo;t getting enough ice time&hellip; The Rangers have been a disappointment during the last couple of weeks&hellip; Gordie Howe, the 50-year-old New England Whaler, made everyone crack up when he told reporters: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll just retire at 65 like everybody else&rdquo;&hellip; Vancouver Canucks Randy Holt, a reputed tough guy, raises flowers as a hobby&hellip; Bill Goldsworthy, veteran pro with Edmonton Oilers, was very dejected when he suffered a separated shoulder and a broken collarbone recently. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the first time I&rsquo;ve had a broken bone in 15 years at a pro&rdquo;&hellip; Don Buchanan, formerly with San Diego of the World Hockey Association, is now director of operation with the Los Angeles Blades of the Pacific Hockey League.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021068/4248386-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="279" height="441"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bill Goldsworthy</figcaption></div>&bull; A POLL conducted among professional athletes in several sports regarding fans in the cities around their circuits revealed the following about hockey: Most knowledgeable fans: Montreal; Most enthusiastic fans: Philadelphia; Most unfriendly fans: Philadelphia again&hellip;A switch from right wing to the left side prompted Jean Pronovost&rsquo;s fourth hat trick and first as a member of the Atlanta Flames. Pronovost started slowly following a knee injury, but he&rsquo;s been coming on strong of late for the Flames&hellip;A story is circulating which indicates the togetherness of the Boston Bruins. While waiting in an airport recently, the subject of Gentlman Jean Ratelle&rsquo;s fighting ability came up among a group of Boston players. Ratelle allowed that he has never had a fight in his 18 years in the NHL, but that he dimly recalled one as a junior. &ldquo;Who was it, Ratty ?&rdquo; piped up Gerry Cheevers. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll get him for ya.&rdquo;&hellip; Scotty Bowman&rsquo;s next loss behind the bench of the Canadiens will be his 100th with the club. Not bad when you consider he&rsquo;s been at the job nearly seven and a half years&hellip; The Hawkesbury Oldtimers hockey tournament at the Hawkesbury Memorial Center Feb. 23-25 for teams with players 30 years of age and over. A 36 team field is expected to complete&hellip; Bobby Clark will be one of the head table guests at Montreal&rsquo;: annual Sports Celebrity Dinner for the Tiny Tin Fund at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel Jan. 19.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03963/4248379-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="292" height="470"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jean Ratelle</figcaption></div>&bull; HOW IMPORTANT is the first goal? Very important if you ask the Boston Bruins. In establishing the NHL&rsquo;s best record through the first 32 games this year the Bruins were unbeaten in the 18 contests where they scored the first goal, posting a record of 14 wins and four ties&hellip;On the other end of the scale, the Buffalo Sabres recently snapped a streak of 136 games where they had not come from behind to win in the third period. Don Luce and Jacques Richard scored third period goals to lift the Sabres from a 2-1 deficit to a 3-2 victory over Chicago&hellip;Philadelphia Flyers&rsquo; vice president Lou Scheinfeld sent a note to Boston coach Don Cherry apologizing for the Spectrum&rsquo;s organist joining in a taunting &lsquo;Goodbye, Cherry&rsquo; chant late in the Flyers&rsquo; 9-2 rout of the Bruins&hellip;Relations between the two teams aren&rsquo;t good, but the Flyers&rsquo; people do have great respect for Cherry&hellip;Terry Slater, former head coach of Cincinnati Stingers is putting life into Colgate University&rsquo;s hockey program with a first-class recruiting job as the Red Raiders&rsquo; head coach. Now in his second year at the helm, Slater has Colgate off to a 6-2 start this year and in position to challenge for an ECAC Division I playoff spot&hellip;Atlanta coach Fred Creighton was naturally upset over the Flames&rsquo; poor play following their 10-0-2 start. When asked about the turnaround Creighton responded: &lsquo;Anyone would have to be looney if they thought we were a 10-0-2 team.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04861/4248372-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="286" height="463"><figcaption class="caption-body">Terry Slater</figcaption></div>&bull; ROD GILBERT, former New York Ranger star who is now employed as an assistant to Bill Jennings, Ranger president, is reported to have asked Sonny Werblin, major domo of both Madison Square Garden and the Rangers, if he could have his $ 50,000 a year salary increased to $ 75,000 a year. Werblin is said to have answered: &ldquo;You didn&rsquo;t build the Garden&hellip;200 bricklayers did&rdquo;&hellip;Gary Dornhoefer is now working as a color commentator on many of the Hockey Night in Canada telecasts out of Toronto. The ex-Philadelphia Flyer great seems to be making the transition from player to broadcaster with ease&hellip;Boston Bruins appear to be coming into their own as the season progresses. Don Cherry certainly gets the maximum effort from his players. &ldquo;My players just play their positions, do as they&rsquo;re told and never quit, no matter what the score,&rdquo; said Cherry after his club downed New York Rangers in back to back games&hellip;Roger Neilson, the workaholic coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, is accused of making the game too complicated and that 99 percent of the players can&rsquo;t figure out what he&rsquo;s trying to accomplish and that it&rsquo;s shown in their play&hellip;According to Don Ramsay of the Toronto Globe & Mail, Sam Pollock, who resigned several months ago as vice-president and general manager of the Montreal Canadiens, recently purchased 1,000 shares of Northwest Sport Enterprises Ltd., owner of the Vancouver Canucks&hellip;Ramsay, incidentally, has a pipeline into some of the NHL&rsquo;s most prominent circles&hellip;The NHL doesn&rsquo;t appear to be too disturbed over accusations that the tickets for the Soviets and NHL All Stars are overpriced at a top of $ 25. The league reports that tickets are moving well with heaviest demand for the high-priced ones.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05722/4248365-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg" title="f0004-05" width="276" height="403"><figcaption class="caption-body">Randy Holt</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0004-01

PASSING THE PUCK

OFFICIAL NATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLY FOUNDED 1947VOLUME 32, NUMBER 14 JANUARY 5, 1979Kenneth W. McKenziePresident and Publisher.Charlie HalpinEditorial DirectorTom MurrayAssistant PublisherPeter EmersonVice-Presiden SalesSuite 600,55 University Ave., Toronto, Ont M5J 2H7, Telephone: (416) 361-0116Advertising Representatives: MontrealMary McCutcheon1434 St. Catherine Street West, Suite 217 Montreal, Can. &bull; H3G 1R7 (514) 866-4841New York:Tom Murray850 Third Ave.New York, N.Y. 10022 &bull; (212) 593-2100Chicago:Hooper, Jones & Associates3322 W. Peterson AvenueChicago, III. 60659 &bull; (312)478-5544Published weekly except monthly June through September by W. C.C. Publishing Ltd., 1434 St. Catherine Street West, Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7 &bull; (514) 8664841 U.S. C/O W.C.C. Publishing Corp., 850 Third Ave. New-York, N.Y. 10022, (212) 5932100.YEARLY SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $ 11.95 in Canada, $ 12.95 in the U.S.A. and $ 17.25 in Foreign Countries. Second class postage paid at New York, N.Y. 10001 and at additional mailing offices. SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO 1434 ST. CATHERINE STREET WEST, SUITE 217, MONTREAL, CANADA H3G 1R7. Second Class mail Registration No. 1327. All inquiries pertaining to subscriptions should be addressed to Subscription Dept., The Hockey News, 1434 St. Catherine St. W., Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7, Printed in Canada. &#9632;

MAST HEAD

THE HOCKEY NEWS

<div class="byline">BY BILL FLEISCHMAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-06" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-06429/4248424-1-eng-US/f0004-062.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAUL HOLMGREN&hellip;His Potential Attracts Flyers</figcaption></div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;Why are all these terrible things happening to a nice guy like Paul Holmgren?Opponents will dispute the nice-guy description, but off the ice the Flyers&rsquo; right winger is a solid-citizen type who loves his wife, child and dog.However, Holmgren spent the time prior to the Christmas holidays serving his third suspension in two seasons. Earlier this season the Minnesota native received a three-game sentence for attempting to kick Boston&rsquo;s Terry O&rsquo;Reilly. A year ago, he also sat out three games for carrying a fight with Boston&rsquo;s Wayne Cashman into the Spectrum corridor. The iron gate near the visitors&rsquo; dressing room is now known as the &ldquo;Paul Holmgren Gate.&rdquo;This time, the NHL banished Holmgren for six games for striking the Rangers&rsquo; Carol Vadnais on the helmet with his stick. Holmgren&rsquo;s hit was somewhere between a &ldquo;dinger&rdquo; and a scalp-creaser, although from Vadnais&rsquo; reaction you&rsquo;d think, as some members of the New York media did, that Holmgren had attempted to perform brain surgery.Even Rangers&rsquo; coach Fred Shero was impressed by Vadnais&rsquo; fall. &ldquo;I went out on the ice because I thought my man was dead,&rdquo; Shero said. &ldquo;I wanted to say goodbye to him.&rdquo;No one is condoning what Holmgren did. He doesn&rsquo;t know why he did it, but he admits his guilt. Holmgren knows he deserved punishment for his crime, but he wonders why Vadnais wasn&rsquo;t also included in Brian O&rsquo;Neill&rsquo;s sentencing.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not known for using my stick, but Vadnais is,&rdquo; said the 23-year-old heir to Gary Dornhoefer&rsquo;s job. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m kind of mad Vadnais got nothing. He drew blood (spearing Holmgren in the neck) and didn&rsquo;t even get a match penalty.&rdquo;&ldquo;People say there&rsquo;s only black and white and no shades of gray in something like this,&rdquo; said assistant coach Terry Crisp, who accompanied Holmgren to Montreal for his hearing. &ldquo;Well, sometimes there has to be. When a guy carves you in the neck, you want a piece of him. Paul usually drops his gloves, but when there are guys between you, your first reaction is (sticks-winging motion) to go &lsquo;bang.&rsquo;&rdquo;&ldquo;Bang&rdquo; was the sound O&rsquo;Neill&rsquo;s gavel made in Holmgren&rsquo;s latest case. Now Holmgren will have time to rest his aching knee and comtemplate a hockey future that must almost border on Lady Byng Trophy candidacy to avoid future visits to O&rsquo;Neill&rsquo;s court of last resort.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m kind of disappointed in myself for doing it,&rdquo; he admitted. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what makes someone do something like that. I guess 1&rsquo;11 have to watch myself from now on, but I don&rsquo;t think it will make me play more cautiously. To help the team I have to play a physical game.&rdquo;Informed that Colorado&rsquo;s Wilf Paiement, who was suspended for 15 games for rearranging Dennis Polonich&rsquo;s face, thought he should receive at least a 10-game sentence, Holmgren said, &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no comparison between mine and Paiement&rsquo;s. I Saw the film of it and it was a home-run swing. Mine was almost a love tap. He (Vadnais) went down three seconds after I hit him.&rdquo;Holmgren believes he reacts angrily any time someone waves a stick or attempts to gouge the eye he almost lost the sight of as a Flyers&rsquo; rookie.Anyway, the Flyers know Holmgren has too much potential to abandon him. All he must do is learn to control his rage.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t find enough players who play the game as whole-heartedly as Paul does,&rdquo; said Crisp. &ldquo;You try to guide them, let them know when to play aggressively.&rdquo;Holmgren has the support of people such as Crisp, coach Bob McCammon and his teammates. But the bottom line is: only he can control his emotions. &#9632;

f0004-06

Flyers’ Holmgren Seeking Control

Following are the latest player movements in hockey:<h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>ATLANTA&mdash;Ed Kea, D, returned to lineup from injury list.BOSTON&mdash;Al Secord, LW, and Gary Doak, D, returned to lineup from injury list.N.Y. RANGERS&mdash;Dan Clark, D, recalled from New Haven of AHL.TORONTO&mdash;Rocky Saganiuk, RW, recalled from New Brunswick of AHL.VANCOUVER&mdash;Dune Wilson, G, recalled from Dallas of CHL.WASHINGTON&mdash;Gary Inness, G, signed as free agent from Indianapolis of WHA.<h2>WORLD HOCKEY ASSN.</h2>CINCINNATI&mdash;Byron Shutt, LW, recalled from Springfield of AHL. Gerry Meehan, C, announced retirement from hockey. Eddie Gilbert, C, assigned to Tucson of PHL to play himself into condition.QUEBEC&mdash;Norm Dube, LW, recalled from Binghamton of AHL.INDIANAPOLIS&mdash;Gary Inness, G, went to Washington of NHL. John Hughes, D, traded to Edmonton. Blaine Stoughton, RW, and Dave Inkpen, D, traded to New England. Bryon Baltimore, D, traded to Cincinnati. Claude Larose, RW, traded to Birmingham. Glen Irwin, D, Jerry Rollins, D, and Bruce Greig, RW, traded to San Diego of PHL. Angie Moretto, C, sent to Oklahoma City of CHL on instruction of Minnesota North Stars. Wes George, RW, assigned to Flint of IHL. Dean Magee, LW, returned to Grand Rapids of IHL.WINNIPEG&mdash;Ted Green, D, placed on disabled list indefinitely with knee problems.<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>ROCHESTER&mdash;Dave Parro, G, recalled from Grand Rapids of IHL. Kevin Coughlin and Paul Barrett, forwards, recalled from New Hampshire of NEHL. Rick Dorman, LW, and Brad Knelson, D, recalled from Grand Rapids and later returned.PHILADELPHIA&mdash;Glen Tendler, G, signed to pro trial and later released.NOVA SCOTIA&mdash;Jim Kirkpatrick, D, signed as free agent.HERSHEY&mdash;Tom O&rsquo;Connell, G, signed to pro trial and later released.NEW HAVEN&mdash;Benoit Gosselin, LW, recalled from Kalamazoo of IHL. Mike Backman, LW, recalled from Toledo of IHL.NEW BRUNSWICK&mdash;Bob Hoffmeyer, D, and Kevin Kemp, D, placed on injury list.BINGHAMTON&mdash;Mario Faubert, D, placed on injury list.<h2>NORTH EASTERN LEAGUE</h2>CHERRY HILL&mdash;Grant Eakin, RW, waived through NEHL and assigned to Tucson of PHL.UTICA&mdash;Skip House, D, quit team to enter business. &#9632;

Hockey Players On The Move

<div class="byline">BY TOM MURRAY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01964/4248510-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEAN TALAFOUS&hellip;Fits Into Ranger System</figcaption></div>NEW YORK&mdash;Ever since Dean Talafous was signed by the Rangers last July as a free agent, he has been going about his job quietly, doing everything he has been asked to do, never questioning the sometimes questionable actions of his coach, always giving an honest, 100 percent effort every moment he is oil the ice.The self-effacing, unasuming Talafous is what a lot of people would call a &ldquo;workmanlike&rdquo; hockey player&mdash;unspectacular, self-effacing, reliable, unspectacular, reliable, and very, very, very hard-working.not noted for their goal-scoring ability, especially in those tight situations in crucial games, where only a goal can give a team the psychological lift that is necessary for victory. Dean Talafous, however, is different; he can score goals, and he can score big goals in big games. Remember that tremendous Ranger win in Atlanta in late November? If you recall, it was the first time that the Rangers had been able to beat the Flames in their arena in 17 games. Talafous was immense that night, scoring two goals while doing his usual outstanding job of back-checking and forechecking.In the month (hat has gone by since that game was played, the Rangers have not been playing consistently, and many of the players have said that their slump can be traced back to that night in Atlanta. &ldquo;After we beat the Flames down there,&rdquo; Phil Esposito said, &ldquo;I think a lot of guys felt that we were infallible, that all we had to do to win was suit up, and skate on the ice.&rdquo;That hasn&rsquo;t exactly been the case, and the Rangers&rsquo; record proves it. And even the red-hot Buffalo Sabres (with a seven-game undefeated streak) recently arrived at Madison Square Garden to play the struggling Rangers, the game had tremendous &ldquo;cakewalk&rdquo; potential for the Sabres.Instead, it turned out to be the definitive end of one streak (for the Sabres) and the apparent end of one slump (the Rangers), and a showcase for one player, named&mdash;you guessed it&mdash;Dean Talafous, who scored two goals, filled in for Pat Hickey on T-line, led the players to a 6-3 victory, and did everything but, as the saying goes, drive the Zamboni between periods.&ldquo;I always knew he was a pretty good hockey player,&rdquo; coach Shero said afterwards. &ldquo;What I don&rsquo;t know is why I don&rsquo;t play him regularly. Maybe it&rsquo;s because he is so quiet: I know he&rsquo;s not going to complain and that makes me think I can get away with murder. It&rsquo;s not fair, though. I know that.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02751/4248503-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg" title="f0005-02" width="543" height="901"><figcaption class="caption-body">FRED SHERO</figcaption></div>If Shero was feeling guilty about not playing Talafous more regularly the sat him out in a game against the Bruins only three days before the Buffalo contest) Talafous eased his conscience by assuming his typical &ldquo;just happy to be here&rdquo; attitude and by telling reporters that he didn&rsquo;t expect to play in every game for the Rangers.&ldquo;Wherever and whenever he needs me,&rdquo; Talafous said with a smile, &ldquo;I will play.&rdquo;Chances are that Shero is going to find the opportunity to &ldquo;need&rdquo; Talafous a lot more in the future.BLUE CHIPS: Dan Clark and Mike McDougall, two players from the Rangers&rsquo; farm system, saw action in that Buffalo game. While a lot of observers speculated that the move was made to shake up some of the regulars, make them nervous and get them to work harder, Rangers assistant coach Mike Nykoluk denied it. &ldquo;Both of the kids were playing well in the minors,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We just wanted to give them a shot and make them feel like they have an opportunity to make this team.&rdquo; Boo-birds still doing a tap dance on Steve Vickers. The Rangers left wing can&rsquo;t seem to do anything right in the eyes of a lot of the fans&hellip;Negotiations between Rangers and Don Murdoch still going on. Murdoch&rsquo;s agent, Frank Milne, is doing all the talking now and will consult with Murdoch when the Rangers make their final offer. As to entertaining offers from the WHA or any other NHL teams, Murdoch says, &ldquo;It will have to be a big, big offer for me to leave New York.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0005-01

Talafous Getting The Job Done For Rangers With Defensive Play

<div class="byline">&#x2014;BY BOB VERDI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011144/4248541-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="312" height="455"></div><h2>Yuletide Letters</h2>JUST OPENED UP the first batch of holiday mail. Lots of them were Christmas cards. But, er&hellip;lots of them weren&rsquo;t. Mr. Verdi,You recently wrote a column in which you said that John Ziegler was right to punish Don Murdoch of the New York Rangers. That&rsquo;s easy for you to say. You aren&rsquo;t Don Murdoch being crucified by the NHL for a minor infraction which hurt no one, had absolutely nothing to do with hockey, and did not even take place during the hockey season.You aren&rsquo;t a Ranger fan who has been unfairly deprived of the right to watch a talented and exciting player. You aren&rsquo;t even a New York writer. None of these people feel that a 20-year-old kid who made a foolish mistake should have his life and his career ruined. Neither did the Canadian courts of the U.S. Immigration Service.But that wasn&rsquo;t good enough for Ziegler. Why doesn&rsquo;t he punish the Islanders and Maple Leafs for their playoff series last year, which turned into a disgrace? In your column about what baseball If does that hockey doesn&rsquo;t, you said hockey had a public-be-damned attitude. This is a prime example.There will be no respect for Ziegler until he deals as decisively with people who disgrace hockey on the ice as he dealt with Murdoch for something that had nothing to do with hockey.Marie Knox Stony Brook, N.Y.Murdock is a hockey player, he committed an illegal act, and to vindicate him because it was during the summer, away from the ice, is fallacious reasoning.So, too, are you incorrect when you state that Murdoch&rsquo;s life and career have been ruined. Not so.Now, if you are arguing why Murdoch got 40 games for carrying drugs when another player might get 10 games for trying to behead an opponent, you have a point. A very good one.ENJOYED YOUR ARTICLE on the promotional needs of hockey. I am in basketball country, but nonetheless, cannot understand why the NHL doesn&rsquo;t realize that there are thousands of displaced northerners in the Raleigh-Durham area who dearly enjoy and miss hockey. Is there any hope for television down here?Gerald Polozzi Raleigh, N.C.Hockey is having a difficult time on television even in major northern cities. So don&rsquo;t hold your breath.Why did you write such a glowing column on Bobby Hull&rsquo;s retirement and not write the same thing for Bobby Orr? And why HI don&rsquo;t you take on the Boston Bruins for not retiring Orr&rsquo;s jersey until the Black Hawks did?Penny Burton Burlington, Vt.Ah, patience, Penny, patience. Besides, Harry Sinden said that Chicago retiring Orr&rsquo;s jersey &ldquo;doesn&rsquo;t mean anything because he&rsquo;ll always be remembered as a Bruin.&rdquo; And Harry&rsquo;s probably right.So you don&rsquo;t think Bobby Hull should come back to Chicago Stadium? Why, would you be embarrassed if he filled the building?Barry Fett Skokie, III.I wouldn&rsquo;t be embarrassed. I&rsquo;d be thrilled.YOU SEEM READY to criticize each and every aspect of hockey except the aspect that really needs criticizing: the officiating. It&rsquo;s bad, it&rsquo;s inconsistent, it&rsquo;s prejudiced, and it&rsquo;s ruining the game.Jack Jeffreys Philadelphia, PA.Are you a coach?Hey, you. We realize that you work for a newspaper that&rsquo;s partial to the NHL, and we realize that you work in an NHL city, and we realize that we are regarded as a minor league, but there are seven teams in the World Hockey Association that play the sport darn well. Try us, you&rsquo;ll like us.Phil Shabekoff Cincinnati, O.Hey, you. We don&rsquo;t feel that way at all. There&rsquo;s naturally more interest in the NHL if for no other reason than there are more teams. In the NHL, there are 17. In the WHA, there are seven. Oops, make that six. &#9632;

f0006-01

HOCKEY TALK

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-02877/4248572-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">RON ELLIS&hellip;Had To Get Used To Brac</figcaption></div>TORONTO&mdash;It&rsquo;s more than mere coincidence that the five-game losing streak by Toronto Maple Leafs ended when wingers Dan Maloney and Ron Ellis became accustomed to wearing heavy protective equipment.The Leafs ended that skid with a pair of victories over Vancouver Canucks and Detroit Red Wings and the line of center Walt McKechnie flanked by Ellis and Maloney was prominent in the two matches.That alignment had fallen into place during the Leaf training camp&rsquo;s late stages when the Leafs acquired McKechnie, an 11-season veteran, from Minnesota North Stars. Through the first half-dozen games of the schedule, the trio supplied a strong back-up to the Leafs&rsquo; top scoring line of Darryl Sittler, Lanny McDonald and Tiger Williams.Add the strong checking line of Jimmy Jones, Jerry Butler and Pat Boutette and the Leafs appeared to have the combination which works best in the NHL these days&mdash;one strong offensive line, one good two-way line in the No. 2 spot and a skilled defensive trio.Then in the sixth game of the season, Ellis sustained a knee injury which sidelined him for 15 games. McKechnie and Maloney, neither of whom is a swift skater, needed Ellis&rsquo; speed to open things up for them. McDonald did work as their right winger in a few productive games but Neilson wanted to keep McD. and Sittler in tandem if possible.Just when Ellis was returning front his injury, wearing a heavy brace to protect the knee, Maloney was struck in the face by a slap-shot off the stick of Leaf defenseman lan Turnbull. His cheekbone was smashed and after missing three games, Maloney returned to duty wearing a heavy protective face mask.Both Ellis, with his knee brace, and Maloney, with his mask, needed time to adjust to the encumbrances.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d never worn a brace before and 1 felt like 1 had a cement block tied to my knee at first,&rdquo; Ellis said. &ldquo;1 needed a few games to get my conditioning and timing back and a few more to adjust to the brace before 1 had any zip in my skating at all.&rdquo;&ldquo;The mask was annoying for a couple of reasons&mdash;the weight of it and the fact that it limits your vision just a little,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;But it also reduces your sense of feeling for what&rsquo;s going on around you on the ice.&ldquo;It also reduced the sounds you hear and it might surprise a few people to learn that hockey players depend on hearing little sounds a great deal. You can pick up a guy coming behind you that way.&rdquo;Maloney scored twice in the win over the Canucks. McKechnie had a goal and two assists in the victory over Detroit while Ellis also scored.&ldquo;I feel that we can be a very useful line for the Leafs,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;If we can score steadily, it takes some of the heat of Darryl and Lanny and gives us some balance.&rdquo;LEAF NOTES: The Leafs lost two players via the suspension route. First, defenseman Dave Hutchison served a one-game ban for acquiring his third game misconduct penalty of the season. Then winger Tiger Williams was suspended for three games for an incident in a Dec. 6 game at Pittsburgh when he struck Penguin goalie Denis Herron on the shoulder with his stick. The Penguin management fell that the assessment of only a major penalty for the blow wasn&rsquo;t enough and asked the league to examine the incident a little more&hellip;&rdquo;l feel 1 was really burned on the whole thing,&rdquo; Williams said. &ldquo;The NHL used me to make a point. 1 didn&rsquo;t hit Herron very hard and he showed no pain and certainly there was no injury to him.&rsquo; &hellip;After a slightly slow start while he adjusted to wearing a face mask to protect an eye injured in last spring&rsquo;s playoffs, defenseman Borge Salming was performing superbly on the Leaf backline showing the form that earned him a first All Star team nomination in 1976-77&hellip;Hutchison continued to play well for the Leafs. His strong work shoved Trevor Johansen, a regular as a rookie last season, into spot duty. &#9632;

f0006-02

Ellis, Maloney Adjusting To Cumbersome Equipment

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011021/4248603-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">RICK SMITH&hellip;SO Steady He&rsquo;s Often Overlooked</figcaption></div>BOSTON&mdash;Each year, Channel 38, the television station that puts the Boston Bruins&rsquo; games on the tube, polls its viewers to determine the Boston player who performed the farthest beyond expectations.Last year the winner of the so-called &ldquo;Seventh Player Award&rdquo; was Stan Jonathan. The year before it was Gary Doak. Don Marcotte won in 1974. It&rsquo;s that kind of an award.This year, long before the balloting starts in February, there has been an early surge of grass roots support for Rick Smith, the veteran journeyman who has backboned the injury-riddled Boston defense.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s the steadiest guy on the team and that includes forwards and defensemen,&rdquo; barked coach Don Cherry the other day and he added with a burst of overenthusiasm:&ldquo;Rickie Smith is why we&rsquo;re in first place today. He is equally effective at either point. He plays them both well and I can say that even Bobby Orr was not as good at both.&rdquo;Smith, who is in his 11th pro season, is one of the Bruins &ldquo;basic five&rdquo; defensemen, although it&rsquo;s been hard to determine who is who once injuries started cutting down the Boston blueliners.Out of the Bruins&rsquo; first 30 games, Brad Park missed all but 10, Gary Doak appeared in 21 and Mike Milbury and Dick Redmond in 24. Smith, playing with a hand injury, missed only two games.He hurt his hand when he jammed it against the boards in a collision with Jerry Korab in a game against Buffalo Nov. 30. The nature of the injury was, and still is, vague.Smith called it &ldquo;a lost ligament&rdquo; above the knuckle of the third finger on his left hand. Cherry described it as &ldquo;a tendon taken right off the knuckle. It was put back but it&rsquo;s very, very tender.&rdquo;Smith missed two games, then had to return to the lineup with a semi-cast on his hand when Doak was felled with a hyperextended left elbow and Park&rsquo;s right knee, operated on Oct. 13, suffered a setback.There is nothing like a player playing in pain to rouse Cherry&rsquo;s enthusiasm.&ldquo;I think so much of him that I put him out with whichever of our defensemen is struggling,&rdquo; said the Bruins coach, who uses the same phrase when praising forward Don Marcotte.&ldquo;I put him out there with Dick Redmond the other night and Redmond played the best game he&rsquo;s played in a long time and all because of Rickie Smith.&ldquo;Do you realize that on three overtime goals we scored in the playoffs last year he was the guy who started the play?&ldquo;Do you realize that whenever we take the goaltender out in the last minute of a game to put on an extra skater, it&rsquo;s always Smith?&ldquo;He is so much the &lsquo;Seventh Player&rsquo; that he&rsquo;ll probably never get the award. People don&rsquo;t even think of him. Sometimes I think I&rsquo;m the only one who realizes how much he means to this team.&ldquo;All I can do is thank St. Louis for giving up on him.&rdquo;Smith came to the Bruins in December, 1976, from the Blues in exchange for defenseman Joe Zanussi.. He was playing with the Blues&rsquo; farm club in Kansas City at the time.WHAT&rsquo;S BRUIN: Smith was the third member of a Bruins&rsquo; Stanley Cup-winning team to leave Boston and then return. Doak and Gerry Cheevers preceded him. And now there&rsquo;s a fourth, Mike Walton, who asked to be traded or waived by St. Louis.&ldquo;I could have stayed in St. Louis with my three-year contract and made $125,000 a year,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But I couldn&rsquo;t see staying there and&ldquo;I had several teams interested in me but when I learned Boston was seriously interested I never got back to the others. I wanted to be part of a team with a chance of winning the Cup. I feel like I&rsquo;m coming home.&rdquo;John Wensink, the brawler turned scorer, collected the first hat trick of his pro career against Vancouver Dec. 12 and it recalled to him that he had only one hat trick as a junior, too.It was while he was playing for Cornwall against Sherbrooke in the Quebec Major Junior League and he remembers it particularly well because he quit school the next day and never went back.Don Cherry refused to be drawn into any comment on Vancouver&rsquo;s garish (orange and yellow on black) new road uniforms. &ldquo;But,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I like black uniforms because it makes the players look bigger.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0007-01

Smith Serving As Glue For Bruins’ Defense

<div class="byline">BY RUSS WHITE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03868/4248672-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="525" height="1475"><figcaption class="caption-body">DENNIS MARUK&hellip;Reacted Positively</figcaption></div>WASHINGTON&mdash;All Dennis Maruk really needed to regain his goal-scoring touch was to read about what Capitals&rsquo; coach Danny Belisle had said one night:&ldquo;Maruk can&rsquo;t shoot a puck into the ocean.&rdquo;In his next game, Maruk scored a couple of goals and assisted on two others as the Capitals defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs, 7-6, at Capital Center.The four points not only made Maruk the first Cap to get four points in a game this year but the goals put him over 100 goals in his NHL career and the second one was the game winner.Maruk added another goal and had two more assists in his next game as the Caps tied the Philadelphia Flyers, 4-4, also at home. The seven points in two games gave Maruk 31 for the year, tops on the team.Maruk, 23, represents a large investment to the Caps. To get him from the Minnesota North Stars, general manager Max McNab had to dish out a valuable No. 1 draft choice.No one has ever doubted Maruk&rsquo;s ability but the fact he has played for losing clubs at Oakland and in Cleveland labeled the guy a non-winner despite his obvious spark and enthusiasm for the game.For the Caps, Maruk has been an excellent penalty killer, had piled up some assists but just wasn&rsquo;t scoring any goals, often shooting a mile wide of the net and just as often hitting a goal post.&ldquo;It was bad luck, that&rsquo;s all,&rdquo; Maruk said.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t really like what Danny Belisle said,&rdquo; Maruk added, but Belisle hadn&rsquo;t said what he did in anger or disrespect for Maruk&rsquo;s ability. Only in frustration.Also coming to life for the Caps in the games against Toronto and Philadelphia was second-year defenseman Robert Picard. Though bothered with a bad shoulder, Picard had three assists in the win over the Leafs and scored a goal and assisted on a goal in the tie with the Flyers.&ldquo;He is alive,&rdquo; Belisle said, &ldquo;and this is what we must have from Picard. He has to hit people, he has to skate and shoot. If he keeps playing like this he&rsquo;ll be a tremendous asset to the team.&rdquo;Helping the Caps in goal was Gary Inness, fresh from the cold of Indianapolis. Inness went down with the Indianapolis Racers of the WHA but was signed immediately by the Caps. Playing against the Flyers, one of his old NHL teams, Inness made 35 saves on 39 shots.&ldquo;If Inness were ever up for a game,&rdquo; said Flyers&rsquo; coach Bob McCannon, &ldquo;it had to be this one. Tonight was the night. He used to be with the Flyers; he was back in the NHL. We had to expect he was going to be hot.&rdquo;For the moment the Caps are going with three goalies&mdash;Inness, Jimmy Bedard and Bernie Wolfe.&ldquo;The competition should help all of them,&rdquo; Picard said.Caps&rsquo; attendance was down almost 3,000 a home date and only 8,911 attended the game against the Flyers. Caps just can&rsquo;t convince home fans the club is worth paying to see and only 600 or so came in from Philadelphia. Almost every Caps-Flyers game in the past four years had been a sell-out. That or close to it. &#9632;

f0008-03

Coach’s Criticism Gets Caps’ Maruk On Scoring Streak

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-04462/4248703-1-eng-US/f0008-042.jpg" title="f0008-04" width="565" height="637"></div> &#9632;

f0008-04

Team Penalties

<div class="byline">&#x2014;BY BILL LIBBY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011135/4248641-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="401" height="450"></div><h2>A Bad Break&hellip;</h2>JOE WATSON IS 35 years old and was in his 14th and possibly final season in the National Hockey League when his career came to an abrupt end against the boards in the Arena in St. Louis on the night of November the 11th.Purchased from Philadelphia before this season started, Watson was playing for Colorado when he slipped and was pushed, striking his right knee. &ldquo;It went numb, but I&rsquo;ve hit it harder and I thought it was all right,&rdquo; he recalls.&ldquo;John D&rsquo;Amico, the linesman, was the first to me and he took one look and told me to stay still. But I thought it was all right and said, &ldquo;No, I&rsquo;m going to get up.&rdquo; But when I tried, I couldn&rsquo;t.&ldquo;I looked at my leg and it was bent at an angle. I mean, part of it was here and part of it was there. I knew then it had to be broken, and I thought, &lsquo;Holy Christ, why did this have to happen to me?&rsquo;&ldquo;They carried me off the ice on a stretcher and lay me down in the dressing room. At first they were going to take me right to the hospital, but then the two doctors who were there decided to splint it first.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021024/4248634-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="748" height="784"><figcaption class="caption-body">Joe Watson was in the twilight of his career in the NHL and had just been named Colorado&rsquo;s captain when he shattered his kneecap in 13 places. The injury will close out his career one full season sooner than he had anticipated.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad they did because I could feel every bump in the road on the ambulance ride to the hospital. It didn&rsquo;t hurt, but it felt funny. My goodness, but I started to feel sorry for myself. I thought, &lsquo;All I wanted to do was to get through one more season.&rsquo;&ldquo;When I got to the hospital, I was in a daze. But I telephoned my wife to tell her I was all right before they took me into surgery to set the leg. When I got to the operating room, I looked down and saw this thing sticking out of my leg. I reached down to feel it and I thought, &lsquo;Holy God, that&rsquo;s my bone)&rsquo;&ldquo;That made me sick. The jagged end of the bone had pierced the skin just below my kneecap. But that wasn&rsquo;t the worst of it. When they were through with me, they told me I had cracked my kneecap and broken the femur, which is the bone just below the knee, in 13 places. They said it more or less simply exploded.&rdquo;THAT WAS AT Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, where he was several weeks while initial mending took place. Now he has been transferred to the I University of Pennsylvania Sports Medical Center in Philadelphia where he lays with his leg hiked up in traction.He says, &ldquo;The doctors in St. Louis were fine, but when they started to talk about operations I might need to repair the breaks, I asked to be transferred to Philadelphia where I could be in the care of the Flyers&rsquo; orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Joseph Torg, who I knew, and was close to my family and friends.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m getting the best of care and have had two operations, but they tell me the break was as bad as a broken leg can be and I can only hope to regain 70 to 80 percent use of it. They said if I wanted to play again they&rsquo;d have to have another operation and put a plate over the kneecap and pin the bones together with screws, so I figure at this stage in my career what&rsquo;s the point?&ldquo;I was worried about just walking normally again. I look at my former teammate Gary Dornhoefer and his knee is so bad it swells up when he even tries to play golf. I want to live as normal a life as possible. If I was 25, it&rsquo;d be different, but I&rsquo;m 35, so that&rsquo;s it.&rdquo;Watson came out of the bitter cold of British Columbia to play two seasons with Minneapolis in the Central League and one season with Boston in the National League before he went to Philadelphia in the expansion draft of 1967. He played 11 seasons with the Flyers, the last five alongside his younger brother Jim.A good defensive defenseman, he had slowed down and was told he&rsquo;d be at best a part-time player this season, so he asked to be sent to a young team like Colorado where his experience might make him helpful. He says, &ldquo;You always want one more season, but in the back of my mind I thought maybe they&rsquo;d want me several seasons. I wanted to wait before selling my house.&rdquo;HERE, AT LEAST, he was lucky. His accident happened on a Saturday night and his wife Marianne was going to drive to Denver on Monday with their two-year-old son, Ryan. Instead, she flew to St. Louis. She now is back home in the suburb of Media. He says, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s been tough on her. She&rsquo;s expecting another child in May and she was cooped up in a hotel room with our little boy for two and one-half weeks while visiting me twice a day. At least she&rsquo;s home now.&rdquo;She and friends from Philadelphia and the Flyers provide a steady stream of visitors to his bedside and he gets a lot of telephone calls and mail from well-wishers, most of whom, he doesn&rsquo;t even know. One of the good guys, he says, &ldquo;I have to be grateful to everyone, especially the nurses who rub my sore back. I can&rsquo;t turn. I just lay here. But, hey, I&rsquo;m doing great and 1&rsquo;11 bounce back.&rdquo;This is a guy who doesn&rsquo;t know how tough he is. Asked about bad injuries he might have suffered before, he says, &ldquo;Nothing serious. I had a broken collarbone and a broken foot and a couple of shoulder operations, but I&rsquo;ve been lucky.&rdquo;His enthusiasm is striking. He says, &ldquo;They told me. I&rsquo;d be two months or more in traction, ten weeks or so, but after only five weeks they&rsquo;re ready to put my leg in a cast so I can get out of here, and after a month or two I can start therapy and start to walk again.&ldquo;I hope to catch on as an assistant coach with the Flyers or Rockies or someone else. Arthur Imperatore, the Colorado owner, has been great, just as Ed Snider, the Philadelphia owner, always has been. Everything is being taken care of and I&rsquo;ve been told I can start working with the young players in Denver even before I can get back on the ice.&ldquo;When I was a farmboy back in Smithers and Mom and Dad were working hard to support six sons, all I dreamed was making the majors. I made it with Boston when it was a six-team league and there weren&rsquo;t many openings. I never dreamed I&rsquo;d play on two Stanley Cup championship teams like I did in Philadelphia. Or score a goal in the big game the Flyers won from Russia.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t complain about my career,&rdquo; he concludes. &#9632;

f0008-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011094/4248741-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="547" height="625"><figcaption class="caption-body">MARCEL DIONNE</figcaption></div>LOS ANGELES&mdash;Although the Kings have not been a superteam, they have had three superstars in recent seasons&mdash;Marcel Dionne, Butch Goring, and the departed Rogie Vachon. Now it looks like they are developing another, and by far the most surprising&mdash;Dave Taylor.Taylor was the 210th player selected in the draft of eligible amateurs in the summer of 1975 and he continued in college a couple of years after that, but in his second professional season at the age of 23, he is coming fast.A six-foot, 185-pounder, the right winger is tough and tenacious. He skates his wing, forechecks and backchecks, digs in the corners, and defenses his man. He makes marvellous passes and is an accurate shooter.Playing on a line centered by Marcel Dionne, he will at his present pace score 40 goals and assist on another 40 this season. Taylor has to do a lot of the dirty work on Dionne&rsquo;s line, but says, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t mind if it makes it possible for me to play with Marcel.&rdquo;It is true that anyone playing with the dynamic Dionne is going to get a lot of opportunities, for points, but it is also true though often overlooked that it is not easy to play with Marcel because it is not easy to keep up with him.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m in my second season with him and we&rsquo;re getting used to each other and can anticipate what we&rsquo;re going to do and where we&rsquo;re going to be as each play develops,&rdquo; Dave observes.&ldquo;You have to keep an eye on him at all times.&ldquo;Somehow he always gets open, so if you have the puck you have to be ready to get it to him at any time. When you&rsquo;re digging it out of a corner, you have to flip it to him fast.&ldquo;When he has the puck, you have to skate hard and look for an opening and be ready for a pass at any time because if you get open he&rsquo;s going to get it to you somehow.&ldquo;Dionne&rsquo;s plays develop real fast and you have to work fast,&rdquo; concludes the youngster.Dave does. He can take a pass and put it in the net, bang, bang. It is as hard to take a pass well as it is to give a good one, and he can handle the puck.Dionne thinks he should be shooting faster from farther out, but Dave looks to pass first.He has made some marvellous passes this season, behind his back, back-handed, through a defenseman&rsquo;s legs, whatever it took to put the puck on the stick of his fast-breaking teammate.Dionne is going to get 50, maybe 60 goals this season and as much as he can do on his own, he is benefitting from the superb prospect playing alongside him.Dionne, who can be demanding of his partners, says, &ldquo;He&rsquo;s not playing like a young player. He&rsquo;s playing really well. And he gets better every game.&rdquo;Danny Grant, who has played on the left side of this line more than anyone else, says, &ldquo;There&rsquo;s some outstanding young players in the league, but he has to be one of the very best.No one really expected this of Taylor, not even after his splendid rookie season, certainly not before.Out of Levack, Ontario, he is the son of a nickle miner, spent three summers in the mines, and agreed with his dad&rsquo;s advice that there were better ways to make a living.He was so small as a young players, few felt he would make it as a top player even though his offensive stats always were good. Even though he scored 67 goals and assisted on 76 for an OHA Junior B record, he was not drafted by a Junior A team.At 17, he weighed only 145 pounds. He probably could have caught on with some club, but took the only college scholarship offer he got, from Jerry York at little Clarkson College in upstate New York. Taylor was a sophomore when George Maguire, now manager of the Kings, drafted him.One of hockey&rsquo;s keenest judges of talent, Maguire went for him in the 15th round: &ldquo;When you get good players late you&rsquo;ve spotted something others have overlooked. We liked what we saw and were willing to wait to see if he&rsquo;s develop physically.&rdquo;Encouraged, Taylor went on a weight-lifting program he still follows. He began to beef up and as a senior scored 41 goals in 34 games, added 67 assists to tie the ECAC record, and totalled 108 points to set an NCAA record.Wise beyond his years, he made the Kings by concentrating on defense at camp last season. Slowed by a foot infection the first two months, he came fast at the finish and wound up with 22 goals and 21 assists. This season, he is coming into his own.KINGS THINGS: Earlier I predicted this King team would set a club scoring record, but might give up more goals than it got. Three games with the New York teams in December bore this out. At home they blew a 5-3 lead in the last period and settled for a 5-5 tie with the Islanders. Then in the Islanders&rsquo; rink they came from 0-3, but blew another 53 lead, this time in the last three minutes, for another 5-5 tie. Then in the Ranger rink the next night, they took a 6-5 lead into the last period and wound up losing, 8-7, tying a team record for total goals in a game. That was only their fourth loss in 16 games, but they still have beaten only one good team this season, Montreal.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02908/4248734-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="497" height="1329"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVE TAYLOR&hellip;Drafted 210th</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0009-01

Taylor Likely Next L.A. ‘Super Star As Kings Unearth Late Round Gem

<h2>Don&rsquo;t Penalize Sub .500 Cities</h2>I must take exception Io the letter of Mr. Ken Murrell in the Dec. 1 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS, in which he states that the reason for hockey&rsquo;s lack of mass popularity is &ldquo;a vast amount of teams and players.&rdquo; I think it hardly fair to fans in cities with teams with losing records to imply that hockey would be better off without them or their teams. The NFL has 28 teams and yet does not seem to be struggling against the weight of fan apathy.Mr. Murrell also says that the NHL should reduce the number of teams to ensure that each would be of top quality. I am a longtime fan of the Boston Bruins, and still remember the years when my team would battle the Rangers for possession of the sixth and last NHL berth. Who then would have said that the NHL should contract to three or four teams, to do away with such non-contenders?Additionally, the example of non-contending expansion teams, notably the once-laughable Islanders and Flames, should be sufficient to prove that a losing record and hapless play are not permanent conditions. In any league, it is a mathematical fact that there must be teams with losing records. To eliminate less successful teams from the league would be a crime against both the fans of those teams and the players themselves.STEVEN C.KRANE,New York, N.Y. &#9632;

LETTER OF THE WEEK

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-02899/4248827-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="534" height="1384"><figcaption class="caption-body">THOMAS GRADIN&hellip;Still Hampered</figcaption></div>VANCOUVER&mdash;When the Christmas season comes around, it means one thing for the Vancouver Canucks. Not presents, family times or other niceties normally associated with the season. It means long, usually losing road trips&mdash;a function of the National Hockey League schedule which offers a cruel 30-day stretch which sees the club play 13 of 16 games on the road.Every year it happens. There is nothing that can be done about it and really there is no reason, nor any need, to waste lime complaining. Everybody plays 40 away and 40 on the road, it&rsquo;s just a matter of waiting until the 80-game schedule ends to balance it out.The only thing they can do to change would be to win a few hockey games, and that means playing the way they have done at times this year.Starting their first six-game trip, Canucks were .500 on the road, and coach Harry Neale had to admit that &lsquo;probably our three best games of the year have come on the road.&rsquo;But Canucks bathed in their first two games of the trip, losing 7-3 in Boston and 5-1 in Toronto, the latter game seeing the Leafs get 49 shots on Glen Hanlon, without the services of Lanny McDonald. To put it mildly, Canucks were falling from the .500 level on the road like stones, and were trying to piece together a mode of regrouping in Pittsburgh, before another whilrwind of games would leave them without a decent practice until they returned home.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s true we certainly haven&rsquo;t been playing well,&rdquo; said Neale&rsquo;s assistant Dave Dunn. &ldquo;We weren&rsquo;t really playing all that well at home in some of the games we won. It&rsquo;s just that we got some great goaltending and some breaks we might not ordinarily get and without them we would have nothing to fall back on. We really haven&rsquo;t played well for five games. We went into Boston and helped them out of their slump, we came into Toronto and helped them out of their slump, now we&rsquo;ve got to work ourselves out of one.&ldquo;There are nights when we&rsquo;ll play well and still get beat by these teams because they&rsquo;re better than us, but there is no way we should let them outwork us.&rdquo;Dunn had obviously hit a sore point about lack of work, because in the two road losses, the club was never in the game, and they don&rsquo;t usually get into that situation unless they get badly outworked. But Dunn said that he and Neale are not quite ready to look for the panic button.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re one man over the roster limit as we are and these guys have played some pretty good hockey for us and I think they witt again,&rdquo; said Dunn. &ldquo;I thing we&rsquo;ll stick with these guys and try to work ourselves out of this and see what happens.&rdquo;Canucks have had a number of forwards who haven&rsquo;t been playing that well, and few of them seemed to want to get involved with some of the more rambunctious forwards of the other clubs.As Dunn is fond of pointing out, Toronto forwards have over 260 minutes in penalties&mdash;over 170 of them to Dave Williams, and the Canucks&rsquo; forwards by way of contrast have 55. Clearly, not enough of the forwards are going in to get involved.Most of Canucks penalty minutes come from the rear, where Jack Mcllhargey, Randy Holt and Harold Snepsts often end up in the penalty box. But players like Don Lever, Roland Eriksson, Dennis Ververgaert, Rick Blight and others rarely take penalties, the message from Dunn implying they don&rsquo;t get involved as much as Neale and his helper would like to see.Rookie left winger Curt Fraser has the most minutes in penalties, those coming from three or four fights he has had. The rest of the 55 minutes are just incidental trips and hooks, or the ones the coaches call the lazy penalties.Meanwhile, with the return of rookie right winger Stan Smyl, Neale has reunited the line of Smyle, Fraser and Thomas Gradin at center, with some success. Smyl joined the team from a three-game tune-up in Dallas, having come off a 17-game absence with a badly bruised collarbone. The line was effective in forechecking in Toronto, but didn&rsquo;t generate any scoring, with Ron Sedlbauer&rsquo;s 19th goal the only one coming in Toronto.But Neale will likely leave the trio together for at least three more games, giving them a chance to reintroduce themselves, as they were the team&rsquo;s most effective line right from the start of training camp until Smyl&rsquo;s injury broke it up. Fraser and Gradin also suffered injuries during Smyl&rsquo;s break. Gradin&rsquo;s broken bone in his hand the only thing hampeting the line at present. &#9632;

f0010-02

Canucks Wither From Road Trip, Physical Foes

<div class="byline">BY AL SMITH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011074/4248858-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="543" height="1007"><figcaption class="caption-body">KEN HOUSTON&hellip;Successful Switch</figcaption></div>ATLANTA&mdash;When it was first suggested that Ken Houston move from defense to forward I he had his doubts.Houston was playing in the minors and like many 21-year-olds, was struggling to make his mark and move up to the National Hockey League.&ldquo;I was having enough trouble playing I defense,&rdquo; Houston said. &ldquo;How the hell was I going to make it to the NHL playing a new position when I was struggling playing a position I had been at all my life.&rdquo;But like most suggestions that come from management&mdash;which of course aren&rsquo;t really suggestions, but orderswith a question mark attached, Houston made the change. Reluctantly at first, but now he&rsquo;s happy with the move.The six-foot-two, 207-pounder made it to the NHL and has become a mainstay with the Atlanta Flames. He learned early in his move though, he wasn&rsquo;t going to be the big goal scorer, he was to play a different role.If the Chatham, Ont., native was to stay in the NHL, he would be spending a lot of his time in the corners, along the boards and taking abuse in the slot.&ldquo;My job is to get the puck out of the corner and get it to the scorers,&rdquo; Houston said. &ldquo;And to get in the slot and cause some disturbance. That&rsquo;s where being a defenseman helped.&ldquo;I knew what bothered me when I tried to clear the slot and I picked up a few things that drive defensemen crazy.&rdquo;In between driving defensemen crazy, Houston has also picked up a few goals, which are a plus for the Flames.Houston, as he puts it, has &ldquo;cement hands in front of the net,&rdquo; but managed 20 and 22-goal seasons in 1976-77 and 77-78.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really set any personal goals,&rdquo; Houston said. &ldquo;But I would he happy with another 20-goal season. Twenty goals isn&rsquo;t that much anymore, a lot of guys get 20, but if I play my physical game and still get 20 I&rsquo;d be happy.&rdquo;But at one time during the 77-78 season, 20 goals seemed almost an impossibility. Houston, like many other Atlanta forwards, got off to a slow start.His ice lime was limited, and things were to get worse. At one point in the season he watched from the press box due to his lack of production and he had some anxious moments.With the Flames under the .500 mark, trade talk ran rampant and Houston&rsquo;s name was mentioned. To make matters worse, Houston was in the option year of his contract.&ldquo;There wasn&rsquo;t much I could do,&rdquo; Houston said. &ldquo;Except wait until I got another chance to play.&rdquo;Houston got the chance and made the most ot it. The Flames went on to become one of the hottest teams in the NHL in the late stages of the regular season and Houston was one of the reasons. His improved play earned him plenty of ice time and a new contract this past summer.&ldquo;I feel a lot better now than I did last year at this time,&rdquo; Houston said. &ldquo;No one is indispensable and if the right deal came along I know I&rsquo;d be traded as well as anyone else. But I do have a contract.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been getting plenty of ice time and playing a regular shift. It&rsquo;s a lot different than it was last year at this time.&rdquo;NOTES: Flames&rsquo; 7-2 win over Philadelphia Flyers, Dec. 16, was first time in history of franchise Atlanta has beaten the Flyers three times in a row&hellip;Defenseman Ed Kea is back after injuring his foot in fifth game of the season. &#9632;

f0011-01

Rugged Houston Not Star Scorer, But He’s Found Niche In Atlanta

<div class="byline">Bill Fleischman&#x2019;s</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011095/4248889-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="339" height="476"></div><h2>Belisle&rsquo;s Challenge</h2>AS A COACH Danny Belisle has not had an impact on the NHL even close to Scotty Bowman or Fred Shero. Hell, it&rsquo;s foolish to I mention Belisle in the same sentence with them.Bowman has won three consecutive Stanley Cups with Montreal, Shero won two in a row in Philadelphia and is now applying his miracle cure with the New York Rangers, a team whose attitude many people thought was beyond rehabilitation. At this writing, Belisle hasn&rsquo;t even won 10 games in the NHL. Ah, but remember&mdash;Belisle coaches the Washington Capitals. One wonders if Bowman or Shero could have coached the Capitals to 10 wins by now.Belisle was named the Capitals&rsquo; coach only a few days before the season began. Until Caps&rsquo; GM Max McNab called, Belisle was preparing for another season as GM-coach of the AHL&rsquo;s Philadelphia Firebirds. After accepting McNab&rsquo;s offer, Belisle travelled to Los Angeles where McNab handed him a team press guide. During practice McNab pointed toward players, saying &ldquo;Over there&rsquo;s Rick Green, that&rsquo;s Guy Charron, that&rsquo;s Bob Sirois. Bugsy Watson, you know.&rdquo;Belisle, 41, had been a successful minor-league coach at such outposts as Des Moines and Syracuse. Last season in Philadelphia he had two weeks to assemble an AHL club. The Firebirds beat the Flyers&rsquo; Maine farm club in their opener and wound up with a respectable .500 record.Belisle&rsquo;s work was impressive enough to rate mention in this space late last season in a list of prospective NHL coaches. He also impressed McNab, a former Western Leaguer like Belisle. Still, Dan didn&rsquo;t accept the Washington offer without thinking first.&ldquo;A lot of guys who aren&rsquo;t ready (to coach in the NHL) disappear and don&rsquo;t get a second chance,&rdquo; he said last season. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a lot of vaseline on that ladder. I just want to make sure I&rsquo;m ready when the chance comes.&rdquo;<h2>Must Be Patient</h2>BELISLE A BRIGHT, witty guy who obviously can coach, but i whether Caps&rsquo; owner Abe Pollin will be patient is another story. The team Belisle inherited doesn&rsquo;t exactly keep Scotty Bowman awake nights worrying how to withstand its challenge for the Stanley Cup. There is young talent&mdash;Green, Bob Picard, Ryan Walter, Dennis Maruk, Sirois&mdash;but they need experience.&ldquo;I can see a big light at the end of the tunnel&mdash;it&rsquo;s a train coming my way,&rdquo; Belisle said. &ldquo;Sure, we need some more help. I&rsquo;d like to think two or three players, particularly wingers, would make us a .500 team. But I know Max is going to be patient and Mr. Pollin seems like a very flexible man.&rdquo;One of Belisle&rsquo;s strengths is understanding and motivating players while making himself as likeable to his team as a coach can be. His predecessor, Tommy McVie, was too strict for most players.&ldquo;Players never really understand what goes into coaching,&rdquo; Belisle said. &ldquo;The players are the same here as in the minors. They&rsquo;re all basically con men, you just have to figure out their game and learn to deal with it. Some, of course, will con you a lot, others hardly at all.<h2>Players Like Him</h2>&ldquo;BUT ANY COACH NEEDS that minor league training. That&rsquo;s why I can&rsquo;t understand how an ex-player can just suddenly become an NHL coach. A lot of guys who know the game better than I do will never coach in the NHL because they don&rsquo;t know how to deal with people.&rdquo;Belisle seems to have gained the Capitals&rsquo; respect, although a few players and at least one sports writer still have an allegiance to McVie.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re still young and we lose games on mistakes,&rdquo; said Rick Green. &ldquo;But Danny realized that and he&rsquo;s easier (than McVie) to get along with. I like him, and I think most of the guys do.&rdquo;It&rsquo;s difficult not to like Danny Belisle. His years in the minor leagues have given him an endless supply of anecdotes to entertain with. Example: Belisle appeared in the film &ldquo;Slapshot.&rdquo; Maybe you didn&rsquo;t notice him, because in the brawl he was the guy lying on his back on the ice who absorbed Paul Newman&rsquo;s punches.&ldquo;It took about five hours to film that part,&rdquo; Belisle said. &ldquo;He (Newman) was supposed to pull his punches, but he couldn&rsquo;t help landing a few. My one shoulder was pretty sore. Later, they asked me to shift a little so he could hit me on the other shoulder. You a know why? Because his knuckles were bruised! Ah, but that&rsquo;s show business.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0012-01

HOCKEY WORLD

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK MOODY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02932/4248920-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="544" height="756"><figcaption class="caption-body">PAUL MARTHA&hellip;Seeks Meeting</figcaption></div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;In the Dec. 1 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS, Alen Eagleson, executive director of the National Hockey League Players&rsquo; Association was quoted as saying some rather discouraging things about the future of the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise in the NHL.In a column by Bob Verdi, Eagleson was quoted as saying among other things, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re (professional hockey) in trouble. The Pittsburgh Penguins may not be around next year. They can&rsquo;t keep drawing the way they are. You won&rsquo;t see more than 16 teams in the NHL next season.&rdquo;Eagleson, in addition to his job with the Players&rsquo; Association, is also an agent for many NHL players, including some Penguins. His comments brought a reply from Vincent J. Bartimo, President and Chairman of the Board of the Pittsburgh Penguins.&ldquo;If Alan Eagleson&rsquo;s prognosis of the Pittsburgh Penguins, in which he alludes to the imminent demise of the team, is any indication of his judgement and evaluation on behalf of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, then a lot of those hockey players should worry about the kind of representation they are getting from him.&ldquo;As the man next to Edward J. DeBartolo, majority owner of the Penguins, I can tell you that Eagleson is talking through his hat.&ldquo;Mr. Eagleson&rsquo;s statement is not worthy of a denial.&ldquo;As the single biggest investor in professional sports in this country, which includes the San Francisco 49&rsquo;ers Professional Football Team, three major racetracks, and a hockey team, the DeBartolo family&rsquo;s outstanding performance speaks for itself.&ldquo;The DeBartoio organization has never been associated with a loser. That&rsquo;s not rhetoric&hellip;that&rsquo;s fact.&rdquo;Bartimo is based at one of DeBartolo&rsquo;s three race tracks, Louisiana Downs, while vice-president Paul Martha and general manager Baz Bastien, are in charge of the workings of the club from Pittsburgh.&ldquo;Eagleson has no information whatsoever on which to base a statement like the one he made,&rdquo; said Martha. &ldquo;What his intention for making a statement like that might have been, I don&rsquo;t know.&ldquo;Baz has already sent him a letter concerning it. But I&rsquo;m not going to send him a letter which would probably be thrown away anyway. I think something like this demands a face-to-face meeting and I&rsquo;m trying to set something up.&ldquo;If that statement had come from someone independent of hockey such as the news media, that would have been one thing. But for it to come from someone directly involved with the National Hockey League, that&rsquo;s quite something else.&rdquo;The Penguins have drawn 151,470 fans for the first 15 dates at the Civic Arena. The average of 10,098 is slightly behind last season, but better than four other NHL franchises. Pittsburgh has averaged more people than Colorado, Washington, Minnesota and Los Angeles. The Pittsburgh attendance figures include a Saturday night crowd of less than 10,000 against the Buffalo Sabres, when icy road conditions may have kept 3,000 to 4,000 people at home. Saturday is historically the Penguins&rsquo; best night to draw at home.The Penguins many ownership and management changes over the 12 years the club has been in the NHL may have contributed to Eagleson&rsquo;s statements. But present team management was highly upset by his comments.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what the attitude of any of the Penguin players who have to deal with him might be, but if it was me, I&rsquo;d be a little concerned about his attitude toward the team,&rdquo; said Martha.PENGUIN TRACKS: Rookie goaltender Greg Millen recorded his first NHL shutout at home against the St. Louis Blues. Right wing Rick Kehoe scored five goals in his first seven games after returning from a broken ankle suffered in training camp. &#9632;

f0012-02

Rumors Of Penguins’ Death Unfounded Claim Top Brass

<div class="byline">BY DONALD BERNS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011050/4248958-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="554" height="1050"><figcaption class="caption-body">CURT BENNETT&hellip;Blues&rsquo; 1st American</figcaption></div>ST. LOUIS&mdash;Curt Bennett would like to have as many Bennetts as possible in the National Hockey League.Curt is the oldest of six boys born to Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Bennett Sr. of Cranston, R.I. Two of the Bennett brothers, Curt and Bill, are in the NHL now, and Harvey Jr. expects to be recalled by the Blues later this season.Harvey and Bill moved into and out of the NHL on the same day a couple of weeks ago. The Blues called Brian Ogilvie from Salt Lake City and sent Rick Bowness and Harvey to the Golden Eagles. On the same day Bill was called from Rochester by Boston for his first NHL game and scored the Bruins&rsquo; first goal that night against Vancouver.&ldquo;Bill has worked so hard to make the NHL,&rdquo; Curt said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s 25 now and he&rsquo;s been bouncing around in hockey and waiting for his big chance.&rdquo;Bill played for his high school in Cranston, then junior hockey with the Windsor Spitfires. Unlike his brothers, he did not go to college but played in the U.S. League in Wisconsin and the International League before spending last season with Rochester.&ldquo;His weight was up to 265 and we were going to make him a big-time wrestler,&rdquo; Curt said. &ldquo;But he wanted to be a hockey player. His playing weight is about 240, and he&rsquo;s six-foot-five.&rdquo;St. Louis general manager Emile Francis, who already had two Bennett brothers under contract, tried to obtain Bill earlier this season. But the Bruins were unwilling to part with someone of Bills&rsquo;s size.All of the Bennetts are big. Curt, now a right wing, is six-foot-three and 195 pounds, and Harvey, who had been playing left wing, is six-foot-four and 215 pounds. Earlier this season they were the only brothers playing on the same NHL team. The reason for sending Harvey to Salt Lake City is an experiment to convert him to defenseman, a position he played at Boston College.Curt, 30 who was with the Blue briefly seven years ago, was obtained a year ago in the big trade that sent Bob MacMillan, Yves Belanger and Dick Redmond to the Atlanta Flames and also moved Phil Myre and Barry Gibbs to St. Louis. Harvey, 27, was obtained from the Minnesota North Stars shortly after the merger of the North Stars and the Cleveland Barons.Curt and Harvey played together on Team USA in 1976, but that was the only occasion they played on the same team until Harvey started with the Blues this season.&ldquo;When I was in high school, Curt was in college,&rdquo; Harvey said. &ldquo;When I was in college, he already was in St. Louis.&rdquo;Curt has not seen Bill play and is looking forward to the Bruins&rsquo; game with the Blues in St. Louis Jan. 16. A couple of summers when Curt was with the Flames, he skated in Atlanta with Bill to stay in good physical shape during the off-season.The other Bennett still playing hockey is Jimmy, who currently is at Brown University, which Curt also attended. John Bennett has given up hockey to attend medical school. A sixth brother, Peter, who was the only goalie in the family, drowned at the age of 11 in a skating accident.Harvey Bennett Sr. was a goalie in the Bruins&rsquo; organization. Curt was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, but was a baby when the family moved to Rhode Island and is an American citizen. He was the first American to play for the Blues when he joined the team in 1971.Prior to that time the Blues had a total of 63 players, 62 of whom were Canadian and Jaroslav Jirik, who was Czechoslovakian. Since Curt first came to the Blues, the team has had 15 other Americans, Bob Collyard, Glenn Patrick, Bob Johnson, Jim Watt, Mike Lampman, Stan Gilbertson, Butch Williams, Joe Noris, Craig Patrick, Doug Palazzari, Gordon Buynak, Don Wheldon, Jack Brownschidle, Dick Lamby and Harvey Bennett plus two other Europeans, Nick Harbaruk of Poland and Inge Hammarstrom of Sweden.The Blues drafted Curt when he was a sophomore at Brown, and he started his pro career with the Blues&rsquo; farm club in Kansas City in 1970. He broke into the NHL by playing four games with the Blues as a center at the end of the 197071 season and scored two goals in the four games. The next season he played 31 games in St. Louis but was traded to the New York Rangers along with goalie Peter McDuffe in exchange for Steve Durbano. The Rangers kept him a short time and used him as a defenseman, then traded him to Atlanta, where he blossomed into a consistent forward during five years with the Flames.Harvey started his NHL career with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1974, spent parts of two seasons with the Washington Capitals and parts of two seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, then joined the North Stars last season. Last March he scored four goals in a game against Vancouver.Now that Bill is in the NHL and Jimmy may be on his way to the big league, Curt says: &ldquo;The younger ones in our family are a lot better. They had the older ones to learn from.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02839/4248951-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="558" height="1052"><figcaption class="caption-body">BILL BENNETT&hellip;Boston &lsquo;Heavy&rsquo;</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0013-01

Everything’s ‘Relative’ For St. Louis’ Bennett

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0014-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011076/4249017-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Photo by Robert Shaver</figcaption></div><h2>Watching The Action</h2>Television comedian Foster Brooks was able to take time off from his show business commitments to watch the Buffalo Sabres in action at the Memorial Auditorium. Brooks had to be happy with what he saw as the Sabres have turned it around in their last 10 games after sweeping changes at the top.<h2>Casting His Vote</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02887/4249010-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="1177" height="1272"></div>NHL president John Ziegler is shown marking his ballot for selecting the starting league Ail Star team which will oppose the Soviet Union in the Challenge Cup series Feb. 8, 10 and 11 in New York&rsquo;s Madison Square Garden. Balloting is being sponsored by the Wilkinson blade company, who have distributed ballots in all NHL cities for the fans.<h2>It&rsquo;s Not Easy Being A Fan</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03656/4249003-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="560" height="1262"><figcaption class="caption-body">Photo by Steve Babineau</figcaption></div>Injured Bruin toward Stan Jonathan jumps up on the his seat to get a better view of the ice action at the Boston Garden. Jonathan, who has been idle with a shoulder separation for the past six weeks, misses playing and is hoping to return to the Bruins&rsquo; lineup early in January.<h2>Giving A Helping Hand</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04460/4248996-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="1162" height="1413"></div>Center Mike Rogers, left, and left wing George Lyle of the New England Whalers, were honorary co-chairmen of Connecticut&rsquo;s Christmas seal campaign this year. Here Rogers pins a Whaler button on Kimberley Ruel, a nine-year old from Bolton, Conn., who designed the 1978 Christmas seal used in the Connecticut campaign. More than 360 children submitted paintings in the contest won by Kimberley. Rogers and Lyle spearheaded the $850,000 Christmas seal-lung campaign.<h2>The Disco Kid</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-05325/4248989-1-eng-US/f0014-052.jpg" title="f0014-05" width="1166" height="1516"></div>Cincinnati Stinger left winger Peter Marsh, who usually does his swinging on a hockey rink, indulges in a little nighttime relaxation at a downtown discotheque. His Stinger teammates call him &lsquo;Disco&rsquo; or the &lsquo;Disco Kid&rsquo; because of his affinity for the swinging life. Marsh has been cutting some fancy figures as a goalscorer with Cincinnati, too. In his first 34 games, he&rsquo;s counted 20 goals. &#9632;

f0014-01

HOCKEY PEOPLE

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011031/4249062-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="524" height="1112"><figcaption class="caption-body">KRIS MAN ERY&hellip;Slated For Recall</figcaption></div>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;Bobby Smith, hockey&rsquo;s No. 1 amateur pick last summer, appears to have met the first big challenge of his promising young career. The slump.Smith did not exactly set the National Hockey League afire the first quarter of the 1978-79 season. Sure, he scored a couple of game-winning goals early in the season but he just wasn&rsquo;t scoring in bunches like No. 1 draft choices are supposed to.But you never saw the six-foot-four center pout, break sticks or throw the water bottles around the dressing room. What you did see was dedication.Smith is always one of the last of the North Stars to leave the practice ice. That big smile that accompanies his personality was there, too, during his personal crisis period.Inside, it might have been a little different, until the North Stars took off on a five-game unbeaten streak that saw the big boy from the Ottawa 67s making big plays with linemates Steve Payne, another Ottawa rookie, and right winger Al MacAdam.Smith finally enjoyed his first big game in a shutout of the Los Angeles Kings with two goals and an assist.&ldquo;This doesn&rsquo;t mean I&rsquo;ve turned things around for myself,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;but it&rsquo;s good to be contributing. That was my first two-goal game and the first time I&rsquo;ve gotten three points. When a team scores four goals and you get three points it has to give you a good feeling.&rdquo;Smith had that feeling most every game he played his last season of junior. He scored 69 goals in 62 games and finished with 192 points in earning most valuable player honors in the Ontario Hockey Association.There was no debate about whom the North Stars would draft No. 1, and general manager Lou Nanne put together a contract offer that lured him to Minnesota.Even though, Smith was not scoring in bunches Minnesota&rsquo;s first 20 games, the big rookie was getting plenty of chances. He led the team in hitting the post. The only criticism was that he might try to hold the puck too long, rather than anticipating a feed to an open winger. As the point total grows, there will be less suggestions.Injuries, more than Smith&rsquo;s slump, figured heavily in an eight-game losing streak that put the North Stars into the early season pits. Goalie Gilles Meloche, with a knee injury that has improved, and Fred Barrett, a plus 5 defenseman who still has not returned from a Charley horse complicated by calcium deposits, were the key men sidelined.&ldquo;I tried not to let it get me down when the things didn&rsquo;t go well earlier in the season,&rdquo; said Smith. &ldquo;But it does get to you when you are expected to do some scoring and you aren&rsquo;t scoring, and the team is losing games by a single goal. You conclude that if you were doing just part of what is expected of you, the team would be winning games.&ldquo;You try not to put too much pressure on yourself. The North Stars drafted me because of the things I can do best. So I didn&rsquo;t change anything. It did take some time for me to get adjusted. I&rsquo;m working hard but even so, it&rsquo;s going to take more time.&rdquo;It did not seem a coincidence, then, that the North Stars started playing much more competitively when Smith started contributing more offensively.Just as important to the Stars, though, were the back-to-back victories over Atlanta with Gary Edwards in goal while Meloche&rsquo;s knee received the much-needed rest.Meloche came back earlier than expected, when Edwards injured an ankle, and he proceeded to turn in back-to-back shutouts over Los Angeles and Colorado.Those were the first two shutouts in eight seasons for a Minnesota goalie (since Cesare Maniago turned the feat in 1970-71) and the four straight victories were the most in a row in six seasons.The Stars&rsquo; winning streak ended in a 4-4 tie in Boston but that game saw short-handed goals by Kent Andersson and Jean Potvin wipe two-goal leads by the Bruins.The unbeaten streak ended with a 3-2 loss to the Canadiens in a game that the Stars played very well and left the season&rsquo;s largest home crowd, more than 14,000, cheering them at the finish.STAR DUST: The Stars sent left winger Mike Fidler, who seemed to have lost his training camp spark, to Oklahoma City to ease an injury dilemma there&hellip;Kris Manery, sent to Oklahoma City earlier, represented the Stars in the annual December tournament in the Soviet Union and was due for a recall upon his return&hellip;Coach Glen Sonmor continues to praise the work of his checking line of Mike Polich, Tom Younghans and Glen Sharpley, who has made the transitiion to right wing with some of the best hockey of his three-year pro career&hellip;Defenseman Gary Sargent continues to enjoy an outstanding season with seven goals and nine assists his first 27 games&hellip;Sargent, Sharpley, Bobby Smith and Greg Smith are the only Stars who have played every game this season.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02809/4249055-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="1047" height="1408"><figcaption class="caption-body">BOBBY SMITH&hellip; It&rsquo;s Going To Take Time</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-03627/4249048-1-eng-US/f0015-032.jpg" title="f0015-03" width="1153" height="1410"><figcaption class="caption-body">STEVE PAYNE&hellip; Junior Teammate Fits In Well</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0015-01

Smith Overcomes First Pro Slump; Minnesota Goalies Lead Turnabout

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01881/4249093-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="551" height="635"><figcaption class="caption-body">GORAN HOGOSTA&hellip;Involved In Brawl</figcaption></div>MOSCOW&mdash;There&rsquo;s a major hotel chain which advertises under the slogan &lsquo;The best surprise is no surprise&rsquo;, a phrase that might apply equally well to Moscow&rsquo;s Izvestia Tournament. The five-team round robin format was completed just before Christmas, and as usual, the host Soviets kept the gold medal right at home by finishing in first place. As usual, the Czechoslovakian representatives were second.But wait. Maybe there was a surprise here after all in that Team NHL or Team Scrub as it had been unceremoniously dubbed by numerous Canadian media personnel, finished third with a record of 1-2-1 and came back with the tournament&rsquo;s bronze medal.Team NHL, a handful of youthful fringe National Hockey League players who frequently occupied a spot on the end of their team&rsquo;s bench, and mostly a delegation of players from the American and Central Leagues whose greatest talent is future potential, managed a 3-3 tie with last-place Finland and a convincing 5-2 triumph over the fourth-place Swedish club sandwiched around a 4-1 setback to the Czechs and a 9-3 loss to the Soviets.This was a team which critics said would be humiliated, but instead they did much better than the Winnipeg Jets and Quebec Nordiques of the World Hockey Association who preceded them into the tourney as Canadian standard bearers the last two years. Perhaps indeed it was a team of future NHL stars as the league had promoted them, even though none of the NHL clubs have seen fit to work any of the players who made the trip into the lineups on a full-time basis.The Soviets rolled to yet another Izvestia title, but they actually captured the tournament by the slimmest of margins. They and the Czechs battled to a thrilling 3-3 tie in the tournament&rsquo;s final match. Each of the five teams played one game against the other competitors, with the Soviets and the Czechs completing the tournament with 3-0-1 records. However, the Soviets had a better goals for and against ratio, scoring 22 while permitting only seven, while the Czechs figures read 18 for, 11 against.Czechoslovakia probably lost the tournament when they struggled to defeat Finland 5-4 after enjoying three-goal victories over the Swedes and Team NHL.Meanwhile the Soviets built up a sizeable percentage of their offense in the 9-3 drubbing they gave Team NHL. In that contest, Doug Soetaert, goaltender for the New York Rangers, performed miracles in keeping the Soviets from reaching double figures.Soetaert was given a breather by Goran Hogosta midway through the third period against the Soviets and Hogosta came to blows with Soviet forward Sergei Marakov. A two-and-a-half minute brawl erupted before order was restored. Hogosta, a former member of the Swedish National team, belongs to the New York Islanders&rsquo; organization, but has seen only nine minutes of NHL action over the past season and a half. &#9632;

f0016-01

Soviets Capture Izvestia Gold

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03589/4249131-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">GUY LAFLEUR&hellip;Still Leads Scoring Race</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04463/4249124-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="1174" height="969"></div> &#9632;

f0016-03

NHL Scoring Leaders

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02737/4249162-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="578" height="710"></div> &#9632;

f0016-02

HOW THEY STAND

<div class="byline">BY FRED PIETILA</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01773/4249200-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="543" height="980"><figcaption class="caption-body">WILF PAIEMENT</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02652/4249193-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="1065" height="1207"><figcaption class="caption-body">RANDY PIERCE&hellip; Thought Game Would Never End</figcaption></div>DENVER&mdash;The effort was there, but the results were slow in coming as the Colorado Rockies struggled toward the midway mark of the National Hockey League season with five wins in 31 games.Turning to a defensive style under new coach Aldo Guidolin, the Rockies went 2-7-1 in their first 10 games after Pat Kelly was fired and cut their goals against average by almost one goal per game during that stint.The Rockies, who don&rsquo;t have that many bonafide goal-scorers, accepted the change, seemed content to play Guidolin&rsquo;s style and somehow kept their spirits up despite more losses.Their fifth win, a 4-3 decision over Washington in Landover, Md., came in their 30th game and spelled temporary relief for Colorado.Second-year forward Randy Pierce converted his first NHL breakaway into a game-winning goal with just under eight minutes left and goalie Michel Plasse stopped 36 shots as the Rockies ended a five-game losing streak and a seven-game winless streak.And Pierce summed up the agony of what the Rockies have been going through immediately after that game. Plasse held off a furious Capital attack in the last couple of minutes, finishing the third period with 16 saves on 16 shots.&ldquo;The last two minutes seemed to last forever,&rdquo; Pierce said. &ldquo;No, I wasn&rsquo;t out there (on the ice). I was on the bench, screaming my head off. I was just waiting for the ref to call a penalty on us. I was thinking it&rsquo;s got to happen the way things have been going for us.&rdquo;There was no penalty called and the Rockies had win No. 5. The previous four wins had been on Saturday nights. This one was on Tuesday night.But two nights later in Atlanta, Wilf Paiement hit a crossbar above an open net early in the second period and the Flames rushed right back down the ice to score 21 seconds later and turn what would have been a tie game into a two-goal (3-1) lead. The Flames scored on three of five shots in the second period on the way to a 5-3 win.&ldquo;He (Atlanta goalie Dan Bouchard) went down and I had to shoot it high,&rdquo; Paiement said.&ldquo;It hit right in the middle of the crossbar. And then they go right back down and score. That&rsquo;s how we lose games all the time.&rdquo;In that bizarre second period, the Rockies outshot Atlanta 10-5, but scored one goal to the Flames&rsquo; three. The Flames, led by Bill Clement and Bouchard, killed four penalties in that period. And power plays are supposed to be the Rockies&rsquo; strongest suit.&ldquo;Well, we had the power play. We had the chances, Guidolin said. &ldquo;The second period we controlled the whole bloody period and they got three goals.&rdquo;Nevertheless, the spirit remained with the Rockies and their heads were not bowed.Jack Valiquette, the big center acquired early in the season from Toronto for a second-round draft choice after 1980, was scoring well for the Rockies on the way to his best NHL year.&ldquo;I think we seem to be playing pretty well, but we give up too many good scoring chances and we have to make ours count,&rdquo; said Valiquette, who scored five goals and four assists in one seven-game stretch to take over the team scoring lead.&ldquo;But no, we&rsquo;-e not quitting. No way. There&rsquo;s too much at stake. We hope the people in Denver don&rsquo;t think that we&rsquo;re not trying or think that we don&rsquo;t want to win. It&rsquo;s our necks that are at stake if we don&rsquo;t. We want to win&hellip;We want to win for them as bad as for ourselves,&rdquo; Valiquette said.&ldquo;No matter where you play, if you&rsquo;re losing, it&rsquo;s tough. If you&rsquo;re winning, it&rsquo;s great.&rdquo;Defenseman John Van Boxmeer, coming off his best NHL season, was off to a slow and frustrating start for the Rockies. But he thinks the Rockies can turn things around.&ldquo;I know I can play better. It&rsquo;s frustrating. It&rsquo;s frustrating for all of us. It&rsquo;s tough to play better as one person. If seven or eight guys go out and play better then it&rsquo;s easier for other guys to play better,&rdquo; Van Boxmeer said.&ldquo;No one guy can carry the team on his shoulders. Guys have tried it and it hasn&rsquo;t worked. Hockey&rsquo;s a team sport and once you get away fromthe team aspect, you&rsquo;re in trouble. It&rsquo;s just a matter of going on the ice and applying ourselves.&rdquo;Dennis Owchar, another defenseman who was one of two Rockies to play in all of the team&rsquo;s first 31 games (Ralph Klassen was the other), also sounded optimistic.&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s a matter of not looking at our record,&rdquo; Owchar said. &ldquo;But we have to go in and take each game one at a time. We can&rsquo;t think, &lsquo;Geez, we&rsquo;ve got to win eight, or 10, in a row to turn it around.&rsquo; We&rsquo;ve got to take &lsquo;em one at a time.&ldquo;Sure, we&rsquo;ve got a lot of ground to make up, but I think if we keep plugging away at it, we can do it.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0017-01

Rockies Agree Teamwork Produces Results

<div class="byline">BY VARTAN KUPELIAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0018-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01791/4249231-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Photo by Steve BabineauWILLIE HUBER&hellip; Greatly Improved Since Return.</figcaption></div>DETROIT&mdash;Coach Bobby Kromm wasn&rsquo;t trying to be cute when he said, &ldquo;I guess the way we&rsquo;re going, all we need to do is buy &lsquo;em ties for Christmas.&rdquo;In fact, he was probably crying inside.The Red Wings had just blown a two-goal lead in the final 1:59 and had to settle for a 5-5 tie with Atlanta on home ice. Guy Chouinard notched the equalizer for the Flames with just one second left. Just three days earlier, in their previous start, the Wings had watched a two-goal margin disappear with four and one-half minutes left as Chicago rallied for a 3-3 deadlock on Ted Bulley&rsquo;s goal with 60 seconds left.&ldquo;Well, we made too many mistakes, I guess, particularly in the last 15 seconds and when you&rsquo;re making mistakes like that, there&rsquo;s got to be something wrong with their thinking,&rdquo; Kromm said.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s two games we have and two games we give away. You can&rsquo;t get them back. You play well enough to win the game and when you have a two-goal lead and that amount of time left, surely you should be able to preserve the victory.&rdquo;There were crucial breakdowns at critical points in both games. Lost face-offs, an untimely icing and so on. The Flames got a face-off deep in the Detroit end with 15 seconds left when Errol Thompson iced the puck.&ldquo;All I wanted to do was flip it,&rdquo; Thompson said. &ldquo;As soon as I shot it, I knew what had happened. It was obviously my mistake and I&rsquo;ll accept the blame. I&rsquo;m upset about it but I&rsquo;m not going to go into a shell.&rsquo;The Chicago tie capped a four-game Detroit span which had greatly encouraged Kromm.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t squawk about their effort,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;All in all, I saw some positive signs. I&rsquo;m happy with the way they played last week, and I think they deserved more than what they got.&rdquo;Kromm is relying on a very young defense and that translates into costly errors. Thommie Bergman is 32, Perry Miller 26 and Reed Larson 22. The other three are rookies&mdash;John Taft, John Hilworth and Willie Huber. Taft (24) and Hilworth (21) are second-year pros while Huber was the Wings&rsquo; No. 1 amateur draft choice this year.&ldquo;You have to live with the mistakes,&rdquo; Kromm said. &ldquo;Teddy (Lindsay) and I took a lot of criticism for the Harper-Hextall thing but I&rsquo;ve got to say we&rsquo;ve improved. Our defense is big and strong now. From what I&rsquo;ve seen, I&rsquo;m very, very pleased.&ldquo;To see Huber come back from Kansas City and play the way he has, and Taft&rsquo;s performance. I think we&rsquo;re heading in the right direction. They&rsquo;re young. They have the drive, the legs and the determination to do well.&rdquo;Kromm said he &ldquo;couldn&rsquo;t finger&rdquo; why the Wings play so much better coming from behind than they do when they lead a game.He continued, &ldquo;Every club says, &lsquo;How come you&rsquo;re not where you should be?&rsquo; I&rsquo;ll tell you: because we can&rsquo;t get a break.&ldquo;But I can&rsquo;t complain. The enthusiasm is getting to where it was last year. That hasn&rsquo;t been the case too many times this year. But now it&rsquo;s getting back to where it was, where you could feel it in that dressing room.&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s hope it&rsquo;s a good sign. We&rsquo;ve got to hang tough until the end of the month.&rdquo;MOTOR CITY SHORTS: Danny Labraaten is getting plenty of chances to score but his inability to put the puck in the net has Kromm puzzled&hellip;Nick Libett continues to move ahead of some all-time Red Wing greats, like Red Kelly and Sid Abel, in career totals&hellip;Jean Hamel joined the NHL squad for the Izvestia tournament&hellip; despite the prolonged slump, the Wings were almost (two points) equal to their pace of a year ago. &#9632;

f0018-01

Detroit Intent On Going With Young Skaters

LOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRAOSBY, LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaLOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKSMade in Canada by HILLERICH & BRAOSBY, LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S. and CanadaGreat players often rise to the occasion in crucial situations, but even Bryan Trottier was surprised by the time the evening was over following the cross-town grudge match between the Islanders and the Rangers, won by the Islanders, 9-4,Trottier was the game&rsquo;s first star and was basking in the limelight after figuring in eight of the nine Islanders&rsquo; goals. He had four goals and four assists. Or so he thought. Further examination of the game films revealed that Trottier had tipped in a Stefan Persson drive and had actually scored five goals, although he now had to settle for only three assists.His scoring burst, along with a goal and an assist during the rest of the week moved him into second place in both the goals and points departments, with 25 and 53.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02636/4249262-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="519" height="648"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRYAN TROTTIER&hellip;New York Islanders</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0018-02

NHL’S— Player of the Week

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02607/4249293-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="603" height="1979"></div> &#9632;

f0019-02

Looking At NHL Goalers

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01754/4249331-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="563" height="1297"><figcaption class="caption-body">KEN DRYDEN&hellip;Best Average</figcaption></div>BUFFALO&mdash;A year ago, Billy Inglis was wondering if there would be a hockey team for him to play on. Today he is a coach in the National Hockey League. At least for the time being. Life still is uncertain for Billy. He doesn&rsquo;t know when his coaching job will be lost.But, then, what NHL coach does?Inglis was in a somewhat different position, however, front that of his fellow NHL masterminds. For nearly two weeks his official title with the Buffalo Sabres was &ldquo;interim coach.&rdquo; Two ties and five wins later, however, Inglis was given the job for the rest of the 1978-79 season.When Punch Imlach was fired as general manager of the Sabres and coach Marcel Pronovost went with hint, the team was left to prepare for a game against Los Angeles with nobody in charge.Seymour H. Knox III, club president and chairman of the board, told Inglis to run the team practices while a new coach was sought.Inglis, 35 was a unique individual in the Buffalo hockey organization. He scored the first goal the Sabres ever got&mdash;in the first pre-season game their initial NHL year, 1970&mdash;but he had been a minor leaguer almost since then until the beginning of this season, when he retired as an active player and became a Buffalo scout.That first Sabre season, 1970-71, Inglis suffered a broken kneecap. He sat out most of the campaign, finishing up with Salt Lake of the Western Hockey League. Where he had been a small, speedy, clever hockey player before, he then was merely a small, clever player.He lost some of his speed and a center who is five-foot-nine and 160 pounds has to be fast to be in the NHL.Inglis stayed with the Buffalo organization&mdash;by this season he and Gil Perreault were the only remaining original Sabres&mdash;playing for one of the minor league affiliates.And always, in training camp Billy Inglis was the mentor of the rookies. He look them under his wing, gave them advice and kept them pepped up in practice. When the Sabres would send a rookie team to play some outside team, Billy Inglis would be the coach.As he got older, however, and minor league clubs became fewer, it was more and more difficult to find a spot for a player Billy&rsquo;s age.Last season he started with Binghamton of the American League, then was sent to Phoenix of the Central League. And, right about a year before he became interim coach of the Sabres, Phoenix became a franchise that was going out of business. On again, off again&mdash;it happened several times, right around Christmas, which didn&rsquo;t make things very merry for the Inglis family.Finally the franchise folded and Inglis was off to New Haven of the AHL.There he helped Parker MacDonald with the coaching and did some playing. But Billy could see the end of the road as a player. He went to the Buffalo training camp but when the regular season started, he decided ti was time to retire.In his I4-year pro career, Inglis played for 10 minor league clubs&mdash;Hull-Ottawa of the Eastern Pro League; Omaha, Houston and Phoenix of the Central; Springfield, Cincinnati, Hershey, Binghamton and New Haven of the American, and Salt Lake of the Western.He also played 12 games for Los Angeles of the NHL and 14 for Buffalo.The Sabres always figured Billy as a future coach somewhere in the organization and thus they signed him as a scout when he hung up his playing skates.When Pronovost was fired, speculation was heavy that Joe Crozier would be brought back to coach the Sabres. Negotiations fell through, however, and the night before the game against Los Angeles, Inglis was named interim coach.At the same time, John Andersen was upped from Director of Scouting to Director of Player Personnel. It looks as though the Sabres will go for some time without an official general manager. Maybe to the end of the season.In the first game under the new regime, the Sabres came from behind to beat Los Angeles. The next game they tied Pittsburgh, as they had in the six previous meetings of the clubs. Then the Sabres went out and defeated Toronto, the team they must beat out for an automatic spot in the playoffs, and drubbed Chicago, 6-2,Three more victories followed and on Dec. 18 Knox announced: &ldquo;We think Billy is doing a tremendous job as coach of the Sabres and we are sure that he will continue to do so in the future. He has quickly brought the club along to the point where they are once again one of the National Hockey League&rsquo;s best and most exciting teams&hellip;we are confident the team will continue to respond to his leadership.&rdquo;SABRES&rsquo; SLASHES: A couple of youngsters had three-goal weeks for the Sabres to help keep them undefeated under Inglis. Derek Smith has a game winner among his three goals and appears to be ready to assume an important role on the club, while another of the swifter skaters on the Sabres, Tony McKegney, had his biggest week as a pro as well.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-03454/4249324-1-eng-US/f0019-032.jpg" title="f0019-03" width="548" height="841"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEREK SMITH&hellip;Good Week</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0019-01

‘Interim’ Inglis Did Job So Well Sabres’ Brass Gave Him Contract

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01590/4249362-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Photo by Bruce Bennett</figcaption></div>A brief four-game trial at the end of the season was enough to convince Vancouver Canucks that they liked the potential of Glen Hanlon, their 1977 third-round draft choice. Hanlon was sharp in the four games with a 2.70 goals against average and the young lefthander was coming off an impressive debut in the Central League where he was named rookie of the year and winner of the Ken McKenzie Trophy. Thus far in 1978-79 Hanlon has been both the Canucks&rsquo; busiest and most successful goaltender. &#9632;

f0020-01

Four-Game Trial Key For Hanlon

<div class="byline">BY BOB VERDI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-03332/4249400-1-eng-US/f0020-032.jpg" title="f0020-03" width="556" height="868"><figcaption class="caption-body">TIM HIGGINS&hellip;Rallied By Orr</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-04225/4249393-1-eng-US/f0020-042.jpg" title="f0020-04" width="561" height="873"><figcaption class="caption-body">DOUG LECUYER&hellip;Tied Penguins</figcaption></div>CHICAGO&mdash;Assistant coach Bobby Orr will retain that title but won&rsquo;t be going on the ice with the Black Hawks anymore, according to general manager-coach Bob Pulford.&ldquo;Bobby and I had a long discussion, and he really doesn&rsquo;t want to coach, so there&rsquo;s no sense in his doing it,&rdquo; Pulford said. &ldquo;He has a lot of interest in the other end of the front office, though, and a lot of ability.&ldquo;So rather than him coaching, we&rsquo;re going to use him inside the office more, scouting young players more, and advance scouting more to prepare us for upcoming games. He&rsquo;ll keep his title as assistant coach. Why? Because titles don&rsquo;t mean anything in the first place.&rdquo;The Hawks were in first place sometimes and second place sometimes but guaranteed to frustrate at all times as of mid-December.They were doing themselves no good, but were trying to keep the Colorado Rockies solvent. That franchise is in trouble&mdash;everybody knows that&mdash;but the Rockies&rsquo; only two wins in their first 14 home games were against the Black Hawks.Not close, either. The first was a blowout 8-3; the second was a blowout 5-1.&ldquo;I just don&rsquo;t know what it is with this team,&rdquo; said Pulford who must shortly start supplying either better answers or better entertainment.&ldquo;The defeat in Denver was Chicago&rsquo;s third straight, and a fourth loomed the next night at home (Dec. 17), except that the Hawks scored twice in the third period to tie the Pittsburgh Penguins.The tying goal was forged by Doug Lecuyer, the Hawks&rsquo; No. 2 draft choice last June. He and No. 1 selection Tim Higgins were summoned on the morning of the game from the Hawks&rsquo; New Brunswick minor league club of. the American Hockey League.The Hawks needed emergency relief because of injuries to Ted Bulley (left wing, broken toe) and Cliff Koroll (right wing, Charley horse.) Higgins and Lecuyer were more than ample and more than enthusiastic, which was a nice change of pace in Chicago.&ldquo;I had a bad attitude in the minor leagues,&rdquo; admitted Higgins. &ldquo;I played three games in Chicago at the start of the season, sat in the press box a lot, got sent down, then just sort of gave up for a couple weeks.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want to be down there in Moncton, and I played like it. Then Bobby Orr came down there and told me &lsquo;Look, there&rsquo;s a spot for you in Chicago, but we can&rsquo;t bring you up the way you&rsquo;re playing. Start playing hard.&rsquo; And I did after that.&rdquo;The Hawks, who have not drafted as wisely as they might have in recent seasons, hope that Higgins stays. Or else they might elect to dodge the next draft.HAWK TALK: Cliff Koroll, with a plus-11, was the Black Hawks&rsquo; plus-minus leader as of the quarter mark in the season&hellip;Stan Mikita reached the 900-assist plateau in St. Louis Dec. 9. Only Gordie Howe has more&hellip;&rsquo;Twas the week before Christmas and center Jim Harrison was still suspended after failing to report to the New Brunswick Club. He&rsquo;s awaiting a hearing. &#9632;

f0020-03

Orr’s Duties Off Ice Only; Hawks Sparked By Youth

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02418/4249431-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0020-02

Where NHL Teams Play

VANCOUVER&mdash;The youngster being billed as &ldquo;the franchise&rdquo; with the Canucks, 21-year-old goaltender Glen Hanlon, was a runaway winner in the October-November segment of the Molson Cup competition, the longest segment of the season.Meanwhile in Montreal, Guy Lafleur&mdash;who else&mdash;captured the first Montreal segment and Lanny McDonald was named first star in Toronto&rsquo;s final game of the first segment to take home top honors in the Maple Leaf voting.Hanlon, who has recorded two shutouts already this year, was awarded 35 points in the first segment, to pick up a cheque for $1,000 and an additional $1,000 cheque for the charity or amateur sports organization of his choice. Three other Canucks, Thomas Gradin, Pit Martin and Ron Sedlbauer, finished tied for second with 20 points each and the runner-up received a $500 cheque. In case of ties, the player with the most first star selections is given precedence although each star selected is worth five points.A late surge by Lafleur who has won overall for the past four years, allowed him to catch and pass Guy Lapointe in the 23-game Montreal segment. Lafleur picked up four star ratings in the last couple of weeks to finish with 30 points, five ahead of Lapointe.Lafleur continued his momentum into the December portion of the competition as well and was named a star on three occasions in Montreal&rsquo;s first seven games of the month. December segment leader, however, was Pierre Mondou, who picked up a first and two second star ratings in consecutive games against Detroit, Pittsburgh and the Islanders and coupled with one otherstar selection vaulted him league leading Aces dropped an emotional 7-4 loss to the Blades on the road, but rebounded very strongly, blasting both Utica and Johnstown by identical 8-1 counts at home.Jim Bales upped his season&rsquo;s record to 8-4 and lowered his goals against average to just 3.58. Bales also, has picked up two shutouts. Dave Hynek, who totaled seven points in three games, earned a hat trick against the Wings and top scorer Larry Billows added two goals and two assists vs. the Johnstown crew. Brian Gustafson also had a productive week with two goals and four assists for six points.JOHNSTOWN: After beating Utica 7-6 in overtime to snap a three game losing skein, the Wings immediately went into a tailspin and lost their next three games. Vern Campigollo&rsquo;s game tying goal late in the final period got the Wings even at 6-6 and Doug Johnson took over from their ripping home a winner at 3:58 of the overtime.Traveling proved rough on the Wings as the rugged road trip took its toll in losses at Utica 9-5, New Hampshire 5-1 and New Jersey 8-1. Coach Dick Roberge is still looking for consistency in his young team that never seems to lack hustle.ERIE: The Blades secured a hold on second place with a pair of home wins that marked their first back-to-back weekend sweep in front of the home fans. Erie claimed a 7-4 triumph over the Aces as they broke open a 4-4 contest with three goals within a three minute span in the third period and then came back the following night with a 6-2 nod over the Freedoms.Erie has been by-far the hottest team in the NEHL winning five of their last six games including two big road wins and have a glossy 8-2-1 record over an 11 game stretch as they have picked up 17 points of a possible 22.Lynn Zimmerman, who handled the goaltending chores for the Blades in two seasons and is now enjoying retirement, received a warm reception from Erie fans when he was introduced at a recent game. Zimmerman was able to view young David Johns as he extended his record to 11-6-1 and lowered his goals against mark to 4.38 as one of the most durable goalies in the league. Stan Gulutzan, with a hot month of December, took over the goal scoring leadership that includes three winners, while Dave Dornseif is tops in scoring for defenseman with 17 points. Chest and neck injuries have slowed leading scorer Brad Rhiness, but he is slowly rounding back into top form.The Blades are nearing an end to their two month promotion with the American Heart Association called the Queen of Hearts and Blades. In their first 20 games, the Blades scored the first goal of the game just six times. &#9632;

‘The Franchise’ Captures 1st Molson Cut Segment

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01478/4249535-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="617" height="1775"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02373/4249528-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="590" height="3389"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-03302/4249521-1-eng-US/f0022-032.jpg" title="f0022-03" width="585" height="1049"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-04230/4249514-1-eng-US/f0022-042.jpg" title="f0022-04" width="594" height="2415"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-05191/4249507-1-eng-US/f0022-052.jpg" title="f0022-05" width="317" height="779"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-08125/4249500-1-eng-US/f0022-082.jpg" title="f0022-08" width="198" height="410"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRYAN TROTTIER&hellip;Five-Goal Performance</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01451/4249493-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="610" height="1531"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02341/4249486-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="1183" height="1637"></div> &#9632;

f0022-01

NATIONAL LEAGUE SUMMARIES

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-07137/4249566-1-eng-US/f0022-072.jpg" title="f0022-07" width="622" height="1501"></div> &#9632;

f0022-07

The NHL Scoreboard

ATLANTA: Clement 8, Pronovost 12, 13, MacMillan 15, 16, Ribbl 5, Lysiak 18, 17, 18, Lalonde 14, Vail 15.BOSTON: Secord 7,8, Ratelle 11,12, Wensink 21, O&rsquo;Reilly 9, Cashman 8,9, Walton 9, Sims 8.BUFFALO: Smith 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, T. Martin 3, Sailing 5, 6, Korab 7, R. Martin 10, Luca 12, McAdam 4.CHICAGO: Marks 11, Mulvey 6, Boldirey 14, Daigle 3, Murray 5, Mikita 5,6, Koroll 5.COLORADO: Gardner 14, Paiement 9, Beck 8, Delorme 4, Van Boxmeer 3, Beverley 1.DETROIT: Huber 1, 2, 3, McCourt 12, 13, 14, Nedomansky 14, 15, Labraaten 6, Polonlch 4, Bolduc 5.LOS ANGELES: Jensen 7, Dionne 23, Taylor 16.MINNESOTA: B. Smith 7, Sargent 9, MacAdam 7,8, G. Smith 4, 5, Sharpley 8, Potvin 4, Zanussl 9, Payne 3, Andersson 8, Maxwell 3.MONTREAL: Shutt 11, 12, 13,14, 15, Mondou 14, Chartraw 2,3, Gainey 8, Tremblay 11, Lafleur 23, Houle 10, Lambert 13.ISLANDERS: Trottier, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, Gillies 10, Toneili 8, Potvin 14, Kaszycki 7, Bossy 24,25, Howatt, 6, Persson 8.RANGERS: McEwen 8, 9, Talafous 8, 9, Esposito 15, 18, 17, Marois 3, Hedberg 11, 12, Hickey 15,16, Greschner 12,13.PHILADELPHIA: Watson 2, Bridgman 9, Saleski 6, 7, Dean 4, MacLeish 13,14, Preston 2, 3, Dunlop 11, McCarthy 1.PITTSBURGH: Lonsberry 10, 11, Chapman 5, Kindrachuk 9,10, Malone 12, Kehoe 7.ST. LOUIS: Brownschidle 2, Sutter 18, 19, Hess 3, Babych 15, Murdoch 2, Stewart 2, Unger 14, Affleck 1.TORONTO: Salming 8, Sittier 17,18, Boutette 9, Hutchison 3, Williams 11, Ellis 7, 8, 9, McKechnie 13, Jones 5.VANCOUVER: Ververgaert 8, 9, Mcllhargey 2, Snepata 2, Martin 9, Blight 4, Sedlbauer 23.WASHINGTON: Sirois 16, 17, Rowe 14, Maruk 8, Heard 4, 5, 6, Walter 8. &#9632;

NHL’s Scorers …This Week

This poem was written by 11-year-old Donny Chabot, a handicapped student at Alex Muir School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. Donny is the grandson of late and great NHL goaltender Lome Chabot and his words undoubtedly express the feelings of thousands of children.Well, here it is another hockey season.So I am writing you for just one reason,Please don&rsquo;t scream or curse and yell,Remember I&rsquo;m not in the N.H.L.I am only 11 years oldAnd can&rsquo;t be bought or traded or sold,I just want to have fun and play the gameAnd am not looking for hockey famePlease, don&rsquo;t make me feel I&rsquo;ve committed a sinJust because my team didn&rsquo;t win)I don&rsquo;t want to be that great, you seeI&rsquo;d rather play and just be meAnd so, in closing, I&rsquo;d like to give you one tipRemember, the name of the game is SPORTSMANSHIP. &#9632;

Dear Parents And Coach Please Let Me Be Myself

<div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-03251/4249645-1-eng-US/f0023-032.jpg" title="f0023-03" width="140" height="146"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><h2>ATLANTA</h2>GOALDan Bouchard*Rejean LemelinDEFENSEGreg FoxEd Kea*Brad MarshRichard MulhernPat RibbleRod SeilingDave ShandCENTERSGuy Chouinard*Red LaurenceTom Lysiak CR. WINGSJohn GouldKen HoustonBobby LalondeBob MacMillanJean PronovostWilli PlettL. WINGSBill ClementEric Vail<h2>BOSTON</h2>GOALGerry Cheevers*Jim PettieDEFENSEGary DoakMike MilburyDennis O&rsquo;BrienBrad ParkDick RedmondAl SimsRick SmithCENTERSPeter McNabBob MillerJean RatelieMike WaltonR. WINGSRick MiddletonTerry O&rsquo;Reilly*Tom SonginL. WINGS*Bill BennettWayne Cashman CDon MarcotteJohn Wensink<h2>BUFFALO</h2>GOALDon Edwards*Bob SauveDEFENSERichard DunnLee FogolinJocelyn GuevremontBill HajtJerrv Korab*Larry PlayfairJim Schoenfeld*Bill StewartCENTERSDon LuceGilles PerreaultAndr&eacute; SavardDerek SmithR. WINGSDanny Gare CJacques RichardRen&eacute; RobertRic SeilingL. WINGSRichard MartinTerry MartinGary McAdam*Tony McKegneyCraig Ramsay<h2>CHICAGO</h2>GOALTony EspositoMike VeisorDEFENSEDave LoganKeigh Magnuson CBob MurrayPhil RussellDoug WilsonCENTERSIvan BoldirevAlain DaigleJim HarrisonStan MikitaR. WINGSJ.P. Bordeleau*Tim HigginsCliff KorollGrant MulveyL. WINGSTed BulleyBob Kelly*Reg Kerr*Doug LeeuyerJohn MarksDarcy Rota<h2>COLORADO</h2>GOALBill OleschukMichel PlasseDEFENSEDon AwreyBarry BeckNick BeverleyMike ChristieMike KitchenDennis OwcharJohn VanBoxmeerCENTERSRey ComeauPaul GardnerDoug Hicks*Merlin MalinowskJack ValiquetteR. WINGSRon DelormeWilf PaiementRandy PierceL. WINGSJoe ContiniGary CroteauRalph KlassenAndy Spruce<h2>DETROIT</h2>GOALJim RutherfordRogie VachonDEFENSEThommie BergmanJean HamelJohn HIIworth*Willie HuberReed LarsonPerry Miller*John TaftCENTERS*Dan BolducFem LeBlancDale McCourtki Andre St LaurentR. WINGSDan LabraatenVacfoc NedomanskyDennis PolonichL. WINGSNick LlbettBill LocheadErrol ThompsonPaul Woods<h2>LOS ANGELES</h2>GOALRon Grahame*Mario LessardGary SimmonsDEFENSEDarryl EdestrandRick HamptonRandy ManeryBob MurdochRob PalmerCENTERSSylAppsMarcel DionneButch GoringVic VenaskyR. WINGSMark HeaslipGlenn GoldupMike Murphy CL. WINGSDanny GrantSteve JensenDave TaylorBert WilsonMurray Wilson<h2>MINNESOTA</h2>GOALGary EdwardsGilles MelocheDEFENSEFred Barrett*Bill ButtersBrad MaxwellJim McKennyJean PotvinGary SargentGreg SmithCENTERSBill HogaboamGlen Sharpley*Bob SmithTim YoungR. WINGSKent-Erik AnderssonAl MacAdamTom YoughansRon ZanussiL. WINGSPer-O lov BrasarJean-Paul Parise C*Steve Payne*Mike Polich<h2>MONTREAL</h2>GOALKen DrydenMichel LarocqueDEFENSERick ChartrawBrian EngblomGuy LapointeRod LangwayGilles LupienLarry RobinsonSerge SavardCENTERSRejean HouleDoug JarvisPierre LarouchePierre MondouDoug RisebrougbR. WINGS*Pat HughesGuy LafleurMark NapierMario TremblayL. WINGSCam ConnorBob GaineyYvon LambertSteve Shutt<h2>ISLANDERS</h2>GOALChico ReschBilly SmithDEFENSEGerry HartDave Lewis*Bob LorimerBert MarshallStefan PerssonDenis PotvinPat PriceCENTERSLome HenningMike KaszyckiWayne Men-ickBryan TrottierR. WINGSMike BossyBilly HarrisBob NystromEd WestfallL. WINGSBob BourneClarke Gillies CGarry HowattJohnTonelli<h2>RANGERS</h2>GOALJohn DavidsonDoug SoetaertWayne ThomasDEFENSE*Dan ClarkDave FarrishRon GreschnerMike KorneyDave Maloney CMario MaroisMike McEwenCarol VadnaisCENTERSRon DuguayPhil EspositoUlf NHssonWalter TkaczukR. WINGSLucien DeBloisAnders HedbergEddie JohnstonePierre PlanteDeanTalafousL. WINGSNick FotiuPat HickeyGreg PolisSteve Vickers<h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2>GOALBernie Parent*Peter PeetersWayne StephensonDEFENSEBob DaileyAndri DupontRick LaPointeKevin McCarthyJim Watson*Behn WilsonCENTERSMel BridgmanBobby Clarke CBlake Dunlop*Paul EvansR. WINGSPaul HolmgrenReggie LeachDon SaleskiL. WINGSBill BarberBarry Dean*Dave HoydaBob KellyRick MacLeish*Yves Preston<h2>PITTSBURGH</h2>GOALDenis Herron*Greg MillenDEFENSERuss AndersonTom BladonColin CampbellBob ParadiseRon StackhouseDale TallonCENTERSPete MahovlichGreg MaloneR. WINGSBlair ChapmanJacques CossetteGeorge FergusonRick KehoePeter LeeL WINGSWayne BianchinOrest Kindrachuk CRoss LonsberryDave Schultz*Rod Schutt<h2>ST. LOUIS</h2>GOALPhil MyreEd StaniowskiDEFENSEBruce AffleckJack BrownschidleBarry Gibbs CLarry GirouxBob HessBob StewartCENTERSBernie FedeikoBrian OgilvieDoug PalazzariLarry PateyGarry Unger CR. WINGS*Wayne BabychBob MurdochRick ShinskeJohn SmrkeL. WINGSCurt BennettInge HammarstromBrian Suttler<h2>TORONTO</h2>GOALPaul HarrisonMike PalmateerDEFENSEDave BurrowsDave HutchisonTrevor Johansen*JoelQuenneviileBorje SalmingIan TurnbullCENTERSBruce BoudreauJimmy JonesGarry MonahanDarryl Sittier CWalt McKechnieR. WINGS*John AndersonJerry ButlerRon EllisLanny McDonaldL. WINGSPat BoutetteDan MaloneyLome StamlerDave Williams<h2>eVANCOUVER</h2>GOALGary Bromley*Glen HanlonDune WilsonDEFENSEJohn GrisdaleRandy HoltDennis Kearns*Lars LindgrenJackMclllargeyHarold SnepstsCENTERSRoland Eriksson*Thomas GradinPit MartinChris OddlelfsonR. WINGSRick BlightHilliard Graves*Stan SmylDennis VervergaertL. WINGS*Curt FraserJere GillisDon Lever CRon Sedlbauer<h2>WASHINGTON</h2>GOAL*Jim BedardGary InnessBernie WolfeDEFENSERick GreenYvon LabreGord LaneRobert PicardPete ScamurraGord Smith*Leif SvenssonBryan WatsonCENTERSGuy Charron CDennis Maruk*Ryan WalterR. WINGSMichel Bergeron*Mark LofthouseDoug PateyBill RileyTom RoweL. WINGS*Greg Carroll*Rolf EdbergBob Girard*Paul MulveyBob Sirois<h2>INJURED PLAYERS</h2>ATLANTAHarold PhillipoffBOSTONGilles GilbertBobby SchmautzStan JonathanCOLORADO*Mike Gillis*Dave WatsonJoe WatsonClayton PachalDETROITGreg Joly*Brent PetersonLOS ANGELESBrian GlennieTom WilliamsMONTREALYvan Coumoyer CJacques LemairePITTSBURGHRandy CarlyleGregg SheppardST. LOUISSteve DurbanoVANCOUVER*Bill DeriagoWASHINGTON*Tim Coulis &#9632;

f0023-03

NHL Team Rosters C - Captain * - Rookie

QUEBEC CITY&mdash;The Chris Bordeleau saga continued as the &lsquo;retired&rsquo; centerman reportedly filed a $179,000 suit against the Quebec hockey club for breach of contract.According to reports, Bordeleau accused the Nordiques&rsquo; management of unilaterally announcing his retirement after he had agreed with coach Jacques Deniers to take 15 days off to think about his future. The situation was getting a lot of ink in Quebec newspapers.Bordeleau wants the rest of this season&rsquo;s salary, $79,166, plus $100,000 in damages. &#9632;

Bordeleau Sues Nordiques

LOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S and CanadaLOUISVILLEHOCKEY STICKS Made in Canada by HILLERICH & BRADSBY, LTD Arnold Street, Wallaceburg, Ontario Sold in U.S and CanadaCincinnati Stingers are counting on big things from Peter Marsh in an effort to get back into the playoff scene afer finishing in seventh place a year ago.After challenging for the lead earlier this year, the Stingers went into a dismal slump, but Peter Marsh took care of that. He scored three goals to lead them to a 6-2 decision over the Quebec Nordiques, who share first place and are now just four, points ahead of the Stingers.Marsh also had one other goal during the week and combined with his hat trick, he&rsquo;s already at the 20 mark. The last two seasons Marsh has recorded 25 and 23 goals, so it&rsquo;s a safe bet he should easily surpass his career high, and maybe even his career total (48).<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-03256/4249738-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="503" height="630"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETER MARSH&hellip;Cincinnati Stingers</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0024-03

WHA’S… Player of the Week

<div class="byline">BY WAYNE WARRINER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01467/4249683-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="554" height="695"><figcaption class="caption-body">JIM CORSI&hellip;Called The Best</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02373/4249676-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="560" height="720"><figcaption class="caption-body">BLAINE STOUGHTON&hellip;Newest Whaler</figcaption></div>HARTFORD&mdash;When the history of the Indianapolis Racers is written it will undoubtedly be noted that the New England Whalers were the last World Hockey Association team to visit Market Square Arena. With the bottom falling out of the Indy franchise the game was not what you would call a classic.But for the Whalers it meant two points as they came out on top, 7-4. It also enhanced New England&rsquo;s league leading road record&mdash;17 points in 16 games on enemy ice.Coach Bill Dineen wasn&rsquo;t particularly thrilled with the performance as the Whalers again showed a propensity to abandon defensive aspects of the game. There was little checking and an abundance of shots on goal&mdash;at both ends of the ice.The game did not lack for individual stars, however, Andre Lacroix picked up a hat trick, including a nice shorthanded effort. But it was linemate Mark Howe who was named the game&rsquo;s No. 1 star. Aside from assisting on each of Lacroix&rsquo;s goals, Mark completed a four-point night by notching his own shorthanded goal. It was his fourth of the year and the team&rsquo;s ninth of the season.With the campaign only one-third completed Mark was within two shorthanders of the club record held by former Whaler penalty-killer ex-traordinaire, Tom Earl. Lacroix was in hot pursuit with three, so far.A few days after the demise of the Racers, New England&rsquo;s director of hockey operations, Jack Kelley, announced the signing of two members of the now defunct team. Right wing Blaine Stoughton and defenseman Dave Inkpen moved in to crowd the Whalers&rsquo; roster. The acquisition of Stoughton improved a depth problem on the right side, especially in light of the elder statesmen who now occupy that position (Gordie Howe, John McKenzie). Warren Miller had been working well, so it wasn&rsquo;t immediately apparent what Kelley had in mind for the immediate future.Ironically, Inkpen was named third star of Indy&rsquo;s last game. Although there was a need for right hand shots on the Whalers blueline corps, it was hard to figure who would move over (or out) for the seventh man in the group. Coach Bill Dineen and Kelley were to figure that one out before an important home and home series with the Nordiques of Quebec.QUEBEC: It was a good time to be heading into a back-to-back series with the New England Whalers in a battle for supremacy in the WHA. The Nordiques had dropped only one game in their last 10, and that was a 6-3 decision that they lost to the touring Soviet All Stars.Coach Jacques Demers has apparently been successful in implementing a more defensive style of play in the Nordiques&rsquo; system. Quebec has the lowest goals against average in the WHA&mdash;a far cry from recent years.Demers gives much credit to young goalie Jim Corsi who started the year in Binghamton of the American Hockey League, but who has come on strong of late. &ldquo;Corsi has been the best goaltender in the league so far this season,&rdquo; said Demers.Offensively the team hasn&rsquo;t been lacking either. Real Cloutier wrested the WHA&rsquo;s scoring lead away from Cincinnati&rsquo;s Robbie Ftorek with a productive week. The young right winger rifled home six goals in a week&rsquo;s time including his 30th of the season. Coming in the 29th game on the schedule, the goal tied Cloutier with teammate Marc Tardif (who accomplished the feat last year) and Bobby Hullfwho did the trick in 197475).Tardif was not far behind in total points although he had only 21 goals in the 29 games. The Nordiques&rsquo; captain was picking up numerous assists as he worked with center Richie Leduc and right wing Danny Geoffrion, in addition to power play assignments.Cloutier had Serge Bernier as his centerman while Richard David, Paulin Bordeleau, and even defenseman Paul Baxter worked in on the left side.BIRMINGHAM: Rookie goaltender Pat Riggin racked up his first major league shutout in a brilliant effort in Birmingham against the Cincinnati Stingers. The Stingers outshot the Bulls 35 to 23 and had numerous opportunities but Riggin proved equal to the task.His teammates on the other hand, were having just as much difficulty against Mike Liut at the other end, so the outcome of the game was in doubt until late in the third period. The Stingers Peter Marsh came in on a breakaway against the 19-year-old netminder but was turned aside.Moments later Bulls&rsquo; veteran Paul Henderson got one by Liut in an unassisted effort. It was Hendy&rsquo;s ninth of the year and Riggin made the goal stand up for the Birmingham win, 1-0. it was the fourth win in a row for the Bulls (and Riggin).It had been a close call for the Bulls. They had not been shutout in 250 straight games&mdash;never in their WHA history (as Ottawa Nats, Toronto Toros or Bulls).Back on the road the Bulls travelled to Quebec for a battle between two young goalies, Riggin vs. Jim Corsi. Steve Alley and his GAS line confederates got the Bulls off and running with a power play goal after a Brackenbury penalty. Although the Nordiques dominated the rest of the period, outshelling Birmingham 11 to 5, the period ended 1-1 on Bernier&rsquo;s goal.Bernier and Tardif scored in the second for Quebec. Alley&rsquo;s second goal late in the third set up a scramble for the equalizer, but the Nordiques persevered. But it was quite clear, the Bulls have served notice they too expect to be in the running for one of the WHA&rsquo;s four playoff spots come April. &#9632;

f0024-01

Whalers Grab Indy Free Agents; Nordiques Hot After WHA’s Lead

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01403/4249776-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="516" height="595"><figcaption class="caption-body">TED GREEN</figcaption></div>WINNIPEG&mdash;There appears to be a house cleaning job underway with the Winnipeg Jets and the man who is doing the sweeping is John Ferguson, recently appointed to the post of vice-president and general manager.Ferguson has given defenseman Ted Green a leave of absence to allow the 38-year-old veteran an opportunity to recover from recurring knee problems. Green has dressed for only 18 of the Jets&rsquo; 28 games this season and there is speculation that his pro hockey career could conceivably be at an end.The dropping of Green from the active roster followed by a week the removal of Rudy Pilous. Ferguson announced that Pilous was leaving the Winnipeg organization to seek another job.Pilous had been the Jets&rsquo; general manager prior to the hiring of Ferguson last month, and had subsequently accepted the position of assistant to the general manager.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s an unpleasant fact of life that Rudy had to go,&rdquo; said Ferguson. &ldquo;I know he&rsquo;s been uncomfortable in his new role ever since I took over his job. A man with as much pride as Rudy has, and with his impressive background in hockey, can&rsquo;t possibly be happy sitting around watching someone else call all the shots.&rdquo;&ldquo;And rather than humiliate a man of Rudy&rsquo;s stature by keeping him around doing menial jobs which are beneath him, just to keep him on the payroll, we have decided to give him the freedom right now to shop around for another hockey job.&rdquo;&ldquo;Rudy Pilous knows that John Ferguson didn&rsquo;t come in here and steal his job. He was gone the day the Jets&rsquo; owners decided to hire someone else to run the hockey operation. If it hadn&rsquo;t been me, it would have been another person.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02295/4249769-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="538" height="598"><figcaption class="caption-body">RUDY PILOUS</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0025-01

Ferguson Drops Pilous, Green In House Cleaning

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-05123/4249838-1-eng-US/f0025-052.jpg" title="f0025-05" width="597" height="691"></div> &#9632;

f0025-05

Looking At WHA Goalers

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-04145/4249869-1-eng-US/f0025-042.jpg" title="f0025-04" width="616" height="805"></div> &#9632;

f0025-04

WHA Leaders

<div class="byline">BY DICK DENNY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03203/4249807-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="526" height="661"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVE INKPEN&hellip;Joins Whalers</figcaption></div>CINCINNATI&mdash;The sting seems to. have gone out of the Cincinnati Stingers&rsquo; offense and it is costing the World Hockey Association team dearly, says coach Floyd Smith.&ldquo;Basically we&rsquo;re an offensive team and if we don&rsquo;t score, we&rsquo;re going to struggle,&rdquo; said Smith after the Stingers&rsquo; winless string had reached eight games following a.5-3 loss to the Soviet All Stars in Riverfront Coliseum.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re playing well enough, it&rsquo;s just that we&rsquo;re not putting the puck in the net.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re young and the only way we&rsquo;re going to learn, is for the guys to get in pressure situations and respond.&rdquo;Smith didn&rsquo;t feel the team was responding to pressure situations quite as well as it should, especially after the Stingers let a 3-2 lead get away against the Soviets in the final period.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s funny, but people are getting paid good monty and we expect results,&rdquo; said Smith, whose team hadn&rsquo;t won since a 4-2 triumph over the defunct Racers at Indianapolis on Dec. 3.&ldquo;We expect improvement and not going backwards. We&rsquo;re playing well and working hard, but we&rsquo;re making mental mistakes.&ldquo;And we&rsquo;ve also had tremendously bad luck. That&rsquo;s not any excuse, but we were leading the Russians and in the last five minutes, they shoot twice and the puck bounces off the skates of our defensemen twice and goes in for goals.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not only the defensemen. It&rsquo;s everybody making crucial mistakes at the wrong time.&rdquo;Rick Dudley&rsquo;s goal put Cincinnati in a 3-2 lead over the Soviets after the teams battled to a 2-2 tie in the first period. But the Soviets scored three times in the third period, the final goal by Vasily Pausov going into an empty net with Stinger goalie Mike Liut out for a sixth attacker.Smith says the Stingers, who scored only 17 goals (never over three in any game) in the eight-game winless string, must bear down even harder the next few games.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re in an excellent league, a tough league, and you have to be competitive every night,&rdquo; he said.&ldquo;You&rsquo;re not going to win playing 55 minutes, you&rsquo;ve got to play 60 minutes, or 70.&ldquo;If it takes 130 percent effort, if it takes more hitting, if it takes more checking, then they have to give it. Whatever they have to do or I have to do to get over this hump is what is going to have to happen.&ldquo;We just are having too many mental lapses, a bad pass here, letting a man go there. But what we really need more than anything right now is a victory. We&rsquo;re playing perhaps better over a long stretch than we were before, but we&rsquo; re not getting the puck in the net.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s what we have to do, because we are basically an offensive team.&rdquo;INDIANAPOLIS: Even though his four-month crusade to rebuild the Racers into another contending and drawing club in the World Hockey Association, the way they were when he was playing for them in the 1975-76 and 1976-77 seasons, ended less than gloriously, Pat Stapleton went down as the team&rsquo;s coach with class, which was always a trademark of the all star defenseman.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think anybody should make rough statements or judgments about the situation (majority owner Nelson Skalbania&rsquo;s decision to fold the team after negotiations with the limited partners failed),&rdquo; said Stapleton as he sat in his home in Suburban Carmel.&ldquo;Water gets pretty muddy after a rain and it takes a while for it to clear before you can look through it.&ldquo;Hockey definitely suffers when this kind of thing happens. But it&rsquo;s still a great game, a fantastic game. Unfortunately, so much of the off-ice happenings have taken over from the on-ice happenings and the guys who play the game.&rdquo;Stapleton did not attend the press conference to announce the folding. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t feel there was much of a necessity for me to go,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t do much. I was told when I took the job that I would have complete authority, but never worked out that way.&ldquo;I think there is a sense of relief maybe that the turmoil we&rsquo;ve gone through in four months is over. Certainly the team hasn&rsquo;t been run like I would consider running a first-class operation.&rdquo;Stapleton, who also was general manager of the defunct team, kept busy on the telephone trying to place as many of his players as possible. He called Max McNab, general manager of the Washington Capitals, and goalie Gary Inness signed with the NHL team three days after thecollapseof the Racers.Eleven of the Racers had hooked on with new teams. Blaine Stoughton and Dave Inkpen, of course, went to New England. John Hughes was sold to Edmonton and Birmingham picked up Claude Larose.Bruce Greig, Glen Irwin and Jerry Rollins went to San Diego of the Pacific Coast League, Angie Morello to Oklahoma City, Wes George to Flint of the IHL and Dean McGee returned to Grand Rapids of the same league.What about the 38-year-old Stapleton? &ldquo;I guess, like almost everyone else, I&rsquo;m unemployed,&rdquo; he said, smiling. Then he got serious and. went on:&ldquo;My gut feelings is that I won&rsquo;t play again. But two weeks from now you never know what might happen or how you might feel. I would prefer not to have to play.&ldquo;Our plans will be for the kids to finish school here and in May we&rsquo;ll probably go back to the farm (near Sarnia, Ont.) permanently. That will be my outlook. I think once I make up my mind, that would be it as far as hockey goes.&rdquo;Stapleton hasn&rsquo;t ruled out the possibility of remaining in Indianapolis, should another major league leant locate in Market Square Arena and he were invited to join it.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d consider staying here, definitely,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I would suspect hockey would be back here in some sort next year. I don&rsquo;t know what caliber or what league. Market Square Arena is too great a facility to sit idle and there are too many people here not to have a team.&ldquo;It would have to be more of a long-range program. The people are here, there&rsquo;s no question about it. But the interest has to be built back up. In four and one-half years there have been almost four and one-half different teams. The fans have to get to know the players.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0025-03

Stingers Losing Scoring Touch

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01418/4249921-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="600" height="1564"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02327/4249914-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="599" height="428"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03281/4249907-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="607" height="3362"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04219/4249900-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="608" height="1410"></div> &#9632;

f0026-01

WORLD HOCKEY ASSN. SUMMARIES

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0026-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05182/4249952-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0026-05

Where WHA Teams Play

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-06149/4249983-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="600" height="1022"></div> &#9632;

f0026-06

The WHA Scoreboard

&hellip;This WeekBIRMINGHAM: Valve 8, Gorman 8, 9, Stephenson 9, Alley 8, Hartsburg 3.CINCINNATI: Marsh 17, 18, 19, 20, Debol 5, Dudley 12,13,14, Gartner 14.EDMONTON: Bailey 4, MacDonald 13, 14, Flett 8, Driscoll 9, Gretzky 16, 17, Semenko 3, Chipperfield 3.NEW ENGLAND: Lacroix 19, Antonovich 14, Mark Howe 21, Marty Howe 5.QUEBEC: Tardif 22, 23, Brackenbury 9, Geoffrion 7, Leduc 12, Bordeleau 5, Cloutier 33.WINNIPEG: Lukowich 23, 24, Nilsson 12, Lesuk 9, Preston 11. &#9632;

WHA’s Scorers

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0026-08" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-08124/4250038-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Both Mike Gartner, left, and Dave Debol are Rookies with the Stingers this season.</figcaption></div>The impact of today&rsquo;s U.S. college hockey program is beginning to show results in the professional ranks. More and more players are being graduated from the university level into the pro game.One such player is Dave Debol, the rookie center of the Cincinnati Stingers. Fresh from an outstanding college career with Michigan University where he was an All-American during the 1976-77 season, Debol brings to the Stingers a potentially high goal scorer.With Michigan Debol scored 120 times in four seasons of play in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. The Stingers were so impressed with Debol they invited him to join the WHA club for the last nine games of the.1977-78 campaign.The five foot-11, 175-pounder, who hails from. St Clair Shores, Mich., a regular minor hockey hotbed, Debol is successfully making the transition from the colleges to the pros. He had 25 points in his first, 31 games this season with the Stingers. Debol and right wing Mike Gartner are two rookies who have cracked the Cincinnati lineup this season and both give the Stingers youth in their plans for the future. &#9632;

f0026-08

Debol Product Of U.S. College Hockey

WINNIPEG&mdash;Up until this year Peter Sullivan anc Morris Lukowich had very little it common. Sullivan was born it Toronto. Lukowich is a westernei hailing from Saskatoon. Sullivar played his junior hockey in the OHA Lukowich played in the rival WCHL with Medicine Hat. Sullivan had a dismal scoring season last yeai collecting only 16 goals. Lukowich paced the now defunct Houston Aeros tallying 40 times.Now, both are playing for the sami team and the opening of the 1978-7S hockey campaign has obscured the differences in background and careers Both Lukowich and Sullivan are off tc their best starts ever.After an off year last season in which he scored 16 goals and added 39 assists Sullivan has regained his form of previous years. His end to end. rushes are once again causing more than a few defensemen to have fits. There is no one in the league who is more adept with the puck than &ldquo;Silky,&rdquo; and his one-on-one moves have left many a veteran swatting at air.Sullivan just recently scored his 20th goal of the season in the Jets 6-3 win over Cincinnati and it was a goal that typified his play this year. After taking a pass front teammate Scott Campbell, Sullivan approached the Cincinnati blueline alone. He moved to the left, cut sharply back to the right and pranced between two hypnotized Stinger defensemen. Cincinnati goalie Mike Liut was probably just as stunned as Sullivan broke in and feigned to the left. Liut came out to challenge, but the slick little centcrman glided to the right side, and from a sharp angle lifted the puck into the twine. It was Sullivan&rsquo;s sixth goal in as many games and was his ninth consecutive contest in which he picked up at least one point.Lukowich is a newcomer to the Jets but his quickness and aggressive style of play has already won the hearts of Winnipeg fans. Seal-like chants of &ldquo;Luke, Luke&rdquo; are testimony to the fans&rsquo; admiration of the 22-year-old left winger.In this, his third season in tne WHA, Lukowich has already collected 22 goals and assisted on 15 others. He is currently ranked seventh in the WHA scoring race.Lukowich admits it was a tough start when he first arrived in Winnipeg. Being accepted by not only the players but the fans as well, was more than just a passing concern.&ldquo;It weighed heavy not only on nfy mind but also on Terry&rsquo;s (Ruskowski) and Scotty&rsquo;s (Campbell). It took a little while&mdash;maybe about a month and a half, but now we are all real close friends and it is all for one and one for all.&rdquo; No doubt the turning point came on November 17th. The Jets were coming home with four consecutive losses (one short of a team record) and the first place Cincinnati Stingers were supplying the opposition. Lukowich exploded for four goals (his first four-goal night as a pro) and the Jets went on tocrush the Stingers 10-6.With Lukowich and Sullivan adding some consistency to the team&rsquo;s play, the Jets have started to jell. These two players could hold the key, as the Jets begin their drive to overtake the WHA leaders.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01396/4250083-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="478" height="625"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETER SULLIVAN&hellip;Hit 20th Goal Mark</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02299/4250076-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="449" height="623"><figcaption class="caption-body">MORRIS LUKOWICH&hellip;Four-Goal High</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03198/4250069-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="1771" height="888"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Jets still count heavily on their European players like top scoring center Kent Nilsson (11) and goaler Markus Mattsson to make the team a contender.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0027-01

Sullivan, Lukowich Giving Jets Needed Lift

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1286/4250114-1-eng-US/f0028-122.jpg" title="f0028-12" width="201" height="213"><figcaption class="caption-body">RON CHIPPERFIELD&hellip;Had Big Night</figcaption></div>EDMONTON&mdash;Edmonton Oilers of the World Hockey Association continued last week to enjoy themselves in international competition.Paced on one night by Dennis Sobchuk and the next time out by Ron Chipperfield, the fast-improving Oilers, still locked in the middle of WHA standings, belted the touring Soviet All Stars 5-3 and followed by clipping the Swedish National B team 11-2.The Oilers started quickly in both games, constructing a 2-0 lead against the Soviets before falling back to even terms and striking for three goals in only 75 seconds against Sweden.A crowd of almost 14,000&mdash;held down slightly by local television of the game&mdash;watched the Oilers outbump the Soviets. Following the game, Soviet coach Boris Mayorov described the Oilers as &ldquo;the dirtiest team I have seen.&rdquo; Mayorov and an interpreter, however, refused to discuss separate incidents in which Bill Flett and Peter Driscoll of the Oilers were cut.Flett drew about 15 stitches over his eye from a high stick and Driscoll had stitches put in his nose after being hit by a butt-end.The game almost broke into a donnybrook in the first period when Wayne Gretzky was speared by a Soviet player, who was assessed five minutes for the infraction. Edmonton captain Paul Shmyr punched the player and got a five-minute penalty and tough Dave Semenko got a two-minute elbowing penalty.Referee Bill Friday clamped down a trifle after the incident at the 16-minute mark but the Oilers&rsquo; hard checking had the desired effect. In the second period, only four shots were fired on goal by the two teams and Ace Bailey, veteran Edmonton forward, scored on the Oilers&rsquo; only shot at Boris Myshkin.The previous record for fewest shots in a period in the WHA was set in 1973 by Los Angeles Sharks and Cleveland Crusaders, both now defunct.&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t pretty hockey but it was effective,&rdquo; sais Edmonton coach Glen Sather following Mayorov&rsquo;s diatribe against the Oiler players and referee Friday. &ldquo;Those guys are cowardly. They spear and they use their sticks whenever they can, then they object because North American teams lay on the body.&rdquo;There was little bodily contact against Sweden&mdash;for the simple reason the Swedes couldn&rsquo;t hit what they couldn&rsquo;t catch.Chipperfield waltzed around a defender and fired a hot 35-footer for the opening goal at only 15 seconds. Within seconds, he broke in again and tested Swedish netminder Gunnar, Leidborg, who made the stop but left a fat rebound for Flett. At the 1:15 mark, Blair MacDonald sifted around the defense and beat Leidborg to the far side, prompting his early retirement for the rest of the day before a crowd of about 7,000.Chipperfield scored even more quickly in the second period (12 seconds) and the Oilers led 5-1 after 40 minutes. The third period was a joke as the Oilers pumped shot after shot at the Swedish net.After the game, the Oilers were no impressed with themselves. Both Chipperfield and Bailey confirmed the; &ldquo;felt sorry&rdquo; for the Swedes, who reported that several of the B team&rsquo;: mainstays had been added to the top ranked national squad for the Izvestia Tournament in Moscow.Sather was concerned that the Oiler: might relax for their game Tuesda; night in Birmingham. &ldquo;Sometimes the guys relax too much after an easy game like this one with Sweden,&rdquo; he said &ldquo;The young guys in Birmingham art such good skaters and they work so hard that you can never let down against them.&rdquo;The Birmingham game was hastily added to the Oilers&rsquo; schedule when Indianapolis owner Nelson Skalbania pulled the pin on the Racers. The death of the franchise followed several weeks of labored breathing. The schedule change meant Edmonton was forced to fly about 2,000 miles each way.Sather and general manager Larry Gordon were not happy about the change, of course, but they agreed they would be less disturbed if the Oilers came home with a victory.On balance, both of the Oilers&rsquo; leaders saw much to be pleased about in the death of the Racers. Sather said many players found it depressing to go to Indianapolis for a game likely to draw only 4,000 fans, while Gordon said the best thing was that Edmonton fans wouldn&rsquo;t have to watch the Racers again.The Racers had been set for four more games in the 15,246-seat Edmonton Coliseum, which had been little more than half full for most of the previous games with Indy.Another benefit was that the Oilers got a proven defenseman, John Hughes, when the Racers were erased. Sather said he did not know what adjustments would be made to find room for Hughes, but he expected to use Joe Micheletti on left wing part of the time, at least. &#9632;

f0028-12

Oilers Shackle Chippy Soviets

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01382/4250208-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="470" height="702"><figcaption class="caption-body">REAL CLOUTIER</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02282/4250201-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="540" height="689"><figcaption class="caption-body">WAYNE GRETZKY</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03218/4250194-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="489" height="703"><figcaption class="caption-body">MARC TARDIF</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05145/4250187-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="486" height="679"><figcaption class="caption-body">MARK HOWE</figcaption></div><h2>Team WHA</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-06127/4250180-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="541" height="818"></div>HARTFORD&mdash;When Team WHA skates out against the Moscow Dynamo in their three-game super series Jan. 2, 4 and 5 in Edmonton, the team will have a father and son look.Both the incomparable Gordie Howe and his talented offspring, Mark, of the New England Whalers, are among the 22 players selected for the WHA-Soviet confrontation in Edmonton&rsquo;s Coliseum.The remaining members of Team WHA were announced last weekend by league executive director Ron Ryan. In addition to the starting team of Robbie Ftorek, Real Cloutier, Marc Tardif, Barry Long, John Hughes and Dave Dryden, Team WHA appears to be one of the strongest representations ever assembled for an international confrontation.Heading the list are New England&rsquo;s Mark and Gordie Howe Mark, 23 years old, finished just two points behind first team left winger Marc Tardif in the closest balloting of Team WHA.Gordie was voted Io the third team. This will be Howe&rsquo;s fifth straight WHA All Star appearance, his 27lh during an illustrious 38-year career.In addition to the remaining players selected by the voting. Team WHA general manager John Ferguson and coach Larry Hillman have added two extra players to the squad for the three-game series. Wayne Gretzky of Edmonton and Mike Gartner of Cincinnati will round out the 22-man WHA squad.&ldquo;The Soviets will have more than the usual 19-player limit that our regular season rules allow,&rdquo; said Ferguson, &ldquo;and both Larry Hillman and I feel that the addition of these two outstanding youngsters provides us with added depth and strength.&rdquo;<h2>Moscow Dynamo</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-07117/4250173-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="558" height="831"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-08107/4250166-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="491" height="624"><figcaption class="caption-body">JOHN HUGHES</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-09101/4250159-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="559" height="662"><figcaption class="caption-body">GORDIE HOWE</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1098/4250152-1-eng-US/f0028-102.jpg" title="f0028-10" width="442" height="659"><figcaption class="caption-body">ROBBIE FTOREK</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1190/4250145-1-eng-US/f0028-112.jpg" title="f0028-11" width="457" height="650"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVE DRYDEN</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0028-01

Howes Among Top 22-Man Team For3-Game Series With Soviets

ECAC ConferenceTue. Jan. 2New Hampshire at Boston CollegeWed. Jan.3Princeton at ColgateThu Jan.. 4Harvard at NortheasternSat Jan.. 6Brown at HarvardNortheastern at VermontDartmouth at St. LawrenceBoston University at CornellRPI at PrincetonMon. Jan. 8New Hampshire at PrincetonTue. Jan. 9Vermont at DartmouthHarvard at Boston CollegeWed. Jan. 10Brown at ProvidenceCornell at ColgateBoston University at NortheasternFrl. Jan. 12St. Lawrence at New HampshireYale at VermontSat. Jan. 13Clarkson at New HampshireCornell at Boston CollegeBoston University at Colgate,RPI at NortheasternYale at DartmouthSt. Lawrence at HarvardSun. Jan. 14Clarkson at Providence<h2>WCHA CONFERENCE</h2>Dec. 27Harvard at MinnesotaDec. 28Yale at MinnesotaHarvard at Minnesota-DuluthDec. 28-29University of Manitoba at North DakotaDec. 29Yale at Minnesota-DuluthJan. 5-6Michigan State at WisconsinNorth Dakota at Notre DameColorado College at Michigan TechDenver at Minnesota-DuluthMinnesota at Michigan<h2>CCHA Conference</h2>Dec. 28-29Providence at St. LouisDec. 28-30Bowling Green at Old Colony TourneyDec. 29-30Ohio State at Great Lakes invitationalWestern Michigan at Cornell Tourney &#9632;

Where The Colleges Play…

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0029-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03168/4250301-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0029-03

Looking At The College Scoreboard

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01335/4250246-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="494" height="724"><figcaption class="caption-body">TERRY McSWEENEY&hellip;He&rsquo;s Been Tested</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02261/4250239-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="553" height="721"><figcaption class="caption-body">ROSS BROWNRIDGE&hellip;Four-Goal Game</figcaption></div>The junior varsity college hockey team has, for the most part, gone the way of the nickel beer and the five cen cigar. In this day of five thousand dollai tuition bills and hundred million dollai operating budgets, the jayvee program: are the first to wither and die when the university controller scowls in the direction of the athletic department.A handful of schools, most of them ir the populous, conveniently travelec East, haven&rsquo;t scrubbed the junior varsity hockey squads yet, however. No one is happier than Dartmouth College coach George Crowe that his school one of the diehards with enough money to reap the second level of hockey participation functioning.The greenies got off to their best star in 15 seasons this year, winning their first three games: 11-5 over Colgate, 7-1 over Harvard, and 2-1 over Princeton Losses to Boston University, Clarkson and a tie with Division Two&rsquo;: Merrimack followed, but the Greer topped RPI 8-6 in a slugfest at Troy before exam break to raise their leagui record to 4-2, good for fourth place ir ECAC Division One.While seniors Mark Culhane and Ross Brownridge and junior Stevi Higgins have once again led the Dart mouth attack, Crowe is pleased tha several of the new faces on his veterar squad won their berths the hard way Four sophomore forwards and sopl goalie Bob Gaudet all played most their hockey on the junior varsity in 1977-78; center Mark Bedard and righ wing Rick Wilson team with junior Doi O&rsquo;Brien on Dartmouth&rsquo;s third line whil portsider Paul Butler and center Chi Battencourt are mainstays on the fourth unit.Wilson scored the first goal of the game at RPI and had a pair against Harvard. Both Bettencourt and Bedard work on the power play unit. Gaudet who played in only three varsity con tests last season, has edged out soph Jin Jankowski for the number one goal! slot.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re very pleasantly surprised witl Gaudet,&rdquo; said Crowe of his Saugus Mass, product. &ldquo;He came on near th end of last season, then played some good hockey during the summer and i really improved.&rdquo;Crowe went on to cite Bedard as the perfect example of why to retain junior varsity program if the budget will allow.&ldquo;Some kids just aren&rsquo;t physical! ready for Division One hockey whei they get into school. Now, Bedard is small guy (five-fool-nine, 150 pounds but he&rsquo;s always been one of our smartes players. He put on about 15 pound since last year, working out wit weights. Now he and a couple other just beat out some of the seniors for the team.&ldquo;Some of the kids who don&rsquo;t make varsity team right away tend to get los these days. But even though we&rsquo;re limited to 20 junior varsity games a year, we skate the players two hours a day and use it as a development program.&rdquo;If Dartmouth was to hope for the playoffs, it needed improved scoring over last season. Brownridge has been the big gun thus far, with 10 goals including four at RPI.As for the game, Engineer coach Jim Salfi said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad we&rsquo;re not playing those guysagain.&rdquo;RPI has been on a roller coaster. Its league record, as of the Dartmouth loss and exam break, stood at 34. Two nights before Dartmouth came to town they journeyed to Gutterson Field House and demolished Vermont 93, handing the Catamounts their first league, loss in five games. Their other wins were 6-5 in overtime over Harvard and that wild and crazy 12-8 festival at New Hampshire. The other losses were close and yielded to BU, Clarkson, and Providence, all well-regarded teams.&ldquo;Dartmouth is the only team I thought that was quicker than us. Harvard was pretty quick too. On any given night, they&rsquo;ll beawesome.&rdquo;Offense doesn&rsquo;t worry &ldquo;Colombo&rdquo; too much, with the likes of Steve Stoyanovich and 17-year-old freshman sensation Mike McPhee on board. Admittedly thin at defense, Salfi says that he&rsquo;s not happy with the goaltending of Kevin Constantine and Ian Harrison to this point.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t anticipate that lan and Kevin would be fighting the puck the way they are. I guess I can&rsquo;t complain about the hockey we&rsquo;ve been playing, and with our 3-4 record the way the league is. But we&rsquo;re giving up too many goals.&rdquo;Alumni of Colgate University are already saving up for playoff tickets, but the expectation may be a bit unrealistic. The Red Raiders are off to a 6-2 start, their best in many years. Okay, so five of those wins were against Division Two clubs, but they did beat Brown and Yale in Hamilton and whipped Clarkson 9-6 for their first victory in Potsdam since 1964.Terry Slater recruited nine freshmen for his second year in the Chenango Valley, and he is now able to use seniors Grant Judd, Kevin Kardos, and Tom Pahapill, transfers from Union College.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t believe it,&rdquo; cracked Slater. &ldquo;I could actually use four lines. Last year I had two and a half, and most of those kids weren&rsquo;t ready for Division One. We couldn&rsquo;t skate last year, so if anybody got past us we just would sit back and pray.&rdquo;Slater is grinning from ear to ear about his sophomore goalie, Terry McSweeney. Terry saw enough rubber last year to patch up all the recalled Firestone 500 tires east of the Rockies. The hardship of 1977-78 did him good, however, and the coach claims to have the better players to front for him. Best of the newcomers is freshman center Dennis Lapensee. &#9632;

f0029-01

Jayvee Program Proves Lifesaver For Dartmouth’s Late Developers

<div class="byline">BY VIRG FOSS</div>GRAND FORKS&mdash;If it wasn&rsquo;t for upstart Notre Dame, one would swear that Western Collegiate Hockey Association coaches had a direct line to a higher authority when they made their pre-season predictions for the final finish.A check of the prognosticating by the coaches compared to current standings shows that they had uncanny accuracy&mdash;except for Notre Dame.The coaches were right on the money with the selection of Minnesota as the eventual league winner, With 14 games of the 32-game league schedule completed, Mins nesota is in first place, albeit by a single point over Notre Dame and two over North Dakota.In the pre-season poll, coaches ranked Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan Tech and Duluth as the top five. All but Michigan Tech are currently in the first five, and coach John Maclnnes&rsquo; Huskies are within striking distance of it, just a single point out of fifth.Coaches picked Colorado College to tie for eighth and that&rsquo;s where the Tigers are now. They picked Michigan State for last, a prediction looking better every week.Notre Dame is the team that&rsquo;s upset it all. The Fighting Irish have made the WCHA coaches look bad.&rdquo;With WCHA play at a standstill for Christmas break, it&rsquo;s time to examine who&rsquo;s doing what and why. All WCHA teams have played 14 games, except Michigan State, which has played 16.League play resumes Jan. 5-6 wi(h the North Dakota at Notre Dame series the key item on the agenda.MINNESOTA: A high-powered offense and the usual good defense has carried Minnesota to No. 1 in both the league and nation. The Gophers have scored more goals than any other league team. Only North Dakota has given up fewer goals than the Gophers. Freshman Neal Broten (25 points) has been a big addition for Minnesota, led by the scoring of Steve Christoff, with 26 points.NOTRE DAME: Freshman goalie Dave Laurion (3.51 average) has plugged the gap created by the graduation of goalies John Peterson and Len Moher. Offensively, veterans Tom Michalek (25 points) and Greg Meredith (22 points) have g; carried the load.NORTH DAKOTA: Gino Gasparini, the only new coach in the WCHA this year, is hardly doing it with mirrors. He&rsquo;s doing it with a rock-ribbed defense that has allowed just 37 goals in 14 games. Freshman center Kevin Maxwell is one of the bright stars in the league, as shown by his 15 points. Maxwell&rsquo;s wings, Mark Taylor and Cary Eades, have 22 and 16 points respectively.MINN.-DULUTH: Afer a slow start, Duluth is coming on strong, as it should with a veteran team. A sweep of Michigan Tech two weeks ago could be the catalyst for a great second half for Gus Hendrickson&rsquo;s Bulldogs. Duluth has the WCHA&rsquo;s leading scorer in Mark Pavelich (31 points), while wing John Harrington 22 points) and defenseman Curt Siles(l8 points) have provided much of the firepower.WISCONSIN: As Mark Johnson jg goes, so go the Badgers. Johnson is going well. The defending league scoring champ has 30 points, second only to Duluth&rsquo;s Pavelich. No other Badger has more than 17. Freshman Roy Schultz (3.65 goals against). ranks fourth among league goalies, His .913 save percentage is second only to North Dakota&rsquo;s Bob Iwabuchi, another rookie with a .922 save percentage.MICHIGAN TECH: Freshman center Rick Boehm (23 points) is the team leader. Tech has converted 25 & of 65 power play chances into goals, the best in the league. But the Huskies have lost four games at home, which isn&rsquo;t the way to win a league championship. Goalie John Rockwell (4-40 goals against, 886 save percentage) could get the Huskies rolling again it he gets hot.DENVER: Defending league champion Denver is struggling and it may get worse. Wing Brad Purpur was lost with scholastic difficulties and hard-working wing Vince Magnan is out for the season following knee surgery. It&rsquo;s a tough blow for coach Marshall Johnston&rsquo;s team, which must rely heavily on B freshmen. BMICHIGAN: Senior captain Mark Miller has been one of the few bright spots for the Wolverines, Miller leads the team with 15 goals, 12 of them in WCHA play. He&rsquo;s scored a: least one goal against every opponent. Defenseman Tim Manning tops all league defensemen in scoring with 20 points. But only Colorado College and Michigan State have given up more goals than Michigan,COLORADO: A sweep over Michigan State (9-2, 10-4) should give Colorado College a lift. &ldquo;Our freshmen are playing well. We need leadership from our veterans,&rdquo; said coach Jeff Sauer. Veterans Dale Maksymky and Dave Delich are the top scorers, each with 22 points.MICHIGAN STATE: The league&rsquo;s worst offense (52 goals) and the primary reason the team is languishing in the cellar.Let&rsquo;s take a look at the predicted finish and actual WCHA standings:PRE-SEASON RANKINGS1. Minnesota2. North Dakota3. Wisconsin4. Michigan Tech5. Minn. Duluth6. Denver7. Michigan8. Colorado Coil.9. Notre Dame.10. Michigan StateCURRENT STANDINGS1. Minnesota2. Notre Dame3. North Dakota4. Minn. Duluth5. Wisconsin6. Michigan Tech7. Denver8. Michigan9. Colorado College10. Michigan State<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02296/4250363-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="536" height="783"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAVID LAURION&hellip;Plugged Gap</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0030-02

Irish Bemuse Pollsters By Outskating The Odds

<div class="byline">BY JIM SCHNEIDER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01376/4250332-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="451" height="840"><figcaption class="caption-body">CHRIS VALENTINE&hellip;Billiken Sharpshooter</figcaption></div>COLUMBUS&mdash;Ohio State used a pair of victories over Lake Superior State, 3-1 and 7-4, to vault ahead of the Soo Lakers into second place in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association.Sophomore goaltender Mike Blake played an important role in the weekend sweep for the Buckeyes. Blake made 78 saves in the series including 22 in the third period of the second game when the visiting Lakers held an amazing 23-7 shooting advantage.Jim Penningroth gave OSU a 1-0 lead in the opener and second period goals by Steve Amoruso and Jim Mroszak put the Bucks on top 3-0. Defenseman Brian Jenks assisted on each of the second period goals.The lone goal of the third period was scored by LSSC&rsquo;s Garry Podolski breaking up Blakes&rsquo;s shutout bid at 7:39.Defensemen Dan Mandich and Bob Zannella scored in the first period of the second game as the hosts led 2-1 with Bryan Alexander scoring the Lake Superior goal.Steve Sherman netted a goal after seven seconds of play in the second period to tie the game, but Jenks put OSU back on top 32 seconds later. Bill DeMeulanaere and OSU&rsquo;s Paul Tilley traded goals later in the period to give Ohio State a 4-3 edge after two periods.Mike Conrad scored at 3:17 of the third period to make the score 5-3 before Francis Veneruz scored his first of the season to pull LSSC within one at 4:59. OSU freshman sensation Larry Marson capped off the scoring with a pair of goals at 11:45 and 19:03. Marson&rsquo;s second goal was a shorthanded marker scored into an empty net.In other CCHA action on the weekend Bowling Green remained undefeated in league play sweeping a series at Ferris State 11-5 and 7-2 while St. Louis swept Western Michigan 7-4 and 7-5 to jump into fourth place ahead of the Broncos.Bowling Green captain Paul Titanic paced the Falcon offense with four goals in the series against the Ferris State Bulldogs.Ferris jumped to a quick 2-1 lead in the opener in the FSC Ice Arena on goals by Geoff Novak and Bob Bishop, but the Falcons bounced back to gain a tie at the end of the first period on goals by Brian MacLellan and Yves Pelland, the first of two goals for each in the game.Titanic, Pelland and Steve Dawe pushed BG&rsquo;s margin to 5-2 early in the second period while FSC&rsquo;s Jeff Toombs and Titanic finished off the scoring in the period.BG outscored the hosts in the final period 5-2 with Titanic, MacLellan and George McPhee each scoring once and senior Mark Wells scoring two goals. Steve Banonis scored both goals for Ferris.Doug Nowels has 32 saves in the loss while Wally Charko made 20 for BG. Charko ran his record to 14-2-1 with the win in the second game collecting 17 saves. Charko leads the CCHA in both league and overall play.Titanic scored the only goal of the first period in the second game assisted by MacLeilan and Bill Newton as FSC&rsquo;s Ted Ykema made eight of his 36 saves and Charko made one save.Bishop tied the game on a power play goal at 1:16 of the second period and Ykema made several outstanding saves. However, the dam broke midway through the period as All American defenseman Ken Morrow scored at 9:11, John Markell scored at 10:19 and Bruce Newton made the score 4-1 by 11:21. McPhee made the score 5-1 at the 18:13 mark before FSC returned to the board on Ron Andrejewski&rsquo;s power play drive at 19:49 from Toombs and Ed Turner.McPhee and McLellan added third period goals for the Falcons to insure the sweep.BG&rsquo;s line of Wells centering Markell and McPhee includes the top three scorers in overall play heading into the Christmas tournament season. Markell leads in points with 43 in 19 games followed by McPhee and Wells (39). Markell and McPhee share the goal lead with 18 while Markell and Wells share the assist lead with 25.St. Louis winger Chuck Durocher earned CCHA player-of-the-week honors for his seven-point weekend against Western Michigan.Durocher scored the winning goal in the opener and came back with six points out of seven goals in the second game.WMU jumped ahead in each game taking a 2-0 lead in the opener in the Checkerdome on power play goals by Mike Brown and Dan Pederson.Bill Selman&rsquo;s Billikens roared out in the second period and scored four straight goals by Marty Schoning. Chris Valentine, Rick Gazzola and Terry Kitching. Mike Norten, making his first appearance in five games assisted on three of the goals.Kelly Mitchell added WMU&rsquo;s third power play of the game as 12:17 before Jim Olson lied the game 4-4 after two periods.Each member of the Valentine line with Durocher and Rob Zamejc scored a goal in the third period for the win. Paul Billing had 28 saves in the win and Jim Doyle had 27 in the loss.The visiting Broncos led 3-1 after one period in the second game as Paul Cappuccio scored shorthanded ai 1:37 and captain Bernie Saunders got two goals to offset Zamejc&rsquo;s 7:30 goal from Durocher and Valentine.Bruce Wallace, Valentine and Zamejc scored in the second period for SLU and Mitchell netted the lone Bronco goal for a 4-4 tie a Her two periods.Durocher snapped the 4-4 tie for the second straight game, Pat McMahon tied the contest at 8:54. Mark Dobson scored the winner for the Billikens and Schoning iced the victory at 18:04 from Zamejc and Durocher.Jerry Burt collected 31 saves in the win while Frank Serratore had 26 in the loss.Valentine and Durocher top the league in CCHA games as Valentine has 28 points in 10 games and Durocher has 21. Valentine has point in each of the first l4games played by St. Louis. &#9632;

f0030-01

Buckeyes Reach Second Level By Swamping Lakers

<div class="byline">BY RICHARD JABLONSKI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01344/4250401-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="481" height="658"><figcaption class="caption-body">BRIAN CRICHTON&hellip; An Ex-Marlboro</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02262/4250394-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="548" height="667"><figcaption class="caption-body">EARL JESSIMAN&hellip;PlayerTo Watch</figcaption></div>MONTREAL&mdash;While it is being billed as a midseason showdown between four of the top university hockey teams in Canada, the Concordia Micron Holiday Tournament is really much more than the Canadian university game at its best.With Concordia also playing host to the Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union national playoffs in March, the Micron tourney should serve as a tasty hockey hors d&rsquo;ouvre for the main course later in the year.The reason for this is really quite simple: of the four teams (Concordia, Toronto, Dalhousie, and Guelph) in the January competition, there is a good chance that two, and possibly three, will survive to take a crack at the national title in the spring.Even at this early date, Concordia, with its 9-0 record, has all but mathematically assured itself of a playoff berth in the Quebec Conference. Toronto, at 6-0-3, is head and shoulders above the competition in the Eastern Division of the Ontario Conference. Also in Ontario, Guelph leads the Western Division on the basis of its game in hand over Western. Dalhousie has had its share of impressive outings as well, sporting a 5-4 mark in the Atlantic Association, and impressive pre-season victories over Concordia, St. Mary&rsquo;s, and Trois Rivieres.On a more national level, the C1AU top ten rankings of this past week include Toronto in the number two slot, Concordia solidly entrenched in fourth, and surprising Guelph at number eight. Dalhousie is unranked, but let us not forget that the Tigers have a pair of 3-2 pre-season victories over number three St. Mary&rsquo;s to their credit, and a 15-3 rout of Concordia to point at as well.While expressing some disappointment that the top ranked Alberta Golden Bears of Clare Drake are unable to participate in this year&rsquo;s holiday tourney, Concordia coach Paul Arsenault is nonetheless pleased at the prospect of national exposure for his Stingers.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re all looking forward to it,&rdquo; said Arsenault of the Micron Tournament. &ldquo;Guelph (Alberta&rsquo;s last minute replacement) and Dal are both good teams, and everyone knows about Toronto.&rdquo;Yes, everyone is aware of Tom Watt&rsquo;s powerhouse Blues, a team which dumped Concordia 10-5 in pre-season play. Toronto will face Guelph in first round play on Jan. 6 at 3:30, immediately proceded by a Concordia-Dalhousie rematch at 1 p.m.Consolation and championship games will take place the following day at 4 and 7:30 p.m. respectively.A look at the four competitors reveals the difficulty in selecting a potential winner. The host Stingers have waltzed through the QUAA during the first semester, hardly breaking a sweat. Concordia&rsquo;s excellent defensive record, featuring a goals against average barely in excess of two, has been fashioned primarily by the defensive threesome of Michel Blais, Brendan Lowe, and Mark Dichter.Now fully mature at 23 years of age, Blais is the captain and leader of the Stingers. With several years of Junior A and university hockey behind him, the Stinger captain has developed the assuredness and puckhandling ability of a topflight rearguard.Up front, Concordia is led by Kim Elliott and Bert DiFazio. Elliott&rsquo;s playmaking ability has converted wings Steve Young and Gerry Applebee into goalscoring threats, while DiFazio is the Stingers&rsquo; top sniper of the first semester.Of the three visitors, you have to give the edge to Toronto. Blues&rsquo; netminder Dave Jenner has received all the protection he could want from the likes of team capaign Rocci Pagnello, and returnees Charlie Hughes, Brad Tamblyn, Lance Gattoni, Wayne Morrisey, Joe Grant and Walt Jarzabek. Rookies to watch for are Jeff Baun, son of former Maple Leaf great Bobby, and former Toronto Marlie Brian Crichton.The Blues are loaded offensively as well, with any one of 10 forwards capable of spectacular performances. Dan D&rsquo;Alvise has been the leader to date.Guelph and Dalhousie are both considered to be unknown quantities, although either team is capable of taking it to any team in Canada. Guelph has experienced Dave Gingrich between the pipes, former Central Hockey Leaguer Brad Pirie taking turns at forward and defense, and its division&rsquo;s top scorer in Hugh Mitchell.Dal also has top goaltending in the duo of Ken Bickerton and Darrell Young. Two transfer students, Allie MacDonald from St. Francis Xavier and Bob Dugan from St. Mary&rsquo;s, team with former Laval National Louis Lavoie to protect Bickerton and Young.The Tigers have strength down the middle. Earl Theriault, Mike Brennan, Dan Weir and Rick McCallum get the job done in style, setting up top scorers Earl Jessiman and tiny Linus Fraser.In keeping with history, the lineup of names for the Concordia tournament is impressive. Of the players named to the last three holiday tourney All Star teams, 10 have gone on to various levels of professional hockey, including Quebec Nordiques goaltender Jim Corsi, Los Angeles Kings forward Dave Taylor, and Detroit Red Wings forward Mai Davis.Originally conceived in 1967 as the Loyola Centennial Tournament, the competition has undergone a variety of name changes and host substitutions in its thirteen year existence. One thing has not changed, however, that being the quality of the competition and the players involved.The location is Loyola&rsquo;s West End Ice Palace in Montreal. On Jan. 6 and 7, the top teams and players in Canada will be there.TOURNEY TRIVIA: Back in 1967, the Loyola Centennial Tournament, the original format of the Micron Internationl, attracted such top U.S. teams as Harvard, Michigan Tech, Boston College, Boston University, and Clarkson&hellip;Last year&rsquo;s all-tournament team included goaltender Nick Sanza from Concordia, defensemen Dave Boyd of Concordia and Stan Swales of Alberta, and forwards Kim Elliott of Concordia, Kevin Primeau of Alberta, and Mac Davis of St. Mary&rsquo;s&hellip;Concordia has won the last three invitationals; 7-3 over Trois Rivieres, 7-5 over Toronto, and 5-3 over Alberta.One look at the roster of the Toronto Blues reveals just why the team is so strong. Tom Watt has a total of 14 returnees from last year&rsquo;s nationa runnerup team, and his nine newcomers include four players from the Ontario Major Junior League and two transfers from other universities&hellip;Forward Earl Jessiman of Dalhousie is a player to look for. Jessiman is now in his fifth year of university play after four years at the University of Pennsylvania.Aside from the nationals in March, this year&rsquo;s tournament figures to be the top setting for Canadian university hockey this season. &#9632;

f0031-01

Montreal Holiday Tournament Seen ‘Showcase’ For Title Contenders

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02274/4250463-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="566" height="807"></div> &#9632;

f0032-02

Where AHL Teams Play

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03186/4250494-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="469" height="692"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETER STEMKOWSKI&hellip;Picked By L.A.</figcaption></div>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;After a bitter 4-3 loss at home to the New Brunswick Hawks, coach Ted Harris of the Springfield Indians was asked to step down. He was replaced by veteran center Pete Stemkowski, who had been sent to the Tribe by the Los Angeles Kings. It will beStemkowski&rsquo;s job toget the Indians moving in the tough AHL Northern Division. On paper, the Tribe has one of the best teams in the AHL. However, Harris was unable to come up with enough wins to satisfy the management.Stemkowski, the new coach of the Tribe, is almost as well known in hockey for his comical one-liners and Polish jokes, as for his key Stanley Cup goals, winning important faceoffs and killing penalties. He may need his one liners to light a fire under the Indians.Off the ice, Pete is known as the &ldquo;Polish Prince&rdquo; and is often the center of attention because of his easy manner and natural ability to draw laughs. He can do imitations of Kirk Douglas, the weatherman, auctioneers, disc jockeys and gives fictitious traffic reports.On the ice, Pete never cracked a smile in his 14 years in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit, Los Angeles and the New York Rangers. At 35 Stemkowski says &ldquo;I was hoping to become a coach some day, but I didn&rsquo;t expect it to come so soon.&rdquo;George Leary, the managing general partner of the Indians, adds: &ldquo;Pete has the experience, knowledge of hockey, thinks on his feet, knows the personnel, and is dedicated. I believe he&rsquo;ll make a good coach.&rdquo; Shortly after taking over, Pete told his players: &ldquo;This starts a new season. All players are important to the club, the big scorers, the checkers, the penalty killers, everybody who wants to work.&rdquo;For the time being, Stemkowski will coach the Indians from behind the bench, and will decide at a later date whether or not he will retire as a player or take on the added responsibilities of a player-coach.&mdash;LEAHY &#9632;

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January 5, 1979

The Hockey News

Petes Exceed Green’s Expectations With Disciplined Hockey Approach

Freedoms Moving Team To Cape Cod Site

FAN FORUM