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.

May 1, 1981

The Hockey News May 1, 1981

<p><b>The Player of the Year!</b></p><p><b>Once again, it&rsquo;s time for THE HOCKEY NEWS to make its annual awards to the National Hockey League&rsquo;s Player, Coach and Executive of the Year. So be sure to pick up next week&rsquo;s issue and find out who this year&rsquo;s recipients are.</b></p><p><b>Also in next week&rsquo;s issue, we&rsquo;ll have the matchups for the Stanley Cup semifinals, which will be decided by then, as well as wrapups, stats and summaries from the quarterfinals.</b><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

IN THIS ISSUE

Coming Next Week

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div><p class="dropcap"><span>A</span>NN ARBOR&mdash;John Giordano, THE HOCKEY NEWS College Coach of the Year for 1980-81, wasn&rsquo;t even a head coach when the season started back in October. He was an assistant, with one year&rsquo;s college experience, on a rebuilding team with a brand new head coach.</p><p>The story of the events from October to March, and how Giordano and the Maize and Blue of the University of Michigan hockey team handled them, is a truly exceptional one. Picked to finish tenth in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, the Wolverines checked in a close fifth and ended up 23-17. They survived to the second round of the rugged WCHA playoffs and were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by a committee of coaches and athletic directors, not by another hockey team.</p><p>But that&rsquo;s just the bare bones, the bottom line. Let&rsquo;s turn the clock back to pre-season practice, when 104,000 fans were jamming the Michigan football stadium on Saturday afternoons. Over in Yost Arena, new head coach Wilf Martin and assistant John Giordano were getting ready to field their first varsity team. Martin had taken over as head coach after Danny Farell resigned to go into private business.</p><p>Michigan had finished 23-13-2 in 1979-80. The scouting reports showed only one high scoring forward, sophomore Bruno Baseotto (31-45-76) returning to the lineup. The defense was good, and goalie Paul Fricker had won Rookie of the Year honors as a freshman the previous season. Still, Martin had never coached a major college team, so the predictions were pessimistic.</p><p>Things started to happen even before the Wolverines took to the ice. Wilf got sick and checked into the hospital during the first week of dryland conditioning, leaving most of the preparation to Giordano. While the new head coach was in the hospital, some of the freshman players were involved in a hazing incident which received a heap of negative publicity, both local and national. For the first half of the season, the Wolverines were greeted by banners displaying such derisive epithets as &ldquo;Welcome, Haze and Blue&rdquo;.</p><p>Martin returned to the bench for the first series, a split with Bowling Green, then went back to the hospital. Baseotto scored three points against the Falcons, then took off for home the following Monday. Unhappy with the situation, he returned to Major Junior hockey in Calgary before Giordano had a chance to dissuade him. Michigan was left with a punchless offense and a morale problem, to say the least.</p><p>Giordano assumed full time direction of the team while awaiting word on Martin&rsquo;s condition. He didn&rsquo;t learn until February that the job would be his permanently, so he worked the whole year without benefit of an assistant. As of press time, the job was still open, although during the year the school upgraded the position of grad assistant Jeff Jack-son somewhat to compensate.</p><p>Almost amazingly, Michigan got off to a 9-5 start. The first several weeks were a matter of merely holding things together. The last WCHA series of 1980 saw North Dakota, off to a good start, come to Yost in early December. Michigan dropped the first game 5-1 to the Fighting Sioux but rebounded to blow them away, 8-2, the next night.</p><p>&ldquo;If we could have kept playing then, we would have been much higher in the standings,&rdquo; averred Giordano, a 1969 graduate of Wayne State University, hardly a name synonymous with collegiate hockey might. &ldquo;But then we had some nonleague games with Toronto, exam break, and the Great Lakes Invitational.&rdquo;</p><p>After Baseotto departed, the coach. decided to go back to basics, as it were, and play on Michigan&rsquo;s strength first. In practices, Michigan stressed defense and concentrated on checking all over the ice. That was the first step.</p><p>Around Thanksgiving, Giordano inserted the first hints of a revamped offense.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s our offensive zone play,&rdquo; he explained. &ldquo;We have four or five basic patterns that we use, depending on where the puck is. Before that, we didn&rsquo;t even think about any offensive plays. After we began practicing it, our defense tailed off a little but the offense really improved.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;The system is dependent on our lead man, the first one into the zone. He&rsquo;s got to hit the puck carrier. Then we run our pattern depending on where the puck goes. It&rsquo;s sort of like in football when you find a spot of daylight and run to it.&rdquo;</p><p>Though Michigan&rsquo;s play might have improved, a January slump saw them lose six of seven WCHA games before reeling off seven consecutive victories. Giordano made the most of his available talent, moving junior defenseman Steve Richmond to right wing on power plays. Richmond ended up the leading scorer for the season with 22 goals and 32 assists. Fifteen of the goals came on power plays. Another defenseman, John Blum, was the second leading scorer, with 9-43-52. A third rearguard, Tim Manning, had 7-37-44 for fifth in team scoring. Goalie Fricker earned All-America honors with a 3.93 average.</p><p>When the playoffs rolled around, Michigan had 30 points to 32 for fourth-place Denver, so off they went to the Mile High City for roune one. They knocked off the Pioneers 5-2 and 5-4 to earn a trip to Houghton, Mich., and a rematch with Michigan Tech. The Huskies were on a streak of their own and had knocked off Michigan twice on the final weekend of the regular season.</p><p>It was a screamer of a second round, with Tech prevailing 2-1 and 7-1, although Tech, the only team to beat Michigan after January, needed five third period goals the second night to ice the series. Though the Western advisory committee to the NCAA Ice Hockey Committee voted 4-1 to give Michigan a shot at Clarkson in the NCAA quarters, the top group selected Wisconsin instead. Wisconsin ended up taking the NCAA crown, leaving more than a few unhappy Michigan fans.</p><p>Still, it was a great year for the Wolves and a personal vindication for Giordano. He&rsquo;d come to the job by a rather interesting route, and, given the chance, impressed his colleagues to no end.</p><p>After nine years of teacher-coaching at Notre Dame High in Detroit, whence he sent John Blum and Dave Debol to Michigan, Giordano left hockey for two years and took his family to the resort country of Northern Michigan where he found work as a carpenter and enjoyed the rural life. Ready to return to hockey, he sent out resumes in January of 1979, but through June he had received only one interview, at Kent State.</p><p>When he learned of Doug Hinton&rsquo;s departure from Michigan in August, he quickly phoned Dan Farrell and secured the job as assistant. A year later, he stayed on as Wilf Martin&rsquo;s chief aide, and came through admirably when put to the test.</p><p>Giordano attended the NCAA Finals in Duluth, and made several side trips to the towns of Minnesota&rsquo;s Iron Range in search of recruits last month. Michigan has not recruited heavily in that area, a fertile one for hockey talent. They&rsquo;ll need help, because five of the top seven scorers are graduating, and Fricker is thinking of going pro.</p><p>&ldquo;There will be some problems,&rdquo; smiled Giordano. &ldquo;But we&rsquo;ll overcome &lsquo;em. We did this year.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02758/4390844-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="598" height="1049"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>John Giordano operated without benefit of an assistant coach when he handled Michigan&rsquo;s program.</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>Hockey News&rsquo; Awards Winners</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03607/4390837-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="1048" height="337"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0016-02

Coach Of Year Giordano’s Rise Was Meteoric

<div class="byline">BY MIKE DENNIS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0019-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01788/4391030-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Terry Martin became one of the best students in Mike Nykoluk&rsquo;s class when he was given the opportunity to display his talents.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>ORONTO&mdash;The Maple Leafs&rsquo; Academy has closed up shop for the summer. The boys are off on vacation after making a brief appearance in the annual springtime exercise, &ldquo;Reach For The Top,&rdquo; in which their best efforts weren&rsquo;t nearly as good as some other places of higher learning.</p><p>Naturally, the lads didn&rsquo;t leave empty-handed. Besides the memories of the 1980-81 season, they took home the following report cards, not exactly sterling:</p><p><b>1&mdash;Michel Larocque</b>&mdash;The Bunny was a transfer student from the highly acclaimed Montreal School, where he earned a portion of the Vezina Trophy honors for his outstanding work. With Toronto, he discovered that his new teammates weren&rsquo;t as proficient at playing defense and he was forced to work very hard in his assignments. He&rsquo;s hoping to be more settled next year. Grade: C.</p><p><b>2&mdash;Ian Turnbull</b>&mdash;Ian was given some assistant captain&rsquo;s respon-sibilities by professor Nykoluk but although at times he seemed to relish his role, his work was sometimes sloppy and he was often found out of his position on the ice. Ian&rsquo;s a bright boy, but there are those who insist he&rsquo;d do better studying at a different school. The professor seems reluctant to let him go, but he may have to. Grade C-.</p><p><b>3&mdash;Dave Shand</b>&mdash;Dave had some persistent injuries which only allowed him to play in 47 games this term. Although the spirit seems to be willing, Dave didn&rsquo;t perform up to the level expected in either the puckmoving or crease-clearing courses, but the school would like to see him when he&rsquo;s in better health. Grade: D+.</p><p><b>7&mdash;Rocky Saganiuk</b>&mdash;Rocky lost his goal-scoring touch, his confidence and his job and wasn&rsquo;t asked to suit up for competitions at the end of the term. After a 24-goal rookie campaign with the Leafs, Rocky was being looked at as a 30-goal man, but managed only 12, including a mid-season slump which lasted 27 games. Rocky&rsquo;s lack of proficiency at stopping opponents works against him too. Grade: D-.</p><p><b>9&mdash;Dan Maloney</b>&mdash;Dan, who&rsquo;s very strong in power play studies (he had 65 percent of his goals in this specialty) is giving strong consideration to working behind the classroom bench as the professor&rsquo;s assistant, rather than on the ice next year. Dan enjoyed helping the professor this year when he received the opportunity. Much admired because of his loyalty and determination. Grade: B.</p><p><b>10&mdash;John Anderson</b>&mdash;John suffered through a bad second semester in which he scored only three goals after getting 14 in the first part of the year with professor Joe Crozier. John is very fast but hasn&rsquo;t been able to turn his talent in the right direction. Other schools would be glad to get him from the Leafs, though. Grade: D+.</p><p><b>11&mdash;Bruce Boudreau</b>&mdash;Came to Toronto from the Moncton prep school as a replacement for an injured mate and proved that he can handle NHL circles. Bruce is a multi-talented individual who does many of the things which professor Nykoluk feels are necessary. This should assure him of a spot in the classroom next year. Grade: C+.</p><p><b>12&mdash;Laurie Boschman</b>&mdash;Laurie was ahead of his junior class last year and was off to a fine start this season until he was injured in a school-yard rumble with the Quebec Nordiques. Then he came down with mononucleosis and the feisty competitor was never able to get back into the kind of shape he needs for his aggressive play. The Leafs are expecting big things of him, though. Grade: C-.</p><p><b>14&mdash;Rene Robert</b>&mdash;Rene didn&rsquo;t fit in with another school&rsquo;s plans so the Leafs acquired him for his savvy and offensive capabilities. Unfortunately, Rene suffered his second major injury of the year, a broken wrist, shortly after joining the Leafs and although he returned for the spring maneuvers, he wasn&rsquo;t at the top of his form. He&rsquo;s looking forward to a fresh start next year. Grade: C.</p><p><b>16&mdash;Pat Hickey</b>&mdash;After earning high marks with three schools last season and a total of 31 goals, Pat was ex pected to be a scoring ringleader for the Leafs this year but his entire term was disappointing. The speed at which he can accomplish tasks makes him valuable, but he&rsquo;s got to come up with better numbers to remain. Grade: D.</p><p><b>18&mdash;Ron Sedlbauer</b>&mdash;Another transfer student who&rsquo;d lost his position, Ron joined Toronto Academy with a bang, scoring five goals in his first three games. Ron was said to be plagued by attention lapses in other schools, but he showed a willingness to work and to take advantage of his size that should have pleased the headmaster. Grade: C.</p><p><b>19&mdash;Bill Derlago</b>&mdash;Bill isn&rsquo;t one of the bigger boys in the class but he certainly showed that he can be one of the best with a 35-goal performance in his first full year with the Leafs. His ability to speed to his work assignments and finish off the work of others makes him a valuable performer for the Academy. Grade: B+.</p><p><b>21&mdash;Borje Salming</b>&mdash;Toronto Academy&rsquo;s most famous foreign student did not enjoy one of his better years. Although he signed new enrolment papers for a tidy scholarship, Borje&rsquo;s work did not stand out as often as it has in the past. His health problems continued and he was injured at the close of the year, as well. Grade: C-.</p><p><b>22&mdash;Rick Vaive</b>&mdash;Rick is another of the younger, highly-talented players the Leafs expect to have at the forefront of their academy for many years and made a great deal of progress along the path of learning this year. He worked well with Derlago and scored 33 goals as well as being one of the physical leaders on the club. Once he masters control of his temper, he&rsquo;ll be a valuable asset. Grade: B+.</p><p><b>23&mdash;Dave Farrish</b>&mdash;Dave has many of the qualities the Leafs are seeking among their defensemen and previously studied under professor Nykoluk at a different school. Dave is at his best when he can stand up at the blueline and hand out punishment to the bullies who are intruding in Leafs&rsquo; territory. Sometimes, though, he tries to do a little too much by himself. Grade: C.</p><p><b>24&mdash;Slava Duris</b>&mdash;This foreign student came highly rated by his goaltender friend Jiri Crha and proved that he had NHL competence as he went along. While he was adjusting to his new culture, Slava was forced to miss some schooling with a back injury. But in the latter stages of the season, his confidence increased as he seemed much more at home. Grade: C+.</p><p><b>25&mdash;Terry Martin</b>&mdash;Terry didn&rsquo;t get much of an opportunity for class participation under professor Crozier, but professor Nykoluk saw his potential and called upon him often, putting him with top students Sittier and Paiement. Terry produced his best work ever, with 21 goals in the second half of the season, and looks like he&rsquo;ll continue to shine. Grade: B.</p><p><b>26&mdash;Barry Melrose</b>&mdash;Rugged Barry may not match his classmates for talent, but there are few who come more prepared to work, a factor which pleases the professor. Barry seenis to have a good understanding of what it is that will best help his teammates so he sticks close to his own end of the ice to make sure that others don&rsquo;t gang up on his goaltender. Grade: C.</p><p><b>27&mdash;Darryl Sittler</b>&mdash;Darryl&rsquo;s used to being at the top of his class and despite all the attention he gets from other schools trying to stop him from succeeding, he was still Toronto Academy&rsquo;s most proficient marksman, with 43 goals, and was second in scoring points with 96. Darryl hasn&rsquo;t always seen eye to eye with the headmaster but when it&rsquo;s time to play, he puts all other considerations aside. Grade: B+.</p><p><b>31&mdash;Jiri Crha</b>&mdash;Those in charge of the Toronto Academy placed a little bit too much responsibility on Jiri&rsquo;s slight shoulders in the first half of the season, almost wearing him out, but professor Nykoluk seems to have his finger on how to get the most success out of Jiri&rsquo;s work. Jiri is a diligent student who&rsquo;s making rapid strides in a foreign style of play. Grade: C+.</p><p><b>32&mdash;Ron Zanussi</b>&mdash;This enthusiastic worker returned to his hometown and looks like he can play the style that professor Nykoluk wants&mdash;aggressive, yet disciplined. Ron has always done many of the dirty jobs like penalty killing and stopping opponents, but would like to get a chance to develop his interests in creative offense. Grade: C+.</p><p><b>99&mdash;Wilf Paiement</b>&mdash;Earnest Wilf enjoyed his best season in the NHL this year, leading the Leafs in scoring with 97 points, including 40 goals. A tireless worker who plays on the power play and kills penalties, too, Wilf has a shot which frightens opposing goaltenders and is not afraid to stand up for his rights in the attacking zone. Grade: B+.</p><p>That&rsquo;s the Toronto Academy Class of &lsquo;81. Here&rsquo;s hoping they have a nice summer so they can come back raring to go for next year.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0019-01

School’s Out For Maple Leaf Academy

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0033-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01353/4391702-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg"></div><h2><b>SUMMARY OF 1980 PLAYOFFS</b></h2><h2><b>STANLEY CUP STANDINGS&mdash;1927-80</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02261/4391695-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="1218" height="552"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0033-01

Stanley Cup Picture

<div class="byline">FRANK ORR&#x2019;S</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-011089/4389754-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="319" height="363"></div><h2><b>High Level or competition</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>O</span>F COURSE, IT</b> wasn&rsquo;t much fun for the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings and Boston Bruins but the fact that those clubs bit the dust in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs didn&rsquo;t exactly hurt the National Hockey League.</p><p>They were in the top eight of the league&rsquo;s overall standing but the Canadiens lost to the Edmonton Oilers, the Kings were pushed aside by the New York Rangers and the Bruins swept out by the Minnesota North Stars in the preliminary round. In addition, the St. Louis Blues were pushed to the limit by the Pittsburgh Penguins. So were the Philadelphia Flyers by the Quebec Nordiques.</p><p>The fact that three teams from the league&rsquo;s second plateau gives believability to the NHL&rsquo;s claim that the competitive balance&mdash;what most people call parity&mdash;was becoming strong. Parity in which all 21 clubs are close in quality, of course, is a pipedream but the evidence is there in strong black and white that the gap between the haves and have-nots is slowly being closed.</p><p>&ldquo;In the second half of this season&rsquo;s schedule, the clubs in the middle of the standings and a few who were down a little farther became extremely strong opponents for every team in the league,&rdquo; said Flyers&rsquo; coach Pat Quinn.</p><p>&ldquo;Many of them are clubs that have done big rebuilding jobs with young players. Not only did they improve a great deal over the course of this season but looking ahead, you know those teams will be a handful next season.</p><p>&ldquo;Take the Quebec Nordiques as an example. There wasn&rsquo;t a much better team in this league over the last two months and they have a young roster, especially on defense. When those rookie kids mature, that is going to be a very strong team. In our series with the Nordiques, the fact that we had more experience than they did was a big factor in our win.&rdquo;</p><p>The elimination of the Canadiens by the ur start Oilers, of course, was a big surprise. But the Oilers had fit shed the season on an upbeat note when their injury list had no members, Wayne Gretzky was capping his incredible season and several other excellent young players (Paul Coffey, Kevin Lowe, Jari Kurri, Glenn Anderson and Mark Messier) had gained some experience.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m certain that people didn&rsquo;t look closely enough at our club and the way we had developed over the season.&rdquo; said Oilers&rsquo; general manager-coach Glen Sather.</p><p>&ldquo;When we hit the playoffs, we were a pretty good hockey team. Sure the Canadiens had to be favored, but I don&rsquo;t think our beating them should have been as big a surprise as it was.&rdquo;</p><h2>The Future is Bright</h2><p><b>LOOKING AHEAD</b> from the basis of what has happened in this year&rsquo;s playoffs, the NHL faces a very bright future in the 1980&rsquo;s. No longer is the top of the league the exclusive property of a few teams.</p><p>Some alarm has been expressed by the rapid lowering of the average age and the length of careers in the NHL. In two seasons, both figures dropped by three years. That means a flock of kids have entered the NHL in the past two seasons.</p><p>&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t remember a time when the NHL contained as many big, strong, skilled young players as it has right now,&rdquo; said Bob Davidson, director of personnel for the Colorado Rockies, a man who&rsquo;s spent a lifetime discovering talent.</p><p>&ldquo;The league is in great shape for young talent. Any club that doesn&rsquo;t have a half dozen or so kids on its roster now is going to have problems keeping pace in the NHL in the next few seasons.&rdquo;</p><p>The drafting of underage juniors, of course, contributed heavily to the youth movement. Teams discovered that they could lower their payrolls by lopping off the 30-year-olds and using kids. The move also upgraded the clubs&rsquo; potential.</p><h2>Good For Realignment</h2><p><b>THE IMPROVEMENT</b> in the league&rsquo;s competitive balance couldn&rsquo;t come at a better time. The NHL&rsquo;s realignment of divisions and the move to an unbalanced schedule starts next season and the change in power in the league gives much more hope to the hew arrangement&rsquo;s working well.</p><p>Take the Smythe Division as an example. There was concern that the sector comprising Los Angeles, Colorado, Edmonton, the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks lacked appeal.</p><p>But examine the division closely and the prospects are good.</p><p>The Kings and Flames were in the top eight. The Oilers, with Gretzky, are a top gate attraction. The Canucks are a solid club that should get better and the changes made in the Rockies&rsquo; roster late in the season indicate a big improvement next season.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll have a competitive division with some top stars,&rdquo; said Flames&rsquo; GM Cliff Fletcher. &ldquo;Maybe three seasons ago, the division wouldn&rsquo;t have worked. Now it will.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0002-01

HOCKEY VIEWPOINT

<div class="byline">BY JAY GREENBERG</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011097/4389809-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill Barber is anything but a flashy hockey player But few in the NHL can match him for his ability in the clutch and his willingness to sacrifice for his team.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>hey played an All Star game without a player wearing No. 9 this year, which is enough to make Art Ross turn over in his grave. The only Bobby was named Smith. A bunch of guys? Even Guy wasn&rsquo;t there.</p><p>If hockey faces one problem worse than the thuggery of the Philadelphia Flyers, it&rsquo;s the lack of stars. Not talent, now, but names. The big ones are gone, the new ones caught in a time warp that will take a few years to gather their deserved glitter.</p><p>Bill Barber looked around the Clarence Campbell Conference locker room at the Los Angeles Forum two months ago and suddenly realized that at 28. he was the oldest player there.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s amazing,&rdquo; said Billy. &ldquo;If I&rsquo;m supposed to be the big name, then I think a lot of people will be disappointed.&rdquo;</p><p>That was before the game. Afterwards these same people were reminded that on a given night, like that one in L.A., there is no better player in the game than the Flyers&rsquo; 28-year-old left wing.</p><p>He had a goal, an assist, and fired up eight shots in the Campbell Conference&rsquo;s 4-1 victory, but the writer&rsquo;s panel decided that Barber, who wears his absence of star quality proudly, was too dull to be named the Game&rsquo;s Most Valuable Player. They gave the award, and the Toyota Celica, to Mike Liut.</p><p>Billy is more like your standard four-door sedan, anyway, still tooling along after about 50,000 miles. He is underrated by some, overrated by others, but appearances in glamour events have usually brought out the best in him. God put everything he wanted in a hockey player when he made Bill Barber.</p><p>He put together his fourth 40-goal season this year (finishing with 43) and probably would have cracked. 50 for the second time in his career, had not the Flyers&rsquo; late-season slump and line imbalance forced coach Pat Quinn to do some juggling.</p><p>It resulted in another of his periodic removals from The Fine Line, with Bobby Clarke and Reggie Leach, and a lot more shifts with Rick MacLeish, who would prefer to do the skating and, shooting himself. Billy, not the same player of the first 60 games, scored only one goal in his last 12 games.</p><p>Billy doesn&rsquo;t complain about the shuffling, he just sort of wears his hang-dog look. Come to think of it, it&rsquo;s the same look he wears all the time.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not hard to get the points if you want to be offensive,&rdquo; Barber said as the Flyers entered their quarterfinal showdown with the Calgary Flames. &ldquo;But that&rsquo;s not going to win you too many games. If my role is to score goals, then I&rsquo;ll do it. If that&rsquo;s what they want, then I&rsquo;ll get it. But 1 don&rsquo;t think that&rsquo;s going to get us far in the playoffs.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;My ice time has been cut a bit, but I can&rsquo;t use that as an excuse. It&rsquo;s been hard at times, working with all the changing forwards. You become hesitant. When you get moved around you have to read off different players and sometimes you&rsquo;re hesitant to make a play because you don&rsquo;t know if the other guy is going to be there.</p><p>&ldquo;But that&rsquo;s all behind me now, just like the season is behind this team. It&rsquo;s been disappointing&mdash;I thought our team was capable of finishing a lot higher than it did. but it&rsquo;s over and done. We can&rsquo;t change it. We&rsquo;ve just got to shut off what&rsquo;s happened this year. It&rsquo;s going to take a whole lot of work to accomplish what we&rsquo;re here for and that&rsquo;s to win the Stanley Cup.</p><p>&ldquo;This is when the fun begins. And don&rsquo;t worry, I&rsquo;ll be there.&rdquo;</p><p>Come April, he always has. It took only 6:45 of the Flyers&rsquo; opening playoff game, a 6-4 victory over the Quebec Nordiques, for Barber to break his slump with a goal. And later in the game, an empty net goal sealed the Flyers&rsquo; victory.</p><p>In Game 2, Barber struck for three more goals, increasing his playoff output to five as he led his team to an 8-5 victory and a 2-0 lead in the series, a series that the Flyers ultimately won in five hard-fought games.</p><p>Overshadowed through the years by Bobby Clarke, Barber has never been the Flyers&rsquo; catalyst, but the argument could be made that he has often been their most valuable player. In eight of his nine seasons, Barber has scored 30 goals, and missed in the other mostly because of a nagging knee problem.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want a super big year,&rdquo; he has said, &ldquo;and the next year slip off to nothing. 1 want to be consistent.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s easier for wingers. The centers are the keys. The defensemen and goaltenders, they make a mistake and it stands out like a sore thumb.</p><p>&ldquo;The wingers get away with a helluva lot more. I&rsquo;ve made my share of mistakes.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if I&rsquo;m better now or not. I hope I&rsquo;m more reliable. By thinking, by using my head more. My checking has improved. I&rsquo;m better at killing penalties.&rdquo;</p><p>Take all the things left wings are supposed to do, in fact, and Barber still adds up to more of them, on more nights, than probably any left wing in the game.</p><p>If nobody knows it. Barber is probably happier that way.</p><p>&ldquo;I <i>am</i> dull,&rdquo; he says, almost defiantly. But though this is a man who once said that &ldquo;those big seasons are killers,&rdquo; because of the expectations they raise, deep down, what Bill Barber loves best is playing with Clarke and scoring goals. &ldquo;This [the line juggling] has happened for three years, so why should I get upset now?</p><p>&ldquo;When I was with Clarkie and Reggie, it made my game a helluva lot easier. But that&rsquo;s the way it&rsquo;s been for three years. 1 really haven&rsquo;t had a line.</p><p>&ldquo;I; ll go out and do my best. as long as no one comes in and asks &lsquo;what&rsquo;s happening&mdash;how come you&rsquo;re not scoring goals?&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0003-01

Barber Is Dull To Watch But Tough To Stop

<div class="byline">BY ERIC DUHATSCHEK</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-02937/4389847-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Calgary&rsquo;s Kent Nilsson came through with his finest playoff series, netting eight points against the Chicago Black Hawks.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>C</span>ALGARY&mdash;It took the Calgary Flames just over 72 hours to accomplish what the Atlanta Flames failed to do in eight years&mdash;win a National Hockey League playoff series.</p><p>The Flames eliminated the Chicago Black Hawks in three straight games, surviving the first round for the first time in the team&rsquo;s history because of the goaltending of Rejean Lemelin and the timely goalscoring of Willi Plett.</p><p>Lemelin faced 66 shots in the third game, five-period marathon before Plett put a rising slapshot behind the Hawks&rsquo; Tony Esposito to wrap up the series and send the club home for five days of rest.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know how much longer I could have gone,&rdquo; said Lemelin, as team captain Brad Marsh passed out cigars in the winners&rsquo; dressing room. &ldquo;It was a big relief when Willi scored. They hit the post twice in overtime and once they had the empty net and missed.</p><p>&ldquo;But I guess that makes up for some of the bad goals they scored in the series. You know, I just had the feeling we were going to win it.&rdquo;</p><p>The sweep was particularly satisfying to a club with a 2-15 lifetime record in post-season play. As injured winger Eric Vail put it: &ldquo;This lifts the biggest money off our backs. We&rsquo;ll just have to go from here.&rdquo;</p><p>Coach Al MacNeil, in his second year behind the Flames&rsquo; bench, conceded he did not feel secure about the series until the team, hastily revising its travel plans, received the opportunity to return to Calgary a day early.</p><p>&ldquo;I guess you have to consider us a pretty good hockey team now,&rdquo; said a smiling MacNeil. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve definitely shown a lot of character. We won three straight playoff games against a pretty good hockey team. 1 think that certainly says something about our club.</p><p>&ldquo;I never thought it was over until Willi scored, though. 1 don&rsquo;t think about all the chances both teams had [to score in overtime], but I do know Reggie [Lemelin] played a super series. He was there all the time and that&rsquo;s the type of goaltending you&rsquo;re going to need in the playoffs if you hope to go anywhere.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;Teams like Edmonton are proving anyone can be upset,&rdquo; added defenseman Paul Reinhart, &ldquo;so we&rsquo;ve just got to go in there like a Cinderella team, take it a game at a time and keep going. And we can go a long way.&rdquo;</p><p>The Flames put a lot of fears to rest with their play in the series. Kent Nilsson, a zero-point man last year when the Flames bowed out in four games to the New York Rangers, responded with an eight-point performance against the Hawks.</p><p>What&rsquo;s more, he had Chicago so concerned with defensing him that the team&rsquo;s nominal second line of Guy Chouinard, Bob MacMillan and Plett had an outstanding series.</p><p>MacMillan, shutout in five previous playoff series, led the team with four goals. Plett added three, including two game winners, and Chouinard anchored the power play from his position on the right point.</p><p>&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t felt like this since Team Canada &lsquo;78, when we won the bronze medal,&rdquo; said MacMillan. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hardly into the playoffs, but this is a big thing for us and it has to give us even more confidence.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve always felt we had good Flames&rsquo; teams in Atlanta and I think it&rsquo;s unfortunate what happened down there. But we&rsquo;re in Calgary now, so you never know how far we can go.&rdquo;</p><p><b>NOTES:</b> With Vail set to return for the second round, the Flames still had several players waiting in the wings. Rookie Dave Hindmarch, the former Canadian Olympic team member, played in only one regular season game, but took a regular shift in the Hawks&rsquo; series as did seldom-used Randy Holt. Holt, normally a defenseman, played the wing in the series. MacNeil sat out first-year player Kevin LaVallee, a regular all season, Bert Wilson, juniors Steve Konroyd and Denis Cyr, the injured Vail, plus third-string goaltender Tim Bernhardt&hellip;More than 500 fans, many waving signs, wearing Flames&rsquo; sweaters and asking for autographis, greeted the. Flames upon their return to Calgary, prompting Nilsson to comment: &ldquo;You&rsquo;d think we won the Stanley Cup. I&rsquo;ve never seen anything like this before. If it&rsquo;s like this now, I wonder how many will show up if we win the next round.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-03636/4389840-1-eng-US/f0003-032.jpg" title="f0003-03" width="591" height="1421"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob MacMillan broke a personal drought in the playoffs with four first-round goals.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0003-02

Flames Get Rid Of Playoff Monkey

<div class="byline">BY BOB VERDI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011148/4389878-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="315" height="361"></div><h2>Whatever Happened To No. 4?</h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>F</span>OR MOST OF YOU,</b> the last time Bobby Orr appeared in public was on the cover of THE HOCKEY NEWS, which named him Player of the Decade earlier this year.</p><p>And, probably, the last you heard his name mentioned was in the same breath as Wayne Gretzky, who has some nerve, at age 20, breaking a legend&rsquo;s record for assists in one NHL season.</p><p>In other words, Number Four has been rather quiet. But, in this case at least, no news is good news.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m as happy as I&rsquo;ve ever been,&rdquo; Orr reported the other day, &ldquo;and very, very busy.&rdquo;</p><p>Orr and his family&mdash;wife Peggy, sons Darren and Brent&mdash;reside in the leafy Boston suburb of Weston. It has been their home since last July, when Orr departed a leafy Chicago suburb of Northbrook after what might be termed four restless seasons in The Windy City.</p><p>He came to Chicago in 1976, you doubtless recall, after an ugly contract negotiation with the Boston Bruins, whom he helped restore to the map during a glorious decade which included two Stanley Cups.</p><p>In restrospect, it was a move ill-timed and ill-advised. Mickey Mantle doesn&rsquo;t finish his career with the Cleveland Indians, and Bobby Orr shouldn&rsquo;t have been consigned to play his last game with any team other than the Bruins.</p><p>It appeared, in the beginning, that the Black Hawks might be a comfortable landing place. Team president Bill Wirtz signed him to a $3 million contract and said that, even if Orr never played a game for the Indian Head, it would be worth it.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a gamble,&rdquo; Wirtz quoth, &ldquo;but we&rsquo;re putting our money on the nose of a thoroughbred. If Bobby can&rsquo;t play for us, there are plenty of other ways he can help make the Black Hawks a better organization. There is only one Bobby Orr.&rdquo;</p><p>As it turned out, Orr participated in only 26 games for the Black Hawks, off and on, before the confounded left knee which sidelined him so often, sidelined him for good. Tragic was a word used to describe the curtailed genius of this artist, but perhaps that was a bit too maudlin.</p><p>What happened thereafter was no fun, admittedly. Orr went from assistant coach to assistant general manager to assistant in charge of rubber bands. Suffice it to say, it didn&rsquo;t work out, and Orr doesn&rsquo;t like to talk about the experience any more than he wants to talk about his alleged tax problems any more than he wants to talk about his alter ego for so many years, Alan Eagleson.</p><h2>Returned To Boston</h2><p><b>&ldquo;I&rsquo;M LOOKING AHEAD,&rdquo;</b> says Orr. &ldquo;One of the great things that happened to us is moving back to Boston. I guess, in our hearts, we never really left. This is where all our friends are. This is where we have so many great memories. And, this is where I expect to live the rest of my life.&rdquo;</p><p>Gerry Cheevers, the coach of the Bruins, put in a quick call to his old teammate upon his return to the Hub and welcomed him back on the ice whenever he was interested.</p><p>&ldquo;He did it a couple times,&rdquo; said Cheevers, &ldquo;and of course, the jaws on our guys&mdash;especially the younger guys&mdash;just dropped. There is still only one Bobby Orr.&rdquo;</p><p>But Orr has stayed relatively detached from the Bruins, watching the occasional game from a rooftop box at Boston Garden. In fact, Orr has stayed pretty much aloof from the National Hockey League, period. The league did hire him for a spell as a consultant to president John Ziegler, who certainly could use one.</p><p>However, the job entailed mostly dropping pucks, shaking hands, and eating rubber chicken at banquets. Orr found his mind wasn&rsquo;t being challenged, and though the Honorable Mr. Ziegler may still think Orr is working for the NHL, he isn&rsquo;t. Orr&rsquo;s downfall, it seems, is that he had ideas, energy and a brain. Three strikes and you&rsquo;re out in the NHL.</p><p>But with Standard Brands, a very large and very progressive company with offices all over the globe, those qualities are most welcome. That, it appears, is where Bobby&rsquo;s bread is buttered now.</p><p>&ldquo;I worked with them when I was, still playing,&rdquo; said Orr. &ldquo;For the last seven years, I guess I never did much with them while I was still active, and I felt kind of embarrassed because they had treated me so well without my doing much. They said that I shouldn&rsquo;t worry. When the time comes, they&rsquo;ll keep me busy. They have.&rdquo;</p><h2>Toils At Breakneck Pace</h2><p><b>ORR TRAVELS WORLDWIDE</b> now for the firm in capacities that exceed mere public relations. His latest project is a film pioneered by the company&mdash;and cofeaturing him&mdash;which delves into the area of youth sports.</p><p>&ldquo;There are some things which we feel aren&rsquo;t right,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Not only in kids&rsquo; hockey, but in all sports involving kids. Hockey is part of it, yes. In the film, we&rsquo;ll talk about the over-emphasis on winning and the lack of emphasis on children having fun.&rdquo;</p><p>Orr toils at a breakneck pace doing clinics, particularly in the New England area, where all he has to do is pop his head out of the window to attract a legion of admirers. Standard Brands has enlisted several athletes such as Frank Gifford, Jay Hebert and Rod Laver and Orr is right in there, learning the ropes.</p><p>&ldquo;It is a great company to be with,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Classy and professional, and a great place to learn business. I don&rsquo;t think I&rsquo;ll ever get back into hockey fulltime. I know I don&rsquo;t want to coach. I don&rsquo;t think I have the patience for that, I enjoy working with kids, seeing games whenever I can, and playing in the oldtimers games. Still like to lace up the skates whenever possible.&rdquo;</p><p>Nobody ever did it better.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0004-01

HOCKEY TALK

<p>THE INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLY &bull; FOUNDED 1947</p><p><b>Founded in 1947 by Kenneth W. McKenzie</b></p><p><b>DONALD R. WALL</b><br><i>Chairman and Publisher</i></p><p><b>TOM MURRAY</b><br><i>Editor in Chief</i></p><p><b>TOM WORSLEY</b><br><i>Business Manager</i></p><p>Advertising and Editorial Offices<br>214 King Street West&mdash;Suite 314<br>Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5H 1K4<br>(416)598-1753</p><p>Executive Office<br>850 Third Ave.<br>New York, New York, 10022<br>(212) 593-2100</p><p>EDITORIAL STAFF</p><p>Charlie Halpin <i>Editorial Director</i></p><p>Mike Dennis, <i>Assistant Editor</i></p><p>Bob Hanley, <i>Editorial Consultant</i></p><p><i>Contributing Editors</i></p><p>Stan Fischler, Frank Orr, Bob Verdi</p><h2>ADVERTISING SALES OFFICES</h2><p><b>Toronto:</b></p><p>Randy Green</p><p>214 King Street West&mdash;Suite 314</p><p>Toronto. Ontario. Canada M5H 1K4</p><p>(416) 598-1753</p><p><b>New York:</b></p><p>Bob Bassinette</p><p>Bassinette/White</p><p>50 East 42nd Street</p><p>New York, N.Y. 10017</p><p>Tel. (212) 986-6210</p><p><b>Chicago:</b></p><p>Hooper. Jones & Associates</p><p>3322 W. Peterson Avenue</p><p>Chicago, Illinois 60659</p><p>(312)478-5544</p><p><b>Boston:</b></p><p>Steve Ganak&mdash;Steve Ganak Ad Reps</p><p>Statler Office Building</p><p>Boston, Mass 02116</p><p>(617) 542-6913</p><p>Tel. (212) 986-6210</p><p><b>Esther Sumka,</b></p><p><b>Advertising Service Mananer (416) 598-1753</b></p><p><b>THE HOCKEY NEWS. (ISSN 0018-3016). is published weekly except monthly June through September by W.C.C. Publishing ltd., 214 King Street West-Suite 314. Toronto. Ontario M5H 1K4. (416) 598 1753. In U.S. c/o W.C.C Publishing Corp., 850 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10022.</b></p><p><b>YEARLY SUBSCRIPTION RATES: SI6 95 in the U.S.A. S16.95 In Cnida. 120.95 in Foreign Countries. Send all Canadian and Foreign subscription orders to THE HOCKEY NEWS. P.O. Box 13035. Postal Station A.&rsquo; Toronto. Ont. M5W 1V7 U.S. subscription requests should be mailed lb Box 112. Martinsville. NJ. 08836. Please allow 4-6 weeks lor processing</b></p><p><b>IN CANADA SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO THE HOCKEY NEWS. Box 112. Martinsville. N.J 08836 Second Class mail Registration No 1327. All inquiries pertaining Io subscriptions should be addressed to Subscription Oe pl., The Hockey News. 214 King St. W., Suite 314. Toronto. Ont. M5H 1K4. Canada.</b></p><p><b>IN THE UNITED STATES: Second class postage paid al New York. N.Y. and al additional mailing offices.</b></p><p><b>U.S POSTMASTER send address changes to: The Hockey News. Box 112. Martinsville. N.J 08836</b></p><p><i>Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div><p class="dropcap"><span>V</span>ANCOUVER&mdash;Survival is still good enough in Vancouver. It is enough to make the playoffs, get blasted in the first round and not worry about it in the slightest.</p><p>The Canucks played a fine first half of the season, then crumbled beyond belief, the end coming when the Buffalo Sabres creamed them three straight in the preliminary round of the playoffs.</p><p>There were no mass resignations. All the coaches are back for next season if they wish and general manager Jake Milford has knitted the wool so thickly over the eyes of owner Frank Griffiths he could remove it and have enough for sweaters for all the players.</p><p>The Canucks put up a tremendous show in the first game of the series, and came within 68 seconds of winning. But when Bob Manno misplayed the puck at the side of the Canucks&rsquo; net, it went to Buffalo&rsquo;s Andre Savard, who then managed two cracks to put it past Richard Brodeur from a bad angle. That loss was the killer. The Canucks went into the tank 5-2 the next night, getting down 3-1 after the first period and then were completely out-played in the third game, only to have a third period comeback foiled when Brodeur came out of his net and misplayed a Buffalo clearing pass, handing it to Tony McKegney. The Sabres&rsquo; winger shot the puck into the open goal and restored Buffalo&rsquo;s two-goal lead and gave them the series.</p><p>&ldquo;The first game was really the one that hurt,&rdquo; said coach Harry Neale, who, with assistants Dave Dunn and Tom Watt, had put together a game plan which completely frustrated the Sabres.</p><p>I was so proud of our defense that night I could have kissed them all,&rdquo; said Neale. &ldquo;It was the best game our defensemen played in a long time and none of them tried to make any fancy plays. They just got it out of our end and the strategy worked. We just didn&rsquo;t win.&rdquo;</p><p>Among the contributing factors in the loss in that final 68 seconds were that Harold Snepsts of the Canucks and Buffalo&rsquo;s Danny Gare were off for roughing leaving four skaters apiece. But more importantly, Snepsts, had he not been penalized, would likely have been playing instead of Manno. Also, when Buffalo coach Roger Neilson lifted goalie Don Edwards, the advantage was more significant than would it have been had the teams been at full strength.</p><p>The third game also had much more to it than the score indicated, at least from an optimistic Vancouver viewpoint. Had the Canucks managed to send the game into overtime, necessitating a fourth game on the Sunday night, the outcome might then have been stretched to a fifth game. Even Neilson said the Sabres were glad they didn&rsquo;t have to play the Canucks again in the fourth game, because they would have been without Gare, who suffered a shoulder injury when nailed by Vancouver defenseman Kevin McCarthy.</p><p>&ldquo;It would have been nice to play them Sunday,&rdquo; said Neale. &ldquo;I thought they were hanging on a little in the third period. But I guess when a team beats you three straight, you had better admit they are better than you.&rdquo;</p><p>The mental letdown suffered in the second game also hurt, as Vancouver tried a repeat performance of the first game and found that power play goals killed them.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021101/4389933-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="589" height="805"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob Manno couldn&rsquo;t find the handle on a loose puck that Buf-falo&rsquo;s Andre Savard picked up to tie the first game.</b></figcaption></div><p>But the end of the season came none too soon for some players, who were upset with the way the season had gone, the way they had started off so well and then fallen apart. There was considerable dissension on the team, and it boiled over when Ivan Boldirev sat out the first two games of the playoff series, to the surprise of everyone, including general manager Jake Milford.</p><p>After lashing out at Neale and his coaching tactics, Boldirev played in the third game and bagged a goal and an assist but he still feels he will be traded at the end of the season.</p><p>Bobby Schmautz, meanwhile, may have finished his NHL career with the Canucks this season, despite his 27 goals. There seems to be considerable doubt as to whether he will be offered a contract next year, as his contract terminates this year. Schmautz still thinks he can play.</p><p>Schmautz, if he isn&rsquo;t re-signed by Vancouver, will be a free agent without compensation.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0004-02

Canuck Heads Won’t Roll Despite Playoff Washout

<div class="byline">BY ARNOLD IRISH</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-01997/4389971-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Mike Crombeen, who nearly didn&rsquo;t play because of a cold, came off the bench to score in the second overtime to advance the Blues.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>S</span>T. LOUIS&mdash;Mike Crombeen, one of the few players on either team who wasn&rsquo;t exhausted after a frantic first overtime failed to break a tie, wondered why St. Louis coach Red Beren-son told him and Mike Zuke to &ldquo;take a good skate&rdquo; before the second extra period began.</p><p>&ldquo;For all I knew, he told me to do it so I wouldn&rsquo;t fall asleep on the bench,&rdquo; said Crombeen, who hadn&rsquo;t played in the third period or the first overtime after earlier being on the ice for only three penalty-killing shifts.</p><p>But it was Crombeen, whose head bold made it so difficult for him to breathe that Berenson almost didn&rsquo;t dress him, who took Zuke&rsquo;s centering pass and beat goalie Greg Millen at 5:16 of the second overtime to give the Blues a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the fifth game of their Stanley Cup preliminary series.</p><p>&ldquo;I kept wondering whether we&rsquo;d be playing the Rangers or going home,&rdquo; Crombeen remembered thinking on the bench.</p><p>Zuke took a turn at the beginning of the second overtime, but Crombeen didn&rsquo;t return to the ice until several seconds before he scored.</p><p>Zuke and teammate Rick LaPointe pursued the puck into the corner to Millen&rsquo;s right. Zuke, who said he couldn&rsquo;t remember if he saw Crombeen before he made the pass but knew it &ldquo;would be automatic for the winger to go in front when the center went behind the net,&rdquo; took the puck off the boards and fired it past Penguins&rsquo; defenseman Randy Carlyle to the wide-open Crombeen.</p><p>&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t realize I was all alone in front of the net,&rdquo; Crombeen said. &ldquo;1 just saw the puck rolling towards me and tried to direct it into the net. I can&rsquo;t say I saw a spot or picked a comer.&rdquo;</p><p>Millan said he saw. Crombeen in front, but was concentrating on Zuke in the comer. &ldquo;When he centered the puck,&rdquo; Millen said, &ldquo;I tried to slide across to my left, but Crombeen jammed it by me. I got a piece of it, but not enough. What can you say?&rdquo;</p><p>Crombeen said that he didn&rsquo;t even see his shot go into the net.</p><p>&lsquo;I sort of got a vague impression that it was in, but the goalie had my view blocked,&rdquo; Crombeen said. &ldquo;I was aware of the mayhem in the crowd and I looked over at Zuke and he was two feet in the air. That&rsquo;s when I knew I was in.&rdquo;</p><p>Zuke said that, playing as little as he did, he &ldquo;felt sort of out of it,&rdquo; but reasoned that with everyone getting tired his chances of playing were growing better.</p><p>&ldquo;Sitting on the bench, 1 fantasized that I had scored the winning goal, but this [assisting on the real one| is better.&rdquo;</p><p>Each team took 13 shots in the fastpaced first overtime, but Millen and St. Louis goalie Mike Liut traded spectacular saves throughout.</p><p>A conversation piece during the series was Penguins&rsquo; coach Eddie Johnston&rsquo;s contention that he had discovered a flaw in Liut&rsquo;s technique.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a shame we had to play so long,&rdquo; Liut said with a weary smile. &ldquo;I had all kinds of nasty things to say about Eddie Johnston, but now I&rsquo;m too tired to say a thing.&rdquo;</p><p>All week Johnson had waged psychological warfare against the highly guarded Liut, until the &ldquo;flaw&rdquo; controversy almost overshadowed the games.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know E.J. personally, but I know he was a prankster when he played,&rdquo; Liut said. &ldquo;He tends to play all the angles and was trying to get me shook up. I never reached the point where it bothered my play, but I was upset at some of the things he was saying.&rdquo;</p><p>Liut especially resented Johnston&rsquo;s statement that the Blues hadn&rsquo;t won a big game.</p><p>&ldquo;In this series we won every big game there was,&rdquo; Liut said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the odd games that are the big ones. If you win those, you&rsquo;ll never trail in a series and you&rsquo;ll never lose a series. That&rsquo;s exactly what we did. We won the first, third and fifth games. The big games.&rdquo;</p><p>Many observers expected Johnston to admit after the fifth game was history that his &ldquo;flaw&rdquo; routine had been meant as a psychological ploy or a harmless gag, but the ex-goalie played it straight all the way.</p><p>&ldquo;LiUt had been sitting too far back in the nets,&rdquo; Johnston insisted. &ldquo;He hadn&rsquo;t been challenging as much as he did earlier in the season. When he moved up a bit, as he did when this last game got going, he&rsquo;s tough to beat because he&rsquo;s such a big man.</p><p>&ldquo;In the first overtime Liut kept coming up with the big saves when St. Louis needed them. He should be named the Most Valuable Player in the league. He&rsquo;s got my vote.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02766/4389964-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg" title="f0005-02" width="1236" height="1833"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>By the time the fifth game had reached its conclusion, Mike Liut was too tired to verbally joust with the Penguins&rsquo; Eddie Johnston.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0005-01

Fresh Crombeen Saves Blues From Early Upset

<p class="dropcap"><i><span>A</span>s this issue went to press, none of the quarterfinal series had been resolved, although the Minnesota North Stars had a seemingly insurmountable 3-0 lead in games in their series with the Buffalo Sabres. In other quarterfinal action, the Calgary Flames led the Philadelphia Flyers two games to one; the New York Islanders were up on the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 and the New York Rangers had the same advantage over the St. Louis Blues.</i></p><p><i>Following are capsule reports and scoring summaries of all of those games, as well as the Flyers&rsquo; and Blues&rsquo; fifth-game victories over the Quebec Nordiques and Pittsburgh Penguins in the prelimianry round.</i></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011179/4390149-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="566" height="152"></div><h2><b>ST. LOUIS vs PITTSBURGH</b></h2><p><b>Game 5:</b> Mike Crombeen&rsquo;s goal at 5:16 of the second overtime won the game for the Blues 4-3 and sent them into the quarterfinals against the New York Rangers.</p><p>Crombeen, stationed in front of the Penguins&rsquo; net, took a pass from Mike Zuke and jammed it past goalie Greg Millen for St. Louis&rsquo; first playoff series victory since 1972.</p><p>Paul Gardener opened the scoring for Pittsburgh at 7:48 of the first period but the Blues&rsquo; Brian Sutter tied the game at 11:17 of the second. Pittsburgh took the lead again less than four minutes later when George Ferguson scored his second goal of the playoffs. But the Blues&rsquo; Bernie Federko pulled his team even with his fourth playoff goal exactly one minute later. The score reached 3-3 on goals by the Blues&rsquo; Rick LaPointe and Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Greg Malone and that&rsquo;s the way it stood at the end of regulation.</p><h2><b>Tue. April 14 PITTSBURGH 3, ST. LOUIS 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-02904/4390142-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="566" height="1053"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-03592/4390135-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg" title="f0006-03" width="571" height="141"></div><h2><b>PHILADELPHIA vs QUEBEC</b></h2><p><b>Game 5:</b> Although Quebec goaltender Dan Bouchard played brillantly through the first two periods, holding the Flyers to two goals&mdash;by Rick MacLeish at 17:16 of the first and Al Hill at 10:05 of the second&mdash;the Flyers broke the game wide open in the third period.</p><p>More appropriately, it was Ken Linseman who broke the game open. He started things off by scoring a goal himself at the 18-second mark on a beautiful rush. Two and a half minutes later, he set up another Flyer goal, by linemate Paul Holmgren. And at the 5:07 mark he was responsible for a goal by his other linemate, Brian Propp.</p><p>That made the score 5-1 and by the time Quebec&rsquo;s Anton Stastny found the net at 6:16, the game and series were out of Quebec&rsquo;s reach and the Flyers advanced to a quarterfinal showdown with Calgary.</p><h2><b>Tue. April 14 QUEBEC 2, PHILADELPHIA 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-04387/4390128-1-eng-US/f0006-042.jpg" title="f0006-04" width="550" height="792"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-05313/4390121-1-eng-US/f0006-052.jpg" title="f0006-05" width="574" height="154"></div><h2><b>NY ISLANDERS vs EDMONTON</b></h2><p><b>Game 1:</b> The Islanders&rsquo; Bob Nystrom scored the first goal of the game at the 3:14 mark of the first period, starting an 8-2 Islander rout which brought the Oilers crashing to earth from their sweep over the Montreal Canadiens in the preliminary round.</p><p>The Isles put four more goals on the board, three of them in the span of 11:44, before the Oilers&rsquo; Wayne Gretzky finally put a shot behind Billy Smith at the 8:06 mark of the second period.</p><p>But Denis Potvin scored his second goal of the game and Clark Gillies added two more to complete the Islander scoring before the Oilers&rsquo; Matti Hag-man scored a meaningless goal 12 minutes into the third period.</p><h2><b>Thu. April 16 EDMONTON 2, ISLANDERS 8</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-06220/4390114-1-eng-US/f0006-062.jpg" title="f0006-06" width="550" height="886"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-07114/4390107-1-eng-US/f0006-072.jpg" title="f0006-07" width="1835" height="1280"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Edmonton goalie Andy Moog is tested by the New York Islanders&rsquo; top center, Bryan Trottier, right, during quarterfinal playoff action. Moog, a rookie, was outstanding for Edmonton throughout the playoffs.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p><b>Game 2:</b> Three goals by Denis Potvin&mdash;all of them on the power play&mdash;paced the Islanders to a 6-3 win over the Oilers and gave them a 2-0 lead in the series.</p><p>Prior to the game, the Islanders had converted nine of their 20 power play opportunities. After the game, they had scored on 13 of 27 and Potvin was a big reason for that impressive statistic.</p><p>The Oilers drew first blood at 6:11 of the first, when Glenn Anderson scored. But Potvin tied the game up with his first goal at 3:26 of the second. Butch Goring then put the Isles in front just over a minute later, but the Oilers&rsquo; Risto Siltanen put his team right back into it with a goal at the 6:05 mark. Potvin got his second goal at 9:44 to make the score 3-2 but Edmonton&rsquo;s Anderson tied it up with his second goal at 12:23 and ended the scoring for the period.</p><p>The third period was all Islanders, with Potvin, Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier all scoring goals to make the score 6-3 and give the Isles a 2-0 lead in the series.</p><h2><b>Fri. April 17 EDMONTON 3, ISLANDERS 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-0859/4390100-1-eng-US/f0006-082.jpg" title="f0006-08" width="562" height="924"></div><p><b>Game 3:</b> After being held to one goal and one assist in Edmonton&rsquo;s first two games against the Islanders, Wayne Gretzky finally broke out of his slump in Game 3, scoring three goals and leading the Oilers to a 5-2 win over the Islanders.</p><p>Gretzky&rsquo;s first goal came early in the second period and he got his second at the 16:44 mark, breaking a 1-1 tie.</p><p>Then, after Matti Hagman had put the Oilers up 3-1 with a goal early in the third period, Gretzky made it 4-1 when he faked Dave Langevin out of position and tucked the puck behind goalie Billy Smith.</p><p>Clark Gillies cut the score to 4-2 at 10:33, but the Oilers&rsquo; Jari Kurri put the game out of reach with his fourth goal of the playoffs at the 16:25 mark.</p><h2><b>Sun. April 19 ISLANDERS 2, EDMONTON 5</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-0938/4390093-1-eng-US/f0006-092.jpg" title="f0006-09" width="554" height="874"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1024/4390086-1-eng-US/f0006-102.jpg" title="f0006-10" width="570" height="148"></div><h2><b>ST. LOUIS VS NY RANGERS</b></h2><p><b>Game 1:</b> Buoyed by the brilliant goaltending performance of Mike Liut, who singlehandedly held the Rangers at bay in the second period when the Blues were being outshot by NewYork 13-5, St. Louis defeated New York 6-3 to take the first game of the series.</p><p>The second period started with the Blues leading New York 3-1 and when it ended St. Louis was up 6-2, thanks mainly to Liut, who allowed only one shot to elude him the whole period&mdash;by New York&rsquo;s Lance Nethery. Meanwhile, at the other end of the ice, Steve Baker faced only five shots and allowed three goals&mdash;by Mike Crombeen, Bernie Federko and Mike Zuke.</p><p>Jere Gillis got the Rangers&rsquo; third goal at 5:39 of the third, but by then the Blues had the game in the bag.</p><h2><b>Thu. April 16 RANGERS 3, ST. LOUIS 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-1123/4390079-1-eng-US/f0006-112.jpg" title="f0006-11" width="554" height="762"></div><p><b>Game 2:</b> A penalty shot goal, the first since 1968 and only the second in playoff history, was the highlight of a game which the Rangers won 6-4 to tie the series at one game apiece.</p><p>The penalty shot goal, scored by Anders Hedberg, came after Hedberg was tripped going in on <i>a</i> breakaway by Blues&rsquo; defenseman Jack Brown-schidle. Hedberg beat goaltender Mike Liut with a hard forehand shot from eight feet out which gave the Rangers a 4-3 lead, a lead they never relinquished after being down in the game by 2-0 and 3-1.</p><p>The Rangers, down 3-2 going into the third period, tied the score when Jere Gillis scored a goal at 7:30 of the period. Then, just two minutes after Hedberg&rsquo;s goal, Mike Allison made the score 5-3 when he scored on a breakaway. The Blues&rsquo; Brian Sutter cut the score to 5-4 when he blasted in a hard slapshot with 4:56 to play. But Ron Duguay clinched it for the Rangers when he tipped in a shot with just 47 seconds remaining in regulation time.</p><h2><b>Fri. April 17 RANGERS 6, ST. LOUIS 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011047/4390072-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="575" height="909"></div><p><b>Game 3:</b> Hellacious forechecking, coupled with a four-goal second period, was all the Rangers needed to win the game, 6-3, and take a 2-1 lead in the series with St. Louis.</p><p>With the score tied at 1-1 going into the second period, the Rangers got goals from Ulf Nilsson, Barry Beck, Mike Allison and Steve Vickers while the Blues could manage only one&mdash;from Bill Stewart.</p><p>St. Louis&rsquo; Tony Currie made the score 5-3 with a goal early in the third period but all hopes of a Blues&rsquo; comeback were dashed just two minutes later when Lance Nethery scored the Rangers sixth and final goal.</p><h2><b>Sun. April 19 ST. LOUIS 3, RANGERS 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02802/4390065-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="543" height="796"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03562/4390058-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg" title="f0007-03" width="465" height="142"></div><h2><b>BUFFALO</b> VS <b>MINNESOTA</b></h2><p><b>Game 1:</b> A goal by Steve Payne, his second of the game and his ninth of the playoffs. ust 22 seconds into overtime, won the fame for the North Stars, 4-3.</p><p>Payne scored his first goal of the game at 11:58 of the third period to break a 2-2 tie. But the Sabres&rsquo; Craig Ramsay deflected a Bill Hajt shot past goalie Don Edwards to send the game into overtime and set the stage for Payne&rsquo;s heroics.</p><h2><b>Thu. April 16 MINNESOTA 4, BUFFALO 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-04396/4390051-1-eng-US/f0007-042.jpg" title="f0007-04" width="550" height="789"></div><p><b>Game 2:</b> Steve Payne didn&rsquo;t get a point&mdash;a rarity in this year&rsquo;s playoffs&mdash;but his teammates, Steve Christoff and Dino Ciccarelli, each scored two goals to pace the North Stars to a 5-2 win over the Sabres.</p><p>Bobby Smith scored the other goal for Minnesota, while both of Buffalo&rsquo;s scores came from Tony McKegney.</p><h2><b>Fri. April 17 MINNESOTA 5, BUFFALO 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-05279/4390044-1-eng-US/f0007-052.jpg" title="f0007-05" width="566" height="707"></div><p><b>Game 3:</b> The North Stars and Sabres battled to a 3-3 tie until early in the third period, when Kevin Maxwell and Neal Broten scored 25 seconds apart to break open the game and lead the Stars to a 6-4 victory, giving them a 3-0 lead in the series.</p><p>Buffalo&rsquo;s Derek Smith tipped in a Gilbert Perreault shot at 18:16 of the third period to narrow the score to 5-4, but Tim Young put the icing on the cake for the Stars with an open net goal at 19:22.</p><p>The Stars&rsquo; first three goals came from Dino Ciccarelli, Brad Palmer and Al MacAdam, while Buffalo&rsquo;s scorers were Alan Haworth, Gil Perreault and Ric Seiling.</p><h2><b>Sun. April 19 BUFFALO 4, MINNESOTA 6</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-06208/4390037-1-eng-US/f0007-062.jpg" title="f0007-06" width="554" height="951"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-07157/4390030-1-eng-US/f0007-072.jpg" title="f0007-07" width="582" height="152"></div><h2><b>CALGARY vs PHILADELPHIA</b></h2><p><b>Game 1:</b> Shutout goaltending by Rick St. Croix and two goals by Paul Holmgren paced the Flyers to a 4-0 win over the Flames.</p><p>Holmgren scored the first of his two goals just 3:30 into the game and Bill Barber added another, his sixth of the playoffs, before the period ended.</p><p>Holmgren got his second halfway through the second period and Terry Murray closed out the scoring for the Flyers with just 24 seconds remaining in the second period.</p><h2><b>Thu. April 16 CALGARY 0, PHILADELPHIA 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-08126/4390023-1-eng-US/f0007-082.jpg" title="f0007-08" width="558" height="642"></div><p><b>Game 2:</b> The Flyer.s outshot the Flames 46-22, but the Flames outscored the Flyers, 5-4 to even the series at one game apiece.</p><p>Philadelphia opened the scoring, taking a 1-0 lead on Bill Barber&rsquo;s goal at 5:49. Paul Reinhart evened the score at 12:34 on a Flames&rsquo; power play. The Flyers regained the lead at 16:16. when Rick MacLeish scored his 50th career playoff goal. But Kent Nilsson tied it up for the Flames at two before the period ended.</p><p>From that point on, the game was all Calgary&rsquo;s. Ken Houston broke the tie with a goal at the 5:58 mark and Willi Plett and Jamie Hislop made the score 5-2 before the period ended.</p><p>Philadelphia&rsquo;s Behn Wilson and Tom Gorence each scored goals in the third period to make it a close finish, but the Flames prevailed.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-0995/4390016-1-eng-US/f0007-092.jpg" title="f0007-09" width="602" height="1112"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Rangers&rsquo; Don Duguay has reason to celebrate. At press time, the New York glamor boy had pumped in six goals in seven playoff games.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><h2><b>Fri. April 17 CALGARY 5, PHILADELPHIA 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1075/4390009-1-eng-US/f0007-102.jpg" title="f0007-10" width="555" height="935"></div><p><b>Game 3:</b> Willi Plett scored his third game-winning goal of the playoffs to lead the Flames to a 2-1 victory over the Flyers, giving them a 2-1 lead in the series.</p><p>The goal, Plett&rsquo;s fifth in the playoffs, came early in the third period and the Flames held on for the win, despite being outshot 48-25 by the Flyers.</p><p>Don Lever scored Calgary&rsquo;s first goal at 5:25 of the first period and Philadelphia&rsquo;s lone tally came from Rick MacLeish at the 9:54 mark of the first period.</p><h2><b>Sun. April 19 PHILADELPHIA 1, CALGARY 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1162/4390002-1-eng-US/f0007-112.jpg" title="f0007-11" width="548" height="654"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0006-01

Underdogs Threatening In Quarterfinal Action

<h2><b>PRELIMINARY ROUND</b></h2><h3><b>SERIES A</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1250/4390271-1-eng-US/f0007-122.jpg" title="f0007-12" width="546" height="269"></div><h3><b>SERIES B</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1340/4390264-1-eng-US/f0007-132.jpg" title="f0007-13" width="545" height="272"></div><h3><b>SERIES C</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1430/4390257-1-eng-US/f0007-142.jpg" title="f0007-14" width="542" height="298"></div><h3><b>SERIES D</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1525/4390250-1-eng-US/f0007-152.jpg" title="f0007-15" width="544" height="296"></div><h3><b>SERIES E</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1614/4390243-1-eng-US/f0007-162.jpg" title="f0007-16" width="543" height="272"></div><h3><b>SERIES F</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1714/4390236-1-eng-US/f0007-172.jpg" title="f0007-17" width="551" height="294"></div><h3><b>SERIES G</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1813/4390229-1-eng-US/f0007-182.jpg" title="f0007-18" width="545" height="290"></div><h3><b>SERIES H</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-1912/4390222-1-eng-US/f0007-192.jpg" title="f0007-19" width="548" height="293"></div><h2><b>Quarter-Finals</b></h2><h3><b>SERIES I</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-2013/4390215-1-eng-US/f0007-202.jpg" title="f0007-20" width="545" height="162"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-2112/4390208-1-eng-US/f0007-212.jpg" title="f0007-21" width="533" height="176"></div><h3><b>SERIES J</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-2210/4390201-1-eng-US/f0007-222.jpg" title="f0007-22" width="553" height="269"></div><h3><b>SERIES K</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-238/4390194-1-eng-US/f0007-232.jpg" title="f0007-23" width="551" height="296"></div><h3><b>SERIES L</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-247/4390187-1-eng-US/f0007-242.jpg" title="f0007-24" width="553" height="294"></div><h3><b>TOP PLAYOFF SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-256/4390180-1-eng-US/f0007-252.jpg" title="f0007-25" width="544" height="276"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0007-12

NHL Playoff Picture

<p>The International Hockey Weekly Founded in 1947</p><p>Published by W.C.C. Publishing Ltd</p><p>214 King St. West, Suite 314, Toronto, Ont. M5H 1K4</p><h2><b>Gretzky&rsquo;s Gaffe</b></h2><p><b>WAYNE GRETZKY, THE EDMONTON OILERS&rsquo;</b> superb center and playmaker whose dexterity with stick and puck is unparalleled in the National Hockey League, recently discovered that the New York media can be a more formidable opponent than the hottest goalie, the swiftest defenseman or the most persistent checker.</p><p>Prior to the start of the Oilers&rsquo; quarterfinal confrontation with the defending Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders, Gretzky told various interviewers from metropolitan area newspapers that the Oilers had played very-well in beating the Montreal Canadiens in three straight in the preliminary round. &ldquo;We had to,&rdquo; Gretzky said, &ldquo;we beat the best team in hockey.&rdquo;</p><p>Had Gretzky known that the Islanders suffer from an acute case of Rodney Dangerfielditis (&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t get no respect&rdquo;) and that they are not the most secure bunch of defending champions on the face of the earth, the chances are excellent that he would have rephrased his answer and chosen his words a little more carefully.</p><p>As it turned out, however, most of the Islander players&mdash;to their everlasting credit&mdash;understood that Gretzky was not attempting to ridicule them and were not offended.</p><p>But the media coverage that those seven innocuous words received was phenomenal&mdash;from the moment they left Gretzky&rsquo;s mouth to the moment the last story covering the second game in New York was written. Many of the stories that were composed during the four days the Oilers were in New York referred to what became commonly known as &ldquo;Gretzky&rsquo;s Insult.&rdquo; And when an astonished Gretzky tried to atone for his gaffe by telling a television reporter that what he had meant to say was that the Canadiens were &ldquo;the best organization in hockey,&rdquo; a columnist suggested that Gretzky had only worsened the situation because he was now expanding his insult to include Islander general manager Bill Torrey and coach Al Arbour.</p><p>Baloney. Wayne Gretzky came to the Nassau Coliseum not to beat the Islanders in the papers with his mouth but to beat them on the ice with his inimitable skills. And when he talked about beating the Montreal Canadiens, &ldquo;the best team in hockey,&rdquo; he was undoubtedly referring to what a thrill it must have been for him and his young teammates&mdash;most of whom are 20 to 22 years old&mdash;to beat the traditionrich Montreal Canadiens, a team for whom every Canadian youngster aspires to play, practically from the day he is born, in much the same way that young American kids dream about playing baseball for the New York Yankees.</p><p>It&rsquo;s tradition, pure and simple. And one championship in one year from a team that didn&rsquo;t play its first game until 1972 is not going to jeopardize the lofty status that the Canadiens still enjoy&mdash;and probably <i>always</i> will enjoy&mdash;as the <i>creme de la creme of</i> the sport. All Gretzky was doing in that interview was articulating his respect for that tradition. The Islander players, many of whom grew up in awe of the Canadiens, just as Gretzky did, understood that and Denis Potvin admitted as much in a coast-to-coast TV interview on <i>Hockey Night In Canada.</i> But just so there would be no further misunderstandings with his friends in the press, Gretzky was extra careful with everything he said from that point on, particularly after the Oilers won the third game, 5-2, thanks largely to Gretzky&rsquo;s three goals. Listen:</p><p>What about that whack across the ankles from Billy Smith, Wayne; you know, the one that knocked you to your knees and compelled one broadcaster to announce that you were out of the game?</p><p>&ldquo;I guess you could call that a welcome-to-the-NHL playoffs sort of thing,&rdquo; Gretzky demurred.</p><p>What about the way the Islanders played tonight, Wayne?</p><p>&ldquo;A lot of teams would have let down after what the Islanders did to us in the first two games in New York,&rdquo; Gretzky revealed, &ldquo;but we didn&rsquo;t. We worked hard because we see the Islanders work hard, even when they lose or are behind. That&rsquo;s the mark of a champion club, and maybe that&rsquo;s just another thing we&rsquo;ve learned from playing a great team like the Islanders.&rdquo;</p><p>The moral of this story? It&rsquo;s an old one: Never underestimate the power of the press.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

<div class="byline">BY SAM SIMPSON</div><p class="dropcap"><i><span>L</span>ast week in this space Peter Smith, a vice president of the Toronto-based International Sports Management Group, discussed some of the reasons why it might not have been advantageous for hockey players to have been advised to incorporate themselves for tax purposes. Changes in the position of both Revenue Canada and the Internal Revenue Service in the United States on the subject of incorporation may present some players with substantial payments on their income as well as penalty charges.</i></p><p><i>Sam Simpson, of the National Hockey League Players Association offices, explains below the position and the advice offered by the NHLPA.</i></p><p>We are always in discussion with agents all the time, discussing corporations or tax problems and that type of thing.</p><p>In a number of newsletters sent to the players, the Players&rsquo; Association has always carefully warned them in dealing with tax problems, and incorporation, especially in the United States. We&rsquo;ve always warned them to be careful incorporating and that it could cause them problems.</p><p>If an agent calls in and asks for advice, I&rsquo;m sure that Mr. (Alan) Eagleson would likely give them whatever advice he thought proper. But we don&rsquo;t send any newsletters to agents or anything like that, we send them out to the players. And of course, if they want to give it to their agents, they&rsquo;re welcome to.</p><p>Junior players still competing don&rsquo;t come under our jurisdiction, and the fact is we can&rsquo;t even do anything with the minor league players that the NHL clubs own. While these players might be our members once they get into the NHL. we can&rsquo;t do much with them once they go down to the minors.</p><p>As far as setting a policy on incorporating goes, I don&rsquo;t think we would be allowed to do such a thing. We can only warn players and investigate problems and advise them. But we can&rsquo;t set a policy, for instance, that we can&rsquo;t accept corporations because the players are their own bosses. It would have to be up to the National Hockey League to say that they cannot accept an agreement with a corporation rather than with an individual player.</p><p>Especially in the past five years, we&rsquo;ve warned the players that there could be possible repercussions because the tax departments are looking at things a lot closer.</p><p>We&rsquo;ve warned the players about incorporating&mdash;to be careful and investigate all avenues when they&rsquo;re doing it&mdash;and to have an accountant or an agent who knows exactly what he is doing when he is dealing with incorporation.</p><p>Previously, there were more advantages to incorporating in Canada than in the United States. In the U.S., I guess, their incorporation was for the purpose of pension, because in Canada you could add more to an RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan) where you really wouldn&rsquo;t need to incorporate for that purpose, but in the United States you couldn&rsquo;t do that. But if you had a company (corporation), I guess you could get more pension.</p><p>I can&rsquo;t say that we come right out and say &lsquo;Don&rsquo;t incorporate.&rsquo; We just say be careful what you do. Look into everything that could happen to you. And if you do it, you have to be ready to face the consquences if there are any.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

NHLPA’s Advice: Incorporate Carefully

<div class="byline">BY NORMAN de MESQUITA</div><p class="dropcap"><i><span>F</span>or the past three seasons, Norman de Mesquita, the sports editor of BBC Radio London, has been bringing over a group of English hockey aficionados&mdash;appropriately dubbed the London Ice Hockey Nuts&mdash;for a tour around several National Hockey League cities.</i></p><p><i>He had the following observations of the NHL after his most recent trip.</i></p><p>As a regular subscriber to THE HOCKEY NEWS, I could be forgiven for approaching this year&rsquo;s trip with some apprehension. I know complacency is dangerous and the last thing one wants THE HOCKEY NEWS to do is pander to the NHL by eliminating all criticism from its columns, but there has been so much written this season about what is wrong with the NHL, in proportion to what has been written about what is right, that one feared the worst.</p><p>In any event, the worst aspect of all 10 games that 1 saw was the refereeing. Unfortunately, I did not see Andy van Hellemond, who has impressed me on previous visits as by far the best NHL referee I have seen. Those I did see were far too lenient and I get the impression that boarding is no longer a punishable offense. Let me say at once that 1 was a hockey referee in England for 15 years and I do sympathize with the officials. I know what they have to contend with; particularly towards the end of the season when playoff places are up for grabs. But some of the things that went unpunished were frightening.</p><p>One problem (and one must blame Bobby Orr for this) is that most of the so-called defensemen in the NHL are too busy trying to score points to concentrate on their defensive duties and they seem no longer capable of checking cleanly with hip or shoulder. In something like 35 NHL games, I have seen two clean, crisp body checks, both delivered by Dave Farrish, playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs last season.</p><p>It is no wonder tempers get frayed when players such as Ken Linseman and Keith Acton are allowed to do such damage with their sticks, apparently safe in the knowledge that the referees will ignore it.</p><p>The galling thing about the two players I have just mentioned is that they have so much talent, they have no need to resort to such underhand tactics. In a thrilling 3-3 tie between the Islanders and Montreal, Acton started a fracas and then ran away to leave his bigger teammates to sort it out for him. And of course there was the deliberate cut inflicted on Darryl Sittler&rsquo;s face by Brian Propp, which everyone in the Spectrum saw, except the referee. As long as players are allowed to get away from this sort of thing, there will be problems.</p><p>Having said that, let me say at once that I saw more good hockey per game on this trip than on any previous one. The Russian influence is obvious and there is an encouraging attempt by most teams to let the puck do the work. And surely Wayne Gretzky can do nothing but good for the league. We saw the Oilers play the Islanders and Rangers and some of our number made a trip to Philadelphia just to see Gretzky again. On the way to Kennedy Airport for the flight home, one of the lads said: &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t care what we do on next year&rsquo;s trip, as long as we see Gretzky.&rdquo;</p><p>And while not wishing to detract from Gretzky&rsquo;s achievements, I must say that the official scorers seem far too generous with assists. On more than one occasion, a goal followed a scramble during which two or more defensemen blocked the puck and someone finally tipped it home and two assists were awarded. It does cheapen the product if it is that easy to come by.</p><p>Summing up, I feel that the NHL has become increasingly entertaining during the five years that I have been making my annual pilgrimage and one hopes that the goon image will continue to disappear from the game. Mind you, with the likes of Glen Cochrane joining the ranks of the Flyers, seemingly intent only on starting fights, the odds are slightly against.</p><p>And 16 out of 21 making the playoffs is really ridiculous. Twelve would be a reasonable number and you could exempt the four division winners from the first round, thereby reducing the number to a manageable eight for the second round.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

The NHL: A View From Abroad

<div class="byline">BY PAT CALABRIA</div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span>ONG ISLAND&mdash;After overwhelming the Edmonton Oilers in the first two games of their quarterfinal series, the Islanders suffered a slight relapse and lost their first game of the playoffs in Game Three, when the Oilers rebounded in front of their own fans and, thanks to Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s hat trick, beat the Isles 5-2. (For details on all three games, see page 6.)</p><p>The anticipated matchup between Bryan Trottier and Wayne Gretzky failed to materialize in Game One, not because the two did not play against each other&mdash;they did&mdash;but because they battled to a standstill. Trottier had an assist and Gretzky a power play goal long after the game was decided. Yet, they had their influence on the way the game was played.</p><p>How could they not have an influence? All along, Islander coach Al Arbour planned to have Trottier shadow Gretzky. All along, Oiler coach Glen Sather hoped to pry Gretzky loose from Trottier with frequent line juggling.</p><p>But the Islanders&rsquo; balance clearly showed in the 8-2 victory which opened the series. Six Islanders scored goals and Trottier and Mike Bossy were not among them. Bossy was checked closely by Dave Hunter and Trottier was preoccupied with Gretzky, so the rest of the Islander stars came out.</p><p>&ldquo;No matter what happens with Bryan or Mike, we can still win the series,&rdquo; Bob Bourne said. &ldquo;Our supporting cast is better than their supporting cast.&rdquo;</p><p>Although the Islanders had to respect the young and enthusiastic Oiler talent, it was hard to argue with Bourne after the opener. A case in point was the Islanders&rsquo; fifth goal&mdash;the first of two scored by Denis Potvin.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011127/4390381-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="600" height="712"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Oilers tried all kinds of quick changes to get Gretzky away from Bryan Trottier.</b></figcaption></div><p>Bossy had the puck in the left faceoff circle during a power-play. He curled to his left, then threw a pass to Trottier beside the net. But Oiler defenseman Lee Fogolin stuck to Bossy, still 30 feet from the net. Meanwhile Trottier was alone near goalie Andy Moog.</p><p>When Oiler center Stan Weir saw Trottier unguarded and poised to move, he fled to the front of the net. Potvin simply followed Weir&rsquo;s path to the goal, caught a soft pass from Trottier and whipped in a shot.</p><p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the thing,&rdquo; Potvin said. &ldquo;They can watch Bryan and they can watch Mike. But Bobby Nystrom can score. Wayne Merrick can score. Garry Howatt can score. They can&rsquo;t watch everyone.&rdquo;</p><p>Certainly, the Islanders presented enough evidence to support Potvin. When Clark Gillies scored the second of his two goals, the Islanders had a 7-1 lead&mdash;and the Oilers had allowed more goals in the one game than they did in their entire three-game sweep of the Montreal Canadiens in the first round.</p><p>It reached the point where Arbour stopped trying to counter the feverish line changes Sather used to try to get Gretzky away from Trottier. The Oilers bolted on and off the ice in Keystone Kops fashion early in the game and the Islanders responded in kind. The game was played with the doors to both benches wide open.</p><p>&ldquo;At times, it was kind of comical.&rdquo; Bob Lorimer said.</p><p>All that was left was for the Trottier-Gretzky matchup to boil over, but it did not happen in the opener.</p><p>Said Gretzky: &ldquo;Teams covered me in the first half of the season and we still scored. They covered my wings in the second half of the season and we still scored. I don&rsquo;t care who gets the goals as long as we win.&rdquo;</p><p>Said Trottier: &ldquo;I guess the people who were waiting for the big matchup didn&rsquo;t get their money&rsquo;s worth.&rdquo;</p><p>Yet, the series promised much more. But what the Islanders hoped it would come down to was a question of balance.</p><p><b>ISLAND SOUNDS</b>&mdash;Bert Marshall resigned as head coach of the Indianapolis farm team and some reports had him headed to the Colorado Rockies as coach. Marshall was next in line for Arbour&rsquo;s job. a position that could now fall to assistant coach Lome Henning after next season, when Arbour is expected to step down.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-02916/4390374-1-eng-US/f0009-022.jpg" title="f0009-02" width="602" height="896"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bob Bourne like his Islanders&rsquo; chances against Edmonton because of the strong supporting cast they&rsquo;ve assembled.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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Isles’ Balance Could Cap Oilers

<div class="byline">BY STAN FISCHLER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011157/4390412-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="300" height="364"></div><h2>Freddie Was Forgotten</h2><p><b>IS THERE A DOCTOR</b> in the house? Someone who can treat amnesia?</p><p>Send him right over to The Spectrum in Philadelphia, where the front office has been suffering from a bad case of the forgets.</p><p>The malady became apparent on the final night of the regular season when the Flyers&rsquo; high command invited Philly aces of yesteryear to a Nostalgia Night. It was a super idea.</p><p>They hailed Bernie Parent, who once played goal like he had the nets boarded up, and they toasted Ed Van Impe, the greatest DEFENSIVE defenseman in Flyers&rsquo; history, not to mention several other good ones.</p><p>A vote was taken among the fans and two All Star teams of the 1970s were produced. Parent, Van Impe, the late Barry Ashbee, Bobby Clarke, Gary Dornhoefer and Bill Barber were on the first team. Doug Favell, Jimmy Watson, Joe Watson, Rick MacLeish, Reggie Leach and Dave Schultz made the second squad. Perfect.</p><p>So far, no amnesia.</p><p>One by one, the heroes stepped on the ice (with the exception of Dornhoefer, who had a TV commitment) to heart warming applause. Now one would have thought it was time to honor the &ldquo;coach of the decade.&rdquo; After all, the players needed a coach, didn&rsquo;t they?</p><p>Ah, but the poor fellows in The Spectrum forgot that there was a man behind the bench when the Flyers won Stanley Cups in 1974 and 1975. Someone on Broad Street vaguely recalled that the man&rsquo;s first name started with an F and his last name started with an S but the chaps who run what <i>once</i> was the classiest team in hockey, couldn&rsquo;t quite piece the rest of the letters together.</p><p>So, as a public service to all Philadelphians, 1 am going to cure their amnesia. How about F-R-E-D S-H-E-R-O?</p><p>Does that sound familiar, Ed Snider, Bob Butera, et. al.? Oh, you mean you <i>still</i> can&rsquo;t remember? Well, in the event that you ever have another Nostalgia Night, I&rsquo;ll give you a bit of background on Freddie. They called him The Fog and The Phantom and, besides his two Cup wins he was considered by some to be the best coach in hockey. If you don&rsquo;t believe it, ask some of the Flyers&rsquo; players of the decade.</p><p>I mentioned it to Dornhoefer, who currently is a commentator for <i>Hockey Night In Canada,</i> and lo and behold he had no trouble remembering Freddie.</p><p>&ldquo;He should have been there,&rdquo; said Dornhoefer.</p><p>Amnesia had not afflicted Dave (Hammer) Schultz, either. The Hammer, for some cynical reason, did not buy the amnesia alibi I offered. With typical candor, Schultz said that Shero was the number one man in his hockey life, the <i>ne plus ultra,</i> and in The Hammer&rsquo;s mind, was number one in Philadelphia, too.</p><p>&ldquo;I played for Scotty Bowman, Bob Pulford, Johnny Wilson and Shero, among others,&rdquo; said Schultz, &ldquo;and I can tell you that Freddie was the greatest of them all.</p><p>&ldquo;He had a subtlety about him that eluded a lot of people who dealt with him. I played many years for the man and remember them like it was yesterday.</p><h2>Pressure Off Players</h2><p><b>&ldquo;ONE OF FREDDIE&rsquo;S</b> special qualities was his ability to take the pressure off the players. He would say things like, Tm gonna quit hockey to go to law school&rsquo; and the writers would pick up on <i>that</i> and stop bugging us. If a mistake was made, he would say, &lsquo;Blame <i>me,</i> not the players.&rsquo; Now, I ask you, what other coach would do a thing like that?&rdquo;</p><p>Freddie won two cups but Bowman, for whom Schultz also played, annexed more, so why did The Hammer prefer Freddie?</p><p>&ldquo;Bowman was very successful but he would cut you to ribbons. I remember him reaming Donnie Edwards something awful and his voice would get louder and louder. Donnie said it was one of the most demoralizing things that ever happened to him.&rdquo;</p><p>Scotty&rsquo;s technique worked, like it or not, but so did Freddie&rsquo;s system. Schultz says Freddie could and <i>should</i> be coaching in the NHL, no later than next season.</p><p>&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t tell me that Freddie has lost anything,&rdquo; The Hammer insists. &ldquo;It turns me off when people put him down.&rdquo;</p><p>It was nice that some Flyers hadn&rsquo;t forgotten Shero but I wanted to determine whether Freddie, himself, had suffered any amnesia over the Broad Street Bullies, so I gave him a call at his home in Hartsdale, N.Y.</p><p>Freddie sounded relaxed and in much better memory than his former employers in Philadelphia. He has not forgotten Ed Snider, Keith Allen or even The Spectrum carpenter.</p><p>I mentioned that several of his former players, Schultz included, thought it was awful that Freddie never got an invite to the Flyers&rsquo; Nostalgia Night but The Fog didn&rsquo;t seem particularly perturbed.</p><p>&ldquo;I never knew they were having it until I turned on the television and saw my old players come out. Funny, but nobody seemed very happy.&rdquo;</p><p>Maybe they were saddened by the amnesiacs sitting in the executive suite.</p><p><b>NOTES:</b> Leafs&rsquo; coach Mike Nykoluk never stopped chewing on his cigar after being advised that his old boss and former pal, Freddie Shero, had rapped him again&hellip;&ldquo;I know the truth,&rdquo; says Mike, and he knows the truth. What he wants to say is his business.&rdquo;&hellip;CBS sports network has dispatched crews to scout the playoffs in the expectation that one and possibly two games of the finals will be telecast by CBS across the United States&hellip;You figure it out: Toronto is the media capital of Canada but Leafs&rsquo; GM Punch Imlach refuses to deal with the writers there with the exception of the Toronto <i>Sun&rsquo;s</i> George Gross&hellip;Leafs&rsquo; boss Harold Ballard continues to swear by Punch. &ldquo;But,&rdquo; Harold tells me, &ldquo;I worry about his health. The thing is there&rsquo;s nothing else Punch would rather do than manage the hockey club.&rdquo;&hellip;Wonder when Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s agent, Gus Badali, will renegotiate The Great One&rsquo;s contract&hellip;If Gretzky was playing for a New York team he would be bigger than Reggie Jackson right now in terms of media attention&hellip;Don Murdoch has milked his sob story for all it&rsquo;s worth. Now it remains to be seen whether he&rsquo;s ready for the straight and narrow path&hellip;One rumor is that the Rangers will reconsider and take another look at Murder. If so, they&rsquo;d better quarter him in a glass house somewhere in the wilds of Staten Island&hellip;Big things are on the horizon for Phil Esposito in the broadcasting realm. CBS-TV has been eyeing Espo as back-up for the high-priced Warner Wolf and Wolf&rsquo;s sidekick, Len Berman. Espo also has been talking to the USA Network as well. That&rsquo;s a good parlay&hellip;Is it possible to tell whether a goalie will be hot by the way he works in practice? Not really. Penguins&rsquo; coach Eddie Johnston says: &ldquo;When I was in goal for the Bruins, I could have a bad warm-up but it didn&rsquo;t mean I&rsquo;d have a bad game.&rdquo;</p><h2>P.S. On The Playoffs</h2><p><b>P.S. ON THE PLAYOFFS.</b> I have come to the following conclusions, based on events that have so far transpired in the playoffs:</p><p>&bull; As a result of the Canadiens&rsquo; demise, The Montreal Forum should be torn down and replaced by a combination disco-automobile driving school run by Guy Lafleur.</p><p>&bull; The Black Hawks have proven that Tony Esposito should play all 80 regular season games and be given a Florida vacation during the playoffs.</p><p>&bull; Ian Turnbull, who pretends to be either a defenseman or forward (a bad imitation either way), should get back into the restaurant business, <i>fulltime,</i> as soon as possible.</p><p>&bull; Marcel Dionne believes that the $400,000-plus salary he is being paid by Jerry Buss includes <i>only the months from October through March</i> and that he should get an additional $400,000 before he starts playing hockey in April.</p><p>&bull; Scotty Bowman was right when he told me that Claude Ruel was a superb second coach. The Canadiens&rsquo; problem was that they never had a head coach all year.</p><p>&bull; Instead of firing Fred Creighton last year, Harry Sinden should have retained Creighton and fired himself.</p><p>&bull; Ed Hospodar was right about Ken Linseman.</p><p><b>SALMING SALAMI:</b> Boy, do I feel sorry for Harold Ballard. Here he is stuck with Borje Salming&rsquo;s multiyear, multi-million dollar contract and for that money he is obtaining all the value of a stale salami. (Or is it a Swedish meatbail?).</p><p>Salming once was a superior defenseman who could lug the puck like an express truck and orchestrated the Leafs&rsquo; movement with the command of Leonard Bernstein. Whether it was the eye injury or any of the other assorted ailments that have afflicted Salming or not, Borje should start paying some of that money back to Ballard if he believes in the theory of a clear conscience.</p><p>It is precisely what Salming has done&mdash;demanded and received the big bucks and then played like a smalltimer&mdash;that turns fans off the game. If injuries have reduced Salming&rsquo;s potential, then he is a damaged property. If he has the ability and the health but isn&rsquo;t producing then he should get on the next slow boat to Sweden.</p><p>Whatever the case, Pal Hal has been stiffed.</p><p><b>MORE NOTES:</b> When the NHL is ready to launch its counter-offensive against critics of rough play, it ought to start with Freddie Shero&rsquo;s line: &ldquo;Hockey is a safer game than football where 11 men can jump you from behind. Every year there are 20 deaths in football, at least.&rdquo;&hellip;Ken Fenson changed his mind about quitting as p.r. head of the Winnipeg Jets and will stay on as veep of p.r. He&rsquo;s a good man, one of the few flacks with a Master&rsquo;s Degree.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0010-01

ON THE CONTRARY

<div class="byline">BY NEIL MILBERT</div><p class="dropcap"><span>C</span>HICAGO&mdash;Coach Keith Magnuson occasionally had his difference of opinion with Chicago&rsquo;s hockey writers this season but in this instance there was an absolute meeting of the minds.</p><p>&ldquo;Excellent choice,&rdquo; said the coach of the Black Hawks when he was told that the Chicago chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers&rsquo; Association had chosen Reggie Kerr to be the team&rsquo;s candidate for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.</p><p>The award annually goes to the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.</p><p>Kerr has demonstrated all of the above in his three-year career in the NHL.</p><p>&ldquo;Of our players, nobody is more willing than Reggie to donate his time for appearances for charity or for kids,&rdquo; said Jim Sullivan of the Hawks&rsquo; public relations department.</p><p>To become one of the top players on the team, Kerr has had to surmount serious injuries each year. This season, from early August until the start of training camp in mid-September, he took part in a rigorous office conditioning program to prepare himself after missing almost half of the 1979-80 season with severe back problems.</p><p>Then, in the first exhibition game with the New York Is landers, Kerr got into an altercation with Duane Sutter, fell to the ice, and dislocated his shoulder.</p><p>&ldquo;Bang&mdash;all of a sudden I was starting from scratch,&rdquo; recalled Kerr. &ldquo;I almost sat down and cried. I&rsquo;d been working hard with Mike Andrews [the Hawks&rsquo; fitness coach], my weight was up to 195 pounds and most of the extra 10 pounds was muscle in my chest and stomach.</p><p>&ldquo;I told myself that if I got back from this I&rsquo;d know for sure that I belonged in the NHL.</p><p>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s why being a candidate for the Masterton Award is so significant to me. When I was growing up playing hockey I got a lot of awards but nothing has ever meant so much as this.&rdquo;</p><p>Kerr finished with 30 goals and 29 assists for 59 points. Four of his goals were game-winners, tying him with rookie Darryl Sutter and Grant Mulvey (whose season was reduced to 48 games because of a shattered forearm).</p><p>&ldquo;There are so many good things I can say about Reggie, both on the ice and off,&rdquo; said Magnuson, Chicago&rsquo;s candidate for the award one year ago, after retiring as a player early in the 1979-80 season.</p><p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s one of those people I&rsquo;d love to have take an IQ test because, even though he doesn&rsquo;t have a formal education, he&rsquo;s a tremendously intelligent and aware person.</p><p>&ldquo;To play all three forward positions, the way I&rsquo;ve asked him to, you have to be intelligent. And, if an emergency rose and I needed a defenseman, I know I could put him back there.&rdquo;</p><p>Kerr&rsquo;s skating ability, hustling style, determination, and demeanor have won him a large constituency among the customers in Chicago Stadium.</p><p>&ldquo;I feel I owe these people something,&rdquo; said Kerr. &ldquo;Look at Bobby Hull. He was one of the best ever to play the game yet they tell me he always was the last to leave because he signed every autograph.</p><p>&ldquo;Yet it actually takes so very little of our time. It&rsquo;s not like we work eight or 10-hour days, we spend 2 maybe 3 hours a day at practice. The other night I went to a dinner to raise money for the handicapped&mdash;most of the people there worked all day at their regular jobs and then came.</p><p>&ldquo;Oh sure, it can be a bit of a drag to be constantly talking about hockey with people you don&rsquo;t know. Still, I realize that these people are interested in knowing me personally.</p><p>&ldquo;If that&rsquo;s the case, I&rsquo;m glad to spend the time and talk. It&rsquo;s nice to have the opportunity to make people happy. Hockey gives me that privilege.&rdquo;</p><p><b>HAWK TALK</b>&mdash;The only time this season that the Hawks had every player healthy was the opening game of the playoffs in Calgary. It was a short-lived situation&mdash;forward Glen Sharpley suffered stretched knee ligaments in the third period and was out for the series&hellip;This was the first time in 13 years in the NHL that goalie Tony Esposito failed to record a shutout the has a career total of 73] &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you believe any of that baloney about being over the hill,&rdquo; said Esposito, who turned 38 on April 23. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be back.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Hawks’ Kerr Fills The Masterton Bill To A ‘T’

<div class="byline">BY PAT THOMPSON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0011-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011103/4390467-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Al MacAdam, last year&rsquo;s Masterton Trophy winner, seems to be putting a mediocre season behind him with an excellent showing in the playoffs for the North Stars.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Robert Shaver)</span></figcaption></div><p>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;It was almost a year ago, the cheers still giant echoes from the finest season in the Minnesota North Stars&rsquo; history.</p><p>The sixth-place finish and the upset of the then champion Montreal Canadiens gave the North Stars their finest hour.</p><p>But outside the Met Center rink, as the Stars were packing belongings for summer vacation, Al MacAdam did not sound so excited about what a young team had just accomplished.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m too disappointed&mdash;disappointed that we still aren&rsquo;t playing for the Stanley Cup championship,&rsquo;&rsquo; said the right-winger who was soon to be named winner of the NHL&rsquo;s Bill Masterton Trophy for sportsmanship, perseverance and dedication to hockey.</p><p>He&rsquo;s about as dedicated as they come in Minnesota. MacAdam fractured his jaw late in the recently concluded regular season, but missed only two games and was back with a facemask so he could finish out the schedule.</p><p>And the Stars needed him for the playoffs. Remember, now, it was MacAdam who scored the overtime goal that eliminated Toronto in the 1980 preliminary round. And it was MacAdam&rsquo;s goal in the waning minutes of the seventh game that eliminated Montreal last spring.</p><p>So what if MacAdam&rsquo;s goal production was down from 42 to 21, and his assists down from 51 to 39. The North Stars just wouldn&rsquo;t be the same without him in the playoffs.</p><p>In the three-game sweep of the Boston Bruins earlier this month, MacAdam scored three goals and three assists, and was there to provide steady leadership on a line with Tim Young at center and Steve Payne at left wing.</p><p>MacAdam showed no signs of slowing down in the opener of the quarterfinal series against the Sabres, retaining his title of Mr. Clutch of. the Stars. Trailing the Sabres 2-1 heading into the third period, MacAdam scored the game-tying goal.</p><p>And MacAdam was on the ice again when the North Stars won that game in overtime on Steve Payne&rsquo;s goal.</p><p>That line has been unstoppable during the playoffs and Payne, the third-year left winger., has been incredible with his ability to find the net. He scored two more in Game 1 against the Sabres, giving him nine goals in his first four Stanley Cup games this spring.</p><p>Coach Glen Sonmor put the Young-MacAdam-Payne line together late in the regular season.</p><p>&ldquo;We were a line for awhile last season and we&rsquo;ve just gone back to it,&rdquo; MacAdam said. &ldquo;Late in the season, we started gearing ourselves for the playoffs. The line is the right blend and we want to perform well. That&rsquo;s a big key.&rdquo;</p><p>It&rsquo;s not like the trio was an instant success. MacAdam, Young and Payne played together, and with great success, for an extended period in 1979-80 when center Bobby Smith was out with a broken ankle.</p><p>There is another big benefit in the line switch. The Stars have another potent scoring force with Smith at center between Dino Ciccarelli and Jack Carlson or Ken Andersson. Cic-carelli had six points his first three playoff games and Smith five. Dino had two goals in the second-game victory over Buffalo and Smith one.</p><p>The Stars slipped three notches in the regular season in the NHL standings, from sixth to ninth place. But they hit stride at exactly the right time after partially overcoming season-long problems with injuries.</p><p>A three-game sweep of the Bruins might have come as a surprise to many, especially since the Stars had never won in the Boston Garden until the first games of the preliminary round series.</p><p>The Stars definitely went into the Buffalo on an upbeat. Or as center Bobby Smith said, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re not going into the next round, we&rsquo;re charging into it.&rdquo; As the Sabres found out in losing the first three games of the quarterfinals.</p><p>And Al MacAdam is the leaders of the pack.</p><p><b>STAR DUST&mdash;</b> Brad Palmer, 19-year-old left winger called up from the junior ranks late in the regular season, got the Stars started against the Sabres in Game 1 with a shorthanded goal, his second goal of the playoffs&hellip;Payne, including his blazing finish in the regular season, scored 14 goals in 11 games&hellip;Minnesota has an excellent overtime record in Cup play, four victories and two losses&hellip;The last two years, Payne has six game-winning goals in Stanley Cup play&hellip;Tom McCarthy, who was thought lost for the season after an infection in his left arm while recovering from a broken wrist, could return to the lineup if the Stars are able to advance past the quarterfinals, a likely proposition&hellip;among Stanley Cup records set in the Boston series were most goals by two teams in a three games (33) and most goals by one team (20)&hellip;Rejoining the Stars as playoff backups in case of injuries from Oklahoma city are goalie Jim Weaver, defenseman Don Jackson and forward Rob Laird&hellip;Penalty killer Mike Polich remains out of action with a pulled groin muscle&hellip;Defenseman Paul Shmyr and forward Tom Younghans also have not yet played in this spring&rsquo;s playoffs&hellip;Mike Eaves and Gary Sargent were lost for the season long ago.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0011-01

Veteran MacAdam Leading Stars’ Hard-Charging Pack

<div class="byline">BY RICHARD FRIEDMAN</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011129/4390505-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Rangers have been receiving outstanding effort from a variety of performers, including Jere Gillis, who was a standout in the second and third games against St. Louis</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>N</span>EW YORK&mdash;Forget about Mike Liut&rsquo;s supposed battle-fatigue. And don&rsquo;t try to single out one man or a handful of stars. When the Rangers set up shop at Madison Square Garden and took a two-games-to-one lead in their quarterfinal series against the St. Louis Blues, it was a team effort in the best sense of the word,</p><p>&ldquo;It hasn&rsquo;t been one player or one line,&rdquo; explained goalie Steve Baker. &ldquo;Every night, someone else is standing out for us; that&rsquo;s the way it has to be because it&rsquo;s a long grind.</p><p>&ldquo;This is a charged-up hockey club.&rdquo;</p><p>All four forward lines, as well as defenseman Barry Beck, had a hand in the scoring in the Rangers&rsquo; 6-3 victory over the Blues in Game Three, but it. was Lance Nethery, with his fourth goal of the playoffs, who put the Blues out of commission in the third period.</p><p>The period opened with the Rangers ahead, 5-2, outshooting the Blues, forcing their defensemen to cough up the puck, continually pressing Liut. But it was a situation, as the Blues&rsquo; Hartland Monahan had pointed out between periods in a radio interview, where an early Blues&rsquo; goal, and another midway through the period, would make it a whole new game.</p><p>The Blues got that early goal, from Tony Currie just 24 seconds into the period, but then the Rangers&rsquo; relatively new line, consisting of Peter Wallin, Nethery and Jere Gillis, went to work. Wallin pried the puck loose at the boards, lost it momentarily, but then Gillis fed Nethery and Nethery&rsquo;s rising shot sailed past Liut&rsquo;s glovehand to put the game out of reach.</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b>&ldquo;It takes time for us to jell and get adjusted,&rdquo; Nethery said. &ldquo;Everything is coming together at the right time.&rdquo;</b></blockquote><p>And once again, the term &ldquo;upset&rdquo; made its way through the corridors of Madison Square Garden. After eliminating the Kings, the NHL&rsquo;s fourth-place team, in the opening round, the 13th place Rangers were threatening to do the same to the No. 2 Blues.</p><p>&ldquo;An upset?&rdquo; asked Gillis. &ldquo;Sure, it would be upsetting to them but we&rsquo;re getting stronger with every game; we&rsquo;re no flash in the pan&mdash;<i>that&rsquo;s</i> for sure.&rdquo;</p><p>The Rangers dominated the Blues with relentless pressure in the St. Louis end of the rink, and were not buying the excuse that Liut was weary after a long season and a tough opening round against the Penguins.</p><p>&ldquo;If we keep the pressure on him,&rdquo; said Beck, &ldquo;he can&rsquo;t keep coming up big. We&rsquo;re making him tired.</p><p>&ldquo;They&rsquo;ve been concentrating on our defensemen. which brings their forwards out and gives us more room around their net.&rdquo;</p><p>The Rangers&rsquo; opening goal in Game Three was scored by Ron Greschner, whose conversion from defense to forward gave Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson just the playmaker they needed. Nilsson&rsquo;s go-ahead goal early in the second period was his sixth of the playoffs.</p><p>The first game in St. Louis&mdash;a 6-3 loss&mdash;was anything but encouraging. &ldquo;We were mentally flat,&rdquo; Nethery explained. &ldquo;We just came off a big series with Los Angeles and we had some big games before the playoffs. This was just one of those nights that we weren&rsquo;t ready to play from the start.&rdquo;</p><p>They were outskated and outhustled by the Blues from the opening faceoff and played without Don Maloney, their most potent threat along the boards, who was suffering from a groin injury incurred against Los Angeles. Maloney returned for Game Two. which also began inauspiciously as St. Louis took a 2-0 lead after just two minutes and 16 seconds.</p><p>But a goal by Gillis early in the third period, and Anders Hedberg&rsquo;s penalty-shot goal a minute later&mdash;only the second in playoff history&mdash;sparked a Ranger rally and a 6-4 victory. after Liut kept the Blues in the game in the second period with spectacular saves.</p><p>&ldquo;It takes time for us to jell and get adjusted,&rdquo; Nethery explained after Game Three, when the Rangers&rsquo; confidence peaked. &ldquo;Everything is coming together for us at the right time.&rdquo;</p><p>The goal that increased the Rangers&rsquo; lead to 5-2 in the second period was scored by Steve Vickers, the veteran left wing who was benched for a game early in the Los Angeles series.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-02962/4390498-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="600" height="1377"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Rangers found the perfect playmaker for Nilsson and Hed-berg when they moved Ron Greschner to forward.</b></figcaption></div><p>It was a seemingly re-born Vickers who dug in along the boards, blocked shots and threw his weight around against the Blues, and converted Beck&rsquo;s rebound from his favorite spot&mdash;deep in the slot&mdash;for his first playoff goal of the season</p><p>Rookie Mike Allison, who is having a ball playing in the playoffs for the first time, scored his third post-season goal in Game Three.</p><p>&ldquo;It we keep on our game, we can take them,&rdquo; said a jubilant Allison as the Rangers looked past the Blues with one eye to the semifinals and a possible confrontation with the Islanders. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll beat ourselves if we lose.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-01

Rangers’ Total Team Effort Producing Results

<div class="byline">BILL FLEISCHMAN&#x2019;S</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03691/4390536-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="320" height="368"></div><h2>Some Grade A Upsets</h2><p class="dropcap"><b><span>Y</span>ANK UP THE COLLAR</b> on your wind-breaker, or you&rsquo;ll catch pneumonia from the sighs of relief swirling in cross-currents from Philadelphia to St. Louis. Only by the slimmest of margins did the Flyers and Blues manage to escape the same shocking playoff fate suffered by Montreal, Boston and Los Angeles.</p><p>These three highly ranked NHL teams are home, forlornly watching the Stanley Cup quarterfinals, thanks to some grade-A upsets. The Flyers and Blues also almost slid into spectator status, but finally prevailed in the final games of their series.</p><p>In Philadelphia&rsquo;s case, they allowed Quebec&rsquo;s Dale Hunter, a one-man respirator crew, to lead a late fourth-game revival that extended that preliminary round series to the limit. Quebec faltered in the series finale, but mark down the Nordiques as a team charging like Eric Heiden toward the NHL&rsquo;s elite class. All the Nords need is a more experienced defense and they&rsquo;ll be serious Stanley Cup contenders.</p><p>Pittsburgh, which carried St. Louis into double overtime in the final preliminary round game before bowing, is still a stride off a Cup contender&rsquo;s pace. But the confidence the Penguins gained from scaring the Blues should bolster them for next season.</p><p>The Penguins and Nordiques must wait &lsquo;til next year, but for Edmonton, Minnesota and the New York Rangers, hope continues for this season. Not long ago, if you had predicted that these three teams would survive the opening round, Brian O&rsquo;Neill would have sentenced you to a 10-game suspension for dangerous daydreaming.</p><p>No team, especially Edmonton, with a 29-35-16 final record, beats Montreal in three consecutive playoff games, right? Wasn&rsquo;t Boston supposed to just glare and send the North Stars fleeing? Wasn&rsquo;t this finally the year Los Angeles, led by high-scoring Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor and quality goaltender Mario Lessard, would achieve playoff respectability?</p><p>As that old hockey fan, Will Shakespeare, would say, &ldquo;No, no graybeard loon.&rdquo; If these upsets continue, all us fearless forecasters will be selling shoes in Saskatoon. What in the name of puck prognostication is going on here? Will anyone in Montreal peek out from behind the dark window shades and explain how Edmonton can sneak up on the proud Canadiens and swat them aside like an annoying bug?</p><h2>Sather&rsquo;s Secret Weapon</h2><p><b>THE FIRST THING</b> Edmonton did was surprise the socks off the Canadiens by starting Andy Moog in goal. Uh, Andy Who? Moog, a rookie, had played in just seven regular season games, but GM-coach Glen Sather decided to battle Montreal. The Great Gretzky is a helluva weapon, but Sather is wise enough to know the Oilers needed more than just Wayne Gretzky.</p><p>Somehow, Sather convinced the Oilers that if they out-skated and out-hit the Canadiens&mdash;and Moog provided solid goaltending&mdash;they could win. And they did. The Oiler&rsquo;s stunning sweep is a great tribute to dedication, but it also exposed the Canadiens&rsquo; decline. With Sam Pollock long gone from the front office, there no longer is a stockpile of talent hovering in the press box or eagerly waiting in Nova Scotia. Montreal is now just another good team susceptible to playoff bends.</p><p>Minnesota&rsquo;s sweep of Boston should not have been as stunning as we thought. They each finished with 87 points and each entered the playoffs confidently. Boston&rsquo;s optimism was reinforced by its 35-game home-ice unbeaten record against the North Stars. Unfortunately, many of us didn&rsquo;t search far enough below the surface or we would have known that the North Stars were primed to win in Boston Garden.</p><p>&ldquo;We expected to win one in Boston,&rdquo; said Minnesota GM Lou Nanne. &ldquo;We wanted to start in Boston because there was more pressure on them&rdquo;. Although the North Stars had defeated Montreal last season to reach the Stanley Cup semifinals, few people mentioned them as Cup contenders this year.</p><h2>Lethargic Second Half</h2><p><b>&ldquo;I CAN UNDERSTAND THAT,&rdquo;</b> said Nanne. &ldquo;We had a lethargic second half. But people hadn&rsquo;t seen us the last week, when we took St. Louis twice.</p><p>&ldquo;The league is so young and there are so many players that can skate. With the exception of a couple clubs, there isn&rsquo;t a great deal of experience. I told our club that we had more guys with Stanley Cup semifinal experience, and more guys who had been in pressure situations [Olympics] than Boston.&rdquo;.</p><p>Fight Night in Boston on Feb. 26 also had a positive effect on the North Stars, even though they lost the game that set an NHL record for penalty minutes. As an observer who was &ldquo;treated&rdquo; to the events of that evening, I recall that afterward the North Stars wore a satisfied glow.</p><p>&ldquo;The Bruins had an idea that we were chickens,&rdquo; said Steve Payne, a seven-goal playoff scorer against Boston. &ldquo;It was just time for us to show them that we can be just as big idiots as anyone else. We did it, and I think they developed some respect for us.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;We made men out of them,&rdquo; said Boston GM Harry Sinden ruefully.</p><p>What these preliminary round upsets mean is, from now on we can&rsquo;t dismiss any playoff qualifier with a smirk. All the coach of an underdog has to do is say, &ldquo;Remember what Edmonton did to Montreal,&rdquo; and his team should hit the ice like GI&rsquo;s storming the beaches at Normandy.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0012-03

HOCKEY WORLD

<div class="byline">BY BOB KEISSER</div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span>OS ANGELES&mdash;Marcel Dionne stood in the back of the 747 the Los Angeles Kings rode home on from New York and peered at the sea of heads before him. &ldquo;Training camp opens in five months,&rdquo; he said, breaking into a chuckle.</p><p>Yes, by the time the Kings begin preparation for next season, the memories will have subsided. People will look ahead, not behind, or at least they will until another April first round playoff series beckons.</p><p>The Kings won more games and finished higher last season than any other in team history. They even had a better playoff than the Montreal Canadiens. But all anyone can think of now is the sad way a promising postseason came to an end. And the theme being sung as the Kings headed home from their four-game first round playoff loss to the Rangers was &ldquo;where do we go from here?&rdquo;</p><p>The chorus was &ldquo;Who makes the trip?&rdquo;</p><p>Initial conjecture, of course, surrounds coach Bob Berry.</p><p>Berry straddled the fence twice before the playoffs began. Late last season, he was rumored out in favor of Olympic coach Herb Brooks. Early this season, it was rumored he&rsquo;d be gone if the Kings didn&rsquo;t get off to a fast start.</p><p>They&rsquo;re swirling again since team owner Jerry Buss had yet to offer Berry a new contract despite posting 99 points and 43 wins this season. Buss&rsquo; disclaimer was that he wanted to watch a full season, including playoffs, before making his decision.</p><p>A few days after the playoffs, no decision had been rendered, and Buss admitted he didn&rsquo;t yet know what he was going to do.</p><p>&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t thought or talked about it much,&rdquo; said Berry, &ldquo;because I didn&rsquo;t want it to be a distraction during the season. 1 don&rsquo;t have a gut feeling about things, either. I just know I&rsquo;d like to coach this team again. 1 think this club has a great future ahead of it, despite the disappointment of the playoffs.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;Bob Berry worked hard and had us prepared for every game we played this season,&rdquo; said Dionne. &ldquo;Some of the players don&rsquo;t like him. But they hated Scotty Bowman. They hated Claude Ruel, and these guys are considered two of the best.</p><p>&ldquo;Who&rsquo;s to say the guy they bring in won&rsquo;t be tougher on us than Bob? The guys who hate him will be the first to cry and want him back.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;You look around the league,&rdquo; said Dave Lewis, &ldquo;and you don&rsquo;t see many coaches who are that much better. And what Bob has on his side is that he knows everything there is to know about this franchise and what it takes to be successful.&rdquo;</p><p>Other players do not necessarily agree. &ldquo;He may work hard,&rdquo; one said anonymously, &ldquo;but he doesn&rsquo;t know how to communicate with the players. They make mistakes and they sit, but they&rsquo;re never told what the mistakes are, or they can be corrected. He never talks to us on a one-to-one level.&rdquo;</p><p>We wouldn&rsquo;t be talking about Berry&rsquo;s possible dismissal if the Kings had fared better in round one. but the Rangers illuminated a couple of key weaknesses on the team that warrant changing before next season begins.</p><p>For instance, the Rangers did not bother keying a checking line on the Kings&rsquo; big line of Dionne, Dave Taylor and Billy Harris, instead concentrating on the Kings&rsquo; defensemen, applying heavy doses of forechecking. They felt the Kings&rsquo; defensemen were large and immobile, with a few exceptions, and could force a lot of bad passes and break the Kings&rsquo; flow. They succeeded on both counts.</p><p>Likewise, the Rangers&rsquo; offense revolved around their talented centers, taking advantage of the Kings&rsquo; middlemen who are neither offensive in nature, outside of Dionne, nor consistent on defense.</p><p>Defenseman Jerry Korab, 32, is still held in high regard by owner Buss, general manager George Maguire and Berry, but he did not have a good playoff series, with Rangers&rsquo; goalie Steve Baker taking a big rip at him, saying he thought Korab cruised through the series.</p><p>Rick Chartraw, obtained from Montreal in February to add support on defense, was a huge disappointment and his chances of earning a spot on the team next season are long. In Game Three, he and defensive partner Jay Wells were on the ice for an astounding eight goals.</p><p>Other changes may take place. Team captain Mike Murphy (31) and center Don Luce (32) may be casualties due to their age, and a few teams have expressed some interest in center Andre St. Laurent, who successfully returned from back surgery this season but is considered expendable if junior sensation Bernie Nicholls and collegian Steve Bozek pan out as the Kings hope and expect.</p><p>If nothing else, the season ended on the proper note. Four of the players missed the team flight home after the fourth game, and the team bus headed to the airport broke down enroute.</p><p>For a team that missed the boat, it was appropriate.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011080/4390567-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="606" height="873"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Dave Lewis says the Kings&rsquo; coach knows what it takes to build a winner.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0013-01

Is Berry Included In Kings’ Future?

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0014-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011111/4390598-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Dave Christian of the Winnipeg Jets started the Americans on their way to their third straight tournament win as he scored the first goal against Finland.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>G</span>OTHENBURG, Sweden (UPI)&mdash;&ldquo;Some of our goals were so fantastic, I&rsquo;ll watch them in replay over and over,&rdquo; U.S. coach Bob Johnson beamed after his team had come from behind to defeat Finland 6-4 in the world hockey championships yesterday.</p><p>The American team&rsquo;s third consecutive victory put it into first place in the relegation playoffs with a 3-0 record.</p><p>Finland is second with two wins and a defeat, while West Germany overwhelmed the winless Netherlands 9-2 for its first playoff victory.</p><p>The last-place team will be relegated into the B pool of the world championships but as the second round-robin is still to come, nothing is decided yet.</p><p>The American performance yesterday, however, left them little to worry about.</p><p>In a see-saw game that saw the Finns twice in front, Mark Pavelich, Steve Ulseth and Aaron Broten each finished three-way pattern plays inside a 2:38 span of the final period to turn the game around.</p><p>Each time, they threw Finnish goaltender Hannu Lassila off balance with an extra pass.</p><p>&ldquo;The players involved in these plays have very good hockey sense, and they just felt that a teammate was with them and executed a perfect pattern,&rdquo; Johnson said.</p><p>Two of the key plays were authored by the coach&rsquo;s son, Mark, a center for the Pittsburgh Penguins.</p><p>Working as a penalty killer, Johnson with one check bowled a linesman over the boards, a Finnish player to the ice, worked the puck free and shoved it across to Bob Miller, who skated in alone on Lassila and lifted the puck past him for a 3-2 American lead.</p><p>Two breakways later, the Finns were one up themselves, but the U.S. team rallied with Johnson setting up the winner. Faking a shot, he slipped the puck to Ulseth, who knocked it in.</p><p>The insurance marker, scored by Broten on passes from Dave Debol and Alan Hangsleben, was a copy of Ulseth&rsquo;s goal.</p><p>Dave Christian, leading scorer on the U.S. team, had opened the scoring at 11:42 of the first period, knocking in a rebound for his sixth goal of the tournament.</p><p>The Finns drew even with their only good chance of the period, with Markku Kiimalainen taking a feed from Mikko Leinonen. Seppo Aho-kainen finished a breakaway from a 2-1 lead, but a 20-foot bullet from defenseman Reed Larson evened the score.</p><p>The American team appeared to falter after losing the lead for a second time when Kiimalainen and Pekku Arbelius had caught the defense napping.</p><p>But the U.S. team was helped by excellent goaltending by Gregg Moffett.</p><p>Johnson called his performance The most consistent goalminding&rdquo; the team had enjoyed in the championships.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0014-01

U.S. In First Place After Win Over Finland

<h2><b>CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND (Standings on Mon. April 20)</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-02913/4390650-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="537" height="128"></div><h2><b>RELEGATION ROUND</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03675/4390643-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="541" height="132"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>United States 7, Holland 6</p><p>Finland 6. West Germany 3</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Czechoslovakia 7, Canada 4</p><p>Soviet Union 4, Sweden 1</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>United States 6, Finland 4</p><p>West Germany 9. Holland 2</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p><b>Mon. April 20</b></p><p>Canada vs Sweden</p><p>Soviet Union vs Czechoslovakia</p><p><b>Tue. April 21</b></p><p>United States vs Holland</p><p>Finland vs West Germany</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Czechoslovakia vs Sweden</p><p>Soviet Union vs Canada</p><p><b>Thu. April 23</b></p><p>Holland vs United States</p><p>Finland vs West Germany</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Canada vs Czechoslovakia</p><p>Soviet Union vs Sweden</p><p><b>Sat. April 25</b></p><p>Holland vs West Germany</p><p>Finland vs United States</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Canada vs Sweden</p><p>Soviet Union vs Czechoslovakia</p><h2>PRELIMINARY ROUND</h2><p><b>Final Standings</b></p><h3>GROUP A</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04477/4390636-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="539" height="124"></div><h3>GROUP B</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-05334/4390629-1-eng-US/f0014-052.jpg" title="f0014-05" width="542" height="130"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Mon. April 13</b></p><p>Canada 8, Holland 1</p><p>Soviet Union 11, Finland 1</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Czechoslovakia 6, West Germany 2</p><p>Sweden 4, United States 2</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Soviet Union 8, Canada 2</p><p>Finland 12, Holland 3</p><p>United States 10, West Germany 6</p><p>Czechoslovakia 3, Sweden 3</p><p>(End of preliminary round)<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0014-02

World Cup Scoreboard

<h2><b>Sun. April 12 CANADA 4, FINLAND 3</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-06267/4390744-1-eng-US/f0014-062.jpg" title="f0014-06" width="570" height="632"></div><h2><b>CZECHS 11, U.S.A. 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-07213/4390737-1-eng-US/f0014-072.jpg" title="f0014-07" width="586" height="910"></div><h2><b>SWEDEN 4, GERMANY 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-08183/4390730-1-eng-US/f0014-082.jpg" title="f0014-08" width="592" height="705"></div><h2><b>SOVIETS 10, HOLLAND 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-09167/4390723-1-eng-US/f0014-092.jpg" title="f0014-09" width="593" height="855"></div><h2><b>SOVIETS 7, FINLAND 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-10151/4390716-1-eng-US/f0014-102.jpg" title="f0014-10" width="576" height="740"></div><h2><b>CZECHS 6, W. GERMANY 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-11134/4390709-1-eng-US/f0014-112.jpg" title="f0014-11" width="594" height="632"></div><h2><b>Mon. April 13 CANADA 8, HOLLAND 1</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1822/4390702-1-eng-US/f0033-182.jpg" title="f0033-18" width="540" height="634"></div><h2><b>Tue. April 14 SWEDEN 4, U.S.A. 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1920/4390695-1-eng-US/f0033-192.jpg" title="f0033-19" width="586" height="703"></div><h2><b>Wed. April 15 SOVIETS 8, CANADA 2</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-2017/4390688-1-eng-US/f0033-202.jpg" title="f0033-20" width="601" height="679"></div><h2><b>Sat. April 18 CZECHS 7, CANADA 4</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-2116/4390681-1-eng-US/f0033-212.jpg" title="f0033-21" width="598" height="700"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0014-06

World Cup Championships Summaries

<div class="byline">BY JAY GREENBERG</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011063/4390775-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ken Linseman gave the Flyers some breathing room in the fifth game against Quebec with a clutch goal in the first minute of the final period.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>P</span>HILADELPHIA&mdash;When the time came for the Flyers to cross the tightrope they had greased not just with a five-minute letdown but really most of the season, there was nothing to blow them off but themselves.</p><p>And had they tumbled, hockey hardly would have batted an eyelash. The Flyers attract more prospective grave dancers than any National Hockey League team, anyway, and only one round into the playoffs, the ground below was littered with the seasonal remains of the Canadiens, Kings and Bruins. The Quebec Nor-diques, potentially the slickest first round banana peel of them all, halfway across the precipice.</p><p>There were two things to do with that rope, walk it or pull it, and with the cumulative might of their experience, depth and muscle, the Flyers just yanked it out of the Nor-diques&rsquo; hands, finishing off Quebec, 5-2, in the fifth game and re-establishing their ability to do whatever is necesary to win.</p><p>It took five games for the Flyers to put it all together, and with four games in five nights to follow and a 3,500 mile trip to Calgary for games three and four of the quarterfinals, one could wonder about wear and tear. But the Flyers were no longer wondering about themselves.</p><p>&ldquo;It was real scary,&rdquo; said Paul Holmgren. &ldquo;We probably tried to hide it a little bit the last couple of days, but I don&rsquo;t think many of us got any sleep. You come down to one game against a team like Quebec, you think a little bit. We realized we had to go after them. That was the only way.&rdquo;</p><p>Before the Flyers ran out of time, they had to make the clock work for them. And that meant 40 minutes of punishing the Nordiques so they would tip over in the final 20. It meant Paul Holmgren and Mel Bridgman pounding away at the smaller Nordique defense along the backboards. It meant Ken Linseman skating them to a frazzle. It meant a predictable goal from the little-used, playoff dormant Rick MacLeish.</p><p>It meant Bob Dailey getting back into the lineup. &ldquo;He was in pain,&rdquo; said Pat Quinn, &ldquo;but he is a presence. A guy like Bob Dailey can force a team to play differently.&rdquo;</p><p>And lond before Linseman broke open a nervous 2-1 lead with a breathtaking rink-long dash 18 seconds into the third period, it was the Flyers&rsquo; game, played not only to their specifications, but eventually, their relief. In the end, they survived against a dangerous, but lesser foe because their history, with few exceptions, is one of survival.</p><p>&ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t worried,&rdquo; said Bobby Clarke. &ldquo;We have too many guys who are proven playoff performers. You knew they&rsquo;d come through when we needed them.</p><p>&ldquo;We put so much pressure on them in the first two periods they were bound to get tired. You have a guy like Holmgren beating on you all night, it takes a lot out of you. Then you have Linseman scooting around in there, and that finished them. What a goal he scored.&rdquo;</p><p>If the tone was set through a 19-shot first period, it still remained for Linseman to make sure. &ldquo;1 was wound up like crazy, 1 was so tight,&rdquo; said The Rat. The Flyers, for all their dominance, were still sitting on a time bomb when Holmgren blocked a Nordique point drive seconds into the third period. Linseman tipped the puck past Quebec defenseman Dale Hoganson and was off.</p><p>&ldquo;The guy moved over to Brian [Propp],&rdquo; said the Rat. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t have any choice. Was I going to shoot? When do I ever shoot?&rdquo;</p><p>This time. Daniel Bouchard flopped for the fake and Kenny, cutting by him, went up high with a backhander to make it 3-1. The Rat Pack then added two more goals on its next two shifts and the rest was cleanup.</p><p>The Flyers did it not just because they had more parts than Quebec, but because those parts are interchangeable. Bridgman, T. J. Gorence and Al Hill were put together as a checking line, but in the three Spectrum games when Quinn was able to get them head-to-head against the Stastnys, they matched them in goals.</p><p>&ldquo;They were outstanding,&rdquo; said Quinn. &ldquo;They may have been our best performers on the most consistent basis. Each shift they had was a sound shift. It&rsquo;s very pleasing they responded to the challenge.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;We imposed our will on them. We didn&rsquo;t let fear conquer us.&rdquo;</p><p><b>ICEBERGS</b>&mdash;The Flyers obviously could look forward to a more muscular test from the Flames. &ldquo;We intend to play physical and I expect a return,&rdquo; said Quinn. &ldquo;And that&rsquo;s what the game is all about. They go heavily into line matching. During our regular season games, they used Randy Holt, Jim Peplinski, and Willi Plett against Kenny&rsquo;s line, they did it in all four games and I never tried to avoid it.&rdquo;&hellip;Bridgman was expected to go head-up against Kent Nilsson at the Spectrum&hellip;The Flyers advanced to the quarterfinals for the ninth straight year. A victory over the Flames would put them in the semis for the eighth tine in nine seasons.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0015-01

Showdown Win Re-Established Flyers’ Ability

<div class="byline">BY VIRG FOSS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-01914/4390806-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Steve Ulseth, called &ldquo;Mr. Hustle&rdquo; by his Minnesota teammates, was an inspirational two-way performer for the WCHA champion Gophers.</b></figcaption></div><p>MINNEAPOLIS&mdash;He wasn&rsquo;t the leading scorer on the team or first in line when post-season honors were dished out.</p><p>But there is little doubt that the University of Minnesota would not have won the Western Collegiate Hockey Association championship and earned the status of the No. 1 team in the United States much of the year if it hadn&rsquo;t been for the play of senior wing Steve Ulseth.</p><p>For scoring 41 goals and 52 assists in 45 games and being the acknowledged off-ice leader of the Gophers as well, Ulseth has been named the College Player of the Year by THE HOCKEY NEWS.</p><p>Ulseth, a 5-9, 176-pound left wing from Roseville, Minn., is an unlikely selection.</p><p>He came to Minnesota four seasons ago as a walk-on without a drop of scholarship money, then developed himself into one of the premier players in the game.</p><p>He did it through work and dedication. &ldquo;I think he typified our team in that he showed what hard work can do,&rdquo; said Minnesota coach Brad Buetow.</p><p>Ulseth, a co-captain of the Gophers, is one of the most durable players in school history.</p><p>He played in 146 games in four years at Minnesota and finished his career as the second-leading scorer with 202-points, on 84 goals and 118 assists. Only Tim Harrer, who graduated a year earlier with 296 points, has scored more points for the Gophers than Ulseth.</p><p>The more Ulseth played as a collegian, the better he got. He had 23 points in 31 games as a rookie in 1977-78, moved to 26 points in 37 games the following season, jumped to 60 points in 35 games his junior year and then put 93 points on the score sheet this season in 45 games to win his recognition.</p><p>Yet he was overshadowed much of the year by the Broten brothers, the sophomores out of Roseau, Minn., who both signed pro contracts after the NCAA championship game, lost by Minnesota to Wisconsin.</p><p>Neal Broten, the highly-acclaimed center who helped guide the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to the gold medal at Lake Placid, was named to the All-America team and won the Hobey Baker Award as College Player of the Year. Neal consequently signed with the Minnesota North Stars.</p><p>Aaron Broten, who signed with Colorado of the NHL, didn&rsquo;t win All-America status or earn Player of the Year honors, but he did grab headlines by leading the Gophers in scoring with 106 points, two shy of the all-time college record of 108, shared by the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; Dave Taylor, who played with Clarkson, and Phillip Latreille, who played at Middlebury.</p><p>But Ulseth was the man who kept the Gophers together. A natural leader, he was dubbed &ldquo;Mr. Hustle&rdquo; by his teammates. He was the inspiration behind the Gophers, who dethroned North Dakota this season as champion of the WCHA.</p><p>Ulseth was one of the best two-way hockey players on the team. While the Brotens gained recognition with their great offensive abilities, Ulseth earned respect around the league for playing both ends of the ice with equal abandon. He won the WCHA scoring title as well.</p><p>Ulseth nearly didn&rsquo;t wind up at Minnesota in the first place. His only scholarship offer out of high school came from Wisconsin, which offered him partial aid. He debated taking it, but decided he&rsquo;d rather play for the hometown Gophers. The Gophers certainly didn&rsquo;t regret it.</p><p>Ulseth didn&rsquo;t, either. He starred in the classroom as well as on the ice, earned All-WCHA and All America honors and now has been named the College Player of the Year in the United States.</p><p>His future is undecided. He has not been drafted by the NHL, but may get a contract as a free agent.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0016-01

Gophers’ Ulseth Hockey News’ Player Of Year

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div><p class="dropcap"><span>B</span>UFFALO&mdash;With the first three games of the Stanley Cup quarterfinals over, the Buffalo Sabres were one defeat away from another disappointing playoff showing.</p><p>The North Stars, who swept their first-round series from the Boston Bruins, kept right on going against the Sabres, winning the first three games&mdash;4-3 in overtime, 5-2 and 6-4.</p><p>The Sabres have gone beyond the quarterfinals only once since they made the finals in 1975 and lost to the Philadelphia Flyers, four games to two.</p><p>Buffalo fans have been looking for a Stanley Cup ever since then and they are getting restless. This year, for the first time, Memorial Auditorium has not been sold out for playoff games. In fact, this season for the first time since 1971-72, tickets have been left unsold for some games.</p><p>The third game of the quarterfinals, played on Minnesota ice, was a heartbreaker for the Sabres. The North Stars rushed to a 3-0 lead in the first period but, instead of folding, the Sabres fought back to tie, 3-3. But then, the North Stars scored twice in 23 seconds in the third period. The Sabres kept coming and scored once more but then the Stars got an empty-net goal in the final minute.</p><p>The Sabres played the first three games without their captain and scoring leader, Danny Gare, whose right shoulder was bruised severely when he was knocked against a goalpost by Vancouver&rsquo;s Kevin McCarthy in the final game of the first-round series against the Canucks.</p><p>Gare&rsquo;s leadership on the ice was missed, as much as was his quickrelease wrist shots. Lindy Ruff, moved from defense to wing in the playoffs, also was on the sidelines for most of the second game and all of the third.</p><p>Ruff suffered a Charley horse when knocked against the boards by Minnesota&rsquo;s Brad Maxwell early in the first period of the second game. Ruff not only gave the Sabres some extra size, strength and ruggedness up front, he was doing some scoring as Gil Perreault&rsquo;s left winger.</p><p>Ruff scored Buffalo&rsquo;s second goal, on a sizzling 50-foot shot after a drop pass from Perreault, in the first game, won by Minnesota in overtime, 4-3. He scored in two of the three games against Vancouver, too.</p><p>With Gare out, Andre Savard and Tony McKegney took over as the Sabres&rsquo; scorers in the first two games against Minnesota.</p><p>Savard, who sent the first game of the Vancouver series into overtime, scored Buffalo&rsquo;s first goal in the first Minnesota game after the North Stars had taken a 1-0 lead in the first period on a shorthanded goal by Brad Palmer.</p><p>After the North Stars gained a 3-2 lead on a goal by Steve Payne midway through the third period, Craig Ramsay made overtime necessary with a goal at the 14:46 mark of the third period.</p><p>The first shot of the overtime period, and a fluky one it was, won for Minnesota. Brad Maxwell received a pass out to the point by Al MacAdam and let go a shot that hit Payne&rsquo;s stick, then Buffalo defenseman Bill Hajt&rsquo;s skate, cnanging direction twice, and trickled over the goal line as Buffalo goalie Don Edwards dove, too late, to try and knock the puck out. The time was 22 seconds of the overtime period, the fastest overtime goal in the history of either club.</p><p>The Sabres came out steaming in the second game and took a 1-0 lead on their first power play. McKegney scored the goal, his third of the playoffs.</p><p>In the second period, however, Steve Christoff, who set a rookie record with eight goals in 14 playoff games a year ago, scored twice for the North Stars.</p><p>McKegney tied the score at the 2:01 mark of the third period and Buffalo appeared to be back in the game. But only for two minutes. Dino Ciccarelli, who grew up in Sarnia, Ont., with McKegney, scored for Minnesota on a shot from one stride inside the blueline. Bobby Smith scored on a spectacular rush and Ciccarelli scored into an empty net to give the North Stars a 5-2 victory and a 2-0 lead in the series.</p><p><i>For Quarterfinal details see pages 6 &</i> 7.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01806/4390875-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="590" height="1178"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>With some of the Sabres&rsquo; big guns ailing, Andre Savard, above, and Tony McKegney have been the top scorers for Buffalo.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-01

Sabres On Edge Of Disappointment

<div class="byline">BY JIM MATHESON</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0017-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02676/4390913-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>While the Islanders were able to cover Wayne Gretzky effectively in New York, it was a different story in Edmonton, where The Great One had 11 shots and three goals in Game Three.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p>EDMONTON&mdash;It started like a rout, but maybe the Edmonton Oilers were contemplating a revival, instead.</p><p>Down two games to the Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders, the Oilers rebounded on home ice for a comfortable 5-2 win on Easter Sunday. A day to give thanks, if ever there was one.</p><p>&ldquo;With the Montreal series and so far in this one,&rdquo; said Oiler center Wayne Gretzky. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d say we&rsquo;ve matured by at least one full year as a hockey team in a span of less than three weeks.</p><p>&ldquo;It must be nice for the fans to come to the rink and see 19 guys working every night. I think they can expect that in the regular season from now on.&rdquo;</p><p>Nobody has to poke Gretzky in the ribs to get him worked up. With 164 points in regular season, he&rsquo;s flying in the playoffs, as well. Sixteen points in his first six games&mdash;three vs. Montreal, and three in this quarter-final. In the third game, he scored his second hat trick of the playoffs&mdash;one shorthanded goal, one on a power play and one on an out-of-this-world move on Isles&rsquo; defensemen Stefan Persson and Dave Langevin.</p><p>The Oilers also got goals from Finnish forwards Matti Hagman and Jari Kurri to offset the scores by Mike Bossy (power play) and Clark Gillies. But Gretzky, the best entertainment buy in the league, gave the fans thrills and chills with his virtuoso performance. He stole the puck off Isles&rsquo; captain Denis Potvin and sent a 15-footer past Billy Smith while killing a penalty early in the middle period to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead. He added a power play goal off a feed by Kurri to make it 2-1 later in the session. Then, he wrapped things up with a solo effort on the Islander blueliners.</p><p>It was a thing of beauty, Hall of Fame stuff. The kind of moves that George Vezina and Howie Morenz would have applauded in that great league in the sky. He faked Langevin so badly, that the defenseman turned sideways to face the seats. Then Gretzky shifted into overdrive to blow by Persson, before beating Smith with a low 15-footer along the ice from a very steep angle. It was one of his 11 shots in the game, as he had fully one-third of the Oilers&rsquo; total. &ldquo;I was just trying to get to the net anyway I could,&rdquo; said Gretzky, taking that hypothesis to mean turning the defensemen every which way but loose. &ldquo;It was just one of those things. Langevin is a good defenseman, he&rsquo;d probably never let it happen again. I know if I tried it again I certainly wouldn&rsquo;t make it five out of five times.&rdquo;</p><p>But he made it once, and that&rsquo;s all that counts. He spearheaded the Oilers to a win that has to be considered a major triumph. If the victory over the Canadiens was thought to be a miracle by most fans, the win over the Stanley Cup title-holders, shows the Oilers have arrived as a mini-power.</p><p>&ldquo;The thing 1 can&rsquo;t believe,&rdquo; said Oiler captain Lee Fogolin, a virtual fossil at 25, &ldquo;is the young guys on our team. It&rsquo;s hard to explain. They&rsquo;re almost too young to feel any pressure. And they&rsquo;re [Paul Coffey, Kevin Lowe, Glenn Anderson, Mark Messier. Jari Kurri, Risto Siltanen] all 22 or younger and setting so good together. AH at once. Every day. From one game to the next game. From one day to the next day.&rdquo;</p><p>The Oilers are using the playoffs as an education, a quick study in perseverance and patience and plugging along. And they&rsquo;ve graduated from elementary to high school almost overnight. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re becoming quietly confident,&rdquo; said 21-year-old goalie Andy Moog, who played in the 8-2 and 6-3 losses on Long Island as well as the win here on Easter Sunday. &ldquo;We know, now, what we have to do to win against a great club in the playoffs. We know how hard we have to work. The story in our win was that we knew what we had to do and every last guy went out and did it.&rdquo;</p><p>It was a little different story on Long Island, where Islanders reign supreme.</p><p>The first two games were stark contrasts, even though the scores made it look like both were routs. In Game One, the Oilers let the Islanders score early (Bob Nystrom) often (two in the first, four in the second, two more in the third) and quickly (three goals in 1:44 in the middle period). Their enthusiasm was no match for the Islanders&rsquo; experience.</p><p>In Game Two, the Oilers took it to the defending Stanley Cup champs, but penalties killed them. Some were careless (Gretzky tripping Mike Bossy in front of Isles net, Dave Semenko jumping Garry Howatt after the NY winger was getting a penalty), some were suspect (Jari Kurri getting a holding penalty on John Tonelli, who went into a swan dive with a half somersault thrown in). Whatever, the Isles feasted on the penalties to score four power play goals, deflating the egos of the Oilers repeatedly. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what power plays are for,&rdquo; said Trottier. &ldquo;To discourage the other team.&rdquo;</p><p>And that&rsquo;s what the Oilers were after the first two matches on Long Island. You could see it in their eyes. Or their hang-dog looks in the dressing room. After a natural high against Montreal, a three-game sweep, it wasn&rsquo;t exactly what they were expecting&mdash;to thud to earth. &ldquo;In the first game,&rdquo; said Oiler defenseman Kevin Lowe, &ldquo;Nystrom&rsquo;s early goal rattled us. It caught us off guard. It had been so long [10 games] since somebody else had scored first. It wasn&rsquo;t in the Cinderella story script&hellip;&rdquo;</p><p>Neither was the three-goal splurge in 104 seconds early in the second as Tonelli (10-footer), Hector Marini (deflection) and Potvin (power play blast) scored to make a 2-0 game into a 5-0 laugher.</p><p>Neither was the dominance of the Islanders&rsquo; power play which gave them Potvin&rsquo;s score, and two others by Butch Goring and Clark Gillies. &ldquo;I thought something like this might happen,&rdquo; said Oiler coach Glen Sather, &ldquo;but I just didn&rsquo;t think it would be so severe.&rdquo;.</p><p>The Islanders, who had dispatched the Toronto Maple Leafs in a hurry, showed no mercy for the NHL&rsquo;s youngest club. &ldquo;We wanted to show Edmonton that we respect them as a hockey team,&rdquo; said Nystrom. &ldquo;And you don&rsquo;t do that by throwing your sticks on the ice.&rdquo;</p><p>In Game Two, the Oilers showed more muscle than just hustle and it worked wonders. It was 3-3 going into the third before Kurri took a very suspicious penalty and Potvin scored his hat trick goal on a 15-footer. It was their fourth PP effort with Potvin getting two earlier cannon shots past Andy Moog and Goring adding another. &ldquo;The PP bailed us out,&rdquo; admitted Isles&rsquo; coach Al Arbour. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a carry-over from last year&rsquo;s final against Philly when we scored 12 or 14 goals.&rdquo; Actually 16.</p><p>Why so successful? &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got five players [Potvin, Bossy, Trottier, Persson and Bourne] who read the scores and pick out the options,&rdquo; said Arbour. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a lot of movement and we just seem to keep picking out the right option at the right time.&rdquo;</p><p>Potvin tied an NHL record with his three PP goals and assists on markers by Bossy and Goring. Eddie Bush of Detroit (1942) and Bob Dailey of Philly (1980) also had five points in a playoff game. &ldquo;If this had been January I would have gone home and thought it was terrific,&rdquo; shrugged Potvin. &ldquo;But in the playoffs, well, it just means a victory.&rdquo;</p><p>A somewhat harder-pressed victory. &ldquo;There was no comparison between the first two games,&rdquo; said Nystrom. &ldquo;It was the toughest game we&rsquo;ve been in for a long time.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02295/4390906-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="606" height="1068"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Lee Fogolin, nearly ancient at age 25, has steadied the Oilers&rsquo; defense.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0017-02

Edmonton Proves To Be Quick Learners

<p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>he New York Islanders are making a strong case in their bid to defend the Stanley Cup they won last season and the man who is providing the leadership is veteran defenseman Denis Potvin.</p><p>The Islanders&rsquo; captain has been outstanding offensively with 14 scoring points in the team&rsquo;s first six playoff games. He almost singlehandedly turned back the Edmonton Oilers in the first two games of the quarterfinals with five goals, three of them in one game, and three assists to win the nod as THE HOCKEY NEWS Player of the Week.</p><p>Potvin, who collected six assists in the Islanders&rsquo; three-game preliminary round sweep of the Toronto Maple Leafs, continued his dynamic offensive play in the Edmonton series. He scored twice in the Islanders&rsquo; opening series 8-2 win and came back with a hat trick in game two, including the gamewinning goal, as New York overpowered the Oilers 6-3.</p><p>With 14 scoring points in his first six playoff games, Potvin was well on the way to a new post-season personal high. He has already had two 19-point playoff years.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02657/4390999-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="574" height="842"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>DENIS POTVIN New York Islanders</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0018-02

NHL Player Of The Week

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK MOODY</div><p class="dropcap"><span>P</span>ITTSBURGH&mdash;The Penguins played perhaps the best game in their 14 National Hockey League seasons before succumbing 4-3 to the St. Louis Blues at 5:16 of the second overtime period in the fifth and deciding game of their preliminary round Stanley Cup playoff series.</p><p>&ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t seen a game like that in a long time,&rdquo; said Penguin coach Eddie Johnston. &ldquo;I thought we showed a lot of guts. I really felt in my mind we should have won. We had good chances. They just didn&rsquo;t go in the net.&rdquo;</p><p>Mike Crombeen, who had been sitting on the bench most of the night and was in the game because St. Louis coach Red Berenson wanted a &ldquo;fresh pair of legs,&rdquo; scored the winning goal. Crombeen shoveled Mike Zuke&rsquo;s centering pass from the corner past Pitts-burgh goaltender Greg Millen after more than 85 minutes of excellent hockey by both teams.</p><p>&ldquo;The puck was in the corner,&rdquo; said Millen, who played outstanding goal in the playoffs for the second season in a row. &ldquo;I knew there was a man in front, but 1 didn&rsquo;t know where he was. He jammed it under me and I just got a piece of it. I&rsquo;m just glad it was a good goal.&rdquo;</p><p>Millen entered the playoffs with a 4.15 goals-against average during the regular season compared to 3.34 for the Blues&rsquo; Mike Liut. But the 23-year-old Millen outplayed his highly publicized rival throughout much of the series.</p><p>The 5-9, 160-pound Millen kicked out 44 shots in the series&rsquo; 4-2 opening game loss in which the final Blues goal was scored into an empty net and he stopped 48 shots in the final game.</p><p>Millen is in the final year of his contract and could become, a free agent June 1. He entertained the Civic Arena and Checkerdome fans not only with his goaltending, but with his dancing to the organ music, which he said he did to psyche himself up.</p><p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s incredible,&rdquo; said the Blues&rsquo; Wayne Babych, who scored 54 goals during the regular season but beat Millen only once in the five playoff games. &ldquo;I saw that little guy dancing to the music all night. Those guys played great hockey.&rdquo;</p><p>Johnston tried to do a psych job of his own on Liut. EJ claimed that he had discovered a flaw in Liut&rsquo;s goaltending technique coming down the stretch of the regular season, which saw the Blues fall from first place to second and earn the matchup against the 15th place Penguins.</p><p>&ldquo;He was sitting too far back in the nets,&rdquo; said Johnston when asked to reveal the &ldquo;flaw&rdquo; after the series finale. &ldquo;He hadn&rsquo;t been challenging as much as earlier in the season. We thught it was something we could use to our advantage.</p><p>&ldquo;I picked him as the MVP in the league, and he showed tonight he should be. He responded when they needed him. In the overtime period, we had some great chances and he made some great saves.&rdquo;</p><p>Johnston pulled all kinds of things out of his bag of coaching tricks during the series. In addition to the psych job on Liut, Johnston constantly shuffled his lines and benched veterans and played rookies in his unsuccessful attempt to beat the Blues.</p><p>One of those benefiting from increased ice time was Mike Bullard, the Penguins&rsquo; No. 1 draft choice last summer, who spent most of the season back in junior. Bullard scored three goals in the series, including the game-winner in Game 4.</p><p>&ldquo;When we sent him back to junior this year we told him he had to work on his defense and his draws,&rdquo; said Johnston about Bullard. &ldquo;He worked on those things and he gave us a big lift.&rdquo;</p><p>The way the entire Penguin team played in the St. Louis series, especially during the last game, gave the once shaky franchise a lift.</p><p><b>PENGUIN TRACKS</b>&mdash;Rick Kehoe, a 55-goal scorer during the regular season, failed to score during the playoffs. Kehoe, who has scored 291 NHL goals during the regular season, has scored only two in 34 playoff games&hellip;Ron Stackhouse was benched halfway thrugh the fourth game and did not dress for the finale&hellip;Paul Gardner, who scored 34 goals in only 62 regular season games, tallied only once during the playoffs and was benched by Johnston except for power plays until the final game. Errol Thompson was bothered by back problems and didn&rsquo;t dress for the entire playoffs&hellip;Pittsburgh is now 2-2 in overtime games lifetime.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Penguins’ Franchise Lifted By Great Playoff Showing

<div class="byline">BY FRANK FONTAINE</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>QUEBEC&mdash;Like a majority of National Hockey League teams, the Nordiques are now on a holiday. For most players, that means returning home to peace and relaxation; sharing the summer months with family and childhood friends in the plains of Western Canada; on the farms of Minnesota, Ontario and Quebec; in the quiet little towns of New England; or back in the old world of Sweden and Finland. Only a few NHL players cannot go back where they come from; including the Nordiques&rsquo; Anton and Peter Stastny, formerly of Bratislava, Czechoslovakia.</p><p>The two Slovaks recently spoke about their summer plans with reporter Maurice Dumas, of Le <i>Soleil.</i></p><p>The two brothers plan to spend their time getting acquainted with their new home: Quebec. For the fact is that because of the long, heavy NHL schedule, the Stastnys have hardly had time to get to know their adoptive city. One of the first things they intend to do is add French&rsquo; to the list of four languages they can already speak: Slovak, Czech, Russian, and English. Anton and Peter plan to go about their self-appointed task with the same intensity they displayed on the ice, this year. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to take intensive courses; not just one or two lessons a week,&rdquo; said Anton.</p><p>The ability to speak French will not only allow them to better understand and enjoy the city, it will also help make life easier for them. Soon after she escaped to Canada with her husband Peter, Darina Stastny gave birth to a girl. A short time later, Peter was gone for three weeks, as the Noridques played nine consecutive games on the road. Darina did not yet know a single word of French or English. She was alone in a strange country with a newborn child, virtually unable to communicate with anyone. But she made it. Little wonder that Peter&rsquo;s eyes light up when he speaks of Darina. Of course, Mrs. Stastny and her baby were not abandoned to themselves. Peter points out that: &ldquo;We have some wonderful friends and neighbors.&rdquo;</p><p>Naturally, the situation has improved since then. Darina now speaks English. Moreover, she has a new sister-in-law: Galina, who got permission to leave Czechoslovakia during the winter, to come marry Anton Stastny.</p><p>Even though they will not be playing hockey for the next few months, the Stastnys will likely continue to keep in top physical condition. That&rsquo;s how they like it. Even when they are just relaxing, the Stastnys keep in shape. For instance, most evenings at home are spent playing table tennis. &ldquo;My wife beats me all the time. She was a champion in Czechoslovakia,&rdquo; says Peter.</p><p>The Stastnys have no regret about coming to Canada. To be sure, they miss the friends and relatives they left behind on their flight to freedom, but as Peter says: &ldquo;We had thought about it carefully before leaving; we had weighed all the consequences.&rdquo; To which Anton adds: &ldquo;We write home regularly. And we get lots of letters from home.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01824/4390944-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="606" height="1012"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Anton, above, and Peter Stastny look forward to being joined in Canada by older brother Marion this summer.</b></figcaption></div><p>One of the closes persons to Anton and Peter may soon join them in Quebec. Marian Stastny, 28, is expected to arrive here during the summer. He, too, played for Czechoslo-vakia&rsquo;s national team before being mysteriously suspended after his brothers left. However, an agreement has been reached between the NHL and the Czechoslovakia Hockey Federation, which will allow certain older players to play pro hockey in North America. (It has been suggested that Peter and Anton might play for the Czech team in the next Canada Cup Tournament. Peter and Anton laugh off the suggestion as preposterous.)</p><p>While life here has been a little difficult for the Stastnys socially, it has been most rewarding professionally. They feel they are part of an organization which is going somewhere fast; very fast. They are proud of the fact that they are one of the main reasons for the team&rsquo;s success. They are also grateful that the Nordiques allowed them to play according to their spectacular and successful system of puck control hockey, and did not force them to adapt to the dull, unimaginative &ldquo;Dump and Chase&rdquo; system employed by so many NHL teams. The only resistance to their style of play has come from the league front office, which stubbornly prefers violence to science as its main selling point (Peter says playing against the Philadelphia Flyers is actually worse than playing against the Russians&hellip;heretofore considered as the dirtiest hockey players in the world.) Needless to say Anton and Peter also appreciate the way the fans have responded to their style of play.</p><p>The two Stastnys quietly hope that in a few years, when the fuss over their defection has died down, they will be able to go back home during the summer, like all other NHL players. In the meantime, they, plan to do the next best thing. They are going to take a five-week multi-country trip to Western Europe starting in early July. Then, they will come back to their new home, where, as Anton says: &ldquo;The sky is always bright and clear. Not like in Czechoslovakia where it&rsquo;s often cloudy.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0018-01

Stastnys’ Project: Getting To Know New Home

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01620/4391061-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Butch Goring of the New York Islanders was one of only two regulars who managed to go through the season without incurring a penalty this year. Goring, who played in 78 of the Islanders 80 games, shared the honor with Hartford&rsquo;s Dave Debol, who dressed for 44 Whaler games.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><h2>Canada Cup Set</h2><p>GOTHENBURG&mdash;The 1981 Canada Cup tournament has received the green light from all the competing world hockey powers.</p><p>Alan Eagleson, director of the international tournament, disclosed that an agreement was reached with the International Ice Hockey Federation regarding the financial arrangements for the six-country tourney.</p><p>The tournament won the approval of the IIHF after Eagleson agreed to pay a lump sum of $1.5 million (U.S. dollars) or about $1.8 million (Canadian). Previously, he had proposed a $1.2 million (U.S.) payment plusa share of the television revenues to the IIHF. This was turned down in favor of the new deal on which the agreement was finally signed.</p><p>The tournament will begin in late August with teams from Canada, the United States, Sweden, Finland, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union.</p><p>The program calls for the teams to play a round-robin competition that will produce four semifinalists. First-round games will be staged in Edmonton, Winnipeg, Quebec City and possibly Calgary. The championship final, which will be a one-game event, will be played in the Montreal Forum.</p><p>Dr. Gunther Sabetzki, the president of the IIHF, and a member of the three-man committee that rejected Eagleson&rsquo;s first offer to gamble on TV money instead, of receiving a larger lump payment, said that the event would henceforth be known as the World Cup in Europe and that the name Canada Cup was devised &ldquo;for advertising purposes,&rdquo; only.</p><h2>Espo A No Show</h2><p>CHICAGO&mdash;Goaltender Tony Esposito didn&rsquo;t make it to the World Cup championships. Instead he opted for a Florida vacation with his family.</p><p>Esposito, the dean of NHL goalkeepers at age 37, declined to join Team Canada in Sweden after conferring with team GM John Ferguson. Esposito said he wanted to be assured of playing regularly in the tournament and Ferguson said he could not give Espo that guarantee. The Chicago goalie said he didn&rsquo;t want to spend 10 days sitting around in Sweden and informed Ferguson that he planned a Florida vacation with his family and would not be available.</p><p>Ferguson defended Tony 0 for being a no show. &ldquo;I spoke to Tony the other day. He had made prior arrangements to leave with his wife and family on a holiday. He said he would have cancelled his plans if 1 could tell him he&rsquo;d be playing. 1 said I couldn&rsquo;t make that guarantee and furthermore, I understood how he felt. He didn&rsquo;t want to come over here and sit around for 10 days. I can&rsquo;t blame him,&rdquo; said Ferguson.</p><p>Ferguson pointed out that Esposito would only have been a standby in the event Phil Myre or John Garrett were injured.</p><h2>Whalers Ink Pair</h2><p>HARTFORD&mdash;The Hartford Whalers, who missed the NHL&rsquo;s 1980-81 playoff round, are already rebuilding for next season.</p><p>The Whalers signed two of their 1980 draft picks and both will report to training camp this September. They are Paul Fricker, a goalkeeper from Michigan University, who is 20 years of age, and Mike Martin, a defenseman with the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League. Martin is 19. The Whalers chose Martin seventh in the 1980 Entry Draft, and picked Fricker ninth.</p><h2>Quebec Champions</h2><p>HALIFAX&mdash;Quebec&rsquo;s Lac St. Louis Lions skated off with the Canadian midget hockey championship to win the Air Canada Trophy over a field of the country&rsquo;s select 14 to 16-year-old performers.</p><p>The Quebecers romped past the Kitchener Greenshirts, who represented Ontario, 7-2 in the championship game. Sparked by Jeff Hamilton, who scored a hat trick, the Lions finished the 12-team tournament with a 6-1-1 record. Their only defeat, ironically, was a 7-2 setback at the hands of the Kitchener team in an early round.</p><p>In a game for third place and the consolation award, Antigonish Novas, who were the Nova Scotia representative, defeated the Current River Comets of the Thunder Bay region 9-3.</p><p>Despite their loss, the Kitchener team placed two players on the AllTournament All Star team. Ron Motz and goalkeeper Dave Boudreau of Kitchener were selected along with James Faile of Ottawa, Calvin Fraser of Nova Scotia, Dale Derkatch of Saskatchewan and Normand Lacombe of Quebec. Derkatch came in for a double award. He was also picked as the MVP of the tournament.</p><h2>No Penalty Year</h2><p>NEW YORK&mdash;It seems almost impossible for a player to escape a penalty in the course of an NHL season, especially with today&rsquo;s emphasis on more aggressive hockey.</p><p>But two NHLers managed it this season in spite of the closer checking and violence that flared in the league. Butch Goring of the New York Islanders played in 78 of the team&rsquo;s 80 games and Dave Debol of the Hartford Whalers dressed for 44 NHL games without incurring a penalty.</p><h2>Dutch Star Ejected</h2><p>GOTHENBURG&mdash;Corky De Graauw, a former Canadian hockey player now living in The Netherlands, was expelled from the 1981 World Cup championship tournament and sent home to Holland by team officials.</p><p>De Graauw was given the bounce from the National team after he showered and dressed when benched during the third period of a tourney game against Finland.</p><p>&ldquo;We were losing by a big score so 1 decided to stop using certain players,&rdquo; said team coach Gustav Bubnik, a former member of the Czechoslovakian National team who came to Holland to coach after retiring. De Graauw&rsquo;s disappearance from the bench annoyed Bubnik no end.</p><p>&ldquo;Suddenly, I was looking for Corky and couldn&rsquo;t find him. I turned around and there he was, in street clothes. He said he had decided if I wasn&rsquo;t going to play him any more, he might as well get changed.</p><p>&ldquo;I consulted with the other team players later and they agreed that he should be sent away from the team.&rdquo; said Bubnik.</p><h2>Is Sam Returning?</h2><p>GOTHENBURG&mdash;Sam Pollock, the master manipulator of the Montreal Canadiens who walked away from a hockey dynasty in 1978, may be coming back to operate Team Canada in the second Canada Cup tournament, scheduled for late August in Canada.</p><p>Pollock, who won nine Stanley Cups with Montreal, is a member of the board of Hockey Canada and Alan Eagleson thinks he should come back and give Canada a helping hand for the 1981 tournament.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0020-01

SLAPSHOTS

<p class="dropcap"><span>B</span>LOOMINGTON&mdash;There&rsquo;s something magical about scoring goals at playoff time. They&rsquo;re more important than during the regular season&mdash;and they&rsquo;re especially important if they happen to win a game for your team&mdash;which is where the Minnesota North Stars&rsquo; Steve Payne comes in.</p><p>Payne has become the hottest game-winning playoff scorer to hit the National Hockey League in years. Many are comparing his playoff touch to the great Maurice (Rocket) Richard, the onetime Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; ace who performed in the post-season round like no one else in hockey history. The Rocket retired in 1960 after scoring 82 playoff goals, still an NHL record. 18 of which were game-winners, also an NHL record.</p><p>Payne&rsquo;s ability to come up with the winning goal in playoff action is uncanny. He scored three game winners in the 1980 playoffs before the North Stars were eliminated in the semifinal &lsquo;round by Philadelphia and this season he already had three more gamebreakers in his first four playoff starts:</p><p>The Nonh Stars made it through the preliminary round of the 1981 playoffs primarily because Payne&rsquo;s timing was perfect. There&rsquo;s no better time for a goal scorer to get hot than in the playoffs and Payne was steaming as Minnesota prepared to meet Buffalo in the 1981 quarterfinals.</p><p>The muscular left winger shattered the North Stars&rsquo; playoff record for goals in one series when he bagged seven against Boston during Minnesota&rsquo;s three-game preliminary round sweep. That broke the 14-year-old record of five goals in a series, set by Bill Goldsworthy in a seven-game series against St. Louis in 1968.</p><p>Then, in the first game of the North Stars&rsquo; quarterfinal series against Buffalo. Payne scored another two goals, including the winner in overtime, to bring his total to nine. That set a new team record for goals scored in an entire Stanley Cup playoff year. The old record, eight goals, was set by Wayne Connelly in 1968 and tied by Steve Christoff last year.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve never seen Steve play better,&rdquo; said coach Glen Sonmor, &ldquo;and that includes last year when he scored 42 goals in the regular season. Goal scoring is just part of it. He&rsquo;s using his size [6-2 and 205 pounds] to knock people off the puck and he&rsquo;s coming back to do a fine job in our end.&rdquo;</p><p>Payne, for his part, gave a great deal of credit to his center Tim Young and right winger Al MacAdam. The line, put together by Sonmor late in the regular season, accounted for 11 goals and 13 assists in the three games against the Bruins.</p><p>Sonmor had an inkling Payne would be productive once the playoffs began because Payne went into the preliminary series against Boston on a scoring spree, having counted five times in his last seven games of the regular schedule. Coupled with his seven playoff goals, Payne had scored 12 goals in his last 10 games prior to the start of the quarterfinals with Buffalo.</p><p>After eliminating the Bruins in three straight, the North Stars entered the NHL quarterfinal round for the sixth time in the team&rsquo;s history. They had a 3-2 winning record, with their 1980 upset of the Montreal Canadiens ranking at the top of their achievement list.</p><p>The North Stars and Bruins emerged from their preliminary round shootout sharing a number of new playoff records, which were: Most goals by both teams in a three-game series (33); most goals by one team (Minnesota) in a three-game series (20); most shorthanded goals by both teams in one game (4); most shorthanded goals by one team (Boston) in one game (3); most shorthanded goals by one team (Boston) in one period (2); most shorthanded goals by one player (Bobby Lalonde) in one game (2).</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02438/4391092-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg" title="f0020-02" width="550" height="936"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Steve Payne now has scored six game-winning goals for the North Stars in two playoff seasons.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0020-02

Stars’ Pavne Becomes A Tiger At Playoff Time

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0021-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01463/4391123-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Many people believe that for the Bruins to be successful, they should have Ray Bourque orchestrate their offense, a la Denis Potvin.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Steve Babineau)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>B</span>OSTON&mdash;In the wake of the Boston Bruins&rsquo; worst season (37-30-13) in 14 years and their earliest playoff ouster since 1975, only one thing is sure.</p><p>Gerry Cheevers will be back as coach, if he wants to keep the job. that is.</p><p>&ldquo;Gerry Cheevers did exactly what he was expected to do,&rdquo; said general manager Harry Sinden, who has broken in four coaches&mdash;. not all of whom have worked out&mdash;in the nine seasons that he has been at the Bruins&rsquo; helm.</p><p>&ldquo;He was expected to improve as a coach. No., improve is not the word because he didn&rsquo;t have anywhere to improve from. His job was just to become a coach, to learn.</p><p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no doubt that in the last 35 games of the season Gerry began to understand the role of the coach. He&rsquo;ll be back next year, provided he wants to, of course.</p><p>Cheevers was not immediately available for comment but at no time during this most traumatic of recent Boston hockey seasons did the rookie coach indicate that he was ever ready to quit.</p><p>The return of Cheevers, and Sinden, too. is accepted as a foregone conclusion by Bruins&rsquo; president Paul Mooney.</p><p>&ldquo;Harry and Gerry have some work to do this summer,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to be very vigorously looking to replace some people for one reason or another.&rdquo;</p><p>But not Cheevers and Sinden.</p><p>Meanwhile, post mortems continued into the Bruins&rsquo; devastating playoff loss to Minnesota in three straight games. The last time something like that happened was in 1975, when Don Cherry&rsquo;s first Boston team bowed to Chicago two games to one in the opening series.</p><p>&ldquo;All season, the Bruins lacked scorers, particularly on the wings,&rdquo; wrote Tim Horgan, the <i>Herald American</i> columnist. &ldquo;Their attack depended too much on their defensemen because their forwards simply didn&rsquo;t play up to snuff.</p><p>&ldquo;The Bruins didn&rsquo;t play the strictly disciplined hockey that would have offset these weaknesses, either, for which only coach Gerry Cheevers can be blamed. 1 hope Cheevers will install a definite philosophy and stick to it as did Don Cherry his second year.&rdquo;</p><blockquote class="pullQuote"><b>&ldquo;This team never reached the level of consistency that has typified the Bruins in recent seasons,&rdquo; wrote one critic.</b></blockquote><p>&ldquo;For weeks in the early part of the season,&rsquo;&rsquo; wrote Joe Gordon of the <i>Patriot Ledger,</i> &ldquo;the Bruins were about as poor a team as there was in the league. For weeks in the middle of the season they were about as good a team as any.</p><p>&ldquo;By the time the playoffs had rolled around, the cycles were abbreviated. They&rsquo;d be good for a few days and awful for the next few. This team never reached the level of consistency that so typified them in recent seasons.</p><p>&ldquo;Why? Start with a rookie coach who had to feel his way. Add goaltending that didn&rsquo;t come close to expectations. Throw in the reliance on several extremely young players and several extremely worn out veterans, and you have all the ingredients for early golf.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;The Bruins must restructure their style of play around the young players,&rsquo;&rsquo; wrote Fran Rosa of the Globe. &ldquo;Ray Bourque is the key. He should do for the Bruins what Denis Potvin does for the Islanders, keep the puck moving to men who are in motion.</p><p>&ldquo;If the North Stars did one thing better than the Bruins, it was moving with and without the puck. Movement is what Cheevers has preached since the first day of training camp&mdash;a combination of constant movement and forechecking, the best of two worlds.</p><p>&ldquo;That is where the Bruins are today, caught in a transition period, not only in style of play but in the age of the squad.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;The North Stars found, like many other teams in the league during the regular season, that the Bruins can be pressed,&rdquo; wrote Kevin Dupont of the <i>Herald American.</i></p><p>&ldquo;A quick game works against some of the Bruins&rsquo; older legs. Some of the younger legs, worked into the club in this transition year, have been held back by the Bruins&rsquo; grinding, plodding outlook.</p><p>&ldquo;That will now be the trick to resurrecting the Bruins from their lowest point since the start of the Bobby Orr Era 15 years ago.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0021-01

Post Mortems Flow Analyzing Bruins’ Loss

<div class="byline">BY FRED PIETILA</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0022-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01511/4391154-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Bill Baker was excited by the atmosphere surrounding the Rockies and the prospects of becoming a part of their talent nucleus for next year.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>D</span>ENVER&mdash;The last dozen games of the season weren&rsquo;t exactly what Bill Baker has become accustomed to in his hockey career, but the 24-year-old defenseman is realistic enough to realize that at least he has a chance to play in the National Hockey League.</p><p>Baker, for the most part, has been associated with winners in his hockey career&mdash;at least the last half-dozen years. So, when he was acquired by the Colorado Rockies from the Mon-treal Canadiens for a third-round 1983 draft choice, he had to have reservations.</p><p>After all, the Rockies have pretty much been the doormat of the NHL in their troubled five-year existence. Baker played on the Minnesota state championship team his final season at Grand Rapids High School, he played on two NCAA championship clubs at the University of Minnesota and then, of course, played a key role on the 1980 gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic team.</p><p>And then it was on to the NHL and the Montreal Canadiens and then whoops, the Colorado Rockies.</p><p>&ldquo;Right now, the NHL and playing well with the Rockies is my number one goal. But I&rsquo;d have to say the last couple of years have been fantastic,&rdquo; the personable Baker said.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m excited about playing with the Rockies. It&rsquo;s like 1 obviously didn&rsquo;t fit into Montreal&rsquo;s long-term plans. 1 guess a guy always wonders if there&rsquo;s a place for hint in the organization and apparently Montreal didn&rsquo;t think there was one for me. 1 came to the Rockies and I was happy about it. And then coming here and meeting the players, I&rsquo;m all the more happy,&rdquo; Baker said.</p><p>Never mind that the Rockies failed to make the playoffs for the fourth time in five years.</p><p>&ldquo;I think they&rsquo;ve improved themselves by getting the players they have lately like Bobby Miller, Phil Myre, &lsquo;Chico&rsquo; Resch and Steve Tambellini. I&rsquo;m excited for next year already. There&rsquo;s good intensity. Everybody wants to work hard and everybody wants to win,&rdquo; Baker said.</p><p>Baker was somewhat surprised at the lack of internal problems&mdash;the finger pointing and backstabbing&mdash;that usually accompany a non-playoff club down the final days of the season.</p><p>&ldquo;There doesn&rsquo;t seem to be any of that there,&rdquo; Baker said, &ldquo;which seems to be a healthy situation. It&rsquo;s great. It just seems like such a healthy atmosphere.</p><p>&ldquo;And I&rsquo;ve heard a lot of stories about the new owner [Peter Gilbert] and how gung-ho he is to make a winner out of this franchise. I just hope I can do what they expect of me. Like I said, 1 enjoy the town and enjoy the rest of the guys. If we play as hard as we have lately and with the same intensity for 80 games next season, I think we can make the playoffs,&rdquo; Baker said.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been great,&rdquo; Baker mused of his hockey success the last half-dozen years. &ldquo;And hopefully becoming a member of a National Hockey League team and hopefully staying in the NHL will be greater So, 1 guess I really can&rsquo;t complain at all.&rdquo;</p><p>Baker paired with Rob Ramage on defense and the duo played well together with Ramage the more offensive-minded of the two. The new defense pairing turned up on opposite sides a short time later when Ramage joined teammates Lanny McDonald, Lucien DeBlois, Tambellini and Myre on the roster of Team Canada and Baker suited up for Team USA in the World Championships in Sweden.</p><p><b>ROCKY RAMBLINGS&mdash;</b> Lanny McDonald led the Rockies in points with 81, goals with 35 and assists with 46. Merlin Malinowski was the club&rsquo;s top power scorer with 12 goals. McDonald had 11 and also had the distinction of being the only Rockies&rsquo; player to perform in all 80 games&hellip;New owner Peter Gilbert said the search for a replacement for GM Ray Miron, who resigned, is underway but there was no leading candidate for the job. It appears the new man will come from outside the Colorado organization.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0022-01

Baker May Bring Rockies Winning Ingredients

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-02401/4391185-1-eng-US/f0022-022.jpg" title="f0022-02" width="586" height="336"></div><h2><b>NHL Is To Blame For Jets&rsquo; Plight</b></h2><p class="dropcap"><span>I</span> will grant the hockey fans of North America one fact&mdash;the Winnipeg Jets represent one of the poorest collections of hockey players the NHL has ever iced. I will not dispute this point when it is presented.</p><p>However it does upset loyal Jets fans when they hear people complain about the poor crowds the Jets attract on the road, and the unacceptable level of hockey played by them.</p><p>The people who occupy the NHL&rsquo;s executive suites, should look in the mirror when these complaints arise, not the Winnipeg Jets. Three years ago, Kent Nilsson, Terry Ruskowski and Rich Preston wore the Jets colors. Had the NHL truly desired a &ldquo;competitive&rdquo; league, the WHA teams would have remained intact. However the NHL in it&rsquo;s infinite wisdom, decided to replace these talented players with the likes of Hilliard Graves, Gord McTavish, Bill Riley and Lome Stamler, to name but a few. To add further to this decision, the NHL decreed that it&rsquo;s four new members should draft in the last four positions. Rather than strengthening the Jets with a Perry Turnbull or Craig Hartsburg the Jets were burdened with a Jimmy Mann.</p><p>Don&rsquo;t blame the Jets&rsquo; management, players or fans. Thank the NHL.</p><p><b>Chuck Duboff,</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Winnipeg, Man.</i></p><h2><b>Stastnys Should Not Be Classed As Rookies</b></h2><p>I don&rsquo;t understand why the NHL is considering the Stastny brothers, Peter and Anton of the Quebec Nor-diques, as rookies. It&rsquo;s the same story as Wayne Gretzky of Edmonton. He was not allowed to compete for the top rookie award last year because he had played professional hockey in the WHA.</p><p>The same should apply to the Stastny brothers. They both played professional hockey behind the Iron Curtain. The NHL is not consistent as far as I&rsquo;m concerned.</p><p><b>Dave Rogers,</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Montreal, Que.</i></p><h2><b>Calgary To Blame For Death Of Bulls</b></h2><p>I arrived home not long ago and found my copy of THE HOCKEY NEWS in my mailbox, a regular Monday afternoon occurrence. But this time it was different. When 1 saw Nelson Skalbania and the Calgary Flames on the cover, I began to cry.</p><p>Your timing could not have been more inappropriate. You see. I had taken the afternoon off to try to adjust to the thought of life without hockey.</p><p>Calgary, as of 10 a m. on Feb. 23, had deprived my city, Birmingham, Alabama, of hockey. Nothing anyone says or does will ever convince us that the ultimate blame for the death of hockey in Birmingham does not rest on Calgary&rsquo;s shoulders. During our two-year association with the Flames&rsquo; organization, they consistently failed to supply the Birming-ham Bulls with enough players to be competitive, while keeping numerous players sitting around in their own pressbox. And without players, you don&rsquo;t win and don&rsquo;t make money at the box office.</p><p>We&rsquo;ve had some super talent and some of the best guys you could ever want to meet, but it&rsquo;s never been enough. For the last two weeks of our existence, we played with one goal-tender, who was injured and wasn&rsquo;t even Calgary property. The New York Rangers should be incensed at the abuse Jim Pettie was forced to take. Surely, there was a goaltender available, somewhere.</p><p>But Calgary apparently didn&rsquo;t care. They never did, according to their actions. Sure I&rsquo;m bitter, who wouldn&rsquo;t be? But we always expected something like this from Skalbania. We&rsquo;d seen what he did to the Indianapolis Racers in the WHA.</p><p>We understand the financial end of things, we&rsquo;re not stupid. But it still hurts.</p><p>Maybe eventually I&rsquo;ll be able to read your special section on Calgary. I didn&rsquo;t follow my first instinct and rip it to shreds. I&rsquo;m sure you did your usual excellent job. But for now. it just hurts too bad. For we had come to love hockey here in the South. It&rsquo;s like losing a very beloved family member. The pain just never quits.</p><p><b>Laura Lee Vann.</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Birmingham, Ala.</i></p><h2><b>Rubber Fittings Would Make Goal Nets Safer</b></h2><p>In response to your editorial in THE HOCKEY NEWS recently on hockey nets, I suggest that a rubber or plastic knob could be installed on the point of the base plate, the goal uprights could be made of solid rubber or at least be fabricated with sponge material and the post anchors could be designed similar to dome fasteners to facilitate easy disconnections in the event of a solid contact with the goal.</p><p><b>John Anderson,</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Paris, Ont.</i></p><h2><b>Flyers&rsquo; Tactics On Ice &lsquo;Disgusting&rsquo; To Purists</b></h2><p>Congratulations to Bill Libby [Hockey News, March 20] for finally printing the truth about the Flyers. (Somehow, he forgot the Bruins, who are in the same mold.) They are largely a team of goons whose game is based on intimidation. There is a tremendous amount of talent there which is wasted in high sticks, hooks, and trips to the penalty box.</p><p>The Flyers, and their defenders, always make the sale mistake when explaining the &ldquo;Flyer style.&rdquo; They claim that the Flyers play a physical game based upon &ldquo;knocking the other players off the puck.&rdquo; This is patently untrue, as any individual who has watched the Flyers (or Bruins) play even once can attest. The Flyers&rsquo; style is based upon the late check, the spear, the high hook, the elbow, the butt end, etc., etc., Indeed, the Flyers&rsquo; game is based upon every intentionally injurious penalty available, <i>not</i> clean bodychecks. They prefer the so-called &ldquo;dirty&rdquo; checks.</p><p>The solution is disgusting to hockey purists and players alike, but is not really that difficult. <i>Every</i> time a team plays the Flyers, bench-emptying brawls should be encouraged. For 20 teams in the NHL, this means a total of probably four big brawls per 80-game season, but to the Flyers, that represents 80 bench brawls per season. If they maintain a schedule like that, then might must be right.</p><p><b>Eric Maurer,</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Fairport, NY</i></p><h2><b>Media Not Totally Fair To Flyers</b></h2><p>For years I have been reading column after column in THE HOCKEY NEWS in which the authors take their shots at the Philadelphia Flyers and their alleged &ldquo;dirty&rdquo; style of play. Most of the stories follow the same pattern&mdash;the author will cite violence is destroying the game and then point to the Flyers as the major or only culprits. For a reader not following hockey very closely, one glance through THE HOCKEY NEWS would suggest that all the NHL might have to do to eliminate its attendance and exposure problems is to disband the Flyers.</p><p>In defense of the Flyers, I would like to offer these two points:</p><p>First, the Flyers continue to be victims of a style which made them popular, but one which they did not start. Perhaps HOCKEY NEWS&rsquo; columnist Bill Libby forgets the way the Boston Bruins and St. Louis Blues used to terrorize Philadelphia in the early years of their franchise, but I do not.</p><p>I, like many other hockey fans, enjoy a clean, aggressive game. I do not like to see cheap shots or premeditated fights. I also do not like to see inconsistent refereeing. In a game against Buffalo this year, Behn Wilson violently checked Derek Smith from behind with his stick. He was penalized accordingly and Buffalo used the power play to tie the Flyers. However, last year in a game against Edmonton, Pete Peeters was leaving the ice on a delayed penalty call and was bowled over right in front of the referee. No call was made. Sure, the Flyers play aggressive, and they do commit fouls, but referees, recalling their &ldquo;bully&rdquo; image of the past, call the marginal penalties against the Flyers and not against the other teams.</p><p>My second point of defense is that most of the columns degrading the Flyers actually reek of jealousy. The Flyers seem to have the league, the media, the fans, and even the referees against them, and yet they win. They sell out the Spectrum with the fans rooting for them, and they sell out opposing rinks with the fans rooting against them.</p><p><b>Michael Sadusky,</b>&nbsp;<br><i>Sunbury, PA</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0022-02

FAN FORUM

<div class="byline">BY VARTAN KUPELIAN</div><p>DETROIT&mdash;There must be changes&hellip;but how many?</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d say six, realistically.&rdquo; coach Wayne Maxner said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;d be reaching if you said nine.&rdquo;</p><p>That&rsquo;s how many new faces officials of the Detroit Red Wings expect to have when next season rolls around. It was widely accepted at the conclusion of the 1980-81 National Hockey League season that the Wings had up to 10 players who were not of NHL calibre.</p><p>The off-season task will be to find adequate replacements if the Wings are to improve at all.</p><p>But where do you find even six NHL players just like that?</p><p>&ldquo;We feel we may have two or three right now, like Mark Osborne [a 1980 underage draft who played junior hockey this season] and Rejean Cloutier, who is playing well in the American Hockey League,&rdquo; Maxner said.</p><p>Osborne is a big, rugged left winger and Cloutier a second-year pro defenseman from the Quebec League.</p><p>What complicates the Wings&rsquo; search is that they have no first round pick in this year&rsquo;s draft. That went to the Los Angeles Kings as the final payment in the Rogie Vachon compensation package.</p><p>The Kings, who drafted star rookie defenseman Larry Murphy with the Wings&rsquo; top pick last year, stand to get another outstanding player. The Wings finished 20th overall, and that means Los Angeles now owns the No. 2 choice in the Entry Draft.</p><p>The Wings don&rsquo;t have a fourth round pick, either. They will draft on the second and third rounds and every round after the fourth.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe we can come up with a pretty good draft choice in the second round,&rdquo; Maxner said.</p><p>&ldquo;If we could make a deal three-for-one. and we got the players we felt we needed, we&rsquo;d do it. Even two good players for one. Maybe a good minor leaguer, a good young kid. If Osborne comes in and a draft, that&rsquo;s five.&rdquo;</p><p>Maxner said the Wings will be looking for &ldquo;the best damn player available,&rdquo; regardless of position, when it&rsquo;s their turn in the second round, or 23rd overall.</p><p>Maxner said repeatedly that none of the Red Wings were &ldquo;untouchables&rdquo; and that&rsquo;s not surprising.</p><p>The Wings&rsquo; top players are forward Dale McCourt, John Ogrodnick, Mike Foligno and Mark Kirton (acquired from Toronto during the season) and defensemen Reed Larson and Willie Huber.</p><p>If the Wings are to make a major trade&mdash;as they obviously must&mdash;one or more of those players must be made available. Maxner and Jimmy Skinner, the director of hockey operations, are well aware of that. They insist they are ready to make the move.</p><p>As for Maxner, he said his first few months as a NHL coach were quite an experience.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve matured in that time,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve done a lot of homework. It was only really in the last week that I took a look at the future a little more realistically&hellip;like trying to discuss things with the players, trying to get inside them and maybe ease a little of the pressure. Things like that, things I think are going to make us a winner in the future.&rdquo;</p><p><b>MOTOR CITY SHORTS&mdash;</b> More from Skinner: &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to be disappointed we didn&rsquo;t make the playoffs but I see things we worked at, things we accomplshed that people don&rsquo;t notice. We got rid of a lot of our headaches. For one thing, we got our roster down to size [from 81 to 48]. The season hasn&rsquo;t been a disappointment as far as I&rsquo;m concerned. Look at the whole picture: We&rsquo;ve got a new coach, we&rsquo;re satisfied with him, we can see some results.&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01481/4391216-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="588" height="1026"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>In order to get the Wings on the right track, they must be willing to trade a top player like John Ogrodnick, above.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0023-01

Major Changes Necessary For Wings

<div class="byline">BY GLENN COLE</div><p>MONTREAL&mdash;It was Claude Ruel&rsquo;s move to make first.</p><p>And the 43-year-old Ruel stepped away from a job he never wanted.</p><p>Ruel resigned as coach of the Canadiens four days after their stunning upset at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers in the preliminary round Stanley Cup playoffs in the first of an avalanche of expected changes.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll never coach again,&rdquo; said Ruel. I feel I took the right decision and now I feel relaxed again.&rdquo;</p><p>Ruel bailed the Canadiens out of a tight jam when he took over the team Dec. 11, 1979, after Bernard Geoffrion, hired to replace Scotty Bowman, left the club in disarray.</p><p>While Ruel was able to bring the team around to a third-place finish last season, they bowed out to the Minnesota North Stars in the quarterfinals.</p><p>Injuries to key personnel, including Guy Lafleur, were cited as the reason for that inglorious exit and the number of injuries this season were the excuse for a stumbling, inconsistent 80 games which saw the Canadiens finish third again.</p><p>Ah, but there were high hopes and then poof&rsquo;.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if the players quit on the coach,&rdquo; said managing director Irving Grundman. &ldquo;I know there were some guys who gave us a hell of an effort and there were those who didn&rsquo;t.</p><p>&ldquo;You saw the play as well as I did. Some of them worked their hearts out and some of them did sweet nothing. I don&rsquo;t have to draw you a diagram. This is something you can&rsquo;t hide.&rdquo;</p><p>Ruel, who will remain with the Canadiens in a yet-to-be-determined capacity, was a little more specific.</p><p>He noted that people such as Bob Gainey, Brian Engblom, Rod Langway, Larry Robinson, Doug Jarvis and rookie center Keith Acton had all given their best in the losing cause. But there were others such as Pierre Larouche and Yvon Lambert whose effort was a great disappointment.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s obvious that we are going to make some changes,&rdquo; said Grundman. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t want to say anything about individual players now until I&rsquo;ve gone through the whole thing.&rdquo;</p><p>What Grundman has been doing is review articles such as players&rsquo; contracts, game-by-game statistics and the coach&rsquo;s reports.</p><p>Items such as Larouche scoring four of his 25 goals on the road will be studied as will the points against strong and weak teams and plusminus statistics.</p><p>&ldquo;The biggest needs are players who want to go out and play for you every single game, both at home and on the road,&rdquo; said Grundman. &ldquo;Maybe we need a little bit of youth.&rdquo;</p><p>Grundman, who is not guiltless in the end results of this season, now must wade through a list of coaching candidates to find the Canadiens&rsquo; fourth coach in four seasons.</p><p>Among the leading candidates are Team Canada coach Don Cherry, former Quebec Nordiques&rsquo; boss Jacques Demers and Jacques Laperriere, the Canadiens&rsquo; director of special assignments.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-02364/4391247-1-eng-US/f0023-022.jpg" title="f0023-02" width="590" height="1523"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Canadiens&rsquo; performances will be studied this summer, including Pierre Larouche&rsquo;s lack of road scoring.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Steve Babineau)</span></figcaption></div><p>&ldquo;I think I&rsquo;m ready now. but last year I wasn&rsquo;t,&rdquo; said Laperriere, who assisted Ruel most of the season. &ldquo;If I go in there. I want to be well prepared.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;d want at least two assistant coaches. I know what&rsquo;s needed for the job.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough now and it&rsquo;s going to get tougher.&rdquo;</p><p>Cherry told the Montreal Gazette in a telephone interview from Stockholm that &ldquo;if there is a team in the NHL I&rsquo;d be interested in, it would be the Canadiens.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a lot of friends on the Candiens and 1 think that if you take them man for man, they still have the best talent in the league.&rdquo;</p><p>If Cherry&rsquo;s right about the best talent in the league, then obviously something was wrong somewhere this April.</p><p>It wasn&rsquo;t all Ruel&rsquo;s fault.</p><p><b>IN PASSING -</b> Montreal fans, stunned by the early exit, are demanding changes, including the departures of Yvon Lambert. Serge Savard, Guy Lapointe, Doug Rise-brough and Doug Jarvis, immediately, if not sooner. Savard, who is either going to retire voluntarily or be retired, is an outside candidate for the coachin job and his candidacy is being pushed by one French-language newspaper. Savard is NOT the answer.</p><p>Steve Shutt took the defeat harder than most, saying little to anybody on the red-eye flight home from Edmonton. Shutt was also a notable absentee from the team&rsquo;s last supper.</p><p>Among the Canadiens whose contracts have expired are Mark Napier, Keith Acton and Richard Sevigny, all of whom are in fair to good bargaining positions. Engblom and Langway, the leaders on defense this season, should renegotiate their contracts which still have time to run, but there is no indication they will.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0023-02

Ruel Leaves Canadiens’ Post He Never Wanted

<div class="byline">BY RANDY SMITH</div><p>HARTFORD&mdash;Larry Pleau is the Hartford Whalers&rsquo; answer to a cat on a hot tin roof.</p><p>Like the cat, Pleau will make many moves between now and September. The Whalers&rsquo; 18th-place finish prevents him from doing otherwise.</p><p>&ldquo;When you finish 18th, you really don&rsquo;t have much choice,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re crazy if you don&rsquo;t make changes.&rdquo;</p><p>The off-season arrived earlier for the Whalers this year than it had in any of nine previous years, seven in the WHA, the last two in the NHL. The Whalers, for the first time ever, failed to qualify for post-season play, thereby providing Pleau with extra hours to plot the shape of things to come.</p><p>He&rsquo;ll need the time because there is much to do.</p><p>The Whalers compiled a 14-17-9 home record en route to winning just 21 games in a season which general managing partner Howard Baldwin termed &ldquo;a giant step backward.&rdquo; The club lost a slew of players via trades and washouts, as well as a coach, Don Blackburn, and a general manager, Jack Kelley.</p><p>The responsibility of reshaping the Whalers&mdash;and the onus&mdash;lands on Pleau, both head coach and GM.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m really not sure if I can do it, but the challenge doesn&rsquo;t scare me,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;In the next two years, I&rsquo;m reasonably confident that we can turn things around.&rdquo;</p><p>Pleau, who will coach at least one full year, has hired an old friend, John Cunniff, to assist in the coaching end of it.</p><p>&ldquo;John is a sincere, down-to-earth guy who will bring some character to our organization,&rdquo; Pleau said.</p><p>Cunniff, raised in South Boston where he runs a sporting goods outfit, was a left winger for Boston College before making the 1968 United States Olympic Team. Pleau and Cunniff were teammates on that club. Cunniff turned pro in the Detroit organization, played in the Central and American Leagues and then joined the WHA Whalers in 1972-73. His pro career was brief, but Cunniff remained in hockey.</p><p>He was coach and GM for teams in Cape Cod and Manchester, N.H., and currently is coaching a New England junior team, which includes Massachusetts schoolboy hotshot Bobby Carpenter.</p><p>Cunniff is a &ldquo;sleeper,&rdquo; according to Pleau.</p><p>&ldquo;Nobody knows John,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;When we hired him, I got four or five calls from the Boston area, telling me what a good choice he was. Bobby Orr even called. He said that John was an excellent coach, a guy who really knows what hockey is all about.&rdquo;</p><p>Cunniff is something of a student, having read many books on hockey. He is particularly interested in the European perspective.</p><p>&ldquo;John spent a few days in Finland and couldn&rsquo;t believe how intensified the scouting was,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;The Finns, for example, scouted how many times a Russian right winger, say, went to his left or right. They knew that before they even got on to the ice.&rdquo;</p><p>Pleau would not say that Cunniff is being groomed for head coach of the Whalers, but admitted that Cunniff has been &ldquo;just waiting for a chance.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;Johnny wants to be a coach,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s spent the last five years or so, studying the coaching end of it. We&rsquo;ll play it by ear, but he wouldn&rsquo;t have accepted this job if he wasn&rsquo;t interested in becoming a head coach.&rdquo;<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Whalers’ Pleau Promises Changes

<div class="byline">BY HARVEY ROSEN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01499/4391278-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="596" height="1045"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Popular Peter Sullivan scored the Jets&rsquo; last goal of the season to salvage a 5-5 tie.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>W</span>INNIPEG&mdash;They say that all good things must end some day and autumn leaves must fall. Fortunately, for the hapless Winnipeg Jets, the reverse is also true and a very, very bad 1980-81 hockey campaign drew to an end when the club played to a surprising 5-5 stalemate with the St. Louis Blues.</p><p>Perhaps the outcome wasn&rsquo;t that startling since all four matches involving the two clubs over the past two seasons at the Winnipeg Arena have ended in ties.</p><p>Certainly no sane homosapien could suggest that the moderate success experienced by the Jets in holding the second place Blues to a draw will carry over into the long hot summer and into the &lsquo;81-82 season.</p><p>The game was of little consequence to either team. St. Louis had squandered their remaining opportunity to overtake the New York Islanders for first place in the overall standing on the previous day when they were shut out at home 5-0 by the North Stars.</p><p>As for Winnipeg, the club sealed its fate reasonably early in the schedule when it ran off a 30-game winless streak before Christmas.</p><p>In the declining weeks of the schedule the Jets were hard pressed to maintain a shred of dignity as they were manhandled both at home and on the road. A record of 4-23-3 during the final 30 matches will attest to that fact.</p><p>Nevertheless, the Jets&rsquo; skaters gave a respectable account of themselves against St. Louis and demonstrated in the process a modicum of pride.</p><p>After Winnipeg had opened up a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Tim Trimper and Kris Manery, St. Louis roared back with five consecutive markers and going into the final frame appeared to have a healthy grip on the situation.</p><p>Before a crowd of 14,173, more fans than some franchises drew to games in the early playoff rounds, Winnipeg scored three unanswered goals by Willy Lindstrom, Morris Lukowich, and Peter Sullivan to earn the tie.</p><p>It was poetic justice of sorts that Sully&rsquo;s fourth goal of the season should draw the club even. An underdog, he&rsquo;s the fans&rsquo; favorite.</p><p>The ovation accorded him was deafening. &ldquo;It sent shivers up and down my spine,&rdquo; he said at a postgame celebration.</p><p>It also permitted spectators to leave the arena with a warm feeling and hope for the future. The partisans had endured a 9-57-14 campaign which included only a pair of road victories over the Maple Leafs during January.</p><p>Perhaps it was fortunate for general manager John Ferguson that he departed the scene less than 24 hours later and headed to Sweden with Don Cherry and a band of NHL players, not playoff bound, including Winnipeg&rsquo;s Dave Babych, Barry Long and Lukowich.</p><p>Too many critics in the newspapers and on radio were holding the ex-Canadien responsible for one of the most disastrous seasons in the league&rsquo;s history.</p><p>Winnipeg was dead last in about every statistical department. The team scored the fewest goals, 246, and had the most goals against, 400.</p><p>As for the power play, it was by no stretch of the imagination a very potent weapon. The team ranked 21st, scoring but 59 times in 345 opportunities for a 17.1 percent success ratio.</p><p>A penalty killing percentage of 74.3, fourth-worst in the league, illustrates another weak facet of the Jets&rsquo; game.</p><p>It is also noteworthy that one of the prime shortcomings of the team was its inability to apply the muscle, a Ferguson trademark. The Jets compiled the fewest penalty minutes, 1,191.</p><p>Finding any bright spots in the total scheme of things this past year would be tantamount to locating a ballpark this summer where peanuts in the shell are 20 cents a bag.</p><p>The goaltending, obviously, was not up to snuff. In 80 games, 400 goals works out to a nice round five per.</p><p>The defense left a great deal to be desired. Opposition forwards were filling the slot with reckless abandon and the area in and around the net was not unlike the shooting gallery in a carnival.</p><p>The forwards, with the exception of two or three shooters, didn&rsquo;t have a banner year either.</p><p>The musical chairs coaching game in Winnipeg created an even more unstable atmosphere in both tangible and intangible ways.</p><p>Suffice it to say, this season&rsquo;s fall from grace was a total team effort.</p><p>Next year another total team effort will be required&mdash;in reverse.</p><p><b>JETS JABBER&mdash;</b> Kris Manery, who scored five times in his last nine games and was a tireless worker when up with the club, was sent to Tulsa of the CHL along with newcomer Sandy Beadle to aid the farm club in the playoffs. He deserves another look next season&hellip;Michael Gobuty, team president, announced that media relations man Ken Fenson, who had resigned earlier, will now remain with the organization in the capacity of vice-president of public relations. A welcome piece of news to many&hellip;While overseas, one of Ferguson&rsquo;s main goals is to sign Swedish center Thomas Steen, the Jets&rsquo; fifth round selection in the &lsquo;79 entry draft. He is considered by many to be the best player in his country&hellip;Former NHLers Brad and Ken Gassoff were in town with the Quesnel, B.C. seniors in their hunt for the Allan Cup&hellip;Defenseman Al Cameron sustained a broken foot in Tulsa and will miss the playoffs.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0024-01

Jets Look To Reverse Flight Path

<div class="byline">BY STEVE WINTER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0025-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01434/4391333-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Although Wes Jarvis wasn&rsquo;t pleased with the way he was employed by the Capitals this season, he agreed to help Hershey defend the Calder Cup.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>L</span>ANDOVER&mdash;When the Capitals&rsquo; seventh National Hockey League season concluded suddenly on April 5 after they had missed out on the Stanley Cup playoffs for a seventh consecutive season, the 20-plus members of the club scattered in just about as many different directions.</p><p>Six players shuffled off to Sweden representing three different teams in the World Hockey Championships, April 12-26. Many of the others headed for points north and west for what promises to be a long summer, filled with many recollections and afterthoughts of what might have been if certain factors were a little different.</p><p>Two players, however, travelled only slightly north&mdash;approximately three hours&mdash;but their playing seasons were far from over.</p><p>Darren Veitch and Gary Inness, both of whom were recalled from the Hershey Bears, Washington&rsquo;s AHL affiliate, on an emergency recall basis during the season, were returned to the Hershey farm club to try and lead the Bears to a second straight Calder Cup championship.</p><p>Joining Veitch and Inness were a number of popular and familiar faces, most notably center Wes Jarvis, wingers Mark Lofthouse and Paul Mulvey and goaltender Rollie Boutin. And of all those players competing in Hershey, only one player&mdash;Boutin&mdash;really expected to be there.</p><p>Mulvey started the year with high expectations on the parent Washington club, but in mid-February, he was finally sent down to the farm after a lackluster seven-goal, 14-assist performance in 54 games. He later returned to the Capitals, only to be sent down once again after just two games.</p><p>Veitch was Washington&rsquo;s No. 1 selection in the 1980-81 amateur draft, and he, of course, expected to play out the year with the Capitals. But the 20-year-old Saskatoon, Sask, native found the early going affecting his confidence. and Caps&rsquo; management finally thought it best to send him to Hershey to work on that aspect of his game. By season&rsquo;s end however, Veitch was back in Washington, and he finished the year with four goals and 21 assists in 59 games.</p><p>Lofthouse, however, hardly even made a dent in the Caps&rsquo; lineup. After a 15-goal, 18-assist performance in 1979-80, Lofthouse, Washington&rsquo;s second-round selection in the 1977 entry draft, started the season with the Bears. By mid-year, the 23-year-old New Westminster, B.C. native was leading the AHL in scoring, but a freak injury delayed his recall to the majors. Later, a two-game stint on the Capitals&rsquo; bench did little to revive Lofthouse&rsquo;s talents, and it was back to the Bears, where he wound up leading the league in points with 48 goals and 55 assists for 103 points.</p><p>Inness was probably surprised to be playing anywhere this season, let alone with the Capitals, after he broke a bone in his catching hand in preseason and sat out four months of the regular season. But when injuries to Mike Palmateer and Wayne Stephenson forced Caps&rsquo; GM Max McNab to shuffle his minor league goaltenders&mdash;Dave Parro and Boutin&mdash;back and forth between clubs, Inness suited up for the Bears. Ten games later, he was in goal for the Capitals, backstopping them to consecutive ties with St. Louis and Montreal, while keeping the club&rsquo;s playoff hopes alive.</p><p>But perhaps the biggest surprise among that group was Jarvis.</p><p>&ldquo;Jarvie&rdquo; was Washington&rsquo;s premier penalty killer during the 1979-80 season, during which time he scored 11 goals and added 15 assists for 26 points in 53 games. In a surprise move early this season, he found himself starting the 1980-81 campaign in Hershey, which prompted shock and surprise from the 21-year-old center.</p><p>&ldquo;They told me to go down there and work as hard as I could, and pretty soon I&rsquo;d be back up with the club,&rdquo; Jarvis said early in the season and that&rsquo;s exactly what happened.</p><p>By mid-November, Jarvis was back with the Capitals, killing penalties, but also seeing spot duty on a fourth line unit between an assortment of shuffling wingers. But on February 24, after scoring 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) in 55 games, back to Hershey he went.</p><p>&ldquo;When Max called me into his office and told me I was going down to Hershey, I asked if he felt 1 was playing badly,&rdquo; Jarvis said. &ldquo;And Max replied &lsquo;no, not really, it&rsquo;s just a decision we made on the managerial level, and we want to go with some of the other fellows.&rsquo; He said &lsquo;this doesn&rsquo;t mean we don&rsquo;t think you can still help us, we just want you to go down there and play as best you possibly can.&rsquo;&rdquo;</p><p>This, naturally, did not sit too well with Jarvis, but in the best interests of himself and the club, he decided to give it his best shot.</p><p>&ldquo;All along I felt I wasn&rsquo;t being used properly.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I felt I was playing well enough [15 goals and 25 assists in 12 games] to have deserved a regular shift. I was really surprised when they sent me down.&rdquo;</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to leave Washington. I really like it here. Now, I&rsquo;ve just got to go out and lead this team [Hershey] to the Calder Cup championship again, and prove that I belong here.&rdquo;</p><p>Jarvis took his first step toward that direction when he scored one goal and added two assists as the Bears thumped the New Haven Nighthawks, 6-1, in their first playoff game at Her-sheypark Arena. Five days earlier, he had closed out the regular season with a five-point night in a 7-3 win over those same Nighthawks, while earning the first star of the game.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0025-01

Capitals Send Playoff Aid To Hershey Farm

<div class="byline">BY JIM LEAHY</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>MONCTON&mdash;Norm Aubin, who led the Hawks in scoring during the regular season, scored twice as his club belted Nova Scotia 6-3 and took a commanding 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven Calder Cup playoff series. Although the Voyageurs battled back to win the fourth and fifth games of the series, the Hawks&rsquo; tight defense paved the way for a 2-1 win in Halifax and advancement to the Northern Division finals for New Brunswick.</p><p>New Brunswick went ahead 2-0 in the first period on the strength of scoring efforts by Bill Gardner and veteran J. P. Bordeleau. When Jack O&rsquo;Callahan made it 3-0 in the second period, New Brunswick was well on their way to an easy win over their rivals to the south. Even though the Vees got close at 4-3, Aubin fired a backhander making it a 5-3 contest and Bill McCreary scored at the 17:21 mark of the third period on assists by Bordeleau and Gardner.</p><p>Goaltender Bob Parent made 25 saves in that 6-3 win over Nova Scotia and continued to be a major reason why New Brunswick had a relatively easy time with the high-scoring Voyageurs, eventually eliminating them in six games. He was recalled late in the season as a replacement for Vince Tremblay and has provided the Hawks with some quality netminding after toiling in the Eastern Hockey League with Hampton.</p><p>The New Brunswick defense is rated by many scouts as one of the best in the American Hockey League. Some feared that the loss of goal tender Tremblay would give the Hawks an impossible problem to overcome, especially when the co-parent Toronto Maple Leafs recalled Paul Harrison from the CHL instead of making him available to New Brunswick. At any rate, Harrison may not have been able to play in the AHL since playoff rosters are frozen a few weeks before the end of the regular season. If Parent continues to make the big saves, New Brunswick could easily be in the championship round in a few weeks.</p><p><b>MAINE&mdash;</b> The Mariners faced Springfield in the first round of AHL playoff action and were expected to dispose of the pesky Tribe easily. However they had a big surprise as the Indians forced the series to seven games. Maine had little trouble winning the first two games which were played at the Cumberland County Civic Center, a building in which the Mariners are almost unbeatable. Maine was 27-11-2 at home during the regular campaign and 18-17-5 on the road.</p><p>In those two games at Portland, large and enthusiastic crowds supported the Mariners to a 3-1 victory in Game One and a 7-2 romp in Game Two. The series then resumed in Springfield at the Civic Center where Springfield turned on the firepower to even the series with 7-4 and 10-3 wins.</p><p>Just prior to the start of the playoffs, Maine made up somewhat for the loss of defenseman Dennis Patterson by signing veteran Bob Hoffmeyer. He was a free agent after being in the Chicago organization for several years. Hoffmeyer last appeared in the AHL during the 1979-80 season when he skated with New Brunswick and had 23 points and 161 penalty minutes in 77 AHL games Hoffmeyer joined another veteran defenseman, Dave Logan, who was also signed by Maine.</p><p><b>HERSHEY&mdash;</b> The Bears were simply awesome in their series sweep against New Haven. Even though their Southern Division rivals just made the playoffs and were not expected to be a serious threat to Hershey, AHL followers were amazed at the performance by the Bears during the first three games. They simply blew New Haven out of the water.</p><p>After winning the first game 6-1 in Hershey, the Bears went to New Haven and skated off the Coliseum ice with a 6-2 victory. Game Three in Hershey was another laughter. Eight different players got into the scoring act as Hershey sent 4,563 fans home with an 8-1 win. The game was over in the first period when the Bears fired five goals past Doug Soetaert. Coach Rod Gilbert lifted him in favor of rookie Rick Strack.</p><p>In that 6-2 win in New Haven, the Bears want wild against the defenseless Nighthawks. After Dan Clark took another a questionable penalty, rookie defenseman Darren Veitch scored on a power play at the 6:54 mark of the first period. Veitch had been sent to Hershey by Washington after the parent club failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs. Mark Lofthouse, the AHL&rsquo;s leading scorer, picked up a shorthanded goal later in the period and Hershey had a 2-0 lead. The Nighthawks managed to stage a mild comeback and tied the contest at 2-2 before Hershey exploded for four straight goals. The Bears served notice on the rest of the league when they finished off the Nighthawks in the fourth game 3-1 outscoring them for the series, 23-6.</p><p>One has to wonder if the parent Washington Capitals are watching their players in Hershey very closely. Last year the Bears caught fire late in the season and won the AHL title. This year they finished the 80-game schedule with the best overall record in the league and are romping their way through the playoffs. Washington failed to make the Stanley Cup race and obviously has a farm team loaded with talent. Those veterans on the Capitals are in for a long summer if the kids in Hershey continue to play the way they now are.</p><p><b>BINGHAMTON&mdash;</b> After finishing five points in back of the second place Adirondack Red Wings, the Whalers met the Wings in the first round of the playoffs. An upset 5-3 win in Glens Falls gave the Whalers a 1-0 lead in that series. Game Two was played at the Glen Falls Civic Center and the Wings blew out Binghamton by a 6-3 margin. The underdog Whalers then returned to the friendly confines of the Brooms County Arena where they split the next two games, winning 3-2 before losing 5-4.</p><p><b>NOVA SCOTIA&mdash;</b> Down three games to none in their battle with New Brunswick, the Voyageurs needed a miracle but fell two games short. After a first game loss of 3-2 in New Brunswick, Dave Orleski, Craig Levie and Roland Cloutier scored in the second game but New Brunswick came up with five goals to take a 5-3 decision. When the series shifted to the Halifax Metro Centre for the next two contests, Voyageurs&rsquo; fans were hopeful. That was until New Brunswick dealt them a cruel blow by taking a 6-3 decision in Game Three. Some 3,960 in Nova Scotia groaned as the Hawks won easily. Dan Metivier, Guy Carbonneau and Dave Gorman scored in that 6-3 loss. The Vees did come back for a 4-2 win to stave off elimination and then stunned the Hawks 3-0 in Moncton, but the Vees were nipped 2-1 in the sixth game to bow out.</p><p><b>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;</b> The Tribe lost the first two games in Maine, but were able to play a lot tougher back home at the Springfield Civic Center. Veteran defenseman Jim Turkiewicz came back to help their porous defense, but Larry Melnyk was injured late in the season. Springfield was outscored 10-3 by Maine in the first two games, pointing out the relative weakness in the Tribe&rsquo;s defense, but the Tribe erupted for 17 goals in 7-4 and 10-3 wins at home. Maine won Game Five 6-2, but the Indians forced a seventhgame with a 9-2 win in Springfield.</p><p><b>ADIRONDACK&mdash;</b> A veteran team can always be difficult to beat in postseason play and Red Wings&rsquo; fans were hoping that their team will survive their series with Binghamton and advance to play Hershey. They did. After the first two games, Binghamton and Adirondack were tied a 1-1. Since the Wings had the home ice advantage against the Whalers, that could have been the difference between these two evenly matched clubs. Adirondack was 24-12-4 at home and played before a packed house at every game, giving them an almost insurmountable advantage over the visiting team. After falling behind 2-1 in the series the Red Wings started flying and advanced with three straight victories, the final coming 6-5 in overtime.</p><p><b>NEW HAVEN&mdash;</b>It was almost embarrassing to see New Haven play against a powerhouse like Hershey. The Bears took the first three games of their playoff series with such relative ease that rookie coach Rod Gilbert had to be wondering how the Bears would perform in the NHL. Hershey won 6-1, 6-2 and 8-1 and looked awesome.</p><p>When the parent New York Ranger called up New Haven&rsquo;s best defenseman, John Hughes, the party was over. Doug Soetaert had a terrible series against Hershey with the goal-happy Bears scoring almost at will against the Nighthawks. For Gilbert, who is a classy individual despite his disappointment with his first year coaching, this has been a rough experience. If he only had Steve Baker, Lance Nethery, Chris Kotsopoulos and a host of other ex-Nighthawks now playing in the NHL, his rookie year behind the bench would have been a lot better.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01447/4391364-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="612" height="1218"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>New Brunswick has blended youth with veterans like J. P. Bordeleau.</b></figcaption></div><div class="sidebar"><h2>Our Mistake</h2><p>In the March 20 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS the name Rick Letnier of Memorial University was published among the MacAdam Division All Stars for Canadian colleges. We regret the error but the name should have read Rick Yetman of Memorial University.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p></div>

f0026-01

Moncton Defense Too Much For Vees; Bears’ Attack Rips New Haven Apart

<p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>SALT LAKE CITY&mdash;In a city where miracles are thought to be a way of life&mdash;just like rising prices&mdash;the Golden Eagles&rsquo; hockey team may have called upon a higher source to spring one of the most amazing comebacks ever and reach the semifinal of the Central League playoffs.</p><p>Down two games to none in a best-of-five series to the Fort Worth Texans, the Eagles, defending champions of the Central League&rsquo;s Adams Cup bounced back with three consecutive victories, including one in overtime to snatch triumph from the hands of the Texans, who had the series all but won.</p><p>The other opening round series saw the Wichita Wind upset Indianapolis and advance to a best-of-seven series with first-place Dallas, who received a bye for winning the league penant, and Tulsa make short work of Oklahoma City, in another mild upset, defeating them three games to none.</p><p>While a team faced with elimination for three games in a row has to come up big in each of their outings to survive, no game was bigger for Salt Lake than the fourth game of the series, which they won at the Salt Palace, on Joe Mullen&rsquo;s goal in the first minute of play in the second overtime period.</p><p>After Rey Comeau had put Fort Worth on top in the first period, Red Laurence and Floyd Thomson pulled Salt Lake ahead by the end of the first 20 minutes of play. Bobby Dillon brought Fort Worth even for awhile, but Paul MacLean restored the one-goal Salt Lake lead before Bobby Crawford sent the game into overtime with a goal midway through the third period.</p><p>The two teams battled through a scoreless first additional 20 minutes but then Mullen ended things quickly for Salt Lake in the second overtime frame and you could almost see Fort Worth, which had opened up a two game lead at home, sag when it came time for the fifth and deciding game.</p><p>Game Five was also played in Salt Lake and the Golden Eagles flew to a rather easy victory, 6-2. Doug Palazzari, who paced the Eagles&rsquo; attack with a pair of goals and an assist, scored just four minutes into the first period and it was all over but the shouting for the Texans.</p><p>They had looked so impressive in winning the first two games of the series at home. Second period goals by Comeau and Bobby Gould helped them to a victory in the series opener as they overcame John Taft&rsquo;s first period marker and held the Eagles at bay, 2-1.</p><p>Bobby Crawford opened the scoring for the Texans in Game Two and they held period leads of 2-1 and 5-2 before skating to a 7-3 final verdict. Gould had a pair in that contest for the Texans while other singles went to rookie Joe Ward, his first professional goal, Bobby Dillon, Blair Stewart and Doug Berry. Laurence, Mullen, and Salt Lake&rsquo;s Bobby Crawford accounted for the Golden Eagles&rsquo; goals.</p><p>Returning to Salt Lake for Game Three, the Texans scored first and last with goals by Gould and Bob Attwell, but the Eagles received a pair by Paul MacLean and a single by Mark Reeds for a 3-2 win.</p><p>Wichita came up with an overtime goal by Tommy Roulston, his third score of the night, at 14:42 of overtime to send Indianapolis to a crushing defeat in the fifth and final game of their first-round series, by a score of 6-5.</p><p>It was a see-saw series all the way in which Wichita opened with an upset win in Indianapolis, lost Game Two there, and then nearly lost the series when Indy came back to lead two games to one with a 4-2 victory in Game Three in Wichita.</p><p>In the deciding contest in Indianapolis, the Wind came back from a 4-2 deficit to even the game on second period goals by Roulston and Don Murdoch. Then after Indianapolis&rsquo; Kelly Davis staked his club to a 5-4 lead, Roulston sent the game into overtime with a marker at 9:42.</p><p>Roulston opened the scoring in the series in Indianapolis with the lone goal of the first period, but the Racers came back for a tie in the second before Guy Lash tallied two straight goals and Don Ashby added another before the second period was up. Mike Hordy closed the gap for Indianapolis, but Murdoch helped secure a 5-2 win for the Wind with the third period&rsquo;s lone tally.</p><p>The Racers evened the series with a home win in the second game as Rob Palmer broke a 3-3 second period tie and Alex Pirus supplied a cushion with a third period goal, his second of the night, before the Wind scored to cut the final margin to 5-4.</p><p>Pirus opened the scoring for the Racers&rsquo; before the Wind briefly drew even on a goal by Murdoch. Then the Racers got back-to-back scores by Kevin Devine and Glen Duncan before Roulston brought the Wind to within one before the end of the first period. Mike Dwyer&rsquo;s goal tied the game for Wichita, setting up Palmer&rsquo;s heroics.</p><p>Roulston and Murdoch figured prominently in Wichita&rsquo;s 5-3 victory in Game Four which evened the series once more. After Indy&rsquo;s Devine and Wichita&rsquo;s Lash traded goals, Roulston put the Wind ahead to stay with his first period marker. Cal Roadhouse upped the edge to two goals and when Bruce Affleck scored for the Racers in the second period, Murdoch restored the Wind&rsquo;s two-goal advantage. Duncan cut the lead to one late in the game, but Ashby added an empty-net score after the Racers had pulled rookie goalie Kelly Hrudey, who was making his first pro start.</p><p>Tulsa marched to three straight wins over Oklahoma City in their series and the toughest victory was achieved at home, 3-2, while they had a relatively easy time of it in Oke City, triumphing 6-2 and 4-2.</p><p>A five-goal burst in the first two periods in Oklahoma City helped the Oilers spurt to their series lead. Mike Antonovich, Murray Eaves, Pat Daley, Lyle Moffat and John Markell all found the range for Tulsa before the only response of the game-by Oklahoma City, a two-goal burst in 35 seconds by Richie Leduc and Warren Young. Moffat wrapped things up in the third period with his second goal of the game to go along with two assists.</p><p>Markell was the Tulsa hero in the Oilers&rsquo; only home game of the series, scoring in the first and third periods around a goal by Oklahoma City&rsquo;s Robbie Laird. Eaves put things just out of reach for the Oilers with a third period marker as the best the Stars could manage was a single goal by</p><p>Danny Chicoine.</p><p>The Oilers used the same tricks in Game Three in Oke City, shutting out the Stars for two periods while Larry Hopkins and Eaves scored in the first period, Dave Chartier and Kris Manery scored in the second. The Stars rallied with too little, too late on a pair of goals by Ron Friest.</p><p>That sent the Oilers to a semifinal showdown with the high-flying Eagles who proved to be a much more stubborn obstacle than the Stars. Salt Lake took the first two games of the series. 5-3 and 7-4, at home before heading to Tulsa for the third and fourth games.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01427/4391395-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="598" height="818"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Don Murdoch formed a devastating 1-2 punch with Tom Roulston as the Wind blew Indy from the playoffs.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0027-01

Mullen Clinches Eagle Comeback In Overtime

<p class="dropcap"><span>I</span>NDIANAPOLIS&mdash;The Indianapolis Checkers were only the third best team in the Central Hockey League this season and they didn&rsquo;t even make it to the Adams Cup championship finals. But they left their mark, anyway.</p><p>Led by freshman goaltender Roland Melanson, the Checkers skated off with two of the four individual awards and placed three players on the first All Star team and three on the second team.</p><p>It was quite a tribute to the New York Islander farmhands, who struggled in the stretch to finish third in the team race and then were upset by the Wichita Wind in the league&rsquo;s quarterfinal playoffs.</p><p>Melanson, who left the Checkers in mid-March for the NHL on recall to the Islanders, was named the winner of the Rookie of the Year award and was chosen as the first-team goalie. Another Checker star, defenseman Bruce Affleck, was voted the winner of the Bobby Orr Trophy as the best rearguard in the CHL, and he, too, was picked on the first All Star team.</p><p>League scoring champion Joe Mullen of Salt Lake was the recipient of the CHL&rsquo;s highest player award when he was named the winner of the Tommy Ivan Trophy. He was also chosen to the first All Star team at right wing. Mullen won the league scoring championship with 117 points.</p><p>The fourth individual award was won by young Dave Feamster of the Dallas Black Hawks, who was named as the winner of the Bob Gassoff Trophy as the CHL&rsquo;s most improved defenseman. Feamster is a draft pick of the Chicago Black Hawks and will be a candidate for a job with the NHL club this fall at training camp.</p><p>The All Star teams were selected by a vote among the coaches and team general managers and it looked like a monumental task for them collectively. They couldn&rsquo;t decide on a first-team left wing, picking two. It was the same situation on the second All Star team, which had eight members instead of the traditional six. There were ties at defense and center as well.</p><p>On the first All Star team were Melanson in goal, with Affleck and Greg Hubick of Dallas as the defense. Tom Roulston of Wichita, a 63-goal scorer this year, was the center flanked by Mullen at right wing and two players on the left side&mdash;Don Ashby, also of Wichita, and Indianapolis&rsquo; leading pointgetter, Neil Hawryliw, who ended tied for left wing.</p><p>The second team had two netminders&mdash;Paul Harrison of Dallas and Tulsa&rsquo;s Lindsay Middlebrook, who were deadlocked. Mike Hordy of Indy was on the defense along with Ross Cory of Tulsa. Two players were tied at center with Dave Cameron, and Garth MacGuigan, who are both from Indianapolis, named by the coaches and GMs. Rick Blight of Dallas was the right wing and Jim Nill of Salt Lake was the left wing. Blight was the No. 3 sniper in the CHL, with 46 goals, trailing Mullen, who led had 59 and Roulston, who was the league leader.</p><p>Harrison emerged as the CHL&rsquo;s leading goaltender over the entire season even though Melanson was picked on the first team. Harrison led the CHL in shutouts with four and had a 2.70 goals-against average, two factors he hopes will land him in the Toronto Maple Leafs&rsquo; goaltending picture next season. Harrison was recalled by the Leafs for the playoffs and actually saw brief action in the final Toronto playoff game.</p><p>The St. Louis Blues no doubt will take a long, hard look at former Canadian National hockey team player Jim Nill, who led the CHL in penalty minutes this season with 222. Nill played in 79 of the Eagles&rsquo; 80 games and collected 62 points, including 28 goals. The rugged six-foot, 175-pound Nill was one of the best left wingers in the league this season.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02313/4391433-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="596" height="1449"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Roland Melanson of Indy was named first team All Star goal-keeper and Rookie of the Year in his first pro season.</b></figcaption></div><h2><b>CHL All Star Teams</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03206/4391426-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="1160" height="998"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0027-02

Goalie Melanson Big Winner In CHL Awards

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>TOLEDO&mdash;Missing the playoffs may have been more damaging for the Toledo Goaldiggers than a premature ending to the current season. It may have marked the death of the franchise.</p><p>Toledo Sports Arena general manager Jerry Francis announced at a recent press conference that the franchise would be put in escrow for at least the 1981-82 campaign. Francis did leave the door open for operations next season, however, when he made it a point that the Sports Arena was in a position to assist any possible interested parties who might wish to take over operation of the franchise for the 1981-82 season.</p><p>If no investors indicate interest by June 10, the last day of the National Hockey League meetings in Montreal&mdash;the Sports Arena intends to suspend operations for next season.</p><p>Should the Diggers hibernate, it would mark the first time in 19 years Toledo would be without a team in the International Hockey League.</p><p>The Sports Arena will pay the IHL $3,500 to retain its franchise. If the arena wants to keep the franchise after next year without icing a team, it will have to pay $5,000.</p><p>Francis said &ldquo;If a hockey team can&rsquo;t take the ice for the 1981-82 season, it&rsquo;s the Sports Arena&rsquo;s hope that the economic conditions in Toledo will improve substantially to enable us to again bring professional hockey to this community for the 1982-83 season.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re looking forward to bringing the operation back. We&rsquo;ll put it to rest for a year. There&rsquo;s no alternative. We&rsquo;ll regroup and come back in two years.&rdquo;</p><p>Francis said that Goaldigger coach Bill Inglis and assistant general manager Jim Welch will be retained.</p><p>The Goaldiggers have been drawing heavily on the Sports Arena&rsquo;s cash reserves and that was the determining factor in the team&rsquo;s demise. The Diggers lost over $250,000 the past season, marking the fifth consecutive season they have lost money. The team lost nearly $300,000 two seasons ago.</p><p>Toledo finished last in the eightteam league this season, marking the first time in the team&rsquo;s seven-year history it failed to make the playoffs. The old Toledo Mercurys also dropped but of the IHL following the 1961-62 season. Hockey returned to 1963 under the auspices of Ken Wilson and the team played under the name of Blades.</p><p>Attendance throughout the league was down this season, reflecting the lethargic national economy. Total attendance fell by 8.5 percent. Total attendance, based on unofficial figures compiled from published reports, was 926,608 during the regular season. Milwaukee, Port Huron and Muskegon drew more fans this season but only Milwaukee and Port Huron increased their average attendance.</p><p>But none of the remaining seven clubs appear ready to follow Toledo&rsquo;s example. Muskegon, which had been struggling, showed a good increase over the final 11 games after Ted Garvin arrived on the scene and sparked a late-season surge which put the Mohawks in the playoffs. Muskegon lost to Flint in the first-round, however, a mini, three-game series to name the semifinal opponent for league champion and two-time Turner Cup winner Kalamazoo.</p><p>Muskegon extended Flint to the limit, falling in the final game at Flint in overtime. Pierre Giroux scored the winning goal at 4:24 of the sudden death overtime to give Flint a 5-4 triumph. Wayne Thompson, who has been an able sidekick to Giroux most of the season, scored three goals in the win. Flint had to come from behind twice to survive, 3-2 and 4-3. Each time it was Thompson who scored the tying goal. Thompson got his hat trick and the goal which sent the game into overtime at 16:35 of the final period.</p><p>Flint then took on Kalamazoo which had been idle for two weeks.</p><p>One-half of the other semifinal matchup had also been decided as Saginaw swept Port Huron in four straight. The key game was the third, which Saginaw won at 50 seconds of the second overtime, 4-3. Port Huron forced the overtime when Wayne Ramsay scored with 1:14 left on a power play. The Flags had a two-man advantage at the time as coach Doug Hinton pulled his goalie.</p><p>Saginaw had to await the outcome of the other quarterfinal set between Fort Wayne at Milwaukee. The two teams split the first four games, each team winning in its own rink. Three of the four games were tight with Port Wayne winning, 5-4 in overtime, and 4-3. Milwaukee took the first game in Milwaukee. 8-4, but was pressed to the limit to win the fourth game. 4-2. The Komets were down just 3-2 when Milwaukee scored an open-net goal in the final 47 seconds.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01413/4391464-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="608" height="924"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Wayne Thompson&rsquo;s third goal of the night sent Flint on to an overtime win against Muskegon.</b></figcaption></div><p>Milwaukee moved to within a win of wrapping up the series with a 5-4 victory in the fifth game but with their backs against the wall, Fort Wayne forced a seventh game in the series with a 4-2 victory.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0028-01

Goaldiggers Facing Year In Escrow If Toledo Investors Aren’t Found

<div class="byline">BY DAN CURRIER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0028-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02305/4391495-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Wisconsin netminder Marc Behrend shows off the form that made him the most valuable player in the 1981 NCAA tournament as he backstopped the Badgers to the title.</b></figcaption></div><p>MADISON&mdash;Wisconsin goalie Marc Behrend was ready to toss his skates and mask into the closet.</p><p>Instead, the Western Collegiate Hockey Association&rsquo;s top goalie is now sitting on top of the collegiate hockey world. Behrend led his &ldquo;backdoor Badgers&rdquo; into the NCAA final four and came away as the Most Valuable Player, leading Wisconsin to its third NCAA title.</p><p>Behrend held off Minnesota by making 30 saves as the Badgers beat the nation&rsquo;s No. 1 team, 6-3 in the championship game at the Duluth Arena March 28.</p><p>The Badger icemen can be thankful that Behrend thought seriously about his future at the beginning of this season. At that time he was thinking of quitting hockey and school.</p><p>&ldquo;After Roy Schultz was drafted by the Boston Bruins last summer, 1 thought I&rsquo;d be in for the second goalie spot on the team,&rdquo; said the sophomore, who attended Madison LaFollette High School. &ldquo;I went to the Junior Olympics camp in Colorado Springs and I played well there. But in fall camp I didn&rsquo;t do too well.</p><p>&ldquo;I was mentally pressing myself and 1 was discouraged. 1 wasn&rsquo;t concentrating. I didn&rsquo;t go on the Northern Michigan trip and then they kept me on the JV squad. Plus, I wasn&rsquo;t interested in school.&rdquo;</p><p>Behrend told coach Bob Johnson he intended to quit.</p><p>&ldquo;Marc came to fall camp as the fourth goalie on the team. He wasn&rsquo;t playing much and he told me he wanted to leave the team,&rdquo; said Johnson.</p><p>&ldquo;I told him to sleep on it and see me the next day.&rdquo;</p><p>Behrend talked to his family and friends. He realized that without a job, he would be putting himself into a do-nothing situation.</p><p>Thus, he made his decision to continue classes and concentrate on his studies. &ldquo;I realized I had to get myself together as a person and not just as a hockey player,&rdquo; he said.</p><p>Behrend said the decision was the biggest he ever made. He finally got his chance when he played one period against Yale and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.</p><p>His first start came against Michigan in Madison.</p><p>&ldquo;I was pretty excited about starting that game because it was played the day before my 20th birthday. I wanted to prove to the coaching staff that I could play,&rdquo; recalled Behrend.</p><p>After Wisconsin&rsquo;s other goalie, Terry Kleisinger, injured an ankle against North Dakota and Jamey Gemore walked out during the Minnesota game, Behrend claimed the No. 1 goalie spot. He was a key factor in the Badgers&rsquo; second-place finish in the WCHA with a 17-11 record and the NCAA national championship.</p><p>Behrend and Kleisinger finished No. 1 and 2 in the WCHA with the lowest goals-against averages of 3.18 and 3.25.</p><p>Behrend&rsquo;s decision to stay made it possible for the Badgers to play in their sixth NCAA tournament in Johnson&rsquo;s 14 years as coach.</p><p>Several weeks ago, it looked as if the season was over. The Badgers were upset by Colorado College, 13 goals to 12, in a two-game total goals series in the WCHA playoffs.</p><p>&ldquo;After the Colorado College game, I felt relieved that the season was over and the pressure was off me,&rdquo; said Behrend.</p><p>&ldquo;But the next day, coach Johnson told us we had an outside chance for an at-large berth. I couldn&rsquo;t believe it. The team was in a state of shock. I was surprised because after losing to Colorado College, I was bitter about the loss and didn&rsquo;t think we had a chance to go. But the NCAA committee this year looked at our overall record and gave us the bid.&rdquo;</p><p>Behrend was planning to take a trip to Florida and forget about hockey for awhile. He said that after the Colorado College game he needed some rest and relaxation. His vacation was delayed by a couple of weeks, but Behrend says the trip to the land of sunshine will be sweeter now.</p><p><i>Dan Currier, making his debut in</i> THE HOCKEY NEWS, <i>covers sports for the Milwaukee</i> Sentinel.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0028-02

NCAA’s MVP Goalie Almost Quit Hockey

<div class="byline">BY PATRICK LYON</div><p>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>RICHMOND&mdash;The Erie Blades neared their third straight Eastern Jockey League John Mitchell Cup as hey held a commanding three games to zero advantage over the Richmond Rifles when this issue went to press.</p><p>Erie, who won the regular season title by an astounding 29 points over second place Richmond, continued their domination in the playoffs by ripping off seven straight post-season victories. The Blades manhandled the Baltimore Clippers in sweeping them in four straight games and were within one win of doing the same to the Rifles.</p><p>Coach Nick Polano&rsquo;s Blades were peaking at just the right time as they literally destroyed Richmond in the first two games played at the Erie County Fieldhouse. Erie blasted their final series foe 8-1 in Game 1 and then further embarrassed Richmond by a whopping 13-5 in Game 2 which gave Erie a 21-6 goals advantage in the first two games of the series.</p><p>Playing the first three games of the final in three consecutive nights also failed to slow down the defending champs when they returned to Richmond for Game 3 and skated to a 6-1 triumph with goalie Rich Knickle showing the way.</p><p>Game 1 was a coaches dream for Polano since he could find no faults at all in Erie&rsquo;s 8-1 victory. Defenseman Mark Pletts helped Erie assume control only 1:35 after the opening face off when his shot went off a skate and past Richmond goalie Tom Semenchuk.</p><p>Goals by defenseman Scott McGeown and Ron Hansis boosted the Erie margin to 3-0 at 7:31 before Rifle Tom Mullen countered with a power play strike at 9:22. Just when it appeared Richmond might be mounting an attack, Stan Gulutzan lifted the puck over a fallen Semenchuk for a 4-1 first period gap.</p><p>Erie demonstrated their finese at playing on the open ice by slamming home three goals in a space of little more than four minutes. With both teams skating three players aside, Hansis got credit for his second of the night at 4:13. Val James followed with a lamplighter on a four-on-four situation at 6:58 and McGeown returned for another tally at 8:40 as his shot from the point beat a screened Semechuk. Pierre Aubry closed the scoring with his fourth playoff goal at 17:34.</p><p>Though there were no goals scored in the final period it wasn&rsquo;t without its excitement as goalie Carey Walker returned from the disabled list and made several superior saves in relief of Knickle.</p><p>In his post-game meeting with his team, Polano stressed the importance to his players of keeping up their intensity. He was worried that the club might suffer a letdown for Game 2, but it never happened since the Blades humiliated the Rifles 13-5.</p><p>The two EHL finalists battled on equal terms for the first three minutes before an Erie barrage hurt Richmond and goalie Randy Ireland.</p><p>Hansis&rsquo; goal at 2:23 of the first period was equaled by Ray Kurpis&rsquo; first playoff tally for Richmond at 3:04, but soon the Rifles were out of the second contest by succumbing to eight straight goals on a streak that started midway through the initial session and lasted until late in the second period.</p><p>Erie waltzed to their 9-1 advantage on two goals by Aubry, a pair by Paul Sheard and singles by McGeown, Chris Halyk, Gulutzan and Ross Brownridge.</p><p>Mullen and Clarke brought Richmond within 9-3 with goals. However, Erie soon increased the gap to 11-3 on red lighters by Aubry and Richard David. Paul Pacific and Ed Smith had the other Richmond lamplighters and Halyk and Jim Cowell closed out the scoring in the rout.</p><p>Aubry led the scoring parade with a hat trick, with Halyk and captain Sheard each earning two goals apiece. Playmaker Hansis had three assists.</p><p>&ldquo;We were ready to play once again,&rsquo;&rsquo; said Polano following his club&rsquo;s victory in the second game. &ldquo;We made a couple of costly mistakes that we weren&rsquo;t happy about, but 1 think the reason was that we got up by so many goals and we just started to play loose. Five goals against is too much, but overall we played very well.&rdquo;</p><p>Coach Andre Beaulieu was visibly upset with the effort put forth by his club in the first two games and didn&rsquo;t wish to discuss the games with the media.</p><p>Richmond returned to the Coliesum for Game 3 and played without suspended Lawrie Nisker. Even though they did play a better overall game the results were the same with the Rifles falling 6-1.</p><p>The Rifles raced to the lead just two minutes into the contest on Mike Clarke&rsquo;s 65-foot shot that eluded Knickle. but the Erie netminder kept his teammates in the game with some spectacular saves. The EHL&rsquo;s top goalie time and time again turned away the Rifles while stopping 44 shots.</p><p>Erie wasn&rsquo;t skating very well to open the game; however they did manage a tie at 6:33 when Lou Sleigher blasted a shot from the right face-off circle by Semenchuk.</p><p>The Blades finally got untracked midway through the second period and a Hansis backhander at 8:20 and a power play goal by Cowell at 9:50 pushed Erie&rsquo;s lead to 3-1. Gulutzan scored late in the period and Halyk and Cowell added third period goals to bolster the Blades&rsquo; margin to three games to zero.</p><p>It was ironic that the EHL&rsquo;s two most physical teams during the regular season played three consecutive games without any fights breaking out. In seven playoff games, Erie had outscored their playoff opponents, 53-16.</p><p>The Blades got to the finals by sweeping the Clippers with Knickle supporting his teammates with four straight wins and a 2.25 goals-against average. Sleigher had nine points, ineluding three power play goals in the semifinals, as did Aubry.</p><p>Henry Taylor and Dale Yakiwchuk each contributed three points for Baltimore.</p><p>Erie managed a 7-4 win in Baltimore and then proceeded to sweep the series in Erie with consecutive 8-2, 6-2 and 5-1 decisions.</p><p>Richmond had a much tougher time with the Salem Raiders, with Salem extending their foes to six games before the Rifles gained their spot in the finals.</p><p>The home team earned victories in the first five games and Richmond claimed the series in six games by stopping Salem 4-1 on the Raiders&rsquo; home ice. Ed Smith paced Richmond with 11 points, Claude LaPointe and Tony Thomas getting six apiece for Salem.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01364/4391526-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="608" height="702"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Leading the offensive charge for Erie has been Pierre Aubry, the EHL&rsquo;s leading scorer.</b></figcaption></div><p>The loss by the Raiders negated an excellent showing by goalie Gilles Moffet, who posted only a 2-4 record, but an exceptional 2.85 goals-against average. Semenchuk (2.67 GAA) and Ireland (3.33) both earned two wins and one loss in the semifinal series.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0029-01

Erie On Verge Of Third EHL Title Slicing Easily Through Opposition

<div class="byline">BY MIKE BROPHY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01407/4391602-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="592" height="977"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Doug Smith, a super star center from Ottawa, might be the OHL&rsquo;s top available forward.</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02319/4391595-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="593" height="1118"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>NHL teams looking for a stay-at-home defenseman will be interested in Niagara Falls&rsquo; Ron Meighan.</b></figcaption></div><p>TORONTO&mdash;Doug Smith. Joe Cirella. Ron Francis.</p><p>Hockey scouts argue in press rooms over which player is better; who will go. higher in the draft and how each player can help certain teams.</p><p>Yes folks, it&rsquo;s that time of year again.</p><p>The junior draft is just around the corner and the spotlight is bn certain individuals. Youngsters who have barely got their feet wet in the junior circuit are now in demand by the pros.</p><p>Once again, the Ontario Hockey League is blessed with an abundance of talent and as usual, a few top candidates for professional careers, have surfaced to the top of the pack.</p><p>Unlike the old days of hockey scouting, when the birddogs had two or three years to watch a player develop, getting a better picture of an individual&rsquo;s ability, players are being selected after only one year of junior. Scouting has now become little more than guess work.</p><p>Some players look great at 17 years old but have reached the end of their development. They may be taken high in the draft now and forgotten about two years later when it comes time to make the jump. Others start slowly but get better with experience.</p><p>In any case, here are a few of the players from the OHL who have caught the eyes of the scouts and Should be among the top picks of the National Hockey League entry draft.</p><p><b>Joe Cirella&mdash;</b> A rookie defenseman with the Oshawa Generals, Cirella is rated third overall by Central Scouting. He is big, strong and is a good puck handler. One flaw is his tendency to give the puck away. Cirella scored five goals and added 31 assists for 36 points in the regular season while sitting out 220 penalty minutes. His brother Carmen played two seasons with the Peterborough Petes and is now in the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; organization.</p><p><b>Doug Smith&mdash;</b>An Ottawa 67&rsquo;s superstar center. Smith is considered the best forward in the OHL available for the draft. Winner of the Bobby Smith award as the player best combining hockey skill and academics. Smith scored 45 goals and chipped in with 56 assists. He has two years OHL experience behind him and two more years of eligibility remaining. A smooth skater, he has had knee injuries in the past.</p><p><b>Ron Francis&mdash;</b> The 6-0. 180 pound center is one of the many top picks the Sault Ste. Maries Greyhounds had in the last midget draft who have helped them become a powerhouse in the OHL. As a midget last year, Francis scored 57 goals and had 92 assists for 149 points He made the successful jump to junior and completed the regular season with 26 goals and 43 assists, playing on the second line.</p><p><b>Steve Smith&mdash;</b> The hardest hitter in the OHL, Smith is another great Soo rookie and was selected most valuable player for the Leyden Division in the All Star game. When Smith hits someone, it isn&rsquo;t to knock him out of the play, it&rsquo;s an attempt to knock him out of the lineup. His three goals and 37 assists helped the Soo attack but his real value lies in his work behind the blueline. He is smooth getting the puck out of his end and makes opposition players pay the price for standing in front of the Greyhounds&rsquo; goal.</p><p><b>Claude Loiselle&mdash;</b> Most eves were on Ernie Godden when the Windsor Spitfires were in action but those who watched Loiselle, saw one of the most complete players to come into the league in a long time. Loiselle scored 38 goals and 56 assists for 94 points as a rookie but was equally at home when asked to concentrate on the defensive aspects of the game. Not flashy, Loiselle simply gets the job done.</p><p><b>Ron Meighan&mdash;</b> A second-year blueliner with the Niagara Falls Flyers, Meighan concentrates on what goes on in his own end instead of trying to score points. While staying at home, he still managed eight goals and 27 assists.</p><p><b>Mark Hunter&mdash;</b> Scouts are hoping that Mark will follow in the footsteps of his brothers Dale and Dave, who arealready in the NHL. Some feel he may be the best of the bunch. While his points production fell off a bit from his first year, when he had 34 goals and 56 assists for 90 points, the Alexanders were an inconsistent team and Hunter, Daryl Evans and Mike Bullard were the few bright lights. Hunter managed 39 goals and 40 assists as well as 157 penalty minutes.</p><p><b>John Goodwin&mdash;</b> A former OHL Rookie of the Year. Goodwin won the scoring title this season with 56 goals and 109 assists. Some feel he is too light for the pros (155 pounds) but others say his swift skating and heads-up style will make up for lack of stature.</p><p><b>Tony Tanti&mdash;</b> The greatest goal scorer to ever come into the league, Tanti will have to overcome the knock of being too small for the NHL. Although he scored 81 goals, beating the old rookie scoring record of 70 set by Wayne Gretzky, Tanti stands just under 5-10 and weighs 180 pounds. His 197 penalty minutes let some scouts know that he won&rsquo;t be caught backing down when the action gets chippy. Still, he has been accused of a little too much stick work behind the referee&rsquo;s back and that will have to cease if he plans on moving up. Tanti is too talented to bother taking cheap and unnecessary penalties.</p><p><b>Ernie Godden&mdash;</b> Some call him Ernie Who? He&rsquo;s the little guy from Windsor who just happened to set a single season scoring record of 87 goals. Godden is fast and tough, but like Tanti, is small. He is 5-8 and just over 160 pounds. Eleven of his goals were shorthanded efforts. Watch for his former coach Wayne Maxner, now with Detroit, to grab him.</p><p><b>Norm Schmidt&mdash;</b> The Generals&rsquo; rookie defenseman really came into his own in the second half, developing into a very steady performer who boasts a hard shot from the point. Schmidt, who likes to hit, scored 12 goals and 25 assists for 37 points.</p><p><b>Ken Strong&mdash;</b> The Peterborough Petes&rsquo; top pick in the midget draft last year. Strong got better with every outing. In the playoffs, he was the team&rsquo;s best forward, showing the type of speed and moves that could open professional doors in the future. Strong had 17 goals and 36 assists as the Petes&rsquo; fourth center, behind three veterans, in the regular season.</p><p>Players who starred in the OHL this season but aren&rsquo;t eligible for the draft include the Kitchener Rangers&rsquo; Brian Bellows (49-67-116), the Petes&rsquo; 16-year-old defenseman Mike Posavad and Sudbury Wolves&rsquo; Chris Kontos (17-27-44).</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03223/4391588-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="581" height="809"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Ernie Godden&rsquo;s former Windsor coach, Wayne Maxner. now with Detroit, may draft the recordsetting goal-scorer.</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04149/4391581-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="575" height="1255"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The knock against Tony Tanti is his size, but the Oshawa star broke Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s rookie goal mark.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0030-01

Draftees Blessed With Abundance Of Talent

<div class="byline">BY MIKE BROPHY</div><p>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</p><p>KITCHENER&mdash;Orval Tessier is not a puppet.</p><p>So when he signed on as coach and general manager of the Kitchener Rangers last summer, he made it clear right away that he would accept absolutely no interference from the big brass upstairs on how to run his hockey team. That&rsquo;s the way he had operated successfully in the past and he had no intention of changing.</p><p>On other teams, the request would not seem unreasonable. With the Rangers however, it seemed impossible.</p><p>The Rangers have 40 directors running the team. In the past, that has meant 40 different ideas on how the game should be played. Good hockey coaches have come to Kitchener with puffed out chests and big ideas one day only to be seen crawling away from the Rangers demoralized, trying to maintain some sanity and respectability the next.</p><p>Likewise, many talented hockey teams in Kitchener have struggled through miserable seasons because of the interference inflicted upon them.</p><p>This season under Tessier, things have been different. While they may not be the most talented team in the league, they have stability and have consistently improved from day one. And yes, there was light at the end of the tunnel.</p><p>Even playing without some of their best players, the Rangers have worked their way into the league finals and will meet the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds to decide which OHL team will replace the Peterborough Petes at the Memorial Cup tournament this season. The Petes have represented the league the past three seasons.</p><p>The Rangers, who managed a first place finish in the Emms Division, wiped out the defending division champion Windsor Spitfires 9-1 in their eight-point final with a 4-0 victory in game five. A season ago, the Rangers finished with the worst record in the OHL&mdash;17 wins and 51 losses.</p><p>&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think we had the best team at the starting gate, this year,&rdquo; said Tessier. &ldquo;But we stayed with the same players all season and it&rsquo;s paid Off. The guys just kept working and they believed in themselves. We set goals at the start of the year as far as the playoffs were concerned, and I knew the guys who were here would work towards them. I just kept hoping the kids would be rewarded for their hard work and now I&rsquo;m glad they have been.&rdquo;</p><p>Tessier won&rsquo;t take any credit for the Rangers&rsquo; strong showing this season. He will however admit that things were done his way and he didn&rsquo;t receive any interference from &lsquo;The 40 Thieves&rsquo; (owners).</p><p>&ldquo;That was the only way I would take the job,&rdquo; said Tessier. &ldquo;I think the problem here in Kitchener in the past has been too much interference from management. We corrected that this season and things have worked out well.&rdquo;</p><p>After a poor start (they were last in November), the Rangers started gathering momentum around Christmas time. In the second half, they tied with the Ottawa 67&rsquo;s for most points. Kitchener won 20 of its final 27 games.</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been a gradual thing,&rdquo; Tessier said. &ldquo;We wanted to be fourth by Christmas and we made it. Then when we got back, we decided to try for third place. Once we got there, I noticed the pack was tightening up near the top so I said to the guys, &lsquo;let&rsquo;s see how high we can get&rsquo;.&rdquo; The Rangers wrapped up first place on the final day of the season.</p><p>The team blended together so well that even when some of the top performers went down to injury and illness, others were there to fill in the gaps. Kevin Casey, who didn&rsquo;t get much ice time during the regular season, scored three goals in the division finals against the Spits.</p><p>Against Windsor, the Rangers played most of the series without their best defenseman, Joe McDonnell, who was out with a shoulder injury; speedy forward Russ Adam who suffered ligament damage in the second game of their series with the Niagara Falls Flyers; tough guy Bob Hicks, who lost 10 pounds in two days with the flu, and rookie-turned-captain turned-superstar Brian Bellows, who had bruised ribs.</p><p>Bellows returned to the lineup for the final game against Windsor and scored the only goal of the first period and then scored another and set up a third in the final period.</p><p>The Rangers will face the big test in the league finals. No matter who they meet, Tessier won&rsquo;t be taking the opposition lightly.</p><p>&ldquo;We are very respectful of both Soo and Kingston,&rdquo; said Tessier before the Greyhounds won the series. &ldquo;Soo is a very good offensive team and the Canadians rely mostly on defense.</p><p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll tell you one thing though, no matter who we play, nobody&rsquo;s going to blow us out. The kids have come too far and they just don&rsquo;t know when to quit.&rdquo;</p><p>In the Leyden final, the Canadians pulled even with Soo in their eightpoint final with a 5-3 victory in the fifth game. That tied the series at five points each. Soo had moved ahead 4-0 but the stingy Canadians have battled back.</p><p>Bernie Nicholls and Scotty Howson scored two goals each for Kingston while defenseman Rick Wilson had the other. Doug Shedden, Steve Gatzos and Terry Tait had the Soo goals.</p><p>But the Soo rallied to win the sixth game, 5-3, and routed the Canadians in Kingston, 8-1, to move to the finals.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

Tessier’s Touch Puts Kitchener Into Finals

<div class="byline">BY GREGG DRINNAN</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>VICTORIA&mdash;The Victoria Cougars are setting such a blazing playoff pace it almost seems like nothing short of a disaster will ground the Western Divisions champions in their quest for the Western Hockey League championship.</p><p>The Cougars, who stand an excellent chance of being the WHL representatives in the Memorial Cup playoffs at Windsor, Ont., the first week in May, have rolled up 28 straight victories, 20 of them coming at the tailend of the regular schedule and the other eight in the playoffs.</p><p>In fact, the Cougars have been invincible since the playoffs got underway. They&rsquo;ve rolled to eight wins in a row, including their most recent achievement, a four-game sweep of the Portland Winter Hawks in the best-of-seven Western Division final. The win assured Victoria of a berth in the championship round against either the Calgary Wranglers or the Regina Pats, who are battling down to the wire for the Eastern Division title.</p><p>The Cougars, who ripped through Spokane in four games and then dumped Portland in four, haven&rsquo;t lost since Feb. 4, making them big favorites to win the overall playoff title.</p><p>Meanwhile, Calgary&rsquo;s Bill Hobbins continued to widen his scoring lead as he collected 26 points in his first 14 games to move six ahead of Garth Butcher of Regina. If the Wranglers make it to the final against Victoria, it will be interesting to see if Hobbins can hold off Victoria&rsquo;s Barry Pederson for the individual playoff scoring title. Pederson skated in only eight games in the post-season round and came up with 19 points, eight of them goals. Hobbins had the benefit of playing in more games than Pederson.</p><p>Hobbins shot 11 goals in the 14 playoff games and he along with Ray Cote and Bruno Baseotto were providing the offensive punch for the Wranglers in their bid to dethrone the Regina Pats, who won it all last season.</p><p>The Cougars have a few big guns to toss at either Calgary or Regina in the final showdown. Pederson, Rich Chernomaz, Bud McCarthy, Grant Rezansoff, Mark Morrison and Washington Caps&rsquo; draft pick Torrie Robertson are among the top 15 playoff scorers in the WHL.</p><p>Grant Fuhr of Victoria is another good reason why the Cougars will be tough to overcome in the finals. The spectacular netminder, who will likely become the No. 1 goalie pick in the 1981 Entry Draft at Montreal, leads all WHL goalkeepers with a 2.50 goals-against average. He has been the Cougars&rsquo; main cog in their tremendous stretch and playoff drive.</p><p>The Cougars advanced by sweeping the Spokane Flyers to the sidelines in four games, while Portland ousted the Seattle Breakers in five.</p><p>The Winter Hawks, while not exactly hard-pressed, had to work to get Seattle out of the way and that was mostly due to Ken Hodge, the Breakers&rsquo; 20-year-old goaltender.</p><p>Portland scored a 6-3 victory in the fifth and final game, with Perry Pelensky banging in his fourth and fifth goals of the series.</p><p>Pelensky, for one, thought the series with Seattle did the Winter Hawks a lot of good.</p><p>&ldquo;I think Seattle played us tough in the whole series,&rdquo; said the 18-year-old rookie right winger, &ldquo;which is to our advantage because Victoria didn&rsquo;t have much trouble with Spokane. That means we might be more ready to play. I&rsquo;ll tell you what we needed was playoff experience and Seattle gave it to us. We matured quite a bit in this series.&rdquo;</p><p>In the fourth game, Portland banged in four second-period goals, including two from Brian Shaw, and went on to dump the Breakers 5-2. The Winter Hawks fired 20 shots at Hodge in the first period, but came out trailing 1-0.</p><p>The Winter Hawks got blown out in the first game of the final, though, as the Cougars, playing at home, waltzed to a 7-0 victory. It was the Cougars&rsquo; 25th consecutive victory, including their last 20 regular-season games.</p><p>Torrie Robertson led the charge with two goals and an assist, while Mark Morrison and Bud McCarthy had a goal and two assists each.</p><p>Victoria goaltender Grant Fuhr, who was called upon to make just two stops in the first period, finished up with 19 saves.</p><p>In the Eastern Division, the Wranglers won their semifinal opener against Lethbridge, downing the Broncos 6-4 in Calgary&rsquo;s Corral.</p><p>The Wranglers led 3-0 going into the last period, but had to hang on, with John Smyth&rsquo;s empty net goal wrapping up the victory. Bill Hobbins led the home side with a goal and three assists.</p><p>In that opening game, Lethbridge&rsquo;s Brent Sutter became physically involved with a linesman and was subsequently fined $500. At the same time, the Broncos had to post a $2,000 performance bond to prevent similar incidents.</p><p>Two nights later, the Wranglers scored a 6-4 victory in Lethbridge, pushing the Broncos to the brink of elimination. Ray Cote sparked the Wranglers with a goal and two assists.</p><p>Calgary earned a berth in the semifinal by disposing of the Billings Bighorns in five games. The Wran-, glers posted a 6-3 victory in that fifth game, thanks to three goals from Clint Fehr.</p><p>Heading into Calgary for the third game of the series, the Broncos could have packed it in, but didn&rsquo;t and came away with a 4-1 triumph which kept their hopes alive. But Calgary turned the tables the next night in Lethbridge, shutting out the Broncos 4-0 to win the series three games to one and earn the right to meet Regina in the Eastern Division final.</p><p>Meanwhile, in off-ice news, general manager Tracy Pratt announced that the New Westminster Bruins will give season-ticket holders a full refund for the 13 home games which were not played at Queens Park Arena.</p><p>The move is expected to cost the Bruins in the neighborhood of $22,000.</p><p>The Bruins were forced out of Queens Park on Jan. 30 by a labor dispute and played the remainder of their home games in such locations as Bellingham, Wash., and Trail, B.C.</p><p>And, the Saskatoon Blades announced that Daryl Lubiniecki will return as coach and general manager for the 1981-82 season.</p><p>Lubiniecki took over the dual role on Dec. 2 when general manager Jack McLeod and coach Lome Frey resigned.</p><p>The Blades also announced that Dennis Beyak, sports director at CFQC Radio and Television, has been hired as assistant general manager. Beyak has handled the play-by-play of Blades&rsquo; games for the past couple of seasons. Former Blade Bruce Hamilton was named director of player personnel.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01373/4391633-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="604" height="1092"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Calgary&rsquo;s Bill Hobbins was the leading playoff scorer with 26 points in 14 games.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0031-01

Victoria Streaks Into WHL Finals; Calgary’s Hobbins Hot In Playoffs

<div class="byline">BY HERB ZURKOWSKY</div><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p><b>LOUISVILLE HOCKEY STICKS</b></p><p>SOREL&mdash;For the second time in two years the Sorel Black Hawks are moving back to Verdun.</p><p>Rodrigue Lemoyne, the Hawks&rsquo; owner and president, confirmed this week that he has approached Verdun city council as well as the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in a bid for a franchise.</p><p>The team will have the same players, but a different name and Lemoyne said he could be looking for new partners.</p><p>&ldquo;Maybe I&rsquo;m a little superstitious,&rdquo; Lemoyne, an attorney in nearby Tracy,&rsquo; told THE HOCKEY NEWS. &ldquo;I want to return to Verdun.&rdquo;</p><p>Lemoyne will remain with the team as will coach Ron Lapointe, the former Montreal Juniors&rsquo; mentor who joined &ldquo;The Bear&rdquo; in Sorel after he had fired former Montreal Canadien Bob Rousseau. Rousseau had been coaching Sorel&rsquo;s junior A affiliate, which disbanded when the Hawks ventured 40 miles east.</p><p>The Hawks originally started in Sorel in 1965. They moved to Verdun, a Montreal borough, for the 1977-78 season, enjoying moderate success with the likes of Raymond Bourque, Steve Kasper and Normand Aubin as part of their teams.</p><p>But Bourque, a popular player amongst the blue collar workers who attended the games, was drafted by the Boston Bruins in 1979. With his loss, so went some of Hawks&rsquo; support.</p><p>Seeing that at best, he had a middle-of-the-pack team that would quickly be ousted from the playoffs, Lemoyne shocked Quebec hockey fans by trading Aubin and two others to the Sherbrooke Beavers early that season for three 17-year-olds, among them Jean-Marc Gaulin.</p><p>But, alas, with Aubin, so went the Hawks&rsquo; playoff chances. And there was no way the Verdun fans were going to support a loser.</p><p>So, on Dec. 30, 1979, the Hawks moved back to Sorel. Prior to the shift they were attracting as few as 200 fans to many of their games.</p><p>The Hawks finished ninth overall in Sorel, but this season, had a far superior outfit.</p><p>Yet, although challenging the Cornwall Royals for the Lebel Division lead throughout most of the season before slipping to second (fourth overall) in the later stages of the year, the Hawks were hard-pressed to get more than 1.500 for many of their games.</p><p>Immediately after being ousted by the Beavers in seven games in this season&rsquo;s quarterfinals, rumors started that Hawks would come back to Verdun.</p><p>Lemoyne told THE HOCKEY NEWS that in his one-and-a-half seasons in Sorel, he lost approximately $100,000</p><p>How well Hawks will do in Verdun remains a mystery.</p><p>Verdun had a senior A team go bankrupt this year. But on the other hand, if the Hawks can ice an average team, perhaps they won&rsquo;t do too badly.</p><p>The return to Verdun gives the Montreal metropolitan area three junior teams once again&mdash;the Montreal Juniors and Laval Voisins.</p><p>It will also afford junior hockey fans the opportunity of seeing a Dale Hawerchuk or players of that calibre more often.</p><p>As for the playoffs, a seventh-game was required in both semifinals: The Cornwall Royals vs. Sherbrooke Beavers; and the Trois-Rivieres Draveurs vs. Chicoutimi Sagueneens. And in each the home team prevailed, Cornwall winning 4-2 and Trois Rivieres triumphing 9-7.</p><p>Sherbrooke evened their series at 2-2 with a. 5-4 overtime victory on home ice, and for the second consecutive game in Sherbrooke, Sean McKenna scored the overtime goal.</p><p>In the second game it took him 3:07. This time, just 62 seconds had elapsed when he picked up Dennis Martin&rsquo;s rebound in the slot and slid it past goalie Joe Mantione before he had time to recover.</p><p>The Sags also evened their series on the same night and they too needed overtime.</p><p>Defenseman Gilbert Dalorme scored the overtime goal at 3:28 but his three previous goals in the game overshadowed the feat.</p><p>The Royals continued this homers series with a 6-3 win in the fifth game.</p><p>But the big story in this game was a brawl that developed at the conclusion of the second period as both teams were making their way to their dressing rooms.</p><p>Beavers&rsquo; center Tim Cranston, reserve winger Mark Nash, and Royals&rsquo; defenseman Fred Boimis-truck were all given match penalties by referee Robert Olivier.</p><p>Cranston tried tripping Fred Arthur, who was engaged in a fight with Daniel Cloutier. Olivier, however, interpreted the move as a kick.</p><p>Nash and Boimistruck, meanwhile, were swinging their sticks at one another. After Boimistruck struck Nash, the Sherbrooke rookie hit Boimistruck over the head.</p><p>At the same time the Draveurs were scoring an 8-3 victory on home ice in Game 5.</p><p>The Sags lost right winger Robert Millette in the game after he was the aggressor in a fight with Jean-Rene Tapia.</p><p>Millette was suspended for two games while Cranston, Nash and Boimistruck all received one game.</p><p>In the sixth games, the home teams continued winning; the Beavers 3-1 and the Sags 7-5.</p><p>The finals commenced on April 20 and had to be over by April 30, meaning should the series go seven games, Quebec&rsquo;s Memorial Cup representative will have played seven games in 10 nights.</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01386/4391664-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="606" height="939"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Chicoutimi lost Robert Millette for the last two games of the semifinals.</b></figcaption></div><p>The protective cages made mandatory by the league this season, and long a thorn in the side of the players, are being abolished, in a manner of speaking.</p><p>Next season players will have the choice of either continuing to wear the cages&mdash;which cover the entire facial area&mdash;or a plastic protective visor, which covers the eyes and nose<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0032-01

Black Hawks Ready To Try Verdun Once Again

f0033-15

Top Playoff Scorers

<h2><b>PRELIMINARY ROUND</b></h2><h3>Series A</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03188/4391848-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="534" height="111"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Toronto 2 at Islanders 9</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Toronto 1 at Islanders 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Islanders 6 at Toronto 1</p><h3>Series B</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-04142/4391841-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="540" height="110"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Pittsburgh 2 at St. Louis 4</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Pittsburgh 6 at St. Louis 4</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>St. Louis 5 at Pittsburgh 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>St. Louis 3 at Pittsburgh 6</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Pittsburgh 3 at St. Louis 4</p><h3>Series C</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-05114/4391834-1-eng-US/f0033-052.jpg" title="f0033-05" width="540" height="115"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Edmonton 6 at Montreal 3</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Edmonton 3 at Montreal 1</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Montreal 2 at Edmonton 6</p><h3>Series D</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0692/4391827-1-eng-US/f0033-062.jpg" title="f0033-06" width="532" height="112"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Rangers 3 at Los Angeles 1</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Rangers 4 at Los Angeles 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Los Angeles 3 at Rangers 10</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Los Angeles 3 at Rangers 6</p><h3>Series E</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0781/4391820-1-eng-US/f0033-072.jpg" title="f0033-07" width="542" height="110"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Vancouver 2 at Buffalo 3</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Vancouver 2 at Buffalo 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Buffalo 5 at Vancouver 3</p><h3>Series F</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0867/4391813-1-eng-US/f0033-082.jpg" title="f0033-08" width="543" height="112"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Quebec 4 at Philadelphia 6</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Quebec 5 at Philadelphia 8</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Philadelphia 0 at Quebec 2</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Philadelphia 3 at Quebec 4</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Quebec 2 at Philadelphia 5</p><h3>Series G</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-0958/4391806-1-eng-US/f0033-092.jpg" title="f0033-09" width="533" height="114"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Chicago 3 at Calgary 4</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Chicago 2 at Calgary 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Calgary 5 at Chicago 4</p><h3>Series H</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1053/4391799-1-eng-US/f0033-102.jpg" title="f0033-10" width="543" height="110"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Minnesota 5 at Boston 4</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Minnesota 9 at Boston 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Boston 3 at Minnesota 6</p><h2>Quarter-Finals</h2><h3>Series I</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1151/4391792-1-eng-US/f0033-112.jpg" title="f0033-11" width="546" height="112"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Thu. April 16</b></p><p>Edmonton 2 at Islanders 8</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Edmonton 3 at Islanders 6</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Islanders 2 at Edmonton 5</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p><b>Mon. April 20</b></p><p>Islanders at Edmonton</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Edmonton at Islanders</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Islanders at Edmonton</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Edmonton at Islanders</p><h3>Series J</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1250/4391785-1-eng-US/f0033-122.jpg" title="f0033-12" width="545" height="111"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Thu. April 16</b></p><p>Rangers 3 at St. Louis 6</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Rangers 6 at St. Louis 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>St. Louis 3 at Rangers 6</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p><b>Mon. April 20</b></p><p>St. Louis at Rangers</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Rangers at St. Louis</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>St. Louis at Rangers</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Rangers at St. Louis</p><h3>Series K</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1338/4391778-1-eng-US/f0033-132.jpg" title="f0033-13" width="545" height="112"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Thu. April 16</b></p><p>Minnesota 4 at Buffalo 3</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Minnesota 5 at Buffalo 2</p><p><b>Sun. April 19,</b></p><p>Buffalo 4 at Minnesota 6</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p><b>Mon. April 20</b></p><p>Buffalo at Minnesota</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Minnesota at Buffalo</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Buffalo at Minnesota</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Minnesota at Buffalo</p><h3>Series L</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-1435/4391771-1-eng-US/f0033-142.jpg" title="f0033-14" width="546" height="111"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Thu. April 16</b></p><p>Calgary 0 at Philadelphia 4</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Calgary 5 at Philadelphia 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Philadelphia 1 at Calgary 2</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p>Mon. April 20</p><p>Philadelphia at Calgary</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Calgary at Philadelphia</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Philadelphia at Calgary</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Calgary at Philadelphia<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0033-03

STANLEY CUP SCOREBOARD

f0033-17

Final NHL Penalty Statistics

f0034-01

NHL PLAYOFF SCORING

<h2><b>AMERICAN LEAGUE (Final Standings)</b></h2><h3><b>NORTHERN DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01362/4392144-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="540" height="145"></div><h3><b>SOUTHERN DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02293/4392137-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="543" height="173"></div><h3><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03222/4392130-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="543" height="415"></div><h3><b>PLAYOFFS</b></h3><p><b>Quarter-Finals</b></p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04177/4392123-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="544" height="113"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Springfield 1 at Maine 3</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Springfield 2 at Maine 7</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Maine 3 at Springfield 7</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Maine 3 at Springfield 10</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Springfield 2 at Maine 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Maine 2 at Springfield 9</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Springfield at Maine</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05137/4392116-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="544" height="140"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Tue. April 7</b></p><p>Nova Scotia 2 at N. Brunswick 3</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Nova Scotia 3 at N. Brunswick 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 12</b></p><p>N. Brunswick 6 at Nova Scotia 3</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>N. Brunswick 2 at Nova Scotia 4</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Nova Scotia 3 at N. Brunswick 0</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>N. Brunswick 2 at Nova Scotia 1</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06118/4392109-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="543" height="118"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>New Haven 1 at Hershey 6</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Hershey 6 at New Haven 2</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>New Haven 1 at Hershey 8</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Hershey 3 at New Haven 2</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07109/4392102-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="547" height="116"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Tue. April 7</b></p><p>Binghamton 5 at Adirondack 3</p><p><b>Wed. April 18</b></p><p>Binghamton 3 at Adirondack 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Adirondack 2 at Binghamton 3</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Adirondack 5 at Binghamton 4</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Binghamton 1 at Adirondack 3</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Adirondack 6 at Binghamton 5</p><h3><b>LEADING PLAYOFF SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0890/4392095-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="536" height="303"></div><h2><b>CENTRAL LEAGUE (Final Standings)</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-0986/4392088-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="554" height="334"></div><h3><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1076/4392081-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="545" height="437"></div><h3><b>PLAYOFFS Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1171/4392074-1-eng-US/f0035-112.jpg" title="f0035-11" width="547" height="110"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Tulsa 6 at Okla. City 2</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Okla. City 2 at Tulsa 3</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Tulsa 4 at Okla. City 2</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1261/4392067-1-eng-US/f0035-122.jpg" title="f0035-12" width="540" height="107"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Salt Lake 1 at Fort Worth 2</b></p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Salt Lake 3 at Fort Worth 7</p><p><b>Mon. April 13</b></p><p>Fort Worth 2 at Salt Lake 3</p><p><b>Tue. April 14</b></p><p>Fort Worth 3 at Salt Lake 4</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Fort Worth 2 at Salt Lake 6</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1354/4392060-1-eng-US/f0035-132.jpg" title="f0035-13" width="547" height="113"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Wichita 5 at Indianapolis 2</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Wichita 4 at Indianapolis 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Indianapolis 4 at Wichita 2</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Indianapolis 3 at Wichita 5</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Wichita 6 at Indianapolis 5</p><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1443/4392053-1-eng-US/f0035-142.jpg" title="f0035-14" width="549" height="111"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Tulsa 3 at Salt Lake 5</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Tulsa 4 at Salt Lake 7</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Mon. April 20</b></p><p>Salt Lake at Tulsa</p><p><b>Tue. April 21</b></p><p>Salt Lake at Tulsa</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Tulsa at Salt Lake</p><p><b>Sat. April 25</b></p><p>Salt Lake at Tulsa</p><p><b>Wed. April 29</b></p><p>Tulsa at Salt Lake</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1539/4392046-1-eng-US/f0035-152.jpg" title="f0035-15" width="539" height="110"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Wichita 5 at Dallas 1</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Wichita 5 at Dallas 7</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Tue. April 21</b></p><p>Dallas at Wichita</p><p><b>Thu. April 23</b></p><p>Dallas at Wichita</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Wichita at Dallas</p><p><b>Sat. April 25</b></p><p>Dallas at Wichita</p><p><b>Wed. April 29</b></p><p>Wichita at Dallas</p><h3><b>LEADING PLAYOFF SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1635/4392039-1-eng-US/f0035-162.jpg" title="f0035-16" width="539" height="222"></div><h2><b>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE (Final Standings)</b></h2><h3><b>EAST DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1724/4392032-1-eng-US/f0035-172.jpg" title="f0035-17" width="547" height="137"></div><h3><b>WEST DIVISION</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1821/4392025-1-eng-US/f0035-182.jpg" title="f0035-18" width="541" height="140"></div><h3><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1918/4392018-1-eng-US/f0035-192.jpg" title="f0035-19" width="540" height="356"></div><h3><b>PLAYOFFS Quarter-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2017/4392011-1-eng-US/f0035-202.jpg" title="f0035-20" width="548" height="115"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Port Huron 0 at Saginaw 3</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Saginaw 4 at Port Huron 1</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Port Huron 3 at Saginaw 4</p><p><b>Wed. April 15</b></p><p>Saginaw 4 at Port Huron 3</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2111/4392004-1-eng-US/f0035-212.jpg" title="f0035-21" width="548" height="122"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Muskegon 1 at Flint 4</p><p><b>Thu. April 9</b></p><p>Flint 1 at Muskegon 2</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Muskegon 4 at Flint 5</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-228/4391997-1-eng-US/f0035-222.jpg" title="f0035-22" width="557" height="113"></div><p><b>Wed April 15</b></p><p>Fort Wayne 2 at Milwaukee 4</p><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Milwaukee 5 at Fort Wayne 4</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Fort Wayne 4 al Milwaukee 2</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p><b>Mon April 20</b></p><p>Milwaukee at Fort Wayne</p><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-238/4391990-1-eng-US/f0035-232.jpg" title="f0035-23" width="544" height="112"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Flint 0 at Kalamazoo 5</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Kalamazoo at Flint</p><p><b>Fri. April 24</b></p><p>Flint at Kalamazoo</p><p>Sun. April 26</p><p>Kalamazoo at Flint</p><p><b>Wed. April 29</b></p><p>Flint at Kalamazoo</p><p><b>Fri. May 1</b></p><p>Kalamazoo at Flint</p><p><b>Sat May 2</b></p><p>Flint at Kalamazoo</p><h3><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-247/4391983-1-eng-US/f0035-242.jpg" title="f0035-24" width="556" height="190"></div><h2><b>EASTERN LEAGUE (Final Standings)</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-257/4391976-1-eng-US/f0035-252.jpg" title="f0035-25" width="552" height="220"></div><h3><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-266/4391969-1-eng-US/f0035-262.jpg" title="f0035-26" width="542" height="274"></div><h3><b>PLAYOFFS Semi-Finals</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-274/4391962-1-eng-US/f0035-272.jpg" title="f0035-27" width="545" height="116"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Fri. April 3</b></p><p>Erie 7 at Baltimore 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 5</b></p><p>Baltimore 2 at Erie 8</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Baltimore 2 at Erie 6</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Baltimore 1 at Erie 5</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-284/4391955-1-eng-US/f0035-282.jpg" title="f0035-28" width="548" height="126"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Sat. April 4</b></p><p>Salem 2 at Richmond 4</p><p><b>Sun. April 5</b></p><p>Richmond 1 at Salem 4</p><p><b>Wed. April 8</b></p><p>Salem 3 at Richmond 4</p><p><b>Fri. April 10</b></p><p>Richmond 3 at Salem 7</p><p><b>Sat. April 11</b></p><p>Salem 2 at Richmond 5</p><p><b>Sun. April 12</b></p><p>Richmond 4 at Salem 1</p><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-294/4391948-1-eng-US/f0035-292.jpg" title="f0035-29" width="551" height="116"></div><h3><b>GAMES COMPLETED</b></h3><p><b>Fri. April 17</b></p><p>Richmond 1 at Erie 8</p><p><b>Sat. April 18</b></p><p>Richmond 5 at Erie 13</p><p><b>Sun. April 19</b></p><p>Erie 6 at Richmond 1</p><h3><b>GAMES TO COME</b></h3><p><b>Tue. April 21</b></p><p>Erie at Richmond</p><p><b>Wed. April 22</b></p><p>Richmond at Erie</p><p><b>Thu. April 23</b></p><p>Erie at Richmond</p><p><b>Sun. April 26</b></p><p>Richmond at Erie</p><h3><b>LEADING SCORERS</b></h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-304/4391941-1-eng-US/f0035-302.jpg" title="f0035-30" width="545" height="327"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0035-01

MINOR SCOREBOARD

<h2><b>DALLAS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-314/4392224-1-eng-US/f0035-312.jpg" title="f0035-31" width="550" height="610"></div><h2><b>INDIANAPOLIS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-324/4392217-1-eng-US/f0035-322.jpg" title="f0035-32" width="544" height="556"></div><h2><b>FORT WORTH</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-334/4392210-1-eng-US/f0035-332.jpg" title="f0035-33" width="542" height="608"></div><h2><b>OKLAHOMA CITY</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-343/4392203-1-eng-US/f0035-342.jpg" title="f0035-34" width="546" height="580"></div><h2><b>SALT LAKE</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-353/4392196-1-eng-US/f0035-352.jpg" title="f0035-35" width="542" height="634"></div><h2><b>WICHITA</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-363/4392189-1-eng-US/f0035-362.jpg" title="f0035-36" width="548" height="658"></div><h2><b>TULSA</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-372/4392182-1-eng-US/f0035-372.jpg" title="f0035-37" width="548" height="684"></div><h2><b>GOLATENOERS RECORDS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-382/4392175-1-eng-US/f0035-382.jpg" title="f0035-38" width="550" height="622"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0035-31

FINAL CHL SCORING STATISTICS

<h2><b>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1926/4392706-1-eng-US/f0036-192.jpg" title="f0036-19" width="546" height="330"></div><h2><b>SCORING BY TEAMS</b></h2><h3>BRANTFORD</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2025/4392699-1-eng-US/f0036-202.jpg" title="f0036-20" width="539" height="626"></div><h2><b>LONDON</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2124/4392692-1-eng-US/f0036-212.jpg" title="f0036-21" width="547" height="622"></div><h2><b>TORONTO</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2223/4392685-1-eng-US/f0036-222.jpg" title="f0036-22" width="547" height="242"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2322/4392678-1-eng-US/f0036-232.jpg" title="f0036-23" width="540" height="390"></div><h2><b>KITCHENER</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2422/4392671-1-eng-US/f0036-242.jpg" title="f0036-24" width="546" height="626"></div><h2><b>NIAGARA FALLS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2518/4392664-1-eng-US/f0036-252.jpg" title="f0036-25" width="541" height="707"></div><h2><b>WINDSOR</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2616/4392657-1-eng-US/f0036-262.jpg" title="f0036-26" width="533" height="174"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2715/4392650-1-eng-US/f0036-272.jpg" title="f0036-27" width="548" height="343"></div><h2><b>KINGSTON</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2815/4392643-1-eng-US/f0036-282.jpg" title="f0036-28" width="539" height="653"></div><h2><b>OTTAWA</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2914/4392636-1-eng-US/f0036-292.jpg" title="f0036-29" width="547" height="596"></div><h2><b>S. S. MARIE</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-3013/4392629-1-eng-US/f0036-302.jpg" title="f0036-30" width="546" height="302"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-3112/4392622-1-eng-US/f0036-312.jpg" title="f0036-31" width="542" height="307"></div><h2><b>OSHAWA</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-3211/4392615-1-eng-US/f0036-322.jpg" title="f0036-32" width="542" height="629"></div><h2><b>PETERBOROUGH</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-339/4392608-1-eng-US/f0036-332.jpg" title="f0036-33" width="545" height="629"></div><h2><b>SUDBURY</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-347/4392601-1-eng-US/f0036-342.jpg" title="f0036-34" width="546" height="336"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-353/4392594-1-eng-US/f0036-352.jpg" title="f0036-35" width="542" height="230"></div><h2><b>GOALTENDING RECORDS</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-363/4392587-1-eng-US/f0036-362.jpg" title="f0036-36" width="566" height="1801"></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

f0036-19

FINAL ONTARIO LEAGUE SCORING STATISTICS

<h2><b>ONTARIO LEAGUE</b></h2><h3>PLAYOFFS LEYDEN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01342/4392556-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="551" height="113"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Tue. April 7</p><p>Kingston 0 at S.S. Marie 6</p><p>Wed. April 8</p><p>Kingston 2 at S.S.Marie 5</p><p>Sat. April 11</p><p>S.S. Marie 2 at Kingston 2</p><p>Sun. April 12</p><p>S.S. Marie 1 at Kingston 2</p><p>Tue. April 14</p><p>Kingston 5 at S.S. Marie 3</p><p>Thu. April 16</p><p>S.S. Marie 5 at Kingston 3</p><p>Sat. April 18</p><p>Kingston 1 at S.S. Marie 8</p><h3>EMMS DIVISION Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02254/4392549-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="548" height="116"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Tue. April 7</p><p>Windsor 4 at Kitchener 5</p><p>Thu. April 9</p><p>Kitchener 7 at Windsor 2</p><p>Fri. April 10</p><p>Windsor 4 at Kitchener 4</p><p>Sun. April 12</p><p>Kitchener 7 at Windsor 5</p><p>Tue. April 14</p><p>Windsor 0 at Kitchener 4</p><p>Finals</p><h3>S.S. MARIE vs KITCHENER</h3><p>(Eight-point series)</p><p>Tue. April 21</p><p>Kitchener at S.S. Marie</p><p>Thu. April 23</p><p>S.S. Marie at Kitchener</p><p>Sat. April 25</p><p>Kitchener at S.S. Marie</p><p>Tue. April 28</p><p>S.S. Marie at Kitchener</p><p>Wed. April 29</p><p>Kitchener at S.S. Marie</p><p>Thu. April 30</p><p>S.S. Marie at Kitchener</p><p>Sat. May 2</p><p>Kitchener at S.S. Marie</p><p>Semi-Finals</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03187/4392542-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="550" height="114"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Windsor 2 at Brantford 4</p><p>Brantford 7 at Windsor 7</p><p>Windsor 8 at Brantford 8</p><p>Brantford 3 at Windsor 5</p><p>Windsor 3 at Brantford 2</p><p>Brantford 2 at Windsor</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04118/4392535-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="546" height="112"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Niagara Falls 2 at Kitchener 5</p><p>Kitchener 5 at Niagara Falls 2</p><p>Niagara Falls 5 at Kitchener 2</p><p>Kitchener 3 at Niagara Falls 3</p><p>Niagara Falls 7 at Kitchener 8</p><p>Kitchener 1 at Niagara Falls 5</p><p>Niagara Falls 4 at Kitchener 5</p><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0583/4392528-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="548" height="281"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Oshawa 2 at S.S. Marie 10</p><p>Oshawa 6 at S.S. Marie 8</p><p>S.S. Marie 6 at Oshawa 4</p><p>S.S. Marie 5 at Oshawa 9</p><p>Oshawa 5 at S.S. Marie 3</p><p>S.S. Marie 5 at Oshawa 4</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0665/4392521-1-eng-US/f0036-062.jpg" title="f0036-06" width="544" height="109"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Kingston 5 at Ottawa 4</p><p>Ottawa 4 at Kingston 5</p><p>Kingston 2 at Ottawa 2</p><p>Ottawa 9 at Kingston 1</p><p>Kingston 2 at Ottawa 5</p><p>Ottawa 2 at Kingston 6</p><p>Kingston 3 at Ottawa 2</p><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0761/4392514-1-eng-US/f0036-072.jpg" title="f0036-07" width="552" height="144"></div><h3>LEADING PLAYOFF SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0856/4392507-1-eng-US/f0036-082.jpg" title="f0036-08" width="554" height="280"></div><h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2><p>PLAYOFFS</p><h3>WESTERN DIVISION</h3><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-0950/4392500-1-eng-US/f0036-092.jpg" title="f0036-09" width="558" height="116"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Portland 0 at Victoria 7</p><p>Portland 3 at Victoria 7</p><p>Victoria 5 at Portland 1</p><p>Victoria 6 at Portland 1</p><h3>EASTERN DIVISION Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1047/4392493-1-eng-US/f0036-102.jpg" title="f0036-10" width="558" height="112"></div><p>Calgary 0 at Regina 5</p><p>Calgary 5 at Regina 3</p><p>Regina 3 at Calgary 4</p><p>Regina 6 at Calgary 5</p><p>Calgary 4 at Regina 3</p><h3>GAMES TO COME</h3><p>Tue. April 21</p><p>Regina at Calgary</p><p>Wed. April 22</p><p>Calgary at Regina</p><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1144/4392486-1-eng-US/f0036-112.jpg" title="f0036-11" width="542" height="113"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Mon. April 6</p><p>Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 6</p><p>Wed. April 8</p><p>Calgary 6 at Lethbridge 4</p><p>Fri. April 10</p><p>Lethbridge 4 at Calgary 1</p><p>Sat. April 11</p><p>Calgary 4 at Lethbridge 0</p><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1240/4392479-1-eng-US/f0036-122.jpg" title="f0036-12" width="552" height="384"></div><h3>Semi-Final</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1337/4392472-1-eng-US/f0036-132.jpg" title="f0036-13" width="554" height="112"></div><h3>GAMESCOMPLETED</h3><p>Portland 5 at Seattle 4</p><p>Seattle 2 at Portland 7</p><p>Portland 5 at Seattle 6</p><p>Seattle 2 at Portland 5</p><p>Seattle 3 at Portland 6</p><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1433/4392465-1-eng-US/f0036-142.jpg" title="f0036-14" width="540" height="107"></div><h3>LEADING PLAYOFF SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1533/4392458-1-eng-US/f0036-152.jpg" title="f0036-15" width="548" height="465"></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2><p>PLAYOFFS</p><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1631/4392451-1-eng-US/f0036-162.jpg" title="f0036-16" width="552" height="110"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Sherbrooke 2 at Cornwall 4</p><p>Cornwall 4 at Sherbrooke 5</p><p>Sherbrooke 3 at Cornwall 4</p><p>Cornwall 4 at Sherbrooke 5</p><p>Sherbrooke 3 at Cornwall 6</p><p>Cornwall 1 at Sherbrooke 3</p><p>Sherbrooke 2 at Cornwall 4</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1728/4392444-1-eng-US/f0036-172.jpg" title="f0036-17" width="545" height="80"></div><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1827/4392437-1-eng-US/f0036-182.jpg" title="f0036-18" width="541" height="110"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>T-Rivieres 4 at Cornwall 8</p><p>GAMES TO COME</p><p>Tue. April 21</p><p>Cornwall at T-Rivieres</p><p>Thu. April 23</p><p>T-Rivieres at Cornwall</p><p>Fri. April 24</p><p>Cornwall at T-Rivieres</p><p>Sun. April 26</p><p>T-Rivieres at Cornwall</p><p>Wed. April 29</p><p>Cornwall at T-Rivieres</p><p>Frl. May 1</p><p>T-Rivleres at Cornwall</p><h3>Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01299/4392430-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="546" height="516"></div><h3>LEADING PLAYOFF SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02205/4392423-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="544" height="311"></div><h3>ALLAN CUP</h3><p>Preliminary Round Robin</p><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03147/4392416-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="545" height="136"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Grand Falls 3, St. Boniface 1</p><p>Thunder Bay 8. Petrolia 3</p><h3>Western Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04116/4392409-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="546" height="117"></div><h3>Western Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0595/4392402-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="546" height="374"></div><h2>ONTARIO SENIOR LEAGUE</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0675/4392395-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="548" height="117"></div><h3>Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0757/4392388-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="548" height="238"></div><h2>B.C. SENIOR</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0850/4392381-1-eng-US/f0037-082.jpg" title="f0037-08" width="545" height="116"></div><h2>HARDY CUP</h2><h3>Eastern Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-0941/4392374-1-eng-US/f0037-092.jpg" title="f0037-09" width="555" height="137"></div><h3>Western Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1035/4392367-1-eng-US/f0037-102.jpg" title="f0037-10" width="548" height="137"></div><h3>Eastern Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1124/4392360-1-eng-US/f0037-112.jpg" title="f0037-11" width="546" height="220"></div><h3>Western Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1222/4392353-1-eng-US/f0037-122.jpg" title="f0037-12" width="548" height="225"></div><h2>CENTENNIAL CUP</h2><h3>Western Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1320/4392346-1-eng-US/f0037-132.jpg" title="f0037-13" width="551" height="112"></div><h3>Central Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1420/4392339-1-eng-US/f0037-142.jpg" title="f0037-14" width="550" height="113"></div><h3>Atlantic Canada Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1519/4392332-1-eng-US/f0037-152.jpg" title="f0037-15" width="554" height="113"></div><h3>Eastern Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1616/4392325-1-eng-US/f0037-162.jpg" title="f0037-16" width="549" height="218"></div><h3>Western Semi-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1713/4392318-1-eng-US/f0037-172.jpg" title="f0037-17" width="553" height="215"></div><h3>Eastern Quarter-Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-1813/4392311-1-eng-US/f0037-182.jpg" title="f0037-18" width="552" height="110"></div><h2>SASKATCHEWAN JUNIOR</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-199/4392304-1-eng-US/f0037-192.jpg" title="f0037-19" width="554" height="110"></div><h2>B.C. JUNIOR</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-209/4392297-1-eng-US/f0037-202.jpg" title="f0037-20" width="550" height="113"></div><h2>CENTRAL JUNIOR</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-219/4392290-1-eng-US/f0037-212.jpg" title="f0037-21" width="549" height="118"></div><h2>ALBERTA JUNIOR</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-229/4392283-1-eng-US/f0037-222.jpg" title="f0037-22" width="544" height="114"></div><h2>QUEBEC SENIOR LEAGUE</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-239/4392276-1-eng-US/f0037-232.jpg" title="f0037-23" width="551" height="111"></div><h2>WESTERN INTERNATIONAL</h2><h3>Finals</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-249/4392269-1-eng-US/f0037-242.jpg" title="f0037-24" width="546" height="115"></div><h2>NATIONAL MIDGET</h2><p>Round-Robin Final</p><h3>DIVISION A</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-259/4392262-1-eng-US/f0037-252.jpg" title="f0037-25" width="545" height="190"></div><h3>DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-267/4392255-1-eng-US/f0037-262.jpg" title="f0037-26" width="553" height="194"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3><p>Tue. April 15</p><p>Ontario 6, Alberta 4</p><p>Quebec 8, B.C. 2</p><p>Ottawa 6. Newfoundland 1</p><p>Thunder Bay 5, New Brunswick 3</p><p>Nova Scotia 4, P.E.I. 1</p><p>Wed. April 16</p><p>Ontario 5. B.C. 2</p><p>Quebec 7, Manitoba 1</p><p>Ottawa 4. New Brunswick 0</p><p>Saskatchewan 6, Alberta 3</p><p>Thunder Bay 4, P.E.I. 2</p><p>Nova Scotia 8, Newfoundland 2</p><p>Thu. April 17</p><p>P.E.I. 4r Ottawa 2</p><p>Quebec 8. Alberta 2</p><p>New Brunswick 2, Newfoundland 0</p><p>Manitoba 3, B.C. 0</p><p>Nova Scotia 5, Thunder Bay 1</p><p>Ontario 4. Saskatchewan 2</p><p>Fri. April 18</p><p>Ontario 7, Quebec 2</p><p>Alberta 5. Manitoba 4</p><p>Saskatchewan 7, B.C. 2</p><p>Newfoundland 4, Thunder Bay 3</p><p>Ottawa 4, Nova Scotia 1</p><p>New Brunswick 4, P.E.I. 4</p><p>Sat. April 19</p><p>Ontario 5, Saskatchewan 2</p><p>Quebec 8. Alberta 2</p><p>SEMI-FINALS</p><p>Sat. April 20</p><p>Ontario 6, Thunder Bay 0</p><p>Quebec 3, Nova Scotia 2</p><h3>FINALS</h3><p>Sun. April 21</p><p>Quebec 7, Ontario 2</p><p>CONSOLATION FINAL</p><p>Sun. April 21</p><p>Nova Scotia 9, Thunder Bay 2<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0036-01

AMATEUR SCOREBOARD

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-27" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-276/4392737-1-eng-US/f0037-272.jpg"></div><p><i>&ldquo;Where readers get together to do business&rdquo;</i></p><p><b>RINK EQUIPMENT</b></p><p><b>PERSONALS</b></p><p><b>FAN CLUBS</b></p><p><b>OPPORTUNITIES</b></p><p><b>POSITIONS WANTED</b></p><p><b>PLAYER EQUIPMENT</b></p><h2>OPPORTUNITIES</h2><p><b>WANTED:</b> The University of Alabama in Huntsville, hockey team is interested in players of college age wanting to play in the south Team has a two year record of 54-2. School has excellent academic setting. Attendance at games averages over 2,600. Many of players have NCAA hockey backgrounds. Games and practice at Von Bravn Civic Center. Contact Joe Ritch, 218 Randolph Ave., Huntsville, Ala., 35801. You can phone (205)533-5030 for more information.</p><p><b>WANTED:</b> Tier II coach required for Melville Millionaire Junior Hockey Club of SAJHL. Qualifications, resume and references needed. Serious applications apply to, Box 1943 Melville Centre, Sask., S0A 2P0 or phone (306)728-5171.</p><p><b>WANTED:</b> Jr. A or Sr. A hockey players who are able to obtain a Swiss passport. Parents or grandparents must be born in Switzerland. Contact Cliff Stewart (807)623-3555.</p><h2>PERSONALS</h2><p><b>POSITION WANTED:</b> Experienced Minnesota sportscaster seeks minor league or college hockey play-by-play position. Will relocate. Call Marc, afternoons at (218)749-4983</p><p><b>CARDS:</b> Buy or sell, hockey, baseball cards. Free price list. Gilles Rochette, 94 Boulevard Du Lac, Charlesbourg, Que., GOA 2S0.</p><p><b>WANTED:</b> Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals official Viceroy NHL pucks. Contact: Rob Canenisch, 4513 Weld County Road 32, Longmont, Colo., 80501.</p><p><b>WANTED:</b> Fiberglass goalie masks, any size or condition. Will buy or trade. Russ Vincent, Box 490344, College Park, GA., 30349.</p><p><b>ATTENTION:</b> Buy now at wholesale prices and save. Micron M1 with clear Tuuk $40.00 (sizes 3&frac12; and 4 only)&hellip;Let us change your steel over to clear Tuuk for $36.00. We ship UPS anywhere. Reliable Hockey Service, 73 Bloomfield Street, Springfield, Mass., 01108. Telephone (413)736-6188</p><p><b>THE COMPREHENSIVE DIRECTORY OF SPORTS ADDRESSES,</b> is available to all sports enthusiasts for the low price of $4.95! Includes: major, minor, junior hockey; baseball; basketball; football; soccer; softball; foreign leagues; Canadian sports; Hof&rsquo;s; colleges; periodicals; sports organizations; media sources; foreign baseball and more! Send check or money order, U.S. Funds, to Ed Kobak, P.O. Box 93-B, Ludow, VT. 05149.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0037-27

CLASSIFIED

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0038-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01356/4392782-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">A Night For Fido</figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>H</span>ockey followers in North Dakota have a special place in their hearts for Cliff (Fido) Purpur. shown at left above with Governor Allen Olson. Purpur is not only the greatest North Dakotan ever to play in the NHL, but he&rsquo;s also the only one from his state to make it to the big time. Purpur was honored with the Roughrider Award, which he holds after the presentation by Gov. Olson, at a special night in Grand Forks. N.D. It is the state&rsquo;s highest sports award.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02282/4392775-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="1492" height="1513"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>The Brightest Star</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p>Mike Rogers was everything to the Hartford Whalers this past season. Despite the fact the team missed the playoffs. Rogers scored 40 goals and 105 points in 80 games. He was also the recipient of the Westledge Award as the star of the game the most times this season. Here he is presented with the trophy by William Reilly, president of Westledge Realtors.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03211/4392768-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="2995" height="1456"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Boston&rsquo;s Gallery Gods&rsquo; Rooters Meet The Bruins</b></figcaption></div><p>One of the most ardent fans rooting groups around the NHL are the Gallery Gods, those staunch supporters of the Boston Bruins who sit in the Boston Garden&rsquo;s second balcony faithfully each hockey season. They held their annual sports dinner recently in Revere, Mass., with the Bruins&rsquo; players as guests and raised money for the Massachusetts Heart Fund Association, the Cerebral Palsy Fund, the Johnson Memorial Field Fund in Roxboro, Mass., and set up a scholarship fund in honor of Sgt. Cashin, a Chelsea, Mass., police officer killed in the line of duty. The Gallery Gods also presented individual awards Steve kasper, Dici Redmond and coach Cheeves. Shown in the photo above are members and players. Front row, from left to right, they are Jim Zmitpovich, Peppe Barbetta, Ed McDonald. Bruce Pearson, Rowan Fitzgerald, Brad McCrimmon, Stan Jonathan, Steve Kasper, Peter McNab, Dwight Foster and Roger Naples, the man behind the Gallery Gods&rsquo; organization. Back row, from left to right, Joe Zmitpovich, Ace Facchini, Dick Redmond, Ray Banks, Rich Dudley, Bob Wilson, John Bucyk, Jock Semple, Mike Gillis, Ray Bourque, Marco Baron, Rick Middleton, Jim Banks and Bill Stilwell.<span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0038-01

HOCKEY PEOPLE

<div class="byline">BY BILL SCHEFT</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01335/4392820-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Hartford&rsquo;s Ray Neufeld has split his first two pro seasons between the Whalers and their American League farm teams.</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>S</span>omehow, ice hockey got lost on the &ldquo;Sport as a Reflection of Society&rdquo; semilar It was there for the early lectures, syoerfluois doses on inflationary salaries and civic identity, but when time came to deal with the intermingling of races within the game, hockey found itself skating somewhere between South Boston and a restrictive fraternity in the Edmonton prairies.</p><p>Hockey is the aberration amidst the affirmative action that now characterizes every other major professional team sport. Reggie Jackson Dave Winfield have the Bronx in escrow; Earl Campbell and Walter Payton head the list of skill position players in the National Football League and the New York Knicks portend the white man&rsquo;s future in pro basketball with an all-black team. Hockey, however, remains the Caucasian alternative for both participant and spectator.</p><p>There is no sense of urgency to vault blacks into prominence in ice hockey, and no sense of outrage at the paltry numbers which play or promote the game. The sport seems content to let things evolve. There&rsquo;s talk of an 18-year-old kid named Grant Fuhr, of the Western Hockey League&rsquo;s Victoria Cougars, becoming the first black goalie in the 64-year history of the National Hockey League next season. The attitude: If he&rsquo;s good enough, fine, and if the blacks come to see him, fine. If you&rsquo;re looking for the advent impact of a Jackie Robinson or a Sweetwater Clifton, you&rsquo;ve got the wrong game, and the wrong era.</p><p>In 1968, when ten of the 12 NHL teams were located in American cities, nobody was miffed that only a handful of players in the league were non-Canadian. The scenario of a kid skating 12 hours a day on a frozen pond to make the big time was told with a Canadian accent then. Horatio Alger didn&rsquo;t lace up his skates in America until the early seventies. They called it &ldquo;The Hockey Boom&rdquo; or the &ldquo;Bobby Orr Era&rdquo; and it centered in Massachusetts and Minnesota. The boom reached fruition a year ago with the United States hockey team usurping the gold medal at the Winter Olympics, and now that the mania has subsided, there are about 50 Americans in the NHL and twice as many empty rinks dotting New England and the Great Lakes.</p><p>Until the hockey boom, the sport had a distinct Old Boy flavor (&ldquo;Oh, I played hockey with Harry at Choate.&rdquo;) in the States. Private schools seemed to be the only places which could consistently keep a hockey program going. And while blacks may regret being denied a private school education, there is no apparent bitterness over time that might have been spent at the rink, or for that matter, in the squash courts or swimming pools.</p><p>&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t understand it,&rdquo; said Lenny Everett at a recent New York Rangers&rsquo; game. &ldquo;There is a lot of action like basketball, but I guess it&rsquo;s just the one sport white people can share.&rdquo;</p><p>Everett looked around the concessions stand. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ll notice I&rsquo;m the only black person out here,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;1 can count the black people inside on one hand.&rdquo;</p><p>And still have some fingers left. Blacks may not feel comfortable inside Madison Square Garden when the Rangers are playing, but outside the arena there&rsquo;s equal opportunity in the ticket scalping market.</p><p>&ldquo;I came out here with six dollars and I got, let me show you, $87 now,&rdquo; said Timmy, a regular scalper. &ldquo;I come to almost every event. I don&rsquo;t be out here for no Ice Capades, though. If I&rsquo;d come here with any money tonight, I would have made $200.&rdquo;</p><p>Timmy will always manage to save a Knick ticket for himself, but the Rangers are merely a forum for business in the &ldquo;Who needs? Who needs?&rdquo; &ldquo;Yo, yo, I&rsquo;ll give you a bargain&rdquo; sidewalk hustle.</p><p>&ldquo;The only black guys out here that may go into the hockey games are the gamblers,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s like a sport that&rsquo;s alienated from everyone who doesn&rsquo;t live in a cold climate. I mean, there are blacks in Canada, but you won&rsquo;t find them ice skating.&rdquo;</p><p>Hockey, without any effort or pretense, has let economical, environmental and evolutionary factors render it virtually ex elusive. Timmy the Scalper might find it difficult uncovering blacks in Canada who ice skate, but then again, he&rsquo;d have problems finding blacks in Canada, period. According to the 1971 census, of the 10,804,130 males in Canada, only 17,245&mdash;less than two-tenths of one percent&mdash;were black. New York City, with one-third the male population of Canada, has 44 times as many blacks.</p><p>Eighty percent of the 420 players in the National Hockey League are Canadian, so one would figure a single black in the big leagues would approximate the population proportion. Untilmid-March there were two. Ray Neufeld, a rookie with the Hartford Whalers from St. Boniface, Man., was sent down to Binghamton of the American Hockey League, joining Bernie Saunders, another black who started the season with the Quebec Nordiques.</p><p>That left Tony McKegney a 23-year-old Montreal native in his third full season with the Buffalo Sabres and acknowledged around the NHL as one of the league&rsquo;s most promising forwards. Last year, McKegney scored 23 goals and 29 assists for 52 points and he finished this season as the Sabres&rsquo; third-leading scorer, with 37 goals and 32 assists for 69 points.</p><p>Neither Neufeld nor McKegney regard their color as an issue, to the point where they won&rsquo;t even discuss it. Canada was originally a British dominion, with the bulk of its blacks coming from the British West Indies or French-speaking colonies such as Martinique and Haiti. &ldquo;Those players are fair-skinned,&rdquo; noted Earl S. Davis, Director of the Institute for Afro-American Studies at NYU. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s as much racial discrimination in Canada. You cross that border, though, and people let you know you&rsquo;re black.&rdquo;</p><p>Aside from Saunders, McKegney and Neufeld are the fourth and fifth blacks in NHL history. Defenseman Willie O&rsquo;Ree was the first, in 1957, playing four seasons with the Boston Bruins. Mike Marson, 26, broke in at age 19 with the Washington Capitals in 1974 and played parts of the last six seasons in the NHL. He spent part of this season in the American Hockey League, along with Bill Riley, another black who joined Marson in 1975 at Washington and played four seasons in the majors.</p><p>&ldquo;Usually, blacks are drawn to sports that originate in the ghetto area,&rdquo; said Dean Davis. &ldquo;I see kids in the city on roller skates, but not on ponds or rinks. As blacks see other blacks playing certain sports, their aspirations rise. Arthur Ashe in tennis and Charlie Sifford or Lee Elder in golf are examples. It&rsquo;s an evolutionary thing. If you have a black player who excels, the blacks will come out and see him.&rdquo;</p><p>And even then it may not be a sure thing. Professional hockey competes head-on with the National Basketball Association during the winter, and given the choice, blacks will flock to the game in which they comprise 72 percent of the players. Should McKegney emerge as a legitimate star, and he seems to be well on his way, it is doubtful this would usher the black populace from the hardwood to the rink, or more importantly, influence black youth away from playground pickup games, which have transcended recreation to become a component of black culture.</p><p>One $12.50 basketball to be portioned among eight or 10 kids seems a smart money alternative to the individual purchase of hockey equipment, whose mere cost may be the one tangible variable preventing blacks from making inroads in the game. According to New York&rsquo;s Gerry Cosby and Co. Sporting Goods, Inc., it costs approximately $239 to outfit an eight-year-old in the required accoutrements for a pee-wee league game. The bare necessities&mdash;skates, gloves, helmet and stick&mdash;will run $125 and up. And that does not include a puck or ice surface. &ldquo;As we used to say, there aren&rsquo;t too many ice rinks in the middle of the ghetto,&rdquo; said Khambrell Marshall, a TV sportscaster in Hartford, &ldquo;but then again, how many great Canadian basketball players can you name?&rdquo;</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02244/4392813-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="1026" height="2149"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Tony McKegney of the Buffalo Sabres is well on his way to becoming the first star black player in the National Hockey League.</b> <span class="photo-credit">(Photo By Bruce Bennett)</span></figcaption></div><p>The avenues open to blacks as hockey spectators are limited by tradition as much as anything else. New York&rsquo;s two professional teams, the Rangers and Islanders, perenially have so much success at the gate from season ticket sales alone that they find no need for formal advertising. The same people will be there, win (like the defending Stanley Cup champion Islanders) or lose (like the four-decade Cup-starved Rangers). Season tickets run as high as $630 for choice seats, and the small allotment of remaining tickets usually finds its way into the hands of the scalpers (&ldquo;Anybody need reds? &ldquo;Who needs?&rdquo;).</p><p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a self-perpetuating thing for both of us,&rdquo; said Islanders&rsquo; marketing director Curt Curtis. &ldquo;The Garden is more corporate-oriented with its seating. We&rsquo;re more family-oriented.&rdquo;</p><p>It was neither a corporate nor family throng which glutted the Garden in early February for the renewal of Civil War between the Rangers and Islanders. More like a boisterous white middleclass gathering, perhaps an Ed Koch rally. Angry, too. Mother jokes. &ldquo;Potvin sucks&rdquo; cheers for the Islanders&rsquo; defenseman. Well, maybe not middle class. Made you wonder whether they took any survivors from the Dodger-Giant frays.</p><p>Lome Henning, a part-time Islander player who doubles as an assistant coach with the team, was up in the press box watching the Rangers drub his mates, 9-3. With 5:43 left in the game, a heavy-set fan wearing an imitation Phil Esposito jersey leaned over and yelled, &ldquo;Hey Henning, you must really suck if you can&rsquo;t play with these guys, you loser!&rdquo; Henning motioned the fan into the press box, and, upon his arrival, decked him with a left cross. Minutes later, police led Henning out of the arena to a cascade of jeers from the patrons in the less-expensive blue seats.</p><p>Make way for the new white man&rsquo;s burden. You can take the rink out of the ghetto&hellip;</p><p><i>Bill Scheft, a New York City-based freelance writer, makes his debut in</i> THE HOCKEY NEWS with <i>this article.</i><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span></p>

f0039-01

Hockey Regains Essentially All-White Game

<h2><b>Molson Cup Award Winners</b></h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0288/4392886-1-eng-US/c0004-022.jpg" title="C0004-02" width="518" height="618"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Wayne Gretzky Edmonton</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0350/4392879-1-eng-US/c0004-032.jpg" title="C0004-03" width="516" height="618"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Larry Robinson Montreal</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0424/4392872-1-eng-US/c0004-042.jpg" title="C0004-04" width="516" height="614"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Dave Christian Winnipeg</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0511/4392865-1-eng-US/c0004-052.jpg" title="C0004-05" width="528" height="618"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Kent Nilsson Calgary</b></figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-069/4392858-1-eng-US/c0004-062.jpg" title="C0004-06" width="520" height="614"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Richard Brodeur Vancouver</b></figcaption></div><p class="dropcap"><span>T</span>ORONTO&mdash;There were a few surprises when the final winners of the Molson Cup competition in six Canadian National Hockey League cities were announced, including the first-ever tie in the voting which saw Darryl Sittler and Wilf Paiement share in Toronto&rsquo;s honors for the champion of the Molson Cup competition.</p><p>The competition began nine years ago in Montreal, was started the following year in Toronto, grew to five cities last year with the addition of Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg to the NHL and became six this season when the Atlanta Flames moved their operation to Calgary.</p><p>At each game of the six competing cities, a first, second and third star of the game is chosen. Selection as one of the game&rsquo;s three stars earns a player five points in the Molson Cup competition and the player totalling the most points at the end of the season in his city receives the Molson Cup and a check for $1,000. The runner-up in the competition receives $500. In addition, the season is divided into five segments&mdash;October-November, December, January, February, and March-April with similar prizes for each segment winner and runner-up.</p><p>Sittler was the Toronto winner of the fifth segment, claiming 20 points, which brought his overall total to 65 on the season, the same as Paiement. The tie-breaking procedure was that the player with the most first-star ratings would take precedence, but in Toronto, both Sittler and Paiement had the same number and were named co-winners. They were also amazingly close in other statistics as well: Points&mdash;Paiement, 97, Sittler 96; power play goals: Sittler, 14, Paiement, 13; and shorthanded goals, Paiement, three, Sittler, two. The title was Sittler&rsquo;s fourth, tying him with Borje Salming, who has also won four times.</p><p>Another novelty about this year&rsquo;s Molson Cup competitions was that for the first time in seven years, Guy Lafleur did not capture the Montreal championship. Larry Robinson, with 75 points, edged out Lafleur and snapped his streak at six consecutive Molson Cups.</p><p>Lafleur put on a late season rush, though, finishing as the runner-up in the fifth segment with 20 points, behind goalie Richard Sevegny, who had 25.</p><p>In Winnipeg, it was a battle of the rookies, with Dave Christian, who played 15 games for the Jets in 1979-80, edging out first-year defenseman David Babych, 55 points to 50.</p><p>Christian was the runner-up in the season&rsquo;s final segment to Winnipeg goalie Michel Dion, who finished tied for third overall, even though he didn&rsquo;t join the Jets until well after New Year&rsquo;s.</p><p>Some things never change, though, and Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s hold on the Molson Cup in Edmonton is no exception. Gretzky captured the fifth segment with 40 points, five more than Glenn Anderson, and earned his second consecutive Molson Cup title with 145 points, 50 more than any player in any other city. Anderson was the overall runner-up as well, with 75 points.</p><p>Vancouver upheld their tradition of having a goaltender emerge as the Molson Cup champion as Richard Brodeur finished on top with 95 points, well ahead of runner-up Dave (Tiger) Williams, who was second with 70. That makes it five years in succession that a goalie has won the trophy in Vancouver, where Cesare Maniago won it on two occasions and Glen Hanlon took the championship for the past two seasons.</p><p>Per-Olov Brasar won Vancouver&rsquo;s fifth segment, with 25 points, and finished third overall, while newcomer B.J. MacDonald was the final segment runner-up.</p><p>Kent Nilsson was crowned Calgary&rsquo;s first Molson Cup champion as he captured the fifth segment of the season with 35 points, some 20 more than goalie Reggie Lemelin, and finished with a 30-point lead over Lemelin in the overall competition, 95-65.</p><p>The following are the top five performers in each city:</p><p><b>Montreal&mdash;</b> Robinson, 75; Lafleur, Langway, 70; Sevigny, Acton, 50.</p><p><b>Toronto&mdash;</b> Sittler, Paiement, 65; Derlago, 55; Salming, Vaive, 50.</p><p><b>Winnipeg&mdash;</b>Christian, 55; Babych, 50; Dion, Hamel, Lindstrom, 35.</p><p><b>Calgary&mdash;</b> Nilsson, 95; Lemelin, 65; Riggin, Chouinard, 60; Lever, 55.</p><p><b>Edmonton&mdash;</b> Gretzky, 145; Anderson, 75; Mio, 60; Siltanen, 45; Messier, 35.</p><p><b>Vancouver&mdash;</b> Brodeur, 95; Williams, 70; Brasar, 55; Smyl, 50; McCarthy, 45.</p><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-01138/4392851-1-eng-US/c0004-012.jpg" title="C0004-01" width="1833" height="1439"><figcaption class="caption-body"><b>Darryl Sittler, left, and Wilf Paiement of the Toronto Maple Leafs became the first two players to tie for top honors in the Molson Cup competition when they each finished with 65 points and the same number of first star selections.</b></figcaption></div><span class="end-marker"> &#9632;</span>

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May 1, 1981

Coming Next Week

Coach Of Year Giordano’s Rise Was Meteoric

School’s Out For Maple Leaf Academy

Stanley Cup Picture