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

March 2, 1979

The Hockey News March 2, 1979

<div class="byline">&#x2014;LEAHY</div><p>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he AHL Board of Governors have decided the second and third place teams in each division will play a best of five series, with the winners to meet the divisional champions in a best of seven series. Both first place finishers in their division will draw a bye in the first round of the playoffs.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

IN THIS ISSUE

AHL Sets Playoff Format

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011104/4363209-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="911" height="1417"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02909/4363202-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="1175" height="1411"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03671/4363195-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="884" height="1374"><figcaption class="caption-body"><span class="photo-credit">(Photos by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>Orr Honored For Contribution To Hockey</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>B</span>obby Orr went out with a flourish during All Star game week in New York as the retired Chicago defenseman was honored with awards for his years of brilliance as one of the league&rsquo;s greatest offensive defensemen of all time. The highlight of Orr&rsquo;s week was receiving the Patrick Award for his contributions to hockey in the United States. Here&rsquo;s Orr shown in center with Ken McKenzie, left, president and publisher of THE HOCKEY NEWS, after Orr received the Patrick Trophy, at right, as the 1978-79 winner. In other presentations, Orr received a hockey tribute from Valentin Sytck, the deputy chairman of the USSR sports committee at left, and another from Bobby Clarke, at right, on behalf of the NHL Player&rsquo;s Association. Orr has hung up his skates for good and will concentrate on a management position with the Black Hawks.</b></p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04473/4363188-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="1176" height="1472"></div><h2><b><i>Voices Of The Flames</i></b></h2><p><b>Bernard &lsquo;Boom Boom&rsquo; Geoffrion, right, sits with play-byplay announcer Jiggs McDonald as the two broadcast the games of the Atlanta Flames. The Boomer, who is also a vice-president of the club, does the color commentary for the Flames&rsquo; games, which are carried on both radio and TV.</b></p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-05331/4363181-1-eng-US/f0014-052.jpg" title="f0014-05" width="1801" height="1368"></div><h2><b><i>Celebrity Shootout Ends In Score</i></b></h2><p><b>The Cincinnati Stingers of the WHA are always active in hockey promotional gimmicks. Here&rsquo;s one they staged some weeks ago when a visiting Soviet team came to town. Neither one of these figures are hockey players, which made this celebrity shootout kind of unique. The shooter on the left is Bob Trumpy, now a sportscaster, but formerly a well known football star with the Cincinnati Bengals. The goaler is ex-Cincinnati mayor Gerald Springer. Springer, who has no hockey experience, made six saves and won a trophy but didn&rsquo;t stop Trumphy from scoring on this effort.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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FEATURES

HOCKEY PEOPLE

<h2><b>Where IHL Teams Play</b></h2><h3><b>FEBRUARY</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01377/4364965-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="566" height="428"></div><h3><b>MARCH</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02308/4364958-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="558" height="329"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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OTHER LEAGUES

INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE

<p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p>Veteran Stan Mikita attained another milestone in the NHL last week. He became the sixth highest scorer of all time.</p><p>Mikita, second oldest player active in the NHL at 38 years of age&mdash;Detroit&rsquo;s Terry Harper is 39&mdash;scored his 14th goal of the current season to raise his all-time career total to 534 goals, sixth best in league history.</p><p>Mikita shunted the retired Frank Mahovlich off the sixth rung in the all-time goal-getting race.</p><p>The hard-nosed Chicago center, who can&rsquo;t have too many NHL years left, is in no danger of overtaking the all-time leader, Gordie Howe. Howe left the NHL after scoring 786 goals. Phil Esposito is second to Howe with 664 goals having passed Bobby Hull this year. Hull counted 604 NHL goals while a member of the Chicago Black Hawks.</p><h2><b>NHL Coaches May Get Union</b></h2><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p>NHL coaches may be the next group to be unionized if present plans materialize.</p><p>The coaches of the NHL&rsquo;s 17 teams are reportedly interested in forming their own union or association and could have one before the start of next season.</p><p>Alan Eagleson, who is the executive-director of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, said he expects it could happen by as early as June, around the time of the summer hockey meetings.</p><p>Eagleson said several NHL coaches approached him about the idea.</p><h2><b>Hand Of The Law Reaches Into NHL</b></h2><p>NELSON&mdash;</p><p>Defenseman Pat Price of the Islanders was the subject of a police warrant for failing to appear in B.C. Provincial court on charges of resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer. Price was involved in the incident Aug. 19,1978 outside a hotel in Nelson.</p><p>The Islanders&rsquo; star was told to stay with the club instead of answering the warrant by his lawyer because the latter felt the charge would be treated as a summary conviction. The lawyer said the warrant was a &lsquo;preposterous step&rsquo; and added he was sure it would not have been issued if Price and not been an NHL player.</p><p>Meanwhile, Dave &lsquo;Tiger&rsquo; Williams of the Leafs was ordered to appear in provincial court May 11 for trial on a charge of common assault. The charge was made by a man who said he was punched after a car accident in Toronto on New Year&rsquo;s day involving Williams&rsquo; car.</p><h2><b>Espo Fires Record 30th Hat Trick</b></h2><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Phil Esposito of the Rangers scored his 30th career hat trick during New York&rsquo;s 6-6 tie against Washington Feb. 18.</p><p>The three-goal blast was the most ever recorded in NHL history. Bobby Hull had 28 during his career.</p><p>Espo also reached the 30-goal plateau for the 12th time putting him two behind Gordie Howe, who had 14 and one behind Hull, who had 13.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Mikita Becomes 6th Best Scorer

Cover-01

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div><h2><b>Bring Back Canada Cup</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>T</span>HE JUNKING OF</b> the Canada Cup international tournament, which was planned for September of this year, because of a bitter internal dispute in Canadian hockey circles is unfortunate for several reasons. The main one is that the time is prime for a re-match between the National Hockey League All Stars, who would form Team Canada in such an event, and the national team of the Soviet Union.</p><p>The whipping admistered to the NHL stars by the Soviets in the third game of the Challenge Cup series is burning the NHL players.</p><p>&ldquo;We could play &lsquo;em again while our guys are still sizzling.&rdquo; said Bobby Clarke, the captain of Philadelphia Flyers and president of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-011082/4362516-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="563" height="592"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Alan Eagleson</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve enjoyed being on top since 1972 when we beat &lsquo;em in the first series and again in the &lsquo;76 Canada Cup. They cleaned us but we want to get back at them. That old Mikhailov (Soviet captain Boris) was laughing at us when they had the third game wrapped up. That burned most of us.&rdquo;</p><p>Alan Eagleson, the executive director of the NHLPA, is the man who calls the shots both for Canada and the NHL on international hockey. He also organized the &lsquo;76 Canada Cup tournament and had another set to go this fall when it was killed.</p><p>&ldquo;The time is perfect for another Canada Cup this fall.&rdquo; Eagleson said. &ldquo;Wouldn&rsquo;t it be something&mdash;the return match between Canada, which is the NHL, and the Soviets; the Czechs who figure they&rsquo;re just as good as the Soviets; the Swedes who have a full team of players now working the NHL and the World Hockey Association, plus the U.S. and Finland.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>There&rsquo;s Still Hope</b></h2><p><b>THIS YEAR&rsquo;S CANADA</b> Cup was abandoned because of a dispute between Hockey Canada, an umbrella group comprising several hockey bodies, and one of those bodies, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association. The scrap is over which group controls the Canadian entry in the world junior championships&mdash;Hockey Canada of the CAHA. It&rsquo;s a tussle which requires pages to explain but Hockey Canada was willing to cancel the Canada Cup on a principle&mdash;that it runs the international show.</p><p>Eagleson, however, claims that there&rsquo;s still time to arrange a Canada Cup in September but he attaches a large &ldquo;if&rdquo; to such a rescue job.</p><p>&ldquo;If the Canadian government would order the CAHA to get out of international hockey, I&rsquo;m certain I could have a Canada Cup this September,&rdquo; Eagleson said. &ldquo;Some members of the Canadian government have been talking in parliament about what happened in New York. Now I wish they&rsquo;d to something about the CAHA so we could get things going on the international scene.</p><p>&ldquo;The time will never be more right for a Canada Cup than this year. I wanted our guys to win the Challenge Cup but for future match-ups, it&rsquo;s a good thing we don&rsquo;t win every time. If we did, interest would soon disappear.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>The Champs May Meet</b></h2><p><b>EAGLESON CLAIMS</b> that the Canadian dispute just isn&rsquo;t about the junior team for the world championship.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s about who represents Canada in international hockey and according to the mandate from the government, it&rsquo;s Hockey Canada,&rdquo; said Eagleson, who&rsquo;s chairman of Hockey Canada&rsquo;s international committee.</p><p>&ldquo;The NHL has control over the pro teams which represent Canada internationally so why should the CAHA control the juniors.&rdquo;</p><p>The Soviets are eager for increased competition with the pros and one series they really want is a match-up between the champs of their major league and the Stanley Cup winners.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d say there&rsquo;s a good chance that it will happen somewhere between May 15 and 30,1980,&rdquo; Eagleson said.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-02964/4362509-1-eng-US/f0002-022.jpg" title="f0002-02" width="1178" height="2258"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bobby Clarke feels Canada Cup should be played this fall.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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COLUMNISTS

Players Burning, Clarke Says NHL Wants A Rematch

<div class="byline">BY TOM MURRAY</div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Several days have passed since the Challenge Cup debacle took place at Madison Square Garden, and the time has come to pause and reflect&mdash;not only on what happened and why, but on what can be done in the future to ensure that such a devastation will never occur again.</p><p><b>What Happened?&hellip;And Why?</b> Very Simple. The Soviets were just too good for the National Hockey League, long regarded as the solitary source for the most talented collection of hockey players in the world. They aren&rsquo;t any more. There&rsquo;s a bigger, better, stronger, and smarter kid on the same block that the NHL used to monopolize, and they have just pulled the rug&mdash;and the game of hockey&mdash;right out from under Canada&rsquo;s feet. And don&rsquo;t let the excuse you&rsquo;ve been hearing from various NHL spokesmen during the days since the defeat fool you into thinking otherwise.</p><p>Granted, the NHL All Stars had only three practice sessions together before the three-game series started. The Soviets had been training together for months with one purpose in mind&mdash;proving once and for all, via the Challenge Cup Series, that they are No. 1 in the world.</p><p>Well they did it. They are No. 1 now, mainly because while the NHL sat pat and gloated over its victories against the USSR in 1972 and 1976, the Soviets were working diligently at improving their game in areas where weaknesses had been exposed in their encounters with the NHL.</p><p>While the NHL was stagnating, the USSR was progressing, its hockey experts studying films, techniques, making changes, and constantly innovating.</p><p>&ldquo;While we told everyone we were the best,&rdquo; said Bob Gainey of the Montreal Canadiens and the 1979 NHL All Stars, &ldquo;the Russians went back, worked on their game, and beat us. Now we have to do the same thing.&rdquo;</p><p>The result of all of their efforts&mdash;and the NHL&rsquo;s non-efforts&mdash;was out on display for all the world to see during the NHL&rsquo;s Lost Weekend. Forget about that first game, which the NHL won, 4-2. All that victory did was bolster the NHL players&rsquo; false sense of secutity even more. After Guy Lafleur scored his goal only 16 seconds into the game, the Soviets were essentially finished, never really threatening their opponents for the remainder of the game. After the Series was over, and the Soviets, machine-like devastation was complete, players from the NHL team wondered whether the Russians had been playing &ldquo;possum&rdquo; on that first night, intentionally playing poorly so that the NHL players would become overconfident, relax mentally, and lose their edge in the next game. That&rsquo;s doubtful. Winning the first game in any series, especially a short one, is way too importnat to risk playing mind games with an opponent.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02931/4362602-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="521" height="786"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bryan Trottier gave it all he had but came out of the series feeling personally humiliated and embarrassed by the outcome.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p>But what very definitely was not doubtful was the effect that the win had on the NHL players, who indeed did become overconfident and relaxed and, ultimately, did lose their edge. Listen to a few of their comments:</p><p>&ldquo;After the first game,&rdquo; Clark Gillies said, &ldquo;I was thinking about a sweep. I really didn&rsquo;t think they were that good. I thought if they played the next two games the same way, it would bea cakewalk.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;re not that strong,&rdquo; Lanny McDonald said. &ldquo;I kept hearing all this stuff about their upper body strength, but I didn&rsquo;t think they were that tough at all.&rdquo;</p><p>Not that good. Not that tough. Not that strong. These sentiments and others were heard all around the NHL&rsquo;s joyous, sweltering locker room on that Thursday night. And later on they were echoed in various Manhattan gin mills, where a lot of the jubilant NHL players celebrated their victory by guzzling beer into the wee hours of Friday morning. Meanwhile, the &ldquo;dour, unemotional&rdquo; Soviets, as they were called by some, went back to their hotel, pulled out their bottles of imported Russian spring water, and began devising ways and means to defeat the NHL in the next two games.</p><p>Please don&rsquo;t miss the point here. The intent is not to scold the NHL players for their overconfidence after the first game any more than it is to criticize them for drinking beer instead of string water. But we all know what happened, don&rsquo;t we? In Saturday&rsquo;s game, the Soviets were behind, 4-2, with the NHL a period and a half away from wrapping up the series, when the Soviets erupted for three straight goals, winning the contest, 5-4. And on Sunday, the NHL was routed, 6-0, thoroughly shut off by an inspired Soviet goalie, and thoroughly frustrated by a team that outskated, outshot, outhustled, outpassed, outsmarted, out-everythinged them. Over the last one-and-a-half games, the NHL allowed nine goals, scored none, and were limited to a paltry 31 shots on goal.</p><p>&ldquo;The way they beat us was humiliating and embarrassing to me,&rdquo; Bryan Trottier would say after the bomb had exploded and the ashes of the NHL&rsquo;s shattered world supremacy has finally settled. &ldquo;They didn&rsquo;t just beat us. They dominated us&mdash;in every way imaginable.&rdquo;</p><p>Indeed they did. The question now is, what to do about it?</p><p><b>How?</b> In the first place, the NHL has to wake up, swallow some pride, and face up to the fact that maybe, just maybe, they should go back to the proverbial drawing board and figure out where their game has gone astray. They should follow the example set by the Russians after their losses in 1972 and 1976 and take a long, hard look at the reasons for why things turned out the way they did on February 10 and 11. They should, in short, heed the words of Bobby Clarke, who admitted after Challenge Cup &lsquo;79 was all over, &ldquo;We need to look at our game. The Soviets are better.&rdquo;</p><p>The most distressing thing about this dilemma is that the NHL really doesn&rsquo;t seem to be doing anything to rectify the situation. For instance, the league kept referring to the showdown with the Soviets as &ldquo;The Hockey Event of the Century.&rdquo; If it was, how come no television network would touch it? And, more significantly, why didn&rsquo;t the NHL back up their words with actions and promote the series accordingly, as if it was indeed the hockey event of the century? The league had the dates and plans for the showdown with the Soviets firmed up for almost a year, but right up intil the week preceding the Challenge Cup, publicity for it was virtually non-existent. And if people in the media didn&rsquo;t know what was going on with the hockey event of the century, how the hell was the public, the most important group of all, supposed to know what was going on?</p><p>The fault lies not with the NHL&rsquo;s public relations department and Bob Casey, its over-worked director, but solely on the shoulders of the NHL&rsquo;s marketing department. The game has simply not been sold as it should be&mdash;to the public; to the networks, to anyone. And if the present way of doing things is allowed to continue, and the NHL refuses to wake up and face reality&hellip;this great game is only going to regress further and further.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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Pure And Simple—Soviets Too Good

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011090/4362571-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Here are some of the glaring world headlines after the series disaster.</b></figcaption></div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he Challenge Cup confrontation between the Soviet Union and the National Hockey League is over, but the ramifications are still echoing around the world and throughout hockey.</p><p>It has ranged from, how could it happen? why did it happen? why weren&rsquo;t we ready? and who&rsquo;s to blame, the players or the owners? and so on. The controversy has reached a crescendo among hockey people. Indignation over losing the series and world bragging rights to the Soviet Union, has been growing since the USSR dropped their bomb on the NHL All Stars 6-0 in the deciding third game Feb. 11 at Madison Square Garden.</p><p>It seemed the topic of what happened to Team NHL is on everyone&rsquo;s mind. Here is what some of the hockey experts around the country had to say in their series post mortems:</p><h2><b>MILT DUNNELL, Toronto Star:</b></h2><p>&ldquo;Take it away, Vladislav and Sergei. Take it away, Boris and Mikhail, Alexander and Helmut. Take the Challenge Cup, the Clarence Campbell Bowl, the Prince of Wales and the Vezina Trophy.</p><p>But hands off the Stanley Cup, comrades. Looks like it&rsquo;s only second prize in the shinny universe, anyway. The Good Guys, whose ancestors invented this game, need some kind of inventive for filling in the wintry months between mid-October and the opening splash of the trout season. As long as they don&rsquo;t say it&rsquo;s for the world championship of your game anymore, what&rsquo;s the difference?</p><p>Your intercontinental missiles from Moscow and Gorky, Leningrad and Voskoresensk, really put the puck where your mouths have been&mdash;to paraphrase an old North American cliche&mdash;when you applied the mukluks to the butts of the best team that could be assembled between Acapulco and Baffin Island.</p><p>You pretty well proved what some of your old geezers, such as Anatoli Tarasov, have been saving&mdash;that your commisars could ice a team which was capable of beating the NHL, at the club level, and all-star level, or even the street level.</p><p>One of professional hockey&rsquo;s pioneers once said: &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t lick &rsquo;em on the ice if you can&rsquo;t lick &rsquo;em in the alley.&rdquo; You slaughtered &rsquo;em on the ice. So you don&rsquo;t have to prove it in the alley.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>TIM BURKE, Montreal Gazette:</b></h2><p>&ldquo;Even before the NHL had been spectacularly dumped from its throne of hockey supremacy, coaches and general managers attending the series were miserable about the quality of hockey&mdash;NHL hockey&mdash;this season.</p><p>Most of it they blamed on the attitude of the players, not the ones on Team NHL, but the fringers, the stiffs, and the over-rateds. One personnel director told me of the scene Sunday night Feb. 4, in Buffalo after the Sabres had played St. Louis. &ldquo;They could hardly wait to finish the game to get out of there.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Wives were waiting outside in their cars with the motors running for the mad dash to the airport. The dressing rooms were almost empty in five minutes. It was the only time this season that either team had shown any hustle., to report for Team Florida.&rdquo;</p><p>Bobby Kromm, coach of the Detroit Red Wings who have the third worst record in the league, had told his players that during the week-long layoff, ice would be available if any of them wanted to work on their blunted talents. &ldquo;I showed up three days in a row, but not one single player did, so I gave up,&rdquo; Kromm said.</p><p>Alan Eagleson said during the series that whether Team NHL won or lost, he didn&rsquo;t think it would have any effect on attendance. Eagleson is probably right. The series was seen on TV only in such hockey strongholds as Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Buffalo. In other American cities the attendance should remain about the same&mdash;bad.</p><p>It probably won&rsquo;t affect attendances in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, at least not for the rest of this season, what with all those season ticket-holders, but it will definitely affect attitudes in Canada. Until now,</p><p>NHL apologists had always been able to brush aside arguments that inflation and expansion had diluted the game, because its best had always triumphed in the end.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>What They Were Saying&hellip;</b></h2><h2><b>JIM PROUDFOOT, Toronto Star:</b></h2><p>&ldquo;The Challenge Cup seemed like such a wonderful idea, when the contracts were signed in Prague last May.</p><p>Will the fellow who thought of it please don his dunce cap now and sit in the corner until further notice?&rsquo;</p><p>All Star teams representing the National Hockey League and the Soviet Union would meet in a mid-season series to determine, once and for all, just who actually dominates the sport world-wide.</p><p>The results are official now and the verdict is utterly humiliating for the NHL. Disaster on all counts.</p><p>First of all, the big U.S. television networks backed right away from it, so the Challenge Cup failed to become hockey&rsquo;s Super Bowl or World Series. That was the NHL&rsquo;s main idea, right from the start, and it didn&rsquo;t click.</p><p>On the ice, it was an absolute catastrophe. The NHL and the players&rsquo; association, partners in the promotion, turned a handsome profit but the losses in prestige were devastating.</p><p>In fact, the week&rsquo;s three matches must go down in hockey history as the fateful turning point when the Soviets finally took undisputed possession of the sport which once was Canada&rsquo;s alone.</p><p>There can be no argument on that score because the Soviets went up against a stacked deck and won anyway&mdash;going away.</p><p>Team NHL took the opener against what can be seen now as sub-par opponents and had a 4-2 lead at 5:06 of the second period in game two. The pros never scored another goal in the series, lost that tying match and were submerged in every aspect of hockey as the Soviets wrapped up the championship with an overwhelming 6-0 victory.</p><p>It was shockingly one-sided, considering the quality of the NHL roster. These were North America&rsquo;s finest available players, the cream of the current crop, and they looked like midgets against major leaguers.</p><p>&ldquo;We could play them 20 times and they&rsquo;d win 15,&rdquo; Atlanta coach Fred Creighton said on the way out.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way I could fault our people, but they were just in over their heads.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;How could we turn it around? I&rsquo;m afraid we&rsquo;d have to go all the way back to the way we teach children how to play hockey in North America. That&rsquo;s how far it&rsquo;s gone.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>AL STRACHAN, Montreal Gazette:</b></h2><p>The Soviets&rsquo; victory in the initial Challenge Cup series will not be easy to take for Canadians.</p><p>As Bob Gainey said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure the people at home, the hockey fans, won&rsquo;t let us forget it very easily. We told them we were the best and now we&rsquo;ve been beaten.&rdquo;</p><p>But some good may have come of it.</p><p>Another member of the Canadiens who was outstanding in defeat was Serge Savard and, as always, Savard had some astute observations.</p><p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;re a great, great team and I&rsquo;m pretty sure that from now on, we&rsquo;ll win some and lose some,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>&ldquo;We can&rsquo;t say that hockey is ours any more. Now we&rsquo;ll have to make some great adjustments in our game.&rdquo;</p><p>Such as?</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe now we&rsquo;ll stop trying to develop goons,&rdquo; said Savard. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s not too many 5&rsquo;8&rdquo; players being drafted lately but there were a lot of them on the ice tonight.</p><p>&ldquo;For the last five years, I haven&rsquo;t let my son play organized hockey because it&rsquo;s so violent.</p><p>&ldquo;We tried to sell the game with violence back in 1971, &lsquo;72 and &lsquo;73,&rdquo; said Savard.</p><p>&ldquo;We just got our answer tonight.&rdquo;</p><h2><b>RED FISHER, Montreal Star:</b></h2><p>Long before The Embarrassment had even begun, evening settled on this great city. The skyscrapers that surround Madison Square Garden had turned to shadowy shoulders&mdash;dark and still.</p><p>Inside the arena, however, the cheerlessness was far deeper and darker, starting not long after an intense-looking and, as it developed, generous (to Team NHL) referee named Andy Van Hellemond dropped the puck between Vladimir Petrov and Bobby Clarke.</p><p>True, the worst defeat ever inflicted on the NHL&rsquo;s best by the Soviets&rsquo; best did not start at that precise moment, because the teams remained scoreless through the first period.</p><p>But the Soviets scored twice in the second and four times in the third, taking a 6-0 victory in the pivotal game of this best-of-three series for the Challenge Cup. And in the final analysis, The Embarrassment may as well have started from the moment Petrov won the opening faceoff.</p><p>The Soviets&mdash;represented by something substantially less than their best team&mdash;were that good. This was obvious throughout the scoreless first period.</p><p>The Embarrassment started to form and grow when Boris Mikhailov, aged 34 going on 43, scored the first goal in the sixth minute of the second period, and became certain two minutes later, when Viktor Zhluktov scored a power play goal.</p><p>At that point, this latest meeting at the summit wits over. Finished. Kaput.</p><p>It&rsquo;s simply that on this night&mdash;and Saturday afternoon&mdash;the Soviets were too good. They were too good even though the team&rsquo;s best defenseman, Vyacheslav Fetisov, was left at home along with superior forward Alexsandr Maltsev and veteran defenseman Vladimir Lutchenko. They were too good despite being without Valery Kharlamov for the last two games and without the brilliant Vladimir Golikov last night.</p><p>Scott Bowman, who has won four Stanley Cups in his seven years as the Canadiens chieftain, stands straight and tall&mdash;and courageously&mdash;in front of the curious after it&rsquo;s over, and stares them down.</p><p>&ldquo;No excuses,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Not one. We prepared our team to the best of our ability, but they played great. They were simply too good.</p><h2><b>NHL Seeking Fall Series</b></h2><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>With the Canada Cup ruled out for 1980 because of a feud between Hockey Canada and the CAHA, it appears there is a good chance the 1979 Stanley Cup winner will go to Moscow to play the best of the Soviet Union in a three-game exhibition series.</p><p>Both Alan Eagleson, executive director of the NHL Players Assn., and NHL president John Ziegler are conducting negotiations to bring about the series, which would be played during training camp period and could start as early as this fall.</p><p>The series would serve as a tradeoff for future participation by the Soviet Union in the Challenge Cup series.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0003-01

Challenge Cup Indignation Grows

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011141/4362661-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="477" height="487"></div><p>&#9679; <b>THE NHL OWNERS</b> are pulling further apart all the time. There are several factions who cannot see eye to eye on anything. As a result of this the National Hockey League and hockey in general is being maligned. It&rsquo;s suffering more than it ever has before and the owners will be wise to get their act together before it&rsquo;s too late. The hockey fans throughout Canada and the United States are fed up paying inflated prices for tickets to a product that at times could best be described as ordinary. <b>How</b> many thrilling and skillful games do you see in a season these days? Very few!&hellip;Ed Snider, chairman of the Philadelphia Flyers, believes the NHL is run by a minority of governors who think negatively and are not interested in improving the sport. He also feels that John Ziegler, president of the NHL, should be given the same powers as commissioner Pete Rozelle has in the National Football League. &ldquo;I personally feel that in the last several years we (owners) have taken a sport that was tremendously on the rise in North America and retarded its progress. I remain tremendously positive about the future of the game but I&rsquo;m frustrated about where it has been heading,&rdquo; Snider told Don Ramsay of the Toronto Globe & Mail&hellip;Snider also told Ramsay that whenever the majority of owners wanted to take such positive steps as expansion or merger with the World Hockey Association they were stopped by a minority. A three-quarter majority is necessary for expansion and other similar issues&hellip;Snider led an owner movement to take in 11 WHA clubs which would have paid the NHL $4 million each for the right to play in their own division for five years, joining the NHL in a balanced schedule in 1976. That was back in 1972.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021094/4362654-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="304" height="505"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ed Snider</b></figcaption></div><p>&#9679; <b>MOST OF</b> the WHA owners and executives attended the Challenge Cup games in New York&hellip;Howard Baldwin, WHA president, who took in the games, tells us he is getting a very favorable response to this expansion plans from the NHL owners he has encountered personally&hellip;The Challenge Cup, now residing in Moscow, cost $13,000 and is a fine-looking trophy&hellip;After the way the NHL All Stars looked against the Soviets, it may find the NHL bidding to join the WHA&hellip;Even though he won&rsquo;t admit it, you can bet Scotty Bowman was pressed into playing the New York Rangers&rsquo; Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson in the third game against the Soviets and benching Steve Shutt and Marcel Dionne. The high-salaried Swedes looked lost when they were on the ice&hellip;When the Rangers called up Don Maloney from the AHL New Haven Nighthawks, it gave them another one of their brother acts which they&rsquo;ve had over the years. Don is a younger brother of Dave Maloney, Ranger captain&mdash;and scored a goal and an assist in his first NHL contest&hellip;Boston Bruins pleased to have Brad Park and Stan Jonathan back in the lineup. Both were greatly missed by the Bruins&hellip;Frank Bonello will be the new supervisor of operations of the faltering Toronto Marlboro juniors.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-03988/4362647-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="292" height="467"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Don Maloney</b></figcaption></div><p>&#9679; <b>NEW YORK ISLANDERS</b> are being touted by many as the Stanley Cup winners this year. They appear to have the balance and the depth to go all the way. Anyway, they have been one of the most consistent teams so far throughout the regular schedule&hellip;Dr. Gunther Sabetzki, president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, has made it clear that he will not take sides in the battle between Hockey Canada and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association. It appears definite that the Canada Cup will not take place in 1979. It also appears definite that Hockey Canada and the CAHA will never get along&hellip;There is a possibility that the Stanley Cup champions and the Soviet major league champions will meet in a series at the end of the 1979-80 season, sometime during the latter part of May, 1980&hellip;Ron Harrison, veteran director of Hockey Night in Canada, was responsible for the excellent telecasts across Canada of the Challenge Cup series. A freelancer, Harrison directs all of the major sports programs for the CBC and he is rated No. 1 man in his profession. Ron was responsible for putting together the two outstanding films on Bobby Orr which were shown at the Lester Patrick luncheon at which time Orr was honored&hellip;Valerie Harper of the &ldquo;Rhoda&rdquo; television series attended the Challenge Cup games. She was at one time married to a hockey player&hellip;Bowie Kuhn, commissioner of baseball, also took in the games&hellip;Madison Square Garden never looked cleaner and the ushers were never as attentive as they were during the Challenge Cup Series.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-04886/4362640-1-eng-US/f0004-042.jpg" title="f0004-04" width="306" height="509"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ron Harrison</b></figcaption></div><p>&#9679; <b>NHL COACHES</b> may be unionized in time for next season. Al Eagleson, executive director of the NHL Players&rsquo; Association, said certain NHL coaches have approached him about forming a union and that he is prepared to help them get it started. However, he did say that he would not be involved himself in the affairs of such a union after it was formed&hellip;Don Cherry, Boston coach, stated: &ldquo;There are only five coaches left since I came into the league five years ago. The five coaches he refers to are Fred Shero, Rangers; Al Arbour, Islanders; Bob Pulford, Chicago; Scotty Bowman, Montreal; and Cherry himself. Pulford and Shero also double as general managers&hellip;Tim Allen of the Central Junior Hockey League advises that a game between the league champions and a team of All Stars will be played at Franklin Park Ice Arena, Franklin Park, Ill. at 3:30 on Sunday, April 1. Proceeds from the game will be donated to the Metropolitan Chicago Chapter March of Dimes&hellip;There are 600,000 hockey players registered in the Soviet Union&hellip;Arthur Reichert, supervisor of officials at all home games of the New York Rangers is now in his 33rd season. His sidekick Ed Aubel, penalty timekeeper, is in his 30th year at Madison Square Garden&hellip;Marc Cloutier informs us that Winnipeg Jets are in the midst of an extensive survey of their season ticket holders. Some valuable information is expected from this.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-05747/4362633-1-eng-US/f0004-052.jpg" title="f0004-05" width="302" height="473"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Al Arbour</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0004-01

PASSING THE PUCK

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-06442/4362699-1-eng-US/f0004-062.jpg" title="f0004-06" width="555" height="656"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JIM SCHOENFELD&hellip;Reinjured Knee</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-07278/4362692-1-eng-US/f0004-072.jpg" title="f0004-07" width="561" height="659"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RICK DUDLEY&hellip;Returns To Sabres</b></figcaption></div><p>BUFFALO&mdash;</p><p>The weekend before the All Star break was an eventful one for the Buffalo Sabres. Indeed it was. Good and bad.</p><p>It was a weekend in which the Sabres could have dropped to the Adams Division cellar but ended up in second place.</p><p>Three regulars were hurt, two of them badly, but a former key player returned to the club after three and one-half years in the World Hockey Association.</p><p>Jim Schoenfeld, a bulwark of the Buffalo defense&mdash;when he is able to play&mdash;suffered his second serious injury of the season, a badly strained right knee, the 11th ailment that has kept him out of action in his seven National Hockey League seasons.</p><p>Don Luce, penalty-killer par excellence and the team&rsquo;s second leading scorer, came close to being knocked out of hockey for good but he expected to be back in competition before Schoenfeld.</p><p>Luce received a deep cut on his face, just a fraction of an inch from his right eye, in a game against the St. Louis Blues, He was cut by teammate Ric Seiling&rsquo;s skate when Seiling was unended by St. Louis defenseman Steve Durbano.</p><p>The lanky center was carted off the ice, bleeding profusely, and taken to a hospital. He was back in Memorial Auditorium at the end of the game but had to return to the hospital again. He was expected to be able to play when the schedule resumed after the break for the NHL series against the Soviet Nationals.</p><p>Schoenfeld and Bill Stewart, Schony&rsquo;s partner at defense, were hurt in a game the night before against the Minnesota North Stars. Schoenfeld wrecked his knee midway through the first period when he dove to block a North Star pass.</p><p>Stewart also was hurt in the first period but not so badly. He was hit by a skate inside his knee. The rookie backliner had to continue playing because the Sabres were short at defense.</p><p>Schoenfeld was hurt and Bill Hajt did not dress for the game because he had the flu. Two of the five defensemen who did dress for the game were in the penalty box when Stewart was hit.</p><p>Stewart played out the game but the following night, when he went out for the pre-game skate, the youngster found he couldn&rsquo;t play. He was expected back when action resumed.</p><p>Before the St. Louis game it was announced that Rick Dudley, who helped the Sabres to the Stanley Cup finals in 1975, had been reacquired from the club in a deal with the Cincinnati Stingers of the World Hockey Association.</p><p>Dudley, a right winger, signed with the Stingers in 1975, after his contract with the Sabres expired. He came back in a deal that John Andersen, Buffalo director of player personnel, described as &ldquo;a very difficult, tangled transaction.&rdquo;</p><p>No terms of the deal were announced, except that no other players were involved. Dudley said the Sabres will pick up the remainder of the five-year, six-figure contract he signed in 1975.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0004-06

THE NHL

Eventful Weekend Costly To Sabres

<div class="byline">BY MIKE DENNIS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01991/4362778-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>MARK NAPIER&hellip;Picked &lsquo;Good&rsquo; Time For Injury</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Ian Mac Alpine)</span></figcaption></div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>hen the Canadiens raised the curtain on the post-Challenge Cup series portion of the 1978-79 National Hockey League regular season with a less than inspiring 2-2 home-ice tie with the Los Angeles Kings, Mark Napier was not in the Montreal lineup.</p><p>Not to worry, the figure filberts may say, because after all, Napier wasn&rsquo;t in the lineup for 19 of the Canadiens&rsquo; first 53 games this year and they still compiled the best record in the NHL at the All Star break.</p><p>But the facts were that Napier, the three-year veteran of World Hockey Association action, has been playing the best hockey of his rookie NHL campaign, and on a regular basis, through January and the two early February games which led up to the break.</p><p>Then it happened.</p><p>On Feb. 4, the last night before the interruption in the schedule, Napier, who was much more widely known for the 136 goals he scored in his WHA days than for any pugilistic abilities, got into a fight. So instead of going home for a few days of rest and relaxation, Napier went home with a broken nose.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not bad,&rdquo; Napier was saying in a three-piece suit after the Canadiens-Kings encounter, discussing his nose, not the state of affairs of the NHL. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a helmet with a cage, like Larry&rsquo;s (Robinson) and I&rsquo;ve been skating for the past four days. My breathing&rsquo;s not bad, but it does cut down on your peripheral vision.</p><p>The broken beak came as a result of a disagreement with Blair Stewart of the Capitals. &ldquo;It was a good right&hellip;what a punch,&rdquo; Napier recalled.</p><p>&ldquo;But it came at a good time&hellip;much better that I got hurt before the layoff than if I had been hurt tonight,&rdquo; said Napier. &ldquo;I mean if it has to happen, I guess it couldn&rsquo;t have happened at a better time.&rdquo;</p><p>What about it occurring just when you were getting rolling? After not playing regularly and then getting your chance lately?</p><p>&ldquo;Well, I didn&rsquo;t really think I&rsquo;d get to play here that much this year,&rdquo; began Napier. &ldquo;You know they were coming off three straight Stanley Cups and the only guys they had lost were defensemen. So I guess I&rsquo;ve been fortunate that I&rsquo;ve played as much as I have.&rdquo;</p><p>Napier got his first NHL start in the Canadiens&rsquo; second game of the year and scored on his very first shift. He then sat out three road games and one at home before being inserted in his home town of Toronto where he scored his second goal, but he still did not earn regular status.</p><p>In fact, he sat out a great deal of the time during the first half of the season and after 40 Montreal games (Napier had played in only 22) he had only four goals and five assists.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a tough adjustment (after playing regularly for three years) but when you know that you&rsquo;re not playing because the team has so many good players, rather than because you&rsquo;re making mistakes out on the ice it&rsquo;s easier to take.</p><p>&ldquo;The difference in this team starts with the class all throughout the organization,&rdquo; Napier related. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no dissention here and when you see everybody working hard in practice even the guys that are veterans and don&rsquo;t have to, it&rsquo;s kind of inspiring. Seeing somebody like Jacques Lemaire putting out in practices is very impressive.</p><p>&ldquo;Right now I could play at about 85 to 90 percent, but we&rsquo;ve got guys coming back into the lineup who are healthier. When Larry was hurt (broken nose as well), well, he&rsquo;s a mainstay of our defense, so they had to get him back in the lineup. We&rsquo;ve got more depth among the forwards.&rdquo;</p><p>How about the pressure of playing for the Canadiens?</p><p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s pressure not to make mistakes, pressure that the players put on themselves, and I guess I was probably playing too cautiously at the beginning of the year,&rdquo; Napier explained. &ldquo;But when you get a chance to play more often and know you&rsquo;re going to play, you&rsquo;re able to do better.&rdquo;</p><p>For Mark Napier, who turned 22 on Jan. 28, his first break with the Canadiens came a week after that occasion when he broke his nose. However, he&rsquo;s just starting to show the form that the Canadiens feel he is capable of showing and likely his next &ldquo;break-through&rdquo; will be as a bona fide NHL star.</p><p>His play in January boosted his stats up to eight goals and 12 assists for his first 34 NHL games, not bad when you consider that some of his early appearances were limited to a few shifts a game.</p><p><b>FORUM REBOUNDS:</b> Trade rumors involving a high-scoring forward and a physical defenseman of the Canadiens going to an NHL club for a proven defenseman are still circulating&hellip;Jacques Lemaire scored what proved to be the tying goal in the Kings game, his first since Dec. 6, when he became sidelined for 27 games with a shoulder separation, the most games he&rsquo;s ever missed in one season.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0005-01

Breaks Turn Against Habs’ Napier Just As Outlook Was Brightening

<p>Following are the latest player movements in hockey:</p><h2><b>NATIONAL LEAGUE</b></h2><p>ATLANTA&mdash;<b>Tom Lysiak,</b> C, placed on disabled list with injury.</p><p>BOSTON&mdash;<b>Brad Park,</b> D, and <b>Stan Jonathan,</b> LW, both returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>BUFFALO&mdash;<b>Derek Smith,</b> C, placed on disabled list with injury.</p><p>CHICAGO&mdash;<b>Doug Hicks,</b> D, assigned to New Brunswick of AHL. <b>Mike Walton,</b> C, recalled from New Brunswick.</p><p>COLORADO&mdash;<b>Bill Lochead,</b> LW, claimed from Detroit on waivers.</p><p>DETROIT&mdash;<b>Fern LcBlanc,</b> C, returned to Kansas City of CHL.</p><p>LOS ANGELES&mdash;<b>Brian Glennie,</b> D, placed on disabled list indefinitely. <b>Rick Hampton,</b> D, returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>MINNESOTA&mdash;<b>Bryan Maxwell,</b> D, assigned to Oklahoma City of CHL.</p><p>MONTREAL&mdash;<b>Jacques Lemaire,</b> C, and <b>Pat Hughes,</b> RW, returned to lineup from injury list. <b>Larry Robinson,</b> D, placed on disabled list with muscle spasms in his back.</p><p>ISLANDERS&mdash;<b>John Tonelli,</b> LW, returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>RANGERS&mdash;<b>Ron Greschner,</b> D, placed on disabled list for month with shoulder dislocation. <b>Doug Soetaert,</b> G, and <b>Don Maloney,</b> LW, recalled from New Haven of AHL.</p><p>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;<b>Rick St. Croix,</b> G, recalled from Maine of AHL as replacement for <b>Bernie Parent,</b> G, who was placed on disabled list for three weeks with eye injury. <b>Paul Holmgrem,</b> RW, returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>PITTSBURGH&mdash;<b>Denis Herron,</b> G, returned to lineup from injury list, <b>Gord Laxton,</b> G, returned to Grand Rapids of IHL. <b>Ron Stackhouse,</b> D, returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>ST. LOUIS&mdash;<b>Wayne Babych,</b> RW, returned to lineup from injury list.</p><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;<b>Jack McIlhargey,</b> D, <b>Drew Callander,</b> RW, and <b>Rick Blight,</b> RW, assisgned to Dallas of CHL. <b>Don Lever,</b> C, and <b>Don Kozak,</b> RW, returned to lineup from injury list. Kozak recalled from Dallas.</p><p>WASHINGTON&mdash;<b>Gord Smith,</b> D, and <b>Ron Lalonde,</b> C, assigned to Hershey of AHL. <b>Bryan Watson,</b> D, handed outright release. <b>Dennis Hextall,</b> C, signed as free agent after contract cleared up with Detroit.</p><h2><b>WORLD HOCKEY ASSN.</b></h2><p>CINCINNATI&mdash;<b>Michel Parizeau,</b> LW, signed as free agent from defunct Indianapolis team.</p><p>EDMONTON&mdash;<b>Carl Sandback,</b> D, assigned to Dallas of CHL.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Hockey Players On The Move

<h2><b>Can&rsquo;t Beat The System</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>W</span>ELL, AT LEAST</b> the Soviet National hockey team left New York without inflicting further insults. The players spent a day or two relaxing and shopping, which is a break, because it was feared they might drop into Yankee Stadium and try to win the World Series while they were here, too.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011172/4362816-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="530" height="1813"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Mike Bossy scored two goals in the three-game series with the Soviets. The NHL Stars could have used a little offense like the kind Bossy provided and the outcome may have been different.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p>Instead, the Big Red Machine settled for the Challenge Cup. While the Soviets insist that their victory over the National Hockey League All Stars merely was a tuneup for the world tournament, or a learning experience, or proof that anything can happen in a short series, surely we must dismiss this talk for what it is. Bolshoi.</p><p>&ldquo;What they did to us in one week set back hockey in North America 10 years,&rdquo; said Harold Ballard, owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs. &ldquo;There isn&rsquo;t a fan in Canada or the United States now who won&rsquo;t think that he&rsquo;s buying a ticket for a second class product. It&rsquo;s embarrassing.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-02899/4362809-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="479" height="516"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob Verdi</b></figcaption></div><p>Reactions to the NHL&rsquo;s setback, particularly in Canada, parallel Ballard&rsquo;s. Serge Savard, the Montreal defenseman mentioned an eerie feeling that &ldquo;we are worried about producing goons and the Russians are worried about producing hockey players.&rdquo; That may be a bit strong.</p><p>A more salient approach might be that of Islander Denis Potvin, who allowed that a team like the USSR&rsquo;s with togetherness and a system will usually beat a team like ours with individual stars and no system. And Atlanta Flames&rsquo; general manager Cliff Fletcher reminded that while the Soviets are in the business of hockey, the NHL is in the business of business.</p><p>Certainly, the proliferation of professional teams here and the attendant escalation of salaries have affected the refining of skills, and probably the desire to excel. As Ballard said, &ldquo;If the Russians win, they go back and may be rewarded with better living conditions&mdash;a home that has two lightbulbs instead of one. If we win, it doesn&rsquo;t matter because the athletes over here are making so much damn money anyway that they&rsquo;re not hungery.&rdquo;</p><p>Undoubtedly, the underage draft, the escalation of NHL and \VHA franchises from six in 1966 to 23 now, and the slow death of the minor leagues has meant more major league jobs for more players who can do fewer major league things while being compensated like never before for doing whatever they can.</p><p>Another reason for the dimunition of skills may be the elimination of NHL-sponsored junior clubs in Canada. Years ago, the NHL would subsidize amateur teams with the sole purpose of teaching youngsters to perfect their craft. It was a preparatory course for becoming a well-schooled professional player, and nothing more.</p><p>But that system was eliminated. Now, junior teams face the same pressures as professional teams. They must win and they must make money to survive. Coaches do less teaching and more fretting. The same situation tends to apply to U.S. college programs. Be good or be gone.</p><h2><b>Soviets Have Progressed</b></h2><p>Meanwhile, the Soviets started from scratch only in the mid-1950s using tattered skates and old airline pilot helmets as headgear. By practicing year round, by adherence to basics, and by devouring knowledge from other countries, they have succeeded immaculately.</p><p>Let us also not forget that many, many more youngsters play hockey in the Soviet Union than in North America. Decide for yourself whether the difference in lifestyles affects incentive, but, whatever, Bobby Clarke seems to have said it all: &ldquo;We&rsquo;re getting worse and they&rsquo;re getting better, and it&rsquo;s got to stop.&rdquo;</p><p>One way to stop it might be for the NHL to refrain from these international extravaganzas for a while and turn attention to the homefront, where the problems really exist.</p><p>It is sadly ironic, isn&rsquo;t it, that during the same week when the Soviets handed the NHL All Stars their lunch, the NHL governors, in their infinite wisdom, were meeting to discuss ways of adding more teams? The question is, who needs it?</p><p>Even if the NHL had beaten the USSR on that fateful Sunday, the &lsquo;Colorado Pet Rocks still would have been a problem on Monday. Why not turn to one&rsquo;s own internal issues than create more by putting all one&rsquo;s eggs in the international basket? The NHL is here, not in Moscow.</p><p>In that vein, let us not go overboard to disparage our hockey completely. Many observers who saw the Soviets three times in four days wonder now how they could ever again watch the St. Louis Blahs three times in four decades.</p><p>Well, remember that the tournament in Madison Square Garden featured the best players in the world&mdash;from both sides&mdash;and somewhere over in the Soviet Union on any given night, there are dull, plodding hockey teams in their own version of the Smytheski Division.</p><p>The Challenge Cup was a delicacy, a special thing, a once-in-a-while confrontation, and it should be treated thusly. The World Series is baseball&rsquo;s show of shows, but you can&rsquo;t have it without having those tedious twi-night double headers in July between the Baltimore Orioles and Oakland As.</p><p>As for the tournament itself, the Soviets showed superior skating, passing, endurance, and above all, stoicism. They won under difficult circumstances&mdash;they came from behind in an NHL rink, under NHL rules administered by all but one NHL official, before an intimidating crowd at a time of season the NHL had selected.</p><h2><b>No One Had The Answers</b></h2><p>Moreover, they did it convincingly, scoring the tournament&rsquo;s last nine goals while completely neutralizing the best assets of the NHL&rsquo;s best players. It has been said that sending the Canadiens or Islanders against the Soviets would have been wiser than trying to mold the league&rsquo;s best players into a unit within three days.</p><p>That&rsquo;s possible. But Guy Lafleur doesn&rsquo;t need a great centerman to be a great right wing. All he needs is skating room and the puck, and the Soviets never gave him much of either.</p><p>They are not only in constant motion, but they always seem to move to the correct spot. What&rsquo;s most frightening is that when you ask 20 different NHL people what the Soviets were really doing out there, you got 20 different answers.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe,&rdquo; said coach Soctty Bowman, &ldquo;We should try learning from them as well as they have learned from us.&rdquo;</p><p>Bowman has been villified for the manner in which he handled his personell. In Chicago, the few fans left are mad because Tony Esposito didn&rsquo;t play in any of the three games. They have a right to be, though goalkeeping was not the difference, nor was Bowman, nor was Victor Dombrovski. What happened all over the ice was.</p><p>Still, the NHL is not helping its already fading public image by collecting fan ballots&mdash;however authentic they may or may not be&mdash;declaring Esposito the best goalie in hockey, then having him do nothing for a week.</p><p>But that&rsquo;s just the tip of the NHL Titanic, and maybe it&rsquo;s time that a league and a sport going sideways recognize its problems, then go conquer them. Games against the Soviet Union are interesting, but they aren&rsquo;t the answer. Particularly if you don&rsquo;t win them.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0006-01

Soviet Win Set North American Game Back 10 Years—Ballard

<p><b>Special To The Hockey New</b></p><p>DETROIT&mdash;</p><p>Individual efforts were the order of the week&mdash;as they have been for almost the entire season&mdash;for the Detroit Red Wings. The Wings received two fine performances in their only pair of games, but it turned out that the best they could do was a split.</p><p>Vaclav Nedomansky gave the Wings a first period lead against Los Angeles at the Olympia and then tied the game in the second stanza after the Kings had built a 2-1 lead, but the Kings had the only third period goal and sent the Wings to their 30th loss in 55 starts, 3-2.</p><p>Hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins Sunday, the Wings finally put it all together sparked by the play of Dale McCourt and goaltender Jim Rutherford. The Wings jumped out to a 5-0 lead as McCourt scored twice and set up a third goal and Rutherford also passed off for two assists. Nedomansky, Dennis Polonich and Nick Libett notched the Wings&rsquo; tallies and when Pittsburgh rallied for a pair of second period goals, McCourt iced the verdict with his third goal of the game and 21st of the season.</p><p>Rutherford saved on 26 of 28 shots for the win, only the Red Wings&rsquo; 12th of the season.</p><p>The win still left the Wings seven points behind the fourth place Washington Capitals in the Norris Division, with a game in hand. With the third worst record in the NHL, the Wings will have to first catch the Caps before even thinking about setting their sights on the other teams battling for the wild-card playoff berths.</p><p>Last year the Wings reached the quarter-finals of the playoffs by finishing second in their division and then stunning Atlanta in two straight preliminary round contests. However, inconsistent goaltending from free agent Rogie Vachon and an inexperienced defense corps have made things difficult despite the steady contributions of the veteran Nedomansky and sophomore center McCourt.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-03588/4362847-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg" title="f0006-03" width="557" height="726"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>VACLAV NEDOMANSKY&hellip;Received Little Help</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0006-03

Red Wings Manage Split With Individual Efforts

<div class="byline">BY TOM MURRAY</div><p>NEW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Several funny things happened to the Rangers recently, and they all occurred in the same game against the most unlikely opponent you could possibly imagine&mdash;the Boston Bruins.</p><p>It was New York&rsquo;s first game after the All Star break, and the Rangers were making their first appearance at Madison Square Garden in 24 days. And a 20-year-old rookie left wing named Don Maloney, younger brother of Ranger captain Dave, was making his NHL debut with the home team, playing on a line with center Phil Esposito and right wing Don Murdoch.</p><p>So what did the kid do? Well, what else? He opened the scoring on the second shift of the game by shrugging off a Dick Redmond hit behind the Bruins&rsquo; goal, circling around to the left of Boston goalie Gilles Gilbert, and jamming the puck past the goalie on his second try. Simple as that, Don Maloney had his first NHL goal on his first NHL shot. (No, it wasn&rsquo;t his first NHL shift; he&rsquo;d been up for one game earlier in the season and had taken a few turns.</p><p>A few minutes later, just to even things up a little bit, Maloney took a Murdoch pass and fed Esposito, who deked Gilbert beautifully and poked the puck past him for a 2-0 Ranger lead. The game was only six minutes old, and Don Maloney already had two points. Not bad. But that was only the first funny thing about this evening.</p><p>The second funny thing was that while the Rangers were peppering Gilbert with 15 shots on goal in the first period, the Bruins failed to take even one on Ranger goalie John Davidson. The closest they came was when Don Marcotte broke in from the right side and let one fly&mdash;which sailed three feet over Davidson&rsquo;s head and smashed into the glass. The shot-shutout for the Rangers was, according to the PA announcer, the first in their history. Undoubtedly, it&rsquo;s the first time it&rsquo;s happened in NHL history in quite some time.</p><p>The Bruins ultimately took 22 shots on Davidson and scored on one of them. The Rangers, however, potted three more goals in the next two periods and beat the Bruins, 5-1. Oh, yeah, that was the third funny thing about the game: It was the Rangers&rsquo; 30th victory of the season, which is as many wins as they had in the entire 1977-78 campaign. A funny game, huh?</p><p>Not so funny was the game the Rangers played the next night in Buffalo against the Sabres. Not only did they lose the game, 4-3, but they also lost Ron Greschner, their best rushing defenseman, for at least four weeks with a separated shoulder. Greschner collided accidentally with Sabre Dave Schultz early in the first period and was removed from the ice on a stretcher. The Rangers, down 2-0 and playing with only four defensemen, rallied to take a 3-2 lead, but ultimately lost the game on two last period goals by Buffalo. On to Philadelphia.</p><p>Once again, the Rangers played this game the best way they know how&mdash;by coming from behind and either winning, or giving their opponents and anyone who is watching a helluva run for their money. This team just loves to catch up and win, but don&rsquo;t hold your breath if they ever have a lead. On this day, the Flyers had a 1-0 lead going into the third period of a very physical game, typical of the kind played by these two teams whenever they meet. But the Rangers, undaunted, popped three goals&mdash;by Eddie Johnstone, Ulf Nilsson, and Ron Duguay&mdash;into the Flyer net. With two and a half minutes left in the contest, the Flyers pulled to within one by converting on a power play opportunity, and the breath-holders began to gag and turn purple as visions of the Rangers last encounter with the Flyers danced in their heads. In that game, you will recall, the Rangers were up, 5-3 with less than 10 minutes left in the game and Philadelphia rallied to tie it up at 5-5.</p><p>But in this game, the Rangers withstood incredible pressure from the Flyers, received incredible goaltending from Wayne Thomas and, not so incredibly, won the game, 4-2, when Pat Hickey scored an open net goal. The Rangers had their 31st victory of the year&mdash;their most since the 1974-75 season, when the team won 37 games.</p><p>The last act of the week was played out against the Washington Capitals, a team that is suddenly no longer a joke in the NHL. This team has been a thorn in the Rangers&rsquo; side all season, and this game was no exception. Ex-Ranger Greg Polis came back to haunt his old teammates with two goals and began to look like he&rsquo;d be the hero of the game. But Phil Esposito&rsquo;s 30th career hat trick, which upped his old NHL record of 29, helped the Rangers tie the Caps, 6-6, in a game not memorable for defensive excellence by either team. The three goals also gave Espo 30 for the season and marked the 12th consecutive year that the center has scored 30 goals or more.</p><p>Another funny kind of a night for the Rangers. But then again, it had been a funny kind of a week.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Rangers Thrive On Comebacks In Crazy Week

<div class="byline">-BY BILL LIBBY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011163/4362909-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="407" height="458"></div><h2><b><i>Big Mac Attack&hellip;</i></b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>S</span>OMETIMES IT TAKES</b> time, but in the last year or so Bob MacMillan has developed into one of the finest forwards in hockey. He is 26 years old and is in his seventh season as a professional, but he is just becoming the player he can be.</p><p>Bobby Mac always skated well and made marvellous moves, but he didn&rsquo;t have a hard shot. He was a handyman who played every forward position and killed penalties effectively, a hustler who worked hard and checked his foes, but he didn&rsquo;t get many goals.</p><p>In two seasons with Minnesota of the World Hockey Association, a half-season with Providence of the American League, a half-season with the Rangers in the National League, and two seasons with St. Louis, he never had more than 20 goals a season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021047/4362902-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="809" height="723"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob MacMillan has come into his own as a scorer with the Atlanta Flames but he admits he&rsquo;s had a reputation more as a &lsquo;grinder&rsquo; than a goal-getter. This season he has changed all that.</b></figcaption></div><p>He scored seven goals in 28 games with the Blues last season. Traded to Atlanta at mid-season, he surprised everyone by scoring 31 goals in the final 52 games to give him 38 for the season. He had 33 assists and wound up with 71 points.</p><p>This season he helped the Flames off to a terrific start as the team buried early rivals under a barrage of goals. He and the Flames have flickered since then, but his present pace still would put him at close to 35 goals and 100 points for the season and the team still could make the playoffs.</p><p>MacMillan says, &ldquo;I think I always could score, but I never got around to it. That may sound funny, but 1 developed a reputation as a grinder and I felt I had to keep grinding away to keep a place in the majors. I lacked confidence and didn&rsquo;t go for the goal much. I don&rsquo;t have a hard shot.&rdquo;</p><p><b>THE FIVE-FOOT-ELEVEN,</b> 185-pounder says, &ldquo;When I was traded for the second time, it shook me up. I figured I had to do something different. This is a big team with big forwards. Guys like Willi Plett and Harold Phillipoff came to me and told me if anybody got on my back, they&rsquo;d back me up.</p><p>&ldquo;They gave me a lot more room to move around then I&rsquo;d ever had before. I got a chance to pick up speed. I never played with a playmaker like Guy Chouinard before and he broke me into the open a lot. Another big guy, Eric Vail, cleared the way. I must have had a hundred breakaways. I started shooting and the puck started going in.</p><p>&ldquo;I still believe in playing a complete game. Of course, that includes scoring, too. But I don&rsquo;t want to neglect making plays for the other players and playing defense for the team. I want to be-able to hold my head up high when I go home.&rdquo;</p><p>Home is Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Not many players have come from this small area, but as a boy Bob played with Hilliard Graves, Al MacAdam and Kevin Devine, who made the NHL or WHA.</p><p>Bob was born in September of 1952. His father, partner in a construction company, died of a heart attack at 37, when Bob was but three. Bob says, &ldquo;Our mother, Margaret, did a great job of raising a family of five kids. She drove us everywhere, helped the boys with their paper routes, helped all of us with everything, saw that we all got a good college education.&rdquo;</p><p>There was one girl, Joanne, who is teaching. One brother, George, went to the University of New Brunswick, and became a lawyer. Another, John, went to the University of Kitchener, and became a social worker. Billy made the majors as a player and now is coaching, but he took a degree from the University of Manitoba.</p><p><b>IT TOOK BOB</b> nine summers of dedication, but he took a degree from the University of Prince Edward Island in History. He says, simply, &ldquo;My mom wanted it,&rdquo; but he is the sort of fellow who will not give up on something like this.</p><p>Some leave this lovely island in the Maritimes, but many make it back. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard to go for good,&rdquo; Bobby Mac admits. &ldquo;The people there are so proud of the place they can&rsquo;t imagine anyone not wanting to live there.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a beautiful place and the people are like a family. The winters are hard&mdash;damp, cold, 10, 20 below zero. But the summers are marvellous and I head back every summer. Billy&rsquo;s got a farm there with about 600 head of sheep. George has a ranch where he boards about 50 horses.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m a bachelor, but I have a girl in Atlanta I&rsquo;m serious about. I bought a house in the suburbs in Marietta last year, but I also own land back home and I guess I&rsquo;ll go back home eventually and live there, though you never know. I&rsquo;m committed to my career right now.</p><p>Bob didn&rsquo;t get many goals his last season as a junior so he didn&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;d get any good offers from the NHL. When he got a $60,000 offer for a two-year contract from Minnesota of the WHA he grabbed it. To his surprise, Rangers later made him the 15th pick of the 1972 draft.</p><p>&ldquo;The money seemed like a lot, but I made a mistake,&rdquo; MacMillan says. &ldquo;The team and the league were terrible. The good players were out of shape and the bad players thought they were better than they were. No one gave a darn about good team play.&rdquo;</p><p>When his contract expired, he jumped to the Rangers. He didn&rsquo;t mind that they sent him to the minors. &ldquo;I loved every minute of my year in Providence, busses and all. All the guys loved the game and the game became fun for me again.&rdquo;</p><p>He has had bad times as well as good in New York, St. Louis, and Atlanta. He is an aggressive guy who gets on guys who let down. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard not to let down when you&rsquo;re not winning, but if you let down, you never will win,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;And no matter how well you&rsquo;re doing yourself, you&rsquo;re not doing well if you&rsquo;re not winning.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0008-01

Hockey Ad Lib

<div class="byline">BY BILL FLEISCHMAN</div><p>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;</p><p>Step over here into the spotlight, Pat Quinn, and tell everyone what your plans are for the Philadelphia Flyers.</p><p>&ldquo;Above all, we&rsquo;ve got to establish a leader and eliminate all the innuendo, the double-talk and confusion on the ice,&rdquo; the Flyers&rsquo; new coach said. &ldquo;These things aren&rsquo;t done without someone having control of the situation.&rdquo;</p><p>Referring to Fred Shero&rsquo;s parting shots about increased management interference, Quinn said, &ldquo;There&rsquo;s 20 guys sitting in here and a guy (coach) is telling them, &lsquo;Come on, guys, let&rsquo;s go,&rsquo; and they&rsquo;re not sure it&rsquo;s his decision. Then things go a little bad, there&rsquo;s second-guessing, there are too many people in the room. That&rsquo;s what brings confusion, self-doubt, anxiety. These are the things I see here now, and it can&rsquo;t stop until someone takes control. Bob may have had it, but I don&rsquo;t know if the players believe it.&rdquo;</p><p>A review of Bob McCammon&rsquo;s first season as Flyers&rsquo; coach was planned about this time, but Keith Allen scratched that idea when McCammon was fired after 50 games. In what some consider a peculiar decision, McCammon agreed to return as coach of the Maine Mariners, the team he led to the Calder Cup a year ago.</p><p>What McCammon&rsquo;s decision proves is (1) he is a man of remarkably little ego and (2) he&rsquo;s smart enough to know that to receive another NHL coaching offer he must stay visible in that role.</p><p>While McCammon was reacquainting himself with downtown Portland, Me., Quinn was focusing on the Flyers&rsquo; problems, which are almost as long as Broad Street.</p><p>A team that not long ago had everyone playing with a dedication rarely found in professional sports is now littered with floaters, players who either can&rsquo;t or won&rsquo;t make the sacrifices required to seriously pursue a Stanley Cup. Organization people remind critics that the Flyers had the NHL&rsquo;s sixth-best record when McCammon was farmed out. The only problem with that argument is the Flyers are now heading the league&rsquo;s middle class&mdash;and slowly sinking toward the tenement district.</p><p>&ldquo;The first thing we have to do,&rdquo; said Quinn, &ldquo;is rebuild the confidence on this team. We need to build confidence between the coach and players. The players need to build it in each other. But that kind of confidence can only come through success, knowing where you&rsquo;re going, having goals and accomplishing them.&rdquo;</p><p>Quinn was pleased with the Flyers&rsquo; effort in the two games he coached before the Challenge Cup intermission. They played the Islanders even for two periods before bowing, 4-1, at the Spectrum. Then the Flyers ended an 0-for-4 season slump against Atlanta by exploding for a 7-4 victory.</p><p>Before the Flyers began celebrating too much, however, Quinn reminded them that he didn&rsquo;t like the way they eased up against Atlanta after leading, 7-2. Clearly, Quinn will be a demanding coach, which isn&rsquo;t surprising when you remember which coaches he&rsquo;s been associated with.</p><p>&ldquo;Bernie Geoffrion was the best I played for a far as handling players,&rdquo; said Quinn. &ldquo;He was personable and loved his players. (Punch) Imlach was one of the master psychologists. The game has changed since, but Punch dealt with people the way he felt they should be dealt with. Make some fearful, praise others, or intimidation. His philosophy was to win a hockey game by having everybody ready. He used to work on me by telling me how bad I was.&rdquo;</p><p>Quinn spent only one season as an assistant to Shero, but he enjoyed the experience.</p><p>&ldquo;The one coach who had the most influence on me, at least in the tactical sense, was Fred Shero. But I never did get my finger on how he motivated players. He was deceptive to the extent that I didn&rsquo;t even know what he was doing and here I was working for him.&rdquo;</p><p>Few people have ever figured out Shero. It&rsquo;s unlikely Quinn will ever earn a nickname like &ldquo;Freddie the Fog&rdquo; (&ldquo;Irish Mist&rdquo; would be Quinn&rsquo;s). The Philadelphia players will know exactly what Quinn wants. Now it&rsquo;s up to them to produce.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-03882/4362940-1-eng-US/f0008-032.jpg" title="f0008-03" width="563" height="728"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PAT QUINN&hellip;He&rsquo;ll Be Demanding</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0008-03

Rebuild Confidence Quinn’s First Move To Elevate Flyers

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011120/4362971-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>TERRY O&rsquo;REILLY&hellip;Fascinated by Soviets&rsquo; System</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Steve Babineau)</span></figcaption></div><p>BOSTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>here was outrage on the longshore of Boston when Himself, elsewhere known as Terry O&rsquo;Reilly, was first selected, then dropped from the National Hockey League All Star team that played and lost to the Soviet Nationals.</p><p>Of course, everyone knew why. Perhaps no player of All Star standing is less capable of competing successfully against the Soviets than Terry O&rsquo;Reilly. He plays too tough. He retaliates. And he does it out in the open where everyone, including the referee, can see.</p><p>A month earlier, O&rsquo;Reilly spent a frustrating night as the Wings of the Soviet team defeated his Boston Bruins, 4-1. After the game, he explained his frustrations and a little bit of his hockey philosophy as well.</p><p>&ldquo;Our guys took a lot of little clips on the nose and bangs on the head from sticks that were carried just a little too high and they weren&rsquo;t noticed,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We retaliated.</p><p>&ldquo;They do it when the referee is not looking and then all of a sudden the referee is looking and we&rsquo;re taking a chop back at them. But, heck, it&rsquo;s all part of the game. They play it smart that way. They may not retaliate but they keep it in mind, I&rsquo;m sure.&rdquo;</p><p>The Soviet manner of getting even is one aspect of hockey that O&rsquo;Reilly does not like.</p><p>&ldquo;A lot of people think that fighting is the most violent part of hockey,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But if they took the fighting out of hockey then you&rsquo;d see some real violence.</p><p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;d see all the other ways of getting even, like using your stick and spearing and butt ending and slashing and all the other things that are minor infractions you can get away with without being thrown out of the game.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never heard of a person getting seriously hurt in a hockey fist fight. The most you get is a black eye, a bloody nose, or a bruised ego if you come out on the bottom. I don&rsquo;t think that&rsquo;s real violence.</p><p>&ldquo;Fighting is like a release when people get all worked up. If you shut off the fighting the pressure is still there and it&rsquo;s going to keep building up and come out someplace else.&rdquo;</p><p>O&rsquo;Reilly is the first Bruin ever to collect more than 200 minutes in penalties in a season. But don&rsquo;t let that fool you. He is also a keen student of the game and the Soviet style of hockey fascinates him.</p><p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;re always on the move,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re circling constantly. When one guy leaves a zone there&rsquo;s another guy coming into it. It&rsquo;s a completely different style from ours.</p><p>&ldquo;We cover channels on the ice. I&rsquo;m a right winger. I have a channel. I stay over there. That means when the play is stopped in our end, I can&rsquo;t be skating around. I have to be stopped.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too bad that there is such a conflict in the two styles. We play very aggressive hockey and we&rsquo;re up against a team that&rsquo;s not used to it but has other ways of getting even.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very tough to officiate because the rules are geared to stop our kind of hockey. The referees are not really aware of what is going on on both sides.&rdquo;</p><p>O&rsquo;Reilly, who has played against the Soviets twice&mdash;the Central Red Army team in 1976 and the Wings in 1979&mdash;thinks he has discovered a subtle change in the Russian game. A change for the better, perhaps?</p><p>&ldquo;A couple of times their guys reacted tonight,&rdquo; he said after the Wings&rsquo; game. &ldquo;The first time they would have no part of it at all.</p><p>They&rsquo;d just smile at you and turn away.</p><p>&ldquo;I think some of them said to themselves, &lsquo;We&rsquo;re not going to take that anymore.&rsquo; A couple of them had their sticks up and slashed back right out in the open where the referee could see.&rdquo;</p><p>Where will it all lead?</p><p>&ldquo;Terry O&rsquo;Reilly and Boris Mikhailov. Five minutes. Fighting.&rdquo;</p><p>Why not?<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0009-01

O’ Reilly’s Ice Approach: Honest, Open, Aggressive

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0010-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011150/4363002-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg"></div><p><b>Write to:</b></p><p><b>FAN FORUM,</b></p><p><b>The Hockey News, 1434 St. Catherine St.,</b></p><p><b>W., Montreal, Canada H3G 1R7</b></p><h2><b>Habs&rsquo; Tremblay Steps From Shadows</b></h2><p>This year has been a good year for a Montreal Canadien who skates in the shadows. He&rsquo;s finally come out and is making a name for himself.</p><p>I am speaking of good old Mario Tremblay; the Canadien who for so long was used rarely. Now he is a regular. He is playing well and his record proves it.</p><p>Remember he sat out all of Les Habs playoff games, and in the last one in which he did play, he scored two goals? Ah yes&hellip;THAT Mario Tremblay, Mr. Reliable.</p><p>Congratulations Mr. Tremblay, I know you are more than a shadow!</p><p><b>KATHY BURNS,</b><br><b>Clinton, N.Y.</b></p><h2><b>Media &lsquo;Borrowing&rsquo; Works Both Ways</b></h2><p>Your issue of Jan. 19 carried a column on page 12 written by Bill Fleischman. In it he made reference to the fact that when writers conduct postgame interviews the answers to their questions are being recorded by members of the electronic media whom he described collectively as &ldquo;lazy tape-recorder toters.&rdquo;</p><p>Had Mr. Fleischman been observant in the dressing room of the Montreal Canadiens in his home area, the Philadelphia Spectrum, on the night of Jan. 29 he would have seen Dan Kelly of KMOX Radio in St. Louis and the writer of this letter conducting a combined radio interview with Larry Robinson. At the same time two or three writers were standing close by writing down what Robinson had to say without once asking a single question themselves. I&rsquo;m sure many of those quotes found their way into various newspaper stories the next day.</p><p>1 do not claim that what Mr. Fleischman referred to doesn&rsquo;t happen. However I feel your readers should be aware that this is a situation which definitely works the other way on many occasions.</p><p><b>DICK IRVIN,</b><br><b>Sports Director, CFCF Radio</b><br><b>Montreal, Que.</b></p><h2><b>Schultz For McAdam Steal By Penguins</b></h2><p>I am writing in connection with the recent Sabres-Penguins trade. The Sabres, a team that needs a steady offense go and acquire the Hammer, Dave Schultz and give up a promising forward in Gary McAdam.</p><p>McAdam has averaged 20 goals over the past few seasons and although he wasn&rsquo;t producing goals this year (six in 40 games) I don&rsquo;t think Buffalo should have made such a stupid trade.</p><p>Schultz won&rsquo;t be adding muscle to the lineup, instead he&rsquo;ll be keeping the penalty box occupied. If Buffalo doesn&rsquo;t watch out the improving North Stars will surpass them.</p><p>If Pittsburgh can keep making steals like this one, then watch out Habs.</p><p><b>STEVE WHALEN,</b><br><b>Scarborough, Ont.</b></p><h2><b>Pros Should Adopt College Ideas</b></h2><p>I am writing to thank you for your greatly expanded coverage of college hockey. It really helps me to keep abreast of the game between ECAC games on Public TV.</p><p>Much as I enjoy the rapidly improving Capitals and the NHL in general, I think that pro hockey could open the game up by doing away with the red line. Adoption of the college rules on fighting would also benefit the game.</p><p><b>DAVID J. NICKEL,</b><br><b>Falls Church, Va.</b></p><h2><b>Skalbania Tried To Save Indy Hockey</b></h2><p>I am writing in disagreement with the letter by Gina Constantino in the Feb. 9 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS. It stated that Nelson Skalbania didn&rsquo;t give fans in Indianapolis a chance to prove a good hockey town because he sold Eddie Mio, Wayne Gretzky and Peter Driscoll and by making the team fold.</p><p>Skalbania had to sell these players to keep from folding. You should thank Skalbania for trying to keep hockey in Indianapolis. He tried as hard as he could&hellip;please have some consideration towards Skalbania.</p><p><b>MIKE BURTON,</b><br><b>Lunenberg, N.S.</b></p><h2><b>Exchange Student Congratulates Writer</b></h2><p>I am an exchange student from Ohio staying in Chile for one year and have a subscription to your fine magazine given to me by my father.</p><p>1 would like to compliment the entire Hockey News staff for all the hard work that they put into their magazine making it informing and interesting. But I want to especially congratulate Bill Libby for the excellent article that he wrote about Inge Hammarstrom (Dec. 22).</p><p>Not only in this article, but in all of them, his style of presenting the player as a person and not as a piece of meat is a real credit to your magazine. I look forward to reading his articles every week.</p><p><b>VICTORIA PARK,</b><br><b>Chilian, Chile</b></p><h2><b>Conacher Deserves Hall Of Fame Status</b></h2><p>What three things do George Armstrong, Gordie Drillon, Joe Primeau and Harry Watson have in common?</p><p>1. They all played mostly or entirely for the Toronto Maple Leafs.</p><p>2. They all are in the Hockey Hall of Fame.</p><p>3. None of them had a record as good as that of Roy Conacher.</p><p>Roy Conacher led the league in goals once. He also led the league in points one season and was picked to the first All Star team. He finished among the top 16 scorers in the NHL in all of his 9 full seasons in the league, six times among the top 10. He scored 226 goals and 200 assists in only 490 games during his career.</p><p>I think it is very unfortunate that he did not play for the Leafs during his career or he would undoubtedly be in the Hall of Fame now. Which is not to say that the players mentioned abouve shouldn&rsquo;t be there.</p><p><b>PETE TINGLEY,</b><br><b>Sussex Corner, N.B.</b></p><h2><b>Another Version Of Hockey Merger</b></h2><p>Should the NHL accept the four WHA teams (Quebec, Winnipeg, Edmonton and New England) for the 197980 season? I believe they should be added to the league as follows: Quebec to the Norris Division to build up a rivalry with Montreal, New England to join Boston in the Adams Division for the same reason, Edmonton to the Smythe Division to give clubs an extra stop on a west coast swing to Vancouver, and Winnipeg to the Patrick Division.</p><p><b>JAMES HOWELL JR.,</b><br><b>Lenoir City, Tenn.</b></p><h2><b>Give Juniors Chance For Development</b></h2><p>Upon reading in the Feb. 9 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS, of the new 21-year contract signed by Wayne Gretsky, my thoughts rolled back to the day here in Sault Ste. Marie, when we were told that 17-year-old Gretzky has signed with the WHA. A few days following it was rumored that John Bassett was signing six underage juniors, among which would be Craig Hartsburg, who in many eyes was the most promising young defenseman to come along in years. And I again thought back a couple of years, to the time Jack Valiquette at 18 was kidnapped by Toronto after tying for the OHA scoring title.</p><p>It should be said of the junior franchise owners, that if patience is a virtue, these men would put Jobe to shame. I don&rsquo;t know if it would be feasible, but how about making the three major junior leagues one, with three divisions. You could call the league the Canadian junior professional hockey league, or whatever. Pay the elite juniors a good contracted salary, possibly subsidized by the Pros, but let them develop in junior hockey before making the leap to the NHL or WHA.</p><p>We are ending up with our leagues being nothing more than the chaff after the wheat has been removed, with a sprinkling of some good midget hockey players. We have all witnessed the failure of some of these boys who were lured into the big time by the rustle of dollars dangled by a few fast buck agents.</p><p><b>JIM BRAWLEY,</b><br><b>Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.</b></p><h2><b>LETTER OF THE WEEK</b></h2><h3><b>Mixed Emotions On Dryden&rsquo;s Behalf</b></h3><p><b>I read with mixed emotions your letter of the week in the Feb. 17 issue. I&rsquo;m a Montreal fan and I think that Ken Dryden does not always get the credit due him. While it is true that he is not as consistently good as some of the other goalies in the NHL, when he is at his best, there is no one better.</b></p><p><b>However, I agree with Mr. Daly that awarding the Vezina Trophy on the basis of average alone is not totally fair. I would like to see statistics on goalies&rsquo; save averages. Perhaps these statistics could even be used in part to determine the Vezina winner.</b></p><p><b>COLIN GRIEVE,</b><br><b>Cobourg, Ont.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

FAN FORUM

<p><b>Special To The Hockey News</b></p><p>NFW YORK&mdash;</p><p>Hockey television coverage of the Challenge Cup series apparently left a lot to be desired in the United States. Letters of complaint have been directed by the fans to the National Hockey League, THE HOCKEY NEWS and the Federal Communication Commission.</p><p>CBS picked up the third period and highlights of game one during a five-minute segment on their Saturday Sports Spectacular show, but it was obvious it wasn&rsquo;t adequate to satisfy American hockey fans.</p><p>Typical of the resentment expressed by U.S. fans is this letter written to CBS by Charles E. Fetscher Jr., of Poughkeepsie, N.Y. We&rsquo;d like to let Mr. Fetscher tell it as he saw it:</p><p>&ldquo;I am writing to protest your totally botched coverage of the USSR/NHL Hockey Challenge Cup. As usual you strung along the entire audience for an hour and ten minutes while teasing us with &ldquo;up coming coverage.&rdquo;</p><p>As usual you provided only about seven minutes out of 60 minutes clogged with one commercial after another. As usual you spent more time plugging future &ldquo;Sports Spectaculars&rdquo; than the main event itself.</p><p>Then, finally, you cut into the hockey game, don&rsquo;t tell us where, no indication of time remaining until five minutes to go. Then, because of your &ldquo;deep moral fiber&rdquo; you show shots avoiding the advertising along the boards and instead provide super coverage of legs and sticks. Then, not to be outdone you provide totally confusing coverage of the dramatic climax.</p><p>As far as the ads go, ironically the side board advertisements lent an international touch to Thursday&rsquo;s Game One of the series. In fact, they improved the TV coverage, providing a contrast to the bright ice and white uniforms of the NHL. In addition, when was the last time you televised:</p><p>&bull; a soccer match without side board advertising?</p><p>&bull; auto racing without a multitude of ads on cars, drivers and side boards?</p><p>&bull; boxing without manufacturers names in the comers, gloves and ropes?</p><p>Your coverage of the game itself was most disappointing. All that talk for seven minutes of &ldquo;action.&rdquo; Because of you, our local outlet could not provide live coverage of a super game. How could the NHL agree to your abbreviated coverage?</p><p>Although I have never taken the time to write a complaint letter about anything in my life, I was compelled to speak my piece about your botching up the hockey broadcast. Americans who were hyped along by your teasing tactics were bitterly disappointed.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Americans Cheated By CBS Coverage Of Challenge Cup

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div><p>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>n late November, even with the North Stars struggling in the throes of an eight-game losing streak, coach Glen Sonmor predicted his players would rally around and be a factor in the playoff picture.</p><p>&ldquo;People were saying back then that if you take one bag of chicken salad and put it with another bad of chicken salad, all you have is a bigger bag of chicken salad,&rdquo; Sonmor said.</p><p>The reference was the merger of the Cleveland and Minnesota franchises, and Sonmor used another word besides chicken salad. Either way, he does not believe the North Stars will be left holding the bag.</p><p>&ldquo;I never felt that way,&rdquo; said Sonmor. &ldquo;We not only have a much better club than either of the old Cleveland and Minnesota teams, but we ARE going to be a factor. I not only think the North Stars are going to make the playoffs, but I think we&rsquo;ll finish second in the Adams Division.&rdquo;</p><p>Sonmor&rsquo;s latest assessment came after the North Stars closed the pre-All Star break part of their schedule in a rush. They won five of their last six games after a pair of ties, and pulled right behind Buffalo and Toronto in the chase for second in the Adams Division.</p><p>Also, in the wild-card playoff scheme, Minnesota is on the heels of Pittsburgh and Los Angeles for what would be the final Stanley Cup opening come April.</p><p>points in the Smythe Division race, but have 16 of their remaining 26 games at home, a factor they are hoping will give.</p><p>February&rsquo;s schedule seemed to be the time to make that prediction a good one. The team had only three road games, an excellent time to stock up points for the North Stars will play eight of their final 10 games on the road in late March and early April.</p><p>Revival of the Stars could be attributed to several reasons, starting with Sonmor&rsquo;s enthusiastic leadership. After a rocky start, the Stars have given Sonmor an 18-18-5 record heading off the All Star break into their final 28 games.</p><p>Individually, there have been a number of standouts, starting with goalies Gilles Meloche and Gary Edwards. The pair yielded 15 goals in the seven games before the 10-day vacation.</p><p>Sonmor thinks that if that sort of play continues, the pair could finish as high as third in the Vezina race behind the New York Islanders and Montreal Canadiens.</p><p>Offensively, Bobby Smith has moved to the top of NHL rookie scorers and No. 1 in the Stars&rsquo; point totals. His 20 goals and 25 assists might have been even better if Minnesota had not run into the hot-handed gloves of Don Edwards of Buffalo in a 2-1 setback and Mike Palmateer of Toronto in a 6-4 victory.</p><p>Defensively, Greg Smith continues to play outstanding in both ends. There was one 2-on-l Buffalo rush where he took out the puck carrier and then slid over to block the shot on the other side of the slot after forcing a pass.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011096/4363057-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="563" height="948"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GREG SMITH&hellip;Defensively Solid</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0011-01

Stars Acquire Aura Of Contender

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div><p>VANCOUVER&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>here are times to speak and times to stand silently by. It is not yet known which it is for Rick Blight, who let it be known to coach Harry Neale of the Vancouver Canucks and everyone else who might be interested that he wished to be played or traded.</p><p>The outburst came after the Canucks&rsquo; 5-1 victory over the Washington Capitals on a Saturday night. Blight, the veteran right winger who was second in club scoring last year behind Mike Walton, told Neale that he wanted to be played or traded. Neale played him a regular shift the following afternoon in Boston, and Blight came up with a fairly strong performance, though he missed a first period breakaway.</p><p>As the teams broke for the All Star exhibition series against the Soviets, Blight went back to his home near Brandon, Man. to ponder his situation and get some rest. Neale came home and had a chat with Milford, who has promised to go about the business of accommodating Blight. The biggest problem is that the book is out on Blight in that he has problems with his skating, though his shot is one of the best in the league and certainly the best on the Canucks.</p><p>Blight&rsquo;s problems began way back in training camp, back to the very first intra-squad game. With less than a minute remaining on the Courtenay rink clock, Hilliard Graves lined up Blight with his hip check, the resulting knee damage to Blight&rsquo;s ligaments leaving him out for six weeks.</p><p>When he returned to the lineup, everything was a struggle and he worked at it extremely hard. But the harder he worked, the worse things turned out for him, and it was suggested that he go to Dallas for some conditioning of both body and mind.</p><p>He did, but a rash of injuries forced Neale to bring him back before he wanted to, and the whole process began again. He has not been back onto the power play with any regularity and has been used sparingly, often on a fourth line on road trips. The end result is that Blight, at All Star break, had only five goals, a meagre total for the former Brandon Wheat Kings winger.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-02891/4363088-1-eng-US/f0011-022.jpg" title="f0011-02" width="579" height="610"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RICK BLIGHT&hellip;Wants To Play</b></figcaption></div><p>If Milford is successful in changing the scenery for Blight, it will come at some expense to the club. Blight signed a new contract at the beginning of this season, calling for three years and an option and the money is big. The way Blight is playing, Milford will either have to take another big name, big contract who is in the doghouse, or help the new club pay the salary, as they did when they peddled Andre Boudrias to Quebec Nordiques. That deal has never been forgotten in Vancouver.</p><p>Just before press time, Vancouver postponed their decision by once more sending Blight to Dallas. So the problem remains.</p><p>Yet another saga may be brewing, what with Dune Wilson, the goalkeeper Milford brought in when the team was down to no goalies, apparently balking with going to Dallas to get some work.</p><p>With Canucks using Gary Bromley in the four games since the injury to Glen Hanlon, Wilson has been ensconsed on the bench and not particularly happy. When he was asked to go to Dallas during the All Star break, he told the club such a venture was not his idea of a holiday.</p><p>Such spits and spats are nothing strange to the Vancouver Canucks, though Neale is not really concerned with the details, as long as they are satisfactorily ironed out by the time the club goes back to work.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0011-02

An Injury Started Blight’s Plight With Vancouver

<div class="byline">BY BILL LIBBY</div><p>LOS ANGELES&mdash;</p><p>The Kings have been looking for a left wing who would work well on Marcel Dionne&rsquo;s line with right wing Dave Taylor and may have found him on the farm. Recalled from Springfield of the American League when the Kings were riddled with injuries and needed another body, Charlie Simmer was given a shot and responded with points in his first nine games and four goals in his first 12.</p><p>Simmer has had a curious career. He scored 43 and 45 goals his last two seasons as an amateur and has scored 12, 23, 32, and 42 goals his four seasons as a pro prior to this one, but all in the minors. He scored only 11 goals in the majors prior to this season, but played only 83 games, and often played only a shift or two a game.</p><p>He was the 39th pick of the pro draft in 1974, but the Oakland-Cleveland franchise had him mainly in the minors at Salt Lake City. When the failing franchise reduced costs by cutting all their minor leaguers before last season, the Kings picked him up at no cost. But despite two straight excellent training camps, Simmer wound up at Springfield. This marks the fifth straight season he has split between the majors and minors.</p><p>He had 13 goals in 39 games when the Kings called him up Jan. 12 and the big guy has done a big job, even though his history tells us he can&rsquo;t count on a job up top yet. But as he approaches the age of 25, the slow-skating, but aggressive and strong six-foot-three, 195-pounder sure looks like he belongs. He is a grinder who keeps the puck in play and sets up goals for others as well as himself.</p><p>He says, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know why I haven&rsquo;t made it in the majors. Being sent down season after season has been hard to take. I have been discouraged. I&rsquo;ve been depressed at times. It&rsquo;s hard not to think about it a lot.</p><p>&ldquo;But I&rsquo;ve never thought of giving up. I&rsquo;ve thought to myself I shouldn&rsquo;t let up. It&rsquo;s not hard for me to hustle. I get up for every game. So I&rsquo;ve played as hard in the minors as in the majors.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been hard to make my mark in the majors. I haven&rsquo;t played regularly on a regular line for long at any time. Since the Kings brought me up they have used me regularly on the Dionne line, and that has given me my chance to prove myself.</p><p>Simmer says, &ldquo;Skating with Dionne and Dave, a guy&rsquo;s going to get a lot of scoring opportunities. It&rsquo;s great to break in with the best. They make it easy for you.</p><p>Asked if it also isn&rsquo;t hard to keep up, Simmer says, &ldquo;Yes, in a way. Dionne does things so fast. Dave is young, but he works well with Dionne. I have to fit in.</p><p>&ldquo;Naturally, I&rsquo;d like to stay on a line like that, but the main thing for me may be to prove I can play up here, whatever the line.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m on my option year of a year-and-an-option contract I signed with the Kings when I joined them and there&rsquo;s been a lot of pressure on me to produce this season.</p><p>&ldquo;A lot of fringe players have fallen out of hockey in recent seasons. I think I&rsquo;m more than a fringe player, but I have had a hard time proving that to people.&rdquo;</p><p>Simmer was born in Terrace Bay, Ontario, a pulp-and-paper mill town in March of 1954. His late father worked in the mill, as does a younger brother. The only other recent hockey pro he recalls coming out of the town is Ron Schock.</p><p>Simmer is a bachelor, which may be for the best since he has been bounced around so much, yanked up and down like a yo-yo, but he has so far made the most of the best chance he yet had had to make the majors.</p><p>Dionne, who was a right-winger when he set the team mark of 53 goals in 1977, recently set the team mark for centers with his 40th goal. At that point, Taylor had 30.</p><p>The Kings have been struggling to get to the .500 level and wins at home over visiting New York and in Colorado brought them within one at the All Star break. A hero of both was goaler Mario Lessard, who has to be considered a candidate for &ldquo;Rookie of the Year&rdquo; laurels in the NHL.</p><p>After the 4-2 triumph over Rangers I was criticised for picking hard-working linemates Butch Goring and Mike Murphy and not Lessard as stars of the contest. My critics may have been right. Dionne says, &ldquo;He made the big saves when we needed them and kept us in the game.&rdquo; After the 4-1 triumph over Rockies, coach Bob Berry said, &ldquo;He kept us close until we could pull away to win.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02956/4363119-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="558" height="1152"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>CHARLIE SIMMER&hellip;Gets First Big Chance</b></figcaption></div><p><b>KINGS THINGS:</b> The 13,471 fans who turned out to see the Ranger game was far short of capacity, but the best turnout of the Forum season&hellip;Doug Halward missed 10 games with a strep throat, but returned from a rest at home in Toronto to rejoin the team.,<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-02

Simmer Answering Kings’ Call For Left Wing Help

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK MOODY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011123/4363150-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RUSS ANDERSON&hellip;Must Keep Producing</b></figcaption></div><p>PITTSBURGH&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>WO Detroit Red Wings broke into the Penguin zone, and the only player standing between them and the Pittsburgh goaltender was Penguin defenseman Russ Anderson. Suddenly, Anderson dove out head-first, and poke checked the puck back across the blueline to safety.</p><p>The play was typical of the type Anderson has been making this season for the Penguins. When defenseman Ron Stackhouse was hit near the eye with the puck on a recent West Coast road trip, and was forced to miss some games, Anderson played some of his best hockey of the year.</p><p>Russ was standing players up at the blueline, and patrolling his defensive side with the confidence he never before exhibited in his two previous seasons in the National Hockey League.</p><p>Despite his improved play, Anderson still talks shyly about himself, like he was only a rookie.</p><p>&ldquo;There are some very good defensemen on this team,&rdquo; said Anderson. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s why I&rsquo;m not about to take things lightly and think I have it made.&rdquo;</p><p>In his two previous seasons with the Penguins, Anderson often would try to do too much all by himself, and stray from his position. Russ sometimes would get caught out of position by moving all the way across the ice, trying to slam somebody through the boards.</p><p>Penguin coach Johnny Wilson has noticed Anderson&rsquo;s improved play this season, and rewarded him with a lot of extra playing time.</p><p>&ldquo;When Stackhouse got hurt, Anderson really showed what he can do,&rdquo; said Wilson. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s done that before, though. It seems when one of our other defensemen get hurt, Russ settles down, and plays the type of hockey we know he&rsquo;s capable of. I think that he has matured enough now, that he has learned to play consistently all of the time.&rdquo;</p><p>Anderson seems to realize that when other defensemen are hurt, it is to his advantage to impress the team&rsquo;s management.</p><p>&ldquo;I try to take advantage of the shortage in defenseman,&rdquo; Anderson said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m in the best physical shape I&rsquo;ve been in any year I&rsquo;ve been here. This is a good hockey team, and I&rsquo;d like to contribute to it.&rdquo;</p><p>Anderson, 24, was a second round amateur draft choice of the Penguins in 1975 from the University of Minnesota. He chose to stay at Minnesota, however, one more season after Pittsburgh drafted him.</p><p>The six-foot-three, 210-pound Anderson, who picked up the nickname of &ldquo;The Enforcer&rdquo; while in college, was a member of the NCAA championship hockey team in 1976. But, he did not play in the title game because of a suspension for fighting in a previous game, while he was doing some of his &ldquo;enforcing.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;With the addition of Tom Bladon, Randy Carlyle and Dale Tallon added to the defensemen we already had here, said Anderson, &ldquo;it makes everybody work very hard to help this team.&rdquo;</p><p>Anderson, who was an All-America hockey player while at Minnesota, has settled down from his rookie season two years ago. During the off-season, he even married his college sweetheart, Dorothy Benham. Dorothy was Miss America of 1976.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-01

Penguins Reward Improved Anderson With More Ice Time

<div class="byline">BY FRED PIETILA</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011056/4363240-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BARRY BECK&hellip;Only Kidding With Reporter</b></figcaption></div><p>DENVER&mdash;</p><p>It must be becoming the vogue for hockey players to try to dupe the media of Denver.</p><p>The now infamous Phil Esposito translation of Ulf Nilsson&rsquo;s comments to a Denver radio reporter following a Rangers&rsquo; win over the Colorado Rockies in early January started it.</p><p>And then Barry &ldquo;Bubba&rdquo; Beck, the Rockies&rsquo; usually emotionless defenseman, added to it with a one-sided verbal exchange with this Hockey News correspondent.</p><p>The Beck skit unfolded like this. The Rockies were practicing one morning the day before another game with the Rangers, of all teams, and everyone seemed to be in good spirits since the team had gone unbeaten in four games (2-0-2).</p><p>Beck broke his stick during the practice session and retreated to the dressing room for another. As he was approaching the ice after picking up his new stick, he spotted this Hockey News correspondent.</p><p>Beck gave the guy a tap on the arm with his stick, slowed his walk considerably and then said slowly, but oh so surely: &lsquo;Someone told me that you put in the paper that I had met my match Saturday night. I have never met my match. The guy was holding on to me.&rsquo;</p><p>Beck&rsquo;s tone was serious enough to startle the unsuspecting reporter. No one else spoke. When the sometimes surly Beck speaks, it&rsquo;s like the E. F. Hutton advertisement. Everybody listens. His message was short and not so sweet. He was upset because he thought he had been wronged.</p><p>The reporter&rsquo;s knee&rsquo;s were wobbly for a few seconds until a colleague from another Denver paper said, &ldquo;You can stop shaking now.&rdquo;</p><p>The reporter stuttered back: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not shaking.&rdquo; And then he noticed just how badly his knees were shaking.</p><p>Anyway, a major part of the 21-year-old Beck&rsquo;s reputation in the National Hockey League is built on toughness and respect. The immediate notion was that he was upset because his image had been tarnished.</p><p>A couple of days later after another practice at McNichols Sports Arena, Beck was laughing about the incident.</p><p>&ldquo;I was just foolin&rsquo; around. I was only kidding,&rdquo; the six-foot-three, 216-pound second-year pro said with an infrequent smile. The reporter smiled back weakly. &ldquo;As far as I&rsquo;m concerned, you can write anything you want about me. Just don&rsquo;t write anything bad about the team.&rdquo;</p><p>But Beck, who has established a reputation as one of the best fighters in the league, had appeared to at least be neutralized by Vancouver rookie Curt Fraser in the aforementioned fight. &ldquo;It was a holding match,&rdquo; Beck said. &ldquo;Most fights are just wresting and holding. It&rsquo;s not very often you see a good toe-to-toe fight. It&rsquo;s usually a wrestling match or one-sided.&rdquo; Most of Beck&rsquo;s fight are one-sided, his way.</p><p>Beck&rsquo;s play, like most of the other Rockies, has improved considerably since Aldo Guidolin took over for Pat Kelly as head coach.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know why at the beginning of the year, but there were a lot of problems,&rdquo; Beck said. &ldquo;With Aldo coming in, we got a lot of &lsquo;em taken care of.&rdquo;</p><p>Beck said he was bothered by &ldquo;personal problems&rdquo; in the first quarter of the season. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve settled down a little more now. I&rsquo;ve got a better attitude. I was a little lackadaisical at the beginning of the season. 1 had a lot of things on my mind and they were affecting my play. You can&rsquo;t do that as a pro athlete. Getting on the ice, I would lose a little bit of my composure because I was thinking about other things.</p><p>Beck also was playing more aggressively as the season headed into the stretch run. He&rsquo;s best when he&rsquo;s throwing his 216 pounds around.</p><p>But even during a 4-1 loss to Los Angeles, preceding the All Star break, Beck was the target of boos from the Denver fans. Granted, he did not have one of his better games, but neither did many of the Rockies, who were simply horrid for the second straight game (they lost 6-3 in St. Louis the previous day).</p><p>Previously, most of the booing had been directed toward defensemen John Van Boxmeer and Mike Christie. Some of it was deserved, but much wasn&rsquo;t as the frustrated fans sought scapegoats for their struggling club.</p><p>Goal-scoring has been the Rockies&rsquo; biggest problem. And they missed many great chances in the loss to the Kings. Left winger Andy Spruce, who has been bothered tremendously by family problems, was one Rocky who failed to capitalize and was stuck on a three-goal total after the team&rsquo;s first 53 games.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;ll (the goal-scoring slump) probably end in &lsquo;84 or &lsquo;85,&rdquo; a dejected Spruce sighed. Spruce scored 19 goals for the Rockies last season and was being counted on for a similar effort this season.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-01

Beck Concentrates On Lifting Rockies’ Hopes

<div class="byline">BY RUSS WHITE</div><p>WASHINGTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>aving already done quite well in the free agent market with goalie Gary Inness, Capitals&rsquo; general manager Max McNab has made another plunge in the same area, signing veteran center Dennis Hextall.</p><p>Hextall began the season with the Detroit Red Wings but was sidelined by that organization for the last eight weeks. Detroit&rsquo;s fans howled but management didn&rsquo;t listen.</p><p>Finally, the Red Wings released Hextall outright so he could be signed by the Caps.</p><p>Coach Danny Belisle immediately began using Hextall as center man on a line with left wing Bobby Girard and right wing Mark Lofthouse.</p><p>Hextall, 35, had kept in shape by working out with the Red Wings&rsquo; old-timers team and was ready to play once he came to Washington. &ldquo;A little NHL competition and I&rsquo;ll be as good as ever,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>McNab has long considered Hextall as an aggressive NHL forward, a player unafraid of working and an expert playmaker and goal scorer when the need be.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know what the problem was in Detroit, why the Red Wings chose not to play Hextall,&rdquo; McNab said. &ldquo;Whatever happened there has no bearing on what we&rsquo;re doing, what we expect from Hextall. He&rsquo;ll definitely help the Capitals.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02821/4363271-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="559" height="665"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DENNIS HEXTALL&hellip;Stayed In Shape</b></figcaption></div><p>Hextall is signed for the remainder of this season and next year with Washington.</p><p>&ldquo;They changed the idea about hockey in Detroit this year,&rdquo; Hextall said. &ldquo;Bobby Kromm wanted European-style players, a skating team and I wasn&rsquo;t included in their plans. Terry Harper and I both were sat down.</p><p>Kromm has made comments that Hextall didn&rsquo;t provide leadership on the ice, hence he wasn&rsquo;t needed in Detroit.</p><p>&ldquo;We feel he&rsquo;ll lead our players,&rdquo; McNab said. &ldquo;We already see signs that he&rsquo;ll help young Mark Lofthouse&rsquo;s game.&rdquo;</p><p>The Caps were 9-5-1 in January but lost their first two games in February before the All Star break. They resumed the schedule with a tough four-game road trip to Colorado, Montreal, New York Rangers and Atlanta.</p><p>Inness was glad to have the rest and was back in goal for the game at Colorado with Bernie Wolfe his backup.</p><p>McNab has talked to Jimmy Bedard and the young goalie, who started the season as No. 1 for Washington, will remain at Hershey awhile longer. McNab hinted that Bedard may be up by midMarch, before the league deadline.</p><p>Veteran Bryan Watson was given his outright release by the Caps and was negotiating with several clubs. Watson played in only 20 games this year and had one assist and 36 minutes in penalties.</p><p>Meanwhile, rookie defenseman Leif Svensson has recovered from an ankle injury that shelved him before the All Star break.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-02

Capitals Secure Hextall For Added Forward Depth

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01907/4363540-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg"></div><h2><b>ATLANTA FLAMES</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02752/4363533-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="145" height="130"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03602/4363526-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="734" height="601"></div><h2><b>BOSTON BRUINS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-04469/4363519-1-eng-US/f0016-042.jpg" title="f0016-04" width="125" height="128"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-05361/4363512-1-eng-US/f0016-052.jpg" title="f0016-05" width="715" height="574"></div><h2><b>BUFFALO SABRES</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-06297/4363505-1-eng-US/f0016-062.jpg" title="f0016-06" width="118" height="119"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-07271/4363498-1-eng-US/f0016-072.jpg" title="f0016-07" width="717" height="625"></div><h2><b>CHICAGO HAWKS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-08251/4363491-1-eng-US/f0016-082.jpg" title="f0016-08" width="163" height="154"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-09227/4363484-1-eng-US/f0016-092.jpg" title="f0016-09" width="731" height="598"></div><h2><b>COLORADO ROCKIES</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-10205/4363477-1-eng-US/f0016-102.jpg" title="f0016-10" width="125" height="124"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-11191/4363470-1-eng-US/f0016-112.jpg" title="f0016-11" width="715" height="602"></div><h2><b>DETROIT RED WINGS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-12174/4363463-1-eng-US/f0016-122.jpg" title="f0016-12" width="156" height="90"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-13160/4363456-1-eng-US/f0016-132.jpg" title="f0016-13" width="721" height="598"></div><h2><b>LOS ANGELES KINGS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-14152/4363449-1-eng-US/f0016-142.jpg" title="f0016-14" width="141" height="146"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-15142/4363442-1-eng-US/f0016-152.jpg" title="f0016-15" width="731" height="676"></div><h2><b>MINNESOTA STARS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-16138/4363435-1-eng-US/f0016-162.jpg" title="f0016-16" width="154" height="135"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-17130/4363428-1-eng-US/f0016-172.jpg" title="f0016-17" width="734" height="610"></div><h2><b>MONTREAL CANADIENS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-18123/4363421-1-eng-US/f0016-182.jpg" title="f0016-18" width="143" height="114"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-19114/4363414-1-eng-US/f0016-192.jpg" title="f0016-19" width="730" height="680"></div><h2><b>NEW YORK ISLANDERS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2094/4363407-1-eng-US/f0016-202.jpg" title="f0016-20" width="138" height="131"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2188/4363400-1-eng-US/f0016-212.jpg" title="f0016-21" width="724" height="635"></div><h2><b>NEW YORK RANGERS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2286/4363393-1-eng-US/f0016-222.jpg" title="f0016-22" width="141" height="137"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2383/4363386-1-eng-US/f0016-232.jpg" title="f0016-23" width="727" height="666"></div><h2><b>PHILADELPHIA FLYERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2481/4363379-1-eng-US/f0016-242.jpg" title="f0016-24" width="161" height="111"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2576/4363372-1-eng-US/f0016-252.jpg" title="f0016-25" width="718" height="600"></div><h2><b>PITTSBURGH PENGUINS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2673/4363365-1-eng-US/f0016-262.jpg" title="f0016-26" width="146" height="140"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2764/4363358-1-eng-US/f0016-272.jpg" title="f0016-27" width="720" height="619"></div><h2><b>ST. LOUIS BLUES</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2862/4363351-1-eng-US/f0016-282.jpg" title="f0016-28" width="108" height="96"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-2955/4363344-1-eng-US/f0016-292.jpg" title="f0016-29" width="720" height="628"></div><h2><b>TORONTO LEAFS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3055/4363337-1-eng-US/f0016-302.jpg" title="f0016-30" width="127" height="131"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3155/4363330-1-eng-US/f0016-312.jpg" title="f0016-31" width="721" height="583"></div><h2><b>VANCOUVER CANUCKS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3249/4363323-1-eng-US/f0016-322.jpg" title="f0016-32" width="137" height="134"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3349/4363316-1-eng-US/f0016-332.jpg" title="f0016-33" width="711" height="657"></div><h2><b>WASHINGTON CAPS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3445/4363309-1-eng-US/f0016-342.jpg" title="f0016-34" width="177" height="98"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-3531/4363302-1-eng-US/f0016-352.jpg" title="f0016-35" width="720" height="603"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0016-01

NHL POINT SCORING AND PENALTY STATISTICS

<p><b>Special To The Hockey New</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01799/4363585-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="567" height="564"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>ERIC VAIL&hellip;25 Goals</b></figcaption></div><p>ATLANTA&mdash;</p><p>The Flames, third in the highly competitive Patrick Division, took their act on the road last week and when they returned home to face the Washington Caps, had plenty to be pleased about. Especially their offense.</p><p>Not only did the Flames remain hot on the heels of the New York Rangers in the battle for second place in the division, but they also managed to gain a little daylight on the Philadelphia Flyers, hockey&rsquo;s best fourth-place team, by virtue of two wins and a tie in their three-game road swing.</p><p>The tie came on the first and toughest stop, Chicago, where the Flames held 20 and 3-2 leads but almost wound up losing the game. Willi Plett and Guy Chouinard staked the Atlantans to a two-goal lead early in the second period, but Chicago came back for a 2-2 tie before Bob Murdoch restored the Flames to a one-goal advantage.</p><p>By mid-way through the final period, though, Chicago had moved ahead, 4-3 before Ed Kea slipped in his fourth goal of the season to salvage a tie for the Flames.</p><p>Denver was the second stop on the road journey with the game scoreless in the middle frame, Ken Houston and Chouinard, the latter with his 32nd of the year, scored just 31 seconds apart for a 2-0 Atlanta lead after two periods.</p><p>The Flames went on to outscore the Rockies, 3-1 in the third period for a 5-1 triumph as Hal Phillipoff scored his seventh of the year and Eric Vail added a pair, his 23rd and 24th of the campaign.</p><p>Concluding their trip in St. Louis, the Flames fell behind the Blues 2-1 in the first period despite outshooting their hosts at one point by a 12-2 margin. Vail had his 25th goal in that first stanza, sandwiched around goals by Tony Currie and Mike Zuke on the Blues&rsquo; first two shots of the game.</p><p>In the middle period, though, the Flames solved ex-mate goaler Phil Myre, beating him four times in a little over 12 minutes. Bobby Lalonde, with his 19th goal, opened the floodgates, tying the game after just 25 seconds of the period had elapsed. Then, midway through the frame, Red Laurence knocked in his 10th of the year on a passout from behind the net by Houston, MacMillan added his 28th 1:22 later, and then Laurence capped the explosion with his second of the night just 62 seconds after that.</p><p>Bob Murdoch scored his sixth of the year and third since joining the Flames to close out the Atlanta scoring in the third period.</p><h2><b>Where NHL Teams Play</b></h2><h3><b>FEBRUARY</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02672/4363578-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="601" height="1111"></div><h3><b>MARCH</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-03516/4363571-1-eng-US/f0017-032.jpg" title="f0017-03" width="582" height="527"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-01

Flames Rekindle Offense On Successful Road Trip

<h2><b>Looking At NHL Goalers</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01817/4363630-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="608" height="1976"></div><h2><b>Team Penalties</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02652/4363623-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="591" height="651"></div><h2><b>NHL&rsquo;s&hellip;<i>Player of the Week</i></b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>N</span>ow that Phil Esposito has some help in carrying the offensive load for the New York Rangers, the NHL&rsquo;s all-time leading scorer among active players is enjoying his finest season since his trade from the Boston Bruins in 1975.</b></p><p><b>Espo racked up four goals last week, the final three in a 6-6 tie with the Washington Capitals, his 30th career hat trick, two more than Bobby Hull. The outburst gave him 30 for the season and came just two days before his 37th birthday.</b></p><p><b>Esposito currently has scored 664 goals in regular season play, placing him just 122 short of the seemingly unbreakable record of 786 goals achieved by Gordie Howe. However, if Espo can coax a few more years out of his legs and continue to play at this year&rsquo;s pace, he&rsquo;ll be a definite threat to the mark.</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-04335/4363616-1-eng-US/f0018-042.jpg" title="f0018-04" width="522" height="674"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>PHIL ESPOSITO&hellip;New York Rangers</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0018-01

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE

<div class="byline">BY NORM MacLEAN</div><p>LONG ISLAND&mdash;</p><p>Denis Potvin and John Tonelli are back in the New York Islanders lineup&mdash;but the Isles&rsquo; mid-year slump refuses to go away. They went 2-4-1 in a seven-game stretch, and their dreams of coming out ahead of Montreal in the overall NHL standings are going down the drain.</p><p>Montreal finally forged ahead of the Isles in the all important loss column ten to nine, when New York lost to the Buffalo Sabres in the War Memorial, 2-1, just after the All Star hiatus.</p><p>Mike Bossy scored his 45th goal of the season in that one, but this only pin pointed out the Isles&rsquo; problems. The BTG line is doing much more than its share of the work. Of New York&rsquo;s first 243 goals. Bryan Trottier had 37 and Clark Gillies 24. That&rsquo;s 106 goals for the first line, far more than an equal distribution of the load.</p><p>&ldquo;We have to hope for good second halfs from guys like Billy Harris (nine goals), Bob Nystrom (also nine) and Mike Kaszycki, to help create a balance.&rdquo; said Bill Torrey, the Islander general manager.</p><p>Therein lies the Islander strength&mdash;and their potential weakness. In the losing seven game quarter-final against. Toronto last spring, the Maple Leafs mugged the Isles, and managed to wound Wayne Merrick and Mike Bossy, although both continued playing. A practice accident put Eddie Westfall out of action, and allowed Toronto center Darryl Sittler to dominate the faceoff situation.</p><p>But the final blow was another accident, the one in which Harris crashed into Trottier and broke his jaw. With Torts sub par, and Merrick also unable to faceoff properly, sittler did as he pleased. Mostly, it meant the Maple Leafs always had the puck.</p><p>&ldquo;For that reason and to get him ready if needed, we have sent center Richie Hansen to Fort Worth of the CHL,&rdquo; informed Torrey. &ldquo;He will be very important if we run into injury problems in the playoffs this year.&rdquo;</p><p>Last season six Islanders, Bossy, Trottier, Gillies, Bob Bourne, Nystrom and Potvin scored 30 or more goals. Potvin, and the BTG line will repeat, but Nystrom needs a hot streak. Bourne is on target with 19.</p><p>Nystrom, who had his best playoff against Toronto a year ago, has only nine&mdash;and has shot in bad luck all season.</p><p>&ldquo;I would hope he comes out with, maybe, 25,&rdquo; said Torrey. &ldquo;That would help nicely.&rdquo;</p><p>Harris, who scored 22 a year ago, has failed to score, even though he has teamed most of the season with Merrick and Tonelli, both of whom have 13 goals.</p><p>A while back, Torrey listed Billy for 25 goals, also. The line&rsquo;s total, 35, scares Torrey. Harris hasn&rsquo;t scored in 26 games.</p><p>The key might be the Merrick-Tonelli-Harris line, although coach Al Arbour thinks otherwise. He nominates Kaszycki, the 23-year-old second-year center as the solution.</p><p>&ldquo;If Mike can have the type of second half he had last year, we will be alright,&rdquo; said Arbour. &ldquo;He had a lot to do with Bourne and Nystrom getting those 30 goals.&rdquo;</p><p>So far this season, Arbour hadn&rsquo;t played that trio with any regularity, but, now, it seemed possible this might be one avenue that would be tried.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s always nice to play one line and get used to your line mates,&rdquo; said Bourne. &ldquo;But, they have had my playing the point and killing penalties this year, so we never seemed to get together on a steady basis.&rdquo;</p><p>As you read this, the Long Islanders are on their final west coast jaunt, visiting Vancouver and Los Angeles. They still have two games left with Montreal, Feb. 27 at Nassau and March 29 in the Forum.</p><p>And they play Boston twice more, March 11 at Boston, and two days later at home. The Bruins have dropped off the overall first place pace, but a spurt would still give them a look.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03481/4363661-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="563" height="522"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>MIKE KASZYCKI&hellip;Could Be Answer</b></figcaption></div><p>The Islanders are in the Put-up-or-shut-up portion of the schedule. Two years ago when they had a chance to win the Patrick Division for the first time, they let Philadelphia off the hook. And they let Boston beat them in a key game in the final weekend, which forced them to meet Montreal in the semi-finals.</p><p>Last year, the Flyers finally gave way to the Islanders in the Division, but New York got mugged by 17 guys and Darryl in the playoff with Toronto.</p><p>Garry Hart, the rugged defenseman, says it best, &ldquo;We have the talent and we have the combinations set up. Now we have to do it at the right time. When it counts.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-03

Isles Search For Better Balance

<div class="byline">BY BOB VERDI</div><p>CHICAGO&mdash;</p><p>Is Bob Pulford doing both jobs justice as general manager and coach of the Black Hawks?</p><p>Moreover, could anybody do both jobs justice as general manager and coach of the Black Hawks?</p><p>The answer to both questions, it says here, is no. There aren&rsquo;t enough hours in the day for one man, this side of Clark Kent, to administrate the team&rsquo;s current fortunes, most of which have been ill lately.</p><p>The club is sputtering, erratic and uninteresting. The fans are apathetic, angry or absent. And the future is cloudy, especially since the twp best players on any given night&mdash;a 38-year-old center, Stan Mikita and a 35-year-old goalkeeper, Tony Esposito&mdash;might not be back next season. For every prospect here or on the farm, there is a regular who is getting older, less efficient, or at least, less tradeable.</p><p>The solution, or at least part of it, seems evident. If Pulford decides to return next season, and if he is asked to return, he must retire one of his hats. Two jobs are one too many. Period.</p><p>Only one other National Hockey League club, the New York Rangers, has a man with a hyphen on his business card. And there, Fred Shero is not carrying an albatross anywhere near Pulford&rsquo;s.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01781/4363699-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="514" height="877"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>TONY ESPOSITO&hellip;May Be Leaving</b></figcaption></div><p>The Rangers have more fans, more talent, more assistants. There are days when general manager Shero is so busy that coach Shero doesn&rsquo;tgo near the ice. There are days when coach Shero is so busy that general manager Shero doesn&rsquo;t go near his desk. And, besides, when he goes to the pay window, Shero is making twice-plus what Pulford is making.</p><p>The Wirtzes always have maintained that, for Bulls or Hawks, one man doing two jobs is insufficient. In the case of Pulford, they broke tradition. It may have been noble, but it was a mistake.</p><p>Pulford inherited a bad scene, improved it a bit last season, but now the Hawks have sunk into quicksand once more. He has borrowed from the present in some cases&mdash;Dale Tallon, Pit Martin, Dennis Hull&mdash;to fortify the future, but when 7,674 people show up on a Wednesday night when the only distraction in Chicago is &ldquo;From Here to Eternity,&rdquo; then rock bottom can&rsquo;t be far away.</p><p>Pulford now is doing too many things. He&rsquo;s concerned about everything from trying to make a deal to checking over pre-game press notes to preparing for an opponent which sends in one man deep, rather than two. He does have an assistant general manager in Toronto, Jack Davison, and an assistant general manager here, Bobby Orr, but no assistant coach and, last but not least, not enough horses.</p><p>Moreover, in this day and age, it is harder than ever to try motivating athletes to play better, then go up one flight of stairs and tell the same players that the raise they want on their next contract is patently ridiculous. Attempting both choresis selt-destruction.</p><p>That dilemma, too, will worsen. The big problem now is signing Esposito. But next year, there will be more Hawks whose time is up. There is no way that Pulford-or any other mortal&mdash;will be able to be a capable general manager and coach under those circumstances. The current formula is doomed.</p><p>The suggestion is that Pulford quit what has been basically a successful coaching career, find a capable replacement who can breathe life into a mordant team, and devote his entire efforts to the general manager&rsquo;s role.</p><p>He must spend more time looking at other clubs in the NHL, and some time&mdash;he can&rsquo;t spend any now&mdash;pursuing World Hockey Association clubs in case there&rsquo;s a talent worth romancing. He must talk to other general managers more, and his own players less. Moreover he must separate himself from a situation which, in itself, mitigates against what the Black Hawks need most. Change.</p><p>&ldquo;Pulford has a hard time making a deal because he&rsquo;s like most coaches,&rdquo; said another general manager. &ldquo;He falls in love with his players, good or bad, and thinks that tomorrow they&rsquo;ll be better than today. When they aren&rsquo;t, he takes it as a personal insult to his coaching, and tries all over again the next day. If he&rsquo;s just a general manager, he&rsquo;ll see more and do more.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02626/4363692-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="520" height="1025"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>BOB PULFORD&hellip;Impossible Task</b></figcaption></div><p>Pulford has proven himself a capable coach, but as a general manager, not yet. He would likely not tolerate becoming just a coach here&mdash;that&rsquo;s going backwards. So the answer is for him to become a general manager, and only a general manager. Then he will be on trial again. But unless he and the Black Hawks attempt that step, all could be lost. Including his job. Both of them.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0019-01

Hawks, Pulford Must Face Facts: Dual Capacity Demands Too Much

<div class="byline">BY FRANK ORR</div><p>TORONTO&mdash;</p><p>The Toronto Maple Leafs were working out after the recent All Starbreak and their practices included a great many passing drills.</p><p>&ldquo;It happens every time you watch the Soviet Union teams play hockey,&rdquo; said Leaf coach Roger Neilson. &ldquo;When you see them play, you realize that passing is the weak part of our game and that passing and puckhandling are the strong parts of their game. Some people think that skating is the Soviets&rsquo; edge over the National Hockey League but I think it&rsquo;s passing and handling the puck.&rdquo;</p><p>Neilson was referring to the win by the Soviet Union national team over the NHL All Stars in the Challenge Cup series. He&rsquo;s one of the few North American coaches ever to take a team to the USSR. A few years ago, the Neilson-coached Peterborough Petes represented Canada in the world junior championship in Leningrad. The Petes were a club team playing against national junior teams but they conducted themselves well.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;d had a season-long conditioning program that year and were able to match the Soviets in that area,&rdquo; Neilson said. &ldquo;But there&rsquo;s no doubt they were superior to us in passing and stickhandling.&rdquo;</p><p>However, as the Leafs headed into the post-All Star portion of the schedule, it wasn&rsquo;t passing the puck which was Neilson&rsquo;s big concern. Passing the Philadelphia Flyers, the team in front of the Leafs in the NHL&rsquo;s overall standing, was No. 1. Preventing the Leafs being passed&mdash;by Buffalo Sabres, Los Angeles Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota North Stars&mdash;was another target.</p><p>At the All Star break, the Leafs were involved with all those clubs in a dandy battle in the middle of the overall tabulations. In the Adams Division, they&rsquo;re concerned with holding off the Sabres and the fast-finishing North Stars to take second spot in the division. That would guarantee a playoff spot and keep the Leafs out of the wild-card scramble.</p><p>&ldquo;It appears that the Atlanta Flames (No. 5 overall) are staying just about where they are while Philly, Buffalo and our club have dropped back a little this season,&rdquo; Neilson said. &ldquo;Minnesota, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh are going to be threats.</p><p>&ldquo;That makes the games we play against those clubs over the last two months of the schedule very important. To finish ahead of those teams, we have to gain the majority of points from them.&rdquo;</p><p>The Leafs head into the stretch-run portion of the schedule in good physical condition.</p><p>&ldquo;That should be to our advantage because some clubs have players out,&rdquo; Neilson said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re healthy and if we don&rsquo;t have a good finish, there will be no excuses. We haven&rsquo;t given up hope of finishing as high as fourth in the overall standings, although fifth perhaps is a more realistic target.</p><p>&ldquo;But to do that, we must put together a good winning streak. This has been an inconsistent season for us and some injuries have had a role in that. But now that everyone is sound, we should be able to play with consistency.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Leafs Looking To Avoid Wild-Card Scramble

<div class="byline">BY DONALD BERNS</div><p>ST. LOUIS&mdash;</p><p>Steve Durbano, the exiled son of the St. Louis Blues, returned to a warm ovation at the Checkerdome.</p><p>&ldquo;That was nice,&rdquo; Durbano said. &ldquo;It was just like old times.&rdquo;</p><p>Durbano, returning to the team five years after the Blues traded him to the Pittsburgh Penguins, skated somewhat cautiously but looked sharp on a defensive pairing with Larry Giroux, another player in his second stint with the Blues.</p><p>&ldquo;We played together years ago in St. Louis,&rdquo; Durbano said. &ldquo;Larry is easy to play with; he does his job on the ice.&rdquo;</p><p>Durbano started his NHL career with the Blues in 1972, and for one and one-half seasons his name was part of most hockey conversations in St. Louis. He was in one fracas after another and set a team record with 231 penalty minutes, including 10 misconducts, in 49 games his first season. He was suspended from the club for leaving the ice during a game the following season, and as one uproar followed another he eventually was traded to the Penguins Jan. 17, 1974, shortly after his 21st birthday.</p><p>&ldquo;Ever since I left St. Louis things have been sort of disorganized for me,&rdquo; Durbano said. &ldquo;I look upon my returning to the Blues as my big chance to get things back on a steady level and really make something of my career.&rdquo;</p><p>Durbano was with Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Rhode Island, Colorado, Detroit and Birmingham before signing a contract with the Blues as a free agent last summer.</p><p>In training camp Durbano came down with hepatitis and was in the hospital at the beginning of the season. After recovering, he had been skating for about two weeks when coach Barclay Plager told him to dress for a home game with the Colorado Rockies.</p><p>Frequently during the game fans chanted Durbano&rsquo;s name to spur Plager into putting the defenseman on the ice. But Durbano warmed the bench for 60 minutes of a close game, and by the next game he was back in sick bay.</p><p>The day after that Colorado game Durbano was walking through the Blues&rsquo; dressing room and slammed his fist into a heavy punching bag. The result was a broken hand and two more months on the sidelines.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01614/4363754-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="572" height="572"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>STEVE DURBANO&hellip;Settling Down?</b></figcaption></div><p>Durbano&rsquo;s reunion with his loyal St. Louis fans would have been in a game against the Los Angeles Kings, but another problem intervened. There was a traffic-snarling snowfall in St. Louis, and although all the other members of the Blues reported to the rink on time, Durbano was late. Plager scratched Durbano from the lineup and told Neil Komadoski to dress.</p><p>&ldquo;I live farther than most of the other guys,&rdquo; Durbano said. &ldquo;It took me two hours to get to the building, and I kept looking at my watch the whole time I was sitting in my car in the traffic.&rdquo;</p><p>But there always is another game. After his third road game in Toronto, Durbano played against the Rockies in St. Louis.</p><p>Durbano realizes his troubles of the past partly were due to his own attitude, and he is determined his new attitude will remain very positive.</p><p>&ldquo;I have nowhere to go but up,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I want to show I can play a few more years in this league and be steady. I make sure I&rsquo;m mentally ready for a game when I come to the building. I figure I have 30 games to earn another contract.&rdquo;</p><p>And what can the fans expect from Durbano on the ice.?</p><p>&ldquo;I established myself years ago by intimidating people,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I think everyone will leave me alone.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0020-01

Blues’ Durbano Changes Attitude But Keeps Style

f0022-05

NATIONAL LEAGUE SUMMARIES

<h2><b>WHA&rsquo;S &hellip; <i>Player of the Week</i></b></h2><p class="dropcap"><span>N</span>ew England Whalers are looking towards Mark Howe more and more as a central player in their offense, so it should come as no surprise that when the youngest Howe shook his way out of a goal-scoring slump that the Whalers would sweep a weekend series to stay within one point of Edmonton in the standings.</p><p>After losing to Edmonton Friday, the Whalers were sparked by a two-goal, one assist effort by Mark as they downed Quebec, 4-1. The goals, Howe&rsquo;s 31st and 32nd of the season, broke a six-game goalless streak for the winger.</p><p>The Whalers followed up with another solid victory, blasting the Winnipeg Jets 7-1, with Mark Howe again leading the way. He scored two goals and a like number of assists to move into second place in scoring.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02389/4364054-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="565" height="606"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>MARK HOWE &hellip; New England Whalers</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0024-02

WORLD HOCKEY ASSOCIATION

<p><b>Special To The Hockey News</b></p><p>WINNIPEG&mdash;</p><p>Scott Campbell is a new addition to the Winnipeg Jets&rsquo; defense this year, one of six ex-Houston players presently part of the team. Campbell, 21, has been a steady performer for the Jets, not flashy or offensive-minded, but aggressive and always ready to knock an opposing player off the puck. He doesn&rsquo;t think about amassing points, because he feels his job is to be strictly defensively inclined. This is surprising, perhaps, for a young defenseman, since many today are more eager to follow in the footsteps of a Bobby Orr.</p><p>&ldquo;In junior hockey Iliad quite a few goals. I was more of an offensive defenseman there,&rdquo; he explains. &ldquo;But, especially coming to Winnipeg, I&rsquo;m playing more of a defensive type of game. But that&rsquo;s fine with me. I&rsquo;ll play whatever way the team needs me to play.&rdquo; Campbell feels that there are enough players on the team who can put the puck in the net, and that it is most important for him to play a strong game in front of his goaltender.</p><p>Shooting by the defensemen has been a problem for the Jets this year. That is, they don&rsquo;t shoot enough. Coach Larry Hillman stresses that the team needs more shots from the point, but the team&rsquo;s defensive corps lacks the accurate shot. Campbell agrees, explaining that the defensemen are usually looking for others to pass to.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not getting as many shots as other teams, and they are getting a lot of goals from their defensemen. We have no one who can boom a shot from the point consistently.&rdquo;</p><p>During his first professional season with the Aeros, Campbell collected 37 points on eight goals and 29 assists, and was the team&rsquo;s top offensive defenseman. However, his best season, point-wise, was his final junior year with the London Knights, when he scored 23 goals and 67 points. Reaching the 20-goal plateau that year has been the only personal goal which Campbell has striven for. Objectives are something he doesn&rsquo;t care to set.</p><p>In the pros, you never know what to expect. There are so many things that could happen, like injuries. The only thing I want to do is win the Avco Cup.&rdquo;</p><p>At six-foot-three and just over 200 pounds, the native of Guelph, Ontario, is closing in on teammate Kim Clackson&rsquo;s single season record for most penalty minutes by a Jets player, 203. Last year, he collected 116 minutes, establishing himself as a no-nonsense player who can take punishment as well as dish it out. Still, Campbell doesn&rsquo;t consider himself a tough hockey player, citing that teammates Clackson and Terry Ruskowski play a rougher style than he does.</p><p>&ldquo;I just play an aggressive style of game and fights come up,&rdquo; he reasons. &ldquo;They (Clackson and Ruskowski) have been in the league four or five years, and have established a good reputation for themselves.&rdquo; He concedes that a hockey game without hitting is boring. &ldquo;It gets me in the game more. If you don&rsquo;t hit anyone and you&rsquo;re not being hit, you kind of have a tendency to sleep through the game.&rdquo;</p><p>As a rookie last year, Campbell learned that there is one thing especially which major league defensemen must do consistently. Taking the man in front of the net is the most vital of all the elements in a defenseman&rsquo;s game, according to Campbell. In compliance with this rule, he is usually stationed at or inside his blue line, ready to bump opposing forwards off their path to the Jets&rsquo; net.</p><p>Is Campbell happy with the way he has played this season?</p><p>&ldquo;I never want to be satisfied with my play because once you have reached that point you&rsquo;re supposed to have peaked. I&rsquo;m always hoping I can do better than I have.&rdquo;</p><p>With this type of attitude, the Winnipeg Jets can only expect all-out effort and good things from Mr. Campbell in the future.</p><p>An all out effort is what Campbell and the Jets gave coach Hillman in a recent 5-1 win over the Stingers. The victory avenged a 4-0 shutout that Cincinnati handed Winnipeg just one week prior. The shutout was the first suffered by the Jets in 158 league games.</p><p>The Jets who are 1-2-0 in their current five-game road trip, hope to return to Winnipeg with at least an even split.</p><p>With 16 of their last 25 games at home, they know a successful end to this road trip would greatly enhance their chances of a first place finish.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01492/4364085-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="546" height="649"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>SCOTT CAMPBELL&hellip;Plays Aggressively</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0024-01

THE WHA

Hitting The Thing Says Campbell

<div class="byline">BY WAYNE WARRINER</div><p>HARTFORD&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he New England Whalers matched an earlier six-game unbeaten streak and, in the process, picked up important ground on their chief challengers for the Avco Trophy. During the stretch, the Whalers racked up three straight victories over Winnipeg and took two from Quebec. The only point lost was in a 2-2 tie in Birmingham.</p><p>The Whalers played one of their finest games of the year in whipping the Nordiques at Le Colisee in Quebec City. After swapping first period goals, the Whalers got a shorthanded tally on a magnificent solo effort by captain Rick Ley and took charge from that point on.</p><p>A few nights later the Whalers trounced the visiting Jets in Springfield. Veteran Dave Keon sparked the team with a three-goal hat trick while linemate John McKenzie picked up a pair of assists to put himself over the 400-point mark for his WHA career.</p><p>The Whalers had no time to rest on their laurels, however, as they took an early morning flight in order to get to Cincinnati for an afternoon contest. When the game began the team was there in body but not in spirit and the Stingers walked away with a 5-2 victory. Looking ahead, the schedule was no bargain&mdash;nine games in 12 days.</p><p>Rookie Jim Warner was called up to fill the right wing spot vacated when Gordie Howe&rsquo;s ankle suffered a chipped fracture from an errant slap shot. The youngster from Colorado College has impressed a lot of people including coach Bill Dineen. &ldquo;He does a lot of the little things for you,&rdquo; said the coach.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01428/4364116-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="571" height="1164"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RICK LEY</b></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;He passes well, he&rsquo;s a good skater. And he&rsquo;s an extremely good defensive player, too.&rdquo;</p><p>Showing considerable confidence in the rookie&rsquo;s defensive ability, Dineen matched Warner against Marc Tardif in Quebec and followed by putting him against high-scoring Morris Lukowich of the Jets. Not only did the rookie keep both of his checks out of the scoring summary, but the hard-working youngster also notched his first major league goal&mdash;the eventual game winner versus Winnipeg.</p><p>Captain Rick Ley&rsquo;s effort in the important win at Quebec was acknowledged by Nordiques&rsquo; coach Jacques Demers as &ldquo;the greatest performance I&rsquo;ve ever seen. He dominated the game at the blueline like no player I&rsquo;ve seen&rdquo;&hellip;Ley earned &lsquo;Player of the Month&rsquo; honors from the Whalers&rsquo; Booster Club in January.</p><p><b>QUEBEC:</b> The Nordiques enjoyed sitting atop the WHA for awhile but suddenly they ran into a difficult stretch when they managed to pick up only four points in nine games. Successive losses to New England and Edmonton meant that the Nords had won only one game of their last seven.</p><p>The slide had brought the Quebeckers down into the middle of the pack in the WHA race. But the way teams were bunched, the fourth place Nordiques were only three points behind frontrunning New England.</p><p>Real Cloutier increased his leagueleading goal production figures with his 45th and 46th of the season in a 5-3 loss to New England at Quebec City while Tardif has lost some ground lately but still leads the WHA in the plus-minus stats. Tardif, Serge Bernier, and Rich Leduc join Cloutier among the league&rsquo;s top 12 scorers. But after that, the next member of the Nordiques who appears on the scoring list is defenseman J.C. Tremblay, followed by another blueliner, Paul Baxter.</p><p><b>BIRMINGHAM:</b> Birmingham&rsquo;s season has been rather streaky up to this point. Coming off a stretch where they had picked up seven of a possible eight points, the Bulls confidently hit the road. They had done fairly well in earlier trips to Edmonton and Winnipeg.</p><p>This time, however, the Bulls began another losing string. In Edmonton they jumped to a 2-0 lead before the Oilers ripped off six straight markers for a final tally of 6-2. Twenty four hours later the Bulls were in Winnipeg and the Jets jumped off to a two-goal advantage before the visitors could get on the board. Although the young Birmingham team made a game of it, Winnipeg triumphed, 3-2.</p><p>The Bulls had fared pretty well in one-goal games over the course of the season. It&rsquo;s something one would not expect of a rookie-studded team, but the Bull were better than .500 with nine wins and eight losses following the loss to the Jets.</p><p>A few nights later they were back in Edmonton for another one-goal affair. This one was decided in overtime. After Michel Goulet opened the scoring with his 17th of the season, the Oilers took advantage of a power play to tie the score. The Bulls jumped ahead again when rookie defenseman Craig Hartsburg tallied on a power play.</p><p>The Oilers knotted it up in the second and went ahead midway through the third period. But Rob Ramage tied it again less than a minute later&mdash;and the stage was set for overtime. Although the Bulls outshot Edmonton four to one in the extra session, it was the Oilers&rsquo; Dennis Sobchuk who ricocheted the Oilers only shot off the post and into the net.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0025-01

Whalers Extend Mastery Over Chief Rivals

<h2><b>Tue. Feb. 6 NEW ENGLAND 5, QUEBEC 3</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Quebec, 1&mdash;Cloutier (Cote, Dorey) 6:39, New England, 2&mdash;Plumb (Miller, Rogers) 19:37.</p><p>Penalties: Cote 7:58, Miller 13:06.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 3&mdash;Ley (Lacroix) 11:07, 4&mdash;Keon (Warner, Plumb) 14:06.</p><p>Penalties: Corsi (served by Geoffrion) 3:22, Plumb 9:45, McKenzie 15:38.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 5&mdash;Antonovich (Rogers) 13:52, Quebec, 6&mdash;Cloutier (Bernier, Baxter) 14:13, 7&mdash;Keon (Mar, Howe) 19:25, Quebec, 8&mdash;Bilodeau (Lagace) 19:59.</p><p>Penalties: Tardif 3:43, Roberts, Bordeleau 9:14, Ley, Bernier 18:04.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-04233/4364280-1-eng-US/f0026-042.jpg" title="f0026-04" width="579" height="145"></div><p>Attendance: 9,326.</p><h2><b>BIRMINGHAM 2, EDMONTON 6</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Birmingham, 1&mdash;Stewart (Wakely, Ramage) 1:13, 2&mdash;Sleigher (Adduono) 9:26, Edmonton, 3&mdash;Callighen (Gretzky, Micheletti) 12:20, 4&mdash;Gretzky (Callighen, MacDonald) 15:41.</p><p>Penalties: Shmyr 8:04, Beaudoin 16:28, Semenko 18:15, Dillon 19:11.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 5&mdash;Gretzky (Dryden, Sobchuk) 17:34, 6&mdash;Chipperfield (Driscoll, Carlson) 18:31, 7&mdash;Langevin (Hunter, Bailey) 19:24.</p><p>Penalties: Ramage 4:41, Beaudoin 8:53, Vaive, Semenko (minors and majors), Beaudoin (double minor and game misconduct), Micheletti (misconduct) 15:58.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 8&mdash;Semenko (Chipperfield, Driscoll) 19:23.</p><p>Penalties: Hanson, Driscoll (minors and majors) 0:54, Ramage 3:36, Sandbeck 7:07, Goulet 8:59, Ramage, Chipperfield (majors) 13:25.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-05194/4364273-1-eng-US/f0026-052.jpg" title="f0026-05" width="578" height="138"></div><p>Attendance: 8,826.</p><h2><b>Wed. Feb. 7 CINCINNATI 5, EDMONTON 8</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 1&mdash;Semenko (Driscoll, Chipperfield) 3:24, 2&mdash;Sobchuk (Weir, Hunter) 4:26, 3&mdash;Sobchuk (Hunter, Weir) 6:59, Cincinnati, 4&mdash;Ftorek (Norwich) 11:41.</p><p>Penalties: Gilligan, Hunter 7:24, Melrose, 7:49, Driscoll 10:36.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 5&mdash;Norwich 1:14, Edmonton, 8&mdash;Chipperfield (Driscoll, Semenko) 1:27, 7&mdash;Chipperfield (Dryden, Semenko) 5:43, 8&mdash;Weir (MacDonald) 7:27, Cincinnati, 9&mdash;Marsh (Ftorek, Norwich) 11:43, Edmonton, 10&mdash;MacDonald 12:48.</p><p>Penalties: Langevin 1:36, Melrose 10:56, Shmyr 11:03, Langevin 11:31.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 11&mdash;Ftorek (Thomas 9:58, 12&mdash;Clark (Messier 10:24, Edmonton, 13&mdash;Callighen (Langevin, Gretzky 15:00.</p><p>Penalties: Luksa 4:46.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-06161/4364266-1-eng-US/f0026-062.jpg" title="f0026-06" width="575" height="136"></div><p>Attendance: 9,172.</p><h2><b>BIRMINGHAM 2, WINNIPEG 3</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 1&mdash;Lukowlch (Ruskowski, Nilsson) 8:01.</p><p>Penalties: Cassolato 19:04.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 2&mdash;Long (Campbell, Gray) 18:33.</p><p>Penalties: Gingras 7:47.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Birmingham, 3&mdash;Sleigher 6:54, Winnipeg, 4&mdash;Lukowich (Nilsson) 8:09, Birmingham, 5&mdash;Henderson (Beaudoin, Dillon) 17:57.</p><p>Penalties: Hartsburg 8:52, Long 10:00.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-07144/4364259-1-eng-US/f0026-072.jpg" title="f0026-07" width="576" height="136"></div><p>Attendance: 8,131.</p><h2><b>Fri. Feb. 9 WINNIPEG 0, CINCINNATI 4</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 1&mdash;Gartner (Parizeau) 1:20, 2&mdash;Thomas (Melrose, Ftorek) 9:16, 3&mdash;Shutt (Gilligan, Melrose) 15:22.</p><p>Penalties: Gray (minor), Clackson (doubl, minors), March (minor) 2:21, Melrose 18:28.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>No scoring.</p><p>Penalties: Lukowich, Hislop (majors) 0:52, Ruskowski (minor and major) 1:00, Gray (minor), Debol (major), Parizeau (double minors, misconduct and game misconduct), 1:06, Campbell (major), Clackson (doubl, minors), Melrose (major) 5:14, Baltimore 10:36, Shutt 14:23, Luksa 16:37.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 4&mdash;Hislop (Ftorek, Forbes) 2:33. Penalties: Ftorek 5:37,18:24.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-08132/4364252-1-eng-US/f0026-082.jpg" title="f0026-08" width="574" height="136"></div><p>Attendance, 10.064.</p><h2><b>QUEBEC 0, EDMONTON 3</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 1&mdash;S. Weir (Carlson, Sobchuk) 2:52.</p><p>Penalties: Bilodeau 2:16.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>No scoring.</p><p>Penalties: Langevin 0:52, Bordeleau 1:39, Bilodeau 11:43.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 2&mdash;MacDonald (Callighen, Gretzky) 9:41, 3&mdash;Gretzky (MacDonald) 18:09.</p><p>Penalties: None.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-09124/4364245-1-eng-US/f0026-092.jpg" title="f0026-09" width="574" height="116"></div><p>Attendance: 11,815.</p><h2><b>Sat. Feb. 10 WINNIPEG 2, NEW ENGLAND 7</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 1&mdash;Rogers (Plumb, Antonovich) 5:56.</p><p>Penalties: McKenzie, Hicks 0:43, Mark Howe, Lesuk 4:56, Plumb, Ruskowski (minors and majors), Smith (minor) 13:59.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 2&mdash;Keon (Roberts, Ley) 7:13, Winnipeg, 3&mdash;Campbell (Lindstrom, Hicks) 11:03, New England, 4&mdash;Warner (Hangsleben, Lacroix) 11:59, 5&mdash;Keon (Mark Howe, Lyle) 16:16.</p><p>Penalties: Antonovich 3:01, Ruskowski 5:31, Lukowich 15:18, Roberts 16:36.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England. 6&mdash;Keon (McKenzie, Hangsleben) 1:12, 7&mdash;Lyle (Keon, McKenzie) 2:32, Winnipeg, 8&mdash;Sullivan (Amodeo, Lindstrom) 8:30, New England, 9&mdash;Antonovich (Smith, Roberts) 13:54.</p><p>Penalties: MacKinnon 4:49, Miller 18:49.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-10118/4364238-1-eng-US/f0026-102.jpg" title="f0026-10" width="577" height="149"></div><p>Attendance: 7,426.</p><h2><b>Sun. Feb. 11 NEW ENGLAND 2, CINCINNATI 5</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 1&mdash;Hislop (Ftorek, Gilligan 9:46, 2&mdash;Shutt (Luksa, Melrose) 13:28.</p><p>Penalties: Hangsleben 8:46.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 3&mdash;Marsh (Norwich, Gartner) 9:00, 4&mdash;Parizeau (Melrose, Debol) 12:28, New England, 5&mdash;Stoughton (Roberts, Antonovich) 17:54.</p><p>Penalties: Luksa 4:43, Plumb 8:12.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 6&mdash;Thomas (Ftorek, Hislop) 12:58, New England, 7&mdash;Marty Howe (Mark Howe, Lacroix) 16:46.</p><p>Penalties: Luksa 1:43, Mark Howe 7:36.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-11114/4364231-1-eng-US/f0026-112.jpg" title="f0026-11" width="578" height="146"></div><p>Attendance: 8,820</p><h2><b>BIRMINGHAM 3, EDMONTON 4</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Birmingham, 1&mdash;Goulet (Vaive) 1:36, Edmonton, 2&mdash;MacDonald (Callighen, Alexander) 8:59, Birmingham, 3&mdash;Hartsburg (Sleigher) 12:00.</p><p>Penalties: Tebbutt 3:35, Ramage (minor and major), Driscoll (minor, major and misconduct), Chipperfield (minor) 5:27, Gorman 8:08, Semenko 10:30, Stewart 12:34.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 4&mdash;Micheletti (Gretzky, MacDonald) 2:23.</p><p>Penalties: Vaive 3:18, Weir, Beaudoin 3:49.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 5&mdash;Weir (Gretzky) 11:07, Birmingham, 6&mdash;Ramage (Dillon, Gingras) 11:54.</p><p>Penalties: Hunter, Hanson (doubl, minors) 8:30, Ramage 10:48, Michellettl 11:44.</p><h3><b>OVERTIME PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 7&mdash;Sobchuk (Carlson, Chipperfield) 5:25.</p><p>Penalties: None.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-12105/4364224-1-eng-US/f0026-122.jpg" title="f0026-12" width="578" height="145"></div><p>Attendance: 10,163.</p><h2><b>Tue. Feb. 13 QUEBEC 1, EDMONTON 6</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 1&mdash;Chipperfield (Semenko) 8:22.</p><p>2&mdash;Hunter (Micheletti, Weir) 13:27. 3&mdash;Chipperfield (Sobchuk) 19:25.</p><p>Penalties: Semenko 2:44, Tardif 3:22, Lagace 8:44, Callighen 10:26, Tremblay 10:53, Hamilton 15:58.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Quebec, 4&mdash;Tardif (Leduc, Baxter) 2:17. Edmonton, 5&mdash;Gretzky (MacDonald) 3:07. 6&mdash;Callighen (Gretzky, Sobchuk) 9:05.</p><p>Penalties: Bilodeau, Semenko (majors) 0:23, Baxter 7:29, Lariviere 8:40, Baxter, Callighen 10:09, Hamilton 12:02, Flett 15:27.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 7&mdash;MacDonald (Gretzky, Callighen) 2:40.</p><p>Penalty: Lariviere 18:14.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-13102/4364217-1-eng-US/f0026-132.jpg" title="f0026-13" width="575" height="138"></div><p>Attendance: 11,148.</p><h2><b>Wed. Feb. 14 WINNIPEG 5, CINCINNAT11</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 1&mdash;Nilsson (Tertoenche, Lukowich) 2:05. 2&mdash;Lindstrom (Sullivan, Gray) 11:55. 3&mdash;Eriksson 15:26.</p><p>Penalties: Gulndon (doubl, minor) Thomas 0:56, Norwich 5:17, Campbell 16:18.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 4&mdash;Ruskowski (Nilsson) 8:42.</p><p>Penalties: Preston, Luksa (majors) 5:32, Lukowich 8:03, Long 19:58.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 5&mdash;Gilligan (Norwich, Ftorek) 1:59.</p><p>Winnipeg, 6&mdash;Lukowich (Ruskowski, Nilsson) 11:19.</p><p>Penalties: Forbes, MacKinnon (minors, majors) 1:59, Shutt, Campbell 2:45, Amodeo 3:50, Luksa 10:16.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1494/4364210-1-eng-US/f0026-142.jpg" title="f0026-14" width="572" height="136"></div><p>Attendance: 5,602.</p><h2><b>BIRMINGHAM 7, NEW ENGLAND 4</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 1&mdash;Lyle (Keon, Marty Howe) 8:29. 2&mdash;Stoughton (Antonovich, Rogers) 11:01. Birmingham, 3&mdash;Adduono (Ramage) 18:09.</p><p>Penalties: Stewart 2:37, Beaudoin, Rogers 6:19, Gorman, Lyle 11:48, Hartsburg 17:32.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 4&mdash;Ley (Lacroix, Mark Howe) 8:53. Birmingham, 5&mdash;Stewart (Gorman) 10:55. 6&mdash;Stewart (Alley) 11:16. New England, 7&mdash;Lyle (Ley, McKenzie) 13:51. Birmingham, 8&mdash;Valve (Gingras, Adduono) 19:55.</p><p>Penalty: Lyle 19:01.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Birmingham, 9&mdash;Gorman (Henderson, Gingras) 7:18. 10&mdash;Gingras (Henderson) 8:07. 11&mdash;Vaive (Dillon) 19:50.</p><p>Penalties: Antonovich (Beaudoin) 4:45.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1586/4364203-1-eng-US/f0026-152.jpg" title="f0026-15" width="581" height="138"></div><p>Attendance: 6,292.</p><h2><b>Fri. Feb. 16 EDMONTON 4, NEW ENGLAND 2</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 1&mdash;Flett (Chipperfield) 7:53; New England, 2&mdash;Keon (Lyle, McKenzie) 10:57.</p><p>Penalties: Hunter 4:02, Chipperfield 13:25.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Edmonton, 3&mdash;Schmyr (Weir) 3:42, 4&mdash;Gretzky (Langevin, Sobchuk) 4:38, 5&mdash;Sobchuk (Flett, Chipperfield) 7:39; New England, 6&mdash;Lacroix (Antonovich, Roberts) 19:57.</p><p>Penalties: Hangsleben 5:48, Sobchuk, Lacroix 11:55, Hughes 15:27, Shmyr, Lacroix 17:20, Hughes 18:48, Hughes (gam, misconduct), Langevin, Antonovich 19:57.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>No Scoring.</p><p>Penalty: Mark Howe 8:08.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1677/4364196-1-eng-US/f0026-162.jpg" title="f0026-16" width="575" height="118"></div><p>Attendance: 7,228.</p><h2><b>WINNIPEG 1, BIRMINGHAM 2</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>No Scoring.</p><p>Penalties: None.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 1&mdash;Preston (Nilsson) 5:31.</p><p>Penalties: Lukowich, Sleigher 4:47, Winnipeg bench (served by Hicks) 12:58.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Birmingham, 2&mdash;Stewart (Henderson) 4:17, 3&mdash;Goulet (Dillon) 7:46.</p><p>Penalties: None.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-1771/4364189-1-eng-US/f0026-172.jpg" title="f0026-17" width="577" height="124"></div><p>Attendance: 0,000.</p><h2><b>Sat. Feb. 17 WINNIPEG 4, CINCINNATI 6</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Winnipeg, 1&mdash;Lukowich (Nilsson) 0:56; Cincinnati, 2&mdash;Thomas (Parizeau) 6:03, 3&mdash;Marsh (Norwich) 17:07.</p><p>Penalties: Marsh 2:54, Clackson 15:03, Gartner, MacKinnon 16:35.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 4&mdash;Ftorek (Hislop, Luksa) 7:29.</p><p>Penalties: Hicks 0:49, Norwich, Gray 6:38, Marsh (double minor) Lukowich 9:00, Long 11:16, Shutt (minor, major) Campbell 17:51, Lukowich 19:50.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 5&mdash;Gartner (Parizeau, Debol) 10:58; Winnipeg, 6&mdash;Lindstrom (Terbenche, Nilsson) 11:54; Cincinnati, 7&mdash;Thomas (Ftorek, Hislop) 14:50; Winnipeg, 8&mdash;Lukowich (Ruskowski) 16:56, 9&mdash;Ruskowski (Clackson, Terbenche) 18:32; Cincinnati, 10&mdash;Gartner (Gilligan) 18:50. Penalty: Norwich 11:40.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01355/4364182-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="622" height="146"></div><p>Attendance: 10,524.</p><h2><b>QUEBEC 1, NEW ENGLAND 4</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Quebec, 1&mdash;Tardif (Bernier, Cloutier) 8:17.</p><p>Penalties: Baxter, McKenzie 5:37.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 2&mdash;Mark Howe (Roberts, Lacroix) 4:30, 3&mdash;Antonovich (Rogers, Miller) 7:36.</p><p>Penalty: Cote 3:48.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>New England, 4&mdash;Mark Howe (Lacroix, Warner) 1:18, 5&mdash;Warner (Mark Howe, Lacroix) 13:25.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02288/4364175-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="592" height="131"></div><p>Attendance: 7,891.</p><h2><b>Sun. Feb. 18 QUEBEC 4, CINCINNATI 2</b></h2><h3><b>FIRST PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 1&mdash;Ftorek (Hislop, Thomas) 5:25; Quebec, 2&mdash;Leduc (Bernier, Cloutier) 15:26.</p><p>Penalties: Bilodeau 2:27, Baxter 9:35, Norwich 13:19.</p><h3><b>SECOND PERIOD</b></h3><p>Cincinnati, 3&mdash;Gilligan (Shutt) 8:28.</p><p>Penalties: Baxter 1:21, Bilodeau 16:50, Baxter Shutt (majors) 18:50.</p><h3><b>THIRD PERIOD</b></h3><p>Quebec, 4&mdash;Cloutier (Lariviere, Tardif) 0:35, 5&mdash;Bordeleau 11:43, 6&mdash;Tardif (Lariviere) 19:46.</p><p>Penalty: Ftorek (misconduct) 19:46.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03217/4364168-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="599" height="141"></div><p>Attendance: 5,389.</p><h2><b>The WHA Scoreboard</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Feb. 20)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03296/4364161-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="579" height="196"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tue, Feb. 13</b></p><p>Quebec 1 at Edmonton 6</p><p><b>Wed, Feb. 14</b></p><p>Winnipeg 5 at Cincinnati 1</p><p>Birmingham 7 at New England 4</p><p><b>Fri, Feb. 16</b></p><p>Edmonton 4 at New England 2</p><p>Winnipeg 1 at Birmingham 2</p><p><b>Sat, Feb. 17</b></p><p>Winnipeg 4 at Cincinnati 6</p><p>Quebec 1 at New England 4</p><p><b>Sun, Feb. 18</b></p><p>Quebec 4 at Cincinnati 2</p><p>Edmonton 6 at Birmingham 3</p><p>New England 7 at Winnipeg 1</p><h2><b>Where WHA Teams Play</b></h2><h3><b>FEBRUARY</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01441/4364154-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="568" height="353"></div><h3><b>MARCH</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02345/4364147-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="577" height="1266"></div><h2><b>WHA&rsquo;s Scorers&hellip; This Week</b></h2><p><b>BIRMINGHAM</b> &mdash; Adduono 12, Stewart 10,11,12,13, Vaive 18,19, Gorman 10, Gingras 12, Goulet 18,19, Dillon 10.</p><p><b>CINCINNATI</b> &mdash; Gilligan 11,12, Thomas 19,20, Ftorek 29,30, Marsh 27, Gartner 20,21.</p><p><b>EDMONTON</b> &mdash; Chipperfield 19,20,21, Hunter 4, Gretzky 28,29, Callighen 10,11, MacDonald 23,24, Flett 15, Shmyr 5, Sobchuk 10, Driscoll 14, Semenko 7, Carlson 8.</p><p><b>NEW ENGLAND</b> &mdash; Lyle 10,11, Stoughton 18, Ley 8, Lacroix 28,27, Keon 16, Mark Howe 31,32,33,34, Antonovich 20, Warner 2, McKenzie 14, Pleau 1, Miller 16,17.</p><p><b>QUEBEC</b> &mdash; Tardif 30,31,32, Leduc 19, Cloutior 47, Bordeleau 10.</p><p><b>WINNIPEG</b> &mdash; Nilsson 26, Lindstrom 17,18, Eriksson 3, Ruskowski 12,13, Lukowich 42,43,44, Preston 18, Lesuk 13.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0026-04

WORLD HOCKEY ASSN. SUMMARIES

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0027-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01422/4364311-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JAMIE HISLOP&hellip;Wants To Be &lsquo;Plus&rsquo; Player</b></figcaption></div><p><b>Special To The Hockey News</b></p><p>CINCINNATI&mdash;</p><p>Cincinnati Stingers&rsquo; right winger Jamie Hislop, having his best year as a professional, is remarkably candid when talking about his ability.</p><p>&ldquo;Basically, I&rsquo;m not really talented,&rdquo; said Hislop, a University of New Hampshire graduate now in his third year with the team, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m not a great goal scorer.</p><p>&ldquo;I try to make things happen and pick up my wing. I don&rsquo;t have the talent a Marshy (Pete, Marsh) has so I try to compensate by going as hard as I can all the time.&rdquo;</p><p>Anyone who has seen Hislop play this season certainly has been impressed by his aggressive, hustling style of play, for he is constantly moving, whether breaking into the opponent&rsquo;s zone or digging for the puck.</p><p>In fact, his aggressiveness paid off in the Stingers&rsquo; recent 5-2 win over New England when he dug the puck out of the boards and set up Reggie Thomas&rsquo; goal.</p><p>It is that type of play which has pushed him into the top 20 in league scoring this year, despite Hislop&rsquo;s contention that scoring goals wasn&rsquo;t that important.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s great to score goals, but it&rsquo;s just as important to work in the corners and pass the puck and pick up your man.</p><p>&ldquo;I can be just as satisfied at making a good pass as scoring. It&rsquo;s (scoring goals) not a big thing. The most important thing is to win.&rdquo;</p><p>Nevertheless, Hislop has been scoring goals for the Stingers of late and is one of the reasons the team has been playing well in recent weeks.</p><p>He had 21 goals through 53 games, including a goal in the Stingers&rsquo; 4-0 win over Winnipeg Feb. 9 and another in the team&rsquo;s 5-2 thumping of New England, Feb. 11.</p><p>Hislop appears headed for a 30-goal season, which would be his first as a professional. Last month, he scored two goals in one game twice, collecting two in the team&rsquo;s 6-5 win over Birmingham and netting two one week later in a 5-5 tie with Winnipeg.</p><p>His recent performance had put him 14th in the WHA scoring race and is a direct result of the man who centers the line&mdash;Robbie Ftorek (who is leading the league in scoring (85 points) and assists (57) through 53 games.</p><p>Hislop talked about Ftorek and the line he plays on.</p><p>&ldquo;Robbie and I have been on the same line all year and you tend to know where the other is going,&rdquo; said Hislop. &ldquo;Robbie is the ideal centerman, a great passer and he shoots the puck well.</p><p>&ldquo;Reggie (Thomas) is great, too. Nothing really fancy, just forecheck hard and backcheck, too. Reggie and I go up and down the ice and in and out of the corners.&rdquo;</p><p>For Jamie Hislop, playing hockey is not merely a matter of making a living, it is doing something he enjoys. Does he have any goals for himself?</p><p>&ldquo;Basically, my goal is to do my job and be a plus hockey player,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Of course, everybody likes to score goals and get assists. But I&rsquo;d just like to be a plus hockey player.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m enjoying the game right now and I&rsquo;m doing fairly well and I&rsquo;ll keep playing until the fun goes out ot it.&rdquo;</p><p>Cincinnati Stinger fans know that won&rsquo;t be for a long time.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0027-01

Stingers’ Hustler Hislop Getting Most From Talent

<p>EDMONTON&mdash;</p><p>&ldquo;I have read with interest many of the statements by Alan Eagleson, Bobby Clarke and others that there is almost no possibility the Canada Cup series can be held this year because of a dispute between Hockey Canada and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association.</p><p>&ldquo;I sincerely hope that the problems can be resolved and that the series can go on as originally scheduled&mdash;but with one difference. I propose that the Swedish, Finnish and United States national teams be replaced by a team from the World Hockey Association. Team NHL, Team WHA and the Soviet and Czechoslovak national teams could produce a competition worthy of the name Challenge of the Century.</p><p>There are many benefits, most of them obvious, with the major one being the fact that a majority of Canadian fans would rather watch the WHA All Stars than the teams which had little success in the last Canada Cup tournament. In addition, top players such as Rob Ftorek, Mark Howe and Gary Sargent of the United States, Borje Salming, Ulf Nilsson, Anders Hedberg and Kent Nilsson of Sweden and Markus Mattsson of Finland would be available to play on Team NHL or Team WHA.</p><p>There would be a substantial financial benefit, too, since the foreign players to be included in the tournament are already playing in North America.</p><p>Some fans inevitably would suggest the WHA could not compete on an equal basis with the strong NHL, Soviet and Czech teams. Let me point out, however, that WHA teams have a won-lost record of better than 50 percent against NHL teams in exhbitions (granted, we have not yet played Montreal Canadiens) and that our league has done extremely well against top European squads.</p><p>Three WHA club teams, in fact, defeated the Soviet National Team when it included standout players such as Shalimov, Yakushev, Shadrin, Maltsev. Alexandrov and Gusev. I feel our international record deserves full scrutiny by those who might suggest our team could not be competitive.</p><p>Consider, if you will, the following 25-man roster:</p><p><b>CENTERS &mdash;</b> Serge Bernier, Quebec Nordiques; Wayne Gretzky and Ron Chipperfield, Edmonton Oilers; Rob Ftorek, Cincinnati Stingers; Terry Ruskowski, Winnipeg Jets; Dave Keon or Andre Lacroix, New England Whalers.</p><p><b>LEFT WINGERS &mdash;</b> Marc Tardif, Quebec; Morris Lukowich, Winnipeg; Mark Howe, New England; Dennis Sobchuk, Edmonton.</p><p><b>RIGHT WINGERS &mdash;</b> Real Cloutier, Quebec; Blair MacDonald, Edmonton; Kent Nilsson, Winnipeg: Mike Gartner, Cincinnati; Gordie Howe, New England.</p><p><b>DEFENSEMEN &mdash;</b> Rick Ley, New England; Paul Shmyr and John Hughes, Edmonton; Craig Hartsburg and Rob Ramage, Birmingham Bulls; Barry Long, Winnipeg; Gary Lariviere, Quebec.</p><p><b>GOALTENDERS &mdash;</b> Dave Dryden, Edmonton; Markus Mattson, Winnipeg; Richard Brodeur or Jim Corsi, Quebec.</p><p>This list does not include many other worthy WHA representatives, including Dave Langevin and Al Hamilton of the Oilers, Peter Marsh of Cincinnati, Paul Henderson of Birmingham, Gord Roberts of New England, J. C. Tremblay and Paul Baxter <i>of</i> Quebec and Peter Sullivan and Rich Preston of Winnipeg.</p><p>Surely, fans in Eastern and Western Canada would be interested in such a tournament. Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Edmonton have buildings of more than 15,000 capacity&mdash;large enough to accommodate games and to ensure that, in the interests of national unity, the series could be shown to fans in all regions.</p><p>I think Canada&rsquo;s national game is more important than any disputes between the NHL and WHA and Hockey Canada and the CAHA. I feel hockey fans coast to coast agree with me and I hope readers of THE HOCKEY NEWS will express their opinions.&rdquo; Yours truly,</p><p>LARRY GORDON, Executive Vice-President Edmonton Oilers<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

AN OPEN LETTER TO…CANADA’S HOCKEY FANS

<p><b>Special To The Hockey New</b></p><p>EDMONTON&mdash;</p><p>Edmonton Oilers, who have never finished higher than fourth in the history of the World Hockey Association, staged their second lengthy winning streak of the season last week to march into contention for first place.</p><p>The Oilers, who earlier had won six games in a row before being blasted 7-0 by New England Whalers to end the streak, extended their current hot spell to five games in a row with a 6-1 triumph over Quebec Nordiques.</p><p>The victory moved Edmonton into sole possession of second place temporarily but they fell to third again before entering Springfield, Mass., Feb. 16, for one of their few road games in February.</p><p>Traditionally, the Oilers play only a few games at home in March because a boat show and a rodeo occupy the 15,248-seat Edmonton Coliseum where the hockey team plays its home games. That means coach Glen Sather&rsquo;s boys must keep winning in February to have a realistic chance at finishing first or second and&mdash;for the first time in their history&mdash;earning the extra home game in the first round of playoffs.</p><p>Sather, whose patience with the rebuilt Oilers has silenced many of the critics who blamed him for Edmonton&rsquo;s early-season inconsistency, said he was confident the team could stay at or near the top.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve said all along this is a good hockey team,&rdquo; Sather pointed out, adding that early-season injuries have been overcome and the team is healthier than at any previous time this year.</p><p>Dennis Sobchuk, hampered by a back injury for a few games, popped out of the slump in time to pace an 8-5 victory over Cincinnati Stingers and continued to play well in ensuing games. Hishard work made a vital goal by Ron Chipperfield possible in Edmonton&rsquo;s 6-1 win over the Nordiques. Sobchuk outwrestled two Quebec defenders behind the net and found Chipperfield absolutely alone in front for the score.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m feeling fine now,&rdquo; said Sobchuk. &ldquo;There are about 30 games left (actually 32 when he spoke)and I&rsquo;ll just keep going right into the playoffs.&rsquo;</p><p>Edmonton&rsquo;s long-range hopes gained a big boost when Ed Mio, recalled from Dallas of the Central Hockey League after an impressive two-week stint, finally returned to the form expected of him when he was obtained from Indianapolis early in the season. Mio gave up only one goal&mdash;a wicked 30-foot blast by Quebec&rsquo;s Marc Tardif&mdash;and provided Edmonton the best backup netminding it has received all season.</p><p>Veteran Dave Dryden, of course, remained Mr. Big for the Oilers in goal. He registered his third shutout of the season by blanking Quebec 3-0 for the third win in Edmonton&rsquo;s streak.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

February Hot Play Boosting Oilers

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01407/4364481-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="250" height="252"></div><h2><b>BIRMINGHAM BULLS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02301/4364474-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="189" height="200"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03232/4364467-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="709" height="645"></div><h2><b>CINCINNATI STINGERS</b></h2><div class="container"><div class="figure-block image-float"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-04174/4364460-1-eng-US/f0028-042.jpg" title="f0028-04" width="135" height="143"></div></div><div style="clear: both;"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-05151/4364453-1-eng-US/f0028-052.jpg" title="f0028-05" width="718" height="667"></div><h2><b>EDMONTON OILERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-06133/4364446-1-eng-US/f0028-062.jpg" title="f0028-06" width="201" height="185"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-07123/4364439-1-eng-US/f0028-072.jpg" title="f0028-07" width="708" height="685"></div><h2><b>NEW ENGLAND WHALERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-08113/4364432-1-eng-US/f0028-082.jpg" title="f0028-08" width="188" height="185"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-09107/4364425-1-eng-US/f0028-092.jpg" title="f0028-09" width="705" height="635"></div><h2><b>QUEBEC NORDIQUES</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-10104/4364418-1-eng-US/f0028-102.jpg" title="f0028-10" width="190" height="187"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1196/4364411-1-eng-US/f0028-112.jpg" title="f0028-11" width="711" height="628"></div><h2><b>WINNIPEG JETS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1292/4364404-1-eng-US/f0028-122.jpg" title="f0028-12" width="179" height="177"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1384/4364397-1-eng-US/f0028-132.jpg" title="f0028-13" width="720" height="690"></div><h2><b>WHA Leaders</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-1474/4364390-1-eng-US/f0028-142.jpg" title="f0028-14" width="591" height="939"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0028-01

WHA’S PLUS-MINUS STATISTICS

<h2><b>The Top 10 U.S. Colleges</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01358/4364512-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="583" height="487"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0029-01

COLLEGE HOCKEY NEWS

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0029-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02273/4364543-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>St. Lawrence freshman goaler Gary Laskowski received the MVP award during the 28th annual RPI Invitational hockey tournament for his outstanding performance in sparking the Larries to the title. Laskowski, a native of Ottawa, Ont., is shown accepting award from RPI president George Low. St. Lawrence won tourney with a 2-0-1 record with Laskowski in goal for both wins. RPI ended second.</b></figcaption></div><p>BOSTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>F</span>or more than a quarter of a century, the Beanpot Tournament has been close to the essence of Boston sports. Like the Boston marathon (before Dr. Sheehan, like the Fenway Park left field wall, the Beanpot is an enduring symbol, defining the athletic appreciation which Bostonians need share with no one else.</p><p>And so, when 14,456 faithful packed Boston Garden for the final round of Beanpot No. 27 on February 12, they partook of a night of college hockey which once again left a glow that will last well beyond the last runner&rsquo;s footfall at the Prudential Center, beyond the last home run settling into the net over Lansdowne Street.</p><p>For the record, the championship went to Boston University. BU, defending Beanpot titlist. edged Boston College 4-3 to take the Pot for the 11th time against nine for BC and seven for Harvard. In the consolation, an undermanned but determined Northeastern team, expected to get into the finals but frustrated for the 25th time a week earlier, kept its playoff hopes alive by knocking Harvard 5-4.</p><p>But, as usual, the figures don&rsquo;t tell a thing about that evening on Causeway Street. There was BU, the heavy favorite from its perch atop the ECAC, with the surgically precise passes and wave after wave of skaters coming over the boards. There was BC, the game underdog, clawing for a playoff berth and showing some of its best form of the season after a disappointing start. There was the understatedly brilliant penalty killing of Marc Hetnik for BU, and the larcenous goaltending of Paul Skidmore for BC.</p><p>And, in the end, it was basic hustle by a couple of fourth liners, both sophomores, named Daryl MacLeod and Bill Cotter, that provided BU with its margin of victory. Cotter outraced a defender to the right wing corner and threw a hopeful pass-shot in the direction of the net. MacLeod, winning his, own race, banged at the puck twice near Skidmore&rsquo;s feet, and the red light went on for the final time with 7:45 to go.</p><p>BU had taken a 2-1 lead into the second intermission. Cotter tallied off a first period faceoff, and John Bethel clicked on the tail end of a pinballperfect power play early in the second period before the Eagles&rsquo; Joe Mullen got his team onto the board at the stanza&rsquo;s 17:24 mark.</p><p>When Tony Meagher beat Skidmore on a 2-on-l at 37 seconds of the third period, it was 3-1 BU and Terrier loyalists relaxed a little. But Mullen out-muscled two defensemen in a footrace across the blueline and scored on Jim Craig at 1:13. Then Mike Ewanouski rifled home a shot from high in the slot to know the count at 2:45. The crowd could hardly sit down the rest of the way. Skidmore and Craig each turned aside good scoring chances, and MacLeod&rsquo;s little tap-in earned him MVP honors.</p><p>The pivotal stretch probably came at 10:10 of the second period. The Terriers killed off a full two minutes aof 5-on-3 power play, then held BC at bay for an additional two minutes of 5-on-4. Retnik iced the puck himself three times during that stretch which saw MacLeod in the box for a double minor and Bill O&rsquo;Neill sitting out a single minor infraction.</p><p>The consolation tilt featured two penalty shots in the same period of play. Harvard&rsquo;s Dave Bruke capped his team&rsquo;s comeback at 18:15 of the second when he beat Eddie Arrington with a forehand drive and tied the score at 4-4, after NU defenseman Dave Archambault fell on the puck in the crease. Earlier, with the score 4-1 4n favor of the Huntington Hounds, Harvard goalie John Hynes stopped Wayne Turner on a penalty shot bid. Following Hynes&rsquo; save, Harvard surged to tie the game on tallies by Bob McDonald, Tom Murray, and Burke.</p><p>But the Huskies carried the day. Freshman Gerry Cowie sneaked between two defenders to root a shot under the crossbar behind Hynes at 7:29 of the third and give NU the win. It was Cowie&rsquo;s second score of the game for NU, who played without the services of four regulars and needed a win badly. Harvard, already out of the playoff running in a poor season for them, slipped to last place via the defeat.</p><p>One of the Hounds&rsquo; absentees was Chris Nilan, suspended after his team&rsquo;s brawl two nights earlier at Colgate. The donnybrook, which involved measurement of an allegedly illegal Colgate stick and which saw the crown get out of control, caused referees Joe Albert and Joe Calcasola to end the game with a couple of minutes to go in the second period and the score tied 2-2. As of press time, the game might be replayed at a neutral site such as RPI or Union, depending if it is necessary to determine playoff participants. Colgate has since lost twice and is no longer a contender, but Northeastern is very much alive, having edged New Hampshire 3-1 two nights after the Beanpot Tournament consolation win. The Hounds raised their league mark to 10-7 with either four or five games to go.</p><p>The teams still mathematically in the race for the eight playoff spots as of press time were these 11: BU, UNH, Cornell, Yale, Dartmouth, Clarkson, Brown, Providence, Northeastern, Boston College and Vermont. This assumes that a .500 record is the minimum standard for team number eight, although it may turn out to be better than an even won-lost mark required this year. Stay tuned.</p><p>Elsewhere, Vermont hung tough with wins of 5-3 at RPI and 7-5 over Colgate at home. Each time, two late goals broke a third period tie; in Troy it was Ben Lord and Lou Cote clicking, while back home Bill Kangas and Gary Hebert got the key scores.</p><p>Yale managed a 4-4 tie at Boston University to solidify their chances for their first playoff spot since 1967. Dan Poliziani actually had the potential winning goal disallowed by the referee with 3:20 to play, and the teams battled through a scoreless sudden death period. The Elis were the only Eastern team to defeat BU a year ago.</p><p>Dartmouth ensured itself of a spot in the top eight via a 3-2 overtime win against improving Princeton in Hanover. Dennis Murphy tied the game up with 1:46 to play, and Donald O&rsquo;Brien converted at 1:21 of the extra session to give the Green a narrow win. Cornell looks like a home ice shoo-in after a 7-5 win at Brown, keyed by John Olds&rsquo; two third period goals. Boston College scored six goals to come from behind and nail Clarkson 8-6 in Boston. Joe Mullen of BC and Kevin Zappia of the Knights each scored his 100th career goal in the contest.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0029-02

Fourth Line Shines In BU’s Beanpot Win

<div class="byline">BY VIRG FOSS</div><p>COLORADO SPRINGS&mdash;</p><p>&lsquo;Gino&rsquo; Gasparini, the rookie hockey coach at the University of North Dakota, doesn&rsquo;t walk on water. At least not yet. But you&rsquo;d have a hard time convincing Colorado College hockey coach Jeff Sauer of that.</p><p>North Dakota took a giant step toward winning its first Western Collegiate Hockey Association title since 1967 by thrashing Sauer&rsquo;s Colorado College Tigers 3-1 and 6-1 in a weekend series.</p><p>That sweep for the Sioux, their second in two weeks after beating Wisconsin in Madison the weekend before, gave the Sioux a five-point lead over Minnesota and Notre Dame with two weeks of play remaining.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01401/4364574-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="530" height="609"><figcaption class="caption-body">&lsquo;<b>GINO&rsquo;GASPARINI&hellip;Walking On Water?</b></figcaption></div><p>But back to Sauer, Gasparini and the water. &ldquo;When &lsquo;Gino&rsquo; starts walking on water, give me a call and let me know,&rdquo; Sauer told reporter from THE HOCKEY NEWS after Sauer must have thought Gasparini and the Sioux had divine guidance in posting their second straight road sweep.</p><p>What they have had is outstanding play from a group of outstanding players that have lifted the Sioux to 18 wins in their last 22 games.</p><p>Freshman center Kevin Maxwell, junior wing Mark Taylor and freshman goaltender Bob Iwabuchi were particularly impressive against Colorado College.</p><p>Maxwell set a North Dakota record for points in a season when he scored twice and assisted on two other goals in the 6-1 Sioux win that wrapped up the sweep. The four points gave Maxwell 66 for the season, eclipsing the old mark of 65 set by Reggie Morelli in 1959-60.</p><p>And Taylor, one of the best wings in the WCHA, picked up three assists Saturday to set a school record for assists in a season. His 43 assists broke the mark of 41 set by all-league Sioux defenseman Bill Himmelright a year ago.</p><p>Iwabuchi, the leading goaltender in the WCHA, was simply brilliant against the Tigers. He made 28 saves in the first game, then came back to turn aside 35 shots the next night, including three breakaways.</p><p>Iwabuchi has now played three games against Colorado College this season and allowed just two goals while making 88 saves.</p><p>&ldquo;North Dakota is the class team in the country,&rdquo; were Sauer&rsquo;s comments after the series ended. North Dakota outscored CC 25-3 in four meetings this season after winning 6-1 and 10-0 earlier in Grand Forks.</p><p>North Dakota can now clinch the title by winning just two of its final four games. Any combination of two Sioux wins or losses by Minnesota and Notre Dame would give the title to the Sioux. North Dakota hopes to wrap it up at home against ninth-place Michigan State, rather than having to win it on the road the final weekend at Minnesota, always a tough place to play.</p><p>Around the WCHA:</p><p><b>MINNESOTA AT NOTRE DAME:</b> Notre Dame put a definite crimp into Minnesota coach Herb Brooks&rsquo; dreams of a WCHA title by sweeping the Gophers 3-2 and 8-7 to move into a tie for second in the league with the Gophers. Notre Dame overcame a 2-0 Minnesota lead in the opener as Tom Michalek scored once and Greg Meredith twice, including the gamewinner late in the second period. Meredith got his 41 seconds apart and frosh Dave Laurion was superb in the nets the rest of the way. The second night, Notre Dame overcame a 4-3 Minnesota lead in the second period with four straight goals for the victory. Meredith and Kevin Nagurski each scored twice for Notre Dame. Freshman ace Neal Broten had three goals and three assists for the Gophers, who closed to within 7-6 before fading again.</p><p><b>DULUTH AT MICHIGAN STATE:</b> Duluth, once in prime position to win the title, dropped its third straight game as Michigan State skated to a 6-5 victory in the opener as the Spartans continued a late-season drive to make the league playoffs. Berths go to the top eight teams and Michigan State is ninth. But Duluth snapped Michigan State&rsquo;s three-game winning streak and snapped its own three-game losing streak the second night as Bill Oleksuk got the deciding goal in a 5-3 Duluth victory.</p><p><b>WISCONSIN AT MICHIGAN:</b> Michigan became the first team to be eliminated from a playoff chance as the Badgers of Wisconsin rolled to 8-3 and 6-4 victories. Rod Romanchuk had four goals for Wisconsin in the second game to highlight the series.</p><p><b>DENVER AT MICHIGAN TECH:</b> Senior goalie John Rockwell posted his second shutout of the season as the Huskies of Michigan Tech won the opener 5-0. But Denver foiled Michigan Tech&rsquo;s dreams of a split the next night when Alex Belcourt forged a 4-4 tie with a goal with 64 seconds left after Denver coach Marshall Johnston pulled his goalie for a sixth attacker. Stu Birenbaum turned back 10 Tech shots in overtime to give Denver the tie.</p><h2><b>Where The Colleges Play&hellip;</b></h2><h2><b>ECAC Conference</b></h2><p><b>Tue, Feb. 20</b></p><p>New Hampshire at Vermont</p><p><b>Wed, Feb. 21</b></p><p>RPI at Brown</p><p>Northeastern at Boston University</p><p>Harvard at Cornell</p><p><b>Thu, Feb. 22</b></p><p>New Hampshire at Providence</p><p><b>Fri, Feb. 23</b></p><p>Boston College at Colgate</p><p>Princeton at St. Lawrence</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 24</b></p><p>New Hampshire at Boston University</p><p>Boston College at RPI</p><p>Princeton at Clarkson</p><p>Harvard at Colgate</p><p>Northeastern at Cornell</p><p>Yale at Providence</p><h2><b>WCHA CONFERENCE</b></h2><p><b>Feb, 23-24</b></p><p>Michigan State at North Dakota</p><p>Notre Dame at Denver</p><p>Michigan Tech at Minnesota</p><p>Wisconsin at Colorado College</p><p>Michigan at Minnesota-Duluth</p><h2><b>CCHA Conference</b></h2><p><b>FEB, 20</b></p><p>Bowling Green at Ohio State</p><p>Lake Superior at Northern Michigan</p><p>Ferris State at Western Michigan</p><p><b>FEB. 23</b></p><p>Western Michigan at Bowling Green</p><p>Ohio State at Miami</p><p><b>FEB, 23-24</b></p><p>St. Louis at Lake Superior</p><p>Ferris State at Northern Michigan</p><p><b>FEB, 24</b></p><p>Bowling Green at Western Michigan</p><p>Chicago-Circle at Ohio State<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0030-01

Irish Dashes Minnesota’s Hopes While North Dakota Pulls Away

<div class="byline">BY JIM SCHNEIDER</div><p>BOWLING GREEN&mdash;</p><p>The Bowling Green State University Falcons clinched their second straight Central Collegiate Hockey Association regular season championship and their third in the past four years with a tie and a win over Northern Michigan.</p><p>BG and NMU tied the opener 3-3 which clinched a tie for the title, but when second place Ohio State dropped a 4-3 decision on the same evening the title was safe again in Northwest Ohio. BG won the second game 5-2.</p><p>The visiting Wildcats of NMU, fighting for a playoff spot, grabbed a 30 lead as junior netminder Steve Weeks was frustrating the powerful BG attack.</p><p>Don Waddell scored in the first period and freshman Steve Bozek put the &lsquo;Cats ahead 2-0 after two periods of play, and Denis Flanagan&rsquo;s marked at 1:27 of the third period gave Rick Comley&rsquo;s crew thoughts of a key victory on the road.</p><p>Freshman winger Brian MacLellan delighted the crowd of 3,122 in the BGSU Ice Arena collecting his 28th goal of the season at 3:51 assisted by George McPhee and Mark Wells.</p><p>Wells cut the margin to 3-2 at the 10:39 mark with assists to linemates McPhee and John Markell to set up the wild finish.</p><p>Freshman defenseman John Gibb scored the tying goal while goalie Wally Charko was on his way to the BG bench. McPhee blasted a shot that Weeks stopped, but Gibb was standing out in front of the net to score on the rebound.</p><p>Weeks finished the night with 48 saves including 18 in the second period and eight more in the overtime frame.</p><p>NMU came back with a second strong performance taking a 1-0 lead after one period of the second game on a Dozek goal at 16:05.</p><p>BG&rsquo;s Andy Crowther tied the score at 7:07, but at 11:25 Dann McKeraghan put the visitors ahead once more.</p><p>All American defenseman Ken Morrow tied the game 2-2 at 12:29 of the second period, his 12th goal of the season, assisted by senior teammates Markell and Wells.</p><p>McPhee sparkled in the third period for the second straight night and scored the game winning goal after 22 seconds of action in the period assisted by Markell and Wells.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02312/4364605-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="556" height="666"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GEORGE McPHEE&hellip;Clutch Scoring</b></figcaption></div><p>Markell netted a power play goal from McPhee and Wells at 6:20 and McPhee finished the scoring and wrapped up the CCHA player-of-the-week award with a goal at 15:42 of the final period assisted by Derek Arzoomanian. McPhee had six points in the series, all scored during crucial third period action.</p><p>Charko moved his goals against average to 2.22 and his record to 24-3-2. Charko will face the brunt of the action as the season winds down as sophomore Brian Stankiewicz left the team.</p><p>In other weekend action Ohio State bounced back from the 4-3 defeat of Friday night to crush Western Michigan 13-2 while St. Louis was splitting with Ferris State in the final college weekend in the vast Checkerdome. The visiting Bulldogs smashed SLU 11-2 in the opener, but Bill Selman&rsquo;s Billikens took the final home game by a 4-1 score. Lake Superior was idle.</p><p>OSU freshman Jim Mroszak scored two goals and had an assist in the opener, but it wasn&rsquo;t enough as the Broncos scored two goals in the second period and two more in the third for the win.</p><p>OSU defenseman Bob Zannella scored the lone first period goal at the 8:43 mark on the power play assisted by Mroszak and Dan Mandich.</p><p>Goals by Terry Olson and Ross Fitspatrick put WMU on top in the second period, but Mroszak tied the game at 19:47.</p><p>T. Olson put the visitors ahead 3-2 with his second goal of the game, but Mroszak matched the goal at 8:47 and the score was tied at three.</p><p>Sophomore defenseman Kevin Scott broke the tie at 11:06 assisted by Dan Stothers and Kipp Acton.</p><p>The Bucks fired away in the closing minutes, but Frank Serratore held on for the win finishing the night with 38 saves.</p><p>OSU&rsquo;s Paul Tilley paced the offense in the 13-2 game with three goals and three assists, his second six-point game in two weeks.</p><p>The specialty teams were clicking for OSU with seven power play goals and one shorthanded goal.</p><p>The Broncos were whistled for two penalties late in the second period and the Ohio State power play was ready at the start of the third period with Greg Kostenko scoring at 0:09 and Mandich scoring at 0:24.</p><p>Ton Scanlon scored at 1:57 giving OSU three power play goals in less than two minutes. Conrad added the seventh power play at 15:32 with Scanlon and Rick Barker closing out the scoring.</p><p>Ferris State shocked the 4,184 fans in the Checkerdome in the opener by scoring 11 consecutive goals.</p><p>SLU&rsquo;s Chris Valentine gave the Bills a short 1-0 lead at 4:01 of the first period assisted by Bruce Wallace and Mark Major.</p><p>However, Ed Pelyak scored two goals and Randy Strong had one as the Bulldogs took a 3-1 lead after the first period./.</p><p>Ed Turner and Strong made the score 5-1 after two periods in a game that the Bulldogs held just a one-shot advantage, 18-17.</p><p>The roof fell in on Billiken goalie Jerry Gurt in the third period as Ferris State score on six of 16 shots on net with Ron Andrejewski and Steve Banonois each scoring two goals while Jeff Toombs and Jim Baker each scored once. Baker and Strong each finished the game with four points.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0030-02

Buckeyes’ Weekend Split Assures BG Title Repeat

<h2><b>ECAC CONFERENCE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Feb. 20)</b></p><h3><b>DIVISION I</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01367/4364741-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="591" height="464"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p>Clarkson 6, Vermont 4</p><p>New Hampshire 4, Providence 3</p><p>Brown 4, Yale 3</p><p>Colgate 7, St. Lawrence 4</p><p>Cornell 7, RPI 4</p><p>Harvard 4, Princeton 3</p><p>Northeastern 3, New Hampshire 1</p><p>Vermont 5, RPI 3</p><p>New Hampshire 10, Colgate 0</p><p>Boston College 8, Clarkson 6</p><p>Cornell 7, Brown 5</p><p>Vermont 7, Colgate 5</p><p>Boston University 4, Yale 4</p><p>Dartmouth 3, Princeton 2</p><p>RPI 5, St. Lawrence 2</p><p>Providence 4, Cornell 3</p><p>Boston University 5, Clarkson 4</p><p><b>NON-CONFERENCE GAMES</b></p><p>Providence 8, Merrimack 5</p><p>Maine 5, Northeastern 2</p><p><b>BEANPOTTOURNAMENT</b></p><p>Final</p><p>Boston Univ. 4, Boston College 3</p><p>Consolation</p><p>Northeastern 5, Harvard 4</p><h2><b>ECAC CONFERENCE DIVISION II</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 12)</b></p><h3><b>East Section</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02274/4364734-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="588" height="459"></div><h3><b>West Section</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03204/4364727-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="588" height="488"></div><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><h3><b>DIVISION I</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-04156/4364720-1-eng-US/f0031-042.jpg" title="f0031-04" width="588" height="329"></div><h3><b>DIVISION II</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-05135/4364713-1-eng-US/f0031-052.jpg" title="f0031-05" width="579" height="302"></div><h2><b>WCHA CONFERENCE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Fri. Feb. 23)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-06108/4364706-1-eng-US/f0031-062.jpg" title="f0031-06" width="588" height="301"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Feb. 16-17</b></p><p>Michigan State 6, Minn-Duluth 5</p><p>Minn-Duluth 5, Michigan State 3</p><p>Notre Dame 3, Minnesota 2</p><p>Notre Dame 8, Minnesota 7</p><p>Michigan Tech 5, Denver 0</p><p>Michigan Tech 4, Denver 4</p><p>Wisconsin 8, Michigan 3</p><p>Wisconsin 6, Michigan 4</p><p>North Dakota 3, Colorado College 1</p><p>North Dakota 6, Colorado College 1</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0794/4364699-1-eng-US/f0031-072.jpg" title="f0031-07" width="583" height="460"></div><h2><b>CCHA CONFERENCE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Fri. Feb. 23)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0884/4364692-1-eng-US/f0031-082.jpg" title="f0031-08" width="579" height="189"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Feb. 9-10</b></p><p>Bowling Green 3, Northern Michigan 3</p><p>Bowling Green 5, Northern Michigan 2</p><p>Western Michigan 4, Ohio State 3</p><p>Ohio State 13, Western Michigan 2</p><p>Ferris State 11, St. Louis 2</p><p>St. Louis 4, Ferris State 1</p><p><b>Feb. 14</b></p><p>St. Louis 4, Miami (0)1</p><p><b>Feb. 16-17</b></p><p>Bowling Green 6, Lake Superior 1</p><p>Bowling Green 4, Lake Superior 3</p><p>North, Michigan 8, West. Michigan 6</p><p>North, Michigan 7, West. Michigan 6</p><p>Ohio State 7, St. Louis 4</p><p>Ohio State 6, St. Louis 4</p><p>Ferris State 7, Chicago Circle 3</p><p>Ferris State 7, Chicago Circle 6</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0970/4364685-1-eng-US/f0031-092.jpg" title="f0031-09" width="589" height="435"></div><h2><b>CANADIAN COLLEGES</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 12)</b></p><h3><b>ONTARIO ASSOCIATION Eastern Division</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1058/4364678-1-eng-US/f0031-102.jpg" title="f0031-10" width="581" height="168"></div><h2><b>Central Division</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1149/4364671-1-eng-US/f0031-112.jpg" title="f0031-11" width="580" height="134"></div><h2><b>Western Division</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1229/4364664-1-eng-US/f0031-122.jpg" title="f0031-12" width="588" height="137"></div><h2><b>Quebec Association</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1324/4364657-1-eng-US/f0031-132.jpg" title="f0031-13" width="581" height="192"></div><h2><b>Maritime Association</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1421/4364650-1-eng-US/f0031-142.jpg" title="f0031-14" width="583" height="242"></div><h2><b>Canada West Association</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1520/4364643-1-eng-US/f0031-152.jpg" title="f0031-15" width="586" height="303"></div><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1618/4364636-1-eng-US/f0031-162.jpg" title="f0031-16" width="585" height="275"></div><h2><b>Canada&rsquo;s Top 10 Colleges</b></h2><p>1. Alberta</p><p>2. Toronto</p><p>3. St. Mary&rsquo;s</p><p>4. Regina</p><p>5. Calgary</p><p>6. Guelph</p><p>7. Manitoba</p><p>8. Dalhousie</p><p>9. Concordia</p><p>10. Laurentian<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0031-01

The College Scoreboard

<div class="byline">BY RICHARD JABLONSKI</div><p>EDMONTON&mdash;</p><p>Surprise!</p><p>The CIAU&rsquo;s number one team, the Alberta Golden Bears, has clinched the Canada West Association championship.</p><p>You say you&rsquo;re not surprised? Well, perhaps that has something to do with the fact that you&rsquo;ve been watching Clare Drake&rsquo;s Bears all season long, nonchalantly doing their thing, and rolling up an impressive 17-1 log in CWAA play.</p><p>Or maybe you&rsquo;ve been following the&rsquo; exploits of the Albertans&rsquo; dynamic goaltending duo, Ted Poplawski and Nick Sanza&rsquo; who have let up a miserly 37 goals in the Bears&rsquo; 18 regular season games.</p><p>It&rsquo;s also possible that you are aware of the scoring exploits of the Bears. In their 18 CWAA matches to date, the high-scoring Bears have racked up a grand total of 119 goals, an average of 6.6 per outing.</p><p>Not surprisingly, in view of these statistics, when Alberta performed a convincing home-ice sweep of the British Columbia Thunderbirds, the Bears also captured yet another Canada West title. Realistically, it was only a matter of time.</p><p>As usual, the top-ranked Bears got the job done at both ends of the rink. In the first game of the series, netminder Ted Poplawski was his usual stingy self, shutting out the Thunderbirds 8-0. Alberta&rsquo;s offense was led by forward Chris Helland, who started off a four goal weekend with a pair in Game.</p><p>The following afternoon provided little relief for UBC fans. The Thunderbirds did manage a quartet of goals, including two by Rob Jones, but Alberta fired home eight more, en route to an 84 victory. Once again it was Helland, with two goals and two assists, who paced the Bears.</p><p>Meanwhile, in Calgary, the second place Dinosaurs made Alberta&rsquo;s clinching a little bit easier by managing only a split with the last place Saskatchewan Huskies. Behind Tim Nichel&rsquo;s two goals, the Huskies upset the Dinos 5-3 on Friday night, before succumbing to a goal rush in a 9-3 loss the next day.</p><p>The association&rsquo;s top scorer Robin Laycock (18-19-37) netted two goals and two assists versus Saskatchewan, while teammates Dered Spring (2-1) and Rick Williams (four assists) made the going easier in the second game.</p><p>Spring, by the way, has accumulated six goals and 15 assists in only 12 games since the Christmas break.</p><p><b>ONTARIO ASSOCIATION:</b> The playoff picture in Ontario has been unscrambled. Eight teams from the province&rsquo;s three divisions will fight it out over the next two weeks to determine just who will be traveling to Montreal in March.</p><p>The odds-on favorites are, of course, the Toronto Blues. Toronto swept a pair of games from Queen&rsquo;s, assuring itself of the number one spot in the Eastern Division. Tom Watt&rsquo;s Blues will face Central Division champ McMaster in the first round of the playoffs.</p><p>Two other Eastern Division teams will face off in another quarter final; Laurentian versus York. The Voyageurs actually had the power to choose their first round opponent, as they faced the Ottawa Gee-Gees in their last regular season game. Laurentian&rsquo;s 5-3 victory locked Ottawa out of the playoffs, and put Ron Smith&rsquo;s York Yeomen in.</p><p>In the Western section, divisional champion Guelph will play host to the Windsor Lancers, the second place team from the Central Division. Western and Wilfrid Laurier meet in the other western matchup, with both teams headed into the playoffs on an upbeat. Western, on the stellar performance of goaltender Paul McLaren, shut out Waterloo 3-0, while Laurier upset Guelph 7-3.</p><p>If you like a dark horse, go with Laurier to take Western honors.</p><p><b>ATLANTIC ASSOCIATION:</b> As opposed to the Ontario Association, the playoff situation in the Maritimes couldn&rsquo;t be any more confusing. After Saint Mary&rsquo;s and Dalhousie, four teams are still in the running for the final two playoff spots. Talk about league balance.</p><p>Three of those teams are tied with 17 points: Saint Francis Xavier, Acadia, and Prince Edward Island. While the Panthers of UPEI have played one more game than the other two, their schedule appears to be the most favorable of the three. Moncton trails with 16 points.</p><p>PEI split a pair of games, dumping Mount Allison 6-4 before dropping a critical 3-2 decision to the Moncton Blue Eagles. In the latter game, Moncton goaltender Benoit Fortier stopped 37 or 39 shots, including a penalty shot, to frustrate the Panthers. Second semester sensation Francois Bessette did the scoring, with a pair of goals and an assist on the third.</p><p>Moncton split two other games during the week, downing New Brunswick 6-4 and losing 5-3 to Mount Allison. The Mount A loss, which came on their home ice, could prove most costly to the Blue Eagles. John Moore netted the game-winner for the Mounties in the third period.</p><p>Evidently gearing up for the playoffs, the Dalhousie Tigers turned in the performance of the week. The Tigers started by hurting Acadia&rsquo;s playoff chances with a solid 7-4 triumph over the Axemen. For good measure, Pierre Page&rsquo;s club notched its first regular season victory over Saint Mary&rsquo;s, 8-4. The win over SMU comes after two regular season setbacks, 7-3 and 6-4.</p><p><b>QUEBEC ASSOCIATION:</b> With playoff positions fairly well wrapped up, and home ice playoff advantage all that remains to be played for, it comes as little wonder that the big news in the QUAA this week was provided by McGill Redmen coach Herb Madill. After seven seasons as Redmen mentor, Madill has elected to step down from his position to spend more time with his family and full time job.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Well-Rounded Golden Bears Roll To CWAA Flag

<h2><b>Where AHL Teams Play</b></h2><h3><b>FEBRUARY</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01379/4364803-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="570" height="435"></div><h3><b>MARCH</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02290/4364796-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="574" height="329"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0032-01

AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE

<div class="byline">BY JIM LEAHY</div><p>MONCTON&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>C</span>oach Eddie Johnston&rsquo;s Hawks were in action only once during the week. The club skated to an exciting 3-3 overtime tie against arch-rival Nova Scotia in a game played at the Moncton Coliseum. Maine jumped into first place in the Northern Division of the American Hockey League however, the season long see-saw battle between Maine and New Brunswick for the top spot in the division is expected to continue right down to the last few games of the regular season.</p><p>Rocky Saganiuk and Kirk Bowman continue to pace the New Brunswick scoring attack, with Saganiuk leading the league in goals scored with 35 at this writing. Bowman has counted 20 times.</p><p>Goaltenders Pierre Hamel (3.44 GAA) and Murray Bannerman (3.25 GAA) have been providing the expansionist Hawks with some outstanding netminding.</p><p>Left winger Pierre Giroux was returned to Flint of the IHL after a brief trial with the Hawks.</p><p><b>NEW HAVEN:</b> A three-game road trip for the Nighthawks during the week ended up with the Southern Division leaders winning two or three from the trailing clubs in the pack. A 4-2 win in Rochester was followed by a 7-4 loss in Binghamton, but the Nighthawks rebounded to defeat Hershey 4-3 at the Hersheypark Sports Arena.</p><p>Centeright winger Ron Andruff left the team after being acquired from the Philadelphia Firebirds in a recent trade. Coach Parker MacDonald said that &ldquo;Ron needs time to settle his personal business back in Colorado and isn&rsquo;t sure just how long that will take. Ron told me that he likes the team and environment here, but simply wants time to think. We will do everything we can to keep Ron a Nighthawk, and hope he returns to the club soon.&rdquo;</p><p>New Haven also lost center Bobby Sheehan for three to four weeks after he suffered a broken bone in his left hand during the win at Rochester. Sheeham was third in the AHL in scoring and led New Haven players with 25 goals in 50 games. To replace him, the Nighthawks have recalled winger Dave Hrechkosy from Saginaw of the International Hockey League.</p><p><b>NOVA SCOTIA:</b> The parent Montreal Canadiens gave their Voyageurs a big helping hand by assigning defenseman Rod Langway to Nova Scotia. In addition, backliner Jean Lemieux came off the injured list which should also aid the Voyageur porous defensive corps.</p><p>Coach Frank St. Marseille has a fight on his hands trying to keep his club ahead of improving Springfield in the battle for the final playoff spot in the Northern Division. The Vees were unable to win in two key games. They skated to a 3-3 tie in New Brunswick and were disappointed in Philadelphia when the Firebirds held them to a 2-2 standoff.</p><p><b>HERSHEY:</b> Left winger Eddy Godin has been lost to the Bears after suffering a back injury during a 7-4 loss in New Haven. Left winger Nelson Burton has just come off the injury list after he came up with a fractured jaw last month. Coach Chuck Hamilton lost two players and added one during the week. Defenseman Richard Dunn has been sent to Hershey from Buffalo, but the Sabres took rookie defenseman Larry Playfair back to the NHL. Goaltender Rollie Boutin was sent to Port Huron of the IHL.</p><p>The Bears were unable to come up with a win during the week&rsquo;s action. They skated to a 3-3 tie in Rochester and dropped a 4-3 contest to New Haven before 4,588 hometown fans. A game scheduled for Hershey earlier in the week between the Bears and Firebirds was cancelled due to a snow storm.</p><p>The 4-3 loss to New Haven came after the Bears had taken a 3-2 lead in the third period on a goal by Alex Tidey. Dale Lewis beat Hershey netminder Randy Ireland during a Nighthawk power play and the contest was knotted at 3-3. With 7:15 left in the game, Nighthawk captain Tom Coley, who has been red hot of late, fired the puck past Ireland fromt he left faceoff circle and New Haven skated off the Sports Arena ice with a 4-3 victory.</p><p><b>MAINE:</b> Bob McCammon, who guided the Mariners to the Calder Cup last year, is very happy about returning to Maine after he was replaced as coach of the Philadelphia Flyers by former Mariner leader Pat Quinn.</p><p>&ldquo;After watching a few games from the press box, I knew I wanted to get back into coaching again. I&rsquo;m happy to be back in Maine because the happiest year of my life was spent here. I just hope we can bring another championship to the great fans in Maine,&rdquo; McCammon said.</p><p>The return of McCammon as coach of the Mariners did not turn out exactly as planned. The pesky Springfield Indians dumped the Mariners 3-2 at the Civic Center.</p><p><b>PHILADELPHIA:</b> Two performers from the North Eastern Hockey League, Hand Howak and Terry West. have been signed to 10 game tryouts by the Firebirds. West. arrived from the Utica Mohawks after scoring 70 points in 40 games. Left winger Hank Nowak, joined the Firebirds from the Cape Cod Freedoms where he also had 70 points in just 40 NEHL contests.</p><p><b>SPRINGFIELD:</b> The Indians filed an appeal of AHL president Jack Butterfield&rsquo;s decision to suspend goaltended Louis Levasseur from all future games this season involving the Maine Mariners. The appeal was turned down by the Board of Governors. Levasseur was suspended while a member of the Binghamton Dusters after a stick swinging incident with the Maine Mariners.</p><p>Coach Pete Stemkowski laced on the skates once again to fill in for the club until some of the injured players come back. His presence on the ice sparked the Tribe to a 6-2 win at Rochester.</p><p><b>BINGHAMTON:</b> Left wingers Jim Hamilton and Gilles Bilodeau were recalled by the parent clubs (Pittsburgh and Quebec), but the Dusters overcame their loss with a big win over New Haven.</p><p>A crowd of 4,353 at the Broome County Arena saw the Dusters explode in the third period and score four goals off Doug Soetaert to pin a 7-4 loss on the visiting Nighthawks. The win ended an 11-game unbeaten streak for the New Haven club, longest in the team&rsquo;s history. Two third period goals by Fred Ahern and Paul Crowley gave Binghamton the victory.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03192/4364834-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="556" height="742"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>KIRK BOWMAN&hellip;20-Goal Scorer</b></figcaption></div><p><b>ROCHESTER:</b> Bill Bennett and Tom Cassidy continue to pace the Rochester scoring attack but team defense, or the lack thereof, plagues the Amerks. Defenseman Keith Johnson has been sent down to Grand Rapids of the IHL, but Rochester goaltending has not been up to par with Garry Carr&rsquo;s 4.00 GAA the best among three netminders.</p><p>Mike Forbes and Steve Langdon scored for Rochester in the game with New Haven at the War Memorial during the week, but the opposition found the range four times. New Haven skated to a 4-2 win before 3,006 at the War Memorial.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0032-03

Mariners, Hawks Battling To Wire; New Haven Keeps Hold On Top Spot

<h2><b>Where CHL Teams Play</b></h2><h3><b>FEBRUARY</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01346/4364896-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="540" height="342"></div><h3><b>MARCH</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02256/4364889-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="522" height="193"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0033-01

CENTRAL HOCKEY LEAGUE

<div class="byline">BY TOM LOBAUGH</div><p>SALT LAKE&mdash;</p><p>Terry Richardson took up right where he left off. The 28-year-old goalie from Powell River, B.C. had shut out the opposition for more than 145 minutes before he suffered a sprained knee in a pileup at his net, Jan. 27.</p><p>Terry came back to work for the Golden Eagles in Fort Worth, Feb. 9, and chalked up his third shutout of the season (only the fifth in his six-year professional career), as the Birds won, 3-0. That extended Richardson&rsquo;s string of scoreless goaltending to a league record of 205 minutes, 2 seconds, breaking the mark of 192:56 by Roy Edwards for Fort Worth in 1967-68.</p><p>It also ran Terry&rsquo;s personal unbeaten streak to nine games (8-0-1), and lowered his goals-against average to 2.39. For the first time this season he moved in front of teammate Doug Grant, who was at 2.54.</p><p>Richardson had to make 27 saves, while Goran Hogosta in the Fort Worth nets made just 19. The Eagle goalie, naturally, had a lot of help from his mates. They had to kill off 10 Texan power plays.</p><p>It was Ken Richardson (no relation to Terry) who started the scoring with an unassisted shorthanded goal early in the middle period. All the scoring came in that period, with Gordie McTavish and Doug Palazzari adding to the Salt Lake margin.</p><p>Two nights earlier the Eagles had to go overtime to win, 5-4, in Dallas. They were upset in Tulsa by the last-place Oilers, 5-3, closing the four-game road swing with a 2-2 record. That was good enough to keep Jack Evans&rsquo; crew 15 points ahead of their nearest challengers, the Kansas City Red Wings.</p><p>In the first minute at Dallas, Salt Lake penalty-killers were stung for their first power play goal in 10 games. Although Rick Bowness tied the score two minutes later, the Hawks came back with three goals to take command in the second period.</p><p>Palazzari launched the Eagle rally in the third, followed by Ken Richardson and Bob Hess (three goals in 2:53) to knot the score. Then it remained for Bowness to win it, firing from the left point after seven minutes of overtime.</p><p>With three points each for the week, Rick Shinski and Floyd Thomson continued to share the club scoring leadership with 52 points, tied for third in the league race.</p><p><b>FORT WORTH:</b> Swedish goalie Hogosta provided the Texans with their first shutout victory of the season, and the Fort Worth goal scorers went on a rampage for a 9-0 romp over archrival Dallas. Garth MacGuigan posted his third hat trick of the season, taking over the league lead in that category.</p><p>The big victory was Fort Worth&rsquo;s sixth straight win over Dallas in Will Rogers Coliseum (11th straight over a two-year span), and was achieved before 5,181 fans&mdash;the biggest turnout of the season. It gave the Texans a commanding 9-3 advantage in the 20-game turnpike series.</p><p>Earlier in the week the Texans hadn&rsquo;t fared so well. They lost a 3-2 overtime game in Oklahoma City, then were blanked, 3-0, at home against Salt Lake. That ran Fort Worth&rsquo;s losing streak to six games, and broke a home unbeaten string of four.</p><p>Captain Alex McKendry added 14 penalty-minutes for a total of 147, highest among the league&rsquo;s active players, but still shy of the 164 Brad Gassoff collected for Dallas before moving up to the Vancouver Canucks three weeks previously.</p><p>After drawing his fifth game misconduct, McKendry faced suspension for three games (one game for the first three, another game for each such penalty thereafter). McKendry sat out the game at Oklahoma City, but, on appeal, CHL president Bud Poile waived the further suspensions, imposing an additional $500 fine.</p><p><b>TULSA:</b> The cellar-dwelling Oilers stayed 14 points out of the fourth and last playoff spot by losing two out of three games. They followed a 4-3 home overtime loss to Oklahoma City with a surprising 5-3 home overtime loss to Oklahoma City with a surprising 5-3 verdict over league-leading Salt Lake, but then took a 10-5 shellacking in Dallas.</p><p>Defenseman Gord Buynak, who collected but one goal in his first 49 games, scored in all three of the week&rsquo;s outings on slapshots from the point.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03184/4364927-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="573" height="599"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>TERRY RICHARDSON&hellip;Passes 200 Minutes</b></figcaption></div><p>Gord Buynak and Rick Hodgson brought a 2-1 first-period lead over Salt Lake. After the Eagles tied it up, Guy Lash restored the Oiler advantage, and Jim MacRae added two goals in the first four minutes of the last period. One proved the eventual winning goal, the fifth for the rookie left wing. No other Oiler had more than two.</p><p>Rookie goalie Tim Bernhardt was in the nets for the victory, and Bill McKenzie suffered the two losses. In Dallas, the Oilers were down by seven goals before they scored at 14:23 of the second period.</p><p>Left wing Bobby Simpson was sidelined with a shoulder injury. Defenseman Jean Bernier sprained his right thumb (which had been broken earlier this season) in the game against Salt Lake</p><p><b>OKLAHOMA CITY:</b> The Stars brought home the Turnpike Trophy for the first time in four years. And playercoach Ted Hampson tied a longstanding league record for quick scoring at the start of a period. And now for the bad news!</p><p>Things were looking up for the Stars when they won two straight overtime games, 3-2 at home against Fort Worth and then 4-3 in Tulsa. But the four-game winning streak came to an end in Kansas City, 9-4.</p><p>Les Auge ended almost 33 minutes of scoreless action when he tapped in the winner at 9:27 of the overtime session, breaking a 3-3 tie and deciding the 20-game turnpike series, 10-5-1, principally because the Stars had a 6-1-1 record in Tulsa&rsquo;s Assembly Center. Each club has now won the trophy six times in the intense rivalry.</p><p>At Kansas City Hampson needed just five seconds to score in the third period, tying the mark set by Wendell Bennett, but the Stars were down, 5-2, after two and couldn&rsquo;t catch up.</p><p><b>DALLAS:</b> Still playing with only three defensemen, the Black Hawks suffered three straight setbacks, a 5-4 overtime loss at home to Salt Lake, a 6-5 defeat in Kansas City, and a 9-0 thrashing in Fort Worth. But they ended the week in great fashion, thumping Tulsa, 10-5, at home. They shared third place with Oklahoma City, two points behind Kansas City and three ahead of Fort Worth.</p><p>Jim Mayer scored 57 seconds into the game with Salt Lake. Jeff Bandura, Brad Smith and Steve Clippingdale made it 4-1 in the second, the last two goals only 37 seconds apart. But the Hawks couldn&rsquo;t hold off the Eagle rally.</p><p>The nightmare in Fort Worth had the Hawks fired up when Tulsa skated in.</p><p>Mayer and Clippingdale scored in the first three and one-half minutes, then Gerry Minor and Tom Roulston had goals 30 seconds apart as the first period ended. In the second, Minor and Smith scored only 20 seconds apart, and Tudor made it 7-0 before Curt Ridley&rsquo;s shutout bid was spoiled at 14:23. Later Hawk goals were by Doug Berry, Kozak and Ron Carter.</p><p>Tudor&rsquo;s two goals and three assists game him 60 points, only one off the pace of OC&rsquo;s league-leading Mike Eaves.</p><p><b>KANSAS CITY:</b> Two home victories, 6-5 over Dallas and 9-4 over Oklahoma City, moved Larry Wilson&rsquo;s Wings into second place, two ahead of Dallas and OC.</p><p>Roland Cloutier had four goals in the romp over Oklahoma City. The new &ldquo;French Connection&rdquo; line, on which he centered for Fern LeBlanc and Sylvain Locas, had six goals and six assists in that game.</p><p>It was a squeaker against Dallas. An early lead provided by Jim Maladrewicz and Locas didn&rsquo;t stand up. Three goals down, the Wings rallied on goals by Mal Davis and Ted Nolan late in the second period. Rick Vasko tied the game with 7:22 left, and only three seconds remained when John Taft won it with a shot from just inside the blueline.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0033-03

Richardson Right Back In Stride For Eagles

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div><p>SAGINAW&mdash;</p><p>The International Hockey League&rsquo;s mid-season All Star game went as predicted. Well, almost anyway.</p><p>The final result was not surprising. The South did what it had done on four previous occasions since the NorthSouth format was introduced in 1970. They won, 5-1. But how they won surprised South coach Moe Bartoli somewhat.</p><p>&ldquo;I knew we had the better goaltending but I thought maybe the North had the better defense. I know they thought they did. But our defense played great,&rdquo; the cigar-chewing Bartoli reflected after his club&rsquo;s convincing victory. The South now has a 5-1-2 record in the series.</p><p>Gordie Laxton, from Bartoli&rsquo;s Grand Rapids squad, and Fort Wayne&rsquo;s Robbie Irons did not disappoint Bartoli with their play in the nets. Laxton, fresh from a quick look at the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins, started and completed his 30-minute chore with a shutout.</p><p>Irons was touched for the North&rsquo;s only goal, by Saginaw&rsquo;s Lynn Jorgenson late in the third period. But Irons was strong during two North power plays which, had they been successful, might have triggered a comeback.</p><p>Laxton and Irons agreed with Bartoli also&mdash;that the South defense was the difference. &ldquo;Our guys checked real well. And the defense played extremely well,&rdquo; said Laxton.</p><p>&ldquo;The defense was making it awfully tough for them (the North) to get across the blueline. The defense was standing up and forcing them offsides a lot,&rdquo; said Irons.</p><p>Offensively, the South got a pair of goals from Fort Wayne&rsquo;s Western Union&mdash;Terry McDougall at center, Robbie Laird at left wing and Al Dumba at right wing. Dumba scored the game&rsquo;s first goal and Laird closed out the scoring 17 seconds from the finish. McDougall figured in both goals.</p><p>The other South goals bounced off the sticks of Toledo veteran Len Fontaine (an unassisted effort and Milwaukee&rsquo;s two representatives, M.F. Schurman and Dan LeCours.</p><p>Laxton was voted the most valuable player for the South and Jorgenson won the same honor for the North.</p><p>The game&mdash;15th in a series which was started in St. Paul, Minn., in 1962, climaxed a two-day presentation. It marked the first time the league tried the two-day format.</p><p>Proceedings got underway with the annual banquet. A crowd of around 200 was in attendance. Joe Falls, nationally-known sports columnist for the Detroit News, was the featured speaker. Rudy Pilous served as master of ceremonies.</p><p>Proceeds from the game will be distributed to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the Greater Saginaw Amateur Hockey Association.</p><p>Next year&rsquo;s game will be played in Milwaukee. Saginaw&rsquo;s presentation will be a tough act to follow.</p><p>As the league broke for the All Star game, a tight race was developing in the North division and signs Grand Rapids and Fort Wayne were far from invincible in the South were surfacing.</p><p>The Owls, for example, suffered through their first below .500 week before the break. They dropped three-out-of-four. The three losses were all on the road&mdash;at Kalamazoo, 3-1; Fort Wayne, 6-4; and Flint, 4-2. The lone win was a 7-2 romp over Port Huron at home.</p><p>Part of the Owls&rsquo; troubles could be traced to the loss of All Star goalie Laxton who was called up to Pittsburgh. Garry Carr, who was with the Owls last year, was brought in and split a pair of games. Rookie Kevin McCabe dropped a pair.</p><p><b>FORT WAYNE:</b> The Komets managed to cut two points off the Grand Rapids lead with a 2-1-1 week and will resume the hunt just six points off the pace. The Owls have 74 points, the Komets 68. Fort Wayne also has a game in hand.</p><p>Featuring the Komet week were a pair of home wins&mdash;4-3 over Saginaw and 64 over the Owls. The Komets also got a 2-2 tie in Kalamazoo, thanks chiefly to the work of veteran Robbie Irons in the nets. Irons kicked out 58 of 60 shots.</p><p>Toledo spoiled the weekend by whipping the K&rsquo;s, 6-3, at home. It marked the Diggers second straight win over the Komets after losing the first five games of the season.</p><p><b>TOLEDO:</b> The Diggers closed out a rough, 35-day period which had them play 12 games on the road and just six at home by picking up five of a possible six points. The Diggers won at Muskegon, 4-2, and Fort Wayne, 6-3, while playing a 2-2 tie in Saginaw. The 2-0-1 performance pulled the Diggers up to .500 for the season, 23-23-6.</p><p>Toledo still trails second-place Fort Wayne by 16 points in the South Division race and Ted Garvin isn&rsquo;t sure his club can catch up. But &ldquo;that doesn&rsquo;t concern me. We&rsquo;ll be ready for them in the playoffs. Right now we&rsquo;re as good as any club in the league,&rdquo; Garvin pointed out.</p><p><b>MILWAUKEE:</b> The Admirals face a pretty rough February. The schedule has them playing just three home games during the month.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03222/4364996-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="555" height="651"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GORD LAXTON&hellip;Al Star MVP</b></figcaption></div><p>Prior to the All Star game, the Admirals completed a three-game road trip with a net gain of one point. The point came in a 3-3 tie at Flint. Coach Gene Ubriaco called the game &ldquo;Our most consistent game of the season. The Admirals weren&rsquo;t as consistent at Port Huron, losing 4-2, and at Saginaw, dropping a 5-3 verdict.</p><p><b>SAGINAW:</b> The Gears, who had been concerned most of the season with one challenger, will have to fight off two during the stretch run.</p><p>The Gears split during the week, winning once, losing once and playing one tie. They hold a six-point lead over Port Huron and Kalamazoo, tied for the runnerup spot with 53 points. The K-Wings, however, have three games in hand on both the Gears and Flags.</p><p>Just prior to the All Star break, the Gears snapped a four-game winless streak with a 5-3 win over Milwaukee at home.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0034-03

South All Stars Win On Defense; Komets Cut Into Owls’ Big Lead

<div class="byline">BY PATRICK LYON</div><p>HAMPTON&mdash;</p><p>It hasn&rsquo;t taken long for a love affair to blossom between the city of Hampton, Virginia and their newest hockey team, the Hampton Aces.</p><p>After playing to crowds early in the season that hovered around the 1,000 mark in the Centrum in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, the Hampton Coliseum is like coming home for the Aces, who are drawing an average of 3,400 people in their first seven games since leaving their former Jersey home.</p><p>Aces&rsquo; owners Mike Schmidt, Dave Landfield and Jim Humphreys are thrilled with the response shown the team, thrilled almost as much as the people of Hampton who have seen their hockey franchises fold twice despite good attendance. A typical scene after an Aces victory at the Coliseum sees everyone remain in their seats until coach Murray &ldquo;Muzz&rdquo; MacPherson gets to center ice to wave his hat in appreciation of their fine support.</p><p>After a fast start early in the season tagged as the team to beat, the Aces fell on hard times with the low point coming in three straight losses to the last place Johnstown Wings. The strain on the players during the franchise shift is now a thing of the past and MacPherson has quickly rebuilt his club into a powerhouse outfit.</p><p>Hampton was outplayed badly by the first place Blades in an 8-2 loss in Erie to fall 13 points behind the NEHL&rsquo;s top club, but claimed four other wins during the week to put the Erie lead back to eight points. The Aces triumphed over Utica 8-5, Johnstown 7-2 and Cape Cod 7-2 and 5-4 in overtime. MacPherson has guided his club to seven wins and one tie in their last nine games, but the Blades have not given much ground by copping 10 of their last 12 including one tie.</p><p>Jim Misener was the spark behind the spirited play as he recorded hat tricks in wins over Utica and Johnstown, totaling seven goals in three games. Misener got credit for the winning tally when Hampton squandered a 5-1 lead by letting the Mohawks score four straight times.</p><p>Brian Gustafson, who missed 16 games with a broken collarbone, scored the winning goal in the overtime success over Cape Cod. Kelly Dean also had a shorthanded score and newcoming Mike Keeler picked up one goal and two assists.</p><p>Jim Bales has been sharp in the nets, but Michael Belhemeur, obtained from Utica, is back on skates after his injury and is looking forward to his first start as playoff time approaches.</p><p>In other player moves, Hampton waived Mark Ciernia and released John North.</p><p><b>UTICA:</b> The Mohawks had Ed Smith to thank as he singlehandedly stopped the Utica losing streak at six games when he scored four goals, three in the first period to help them beat the Freedoms 6-4.</p><p>Other than that Larry Mickey&rsquo;s crew didn&rsquo;t have too much to be happy about, losing home games to the Aces 85 and Johnstown 8-2. They also traveled to Cape Cod and came home a 5-2 loser.</p><p>The Mohawks saw Hank Nowak, their losing scorer, traded to Cape Cod a week ago and this week played without Terry West. the NEHL&rsquo;s top assist man, who was released for a tryout with the Philadelphia Firebirds of the American Hockey League. West was later signed by the Firebirds after scoring over 70 points for Utica.</p><p>The new team scoring leader is Cam McGregor with 27 goals and 35 assists for 62 points followed by former Freedom Glenn Tomalty with 52 points.</p><p><b>CAPE COD:</b> Despite losing three of four games during the week, the Codders still managed to keep their hold on their place by a scant two points over Utica. The Freedoms lost to Utica 6-4 and a pair of games to Hampton before bouncing back to nip the Mohawks 5-2.</p><p>The loss on the road in the Hampton Coliseum was particularly tough for the Freedoms to swallow since they rallied only to lose in overtime 5-4. Cape Cod was outplayed by the aggressive Aces on the Cape by a 7-1 count.</p><p>Just when the Freedoms were ready to make a drive toward second place and the Aces they got some bad news when Hank Nowak left the club and signed a contract with the Firebirds. Playercoach-general manager John Cunniff and owner Sandy Reiss traded center Glen Tomalty, winger Mike Hartman and defenseman Mike Sandford for Nowak, but he played just one game in a Cape Cod uniform before leaving. The Freedoms will receive no compensation for losing Nowak, who totaled over 70 points while playing in the NEHL. According to Freedoms&rsquo; officials, Nowak attempted to renegotiate his contract after the trade, but was refused by Cape Cod.</p><p>In an attempt to help make up for the offensive loss of Nowak, Cape Cod was assigned Paul Stewart by the Cincinnati Stingers. In 15 games with the AHL&rsquo;s Firebirds this season, Stewart had 92 penalty minutes. Also being given a try out is left wing Paul Wilkins from Northeastern College.</p><p><b>ERIE:</b> The Blades continued their domination and their commanding grip on first place with two victories and a tie during the week&rsquo;s play. Home ice wins came over Johnstown 4-1 and the Aces 8-2, before Erie was tied on the road by the Wings 2-2.</p><p>Hampton stopped Erie&rsquo;s long 14 game winning streak at home, but it didn&rsquo;t take the Blades long to start a new skein as they quickly ripped off four more wins on their Erie County Fieldhouse ice to give them 18 home wins in their last 19 games. Over 3,900 people took in Erie&rsquo;s win over the Aces as the Blades wiped out an early 2-1 Aces lead with seven goals in a row.</p><p>Carey Walker was in the nets for all the Blades games and increased his sterling record to 10-1-1 while lowering his goals against average to just over two goals per game. Walker was superb in the tie with Johnstown, kicking out 66 or 68 shots by the Wings.</p><p><b>JOHNSTOWN:</b> The Wings, mired in last place and still hoping for a playoff spot, won one game, lost a pair and tied one. Johnstown was able to whip Utica 8-2, but lost to frontrunners Erie 4-1 and Hampton 7-2. Mike Haedrich&rsquo;s last minute goal earned the Wings a 2-2 overtime standoff with Erie.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04174/4365027-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="562" height="641"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>JIM MISENER&hellip;Two Hat Tricks</b></figcaption></div><p>The Wings&rsquo; offense has been hurt by the loss of Vern Campigotto (fracture, ankle) and Bruce Lind (infected finger). Johnstown added center Jim Cowell to their roster, a former member of the defunct San Francisco Shamrocks and dropped long time left wing veteran Wynne Dempster, one of the original members of the Johnstown Jets of the old North American Hockey League.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0035-04

Hampton Fans Turned On By New Aces

<div class="byline">BY MARTY KNACK</div><p>KINGSTON&mdash;</p><p>Kingston Canadians have been struggling lately, but there are positive signs in this rebuilding season.</p><p>Two players general manager-coach Jim Morrison can boast about are rookies Scott Howson, a center who has led the team in scoring almost all season, and Avelino Gomez Jr., a goalie and the six-foot, 187-pound son of the famous Canadian jockey.</p><p>Mark Wichrowski has started to come into his own lately in his second season in the league, too, so the future is bright for Canadians, who have been going with 12 rookies in the 1978-79 lineup.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m very pleased,&rdquo; says Morrison when Howson&rsquo;s name is mentioned. &ldquo;He has played exceptionally well. He&rsquo;s very talented. He&rsquo;s not as big as a lot of guys, but he&rsquo;s very smart. If he ever puts on some weight, he&rsquo;s going to be an outstanding player.&rdquo;</p><p>Howson has 24 goals and has missed 12 games because of injuries. He was with North York Rangers, Canadaians&rsquo; affiliated team in the Provincial Junior League, in 1977-78 and was the Rangers&rsquo; scoring leader.</p><p>&ldquo;He can set up plays and he can score goals,&rdquo; says Morrison, talking about the five-foot-11, 160-pounder who had 27 goals and 58 points in 55 games with North York and was then protected by Kingston because he was an affiliated player.</p><p>Gomez was voted to the Leyden Division All Star team and that, indirectly, may have led to a problem for Canadians, since he was hurt in the Sault Ste. Marie match.</p><p>&ldquo;He would have been playing during the last couple of weeks, but he stretched a hamstring at the All Star game,&rdquo; says Morrison, concerned because Canadians are involved in a scramble with Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds for the final playoff position in the division and Terry Thompson is their only healthy goalie.</p><p>Kingston lost 6-5 to Oshawa Generals in overtime, with Brad Clements scoring three times for Canadians to run his season goal total to 17, then lost 5-3 to Sudbury and 6-4 in a key game with the Greyhounds.</p><p><b>PETERBOROUGH:</b> Tim Trimper became the third player in the league to hit the 50-goal level with a goal in each game as the Petes shut out Toronto Marlboros 3-0, beat the Soo 5-3 and edged Sudbury 5-4. Ken Ellacott recorded his league-leading third shutout of the season in the win over Toronto.</p><p><b>OSHAWA:</b> Defenseman Charlie Huddy scored after one minute and 17 seconds of overtime to beat Kingston, then the Generals extended a winning streak to four games with a 3-2 decision over Brantford Alexanders and 7-2 win over Niagara Falls Flyers.</p><p><b>SUDBURY:</b> Mike Foligno became the fourth 50-goal scorer in the same game Trimper hit that plateau. He scored two goals in Wolves&rsquo; win over Kingston, then repeated that feat in the loss to Peterborough as Sudbury slipped two points behind Oshawa in the race for second plave in the division.</p><p><b>OTTAWA:</b> The 67s ran a winning streak to four games with a 6-3 win over Kitchener Rangers and 3-2 victory over Windsor Spitfires, then lost 7-4 to the Flyers and 5-4 in overtime to London Knights.</p><p><b>SAULT STE. MARIE:</b> Soo skidded to its 13th loss in 14 games against Peterborough, but rebounded in its showdown with Canadians. Brian Gualazzi improved his league-leading total to 62 with two goals against Kingston, rookie John Goodwin had his 32nd goal and three assists to reach 103 points for the season and Art Rutland had his 44th goal and two assists.</p><p><b>NIAGARA FALLS:</b> The Flyers beat Ottawa, defeated Kitchener 6-3 and then stumbled against Oshawa. Defenseman John Bigson, just back from a 10-game suspension, scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season and added an assist against the 67s.</p><p><b>LONDON:</b> The Knights had three 5-4 squeakers, edging Brantford and Ottawa in overtime and losing to Windsor. Phil Degerdon&rsquo;s 11th goal of the season was the winner in overtime against the Alexanders and Dino Ciccarelli&rsquo;s third tally since returning to the lineup in January was the winner in sudden-death against the 67s.</p><p><b>WINDSOR:</b> Spitfires lost to Ottawa at home, but rebounded for its first-ever win at London Gardens and then beat Brantford 4-2 to remain on a hot streak, with eight wins in 10 games, and keep pace with Kitchener in third place in the Emms Division. Brent Armstrong had two goals and two assists against London and his 28th goal of the season and an assist against Brantford.</p><p><b>KITCHENER:</b> Doug Sulliman had a productive week, with three goals and 11 assists, as Kitchener lost to Ottawa, beat Toronto Marlboros 5-3, lost to the Flyers and humiliated the Marlies 10-0 in Maple Leaf Gardens.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01335/4365058-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="516" height="570"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>SCOTT HOWSON&hellip;Ace For Kingston</b></figcaption></div><p><b>TORONTO:</b> The Marlies fell farther back into fifth place with their losses to Kitchener. Gary Dillon had his 43rd goal of the season and two assists and Dan Barber shot his 13th goal and also had two assists in the 5-3 loss.</p><p><b>BRANTFORD:</b> Brantford&rsquo;s playoff hopes diminished further with the losses to London; Oshawa and Windsor.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0036-01

Rebuilding Canadians Eye Future; Petes Flying As Division Leaders

<div class="byline">BY NORM COWLEY</div><p>CALGARY&mdash;</p><p>Rookie coach Doug Sauter proudly calls, them his misfits.</p><p>But Calgary Wranglers are no longer out of place.</p><p>The Western Hockey League club, which struggled at the beginning of the season, appears to have finally turned the corner by winning 12 or 13 games and enjoying a six-game win streak before dropping a 4-2 decision at Victoria in the first game of a West Coast swing.</p><p>The recent surge boosted Calgary from a battle for third place with Medicine Hat in the Central Division to within 10 points of second-place Lethbridge. Along the way, they&rsquo;ve surpassed their 18-win total of last year and are within three of their 1977-78 point total (50).</p><p>&ldquo;We only had three guys back from last year,&rdquo; said Sauter. &ldquo;So all the rest are misfits because we got them from other clubs.</p><p>&ldquo;I also have the No-Name defense,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;because nobody knows them.&rdquo;</p><p>But that defense, along with the goaltending of Warren Skorodenski and a well-balanced goal output, has helped put the Wranglers into the ranks of respectability after a horrendous start. Calgary is now one of the hottest clubs in the league&mdash;apart from the runaway leaders in the Eastern and Western Division, Brandon and Portland, respectively</p><p>&ldquo;We just started playing very disciplined hockey,&rdquo; said Sauter.</p><p>&ldquo;The biggest thing is that we&rsquo;re not taking penalties. We&rsquo;re not being intimidated&mdash;because we&rsquo;ve had majors for fighting&mdash;but we&rsquo;re not taking penalties for retaliation.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;The other big thing for us,&rdquo; continued Sauter, &ldquo;is our balance.&rdquo;</p><p>The Krueger-Greenwood-Currie line accounted for 18 goals while Kisio-Purpur-Giroux scored 17 and Morrison-Siezak-McLean 15 as the club exploded for 54 goals over a six-game span.</p><p>Dave Morrison, the club&rsquo;s third overage player this year, gave the best solo performance during the streak with six goals in an 11-3 rout of Billings, the Bighorns&rsquo; worst loss ever.</p><p><b>BILLINGS:</b> The Central Divisionleading Bighorns saw their winless streak extended to four games after a tie and two losses at the West Coast. Lindsay Carson had a goal and two assists in a 4-3 loss to New West. goaltender Neil Girard was outstanding as the club battled Victoria to a 4-4 draw and Don Nachbaur scored two goals, including the 30th of the year, while Harvey Pocza picked up three assists in a 9-4 defeat at Portland.</p><p><b>LETHBRIDGE:</b> An easy schedule afforded the Broncos a chance to gain some ground on Billings. But Lethbridge barely managed to split a pair of games with two weak Eastern Division clubs before doubling Medicine Hat 8-4. Dave Falkenberg scored the winning goal on a powerplay with 1:07 remaining to play to lift Lethbridge to a 3-2 decision over Regina but Doug Morrison&rsquo;s 40th goal of the year and pair of markers by over-age Dave Snopek weren&rsquo;t enough to avert a 7-6 loss to Saskatoon.</p><p><b>MEDICINE HAT:</b> It wasn&rsquo;t a good week for the Tigers, who were outscored 28-12 in their three games. Lorne Osmond scored two goals, including his 20th, while Steve Tsujiura picked up three assists in a 7-4 loss to Regina; Darren Halasz scored his 20th goal and Peter Steblyk earned his 50th point in the 13-4 whipping suffered at Calgary; and Ken Goodwin netted two goals in the 8-4 loss to Lethbridge.</p><p><b>BRANDON:</b> Since dropping a 3-2 decision at home to Portland, the Wheat Kings have rattled off 10 wins and a tie to clinch first place in the Eastern Division with more than 20 games remaining to play. But after demolishing Edmonton 8-2 and 11-2 in a pair of weekend games at home, Brandon needed five third-period goals to stop Regina 7-5.</p><p><b>SASKATOON:</b> After losing 6-3 at Calgary, the Blades bounced back with a win and a tie on the road. Bill MacNaught collected four assists, including his 40th, to help Saskatoon end an eight-game winless streak with a 7-6 come-from-behind triumph over Lethbridge.</p><p><b>EDMONTON:</b> The Oil Kings haven&rsquo;t won in 13 games, but still hold down third place in the Eastern Division. Edmonton completed regular-season play at Brandon with 8-2 and 11-2 losses before heading home to tie Saskatoon 33 with back-up Al Wiebe in the nets.</p><p><b>REGINA:</b> Doug Wickenheiser scored three goals and four assists while overage Dean Solheim had two goals and three assists as the revived Pats continued to play well. Regina split a pair of games with Central Division opponents&mdash;losing 3-2 at Lethbridge, and winning 7-4 at Medicine Hat as Dirk Graham netted his 40th goal.</p><p><b>PORTLAND:</b> Home or away, the rampaging Winter Hawks were invincible in stretching their undefeated string to 16 games. Perry Turnbull became the second player to reach the 50-goal plateau by scoring twice in a 9-4 victory over Billings, then scored three goals, including the winner at 16:26 of the third period, as the Hawks trimmed New West 5-4. Portland played to a 5-5 draw with Seattle and edged the Breakers 5-4 as Keith Brown extended his point-scoring streak to 10 games with a goal and an assist.</p><p><b>NEW WESTMINSTER:</b> The Bruins split four games to hang on to second place in the tough Western Division. Scott MacLeod scored twice in a 4-3 win over Billings while Richard Martens sparkled in backstopping the Bruins to their 25th win, a 2-0 shutout over Seattle.</p><p><b>VICTORIA:</b> Geordie Robertson is finally starting to show the form which netted him 64 goals last year. The 19-year-old, who has missed 18 games because of knee injuries, was off to a slow start but now has scored in 10 consecutive games to up his totals to 20 goals and 21 assists. His best outing was three goals and an assist as the Cougars doubled Calgary 4-2. Gary Lupul scored his 35th goal in a 5-2 win over New West while Randy Irving scored a power play goal with 2:21 left in the game to give Vic a 4-4 tie with Billings.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01292/4365089-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="552" height="552"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>GARYLUPUL&hellip;Scored 35th Goal</b></figcaption></div><p><b>SEATTLE:</b> Three third-period goals lifted the Breakers into a 5-5 tie with Portland, but that was the only point Seattle picked up in three games. The Breakers were 2-0 shutout victims of New West and dropped a close 5-4 decision at home to Portland.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0037-01

Lowly Wranglers Skate Back Into Contention

<div class="byline">BY DANNY YOUNG</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>ith the 10 teams in the Quebec Major Junior League having between 11 and 15 games remaining on their regular season schedules, there should be some pretty tight playoff races down the wire. Three clubs appear to be secured in their current positions, but the remaining seven will be fighting for their respective playoff spots.</p><p>The Trois-Rivieres Draveurs have virtually clinched first place in the overall standings. Their 47-7-4 record puts them 21 points ahead of Sherbrooke. The Draveurs will probably gain the first rank mathematically next week.</p><p>In last place (tenth) are the Hull Olympics and their chances of contending for a playoff spot are remote.</p><p>Above Hull, and battling for the eighth spot and last playoff draw are Shawinigan Cataracts and Laval Nationals, Though Shawinigan trails by three points, they have a game in hand and they have also been more effective than Laval during the second half of the season. The two clubs will play each other just one more time in Laval on Feb. 26.</p><p>The race for second place behind Trois-Rivieres will be a three-way battle between Sherbrooke, Verdun, and Montreal as it has been all season. Currently, Sherbrooke leads with 77 points, while Verdun has 74 and Montreal has 69 and a game in hand on the other two. There are six games left between these clubs.</p><p><b>SHERBROOKE:</b> The Beavers&rsquo; hard nosed winger Jimmy Mann scored twice to lead a 7-1 win over Cornwall. Against Hull, rookie Jean Marc Gaulin and Guy Perreault scored two each as Sherbrooke crushed Hull 10-1. Yvan Charbonneau was in the nets for both games and is looking sharp after missing the bulk of the season with an injury.</p><p><b>TROIS-RIVIERES:</b> Defenseman Pierre Lacroix, who now has 115 points, scored midway through the third period to give the Draveurs a 4-3 win over Chicoutimi, an unusually close score for the league leaders. In Verdun, Normand Rochefort, Jean Francois Sauve, and Robert Mongrain all scored twice to bury the Hawks by a 12-7 count.</p><p><b>CORNWALL:</b> Bob Crawford was the hat trick man for the Royals in their 5-2 triumph over Laval. The club&rsquo;s leading sniper now has 48 goals. Cornwall did drop a 7-1 match to Sherbrooke and outshot them 39-26.</p><p><b>MONTREAL:</b> Veteran Richard Suwek made a successful return to the Juniors by scoring twice in a 5-5 tie with Laval. Richard severely injured his knee in a pre-season match, and played his first game of the year in Laval.</p><p><b>VERDUN:</b> The duo of Brian Johnson and Steve Kasper was flying against Trois-Rivieres, but the Hawks were not. Kasper has three goals and two assists, Johnson has two plus three, but they lost 12-7. They did rebound to bounce Quebec 6-2 with Jean Martin firing three goals.</p><p><b>LAVAL:</b> The Nationals gave up five goals in each of their games, but believe it or not, goalie Yves Deschenes is doing a great job. Deschenes faces a firing squad every night and actually keeps the Nationals respectable. They lost to Montreal 5-0 and Cornwall 5-2, but then tied Montreal on Alain Grenier&rsquo;s third period tally, his 42nd of the campaign.</p><p><b>QUEBEC:</b> The Remparts had a difficult week losing both of their games while being outscored 13-3. In Shawinigan, they gave up six straight goals and lost 7-1. In Verdun, they lost 6-2 with the Hawks doubling them on shots on goal, 48-24.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2010/4365120-1-eng-US/f0038-202.jpg" title="f0038-20" width="562" height="589"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>RICHARD SUWEK&hellip;Nice Comeback</b></figcaption></div><p><b>CHICOUTIMI:</b> You have to give the Sags credit for their 4-3 battle with Trois-Rivieres though they were on the short side. Marc Roy produced two of their goals. Against Hull, Roch Bois scored three times in a 6-6 deadlock.</p><p><b>SHAWINIGAN:</b> The Cataracts downed Quebec in style 7-1 before 2,461 home town fans. Marc Genest and Marc Audisio both had hat tricks, and Alain Labelle set up four Cat goals.</p><p><b>HULL:</b> Mike Brisebois scored twice as the Olympics picked up a point with a 6-6 Chicoutimi tie. In action against Sherbrooke, they fell 10-1.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0038-20

Several Playoff Spots Undecided

<h2><b>AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 19)</b></p><h3><b>NORTHERN DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01349/4365277-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="581" height="141"></div><h3><b>SOUTHERN DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02275/4365270-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="578" height="164"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tue. Feb. 13</b></p><p>Maine 4 at Nova Scotia 3</p><p><b>Wed. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Rochester 3 at Binghamton 8</p><p>Springfield 6 at Hershey 2</p><p>New Haven 6 at Philadelphia 1</p><p><b>Fri. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Binghamton 4 at New Haven 5</p><p>Maine 2 at Nova Scotia 1</p><p>Rochester 1 at Philadelphia 2</p><p>Hershey 3 at Springfield 5</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 17</b></p><p>New Haven 5 at Binghamton 4</p><p>Philadelphia 2 at Hershey 3</p><p>Rochester 4 at Springfield 4</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 18</b></p><p>Maine 6 at New Brunswick 6</p><p>Rochester 2 at New Haven 3</p><p>Binghamton 5 at Nova Scotia</p><p>6 Springfield 4 at Philadelphia 0</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03206/4365263-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="582" height="458"></div><h2><b>CENTRAL HOCKEY LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 19)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-04145/4365256-1-eng-US/f0038-042.jpg" title="f0038-04" width="581" height="191"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Fort Worth 4 at Tulsa 7</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 15</b></p><p>Kansas City 3 at Dallas 10</p><p><b>Frl. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Fort Worth 6 at Salt Lake 5</p><p>Oklahoma City 1 at Salt Lake 5</p><p>Dallas 4 at Tulsa 9</p><p><b>Sat. Fob. 17</b></p><p>Fort Worth 0 at Dallas 4</p><p>Tulsa 4 at Kansas City 5</p><p>Oklahoma City 2 at Salt Lake 9</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Fort Worth 4 at Oklahoma City 3</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-05108/4365249-1-eng-US/f0038-052.jpg" title="f0038-05" width="582" height="326"></div><h2><b>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Feb. 20</b></p><h3><b>NORTH DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0683/4365242-1-eng-US/f0038-062.jpg" title="f0038-06" width="577" height="162"></div><h3><b>SOUTH DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0771/4365235-1-eng-US/f0038-072.jpg" title="f0038-07" width="573" height="138"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Mon. Feb. 12</b></p><p>Muskegon 7 at Milwaukee 8</p><p><b>Wed. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Muskegon 4 at Fort Wayne 6</p><p>Grand Rapids 1 at Toledo 4</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 15</b></p><p>Kalamazoo 7 at Milwaukee 1</p><p><b>Fri. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Port Huron 2 at Muskegon 5</p><p>Saginaw 2 at Flint 5</p><p>Milwaukee 3 at Toledo 7</p><p>Fort Wayne 2 at Grand Rapids 5</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 17</b></p><p>Toledo 3 at Fort Wayne 5</p><p>Milwaukee 3 at Muskegon 2</p><p>Flint 4 at Port Huron 11</p><p>Saginaw 1 at Kalamazoo 4</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 18</b></p><p>Fort Wayne 3 at Port Huron 5</p><p>Flint 5 at Toledo 1</p><p>Muskegon 1 at Grand Rapids 4</p><p>Kalamazoo 5 at Saginaw 3</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0856/4365228-1-eng-US/f0038-082.jpg" title="f0038-08" width="589" height="435"></div><h2><b>NORTH EASTERN LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 19</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0948/4365221-1-eng-US/f0038-092.jpg" title="f0038-09" width="577" height="164"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Wed. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Hampton 3 at Cape Cod 3</p><p>Utica 2 at Erie 5</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 15</b></p><p>Cape Cod 5 at Hampton 3</p><p><b>Fri. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Johnstown 5 at Erie 3</p><p>Utica 4 at Hampton 6</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 17</b></p><p>Utica 3 at Cape Cod 4</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 18</b></p><p>Utica 1 at Cape Cod 3</p><p>Johnstown 3 at Hampton 4</p><h2><b>PACIFIC HOCKEY LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 14)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1045/4365214-1-eng-US/f0038-102.jpg" title="f0038-10" width="581" height="137"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tue. Feb. 6</b></p><p>Phoenix 0 at San Diego 7</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 8</b></p><p>San Diego 3 at Phoenix 5</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 10</b></p><p>Tucson 7 at San Diego 6</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 11</b></p><p>Phoenix 3 at San Diego 1</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1139/4365207-1-eng-US/f0038-112.jpg" title="f0038-11" width="587" height="310"></div><h2><b>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Wed. Feb. 7)</b></p><h3><b>MIDWEST CONFERENCE</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1234/4365200-1-eng-US/f0038-122.jpg" title="f0038-12" width="578" height="136"></div><h3><b>CENTRAL CONFERENCE</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1325/4365193-1-eng-US/f0038-132.jpg" title="f0038-13" width="576" height="82"></div><h3><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1421/4365186-1-eng-US/f0038-142.jpg" title="f0038-14" width="581" height="328"></div><h2><b>MANITOBA&mdash;ASSINIBOINE LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 12)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1519/4365179-1-eng-US/f0038-152.jpg" title="f0038-15" width="580" height="274"></div><h2><b>ATLANTIC JUNIOR LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 5)</b></p><h3><b>Northern Division</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1616/4365172-1-eng-US/f0038-162.jpg" title="f0038-16" width="580" height="137"></div><h3><b>Southern Division</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1713/4365165-1-eng-US/f0038-172.jpg" title="f0038-17" width="579" height="137"></div><h2><b>N.Y. METRO LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Sat. Feb. 10)</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1812/4365158-1-eng-US/f0038-182.jpg" title="f0038-18" width="582" height="141"></div><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1911/4365151-1-eng-US/f0038-192.jpg" title="f0038-19" width="583" height="298"></div><h2><b>Who They&rsquo;re Affiliated With&hellip;</b></h2><h3><b>NHLTEAMS</b></h3><p>1&mdash;Montreal</p><p>2&mdash;Chicago</p><p>3&mdash;Boston</p><p>4&mdash;Rangers</p><p>5&mdash;Detroit</p><p>6&mdash;Toronto</p><p>7&mdash;Philadelphia</p><p>8&mdash;Los Angeles</p><p>9&mdash;St. Louis</p><p>10&mdash;Minnesota</p><p>11&mdash;Pittsburgh</p><p>12&mdash;Islanders</p><p>13&mdash;Vancouver</p><p>14&mdash;Buffalo</p><p>15&mdash;Atlanta</p><p>16&mdash;Washington</p><p>17&mdash;Colorado</p><h3><b>WHA TEAMS</b></h3><p>18&mdash;New England</p><p>19&mdash;Quebec</p><p>20&mdash;Winnipeg</p><p>22&mdash;Edmonton</p><p>23&mdash;Cincinnati</p><p>24&mdash;Birmingham</p><h3><b>OTHER AFFILIATIONS</b></h3><p>25&mdash;Quebec (WHA), Cincinnati (WHA, Birmingham (WHA) & Pittsburgh (NHL)</p><p>26&mdash;Buffalo(NHL) & Washington (NHL)</p><p>27&mdash;Toronto (NHL) & Chicago (NHL)</p><p>28&mdash;Montreal (NHL) & Atlanta (NHL)</p><p>29&mdash;New England (WHA), Edmonton (WHA), Winnipeg (WHA) & Los Angeles (NHL)</p><p>31&mdash;Atlanta (NHL), Rangers (NHL) & Minnesota (NHL)</p><p>32&mdash;Vancouver(NHL), Los Angeles (NHL) & Edmonton (WHA).</p><p>34&mdash;St. Louis (NHL) & Washington (NHL)</p><p>35&mdash;Los Angeles (NHL) & Toronto (NHL)</p><p>36&mdash;Minnesota (NHL) & Chicago(NHL)</p><p>37&mdash;Colorado (NHL) & Atlanta (NHL)</p><p>38&mdash;Vancouver (NHL) & Islanders (NHL)</p><p>39&mdash;Pittsburgh (NHL) & Boston (NHL)</p><p>40&mdash;Philadelphia (NHL) & Buffalo (NHL)</p><p>41&mdash;Minnesota (NHL) & St. Louis (NHL)</p><p>42&mdash;Independent operation</p><p>43&mdash;Philadelphia (NHL) & St. Louis (NHL)<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0038-01

Looking At The Minor League Scoreboard

<h2><b>WESTERN HOCKEY LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 12)</b></p><h3><b>WEST DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01328/4365371-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="589" height="137"></div><h3><b>CENTRAL DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02238/4365364-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="588" height="137"></div><h3><b>EAST DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03174/4365357-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="581" height="141"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tut. Feb. 6</b></p><p>Lethbridge 8 Medicine Hat 4</p><p>New Westminster 2 Victoria 5</p><p><b>Wed. Feb. 7</b></p><p>New Westminster 4 Portland 5</p><p>Regina 5 Brendon 7</p><p>Lethbridge at Billings Postponed</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 8</b></p><p>Calgary 2 Victoria 4</p><p>Saskatoon 3 Edmonton 3</p><p>Portland 5 Seattle 4</p><p><b>Fri. Feb. 9</b></p><p>Calgary 4 New Westminster 5</p><p>Lethbridge 7 Saskatoon 6</p><p>Edmonton 5 Regina 3</p><p>Victoria 3 Seattle 3</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 10</b></p><p>Brandon 4 Billings 4</p><p>New Westminster 3 Victoria 7</p><p>Calgary 3 Portland 12</p><p>Edmonton 6 Medicine Hat 4</p><p>Saskatoon 7 Regina 5</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 11</b></p><p>Brandon 5 Billings 6</p><p>Portland 5 New Westminster 5</p><p>Edmonton 3 Lethbridge 6</p><p>Calgary 5 Seattle 2</p><p>Regina 6 Saskatoon 9</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04147/4365350-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="593" height="330"></div><h2><b>ONTARIO MAJOR LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Tue. Feb. 20)</b></p><h3><b>LEYDEN DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-05115/4365343-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="594" height="191"></div><h3><b>EMMS DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0696/4365336-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="584" height="192"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Tue. Feb. 13</b></p><p>Kingston 2 at Ottawa 4</p><p>Niagara Falls 5 at Toronto 4</p><p>Stull Ste. Marla 8 at Sudbury 9</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 15</b></p><p>Sault Ste. Marie 5 at Peterborough 7</p><p>London 5 at Windsor 4</p><p>Kingston 4 at Oshawa 3</p><p><b>Fri. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Sault Ste. Marie 3 at Ottawa 2</p><p>Sudbury 4 at Kingston 11</p><p>Kitchener 6 at London 6</p><p>Windsor 3 at Niagara Falls 1</p><p>Peterborough 3 at Brantford 2</p><p>Oshawa 7 at Toronto 5</p><p><b>Sat. Feb. 17</b></p><p>Sudbury 5 at Peterborough 6</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 18</b></p><p>Sault Ste. Marie 2 at Kingston 5</p><p>Sudbury 3 at Toronto 4</p><p>Kitchener 4 at Niagara Falls 5</p><p>Oshaws 4 at Ottaws 9</p><p>Windsor 5 at Brantford 9</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0782/4365329-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="588" height="272"></div><h2><b>QUEBEC MAJOR LEAGUE</b></h2><p><b>(Standings on Mon. Feb. 19)</b></p><h3><b>LEBEL DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0873/4365322-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="586" height="167"></div><h3><b>DILIO DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0962/4365315-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="589" height="168"></div><h2><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h2><p><b>Mon. Feb. 12</b></p><p>Cornwall 4 at Laval 2</p><p><b>Tue. Feb. 13</b></p><p>Verdun 6 at Hull 4</p><p>Chicoutimi 4 at Troie-Rivieres 7</p><p><b>Wed. Feb. 14</b></p><p>Laval 5 at Montreal 5</p><p><b>Thu. Feb. 15</b></p><p>Sherbrooke 8 at Hull 3</p><p>Shawinigan 2 at Cornwall 6</p><p><b>Frl. Feb. 16</b></p><p>Laval 2 at Chicoutimi 11</p><p>Trois-Rivieres 5 at Montreal 4</p><p>Hull 4 at Shawinigan 10</p><p>Quebec 5 at Sherbrooke 5</p><p>Cornwall 6 at Verdun 7</p><p><b>Sun. Feb. 18</b></p><p>Cornwall 6 at Montreal 3</p><p>Verdun 6 at Sherbrooke 3</p><p>Laval 4 at Trois-Rivieres 6</p><p>Shawinigan 1 at Chicoutimi 7</p><p>Quebec 6 at Hull 3</p><h2><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1056/4365308-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="589" height="197"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0039-01

Amateur Scoreboard

<div class="byline">By Bill Hilts</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1150/4365402-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="344" height="405"></div><h2><b>N.Y. Metro League</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><span>O</span>yster Bay (15-6-3), New Hyde Park (14-7-2), and New York (14-9-1) are all battling for the top spot in the N.Y. Metropolitan Jr. Hockey League, with only four points separating the three teams&hellip;Oyster Bay is presently on top with 33 points, followed by New Hyde Park-30 points, the Jr. Rangers of New York-29, and Greater New York-23 points&hellip;Brian Mullen (25-24-49) and Ryan Body (26-22-48), both of the Jr. Rangers, are currently one-two in scoring&hellip;In hot pursuit is defenseman Bill Nichols (1729-46) of the Oyster Bay squad. Bob Amore, also of New York, is a close third with 42 points with New Hyde Park&rsquo;s Randy Alessi, Scott Faber, John Kushay and Chuck Samar within reach with 39,35, 35 and 32 points respectively&hellip;Mullen leads the MJHA in power play goals with eight and is tied with Nichols for short-handed goals at four&hellip;Nichols also leads the league in assists with 29, while Body is the top goal-getter by lighting the red light 26 times&hellip; Oyster Bay&rsquo;s Kevin Kiendle is the top goalie with a GAA of 3.17 while New Hyde Park&rsquo;s Bob Bussi is second with a 3.56 GAA.</p><h2><b>N.Y.-Penn League</b></h2><p>The Binghamton Barons, who got off to the best start in N.Y.-Penn League history, are now being threatened by the powerful Rochester Monarchs for league supremacy. The Barons (27-5-2) have 56 points on the year, while the Monarchs (21-9-2) now total 44 points&hellip;The Syracuse Stars (13-12-7) have moved into third place by one point over the Niagara Falls Mang&rsquo;s Sharks&hellip;The Buffalo Jr. Sabres are a close fifth with 30 points&hellip;The Pittsburgh Jr. Penguins have officially exited from the NYPMHL after compiling a record of 0-291 for the season&hellip;Binghamton&rsquo;s left winger Steve Salvucci currently leads in scoring with 99 points&hellip;His 54 goals has already broken the league record of 49 set by Steve Eccles of Syracuse and Tom Metzger of West Seneca in the 1974-75 campaign&hellip;Salvucci is now in pursuit of Metzger&rsquo;s all-time league point total of 113&hellip;Salvucci&rsquo;s linemate, center Scott Press is second in scoring with 45 goals and 96 points.</p><p>The Baron line of Peter Shaughnessy, Salvucci and Press have already totalled 117 goals and 144 assists for 261 points, making them the most productive threesome in league history&hellip;The Barons are unbeaten in their last 15 home games&hellip;Syracuse has their own home-ice unbeaten string extended to 13 games with their last victim being Binghamton in a come-from-behind 7-6 triumph.</p><h2><b>New England League</b></h2><p>In New England Jr. Hockey League action, the South Shore Braves (17-7-4) are only four points back of the league leading Fitchburg Wallopers (19-5-4) who presently stand at 42 points&hellip;The Braves showed Fitchburg that they meant business as they trounced the Wallopers 7-1 in Fitchburg at their last contest between the two squads&hellip;The Springfield Olympics are still playing respectable hockey as they now stand a 12-11-2 on the year&hellip;Fitchburg&rsquo;s Lee Blossom continues to lead the NEJHL in goals (41) and total scoring (77) after 28 games&hellip;Brian Bertone of South Shores is second leading the league in assists (39) and totalling 64 points, tied with teammate Paul Milan&hellip;Bill Helton is the only bright spot of the &lsquo;78-79 campaign for the Skate 3 franchise by skating in at fourth in scoring with 55 points. (28 goals and 27 assists).</p><p>Springfield goalies Chris Trinceri and Steve Hudyka are the number one and number two netminders in the NEJHL with 4.10 and 4.61 goals against averages respectively.</p><h2><b>Atlantic League</b></h2><p>The New Jersey Rockets continue to dominate Atlantic Hockey League action by accumulating 35 points with a record of 17-1-1. The Rockets, leaders in the Northern Division by 10 points over the Bergen-Rockland Colonials with a 11-6-3 record, have scored more goals (166) and allowed fewer goals (32) than any other team&hellip;The Philadelphia Flyers (7-9-2) Hershey leers (7-8-1) and Bucks Co. Americans (6-7-1) are all battling for the top spot in the Southern Division ever since the Jersey Aces were suspended indefinitely. The Flyers are currently on top with 16 points, followed by the leers with 15 and the Americans with 13.</p><h2><b>British Columbia League</b></h2><p>The Merritt Centennials continue to lead the British Columbia Jr. &ldquo;A&rdquo; Hockey League and their own Interior Division with a record of 40 wins, and nine losses for 80 points&hellip;The Bellingham Blazers, Coastal Division leaders with a 39-9-1 record, are only one point behind Merritt for the top record in the B.C. Jr. League&hellip;The Centennials attribute their outstanding defense and league leading netminder Rob Polmantuin to their success&hellip; Polmantiun has compiled the best goals against average (2.48) enroute to the best record (39-7-0)&hellip;The Blazers have the most explosive offensive attack in the B.C. Jr. League, having amassed 379 goals thus far in the &lsquo;78-79 season, 96 goals more than their closest competitor-the Nanaimo Clippers-second in the Coastal Division with a 27-18-2 record.</p><p>The Kamloops Rockets are current runners-up in the Interior Division with a 27-22-0 record for 54 points followed by Vernon&mdash;53 points, Kelowna&mdash;47 points. Revelstoke&mdash;40 points and Penticton&mdash;36 points.</p><p>Trailing the Blazers and Clippers in the Coastal Division is Chilliwack&mdash;44 points, Langley&mdash;43 points, Abbotsford&mdash;42 points, and Delta&mdash;10 points.</p><p>Vernon&rsquo;s Terry Lowe is the current individual scoring leader (45-71-116) being the first to break the century mark&hellip;Nigel Thomas of the Clippers is in second place with a scoring total of 41-59-100&hellip;19 of Thomas&rsquo; goals came with a man advantage to lead the B.C. Jr. League&hellip;Anthony McMurchy, who is in third with a 5148-99 point total, is the top goal getter in league action this year.</p><h2><b>Great Lakes League</b></h2><p>The Allen Park Paddock Pool Saints, with a record of 33-2-2 for 68 points, is still the team to beat in the Great Lakes Jr. Hockey League &ldquo;A&rdquo; Division. The Detroit Jr. Wings are a distant second with a record of 23-10-4 for 50 points.</p><p>Steve Murphy of the first place Saints leads the league in assists (49), total points (85), and game winning goals (5)&hellip;Detroit&rsquo;s Frank Loconsole, who is tied with Fraser&rsquo;s Frank Maioranna at 77 points, is the current goal leader with 39&hellip;Wayne&rsquo;s Dave Tardich who leads the GLJHL goalies with a GAA of 4.48 and Detroit&rsquo;s Karl Kortier, who is second with a 4.73 GAA are both leading the league in goaltending wins with 14 apiece.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0039-11

JUNIOR JOTTINGS

<p>MONTREAL&mdash;</p><p>Montreal Canadiens have opened a six-point lead atop the National Hockey League&rsquo;s over-all points standings.</p><p>Montreal, which leads New York Islanders by six points, although Islanders have played one game fewer, has a 14-game undefeated streak which includes a seven-game road winning streak. The NHL record for consecutive road wins is eight, established by Boston Bruins in 1971-72. Los Angeles Kings equalled that mark in 1974-75 and Montreal matched that last season. The last time Montreal lost a game was 3-2 at Pittsburgh, Jan. 10. Since that time, Canadiens have won 11 games and tied three others while outscoring their opposition 68-31.</p><p>Canadiens are No. 1 with 86 points. the Islanders are second with 80 and Boston is third with 74.</p><p>The remaining points race looks like this:</p><p>Rangers are fourth with 68, Atlanta next with 67, Philadelphia has 62, Buffalo and Toronto both with 57, Los Angeles 56, Pittsburgh 54, Minnesota and Chicago 52 each, Washington 45, Vancouver 44, Detroit 38, Colorado 34 and St. Louis 34 and Colorado last with 32.</p><p>Canadiens lead the league race with 39 wins, Islanders are second with 35 and Boston third with 31. Rangers and Atlanta have each won 31 games.</p><p>Only eight of the league&rsquo;s teams are playing better than .500 hockey. Montreal is No. 1 with a percentage of .768, the Islanders are next with .727 and Boston third with .649. Ironically, the Canadiens are the only team in their five-team division playing better than .500 hockey. In contrast the entire Patrick Division is playing better than .500 hockey.</p><p>Another oddity of the NHL race is that all four teams in the Smythe Division are below .500.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

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March 2, 1979

AHL Sets Playoff Format

HOCKEY PEOPLE

INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE

Mikita Becomes 6th Best Scorer