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.

December 9, 1983

The Hockey News December 9, 1983

<div class="byline">BY JOHN HERBERT</div>Louisville HockeyH&B 100 YEARS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01459/4832375-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="270" height="210"></div>OSHAWA&mdash;If the record book is the yardstick to measure success in the Ontario Hockey League then the Oshawa Generals could be on course to a second straight championship and appearance in the Memorial Cup next May.Peterborough Petes were OHL playoff champions for three seasons from 1978-80.Kitchener Rangers won it the next two seasons.And if you go way, way back in the record books&hellip;the Generals went to the Memorial Cup tournament seven years in a row from 1938-1944. Other back-to-back winners include St. Michael&rsquo;s College, Barrie Flyers, Toronto Marlboros and Montreal Junior Canadiens.Oshawa general manager Sherry Bassin and coach Paul Theriault, obviously, hope history repeats itself this season but caution their club is facing a major rebuilding task to replace several important veteran players.Both Theriault and Bassin feel veteran players win championships. After a slow start, the Generals started to roll with six straight wins and were beginning to gain on leading Ottawa, Toronto and Peterborough in the Leyden Division.One veteran who figures to play an important part is overage goalie Pete Sidorkiewicz.Another would be John MacLean if the new regime in New Jersey decides he needs more seasoning.&ldquo;I try to remind our team that there&rsquo;s nothing more past than a past champion,&rdquo; Bassin said. &ldquo;A past champion and 75 cents gets you on the subway and 75 alone gets you on the subway.&ldquo;I&rsquo;11 tell you what the secret will be: We&rsquo;ve got 12 guys (rookies and some returnees) who&rsquo;ve got to mature and the secret to any championship club is its veterans.&ldquo;When Kitchener won two in a row, look at what they had&hellip;Bellows, Martin, Larmer, Maclnnis. They peaked at the right time the first year with kids. The second time they had all those experienced guys. They had just about everybody back the second time. When Peterborough was winning it was the same thing with the Gardners and Murphys. And they had such a great draft nucleus from the first year.&rdquo;The Generals lost important veterans from the power play.Joe Cirella and Norm Schmidt have been replaced by John Hutchings and Todd Charlesworth. In their own right, Hutchings and Charlesworth are very good players, but perhaps a notch below Cirella and Schmidt, who might have been the two best defensemen in the league last season. Up front, the power play lost its best performer when MacLean turned pro. Still, it should be strong with Dave Gans, Dan Gratton, Don Biggs and Mike Stern up front and Hutchings and Charlesworth on the points. But will it be as strong as last year?Nine players from the General club last season are signed to NHL contracts, which shows how much depth has been wiped out.&ldquo;I think the biggest thing we lost was the turnover in talent and experience.&rdquo; Theriault said. &ldquo;Look at the 10 we have returning. How many were main characters last year? But again, any success we have this year is a direct result of veterans. The veterans are going to win or lose for us.&ldquo;They have the experience and know what it takes to win. It&rsquo;s up to them to get the supporting cast, which are the rookies, to play to their potential and play up to the level of a champion.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re starting to come.&rdquo;Bassin says his club has to set realistic goals and the playoffs will take care of themselves.&ldquo;If we can win it, fine,&rdquo; Bassin said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a question of how mature we will be. We&rsquo;ve got to get some definite breaks because there are some clubs in our league better than ours right now. Toronto has a very, very experienced club, the culmination of a lot of drafts when they were low (in the standings). Toronto, Peterborough and Ottawa are tough clubs in our division.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re looking more in segments of where we&rsquo;ll be in the next 20 games, where we&rsquo;re going to be at Christmas, where we&rsquo;ll be at the end of the season. Then we have to go into the playoffs in realistic fashion.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got good kids. We&rsquo;ve got three who I think will be drafted very high who won&rsquo;t be drafted for two years. One is Mark Harmon, a minor midget who is 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds. I don&rsquo;t have to tell you anything about Danny Gratton and he&rsquo;ll have been in the league three. Lee Giffen was our other minor midget pick &ldquo;tom Newmarket. He played defense for them but we&rsquo;ve got him on right wing. We honestly think he&rsquo;s going to be one of the surprises because he&rsquo;s contributing a lot quicker than we expected.&rdquo;The league governors will convene in Toronto on Dec. 1 to decide the expansion issue. After hearing a report two weeks ago from the expansion committee on applications from Detroit Compuware and Niagara Falls, the governors said they wanted more answers and told applicants they&rsquo;d have to wait two weeks for a decision.The franchise fee has been set at $350,000.Wolves howling&mdash;Sudbury Wolves, under coach Billy Harris, dined out last week. The Wolves feasted with a &ldquo;rare&rdquo; three-game road sweep, beating Windsor, London and Guelph on successive nights. Their appetite filled, they went home and lost two nights later to North Bay Centennials.Revolving doors&mdash;Kingston Canadians, under new coach Rick Comac-chia and general manager Ken Slater, have only three players remaining from last year&rsquo;s club, Dennis Smith, Dave Simurda and Craig Kales. The new regime bolstered the club by acquiring Tim Salmon, Allan Bishop, Kevin Conway, Roger Belanger, Jeff Hogg, and Steve King in deals. Conway, the club&rsquo;s overage player, has produced 21 goals.Who&rsquo;s hot (team)&mdash;Brantford Alexanders are on a roll.Who&rsquo;s hot (line)&mdash;Danny Quinn, Dave MacLean and Brian Martin of Belleville hooked up for 19 points in 10-6 win over Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. MacLean scored four goals, bringing his season total to 21 and three assists. Quinn had three and four and Martin was one and four.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02324/4832368-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="580" height="874"><figcaption class="caption-body">Oshawa general manager Sherry Bassin admits it&rsquo;s been tough replacing the veterans.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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IN THIS ISSUE

History May Repeat For Generals With The Help Of Veteran Players

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<h3>NORTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01451/4833404-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="560" height="204"></div><h3>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02359/4833397-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="575" height="234"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. Nov. 22Fredericton 3 at Baltimore 1Wed. Nov. 23Nova Scotia 5 at Adirondack 3Fredericton 4 at Hershey 4Rochester 3 at Maine 4Thu. Nov. 24Fredericton 5 at Binghamton 8Fri. Nov. 25Moncton 2 at Baltimore 3Rochester 5 at New Haven 8Nova Scotia 4 at Sherbrooke 4Binghamton 5 at Springfield 5Sat. Nov. 26Adirondack 3 at Binghamton 8Moncton 3 at Hershey 3Fredericton 4 at Maine 3Baltimore 5 at St. Catharines 6Nova Scotia 2 at Springfield 2Sun. Nov. 27Adirondack 4 at New Haven 5Rochester 4 at Sherbrooke 0<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03283/4833390-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="558" height="205"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-04215/4833383-1-eng-US/f0038-042.jpg" title="f0038-04" width="549" height="148"></div><h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Nov. 29)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-05148/4833376-1-eng-US/f0038-052.jpg" title="f0038-05" width="553" height="169"></div><h2>OLYMPIC TEAMS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-06110/4833369-1-eng-US/f0038-062.jpg" title="f0038-06" width="552" height="113"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wed Nov. 23Indianapolis 3 at Salt Lake 4Thu. Nov. 24Indianapolis 3 at Salt Lake 6Montana 4 at Tulsa 5Fri. Nov. 25Indianapolis 2 at Colorado 7Montana 8 at Tulsa 4Sat. Nov. 26Salt Lake 3 at Montana 3Tulsa 2 at Indianapolis 3<h3>OLYMPIC EXHIBITIONS</h3>Thu. Nov. 24Team USA 3, Team Canada 1Fri. Nov. 25Team Canada 5, Team USA 4Sat. Nov. 26Team USA 2, Team Canada 1<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Nov. 29)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0796/4833362-1-eng-US/f0038-072.jpg" title="f0038-07" width="551" height="259"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. Nov. 22Toledo 3 at Milwaukee 6Thu. Nov. 24Kalamazoo 3 at Fort Wayne 2Peoria 3 at Muskegon 2Fri. Nov. 25Fort Wayne 2 at Flint 3Milwaukee 4 at Kalamazoo 5Peoria 4 at Toledo 5Sat Nov. 26Milwaukee 4 at Fort Wayne 4Hint 5 at Muskegon 5Peoria 2 at Kalamazoo 5Sun. Nov. 27Flint 2 at Toledo 4Muskegon 3 at Milwaukee 4<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0879/4833355-1-eng-US/f0038-082.jpg" title="f0038-08" width="569" height="314"></div><h2>ATLANTIC COAST LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-0969/4833348-1-eng-US/f0038-092.jpg" title="f0038-09" width="566" height="202"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. Nov. 20Mohewk Valley 5 at Erie 8Tue. Nov. 22Mohawk Valley 2 at Carolina 5Wed. Nov. 23Nashville 5 at Pine Bridge 2Thu. Nov. 24Carolina 5 at Mohawk Valley 7Nashville 3 at Erie 12Sat. Nov. 26Carolina 4 at Erie 3Nashville 3 st Mohawk Valley 11Sun. Nov. 27Mohawk Valley 2 et Pine Bridge 3Carolina at Nashville (ppd)<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1065/4833341-1-eng-US/f0038-102.jpg" title="f0038-10" width="580" height="292"></div><h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Nov. 29)<h3>LEYDEN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1159/4833334-1-eng-US/f0038-112.jpg" title="f0038-11" width="576" height="228"></div><h3>EMMS DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1254/4833327-1-eng-US/f0038-122.jpg" title="f0038-12" width="566" height="260"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Tue. Nov. 22Cornwall 4 at Ottawa 3North Bay 5 at Sudbury 2Guelph 1 at Brantford 2Thu. Nov. 24North Bay 5 at Peterborough 3Kingston 5 at Windsor 2Toronto 1 at Brantford 5Belleville 10 at Guelph 2Oshawa 5 at S.S. Marie 2Fri. Nov. 25Belleville 8 at Kitchener 7North Bay 2 at Ottawa 5Kingston 5 at London 4Oshawa 6 at Sudbury 3Windsor 5 at S.S. Marie 4Sat Nov. 26Ottawa 6 at Belleville 3Brantford 3 at Toronto 2Windsor 6 at Sudbury 8London 4 at Kitchener 6Sun. Nov. 27Peterborough 4 at Brantford 5Ottawa 7 at Toronto 10Cornwall 3 at Oshawa 8Kitchener 3 at Kingston 9Windsor 5 at North Bay 7London 6 at Guelph 1<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1345/4833320-1-eng-US/f0038-132.jpg" title="f0038-13" width="568" height="342"></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<h3>LEBEL DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1440/4833313-1-eng-US/f0038-142.jpg" title="f0038-14" width="562" height="202"></div><h3>DIUO DIVISON</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1538/4833306-1-eng-US/f0038-152.jpg" title="f0038-15" width="564" height="172"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Mon. Nov. 21Shawinigan 4 at Laval 8Tue. Nov 22Chicoutimi 0 at Longueuil 4Verdun 7 at T-Ririeres 4Wed. Nov. 23Chicoutimi 3 at Granby 2Verdun 3 at Hull 1Quebec 1 at S. Jean 6Drummondville 3 at T-Rivieres 4Fri. Nov. 25Granby 7 at Chicoutimi 5Laval 5 at Drummondville 6St Jean 5 at Quebec 4Longueuil 1 at Shawinigan 8Sun. Nov. 27T-Rivierea 5 at Quebec 11Verdun 2 at Chicoutimi 5Drummondville 5 at St Jean 4Hull 3 at Granby 5Laval 5 at Longueuil 8<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1345/4833299-1-eng-US/f0039-132.jpg" title="f0039-13" width="547" height="289"></div><h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Nov. 29)<h3>EASTERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1441/4833292-1-eng-US/f0039-142.jpg" title="f0039-14" width="543" height="262"></div><h3>WESTERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1536/4833285-1-eng-US/f0039-152.jpg" title="f0039-15" width="538" height="197"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Sun. Nov. 20Portland 7 at Seattle 1Tue. Nov. 22Brandon 6 at Prince Albert 10Regina 9 at Kelowna 4Seattle 3 at Victoria 5Wed. Nov. 23Regina 6 at Kamloops 7Prince Albert 5 at Saskatoon 6Medicine Hat 5 at Brandon 2Lethbridge 2 at Calgary 3Westminster 7 at Portland 6Thu. Nov. 24Medicine Hat 7 at Winnipeg 4Portland 3 at Kelowna 1Fri. Nov. 25Saskatoon 3 at Lethbridge 4Portland 3 at Kamloops 14Regina 5 at New Westminster 1Victoria 6 at Seattle 4Prince Albert 4 at Brandon 12Sat Nov. 26Saskatoon 3 at Medicine Hat 8Calgary 1 at Lethbridge 2Kamloops 7 at Kelowna 3Regina 8 at Victoria 7Prince Albert 8 at Winnipeg 3Sun. Nov. 27Regina 8 at Portland 5Saskatoon 2 at Calgary 7Brandon at Winnipeg (ppd)<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1632/4833278-1-eng-US/f0039-162.jpg" title="f0039-16" width="539" height="317"></div><h2>ONTARIO SENIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1727/4833271-1-eng-US/f0039-172.jpg" title="f0039-17" width="536" height="314"></div><h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Wed. Nov. 16)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1820/4833264-1-eng-US/f0039-182.jpg" title="f0039-18" width="542" height="287"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1916/4833257-1-eng-US/f0039-192.jpg" title="f0039-19" width="552" height="260"></div><h2>ALBERTA JUNIOR LEAGUE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 21)<h3>NORTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-2015/4833250-1-eng-US/f0039-202.jpg" title="f0039-20" width="544" height="143"></div><h3>SOUTH DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-2114/4833243-1-eng-US/f0039-212.jpg" title="f0039-21" width="537" height="140"></div><h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-2212/4833236-1-eng-US/f0039-222.jpg" title="f0039-22" width="547" height="260"></div><h2>NEW ENGLAND JUNIOR</h2>(Standings on Fri. Nov. 18)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-2312/4833229-1-eng-US/f0039-232.jpg" title="f0039-23" width="538" height="205"></div> &#9632;

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MINOR SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">BY BOB DUFF</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0005-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-05251/4831017-1-eng-US/f0005-052.jpg"></div>that the NHL players with the worst plus-minus figures last season were: &#9632;

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Did You Know…

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THE YEAR IN REVIEW

<div class="byline">FRANK ORR&#x2019;S</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0002-011189/4830745-1-eng-US/f0002-012.jpg" title="f0002-01" width="314" height="356"></div><h2>To Play In May!</h2>THE SCENARIO THATPaul Martha was discussing is exemplified best by the Vancouver Canucks in their surprise advance to the Stanley Cup final in 1982 when they were swept aside in four games by the New York Islanders.Martha is the vice-president, general counsel and representative to the National Hockey League board of governors for the Pittsburgh Penguins and he was talking of the Penguins&rsquo; need for some playoff achievement to inject some hockey interest into the sports fans there.The Penguins are losers in winners&rsquo; territory. Even though the baseball Pirates and football Steelers have declined in the past couple of years, those clubs have been either champs or contenders for as long as anyone can remember. That sector of Pennsylvania also contains some top college football teams.&ldquo;Of course, bucking the enormous interest in the Pirates and Steelers has been a tough task for the hockey team,&rdquo; Martha said.&ldquo;A problem for the Penguins has been that we have never been in a position where we could have big success in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Making a good playoff run is what really creates the excitement for the fans and builds long-term interest in the team.&rdquo;Since they entered the NHL in the 1967 expansion, the Penguins have won three of nine playoff series, hardly the stuff to work up the fans. Back in 1982, the Pens came very close to acquiring the sort of playoff success that Martha mentioned. They pushed the Islanders to overtime in the deciding game of the preliminary round and the Pens&rsquo; Mike Bullard missed on a breakaway in the extra session.A Penguin win would have been an enormous boost for the team in a year when the Canucks acquired it. Interest and attendance was sagging badly in Vancouver but the team&rsquo;s success, which included the revival-inspiring &ldquo;white towel&rdquo; episode, got things back on the track in B.C.<h2>Others Need It, Too</h2>THE PENGUINS AREN&rsquo;Talone in requiring a splendid spring to rev up the natives.&rsquo; Martha really isn&rsquo;t pointing to a Stanley Cup championship, something that isn&rsquo;t spread around a great deal. Since the Pens started the league in &lsquo;67-68, only four teams&mdash;Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers and Islanders&mdash;have won the Cup.&ldquo;Making it to the semi-finals would be a big start,&rdquo; Martha added. &ldquo;The other teams in the NHL that have been steady money losers&mdash;Los Angeles Kings and St. Louis Blues in recent years&mdash;haven&rsquo;t had a good playoff run to stir things up.&ldquo;Playoff success is the base for season-ticket sales and the excitement created by it carries over for several years. That&rsquo;s what the Penguins&rsquo; franchise needs badly to boost our gates.&rdquo;This season, the Pens&rsquo; published attendance figures indicate an average of less than 8,000 paying customers per game. That&rsquo;s approximately half the number needed by the franchise to break even. The Pens had 13,794 fans for their season-opener against New York Rangers but haven&rsquo;t had a five-figure crowd since then. Of course, it didn&rsquo;t aid the cause when the team had only two ties in its first 11 home matches.&ldquo;If we can be competitive, say a solid.500 team, it would be a big first step,&rdquo; Martha said. &ldquo;But we&rsquo;ve been so far out of it that being really big stuff in a good sports town is very difficult.&rdquo;<h2>A Fine Romance</h2>A FIGURE OF$11 million is placed on the Penguins&rsquo; losses in the five years that the team has been owned by Edward J. DeBartolo Sr., who&rsquo;s called the world&rsquo;s leading developer of shopping malls and owns assorted other endeavours including San Francisco 49ers.That indicates Mr. DeB. is not a man who fiddles about with losing propositions and causes wonder as to why he retains the Penguins.Martha acknowledges the validity of the $11 million loss figure.&ldquo;We have no plans to abandon the team,&rdquo; Martha said. &ldquo;We do feel that hockey in certain U.S. markets is in jeopardy but we aren&rsquo;t ready to give up on the game here.&ldquo;The DeBartolo family has a fine romance with Pittsburgh and is very committed to this city in a variety of areas.&rdquo;In addition to major real estate developments, DeBartolo owns the Civic Arena, the Spirit of the Major Indoor Soccer League and the U.S. Football League franchise for Pittsburgh. &#9632;

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HOCKEY VIEWPOINT

<div class="byline">BY BOB McKENZIE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011208/4830783-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">As a Minnesota North Star, Bobby Smith enjoyed special status. Sometimes it meant rave reviews. Other times it meant harsh criticism.</figcaption></div>In the summer of 1980, the Montreal Canadiens, picking first in the National Hockey League entry draft, chose a strapping big center from the Regina Pats named Doug Wickenheiser. He was supposed to be the next Jean Beliveau. If he couldn&rsquo;t fill those large skates, then he would be a solid replacement for the multi-talented but departed Jacques Lemaire.As we all know, it hasn&rsquo;t turned out that way. After more than three seasons of unfulfilled promise, a few false alarms and a million trade rumors, Doug Wickenheiser has yet to be anything close to what the Canadiens thought he would be.It&rsquo;s a steady, dull ache the Canadiens have had to live with, especially since Denis Savard, the third pick in 1980, has starred for the Chicago Black Hawks after playing his junior hockey in the Habs&rsquo; own backyard.So late in October, the struggling Canadiens dealt left winger Mark Napier and center Keith Acton, as well as a third-round draft pick in 1985, to the Minnesota North Stars for Bobby Smith.Bobby Smith. He&rsquo;s big, he&rsquo;s a center and he is supposed to be the solution to a lot of problems in Montreal.&ldquo;Look at all the successful teams,&rdquo; says Canadien right winger Guy Lafleur, who has harped for years on the need for a big man up the middle, specifically on his line. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve all got big centers who can move the puck. We&rsquo;ve really needed a big centerman&mdash;this club hasn&rsquo;t been able to replace Jacques Lemaire.&rdquo;So, will Bobby Smith succeed where Doug Wickenheiser has failed? Will he be the kingpin to halt the decline of the Canadiens, at least until the new management team in Montreal unearths a new generation of stars that will take the Habs back to the top of the NHL ladder?If his first 14 games in the bleu, blanc et rouge of Les Canadiens are any indication, then the answer would seem to be yes. After going 4-5 in their first nine games, the Habs have gone 7-6-1 since acquiring Smith. He has scored 15 goals and 11 assists in 24 games. Twelve of those goals and four assists have come while with the Canadiens. He plays the power play. He kills penalties. He centers the Habs&rsquo; big line with Lafleur on the right flank.But 14 games are not a season and it&rsquo;s not as if Bobby Smith doesn&rsquo;t have detractors, despite the fact that he&rsquo;s cornered the market on class and elan. In fact, it&rsquo;s safe to say that no NHL player with Smith&rsquo;s accomplishments&mdash;he was the 1979 Calder Cup winner and has averaged slightly more than 88 points per season since entering the NHL after a star junior career with the Ottawa 67s&mdash;takes as much criticism as he does.He won&rsquo;t pay the price. He won&rsquo;t use his wingers. He&rsquo;s selfish. He&rsquo;s prone to lazy spells. If he&rsquo;s not scoring, he&rsquo;s no use. If he&rsquo;s scoring, he&rsquo;s lucky and not really playing that well. Those are just a sampling of comments that are made during the course of the season about Smith.The 25-year-old native of Sydney, N.S., who grew up in Ottawa, acknowledges the presence of his critics but shrugs them off as he would a pestering checker. The explanation is that he is such a big target, both literally and figuratively.&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got understand that I had special status in Minnesota,&rdquo; says Smith, who exudes an aura of intelligence and, above all else, class. &ldquo;I was the first player drafted by the new (Lou Nanne) North Stars. I was also the first player drafted in 1978.&ldquo;There was all kinds of pressure. When things were going well in Minnesota, I got a lot more credit and attention than I deserved. And when things weren&rsquo;t going well, I got criticized. I understood. I was aware of the situation.&rdquo;He was aware of it, but it didn&rsquo;t make it any easier to accept. Last year, Smith scored only 24 goals and 53 assists, compared to his 1981-82 output of 43 and 71. That was a source of a great deal of criticism.&ldquo;Sure,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;my production fell way off. Ihadabadyear. But I wasn&rsquo;t the only one. Why don&rsquo;t you look at the other guys and see how they did compared to the season before. It wasn&rsquo;t only me. The whole team had troubles.&rdquo;An understatement, to be sure. Dino Ciccarelli: 55&rsquo;goals, 51 assists in 1981-82 and 37 goals and 38 assists in 1982-83; Neal Broten: 38 goals, 60 assists in 1981-82 and 32 goals and 45 assists in 1982-83.The other reason Smith is such an inviting target is his size, which, ironically, is what makes him such a precious commodity to the Canadiens.&ldquo;Bobby Smith is a very big man,&rdquo; says an NHL general manager, who requested anonymity. &ldquo;And history shows that hockey&rsquo;s big men often take a lot more criticism than anyone else. Frank Mahovlich went through the same thing, except it was probably worse.&ldquo;Because they&rsquo;re so big, because they cover so much ice so easily and, if they&rsquo;re not real aggressive, then it looks as if they&rsquo;re not trying or are lazy. Ask any of the NHL&rsquo;s real big men how tough it is to be big. It&rsquo;s true. You become an easy target for criticism.&rdquo;Things started unravelling for Smith in Minnesota at the begin-ning of this season. Determined not to repeat last season&rsquo;s poor output, Smith says he worked harder than ever in the off-season.But the North Star center picture was getting congested. Neal Broten and Smith had been considered the top two pivots, but off-season acquisitions introduced Dennis Maruk and No. 1 draft pick Brian Lawton.New coach Bill Mahoney was another factor. Suddenly, Smith was the third or fourth-line center, seeing spot duty here or there. As Smith saw his enthusiasm for the current campaign wane due to his lack of involvement, he knew it was time to move on.&ldquo;The coach (Mahoney) didn&rsquo;t want to play me a lot,&rdquo; says Smith. &ldquo;I can live with that. That is a coach&rsquo;s perogative. He has to do what is right by him. And so did I. So I went to Lou (Nanne) and said it would be best for everyone if I played somewhere else. Big players such as myself need lots of ice time to be sharp.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021001/4830776-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="1004" height="1146"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bobby Smith is an intelligent, classy individual who, despite having a legion of detractors, has been an elite player wherever he&rsquo;s played.</figcaption></div>Nanne picks up the story from here.&ldquo;Usually,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t talk to a player about trading him. But Bobby and I had a couple of long talks before the deal was actually made. 1 wanted to be sure he really wanted to leave.&ldquo;Trading Bobby was one of the most difficult things I&rsquo;ve ever done. He is such a first-class individual and he&rsquo;s been such a very important part of this franchise. I can tell you that you&rsquo;ll never meet a classier guy than Bobby Smith and he did everything that was asked of him and more while he was here.&rdquo;Brian Kilrea, an unabashed Bobby-Smith booster who coached him in Ottawa and still guides the 67s today, says he can&rsquo;t comprehend the legion of Smith detractors.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s bleeping ridiculous, &ldquo;Kilrea says.&rdquo;He&rsquo;s been the leading scorer on the North Stars four out of the five seasons he was there. He led that team to the Stanley Cup finals. He leads them in scoring in the playoffs. He plays the power play. He kills penalties. He does everything. People say he doesn&rsquo;t pass enough. Huh, he still holds the record for assists (123) in this league (OHL).&ldquo;In my opinion, he&rsquo;s fulfilled every expectation since he&rsquo;s entered the NHL. He&rsquo;s smart. He&rsquo;s just a great guy. I think when you hear someone criticize Bobby Smith you have to look at the source. I think people are jealous of him. He&rsquo;s got everything going for him and I guess that bugs some people who aren&rsquo;t as fortunate.&ldquo;You watch, he&rsquo;ll do the job in Montreal. They need someone to get Lafleur the puck. He&rsquo;ll do it.&rdquo;Off the ice, Smith is the toast of the town. He&rsquo;s speaks passable French and has appeared on a number of French open-line radio and television shows, which has endeared him to the large French-Canadian population in the city. His wife is a native Montrealer, so they&rsquo;ve had no problems fitting in.He says he&rsquo;s excited about wearing a Canadiens&rsquo; uniform, even though the Habs aren&rsquo;t the power they once were. It&rsquo;s a rebuilding year of sorts, but Smith points out that the playoffs are what really matters and he doesn&rsquo;t &ldquo;think that this team has fallen enough that it can&rsquo;t be competitive and an honest playoff threat in the spring.&ldquo;The Canadiens don&rsquo;t have the same number of all-stars or real big scorers that they did in the past,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;but we&rsquo;re working together as a very solid team. The teams that do well in tire playoffs are the ones who are disciplined and play as a team.&ldquo;As for myself, I&rsquo;m having fun again. I worked hard all summer to make sure this was going to be a good year. Things weren&rsquo;t working out in Minnesota, I wasn&rsquo;t having fun there anymore, so I&rsquo;m thrilled to be here in Montreal. It&rsquo;s a thrill to wear a sweater with this crest on it.&rdquo;Things couldn&rsquo;t be better for Smith. He&rsquo;s happy in the Habs&rsquo; organization, he&rsquo;s getting lots of ice time, he likes Montreal (he has yet to say a negative word about the burdensome taxes in Quebec) and Montreal likes him.Will he be everything the Canadiens expect? Only time will tell and really, there are only two certainties for Smith in Montreal this season.First, no matter how well he plays, he will continue to have critics. Second, no matter how many critics he has, Doug Wick-enheiser will have more.And it would seem that a third certainty is there&rsquo;s only room for one big man up the middle in Montreal. &#9632;

f0003-01

BOBBY SMITH

<div class="byline">BY WALT MacPEEK</div>It was like one of those South American revolutions. Billy was in Chicago, at a board of governors meeting, and, boom, the whole government changed overnight.&rdquo;&mdash;a stunned Devils&rsquo; player.EAST RUTHERFORD&mdash;The New Jersey Devils had lost 18 of their first 20 games and there were rumblings that owner John McMullen was ready to replace general manger Billy MacMillan behind the bench.With MacMillan visibly worn down by the pressure of the two jobs, cutting his resposibilities in half was a move that seemed overdue but very few people anticipated the drastic changes which were announced on Nov. 22.The Devils&rsquo; management, which so often stressed its commitment to stability and a patient long-term rebuilding plan, had a different kind of &ldquo;release&rdquo; in mind for MacMillan.Bob Butera, the Devils&rsquo; president, read a prepared statement for McMullen which announced not only the firing of MacMillan as GM-coach, but also the dismissal of player personnel director Bert Marshall. On hand at a press conference to meet the media were new head coach-assistant GM Tommy McVie and a new GM, Max McNab. Marshall Johnston, who had been MacMillan&rsquo;s assistant coach, was listed as the new director of player personnel but did not attend the press conference.McMullen&rsquo;s statement said, in part: &ldquo;A move such as this is always a very, very difficult one to make and it is more difficult in light of the affection I hold for Billy MacMillan.&ldquo;But, try as he might, he and his management team were just unable to get the franchise moving in a positive direction. It just was not working.&rdquo;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think Toe Blake, Scotty Bowman or Vince Lombardi, if he was alive, could come down and win a Stanley Cup with this team as it is today, McVie said following a 6-2 loss to Boston, his second defeat since taking over the New Jersey job. McVie&rsquo;s career coaching record before the Devils was 69-189-49 in parts of six seasons with Washington and Winnipeg.For the new management team, however, the question of how to gain some points in the standings did not appear to be as important as the problem of regaining lost credibility.Media reaction to the changes was generally negative and the sting of Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s Nov. 19 declaration that the Devils were a &ldquo;Mickey Mouse operation&rdquo; was still ringing in the ears of McMullen and Butera.Veteran New York Post reporter Hugh Delano began his story on the frontoffice changes this way: &ldquo;The New Jersey order of the Mickey Mouse club will now come to order. Put on your beenies, mousketeers, and sing.&ldquo;T-O-M&hellip;M-I-E&hellip;Mc. V-I-E&hellip;all together: Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse, la-la-la-la-!&rdquo;Both McMullen and Butera insisted that Gretzky&rsquo;s comments had nothing to do with their decision to fire MacMillan, although both were &ldquo;incensed and disappointed&rdquo; by what they regarded as lack of fairness and good judgment by the Edmonton superstar.MacMillan, who has been a class act throughout his one-and-a-half years here, reacted with remarkable poise.&ldquo;Yes, I was surprised that I lost both jobs,&rdquo; he admitted. &ldquo;I probably should never have taken on the coaching part of it in the first place. I hate to leave now, but everything is&hellip;was&hellip;in order.&ldquo;We had an excellent scouting staff, young players coming and all our draft picks for the future. I&rsquo;ll hold my head high; I&rsquo;m proud of the moves we made going to New Jersey.&rdquo;Butera&rsquo;s explanation for Marshall&rsquo;s dismissal appeared to leave some questions unanswered.The Devils&rsquo; president pointed out that Marshall and MacMillan were like &ldquo;hand and glove.&rdquo; But Marshall Johnston was also a part of the team which came from Colorado. Butera also made a point of Marshall&rsquo;s contract running out this spring&hellip;but so does Johnston&rsquo;s contract and he is brand new to his very important and demanding job.The Devils appeared to have the first pick in the 1984 entry draft all locked up, so that scouting would appear to be even more critical than winning to the franchise right now.McMullen and Butera promised that they will soon announce more moves which will reshape their scouting department to be even more ready for the forthcoming draft.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011251/4830814-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="596" height="744"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tommy McVie lost his first two games behind the Devils&rsquo; bench.</figcaption></div>McNab, who had been vice-president of hockey operations, stessed that the Devils will maintain their policy of building through the draft, but suggested that the emphasis on youth had been exaggerated.&ldquo;I would say that there was too much talk just about youth, either from us or from the media,&rdquo; said McNab. &ldquo;As a result, I think our veteran players were forgotten guys to a degree.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0004-01

Devils Search For Lost Credibility

THE INTERNATIONAL HOCKEY WEEKLYFounded in 1947 by Kenneth W. McKenziePUBLISHERDean HeineCONTROLLERTony DobranowskiEDITOR IN CHIEFBob McKenzieEDITORIAL DIRECTORCharlie HalpinASSISTANT EDITORPerry LefkoCONTRIBUTING EDITORSStan Fischler, Frank OrrADVERTISING SALES MANAGERRandy GreenADVERTISING SERVICES MANAGEREsther SumkaADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVESCanadian Consumer Product Sales: CCMC, Kim Locke. 43 Madison Ave., Toronto. Ontario M5R 2S2 (416) 961-5141SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES MANAGERPaula HeardNEWSSTAND SERVICES MANAGEREsther SumkaCIRCULATION DEPARTMENTKathy NikiesRosanne TaninoACCOUNTING DEPARTMENTTom MoffatMary CarubiaSPECIAL PROJECTS MANAGERElaine WatkinsonADVERTISING AND EDITORIAL OFFICES85 Scarsdale Rd., Suite 100 Toronto. Ontario, Canada M3B 2R2 (416) 445-5702 EXECUTIVE OFFICE 850 Third Avenue New York. New York 10022DISTRIBUTORDistributed nationally by Disticor 101 Duncan Mill Rd., Suite L4 Don Mills, Ont., M3B 1Z3 (416) 449-6430THE HOCKEY NEWS, (ISSN 0018-3016) is published weekly except monthly June through September by W.C.C. Publishing Ltd., 85 Scarsdale Road # 100, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3B 2R2 (416) 445-5702. In U.S. c/o W.C.C. Publishing Corp., 850 Third Ave., New York, N.Y. 10022.40 ISSUE SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $22.95 in the U.S.A $22.95 in Canada. $39.95 in Foreign Countries. Send all Canadian and Foreign subscription orders to THE HOCKEY NEWS, P.O. Box 13055, Postal Station &lsquo;A&rsquo;, Toronto, Ont. M5W IV7. U.S. subscription requests should be mailed to Box 904, Buffalo. N.Y. 14240. Please allow 4-6 weeks for processing.SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO THE HOCKEY NEWS, 85 Scarsdale Road #100, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3B 2R2. Second Class mail Registration No. 1327. All inquiries pertaining to subscriptions should be addressed to Subscription Dept, The Hockey News. 85 Scarsdale Road. #100, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3B 2R2.IN THE UNITED STATES: Second class postage paid at New York, N.Y. and at additional mailing offices, U.S. POSTMASTER send address change to: The Hockey News, P.O. Box 904, Buffalo, N.Y. 14240.Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations &#9632;

The Hockey News

<div class="byline">BY REYN DAVIS</div>WINNIPEG&mdash;True to his word, John Ferguson has turned the coaching reins over to Barry Long, his protege.Numbed by his own lack of success behind the bench, the general manager of the Jets excused himself as coach for the sanctity and safety of his position upstairs.But he&rsquo;s comforted in the knowledge that Long, 34, is the man who can extract the talent and effort from the players involved.Undoubtedly, Long is an organization man, loyal to the Jets almost to a fault.&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s face it, this is not my life&rsquo;s ambition to coach in the NHL,&rdquo; said Long. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m perfectly happy working anywhere in the organization. If they want me to coach, that&rsquo;s fine. But when the day comes that they feel differently, I&rsquo;ll be more than satisfied to do something else.&rdquo;One might draw the conclusion that Long&rsquo;s heart isn&rsquo;t in it. Most men who graduate to the position of coach in the NHL are hungry for power. Invariably, visions of grandeur dance in their minds. Their egoes are flexed.But, in Long&rsquo;s case, he would seem to be perfectly pragmatic. He knows and understands the insecurity the position holds.&ldquo;I want you to understand that I have no plans for myself beyond the Jets,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I do not aspire to be the coach of another NHL team. This is the organization I love. I&rsquo;ll do what I can in any capacity I&rsquo;m asked to fulfill.&rdquo;Rest assured that Long will be an extension of Ferguson. There will be no misunderstandings that developed when Tom Watt was coach. The wavelengths will be the same.Exercising his first option, Long dipped deeper into the organization for an assistant coach, hiring Rick Bowness, 28, of the Sherbrooke Jets of the American Hockey League.Bowness was playing in Sherbrooke and assisting Ron Racette, the coach. A year ago, when Racette was sick, Bowness served as playing-coach.Long developed an appreciation of Bowness while serving as a troubleshooter. When the burden of coaching and playing began to take its toll on Bowness, Long was sent to relieve him.&ldquo;When Barry called, 1 jumped at the opportunity,&rdquo; said Bowness. &ldquo;I knew my playing days were numbered. This was my chance to return to the NHL in another capacity.&rdquo;Bowness, at the outset, would appear to have two outstanding qualities to offer the Jets. He is a holler guy, not unlike Ferguson. And he also thoroughly understands the defensive aspects of playing forward.Retained as another assistant coach is Bill Sutherland, who has been with the club since its admission to the NHL. &ldquo;Sudsy&rdquo; is actually one of the team&rsquo;s original players from 1972. He jumped the Detroit Red Wings to cast his lot with the World Hockey Association team operating in his hometown.Long&rsquo;s association with the Jets dates back to early October of 1976. In his greatest hour as GM of the WHA team, Rudy Pilous acquired Long from the Edmonton Oilers for future considerations, which amounted to nothing.Performing like an all-star, Long helped the Jets win two of their three WHA championships. He became known as a tireless worker, tremendous checker and one of the game&rsquo;s premier shot blockers.His fondness of Winnipeg and the Jets did not diminish in 1979 when Detroit. Red Wings reclaimed him prior to the expansion draft. Publicly, he stated a yearning to return to the Jets even as he played for the Red Wings.Eventually, he was sold to the Jets. But, after one full season, he suffered a rare hand injury. Constant pounding had broken down the circulation of blood in his hand, causing a numbness in his fingers. Doctors feared he could lose his hand if he continued to play.Early in the 1981-82 season, Long retired. He spent a year receiving treatments, then, last summer, Ferguson appointed him as an assistant coach.Upon Ferguson&rsquo;s decision to succeed Watt behind the bench, he made it clear that his successor would be Long.The Jets, under Ferguson, fashioned a 2-4-0 record. They led in every game but one. On three occasions, they blew three-goal leads.In his last three games as coach, the Jets allowed 21 goals and 130 shots on goal.For Ferguson, it was an opportune time to go.BENCH BITS&mdash;The Jets waged a determined battle in Edmonton, grabbing the lead twice, including once in the third period, before dropping a 7-6 decision to the Oilers. Doug Smail, a left winger, did a superb job of shadowing Wayne Gretzky, holding the Great One to a goal while the Jets were shy two men. Laurie Boschman continued to play extremely well, picking up eight points (1-7-8) in three games&hellip;Dale Hawerchuk and Morris Lukowich had three-game scoring streaks&hellip;Defenseman Moe Mantha stretched a consecutive points streak to nine games with a goal and an assist in Edmonton&hellip;If Barry Long doesn&rsquo;t pan out as coach, it won&rsquo;t be for a lack of dedication to the team. &ldquo;Barry bleeds Jets,&rdquo; said general manager John Ferguson. &#9632;

Fergie Takes Long Coaching Route

MONTREAL&mdash;Laval Voisin center Mario Lemieux, who is making a shambles of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League scoring race, says he will not play for Canada&rsquo;s national team in the world junior championships in Sweden at Christmas.Lemieux, the first QMJHL player to score 50 goals in 27 games, is distressed over what he perceives as poor treatment from not only the national junior team, but also the Canadian Olympic team.National junior team coach Brian Kilrea, who coaches the Ottawa 67s of the Ontario Hockey League, paid a visit to Lemieux on Nov. 21. Kilrea met with Lemieux before a Voisins&rsquo; game and told the player that no one was conspiring against him. &ldquo;Take some time and think about your decision,&rdquo; Kilrea told him.Immediately following the game, with Kilrea on his way back to Ottawa, Lemieux told reporters he &ldquo;definitely won&rsquo;t go.&rdquo;Kilrea, contacted a day later, said he hadn&rsquo;t been informed of anything by Lemieux. &ldquo;If he&rsquo;s not coming to our camp, he hasn&rsquo;t told me,&rdquo; Kilrea said.Lemieux is also disturbed that Olympic coach Dave King did not invite him to play for the Olympic team, which, ironically, is desperate for goal scorers.TORONTO&mdash;Gordie Howe and Ken Dryden are just two of many former NHL stars who will stage a benefit hockey game at St. Michael&rsquo;s Arena on Dec. 14, with the proceeds going to Jocelyn Lovell, the world class Canadian cyclist who is now a quadri-palegic as the result of a biking accident.Joining Dryden and Howe on the oldtimer and celebrity team, which will play against the Flying Fathers, a talented squad of Roman Catholic priests, are Yvan Coumoyer, Frank Mahovlich, Andy Bathgate and Jim McKenny. Don Cherry will coach and Red Storey will referee.EDMONTON&mdash;Edmonton Oiler superstar Wayne Gretzky issued an apology for calling the New Jersey Devils a &ldquo;Mickey Mouse operation.&rdquo;Gretzky, in a statement released by the Oilers, admitted &ldquo;he was way out of line and regret having criticized the Devils&rsquo; organization&hellip;(he) admits he was out of line in terms of his remarks.&ldquo;He says his intention was to draw attention to the problems facing the weaker teams in the NHL, and in no way were his comments meant to be injurious to the New Jersey Devils players or management.&rdquo;TORONTO&mdash;Dr. Tom Pashby, the Toronto ophthalmogist who pioneered face masks for hockey players, says he is preparing a new lightweight helmet and mask for players 10 and under.Pashby said more youngsters are starting to play the game at an earlier age and, therefore, the equipment must be altered to suit their specific needs.He also said equipment for larger and older children that is being worn by the little guys could cause various types of injuries due to the ill fitting. &#9632;

SLAPSHOTS

Here&rsquo;s what was happening 20 years ago this week:&bull; Second-place Toronto Maple Leafs carried out their crusade on league-leading Chicago, by winning four consecutive games, including a 3-0 win over Chicago at Maple Leaf Gardens. Leaf coach Punch Imlach stated, &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve (the Hawks) got just a little bit too much power for this league and I think we are the team that must give them a run for their money.&rdquo;&bull; Frank Boucher, commissioner of the Saskatchewan Junior League, placed a ban on the slapshot, hoping to speed up the game and encourage more passing and carrying of the puck over the blueline.&bull; Roger Crozier was named Detroit&rsquo;s first-string goalie ahead of veteran Terry Sawchuk, even though the 21-year-old Crozier was in hospital with a fractured cheekbone.&bull; Ace Bailey shocked the sports world and people around Maple Leaf Gardens on Dec. 4, when he showed up to take his regular position as penalty-time keeper. Bailey, the former NHL star, reportedly died the previous day, but he&rsquo;d been mistaken for Harold Bailie, a 64-year-old city park employee who died of a heart attack.&bull; Omaha Knights led the Central Pro League, but a youngster named Phil Esposito of the St. Louis Braves led the league in scoring with 12 goals and 25 assists. &#9632;

THIS WEEK…20 Years Ago

<div class="byline">BY RANDY SCHULTZ</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-011109/4830962-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="604" height="530"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-02809/4830955-1-eng-US/f0005-022.jpg" title="f0005-02" width="602" height="532"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-03558/4830948-1-eng-US/f0005-032.jpg" title="f0005-03" width="580" height="536"></div>Prior to the United States&rsquo; victory in the 1980 Olympics, the demand for American hockey players to play in the National Hockey League was minimal.One player, Tommy Williams, knows what it was like for Americans to make the NHL back in the &lsquo;60s and &lsquo;70s.&ldquo;It was pretty tough,&rdquo; said Williams, who played on the U.S. team which won a gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Squaw Valley. &ldquo;The biggest knock against Americans was that they didn&rsquo;t play the hard-hitting type of hockey Canadians did.&rdquo;Following the Olympics, Williams had a pro contract waiting for him with the Boston Bruins.&ldquo;Even after I had signed a contract with the Bruins, I wasn&rsquo;t sure I had made the right decision,&rdquo; said Williams, who played 17 seasons of pro hockey with the Bruins, California Golden Seals, Washington Capitals, New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association and various minor league teams.&ldquo;I had always wanted to play in the National Hockey League. That had been my dream.&ldquo;But the money wasn&rsquo;t that good and I was getting myself beat up pretty good in training camp.&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t think I was good enough to play. But I must have done something right.&rdquo;Today, Williams, who is a territory manager for a New England manufacturing company, sees a different attitude towards Americans hoping to play in the NHL.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-04374/4830941-1-eng-US/f0005-042.jpg" title="f0005-04" width="606" height="1269"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tom Williams made the NHL when it was uncommon for Americans to do so.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;The 1980 Olympic team&rsquo;s hockey victory was the shot in the arm American hockey needed as a way to get to the NHL,&rdquo; commented Williams, 43, a native of Duluth, MN, who now resides in Hudson, MA. &ldquo;Minnesota used to be the hotbed of American hockey.&ldquo;It still is. But now other areas like New England, Michigan and New York are producing good players as well.&ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t say that the U.S. is becoming a world leader in players, but they rank right up there with the best of them and are gaining a lot of respect.&rdquo;The ex-Olympian looks ahead to the 1984 Olympics and the chances of the U.S. hockey team repeating as gold medal winners.&ldquo;I have seen the team play a few times, both in person and on TV and the one thing that sticks out in my mind about the team is that they are tremendous skaters,&rdquo; said Williams, who is a member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, MN. &ldquo;One thing is for sure and that is that nobody will outskate them.&ldquo;And even though the team is young, they are very talented. One guy that sticks out in my mind is Pat LaFontaine.&ldquo;Plus, this year&rsquo;s team is much better prepared than the Olympic team I was on. These guys today play between 60 and 70 games against all kinds of competition, including the NHL, before they get to the Olympics.&ldquo;I envy those guys. It is a great feeling representing your country. 1 was very proud of that, as I&rsquo;m sure they are.&ldquo;Times may change and things may change like conditioning of teams and all, but the feelings of players, now or then, never changes.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0005-01

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

1. What was the name of the World Hockey Association&rsquo;s equivalent of the Stanley Cup?2. Which NHL rookie is nicknamed &ldquo;Butsy&rdquo;?3. Name the three Plager brothers?4. Who holds the record for most penalty minutes in one period? How many?5. What do former NHLers Henry Boucha and Rick Dudley have in common?6. Who was the only player in Vancouver Canuck history to have his sweater retired?7. When did the Chicago Black Hawks last win the Stanley Cup and who was the coach?8. What number does Minnesota North Star rookie Brian Lawton wear?9. Which former NHL player was nicknamed &ldquo;Suitcase&rdquo;?10. What is Punch Imlach&rsquo;s wife&rsquo;s name?<h2>Trivia Answers</h2>1. Avco Cup.2. Washington&rsquo;s Bryan Erickson.3. Barclay, Bill and Bob.4. Randy Holt, 67 minutes.5. Both wore headbands.6. Wayne Maki.7. 1960-61 season, Rudy Pilous.8. No. 98.9. Gary Smith.10. Dodo. &#9632;

TRIVIA

The International Hockey Weekly Founded in 1947Published by W.C.C. Publishing Ltd.85 Scarsdale Road, #100, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3B 2R2.<h2>Into The Past</h2>THERE IS A tendency in this world of high-tech hockey to castigate those who would spend more than a few fleeting moments in the past. Judging by some of the mail we receive at our office, a lot of fans out there do not have the inclination to indulge in nostalgia.Those writers or columnists who do make a habit of turning the clock back from time to time, often suffer the slings and arrows of hockey fans who cry, &ldquo;Quit living in the past.&rdquo;Of course, there is a point where the good, old days become a little syrupy, a little hard to digest, but instances such as these should not numb one to the treasure that going back into the history of our game can provide.A shining example of this came on the CBC television network, not long after the Grey Cup&mdash;Canada&rsquo;s national football cham-pionship&mdash;concluded. While many of those who had watched the game probably left their sets for some other activity, be it to drown their sorrows and or go celebrating, a jewel of a film was presented.Like Ken Dryden&rsquo;s best-selling book, The Game, which should be required reading for anyone who wants to gain a better under-standing of our sport, the National Film Board documentary, entitled The Day We Beat The Russians, is a winner.It is not, as you may think, a look at the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the USSR. No, The Day We Beat The Russians is a splendid piece of work that chronicles the exploits of the Penticton Vees, a senior hockey team in British Columbia which rose to national prominence in 1955 when it defeated the Soviet Union for the world championship.But the producers of this film resisted an obvious urge to turn this story into a fairy tale. They detailed how the team was put together, the ups and downs, the hard realities of the times, how the three Warwick brothers of NHL fame gathered together to form the core of a team that everyone called a group of &ldquo;has beens and never wases,&rdquo; how no one expected them to win a national championship, never mind a world title.The film clips of the team in action are vintage footage. But more than anything else, this film makes you feel as though you know what it was like to play hockey at the time and place. It&rsquo;s rich in emotion and the mood of the film permeates you, even you weren&rsquo;t bom when the Vees shocked the hockey world.All in all, it&rsquo;s a work of art. It&rsquo;s sure to be the type of film that never really gains a lot of prominence nationally and it&rsquo;s doubtful that our American readers will ever get an opportunity to see it.But if by chance you manage to come across it, take the time to watch it. Indulge in a little nostalgia and perhaps you&rsquo;ll be surprised to find that to really understand what is happening in our game today, you have to know what happened in it yesterday.<h2>Dit&rsquo;s No. 5</h2>REVERSED WITH A great deal less fanfare than it was instituted, Dit Clapper&rsquo;s No. 5, the same one that was retired after his National Hockey League career, is back where it belongs&mdash;in the rafters of the Boston Garden.Literally, it never left its roost, but figuratively it did when the Bruins decided to let Guy Lapointe wear the No. 5.Of course, what followed is history. Angry traditionalists raged at the Bruins&rsquo; decision and general manager Harry Sinden took the brunt of the attack.Well, traditionalists will be glad to hear that Guy Lapointe is now wearing No. 27. &ldquo;Guy and I had talked about it,&rdquo; Sinden said, &ldquo;and I told him that jf it (all the fuss) bothered him in any way, he could switch to whatever number he wanted. We didn&rsquo;t want him to feel uncomfortable.&rdquo;Perhaps this little episode, which admittedly did get a bit out of hand, will serve notice to all hockey teams of era: If you plan on retiring a player&rsquo;s sweater, you had better be damn sure it&rsquo;s going to stay retired.After all, who needs the lousy public relations over something as seemingly innocent as a hockey jersey? &#9632;

<div class="byline">BY BOB BAER</div><h2>New York Is The Citv Of Champions</h2>By virtue of their four consecutive Stanley Cup titles, the New York Islanders have helped the city of New York to more major championships (hockey, baseball, basketball, football) in the past decade (1974-83) than any other city in North America.They combined with the Yankees for six championships&mdash;one more than Pittsburgh, and two more than Philadelphia and Montreal.In team championships, the Islanders&rsquo; four gave them a share of the top spot in that category with the Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Boston Celtics were next with three.Despite an often-maligned playoff format that permits too many teams to qualify, the NHL had only three different franchises win championships in the 10-year period (Islanders, Canadiens, Flyers). This compared with eight for Major League baseball, seven for the NBA and six for the NFL. It&rsquo;s interesting to note that baseball, with the fewest number of playoff participants, had the most diversity among its championship teams while the NHL, with the largest number of playoff participants, had the least diversity in this area.Philadelphia was the only city to win championships in three major sports (Flyers, Phillies, Sixers) and the only city to participate in the finals of all four sports. In one eight-month span from April, 1980 to January, 1981 the city was represented in the Stanley Cup finals, the NBA finals, the World Series and the Super Bowl, a feat never before accomplished.In terms of futility, there were three cities with franchises in all four sports that failed to reach the finals in any one of them. Heading the list was Chicago (with five franchises) followed by Detroit (with four franchises) and Atlanta (four franchises prior to the departure of the Flames to Calgary).The championship rankings by city and by franchise stack up as follows:<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011238/4831110-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg" title="f0008-01" width="862" height="474"></div> &#9632;

f0008-01

SOME OTHER VIEWS

<h2>Fitzgerald Had Class</h2>Tom Fitzgerald; A great writer and a class guy, he will be missed at the Garden and the Pilgrim Arena (Hingham, MA).Reading his column as a youngster and knowing him personally over the last five years, this witty, smiling Irishman, whose stories, from Shore to Orr, whose deep sincere sorrow came forward at the mention of Norm Leveille, will surely be missed by this fan. Again Fitzie, thanks for the stories and the memories.Bill Skinner Weymouth, MA<h2>Needle In Hab Haystack</h2>In his column on Nov. 4, Frank Orr relates the story of Montreal&rsquo;s &ldquo;slide down the NHL ladder.&rdquo; Orr cites the opinion of an NHL man describing Montreal&rsquo;s participation in the recent waiver draft, with their selection of Jean Hamel, as being representative of the plight which has befallen Montreal.This NHL man, as he is called by Orr, went on to ask, &ldquo;&hellip;but can you remember the last time the Canadiens claimed a player in the waiver draft?&rdquo; The point being emphasized, again, was Montreal&rsquo;s recent fall from supremacy and their seemingly desperate measures to halt a further fall.On June 13, 1979 didn&rsquo;t the Canadiens claim a then unproven, one-half-season veteran named Rod Langway in the expansion draft?I&rsquo;m not implying or inferring that Hamel will equal or surpass Langway&rsquo;s contribution to Montreal during his stay. Rather, I&rsquo;m reminding Mr. Orr&rsquo;s &ldquo;NHL man&rdquo; that on occasion a needle is found in a haystack.Chris Field Denver, CO<h2>Hockey Players Care&hellip;</h2>In response to the Toni Hancock-Olynyk viewpoint (Oct. 11, Some Other Views), it is unfortunate that she encountered such an athlete. In general, the attitude of the hockey world is very caring. Proof emerges from the Molson&rsquo;s Slo-Pitch Tournament held annually in Niagara Falls, Ont. Most NHL teams were represented quite admirably for the last three years. Players took the time and had the consideration to sign autographs and pose for pictures&mdash;something that isn&rsquo;t entirely necessary. Some players went out of their way to converse with the fans. Certainly, a few players appeared annoyed, but they were by far in the minority. It is inconceivable that everyperson in society would have the patience either. In fact some fans are extremely rude&mdash;it&rsquo;s not entirely the player&rsquo;s fault in all cases!Even the star players were generally easy to talk to and they, too, went out of their way to make sure they satisfied the demands of all the autogtraph-seekers.The players are to be commended for their conduct. The joy on the children&rsquo;s faces when they see their heroes in person is indescribable. These memories will be cherished.Janice Wiggins Niagara Falls, Ont.<h2>&hellip;They Just Need Space</h2>As a hockey fan for many years, I look forward to your publication each week. The most interesting part to me is reading other people&rsquo;s views on what is happening in hockey. I read with particular interest Toni Hancock-Olynyk&rsquo;s views. I, too, feel compelled to write, but what I want to say is in defense of the players.I, too, am a fan who goes through all that Toni does. Going to games, cheering for my team, getting home late and then getting up early the next morning to go to work is all part of my life during hockey season. The only difference between myself and Toni is the way we view professional athletes.I think we as fans should realize something about professional athletes. They are first and foremost human beings who go through everything a fan goes through. Sickness, frustration and just plain bad days are things we all have from time to time. Just as we all have times when we would like to block out co-workers, friends or chil-dren, can we really blame an athlete if there are times when he doesn&rsquo;t give his complete attention to a fan?Most players would probably admit that when they were young they, too, were fans and they dreamed of one day hearing the cheers in the NHL. Because of this, I think many of them realize the importance of fans and is one reason they agree to make personal appearances. This, in my opinion, is the perfect way to meet the players. At a personal appearance last year I was able to meet Al Secord and Doug Wilson of the Chicago Black Hawks and the way these two men conducted themselves is a credit not only to them, but to their team and the entire NHL. They did everything they could to make each person there feel special. The smiles on their faces were genuine. They answered all questions politely and often asked their own questions of the fans. When asked to pose for a picture, they not only readily agreed but would make the fan feel comfortable so the picture would come out looking natural and not forced.The kindness that Toni talked about should work both ways. While I agree that the players should always try not to ignore their fans, I think we as fans should respect their right to a little privacy away from the game and a little understanding if we don&rsquo;t get all the attention we expected.Mary Pat Cheney Oak Park. IL &#9632;

FAN FORUM

<div class="byline">BY NEIL MILBERT</div>CHICAGO&mdash;The profile remains low and the goals-against average is getting there.Tony Esposito, voice of experience in the National Hockey League, believes there is a definite correlation between the two.&ldquo;I never want to get too overconfident,&rdquo; said the goaltender who is a quarter of the way through a Black Hawk season that is conducive to schizophrenia. &ldquo;I try to maintain the low profile.&lsquo;&lsquo;The toughest thing I&rsquo;ve found through the years is to maintain that certain level. Playing consistently is the key. It&rsquo;s no good to have a great game and then a bad game. When you have a bad game you can&rsquo;t let it ruin you. It happens. You&rsquo;re human.&ldquo;In my case, I know that the good games have outnumbered the bad by a great degree.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a very tough process, such a tough situation. You get to a point and you say to yourself: &lsquo;I did it yesterday.&rsquo;&ldquo;But nobody remembers yesterday.&rdquo;In mid-November, Esposito made them remember. He did something he didn&rsquo;t do all last season. He played in three straight games and much of the time he played like the goaltender of old, not like an old goaltender.The Black Hawks were in a bad rut and he got them out of it with his brilliant performances against Edmonton and St. Louis.The workaholic was able to adapt as attested by a record of 23-11-5, one shutout and a goals-against average of 3.46.This year, Murray Bannerman has been made No. 1, not verbally but visibly. He played in 13 of the games during the first quarter of the season.&ldquo;Things are different,&rdquo; said Esposito. &ldquo;I had that back problem for a week in training camp and we kept three goaltenders for the first month of the season so I had a hard time getting the work I needed.&rdquo;At one juncture, coach Orval Tessier suggested that perhaps Esposito wasn&rsquo;t exerting himself enough at practice.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t need anybody standing over my head with a whip,&rdquo; said Esposito. &ldquo;When I get out there at practice, I know right away what I have to do to get myself ready, to get the edge I need for a game.&ldquo;As far as goal tenders go, I never subscribed to the theory that you play the way you practice. I see where Ken Dryden says the same thing in the book he just came out with.&ldquo;When you practise you just know that they&rsquo;re blasting pucks at you. When it&rsquo;s a game it&rsquo;s completely different. Something clicks. Everything is on the line and you do whatever you have to in order to keep it from going in.&ldquo;I can still play; I know that. When I see that I can&rsquo;t, then I&rsquo;ll retire. It&rsquo;s that simple.&rdquo;In each instance, he was selected the game&rsquo;s No. 1 star, rightfully so in the educated opinion of the rival coaches, Glen Sather of Edmonton and Jacques Demers of St. Louis. Each night the adversary&rsquo;s refrain was the same: &ldquo;Esposito was the difference.&rdquo;But late in the third period of his third game of the week, the Chicago defense had a blackout. Skating on home ice, the Montreal Canadiens streaked from four goals down to get a 5-5 tie.Instead of a six-point week, Esposito had to settle for two triumphs and a distasteful tie. And those who saw the summary rather than the game were left with the misconception that maybe it was Esposito&rsquo;s 40 years of age that greased the skids.To the contrary, it was a pair of overtime saves against Guy Lafleur and Bobby Smith that kept a deadlock from becoming a disaster.Esposito was able to reconcile himself to the result.&ldquo;I just see the way things happen,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I think and I judge.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011223/4831165-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="591" height="832"><figcaption class="caption-body">Veteran goalie Tony Esposito played brilliantly in wins over Edmonton and St. Louis.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;The way it happened made it seem like it was meant to be. One guy knocks in a puck from out of the air and they all were from right on top of me.&ldquo;I was stopping everything from 2030 feet. I felt tremendous. I was moving very, very well. In fact, that&rsquo;s the best I&rsquo;ve felt all season.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0009-01

Old Espo Playing Like Espo Of Old

<div class="byline">BY RON COBB</div>ST. LOUIS&mdash;Ron Caron decided he&rsquo;d seen enough. The Blues lost eight of 10 games, and, triggered by disappointment, Caron set in motion five days that will be remembered in these parts as &ldquo;Much Ado About Nothing.&rdquo;Caron, the Blues&rsquo; vice president and director of player personnel, met with the team Nov. 16 before a game in Chicago and informed the players in strong terms that some of them may have played their last game for the Blues and some may play their last game that night.After the Blues lost 4-3 to the Black Hawks, Caron said he would make every effort to effect &ldquo;one or two major changes&rdquo; in the clubs by midnight, the 17th.&ldquo;I mean it,&rdquo; said Caron. &ldquo;I want some action.&rdquo;He said he would be disappointed if new players weren&rsquo;t in the Blues&rsquo; lineup in time for their game in Pittsburgh two nights later.&ldquo;There are certain players I don&rsquo;t consider important fixtures for the St. Louis Blues,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Prior to the last two or three days, I was hoping I could delay this. But let&rsquo;s face it, the season is on and when you start losing faith in what you have, you lose the fantasy of accomplishing what you hope to accomplish.&rdquo;Caron returned with the team to St. Louis the next day and continued his efforts to make trades. As midnight approached, however, he realized he would have nothing to announce. He assured reporters that they could expect something the next day.&ldquo;To reach the right deal,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;a half-day extra could make the difference.&rdquo;On Friday, the 18th, players, fans and press waited for the announcement. Finally, at about 2:30 p.m., the Blues&rsquo; public relations office began sending out the news: center Blake Dunlop had been put on waivers. End of announcement.On the trip to Pittsburgh, Caron said he underestimated the time needed to make the kind of changes he had in mind.&ldquo;When I mentioned some kind of quick time, it was to set the foundation and eventually keep going,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But as I was ready to set the foundation. I found out that I had to tie up other pieces and they are the ones that prevented me from delivering in quick time.&rdquo;He was still committed to trades, however, but this time he was not going to paint himself into a comer by setting a deadline for himself. Something could happen on the 21st at a meeting of the National Hockey League&rsquo;s general managers in Chicago, he said.&ldquo;The tremendous urge for me to see us snap out of this bad slump made me eager to bring new blood to the Blues for our next assignment&mdash;ittsburgh,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Unfortunately, there was not enough time between our game in Chicago and the game in Pittsburgh to do all that.&ldquo;But until I&rsquo;ve done it, I won&rsquo;t be satisfied.&rdquo;Caron said he was looking for goaltending help and a quarterback-type defenseman as his top priorities. Mike Liut started 17 of 19 games in goal and Caron said that was too much.Ater the Blues&rsquo; 4-4 tie with the Penguins, it was on to Chicago for Caron. With all the league&rsquo;s GMs assembled in one place, it figured that this would be Caron&rsquo;s best shot at completing his deals.When he returned to St. Louis on the 21st, however, he was empty-handed and this time he called off the search.&ldquo;I explored the market and I don&rsquo;t like what I see at the present time,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;So the way we are now, that&rsquo;s the way we&rsquo;re going.&rdquo;Caron said he would rather take some heat for not delivering the trades he had forecast than rush into something that he would regret later.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not obligated to make a deal just because Ron Caron said we&rsquo;re going to make a deal,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If there was some urgency, I could have made five or six trades, but they wouldn&rsquo;t have been beneficial to the St. Louis Blues. But I won&rsquo;t stop thinking about improving the team.&ldquo;My message to the team is, &lsquo;Let&rsquo;s play hockey.&rsquo; Some guys get another chance. Things are bitter now because nobody likes to lose, but a a couple of wins would sweeten things.&rdquo; &#9632;

Much Ado About Nothing As Blue Players Reprieved

<div class="byline">BY STAN FISCHLER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011267/4831220-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="315" height="364"></div><h2>I&rsquo;m In Love</h2>WHAT&rsquo;S THERE TO like about the 1983-84 season?Plenty besides Eight-Gear Gretzky. And I&rsquo;ll tell you who I&rsquo;m madly in love with right now:BILL SMITH&mdash;There isn&rsquo;t an ounce of b.s. in him, afact that many b.s. artists among the Fourth Estate have trouble comprehending. You take your Ken Dryden, I&rsquo;ll take my Bill Smith.BOBBY CLARKE&mdash;When he talked to me last year&mdash;after what Dave Schultz and I wrote about him in The Hammer&mdash;I figured it was a fluke and he&rsquo;d go the other way this season. But this character is pure gold. He may not like you or what you write, but he&rsquo;ll give you the time of day and an interview.LOU ANGOTTI&mdash;Fate has not been especially kind to this sweet little guy. But he&rsquo;s hanging in and with some luck he&rsquo;ll turn that god-forsaken Penguin club around. If anyone deserves a break today, it&rsquo;s Louie.GUY LAFLEUR&mdash;So, he won&rsquo;t talk to me. Who cares? But he did have the guts to tell off his boss Serge Savard when the GM said he had to wear one of those stupid helmets.MIKE MILBURY&mdash;Nobody but Mighty Mike stands up The King, Al Eagleson. And, oo-oo-oo, does Milbury make some of The Eagle&rsquo;s toadies in the Toronto press get mad. I love it!BARRY BECK&mdash;Is it possible not to be crazy about a defenseman who also plays the saxophone?SCOTTY BOWMAN&mdash;Ten years ago the late Sid Payne, one of the smartest hockey writers in the world, told me that Scotty was a genius. It took me five years to realize that Sid was right. Ten minutes of hockey talk with Bowman is worth 10 years with most other hockey people.DON CHERRY&mdash;You want to know something? I still can&rsquo;t believe they paid me to write a book with this guy. I should have paid Grapes an entertainment tax just for the laughs.HARRY ORNEST&mdash;How many guys do you know who saved hockey in St. Louis?DARCY ROTA&mdash;In any given season for the past 10 years, this chap has to rank among the top three nice guys of any decade.CHICO RESCH&mdash;He should be Grant Fuhr&rsquo;s ventriloquist.A REFEREE&mdash;There must be a referee that I like but, for the life of me, I can&rsquo;t think of one now. Maybe it&rsquo;ll come later.ED HOSPODAR&mdash;An all-star he isn&rsquo;t. A really fine person, he is. Quite often it&rsquo;s better to be the latter.LANNY McDONALD: Even if he was a crumb-bum, you&rsquo;d have to like anyone wearing a walrus for a moustache. But it so happens he&rsquo;s also a heavyweight in the class department.HARRY SINDEN&mdash;(1) For having the gumption to unretire Dit Clapper&rsquo;s number five and give it to Guy Lapointe; (2) for going against the grain of the establishment so often in a wonderfully ornery way; (3) for proving you can win consistently without breaking the bank, and (4) for hiring Grapes in the first place. (We&rsquo;ll forget about the other part.)MRS. CHRISTINA SUTTER&mdash;She has delivered six sons to the NHL. How many Canadian women can make that statement?GIL PERREAULT&mdash;It&rsquo;s been 13 years since he graced the bigs and the style is still there even without Rick Martin and Rene Robert.ALDO GUIDOLIN&mdash;He gave up hockey scouting for selling real estate&hellip;which is too bad for hockey.BOBBY ORR&mdash;In many ways his glow is brighter in retirement than it was when he burned up the league&mdash;and that&rsquo;s saying a lot.A REFEREE&mdash;I&rsquo;m still looking.THE GREAT GRETZKY&mdash;Forget about everything else he does but just consider his consistency on such a high level and without respite and you have to rise for the standing O. But I&rsquo;d like to see him play a la Lafleur&mdash;without the stupid helmet.DENIS SAVARD&mdash;I like him for accepting his role as the NHL&rsquo;s official Gretzky understudy.MIKE BOSSY-BRYAN TROTTIER&mdash;This is such a good act they even visit hospitals to cheer up the kids together (and try very hard not to let the world know about it).RON DUGUAY&mdash;Just for becoming engaged. Can you imagine the sacrifice this man is making in unfulfilled dates?MARCEL DIONNE&mdash;Have you ever seen a better Guy Lafleur understudy?DENNIS MARUK&mdash;Easily the most productive &ldquo;floater&rdquo; in the NHL, this man also ranks high in the moustache department and is fun to watch&mdash;but not in his own zone.THE POLISH ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION&mdash;This is the truth: They are so short of hockey equipment in Poland they trade players to other countries for skates, gloves, and pads. Jerzy Plotz, for one, was dealt to an Austrian team for 20 pairs of skates and gloves.WALLY WEIR&mdash;Every year I figure that the Nordiques will forget that Double W is indispensible but every year they remember and I&rsquo;m glad.SCOTT STEVENS&mdash;A mean hombre from the 1948 mold. Reminds me of Bill Barilko (Toronto Maple Leafs 1946-1950). I would like him on my team.A REFEREE&mdash;I give up.<h2>Mid-Season Matrimony</h2>THERE IS NOTHINGwrong with getting married. At last report lots of people were still doing it.But there is something wrong with a hockey player getting married in mid-season and that is why I hope nothing awful, like a benching, happens to Ron Greschner of the New York Rangers.Just the other day the versatile Blueshirt married Carole Alt, a model of such beauty that her face already has improved the cover of about 20 bazillion magazines. That is the good news.The bad news is Greschner&rsquo;s timing and lack of historic perspective. Has he not heard of Johnny (Goose) McCormack? Or Rene Namelessranger (an alias for a certain player that wants anonymity)? If he had heard of them, perhaps Gresch would have postponed the wedding date to, say, June, July or August.Johnny (Goose) McCormack played for Conn Smythe&rsquo;s Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1950-51 season. The Goose was one of the best defensive forwards of his day&mdash;young, fast and savvy. But not savvy enough as it happens.You see, the Goose fell in love and made the mistake of getting married in mid-season. And if ever there was a no-no with Smythe&rsquo;s Leafs it concerned mid-season matrimony. McCormack&rsquo;s ability notwithstanding, as soon as he got married, the Goose was instantly shipped to the minors.&ldquo;These fellows should realize that hockey is an important business to them,&rdquo; snapped Smythe. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re only at it six or seven months. When they get married, they&rsquo;re running around. looking for an apartment, buying furniture and such. They should realize that this isn&rsquo;t a good time to do it.&rdquo;The Goose never got another gander from Smythe although he was rescued by a couple of other NHL clubs.Rene Namelessranger pulled the same stunt on Lester Patrick, the Conn Smythe of the Rangers during the mid-1940s. Patrick (Craig Patrick&rsquo;s grandfather) was another who believed that marriage may have been made in heaven but forget it in the middle of the hockey season.One of Lester&rsquo;s players, Rene Namelessranger, married in mid-season. Before marching down the aisle, Rene looked like a star-in-the-making. A rugged checker, he loved nothing better than to rush into the comers, fetch the puck and set up a scoring opportunity.Once Rene Namelessranger tied the knot, his wife suggested that he preserve his beauty. &ldquo;Rene,&rdquo; she insisted, &ldquo;you don&rsquo;t have to go into the comers.&rdquo;Alas, poor misinformed Rene believed her.And before the euphoria of marriage had worn off Rene Namelessranger was ran right out of the league. He lived in the minors unhappily ever after&hellip;<h2>Gretzky And The Devils</h2>IT IS Ameasure of Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s all-league perspective that he substituted concern for gloating after he and his Edmonton Oilers dissected the New Jersey Devils 13-4 on Nov. 19. It is unfortunate that Gretzky&rsquo;s statements were mis-read and he was forced into an apology.&ldquo;They (the Devils) are going to lose a lot of games. They&rsquo;re going to have an empty building soon and we&rsquo;re going to be without another team,&rdquo; warned The G Man. &ldquo;I hope for the league&rsquo;s sake that the Devils turn it around. You can&rsquo;t continue losing two million dollars a year and think it&rsquo;s funny.&rdquo;Gretzky is right but obviously John McMullen is wrong, judging by the manner in which he has constructed his hockey club. In a year it has plummetted from worse to dreadful and in the process has undermined what had appeared to be solid foundations for a formidable franchise.&ldquo;At the start of the season,&rdquo; says one NHL GM, &ldquo;I looked at the Devils&rsquo; roster and I said to myself, &lsquo;How can they miss the playoffs?&rsquo; Now I look at their roster and I wonder how they ever won two games!&rdquo;What Gretzky and others close to the game perceive is the importance of the New Jersey franchise to the good and welfare of the league.&ldquo;If we can turn this mess around,&rdquo; says one Devil official, &ldquo;we&rsquo;ll have the best franchise in the league.&rdquo;And that&rsquo;s the pity of it all. What&rsquo;s left of the Jersey fans is literally weeping for a winner.&ldquo;After we lost to the Flames in overtime last month,&rdquo; recalls broadcaster Larry Hirsch, &ldquo;fans came over to the booth and they were in tears. That&rsquo;s how much they want a winner.&rdquo;What remains to be seen is whether Billy MacMillan&rsquo;s re-placements&mdash;Max McNab and Tom Mcvie&mdash;can untrack the Devils. If the answer is in the affirmative, Gretzky and the rest of those concerned about the good and welfare of the NHL will be delighted.If not, it will simply underline the accuracy of Wayne&rsquo;s original statements. &#9632;

f0010-01

ON THE CONTRARY

<div class="byline">BY BOB FACHET</div>LANDOVER&mdash;A year ago, Doug Jarvis was a fourth-line center for the Washington Capitals, rarely seen on the ice during the third period of close games. Now, in a complete turnabout, he has become one of the Capitals&rsquo; key players.Jarvis centers the No. 1 line, with Mike Gartner and Gaetan Duchesne as his wingers. The three are the only plus players on the team.Additionally, Jarvis pairs with Duchesne on the top penalty-killing unit of a club that ranks third in the NHL in that department. He takes important faceoffs in the Washington end and, for extra credit, he serves as an assistant coach, breaking down films and formulating penalty-killing strategy.Jarvis came to Washington 15 months ago in the Big Trade, but he was overshadowed by Rod Lang way, Brian Engblom and even Craig Laughlin. All three had productive seasons and all three let folks know they were happy to be in Washington. For Jarvis, changing sweaters after seven years in Montreal was not so easy.&ldquo;When I came here last year, maybe I had to make a little adjustment to a new team,&rdquo; Jarvis said. &ldquo;Remember, of the four guys who were traded, I had been in Montreal longest of all. The longer you&rsquo;re in a situation, the tougher it is to start over.&ldquo;A lot of it is getting to know each other, not just on my part but on the team&rsquo;s part&mdash;not knowing what I was capable of doing or how I was capable of playing.&ldquo;Last year, a lot of times I was part of a makeshift line that played only once in awhile, usually when we were ahead. I&rsquo;m sure I was considered just a defensive center to be used only in certain situations, like key faceoffs or penalty killing.&lsquo;&lsquo;Now I&rsquo;m playing a regular shift and I have a line. The responsibility of playing in a regular position, plus the added year, have changed things considerably. I don&rsquo;t care if people consider me a defensive center, as long as I&rsquo;m given the responsibility of a full-time job on the ice.&rdquo;Washington coach Bryan Murray is happy to give Jarvis added responsibility and after the Jarvis line limited Bryan Trottier, Mike Bossy and Clark Gillies to three shots in a 7-1 rout of the Islanders, Murray said, &ldquo;The Jarvis line was outstanding against the Trottier line. That&rsquo;s the hockey game, shutting them down. &ldquo;Of Jarvis&rsquo; rise in prominence, Murray said, &ldquo;Last year I played him totally in a defensive role. He&rsquo;s still in that role, but we&rsquo;ve added to it. We&rsquo;re taking advantage of his ability to move the puck and to create offensive chances.&ldquo;Doug is an intelligent guy and he works so hard. Mike Gartner needs somebody to get him the puck and Doug is doing a fine job in that area, as well as in so many others.&ldquo;I think Doug had some problems adjusting to the trade last year and I certainly was not aware of just how many things he can do or I wouldn&rsquo;t have had him sitting on the fourth line so long.&rdquo; &#9632;

Capitals Take Advantage Of Jarvis’ Talents

<div class="byline">BY JAY GREENBERG</div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;If Pelle Lindbergh would have played worth a plugged nickel that night, he still would have been 70 cents short to cross the Walt Whitman Bridge.Goalies are supposed to save. Not only goals but bridge tolls. And now who has Lindbergh&rsquo;s wallet? His fiance. That&rsquo;s right. He&rsquo;d given it to his fiance and now he was in the Spectrum parking lot trying to figure out how he was going to get home.This is the Swedish version of Tap City. Lindbergh has just given up five goals to Minnesota, including three in the third period, that blew a 5-2 lead. He didn&rsquo;t have a decent save all night.The Flyers are slumping and everybody knows that it&rsquo;s 100 per cent Lindbergh&rsquo;s fault and now he can&rsquo;t find 75 cents in his $40,000 Porsche.So he has to borrow the money from a sportswriter. On the night his goals-against average has climbed to a new high, he has just sunk to a new low, bumming quarters from a writer.There you have it, a day in the life of a goalie, probably the worst Lindbergh has ever had. How come when the Flyers were going through a stretch when they can&rsquo;t miss the other team&rsquo;s goalkeeper, nothing was hitting Lindbergh?And how come it was so different as the Flyers opened a four-game trip in Vancouver?And how come a team that had been losing and tying largely on the inadequacies of its specialty-team plays suddenly clicks for two power-play goals? How does it kill four out of five penalties against the league&rsquo;s best power play, including a two-man advantage for 1:30 with the game hanging in the balance.And how does it open the trip with a 5-4 victory over the Canucks? Because the goalie played better, that&rsquo;s how. The goalie, in fact, was almost sensational in three critical stretches where one goal separated the two teams.&ldquo;Each game,&rdquo; said Flyer coach Bob McCammon, &ldquo;Pelle&rsquo;s gotten a little bit more sure of himself. He got a couple breaks when he was down and they didn&rsquo;t lift it over him, but that&rsquo;s what it take sometimes to get things turned around. &ldquo;Nothing succeeds like success. McCammon x&rsquo;d and o&rsquo;d some changes on the power play to get more movement down low and yet reminded the two penalty-killing chasers to be more aggressive up top. And it worked, although the sum of the genius was that the puck and the rebounds finally bounced the Flyers&rsquo; way.For the first time in 13 games they were outshot. For only the fourth in their last 10, they won. With Mark Howe limping off with a groin pull and Glen Cochrane ejected for pulling Ron Delorme&rsquo;s hair in a fight, the Flyers were forced to go with only four defensemen in the third period. And after giving up a goal with 17 seconds left and watching a Doug Halward shot just miss at the buz-zer, they kind of staggered this one out.But for the first time in almost a month, you had the feeling that a Flyer goalie was not going to give up the goal that would tie or beat them.You can credit Lindbergh&rsquo;s rubber confidence for that and McCammon for giving Lindbergh four straight starts and a chance to warm back to where he was after 11 games.It was at that point that McCammon gave Bob Froese the next two starts. And when Lindbergh came back and began faltering, there was a whole lot of faltering going on around him. Lindbergh and his teammates locked hands in a swoon.He was brilliant in one loss, 5-4 to Los Angeles, terrible in two others, a 7-6 loss in St. Louis and the Minnesota tie. And only fair in 4-1 and 4-2 losses to the Islanders. And less than fair in a 5-4 victory over Pittsburgh.McCammon put out an all-points bulletin for the Lindbergh of mid-season 1982-83. You know, the same one who started this season with a 2.76 goals-against average. And the Lindbergh baby finally turned up last night.&ldquo;Things start to go bad and then you start to wonder how the next one is going to go in,&rdquo; said Lindbergh. &ldquo;I made a save tonight and left the same rebound that I did in St. Louis. And this time the guy hit me.&ldquo;They&rsquo;re shooting from behind screens, the puck is hitting off someone and going in, and tonight I was there. It evens out.&rdquo;And the team gets confidence from its goalie and the goalie gets confidence from his team.&ldquo;You know sooner or later it&rsquo;s going to come back,&rdquo; said Lindbergh. &ldquo;You work with (Bemie) Parent and try to get it back. Bemie says to challange to make things happen instead of them happening to you.&rdquo;So then Lindbergh charges out and isn&rsquo;t quite set when Mike Bossy blows one between his pads. And then the next time, he&rsquo;s either there a split-second quicker and braced or gets lucky when the shooter misses the net.The best goalies are the ones who put themselves in the best possible position to get lucky. And if this kid has everything but maybe just a couple more inches to his body to be one of the best, then his extraordinary quickness can more than compensate.He has a few things to learn, about rebounds, about giving his fiance his wallet, about attaining the night-in, night-out steely trance that separates the merely hot from the few good enough to win a Stanley Cup.He&rsquo;ll get there. At his best, Lindbergh is already good enough to take the Flyers a long way. And as the experience comes, so will the consistency. He needs to play a lot and McCammon is apparently going to give him that opportunity.The wins, like they did for three months last year, will come. And the GAA, which has crept up to 3.54, will start to shrink.&ldquo;If I got it down to about 2.50, I know I&rsquo;d think about it more,&rdquo; said Lindbergh. &ldquo;I did last year. I&rsquo;d give up two and start thinking that the third one would determine whether it would go up or down.&ldquo;Now it&rsquo;s so high, that I figure the hell with it. Just so we win.&rdquo;ICEBERGS&mdash;Rick MacLeish, reinstated to the lineup after three games, scored a beautiful power-play goal, coming off the wing, catching goalie Richard Brodeur leaning and going to his backhand. Ray Allison went back to the pressbox to replace MacLeish. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not questioning Ray&rsquo;s efforts,&rdquo; said coach Bob McCammon. &ldquo;I just felt Ricky was a better bet at this point to score for us.&rdquo; &ldquo;There&rsquo;s nothing I can say that can do me any good,&rdquo; said Allison. &ldquo;So I have no comment.&rdquo; &#9632;

Flyers Bank On Lindbergh For Goaltending

<div class="byline">BY JOHN GILBERT</div>BLOOMINGTON&mdash;It was one out of the archives when the Minnesota North Stars and Edmonton battled to a 2-2 tie before a standing-room crowd at Met Center. But if the game showed the teams were even that night, it also showed how much difference there is between the two teams.&ldquo;I could tell by our warmup how good we&rsquo;d play,&rdquo; said defenseman Brad Maxwell. &ldquo;Our passes were clicking and we were really jumping. I can always tell by our warmup. The other night we were awful against Toronto.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the big difference: the work ethic. Edmonton works all the time. They&rsquo;re expected to work and play hard every shift and they live up to it.&rdquo;When the media bubbled to Oiler general manager-coach Glen Sather that it was the best game of the year, Sather shrugged and said, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s funny, but this is about the 15th building we&rsquo;ve played in and the press has come up and said exactly the same thing.&rdquo;So while everybody comes up with a supreme effort against Edmonton, the Oilers are used to playing at that high caliber level. And the National Hockey League should send a contribution to Sather and his troops for the liberal doses of classics they provide.&ldquo;They are so good,&rdquo; said defenseman Curt Giles of the Oilers, &ldquo;that it&rsquo;s a test of your ability to play against.&rdquo;Said Maxwell: &ldquo;They&rsquo;re the fastest. Really good. Their three on two rushes are like nightmares. They all backhand pass as well as they pass on their forehands. They&rsquo;re so quick, they&rsquo;re able to get back to defend, too.&ldquo;One of their biggest advantages is that they practise against each other. Neal Broten is a great player, but when he comes at Edmonton, it&rsquo;s nothing new because their defense has to play against Gretzky every practice, so it&rsquo;s not like they haven&rsquo;t seen it before.&ldquo;We play a great game, but then we might play a bad one the next time out. We&rsquo;ve got to get to that consistency. Everybody has got to accept a role on this club. We&rsquo;ve got certain guys who go good, but we&rsquo;ve got so many good players that when you cool off, you don&rsquo;t play as much. That&rsquo;s not bad, if you can accept playing just a few shifts and know that you&rsquo;ll play more when you get hot.&ldquo;But when guys are complaining or bitching about not playing, it doesn&rsquo;t help the team. You&rsquo;ve got to do it when you get your chance and settle for playing less if you&rsquo;re not living up to your role on this team.&rdquo;As if to underline Maxwell&rsquo;s theories of inconsistency, the North Stars had played a clinker two days earlier and lost 6-4 to Toronto at the Met Center. Because of a huge snowstorm only about 7,000 fans could make it to the game. Al MacAdam, who is not one to make ex-cuses, said, &ldquo;You could just tell it was going to be one of those nights where nobody was clicking.&rdquo;One night after the Edmonton game, the Stars went to Toronto and snoozed through two periods, falling behind 5-2 and 5-3. At that point, the Stars rallied and made an incredible comeback. De-nnis Maruk&rsquo;s goal cut it to 6-4 in the third period, then Neal Broten&mdash;who felt guilty because he had missed the team&rsquo;s charter flight&mdash;scored one to cut it to 6-5, another with three seconds left to 6-6, and his third in a row to win it in overtime.The team had first planned to charter out after the game at 11 p.m., then changed its mind and went early the next morning. Broten and his wife, Sally, had been up all night because their new baby was ill. He glanced at the wrong itinerary and thought the team was leaving at 11 a.m. Having missed the charter, he paid his own ticket and then, simply, won the game for the Stars.The club fined Broten $300 plus the $210 for his own air ticket. Who says the North Stars don&rsquo;t have discipline?STAR NOTES&mdash;Mark Napier went out of action with a cut on his little toe. He was stepped on accidentally by Dan Mandich, who still had his skates on after the morning skate the day of the Edmonton game. &#9632;

North Stars Are Teetering On Brink Of Consistency

<div class="byline">BY JOE FALLS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021046/4831354-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="308" height="356"></div><h2>Sudden-Death Delight</h2>OF ALL MY heroes in the record book, one stands out above all the rest.Mel Hill.Maybe you never heard of Mel Hill. He played a long, long time ago. He played for the Boston Brains from 1937-41 and later for the Brooklyn Americans from 194142 and closed out his career with Toronto Maple Leafs from 1942-46. You probably don&rsquo;t even remember the Brooklyn Americans. They used to be the New York Americans and even though I lived in New York at the time, I can&rsquo;t remember why they became the Brooklyn Americans. I can&rsquo;t recall them ever playing their games at Ebbets field. Perhaps Stan Fischler, who is a much older man, can tell us the story about the Brooklyn Americans.Anyway, Mel Hill was my guy when he played for the Brains in the late &lsquo;30s. He became known as Mel (Sudden Death) Hill. One year he scored all of the sudden-death goals in the playoffs for the Brains&mdash;three of them, I believe. Don&rsquo;t you know? Of all the hockey record books in my den, I can&rsquo;t find an accounting of Mel Hill&rsquo;s sudden-death goals. If it isn&rsquo;t three, let me dream.Mel Hill played at a time when a goal was a goal. A team might get two or three of them a night. I&rsquo;m talking about the time of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2. They had not yet come upon the Gretskyesque scores of 8-4, 9-5 and 14-3. Imagine the guy getting eight points in one game and nobody paying a whole lot of attention to it. Mel Hill played the 1938-39 season and scored the grand total of 10 goals.<h2>Gretzky Of His Time</h2>ANYWAY, IN THIS era when one goal was a precious possession for any team, Hill, as nearly as a I can remember, produced three sudden-death goals for the Brains. Considering the times, that&rsquo;d be like three triple hat tricks for Wayne Gretzky.I saw Mel Hill play but can&rsquo;t remember too much about him. So, again, I&rsquo;ve allowed my mind to rale my senses. I see him as a lean and lithe wingman, with a sallow complexion, and hair that grew straight back. 1 see him swooping in from the side, not a strong man but one with an arrow-straight shot, and beating the goaltender with a hard and low shot to the far comer at the bottom of the net. That&rsquo;s how I see all three of his &ldquo;sudden goals.&rdquo; If you tell me that two of them were deflections, going in off the stick and the ramp of a defenseman, I don&rsquo;t want to hear it. I don&rsquo;t even want to hear it if any of them came off a rebound.I prefer to be sitting in the end balcony and watching him swoop in and score with his lightning-like shot.Which brings me to the main theme of this column.Sudden-death overtime.I like it and I hope they keep it.Now I know there will be many surveys done this season to prove the success or failure of this extra five-minute period.We&rsquo;ve all heard most of the arguments already&mdash;that overtime helps the strong teams and hurts the weak; not much is accomplished with an extra five-minute period; everybody plays &ldquo;not to lose,&rdquo; etc. etc.<h2>Sweet-Feeling Suspense</h2>ALL OF THESE arguments are valid and I take exception to none of them. I even like the idea that each team should get a point if the score is tied at the end of regulation play, with the winner getting an extra point in overtime. This would be a break for the lesser teams, giving them something for 60 minutes of play.All well and fine. What I like about sudden death is the sweet feeling of suspense it gives you from the moment the buzzer sounds ending the third period to the moment when the referee drops the puck for the start of the extra period.I go to hockey games to be thrilled. I love this game in ways that I don&rsquo;t fully comprehend. Like most of us old geezers, I thought it was better when they played with only six teams because you got to know every player on every team and almost every game was well played.My problem today is that there are so many teams in so many parts of the continent that I can&rsquo;t keep up with them as I&rsquo;d like to and too many of the games are poorly played and too many of them produce too many cheap goals.So, when we get down to an overime period, I can feel the anticipation and the anxiety and it makes the whole evening worthwhile. I put myself in the place of the players and wonder what&rsquo;s going through their minds as they take that break before going into overtime. Nobody wants to be the one to make the mistake which will cost his team the game and that creates great tension for me.I hope they don&rsquo;t take too many surveys and knock out sudden-death overtime after this season. The owners and players&mdash;especially this association of the players&mdash;should understand they are in show business and sudden death is good for the box office.In fact, how about a Mel Hill Award&mdash;nothing great, nothing serious, but just a fun thing to do&mdash;for the player who scores the most sudden-death goals in one season. &#9632;

f0012-02

HOCKEY CORNER

<div class="byline">BY DICK CHUBEY</div>EDMONTON&mdash;In another time and place&mdash;back during the infancy of an eight-game Oilers&rsquo; winning streak&mdash;Eddie Chadwick made a rather astute observation.The Oilers completed one period, enroute to their first-ever National Hockey League regular-season victory in the Montreal Forum. Somewhat of a significant contribution to that 3-1 conquest on Oct. 29 was the survival of a situation in which the Oilers were short two men for two minutes.Jari Kurri, who earlier had scored what proved to be the winning goal, contributed largely during the precarious predicament&mdash;dashing from Canadien to Canadien, doggedly checking, but never showing desperation.Chadwick, whose specialty is goaltenders, was sufficiently moved to observe: &ldquo;Kurri, he just does so much for this hockey club. First of all, he does (Wayne) Gretzky&rsquo;s backchecking. He can put the puck in the net. He can make a play. And whenever we&rsquo;re two men short, he&rsquo;s out there. (Mark) Messier takes the faceoffs, but he&rsquo;s the forward out there most of the time.&rdquo; OK, nobody&rsquo;s saying the highly-efficient Finnish right winger is about to supplant Gretzky as the next Hart Trophy winner. Such a suggestion would be preposter-ous. Gretzky&rsquo;s in a world all to his own. But check the scoring race and see who is there leading the mortals.Yep, Jari Kurri&mdash;24 goals, 22 assists in 22 games. That&rsquo;s 20 points back of you-know-who, but none of the other hotshots around the NHL are any closer.Kurri is also showing remarkable consistency. During his first couple of seasons, he scored in streaks&mdash;which were interrupted by prolonged dry spells. The 23-year-old once went 18 games without a goal. This time around he&rsquo;s scored at least one goal in 11 games and has been held without a point only on three occasions. On any other club those sort of statistics would warrant headlines.Following a five-goal explosion in the Oilers&rsquo; 13-4 romp over New Jersey Devils on Nov. 19, if one pro-rated Kurri&rsquo;s pace over 80 games, he would be good for 84 goals and 168 points. Not bad for the chap voted the second best defensive forward in the NHL last season.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a joke that he didn&rsquo;t win,&rdquo; scowls the Oilers&rsquo; assistant coach John Muckier, pointing to a sentimental triumph for aging Philadelphia center, Bobby Clarke. &ldquo;All-round, I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s a better player&mdash;right winger&mdash;in the league. He does it all. He&rsquo;s an excellent checker, takes the man off the puck cleanly. He gets a shot away quickly.&ldquo;And people don&rsquo;t realize how quick he is on skates. Watch him pull away from standing still. He&rsquo;s like Paul (Coffey). Zip! And they&rsquo;re gone&hellip;&rdquo;There&rsquo;s one stigma Kurri, a 1980 fourth-round draft, has to live with should he hit for the more realistic figure of 60&mdash;even the magic circle of 50&mdash;goals. He&rsquo;s Gretzky&rsquo;s right winger and it was once uttered by general managercoach Glen Sather of Kurri&rsquo;s predecessor, Blair MacDonald: &ldquo;A fire hydrant could score 40 goals playing with Gretzky.&rdquo;Sather, of course, holds Kurri in considerably higher esteem&mdash;than MacDonald or a fire hydrant&mdash;but the fact he&rsquo;s seldom out of Gretzky&rsquo;s company does camouflage his abilities in the eyes of some experts.&ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t bother me,&rdquo; shrugs Kurri, taking the only approach open to him. &ldquo;They can say whatever they want. There&rsquo;s nothing I can do about that.&rdquo;The best chap to consult would then be Gretzky. For, if Gretzky&rsquo;s the Lone Ranger, Kurri&rsquo;s Tonto. And, where would one be without the other?&ldquo;Jari&rsquo;s playing exactly like the whole team&rsquo;s playing&mdash;getting better every game,&rdquo; is the assesment from Himself. &ldquo;No question, he&rsquo;s the best player in the league combining offense and defense. He&rsquo;s smart with the puck, but never gets caught our of position defensively.&ldquo;He makes the game a lot easier for me. Plus, we&rsquo;ve played together for so long now (only about two-and-a-half years), we&rsquo;re used to each other. That&rsquo;s the longest I&rsquo;ve ever played with one guy. I could tell you what time he gets up in the morning.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011240/4831323-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="585" height="706"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jari Kurri is helping out the Oilers with more than just his scoring prowess.</figcaption></div>&ldquo;He shows the character of our whole team. He&rsquo;s a very, very unselfish player.&rdquo;The Selke Trophy is Kurri&rsquo;s for the asking, says Gretzky.&ldquo;If he gets beat out again, the guy who beats him has got to be an awfully dam good player,&rdquo; says The Great One.What about an all-star berth?&ldquo;It&rsquo;s between him and (Islanders&rsquo; Mike) Bossy,&rdquo; says Gretzky, obviously suggesting the likes of Vancouver&rsquo;s Tony Tanti or Toronto&rsquo;s Rick Vaive will fizzle from current hot paces. &ldquo;Jari&rsquo;s definitely got a shot, no question.&rdquo;Gretzky then nudges a scribe in the ribs, whispering: &ldquo;Hey, I&rsquo;d like to see Jari get landed immigrant status, so he could play for Canada in the Canada Cup.&rdquo;How quickly could the papers be processed&rdquo;?IN THE CREASE&mdash;Hampered by a back injury to defenseman Charlie Huddy, the Oilers summoned 1982 first-round draft Jim Playfair from the junior ranks. Playfair scored a goal in his first game&mdash;against veteran New Jersey goalie Chico Resch. Ironically, the day prior to being called up, Playfair was traded from Portland Winter Hawks to Kelowna Wings. &#9632;

f0012-01

Kurri Can Headline His Own Show

<div class="byline">BY ERIC DUHATSCHEK</div>CALGARY&mdash;The promise is there. It just has not been realized&hellip;yet.Of all the things wrong with the new Flames, the one that&rsquo;s perplexing the most people is the case of Paul Reinhart.Or, in a broader context, what&rsquo;s wrong with the defense as a whole.Reinhart started the season as a would be superstar looking to become the bona-fide thing.He showed up in shape. He played exceptional hockey in the pre-season. Then, somewhere between the opener in Vancouver and the 5-2 loss to Buffalo on Nov. 19&mdash;which marked the one-quarter mark of the new season&mdash;something happened. Or, more accurately, nothing happened. All the inconsistencies that plagued Reinhart last year and the year before and the year before that still plague him. The development that people such as Flame coach Bob Johnson anticipated hasn&rsquo;t taken place.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m a little frustrated,&rdquo; said Reinhart. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t played that well and I don&rsquo;t know why it is.&rdquo;Nor does Johnson. Defensively, the Flames have a deceptively good record. For a time, it was the best in the Campbell Conference. The reality is something else again. The true picture shows the defense relying too much on its goaltenders. When the goaltending is less than spectacular, the results can be dismal.To varying degrees, every member of the team&rsquo;s seven-man defense corps has been a disappointment. The team is getting as much help from its forwards as ever, as every line has a player desig-nated to think defense, a player whose primary role is to pick up his check and prevent three-on-two or two-on-one breaks.Reinhart has the ability to become great and isn&rsquo;t yet. Steve Konroyd often plays as if his mind is elsewhere. Jamie Macoun likes to run all over the ice. Kari Eloranta is losing more physical battles than last season. Paul Baxter has been erratic. Keith Hanson just isn&rsquo;t good enough, not now, not yet. Mickey Volcan hardly plays.&ldquo;It appears to me that position-wise, our defense is in the right a lot,&rdquo; said Johnson. &ldquo;Then we may lose a physical battle one-on-one. I&rsquo;d like to see the defense play more physically&mdash;moving guys out. In the last couple of games, we&rsquo;d had guys covered, but didn&rsquo;t have him covered. Do you know what I mean? We&rsquo;d have our player on their player and at the last instant, we lost the battle.&ldquo;Moving the puck&mdash;at all times we do it well, at times we get careless. It&rsquo;s a thing all teams are guilty of and we&rsquo;re trying to correct it. We want our defense to meet their team at the blueline more, instead of backing up and letting them take the zone so easily.&rdquo;Johnson said he did not want to &ldquo;criticize anyone publicly. Generally speaking, I thought we would be better than we are. I think they can all play much better. Inexperience, at rimes, has hurt us. We don&rsquo;t have the veteran with poise that can dump it out when we&rsquo;re in trouble or take a faceoff when we&rsquo;re in trouble.&rdquo;Since the start of the season, Reinhart and Hanson, Konroyd and Eloranta, plus Baxter and Macoun have more or less been Johnson&rsquo;s defense pairs. When it was suggested that Reinhart&rsquo;s problems may have something to do with helping the 26-year-old rookie Hanson adapt to the NHL, Johnson thought the point could be valid.Reinhart played with Phil Russell for much of his early NHL career. Last season, when Johnson paired Russell and Eloranta together, Reinhart played with Konroyd. Defensively, Konroyd is a younger version of Russell.&ldquo;Maybe he (Reinhart) needs someone to give him support,&rdquo; said Johnson. &ldquo;Maybe Hanson hasn&rsquo;t given him that support. Paul had so much confidence in Phil. Maybe in the back of his mind, he feels he has to cover for Hanson.&rdquo;Reinhart, however, said the team did not miss its veterans as much as people thought.&ldquo;I still think I&rsquo;m the leader out there,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think there&rsquo;s a need to get a six or a 10-year veteran. I can give the leadership. I&rsquo;m not saying I have. I think I can.&rdquo; &#9632;

Flames’ Defense Still Developing

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div>VANCOUVER&mdash;Everyone jokes about how Patrik Sundstrom is seemingly intimidated by the media. He&rsquo;s quiet, very shy and seems to have an innate fear of what people might say about him in print or on the radio. But on the ice, all his fears disappear. He&rsquo;s certain to become a star in the National Hockey League, the question is how much of a big name will he be?His attributes are many. He has a wrist shot which was heavy enough to fool Richard Sevigny for the winning goal against the Habs on Nov. 13. He has the speed to go around any defenseman in the league and cut into the middle against most of them. He is strong enough to go into the boards with Dave Semenko, knock the big Edmonton left winger down and off the puck and skate away with it. He is talented enough to be one of the biggest reasons why Tony Tanti, his right winger, is displaying the kind of ability he had in junior. In short, Sundstrom is everything former Canuck general manager Jake Milford thought he would be when he drafted him in the ninth round of the 1981 draft when nobody had the slightest idea who he was.Living alone in the downtown core of the city of Vancouver, Sundstrom likes his privacy. He was named the most eligible bachelor in Sweden by a couple of magazines and his fan following is bigger than Dick Beddoes.He came over at the beginning of last season, having been called the best player in Sweden by several hockey players, not the least of which were Anders Hed-berg and Ulf Nilsson. But his first season, despite his 23 goals and 46 points, was something of a disappointment.Everyone could see the star potential. He has size&mdash;at 6-foot-1, 202 pounds, he&rsquo;s the biggest Vancouver forward&mdash;unquestioned skating ability and a fine shot. But he seemed to lack a touch of heart. This season, he&rsquo;s more used to the league and his heart has swollen ten-fold.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m more used to things and I know what to expect from the players in this league,&rdquo; says the 21-year-old who had to wait a year before coming to the NHL because of military duty. &ldquo;Last year everything was new to me, but I like living here and we have a stronger team.&rdquo;Sundstrom has nine goals and 27 points in the first 20 games and he has been one of the main reasons why the Canucks feel they&rsquo;ve improved.&ldquo;Tony and I are hoping that our line would be able to take the pressure of Thomas&rsquo;. (Gradin) line and we would have more balance,&rdquo; says Sundstrom. &ldquo;So far it&rsquo;s worked out well, but our penalty killing and defensive play has to be better.&rdquo;Sundstrom has produced three gamewinning goals for the Canucks and the tallies have been quite a source of amusement, because his twin brother, Peter, has four winners with the Rangers.&ldquo;I have to try to keep up with him,&rdquo; said Sundstrom with a smile. &ldquo;I had dinner with him the last time we were in New York and we had a good talk. We are not really that close, not as close as some twins. I can&rsquo;t really tell him much. He has to find out what it is like here for himself.&rdquo;The Sundstrom twins have often been the source of speculation of trade between the teams for the purpose of uniting the two, but it&rsquo;s unlikely either would part with the team for which they&rsquo;re presently employed.The line of Sundstrom and Tanti has made just about every left winger who has played with them successful. Dave Williams and Jim Nill have had perhaps the most success, though Jere Gillis has also prospered at times working on that line. Chances are they&rsquo;ll get some work with Lars Molin when he returns in the first week of December.Meanwhile the club has recalled defenseman Neil Belland from Fredericton to fill in for Jiri Bubla and Kevin McCarthy, both suffering from relatively minor muscle pulls. &#9632;

Sundstrom Has It Easier In Second Season

<div class="byline">BY STAN FISCHLER</div>Wayne Gretzky meant every word he said about the Devils (&ldquo;Mickey Mouse&rdquo; etc.) but never anticipated the uproar, nor that he would be misinterpreted and his statements taken out of context. He is angry at suggestions that he&rsquo;s responsible for the Billy MacMillan firing. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t regret what I said,&rdquo; Gretzky confided to freelancer Joel Bergman, &ldquo;but it was wrong to criticize another club. 1 apologize for that. But my comment wasn&rsquo;t the reason he (MacMillan) was fired. The (Devils&rsquo;) record speaks for itself.&rdquo; Nevertheless, Gretzky&rsquo;s comments inspired rage throughout the league. &ldquo;I thought Wayne had more class than that,&rdquo; the Nordiques&rsquo; Tony McKegney said. Other NHLers echoed the McKegney theme. A veteran Islander, who remembers what it was like being down and looking up, also denounces Gretzky. &ldquo;You wouldn&rsquo;t hear him talking like such a big shot if he was playing for the Penguins. But it&rsquo;s easy for him to be a big shot when you&rsquo;re a front-runner like him.&rdquo;Those close to him say Fred Shero would have loved to have gotten the Devils&rsquo; coaching spot and would have been healthy enough to handle it. Others counter that, health-wise, it would have been too much for The Fog&hellip;The Caps&rsquo; high command is furious over what it believes is a defamation campaign waged against Washington defenseman Scott Stevens. Coach Bryan Murray says referees and linesmen have regularly issued warnings to &ldquo;calm&rdquo; Stevens while ignoring hardnosed players on other teams. During a recent game Murray beefed to referee Ron Hoggarth over the Stevens issue and the zebra shot back that he warns the opposition as well. &ldquo;I say bullsugar,&rdquo; snaps Murray, &ldquo;but Stevens is getting warnings every game.&rdquo;&hellip;An agent whispers that&rsquo;Jet general manager John Ferguson is damaging his effectiveness by allowing his temper to get out of control. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s too emotional,&rdquo; the man says&hellip;Pat Quinn makes no bones about his yearning for returning to the NHL. The talk has him heading for the Devils next season, but all bets will be off on that one if the new regime can turn the team around between now and April. The big question facing the dreadful Devils is not whether to unload Chico Resch but to whom and for what. And, further, would they deal with their cross-river foes, the Rangers?An NHL official and a Canadian broadcaster were discussing reasons why Scotty Bowman was not designated heir to Sam Pollock when the latter retreated from the Canadiens&rsquo; executive suite in 1979. Conclusion: Pollock was jealous that Bowman would do as well&mdash;or better&mdash;as GM as Sam&hellip;Although they have not seen eye-to-eye on many issues, Phil. Esposito and Al Eagleson were pleasant enough on a recent side-by-side flight&hellip;A Jet scout has nothing nice to say about deposed coach Tom Watt, including that &ldquo;Watt never wanted the scouts around.&rsquo;&rsquo;&hellip;After battling through a typically rugged game against Terry O&rsquo;Reilly and the Bruins, the Sabres&rsquo; Larry Playfair opines about O&rsquo;Reilly: &ldquo;I respect him. He has a lot of guts. He plays the way I wish 20 guys on this team would play more like.&rsquo;&rsquo;&hellip;Whaler GM Emile Francis admits he does have a secret: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s knowing every player and stealing &lsquo;throw-ins&rsquo; in trades we make. &ldquo;&hellip;There&rsquo;s no excuse for missing Scotty Bowman in Buffalo. He&rsquo;s got a one-hour weekly radio show, a half-hour TV show, a pre-game program and another radio segment done in St. Catharines&hellip;New darling of the Penguins is Marty McSorley, who showed up as a free-agent defenseman with no chance at the NHL. He fights a lot but is not a goon&hellip;Oiler p.r. boss Bill Tuele confirms an item that originally appeared in Maple Leaf press notes, that he aspires to be GM of the Oilers. &ldquo;Everybody knows I&rsquo;m an ambitious s.o.b.,&rdquo; Tuele tells BLUELINES. &ldquo;I certainly aspire to be a GM&rdquo;&hellip;Hall of Famer Rod Gilbert is getting out of the restaurant business in Manhattan&mdash;&rsquo; &lsquo;Too many people stealing from me&rdquo;&mdash;and says he&rsquo;s thinking about another book.Canadian Amateur Hockey Association prexy Murray Costello and former World Hockey Association boss Bill MacFarland have been witnesses for Seattle lawyer Vince Abbey&rsquo;s anti-trust lawsuit against the NHL. Retired Seattle Times hockey writer Hy Zimmerman is due on the stand this week. Abbey&rsquo;s attorneys are talking optimistically about a case which, if they win, could rock the hockey world&hellip;Pressed about rumors that he might deal sharpshooter Blaine Stoughton, Whaler boss Emile Francis tells BLUELINES that Stoughton is precisely the goal scorer the Whalers require&hellip;An NHL official whispers that Bob Berry&rsquo;s seat continues to warm with Jacques Lemaire in the wings&hellip;The word from the Time-Life Building in Rockefeller Centre is that the oft-postponed Sports Illustrated full-lengther on Al Eagleson has been taken off the back burner and is being reviewed by the mag&rsquo;s paragraph-probers. No date for publication has yet been set&hellip;If the NHL had backtracked on its Tom Lysiak suspension the league would have had to face a walkout of refs and linesmen&hellip;A-deal-that-never-was-but-almost-happened: Bob Gainey, Craig Ludwig and Doug Wickenheiser to the Kings for Marcel Dionne and Larry Murphy. But the Kings insisted on Steve Shutt being included. Habs nixed it and the package unravelled&hellip;Asked when he plans to give up coaching, Oiler president-GM-coach Glen Sather tells BLUELINES he&rsquo;ll probably stay behind the bench &ldquo;another year or two.&rdquo; Attitude of the players will be the barometer. &ldquo;When the players stop responding,&rdquo; he explains, &ldquo;but nobody&rsquo;s going to label me a quitter.&rdquo; &#9632;

BLUE LINES

<div class="byline">BY PERRY LEFKO</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0014-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011221/4831457-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Leaf captain Rick Vaive suffered a bloody nose after he got decked by Minnesota&rsquo;s Willi Plett.</figcaption></div>TORONTO&mdash;It is Nov. 28, 1983, The Day After, and this city is feeling the after-effects of an A (as in Argonaut) bomb.The Argos, the Dag wood Bumsteads of professional sports, rocked the city of Toronto at about 9 p.m. the previous night when they defeated the British Columbia Lions 18-17 to win the championship trophy of the Canadian Football League, the Grey Cup, after a 31-year drought.The Argonauts were down 17-7 at the half, but they played a plucky second half. Even when they were ahead with less than a minute to go, they refused to play conservatively.It was a true display of the offense taking it to the defense.So what does this have to do with the Toronto Maple Leafs?Everything.On Nov. 28&mdash;the day before the Grey Cup&mdash;the Leafs played the Minnesota North Stars at Maple Leaf Gardens, in what amounted to a battle for first place. The Leafs, who&rsquo;d beaten the North Stars 6-4 three days before that at the Met Center in Minnesota, entered the contest with 23 points, one back of the first-place Stars.But on The Day After, the Leafs are tied with Chicago and Detroit in second place in the Norris with 20 points&mdash;and they have only themselves to blame for that.They were up 6-3 with 10 minutes left in the game, but as Leaf coach Mike Nykoluk said afterwards, &ldquo;We blew it.&rdquo;The Leafs blew it in precisely the same manner the Lions lost to the Argos&mdash;by going into a defensive shell too early.&ldquo;Tonight, we didn&rsquo;t play as well as in Minnesota,&rdquo; said center Dan Daoust. &ldquo;We went ahead by a couple of goals, took the lead and we should have won the game. The game was ours, no questions asked, it&rsquo;s just that we tried to play defense and got scored on.&ldquo;It seems when we go on the defense, we don&rsquo;t have the players.&rdquo;Both teams played the game as if it was a continuation of their first-round match in the playoffs last season, in which the Stars won three games to one. There were several scraps, including a duel be-tween Jim Kom, who was playing in his first game since suffering a dislocated right shoulder on Nov. 12 and was still handicapped, and Willi Plett.The Leafs were ahead 2-1 after a period, but in the second period the game took on its ugliest complexion, particularly at the 20-minute mark. With both teams congregated at center ice, Plett kayoed Leaf captain Rick Vaive, who suffered a bloody nose.&ldquo;Plett went out deliberately to crosscheck (Borje) Salming,&rdquo; said Nykoluk. &ldquo;That was the whole thing. He (North Star coach Bill Mahoney) sent Plett out to get Salming. That&rsquo;s only natural, to get the best player off the ice. Ricky grabbed Plett and Plett suckered him.&rdquo;With Plett issued a five-minute major and a game misconduct, the Leafs made use of the manpower advantage in the third with a goal by John Anderson. When the North Stars got one back from Brad Maxwell and Dale McCourt added one for the Leafs, it was 6-3 and it should have been two points for the Leafs.But the Leafs lost their aggressiveness. The North Stars scored four answered goals&mdash;including the last three on Neal Broten&rsquo;s pure hat trick&mdash;and it was a painful end to a hard-fought game.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no way we should have lost, no matter who&rsquo;s injured,&rdquo; said Vaive. &ldquo;A three-goal lead with under 10 minutes left, there&rsquo;s just no way. We should be sitting in first place all by ourselves.&rdquo;LEAFLETS&mdash;Leaf goalie Rick St. Croix is sidelined for about three weeks after arthroscopic knee surgery and the team has summoned Ken Wregget from Lethbridge Broncos of the Western Hockey League, where he was the league&rsquo;s top netminder with a 2.31 goals-against average. Bob Parent was promoted from St. Catharines for the Minnesota game. Center Peter Ihnacak, who&rsquo;s been on the injured list after sustaining knee ligament damage on Oct. 16 in New Jersey, is expected to return to the lineup for the Leafs&rsquo; next game on Oct. 30 in Detroit. Terry Martin, who&rsquo;s been slowly regaining his weight after suffering food poisoning a month ago, may also return&hellip;Harold Ballard, owner of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, used the scoreboard to try and taunt the Leaf fans with anti-Argonaut sentiments. &#9632;

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Leafs’ Premature Defense Can’t Stop Stars’ Offense

<div class="byline">BY RANDY SMITH</div>HARTFORD&mdash;icking Blaine Stoughton out of a group of hockey players has never been a problem.He&rsquo;s the one wearing cuff linksAuthor of 196 goals in the Whalers&rsquo; four National Hockey League seasons, Stoughton is a one-trick pony who has heard his share of boos when the trick fails. Goal scorers, after all, are like home run hitters. Either they do or they don&rsquo;t. And what makes matters worse is that even the experts in the bleachers can tell when the sniper has had an off night.Stoughton, in essence, is the one the Whalers left behind.After one NHL season, the Whalers knew they had three quality players&mdash;a 100-point scorer in Mike Rogers, an 80-point defenseman in Mark Howe and a 50-goal scorer in Stoughton. Without getting into the yeas and nays of the subsequent trading of Rogers and Howe, the Whalers unloaded those two and kept Stoughton for a reason. They figured that Stoughton&rsquo;s particular talent would stand the test of time and lift the team one notch above, if and when the cavalry arrived.Stoughton, at 30, has his own gauge for the Whalers.&ldquo;Do you know when I&rsquo;ll know that we&rsquo;re a good team?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When I&rsquo;m a third-line right winger getting 30 goals a year.&rdquo;The Whalers haven&rsquo;t progressed that far, not by a long slapshot, but they are progressing, that much has become obvious through 20 games. And in the middle of that progress is the man with the cuff links.&ldquo;He hasn&rsquo;t played as well as he can, but you look at the numbers and you see 10 goals in 18 games,&rdquo; said Emile Francis, the club&rsquo;s GM-president. &ldquo;The thing about goal scorers is they tend to go in streams. Blaine hasn&rsquo;t really gotten hot yet.&rdquo;A subject of trade rumors involving both Chicago and Philadelphia, Stoughton remains fond of Hartford, his home for the last five years.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be 31 in March,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If l&rsquo;m going to be traded, it&rsquo;ll have to be this year. If the Whalers keep me this year, they&rsquo;ll probably keep me for good.&rdquo;Stoughton scored a beauty with 43 seconds left against the Nordiques in Quebec City to lift the Whalers to a 4-4 tie.The scoring play began with Doug Sulliman working the puck free along the boards and slipping it to Ronnie Francis, who flipped it at defenseman Blake Wesley.&ldquo;Blake didn&rsquo;t know what to do&mdash;lay me or the puck.&rdquo; Stoughton said. &ldquo;He finally went after the puck but I just beat him to it. If Sully and Ronnie don&rsquo;t make those plays, I don&rsquo;t score.&rdquo;What Stoughton did next was to tip the puck through Wesley&rsquo;s skates, move in on goaltender Daniel Bouchard and unload from 20 feet. With the clock about to strike midnight, the Whalers grabbed a point.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the Stash I know,&rdquo; defenseman Chris Kotsopoulos said. &ldquo;He defies all the rules of gambling. He plays the worst possible odds. Tipping the puck through the skates won&rsquo;t work 99 per cent of the time. But he does it, in a tight situation like that, and he scores. That&rsquo;s the Blaine Stoughton I know.&rdquo;And likes.If there&rsquo;s one element that sets Stoughton apart from other high-paid goal scorers, it is his relationship with his teammates. He is neither a prima donna nor a phony, two maladies that seem to infest others of his ilk.&ldquo;All I can say is, it&rsquo;s about time, Stoughton,&rdquo; Kotsopoulos hollered loud enough for the rest of the locker room to hear.Stoughton&rsquo;s teammates stopped, looked at him and smiled. He&rsquo;s a one-trick pony, all right, but he&rsquo;s their one-trick pony, and all of them clearly had enjoyed the ride.WHALER SCUTTLEBUTT&mdash;Pierre Lacroix, involved in a near-fatal car crash in July, visited with his teammates for the first time since in Quebec. Looking fit, Lacroix expects to resume skating in February and will start his NHL comeback try next season. The Whalers killed off 27 straight power plays in one. stretch, a tribute to penalty killers Mike Zuke and Mike Crombeen, among others&hellip;The latest the Whalers have been at.500 was 8-8-8 through 24 games in their first NHL season&hellip;Rookie Sylvain Turgeon, 8-11-19 through 19 games, continues to impress. He was the-team&rsquo;s shots-on-goal leader with 54 at that point.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011159/4831488-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="594" height="814"><figcaption class="caption-body">Blaine Stoughton gambled and won to score a goal against the Nordiques.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0015-01

Stoughton Still Hasn’t Heated Up

<div class="byline">BY BOB DONNELLY</div>QUEBEC&mdash;It would not be fair to say that the Nordiques&rsquo; recent slump is solely the fault of the Statsny brothers. On the other hand, the two eldest Stastny brothers, Marian and Peter, were grossly behind their scoring stats of 1982-83 after 25 games and although Peter was still among the league&rsquo;s leading scorers, he was clearly not the dominant force of recent years.&ldquo;He (Peter) is our leader on the ice and we need him to produce if we want to win,&rdquo; says coach Michel Bergeron. &ldquo;He can make the difference in a close game and he is well aware we look to him for leadership. He has been a little tight this year, not shooting when he has a good chance and looking too much for the perfect pass.&rdquo;While Peter has been scoring less, the problem with Marian is not so clearly explainable. He is very tense on the ice, missing obvious passes, telegraphing his shots on goal and freely admits that the pressure has been affecting his play.&ldquo;I am very worried about Marian,&rdquo; was all Bergeron would say a few weeks ago, refusing to go into detail.Peter has played better since rejoining his brothers on the same line, but is far behind the form he displayed last year.The Nordiques have been slipping steadily since their 7-2-1 start. Quebec won only three times in its next 14 games, getting a mere eight of a possible 28 points and finally moving below the.500 mark. Even more startling is that Quebec remains an improved team overall nonetheless.To start with, they are more consistent, both at home and on the road. Unfortunately, consistency does not always mean more wins.&ldquo;How many games have we lost by one goal?&rdquo; complains Peter. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know exactly how many. But I know it has been too often.&rdquo;Bergeron agrees: &ldquo;It hurts and it keeps hurting more with each loss. All we can do is try and keep our spirits up and wait for the tide to turn.&rdquo;Bergeron reiterated that after each loss, by saying. &ldquo;Once again, we never stopped working and it is difficult to criticize.&rdquo;Of the 11 losses suffered by Quebec after 24 starts, seven were by the margin of one goal (not counting empty-net markers).On the positive side, netminder Dan Bouchard has been consistently up to par, even if the rest of his team fell behind. Dave Pichette has played well since coming up from Fredericton. Jean-Francois Sauve has had lots of ice time playing the power play and the fourth line, despite many who think at 5-foot-6 he can never be a regular in the NHL. &#9632;

Stastnys Affect Nordlque Slump

<div class="byline">BY RICK SADOWSKI</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0016-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011024/4831543-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Part of reason for the Kings&rsquo; recent resurgence has been the play of goaltender Mike Blake, who recorded a 3-0-1 record in his four games.</figcaption></div>LOS ANGELES&mdash;The Kings haven&rsquo;t felt this way about themselves in a long, long time&mdash;nearly three years.That was 1980-81, remember? The season they won 43 games, accumulated 99 points and finished fourth overall in the National Hockey League standings.Probably a bit much to ask for this year, but the vibes these days are definitely positive around the Forum. A five-game unbeaten streak and four-game winning streak will do that for anyone.The Kings haven&rsquo;t been this hot since winning five straight back in March of 1981 and they&rsquo;re beginning to believe in themselves again for the first time since.&ldquo;The momentum has been building a little at a time and things seem to be falling into place,&rdquo; coach Don Perry said. &ldquo;I sure hope this can continue.&rdquo;It all began on Nov. 8 at the Forum when the Kings rallied for a two-goal deficit to salvage a 5-5 tie with St. Louis. Jim Fox netted the game-tying goal with only 31 seconds left in regulation time.The Kings followed that up with victories over St. Louis (6-2), Montreal (64) and Vancouver (5-2) on home ice before taking the Canucks again on the road by a 5-2 count.The back-to-back victories over Vancouver gave the Kings victories in all their Smythe Division matches, which included a 7-2 win over Edmonton back in October.&ldquo;It sure is nice. We haven&rsquo;t been on a roll like this in quite a while and it&rsquo;s a very good feeling,&rdquo; Marcel Dionne said. &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s see if we can keep this up. I know we&rsquo;re playing with a lot of confidence now.&rdquo;There were several reasons for the Kings&rsquo; resurgence, not the least of which was the play of goaltender Mike Blake, who, along with left winger Brian Mac-Lellan, has emerged as a definite Rookie-of-the-Year candidate.Blake went 3-0-1 with a 3.18 goals-against average during the hot streak, running his overall record to 6-4-4 with a 3.60 average.The defense was giving him plenty of help, with Brian Engblom, Jay Wells and Mark Hardy leading the way and Russ Anderson and Marc Chomey&mdash;both acquired by general manager George Maguire for next to nothing&mdash;showed marked improvement.Maguire bolstered what had already been a more than adequate defense on Nov. 18 when he acquired Mike McEwen from the Islanders in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick, allowing him to send talented but green Dean Kennedy to New Haven.Offensively, the Kings were getting good production from all their lines&mdash;the Bernie Nicholls-Jim Fox-Brian MacLellan unit led the way with 37 goals and 44 assists at the 20-game mark&mdash;and they were killing off penalties (29 out of 33) with a great deal of consistency.Wes Jarvis and Anders Hakansson, another pair of bargain acquisitions, surfaced as the club&rsquo;s best penalty-killers, while MacLellan and Nicholls were also contributing.Even more surprising, Jarvis and Hakansson were developing into decent scoring threats. Teamed with Steve Christoff, who was acquired from Minnesota one day before the season opener, this line had accounted for eight goals and four assists during one four-game stretch.&ldquo;Right now everybody feels good,&rdquo; Hardy said. &ldquo;Every line we put out there seems to do well, we&rsquo;re getting great goaltending&hellip;think we&rsquo;ve turned the comer.&ldquo;Boy, I feel good, a hell of a lot better than when we were losing. Winning is fun. The atmosphere is so much better. If we can&rsquo;t have fun playing the game, what&rsquo;s the sense of playing?&rdquo;KING NOTEBOOK&mdash;Bernie Nicholls continued to lead the club in scoring with 16 goals and 18 assists through the one-quarter mark of the season. At that pace, he&rsquo;ll finish with 62 goals and 72 assists&hellip;Brian MacLellan was the leading scorer among NHL rookies with 10 points and 12 assists&hellip;The Kings were 7-4-3 since dealing Larry Murphy to Washington for Brian Engblom and Ken Houston. &#9632;

f0016-01

Unbeaten In Five Games Makes Kings A Merry Lot

<div class="byline">BY RICHARD FRIEDMAN</div>Louisville HockeyH&B 100 YEARS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-01927/4831574-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="276" height="204"></div>NEW YORK&mdash;The Rangers took so much pride in the cohesivenss of their defensive play this fall that, to some observers, their offensive effectiveness was obscured.There is irony to be found on both sides of that coin. Their goaltending, while not yet proven under playoff pressure, has not been the problem it was feared it would be, thanks in large part to solid protection by the defensemen and support provided by the forwards for the backliners. And the offense is nowhere as anemic as skeptics forecast it would be. Consider these late-November ben-chmarks:&bull; After 22 games the Rangers were third defensively in the NHL with a 3.41 goals-against average.&bull; They were fourth offensively with 97 goals.&bull; They were second in the league in shorthanded goals, fourth in penalty killing and fifth on the power play, testimony to the effectiveness of their specialty teams.Thus, when they hit a stretch of games in which they gave up more than the usual number of goals, they were able to compensate with their goal-scoring prowess. In Boston, Ron Greschner&rsquo;s goal (his third) with 3:56 remaining in the third period gave them a 6-6 tie after they&rsquo;d relinquished an early 3-0 lead. The next night, Kent-Erik Andersson scored his first goal of the season as Mike Rogers&rsquo; centering pass glanced off his chest eights second into overtime for a 6-5 victory over the Quebec Nordiques.Three nights later, though, the charm wore off as the Buffalo Sabres snatched an early 3-0 lead and beat them 6-4 in a game that demonstrated how vulnerable the Rangers are when center ice is taken away from them.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you can classify us as a defensive team or any kind of team anymore,&rdquo; goaltender Glen Hanlon said after the Nordique game, which Quebec tied at 5-5 with two goals in the final seven minutes of regulation time. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re chameleons; we change according to what kind of game we have to play&rdquo;They won that game on a rush that saw them sending a defensive forward, Andersson, in deep, and as coach Herb Brooks acknowledged, they won it with a lucky break.&ldquo;Yes, it&rsquo;s a break, but by Andersson going to the net and trying to create things, he created trouble for their defense,&rdquo; said Brooks. &ldquo;What do they say, luck is a residue of design?&rdquo;If that&rsquo;s the case, the Rangers had pushed their luck by creating situations once again where they had to battle back from behind after giving up early leads.&ldquo;We were ahead 3-0 and let them off the hook,&rdquo; said Brooks of the Boston game.Against the Nordiques, the situation was much the same.&ldquo;We&rsquo;d have liked to be able to hold the lead,&rdquo; Brooks said, &ldquo;but take a look at the personnel Quebec has. They have a lot of people who can put the puck in the net.&rdquo;The Rangers&rsquo; undoing against the Sabres was the congestion at center ice created by Buffalo that gave then trouble both in their attempts to penetrate the Sabres&rsquo; defense and to contain the Sabres&rsquo; attack.&ldquo;We were too idealistic at the offensive blueline,&rdquo; was how Brooks put it. &ldquo;There was a lot of traffic and we tried to beat the traffic.&rdquo;The Rangers were beginning to play as if they wanted every moment to be perfect; they seemed unwilling to settle for occasional defensive lapses if their offense was working, or vice-versa.&ldquo;Maybe we&rsquo;re tyring to do too much,&rdquo; said defenseman Tom Laidlaw.As a result, they were bottled up, coming out flat against Buffalo, unable to generate either offense or defense, and falling victim to a Sabre clutching-and-grabbing game that had Madison Square Garden fans outraged by referee Bryan Lewis&rsquo; refusal to call penalties.As the two teams&rsquo; offensive lines meshed at center ice, the Sabres looked for ways to get a man behind the Rangers&rsquo; defense. That made all the difference. The Sabres&rsquo; ability to do that was not necessarily an indictment of the Rangers&rsquo; defense, though&mdash;nor, forthat matter, of the forwards&rsquo; backchecking&mdash;but resulted from a breakdown at center ice between the Rangers&rsquo; two units.That is what Brooks means by &ldquo;closing the gap&rdquo; between the forwards and defense; when that gap opens up, the result is deep penetration by the opposition.As Brooks put it after the Sabres game, &ldquo;Sometimes our defensive forwards were against the grain.&rdquo;The Rangers&rsquo; luck ran out against the Sabres after the tie in Boston and the overtime win against Quebec. But the most disturbing number was the goals-against&mdash;17 in three games including the Sabres&rsquo; final empty-net goal. True, the Rangers generated 11 goals against the Bruins and Nordiques, but as captain Barry Beck admitted, they were giving far too many up.&ldquo;That concerns the defensemen quite a bit,&rdquo; said Beck. &ldquo;We take pride in bringing our goals-against down. Maybe this will shake us up and make us realize we&rsquo;re making some mistakes, that we&rsquo;ve got to play better defensive hockey.&rdquo; &#9632;

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Rangers Change Their Guises Every Game

<div class="byline">BY CHUCK MOODY</div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;Hello Rusty Jones-&hellip;good-bye Rusty Penguins.That slightly altered advertising slogan of an automobile rustproofer applies to the Penguin&rsquo;s new strength coordinator and nutritionist. Rusty Jones. He was hired during the summer by the Penguins and also works with the Pittsburgh Maulers of the United States Football League and the Spirit of the Major Indoor Soccer League.Jones has been conditioning professional athletes for seven years. He comes to the Penguins from Anjon Systems, a company combining computers with sports conditioning.&ldquo;We united computers with nutrition concepts in order to get the athlete to the level we want him to be,&rdquo; said Jones, who has a degree in exercise physiology from Springfield College. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some remarkable progress with many athletes in the past.&rdquo;Jones employs bicycle-ergometry, a computerized method of measuring the amount of work done on a stationary bicycle.&ldquo;During the off-season, we will be able to pattern the game of hockey on dry land as it is played on the ice,&rdquo; said Jones. &ldquo;For each player, we will know how many calories are burned, how often and at what level.&ldquo;The two major components of the program are bike work and on-ice drills. With that in mind, we don&rsquo;t want to overtrain the players, then you have a fatigue problem on your hands.&rdquo;Jones&rsquo; program is designed to changebody fat into muscle. He also stresses the development of upper-body strength and the improvement of the cardiovascular system to increase endurance.Jones works directly with trainer Steve Thomas.&ldquo;Steve is very knowledgeable in the area of injuries,&rdquo; Jones said. &ldquo;My area of expertise is conditioning. Steve and I will coordinate our efforts to develop a series of conditioning exercises and evaluate them in terms of effects on possible injuries.&ldquo;We will work together to develop the best sports medicine program possible. We want to be a well-rounded program and we&rsquo;re open to suggestions. We&rsquo;ll sit down and talk about the program and determine what its objective and end product will be. I think that we&rsquo;re both in agreement that our goal is to get every player to perform at his maximum ability.&rdquo;One Penguin who is happy with Jones&rsquo; program is center Paul Gardner.&ldquo;The conditioning that Rusty Jones has put me through has really made a difference,&rdquo; said Gardner, who attributes Jones&rsquo; program with improving his skating. &ldquo;Rusty really knows his stuff and he&rsquo;s really helped me along. I&rsquo;ve got to give a lot of credit to him.&ldquo;Rusty showed me something that I was doing in my training that wasn&rsquo;t necessarily wrong, but different. Your body is made up of fast-twitch muscles and slow-twitch muscles. When I would run long distances in the summer, eight or 10 miles, I was building up my slow-twitch muscles, where the game of hockey is fast-twitch muscles.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s got me doing sprints on the bicycle and the knee machine, which also is a fast machine. That&rsquo;s the thing I think has made a big difference in my game.&rdquo;Jones emphasizes the importance of nutrition for hockey players.&ldquo;Research shows that you have a certain amount of muscle fuel,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If the players are skating hard, we can predict where the muscle fuel is by measuring the intensity. The computer will help us to evaluate their diet from the nutrition angle and will aid us in developing diets where we can keep the fuel at optimum levels. This in turn will help to reduce fatigue.&ldquo;You may not be able to see it from the stands, but I see signs of improvement in my charts. It&rsquo;s not as visible against some teams as it is other, but in time the Penguins will hold their own with anyone. Right now, we&rsquo;re not doing that.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too early to see any big impact. But if I was hired to show results in a matter of weeks, it&rsquo;s all a mistake. The program doesn&rsquo;t work like that.&rdquo;PENGUIN TRACKS&mdash;Rick Kehoe scored his 604th point as a Penguin to become Pittsburgh&rsquo;s all-time pointscoring leader and breaking the mark held by Jean Pronovost&hellip;Pat Boutette returned to the lineup after missing six games with a pulled groin and scored two goals his first game back&hellip;Defenseman Greg Tebbutt was recalled from Baltimore of the American Hockey League, where he was a first team all-star last year and won the Eddie Shore Plaque as the AHL&rsquo;s top defenseman&hellip;Right winger Rocky Saganiuk was sent down to Baltimore. &#9632;

Pens Leave It To The Jones Boy

<div class="byline">BY VARTAN KUPELIAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01873/4831629-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="566" height="914"><figcaption class="caption-body">Goalie Greg Stefan shut down the Nordiques, but couldn&rsquo;t stop Toronto and Montreal.</figcaption></div>DETROIT&mdash;What the Red Wings needed in the worst way was a super performance in goal.Enter Greg Stefan.Again.&ldquo;The last time we were on a losing streak, we put Stef in and he bailed us out,&rdquo; said coach Nick Polano. &ldquo;He did it again. He has a way of rising to the occasion.&rdquo;Stefan&rsquo;s remarkable 31-save effort in Quebec enabled the Wings to defeat the Nordiques 3-1 and snap a five-game losing streak.It was Stefan who started the Wings on their way to a six-game winning streak with his first victory of the season. This time, however, there was no winning streak. The Wings lost their next two&mdash;with Stefan in goal for both&mdash;for a 1-3 record on a four-game eastern trip.&ldquo;Some of the saves he made were the best I&rsquo;ve ever seen,&rdquo; Polano said of Stefan&rsquo;s performance against the Nordiques.&ldquo;I think the toughest (on Peter Stastny) was in the second period,&rdquo; Stefan said. &ldquo;The Stastnys usual pass it across the front and I was ready for it. I got my pad up. But I only had to make one save most of the night and the defense was there to clear the rebound.&ldquo;We knew we&rsquo;d be in for a real test. There was a good feeling before the game&hellip;every body was ready.&rdquo;Danny Gare, who opened the scoring for the Wings, said a pre-game meeting accomplished its goal.&ldquo;We won six in a row, so don&rsquo;t tell me we can&rsquo;t win&mdash;that&rsquo;s what we talked about,&rdquo; Gare said. &ldquo;We said, &lsquo;Hey, we&rsquo;ve got to stop this thing before it goes any farther. &lsquo;&ldquo;Stef kept us in the game and we just kept plugging away. He wsa sensational. He was kicking, flopping, doing everything. Not many teams come into this building and win.&rdquo;The Wings expected to ride the momentum from that victory for games in Montreal and Toronto. It didn&rsquo;t happen. They lost both.For the first time this season, Polano was angry at his club after the 5-4 loss to the Maple Leafs. In fact, he sounded similar to Toronto coach Mike Nykoluk after the Leafs lost to Boston in their previous start.Nykoluk lambasted the Leafs for their performance in a lackluster 4-1 loss to the Bruins in Boston Garden. The Leafs responded by treating Detroit the way they had been treated by the Bruins&mdash;rudely.For example:Nykoluk: &ldquo;They (Bruins) kept coming and coming because we didn&rsquo;t push back.&rdquo;Polano: &ldquo;They pushed us around&hellip;and we didn&rsquo;t push back.&rdquo;And Nykoluk: &ldquo;The defense tried hard under constant pressure, but the forwards didn&rsquo;t want to pay a price.&rdquo;Polano: &ldquo;I have to ask our forwards to get it in their minds to be more forceful. They were coming in banging on our defense, knocking &lsquo;em down, but our forwards weren&rsquo;t doing the same thing.&rdquo;That&rsquo;s not all that Polano had to say about the Wings.&ldquo;We lack the killer instinct,&rdquo; Polano said. &ldquo;We talked of the Leafs struggling, that we had to be diligent and aggressive. We weren&rsquo;t. The forwards must make up their minds to go in hard, take the body and be forceful. I thought we were intimidated.&ldquo;If they can&rsquo;t leann that we have to be more diligent and aggressive, it&rsquo;s going to be a long season.&rdquo;The Wings got two goals each from rookie Steve Yzerman (12th and 13th) and veteran Ivan Boldirev (sixth and seventh). Boldirev&rsquo;s second goal of the game at 10:12 of the third period tied the game 4-4 before John Anderson won it for the Leafs. Toronto scored three power-play goals, another fact that didn&rsquo;t please Polano.&ldquo;Maybe we need some muscle,&rdquo; Polano said. &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s hard to find.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m upset at the way our people got banged around and didn&rsquo;t fight back. That&rsquo;s human nature, instinct. It&rsquo;s something that comes from inside. We can&rsquo;t supply that. We can keep them in shape and organized, but we can&rsquo;t supply that.&rdquo;Polano said the absence of Gare, the Wing captain and inspirational leader who was sidelined with a chest injury, hurt his club. &#9632;

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Stefan Can’t Save Wings All By Himself

<div class="byline">BY STEVE SIMMONS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02663/4831660-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="296" height="349"></div><h2>A Mad, Mad NHL</h2>WELCOME TO THE world of the National Hockey League, where competence means little and the Peter Principle reigns supreme.Welcome to the world of the NHL, where a man debuted as a coach even though he had never coached before.Professional hockey, it is called. The word professional implies those involved are being paid. It doesn&rsquo;t apply to the decision-making process some teams are currently using.Perhaps there are other terms to describe the recent state of affairs in the NHL. Incredible, maybe. Ridiculous, perhaps. Definitely impossible to explain.Bill MacMillan, one of the nice people in a nasty game, was fired as general manager-coach of hockey&rsquo;s worst franchise. The firing came just months after MacMillan had been rewarded with a new two-year contract.Bill MacMillan was a victim of his own actions, but moreso of being elevated to a position he was not yet capable of handling. He had a poor first season coaching Colorado Rockies, so naturally he was rewarded with the dual role of GM-coach.He was given a mandate, rightfully or not, and that mandate was revoked.Bill MacMillan moved up too fast, too soon. He made too many moves that backfired and then he was fired.<h2>Didn&rsquo;t Learn Lesson</h2>YOU WOULD THINK that those who run the New Jersey Devils would have learned their lesson from the previous owners of the franchise. Why make a move unless it improves your club? The Devils made a move, for the sake of making a move.To replace MacMillan in his GM&rsquo;s chair, they hired Max McNab, also a nice fellow, but unsuccessful in his only stint as an NHL GM. The old joke about McNab is, if you phone him and tell him you&rsquo;ll trade your second-round pick for his first rounder, he&rsquo;ll reply: Let me get back to you on that.Once, when Punch Imlach&rsquo;s Buffalo Sabres were going through difficult times, Imlach placed all his Sabres on waivers. Imlach revoked the waivers on every player except Jacques Richard, he of troublesome times and large salary. McNab would have been stuck with Richard had Imlach not shown a touch of compassion he rarely showed publicly.And who did the Devils hire to coach? The great Tommy McVie, winner of 70 of the 312 games he coached in the NHL. McVie was fired at Winnipeg and fired at Washington. Why? Because he didn&rsquo;t do well enough with teams of little talent. Now, we will take over another team with little talent. His record should remain intact.The combination of McNab and McVie should vault the Devils to 21st place in a league of 21, and perhaps, if they are around long enough, they will reap the benefits of a Kirk Muller or Mario Lemieux when draft time comes around. They could have finished last with Bill MacMillan at the helm and not had to pay two year&rsquo;s severance for their troubles.<h2>Jets In Same Boat</h2>THE DEVILS ARE not alone in fostering the Peter Principle, elevating those to their duly level of incompetence. Winnipeg Jets can be grouped in that category, too.In Winnipeg, the only thing that makes sense is John Ferguson is no longer coaching. It especially makes sense to John Ferguson, who is smart enough to know that too long behind the bench of the team he&rsquo;s built means you&rsquo;ll be meeting Bill MacMillan on the unemployment lines shortly.Ferguson was also smart (or dumb?) enough to place an extension of him, Barry Long, behind the Jet bench. Never mind that if he applied to coach a peewee team in Calgary, he would be turned down because he&rsquo;s not qualified. He&rsquo;s qualified to coach the Jets because he&rsquo;ll do what Ferguson says.Tom Watt, whose coaching record has been well documented, wouldn&rsquo;t do what Ferguson said. He wouldn&rsquo;t play the players he was ordered to play. He wouldn&rsquo;t use the lines he was ordered to use. Poor Tom Watt, for his insubordination he will be paid a healthy salary for not working these next two years.He wouldn&rsquo;t play Jimmy Mann, who can&rsquo;t play. He wouldn&rsquo;t play Morris Lukowich much. He wouldn&rsquo;t play Tim Young. He wouldn&rsquo;t play Andrew McBain and Jim Kyte often enough. Strangely enough, Long quickly benched Lukowich and McBain, while Young, Mann and Kyte stopped dressing.Strange.And on the subject of strange, how about Wayne Gretzky calling the Devils &ldquo;Mickey Mouse?&rdquo; Was he so wrong to speak his mind? Most hockey people say he was. I disagree. If the truth hurts, so be it. It&rsquo;s still the truth. &#9632;

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THE WESTERN WORK

<div class="byline">BY TIM MORIARTY</div>LONG ISLAND&mdash;Although Ken Morrow and Dave Langevin are the Islanders&rsquo; only American-born players, the entire team got a chance to celebrate Thanksgiving Day like most of their fans&mdash;they rested.&ldquo;You don&rsquo;t deserve it, but take the day off (from practice),&rsquo;&rsquo; Al Arbour told the Islanders after they arrived back on Long Island by bus from Philadelphia during the early hours of the holiday. Then the coach winked.Arbour was reasonably pleased with the Isles&rsquo; 4-2 victory over the Flyers in the Spectrum. But he was openly concerned that his team was outshot by a margin of 51-23.It was getting to be a bad habit with the Islanders.&ldquo;Sure I&rsquo;m concerned,&rdquo; Arbour said. &ldquo;We keep retreating and retreating and forget to move ahead. We&rsquo;ve been too erratic. It&rsquo;s puzzling.&rdquo;One Islander who deserved a day off from practice was goalie Roland Melanson, who turned in one of his greatest and bravest performances against the Flyers.&ldquo;There were times When I was really scared out there,&rdquo; he admitted.Melanson&rsquo;s most frightening moments came after Stefan Persson incurred a double minor penalty at 11:41 of the final period. The Islanders, who had broken a 2-2 tie on a power-play goal by Bryan Trottier earlier in the period, now had to protect their one-goal lead for four frantic minutes. They did it, too, behind Melanson&rsquo;s brilliant netminding.The 23-year-old goalie from Moncton, N.B., turned aside eight shots during the Flyers&rsquo; lengthy power play&mdash;the most difficult being short pokes by Darryl Sittler, Dave Poulin and Brian Propp.&ldquo;Melanson was spectacular,&rdquo; Arbour said.&ldquo;Melanson was the difference Sittler,&rdquo; conceded.Denis Potvin marvelled at the nine saves Melanson made in the first five minutes of the game.&ldquo;Rollie went from post to post as well as any goalie I ever saw,&rdquo; the Isles&rsquo; captain said. &ldquo;That takes special concentration when you&rsquo;re only playing once a week.&rdquo;This season, the Islanders are carrying three goalies for the first time, so Melanson has not been getting as many assignments as he&rsquo;d like. He got off to a bad start this season; he had three losses and one no-decision for his first four starts.&ldquo;If this was my first year in the league, I probably would have panicked,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But because I&rsquo;ve got two seasons behind me I knew what I had to do to get my game together.&rdquo;Melanson has it together now. He won five of his last six starts&mdash;three against the Flyers&mdash;to raise his record to 5-4-0. He also lowered his goals-against average from 6.16 to 3.49.Bill Smith, who shared the William Jennings Trophy with Melanson last season, also was playing well. Smith raised his record to 7-3-0 with a 3-2 victory over Quebec at Nassau Coliseum.&ldquo;That one was easy,&rdquo; Smith said.<blockquote class="pullQuote">Compared to Melanson, Billy Smith played in two very easy games against the Quebec Nordiques and Chicago Black Hawks.</blockquote>It was easy because the Nordiques got only 23 shots (the Islanders had 21). And while Smith was turning back the Nordiques, the line of Butch Goring, John Tonelli and Bob Nystrom figured in all three Islander goals. Tonelli set up goals by Nystrom and Tomas Jonsson, then Nystrom set up the winning goal by Tonelli.Smith enjoyed another easy game as the Islanders rolled to a 9-3 victory over Chicago and vaulted into first place in the Patrick Division. Mike Bossy sparked the Isles to their fourth straight victory with three goals and two assists. It was his fourth hat trick of the season and the 28th of his career.ON THE ISLE&mdash;Mike Bossy was working on a 14-game point-scoring streak when the Islanders left on a six-game road trip, their longest of the season&hellip;Duane Sutter was sidelined with a sprained knee, which he suffered when Blake Wesley of the Nordiques fell on him&hellip;The final goal the Islet scored in their 6-4 victory against Hartford on Nov. 15, originally credited to Bryan Trottier, was awarded to Bossy a week later&hellip;Roland Melanson, who was in the option year of his contract, signed a new multi-year pact. &#9632;

Melanson Puts Up Brave Front For Fivers

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01719/4831715-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">(Photo by Bruce Bennett)</figcaption></div>New York Islander scoring ace Mike Bossy got off to a great National Hockey League start this season and just when he got on a real good roll, he was felled by a hip injury. He&rsquo;s back in fine form now, though, as witnessed by his performance during the week ending Nov. 28 as he scored four goals and five assists in three games.That effort earned him the nod as THE HOCKEY NEWS&rsquo; Player of the Week. His four goals came on a hat trick against Chicago and also a game winner as the Isles reeled off three straight wins.In 18 games, Bossy had already hit the 20-goal mark and had 16 assists. &#9632;

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Player Of The Week

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01609/4831746-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="579" height="847"><figcaption class="caption-body">Randy Hillier considered quitting the Bruins when he was sent down to the minors.</figcaption></div>BOSTON&mdash;It can be said with some degree of accuracy that Randy Hillier, the 23-year-old Boston Bruin defenseman, came within six games of quitting hockey.Fortunately for Hillier&mdash;and perhaps for the Bruins, too&mdash;the six games were never played.Hillier, having played in only seven of the first 14 games as the seventh defenseman on a team that dresses only six, was sent down to Hershey on Nov. 7.&ldquo;Harry Sinden figured all along there&rsquo;d be situations where there&rsquo;d be an occasional injury; that&rsquo;s why we have seven defensemen,&rdquo; said Hillier.&ldquo;Unfortunately for me, things trotted along for weeks and finally he wanted me to go down and get some ice time and stay sharp.&rdquo;Hillier balked. For two days he and his agent, Boston attorney Bob Murray, negotiated with Sinden and finally worked out a deal where Hillier would play six games for Hershey and then reassess the situation.He was actually on his way to join the Hershey club for a game in Rochester on Nov. 9 when Jim Schoenfeld suffered a shoulder separation and fracture and underwent surgery that pu him on the shelf for five to six weeks. Hillier turned around and came back.&ldquo;That was a difficult week for me when they assigned me to Hershey,&rdquo; said Hillier. &ldquo;I had a lot of decisions to make. 1 thought I made the right one in going down but I thought of going back to school or starting a new career.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s hard to say what I would have done if I had gone down and those six games were over.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m glad I got the chance to come back. I want to stay here. I love the city, the team, the players, I want to stay in the NHL with the Bruins but, if for some reason I can&rsquo;t, I asked Harry to get me a job somewhere else.&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t be ticked off at Harry. He&rsquo;s just doing his job. We have seven guys who can play in the NHL and I know I can but I understand the situation Harry&rsquo;s in.&ldquo;So all the contingencies have been put on hold for a couple of months. But who knows what will happen when Schoeny comes back.&rdquo;Hillier&rsquo;s status was further enhanced on Nov. 17 when he was elevated to the rank of No. 5 defenseman after Ray Bourque was felled with a hip pointer throwing a check on Miroslav Frycer of the Toronto Maple Leafs.The presence of Hillier enabled the Bruins to be cautious in returning the indispensible Bourque to the lineup.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s one of those things where I could play but I see no reason why I should,&rdquo; said Bourque. &ldquo;I might as well wait until we&rsquo;re sure it&rsquo;s better.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re only 20 games into the season and it&rsquo;s better to miss two, three, four games now than miss 10, 11, 12 games later on by coming back too soon.&rdquo;Another Bruins&rsquo; defenseman who survived an awkward situation is Guy Lapointe, who wore the No. 27 sweater for the first time against Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 22.When Lapointe, who wore No. 5 with distinction for the Canadiens for 11 years, signed with the Bruins as a free agent last summer, he was given his old number despite the Bruins retiring it for more than 30 years in honor of Dit Clapper.Negative reaction to the move was swift and fierce among Boston&rsquo;s sporting columnists, some of whom are inclined to blame Harry Sinden if it rains on Sunday. Lapointe shrugged off the controversy.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry all that happened,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think anyone should make a big thing out of it. My wearing No. 5 doesn&rsquo;t take any credit away from Dit Clapper. The Bruins still honor him for what he did. His number is still up there in the Garden.&ldquo;The only thing that upset me was when people got on me for saying I didn&rsquo;t know who Dit Clapper was. He played his whole career before I was bom. You don&rsquo;t always know someone who played 30 years before your time.&ldquo;Hell, my 11-year-old son asked me who Maurice Richard was and we live in Montreal.&rdquo;Incidentally, the Bruins&rsquo; retired numbers are No. 2 for Eddie Shore, No. 3 for Lionel Hitchman, No. 4 for Bobby Orr, No. 5 for Clapper, No. 9 for Johnny Bucyk and No. 15 for Milt Schmidt.Shore&rsquo;s No. 2 later was worn by Bill (Flash) Hollett and Pat Egan, Hitchman&rsquo;s No. 3 by Hollett, and Schmidt&rsquo;s No. 15 by Larry Regan. &#9632;

f0022-01

Hillier Temporarilv On Bruin Hold

<div class="byline">BY DICK JOHNSTON</div>BUFFALO&mdash;Cast aside by the Los Angeles Kings as a hockey has-been, Jerry Korab is playing a definite role in the Buffalo Sabres&rsquo; battle to dethrone the Boston Bruins as champions of the Adams Division.Korab is proving that Scotty Bowman, general manager-coach of the Sabres, made no mistake when he picked up the 35-year-old defenseman on waivers. Bowman traded Korab to Los Angeles midway through the 1979-80 season and he was in a state of limbo after becoming a free agent after last season.Korab was in Chicago, where he once played for the Black Hawks and married his wife, Mary Ann, figuring he was retired from hockey. But a call from Lou Nanne, general manager of the Minnesota North Stars changed his plans.Nanne asked Korab if he would like to try a comeback&mdash;the North Stars&rsquo; backline was hit hard by injuries and an available defenseman was urgently required&mdash;and Korab agreed to join the Minnesota club.But not for long. The North Stars put him on waivers&mdash;because he wasn&rsquo;t with a National Hockey League team during the waiver draft&mdash;but Bowman, whose defense was also in trouble, grabbed the big defenseman they call Kong.Korab, who skated only a few times since undergoing a foot operation last April, worked himself back into shape with the Sabres&rsquo; American League farm club in Rochester.Then, Nov. 2, Korab made his second debut as a Sabre. It looked as though it would be a spectacular one, for a few seconds.On his first shot against the New York Rangers in Memorial Auditorium, in his first game in a Buffalo uniform since being traded to Los Angeles in March, 1980, Korab scored.But referee Kerry Fraser ruled that Korab&rsquo;s shot went into the net with Buffalo&rsquo;s Ric Seiling in the crease, interfering with goalie Glen Hanlon.So much for what would have been Korab&rsquo;s first goal for Buffalo since Dec. 27, 1979, when he was the club&rsquo;s top offensive defenseman.The goal would have made the difference between a win and a tie. The game ended 3-3, to start a winless streak of three games for the Sabres.They then turned around and won four straight, starting with a 3-1 victory over the Bruins. Bowman credited Korab with helping the Sabres get turned around.Having a defenseman the size of Kong is a definite advantage, especially since Korab knows how to use his 6-foot-3, 210-pound body.When he was confined to a chair for six weeks last spring, Korab wondered if he ever could skate again, let alone play in the NHL.When last season ended, Korab underwent an operation on the right foot that had given him trouble for about five years. The opertion took three hours. Korab&rsquo;s toes were broken (they had be-come clawed from the way he had been walking to relieve the pain), the tendons were cut and stretched and pins were inserted from toe to instep and kept there for five weeks.&ldquo;I never had pain like that before and I never want to have it again,&rdquo; said Korab, who was knocked out of the lineup temporarily when his shoulder was hurt in the Sabres&rsquo; 6-4 win over the New York Rangers on Nov. 23. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I would go through that operation again. My foot was like a football when I came out of the operating room.&ldquo;When I was able to get a shoe on again, I had to wear size 14fora while.&rdquo;Korab recalled it was rather strange returning to the Sabres after being away for three years.&ldquo;It was kind of funny when I first came back to the dressing room,&rdquo; Korab said. &ldquo;It was like a new team. I hardly knew anyone and those I did know were quick to point out I&rsquo;m from a different generation than a lot of these guys.&rdquo; &#9632;

Korab Sees A New Team In Sabre Second Coming

<div class="byline">BY DAVE KING</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01588/4831829-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="612" height="526"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02424/4831822-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="303" height="364"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dave King&rsquo;s Coach&rsquo;s Diary</figcaption></div>On Nov. 21, we practice twice as we get ready to resume our series with Team USA. Everybody looks forward to games&mdash;but I can&rsquo;t believe how much it means to our players to play against other Olympic teams.After the USA series, we are going to Lake Placid for four days. It will be a good chance for us to work on a big ice surface and to &ldquo;really live together&rdquo; for a few days. It will also be the first time that any of our players have been in a rink that actually had Olympic games played in it. Of course, with the USA winning in 1980, there will be a lot of memorabilia for the players to see and I&rsquo;m sure that it will crank them up.<h2>November 22</h2>We lose a day of practice today because of a mechanical problem on the airplane taking us to Toronto. Maybe the day off will be a blessing in disguise. Unfortunately, we had scheduled an open practice at St. Mike&rsquo;s Arena and we hope that we didn&rsquo;t disappoint too many people.The players&mdash;even the Western Canada boys&mdash;are sure looking forward to playing at both Maple Leaf Gardens and the Montreal Forum.<h2>November 23</h2>We practice at St. Mike&rsquo;s Arena for two hours and the intensity and enthusiasm are great. A number of players live in the Toronto area&mdash;Darren Eliot, Pat Flatley, George Servinis, Darren Lowe, Bruce Driver, Kevin Dineen, Joe Grant, Warren Anderson and Dan Wood&mdash;and a lot of their friends and relatives are anxious to see them play. I think I can now understand how tough it would be to play for the Leafs or Canadiens&mdash;everybody on every team would always be up for the games in the Gardens and the Forum.In the afternoon, all of our players and staff visit the Hospital for Sick Children. The players went through the rooms and visited personally with the children. I hope that we were able to boost the morale of the children and I&rsquo;m also sure that our players will not forget this visit.<h2>November 24</h2>The USA beat us 3-1 in the Gardens tonight. The disappointing thing for the coaches is that we did not generate too many good scoring chances. Our best line was definitely Carey Wilson, Dave Donnelly and Pat Flatley with Flatley scoring our only goal. The players on both teams responded well to the crowd&mdash;just under 10,000 and the pace of the game was fast.<h2>November 25</h2>We put together a 5-4 win in the Forum and we felt that the players did a good job of regaining their composure after a very poor first period. Gord Sherven played his best game to date&mdash;two goals and an assist and Dave Donnelly also played extremely well. Our two young defensemen&mdash;Craig Redmond and J.J. Daigneault also played really well and the fans were really cheering for J.J., hoping and expecting him to be named the Best Defensive Player of the game for us. But the media selected Redmond. Either choice would have been a good one.<h2>November 26</h2>The USA beat us 2-1 today in Moncton but we were very pleased with our effort. This was probably the best game of the three for us. Marc Behrend was outstanding in goal for Team USA, stopping 45 shots.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-03293/4831815-1-eng-US/f0024-032.jpg" title="f0024-03" width="581" height="1038"><figcaption class="caption-body">J.J. Daigneault was a crowd favorite in the game at the Montreal Forum.</figcaption></div><h2>November 27</h2>We are heading down to Lake Placid for four days of training on the large instructional-size ice surface. This period of time will give us a good chance to have several team meetings to discuss how our team is developing and to show each individual how they can contribute more. Hopefully this time will also help to bring us together as a team, both on and off the ice.It&rsquo;s very important that we stress cohesiveness on the ice, because we&rsquo;re going to need that at Sarajevo.<h2>TEAM CANADA</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-04184/4831808-1-eng-US/f0024-042.jpg" title="f0024-04" width="578" height="613"></div><h3>GOALTENDING AVERAGES</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-05142/4831801-1-eng-US/f0024-052.jpg" title="f0024-05" width="577" height="103"></div> &#9632;

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Four Days At Lake Placid Should Help

<div class="byline">BY LOU VAIRO</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-06120/4831860-1-eng-US/f0024-062.jpg" title="f0024-06" width="302" height="361"><figcaption class="caption-body">Lou Vairo&rsquo;s Coach&rsquo;s Corner</figcaption></div>At this point in time, Team USA&rsquo;s long road trip is getting to be a tough grind. We are approaching the end of our 17-day trip and while we cannot overlook our remaining games, everyone is going to be very happy to return home to Bloomington.The first of our three games this week was against the University of New Hampshire (3-1 for USA) in Manchester, NH. Like most of the college teams we have faced, the Wildcats played well but took a defensive posture. This approach slows the game down and while it is good for us to see different strategies, it leaves our opponents with little chance to win. Our goaltenders have been seeing an average of only 15-20 shots per game.The opposition&rsquo;s strategies have been to hold us defensively, hoping to score just enough goals to win. As a spectator at Lake Placid in 1980,I believe an important reason for our team&rsquo;s success was that coach Herb Brooks allowed the team to take the initiative and attacked our opponents boldly without forgetting the import-ance of defense. Our (1980) team certainly played with initiative!Scott Bjugstad (who was the only player to appear in all of our first 37 games) hurt his leg in the UNH game and missed the following game against Yale in New Haven, CT, which we won 6-2. He came back in our game against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, but reinjured himself so we sent him home early to enjoy Thanksgiving with his family in the Twin Cities. Scott will probably miss five games, so he&rsquo;ll get a chance to rest until the team gets home.The team, in general, is showing signs of wear and tear from our toughest month of the season. White in New-Haven we were hit with the flu bug. It knocked captain Phil Verchota out of the lineup and is making it tough on a number of other players, but they have continued to work very hard in the games and practices.Before our game against RPI in Troy, NY, just outside of my home state&rsquo;s capital (Albany), each member of Team USA received a personally signed New York State poster from governor Mario Cuomo.The largest crowd ever in RPI&rsquo;s beautiful, newly-refurnished arena gave our team a nice welcome and the Engineers team came at us very aggressively in the game. It was a close game (a 5-1 USA win) until the third period when we took control. But they had the best scoring opportunities of the week against us and gave Bob Mason, who played very well in goal, a good test.The long, hard road trip has taken a lot of excitement and emotion out of our team&rsquo;s play. It seems more like a job right now, but that should change once we get a chance to rest at home.Every city we have visited has held either a breakfast or luncheon in Team USA&rsquo;s honor. We truly enjoy and appreciate each of them. They help break up the boredom of the travel. The east coast people and weather have been just great.After the RPI game we travelled to Worcester, MA, for a game against Boston University. The travel day was a needed day off for the players. The BU game will begin a stretch of five games in five days. &#9632;

f0024-06

Road Trip Is Getting To Be A Tough Grind

<div class="byline">BY BARRY MEISEL</div>Louisville HockeyH&B 100 YEARS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01514/4831898-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="272" height="198"></div>SPRINGFIELD&mdash;The relationship never had a chance.Here was Jim Ralph, 21, a well-liked, easy-going goaltender who was the Chicago Black Hawks&rsquo; eighth-round draft pick in 1980 after a superb junior career with the Ottawa 67s of the Ontario Hockey League.And there was Doug Sauter, 29, the rookie coach of the Springfield Indians, a former goalie who was hired by Chicago after five years in the Western Hockey League coaching the Calgary Wranglers and New Westminster Bruins.Two weeks ago, after Ralph allowed a late third-period goal to Rochester&rsquo;s Louis Crawford that broke a tie and lifted the visiting Amerks to a 5-3 win, the festering volcano of a feud between goalie and coached spewed lava.Ralph, who said he had endured a month of abuse from his coach, heard Sauter blast him in front of his teammates for allowing the winning goal. Later, the second-year pro overheard Sauter criticizing him again, this time to the Indians&rsquo; trainers.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;The things I heard Sauter say, I still don&rsquo;t regret leaving. Only I know what was going through my mind.&rsquo;</blockquote>So, with a month of pressure, stress, anger and resentment playing tricks on his mind, Ralph reached for what he thought was the only alternative.He left the team.&ldquo;It came to a head in that Rochester game,&rdquo; Ralph said from Ottawa, where he is awaiting word from Chicago. Black Hawk general manager Bob Pulford suspended Ralph, but is trying to loan him to another AHL or CHL team.&ldquo;The things I heard (Sauter) say, I still don&rsquo;t regret leaving,&rdquo; said Ralph. &ldquo;Only I know what was going through my mind.&rdquo;According to Ralph, Sauter came out of his office after the Rochester game and said to the trainers that, &ldquo;he wanted me the bleep out of here. He didn&rsquo;t want to see my face.&rdquo;That, said Ralph, was not the first threat he&rsquo;d heard this season.&ldquo;He kept saying I&rsquo;d go to Peoria (of the International League),&rdquo; said Ralph. &ldquo;He said that to me four or five times, but then in the paper he&rsquo;d be quoted as saying he had no say about that. It got to the point where his criticism was personal. It got to the point where I hated the guy. I hated hearing him talk. I hated listening to the guy.&rdquo;Ralph, who spent his rookie season first on loan to Colorado of the Central League and then in Springfield when Chicago pulled Warren Skorodenski out of Springfield and loaned him to Birmingham of the Central League, said the problems with his coach began early in the season. Sauter, who played goal in junior but did not make it in the pros, didn&rsquo;t think Ralph worked hard enough in practice.&ldquo;That was my only gripe,&rdquo; Sauter maintains. &ldquo;I demanded better work in practice. He was saying I had it out for him, that he felt I was unjust, that I didn&rsquo;t want him on the team.&ldquo;That wasn&rsquo;t true. I&rsquo;ve left the door open for him.&rdquo;Ralph laughed when told what Sauter said. He said Sauter&rsquo;s feelings went way behind Ralph&rsquo;s work habits.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s going to try and let it blow over and say I&rsquo;m trying to make a big thing out of nothing,&rdquo; said Ralph. &ldquo;But there was so much unnecessary stress. Right now I feel like I&rsquo;m recovering. I never felt like that before. I was trying to make myself concentrate, but I couldn&rsquo;t. Maybe the problem was I wasn&rsquo;t sure I was capable of having a conflict with a coach.&rdquo;Although Ralph says he won&rsquo;t return to Springfield if Sauter is the coach and he will never play for Sauter again, he admitted he was partly to blame.&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t totally his fault,&rdquo; Ralph admitted. &ldquo;I started resenting him as much as he started resenting me.&rdquo;Moments after the Rochester game, after Sauter had blasted him, a shaken Ralph asked if they could chat. Sauter said he would, after he finished talking to the press.For some reason, they never talked that night, a Saturday night. Sauter said Ralph was supposed to come to his office Monday morning, but Ralph said it was Sauter&rsquo;s job to set up a meeting. In any case, Ralph left without ever talking to his coach.&ldquo;You probably talked more to him in your conversations than 1 did all season,&rdquo; Ralph told a reporter.Springfield general manager Bruce Landon, another former goalie, said it became obvious Ralph had stopped enjoying himself.&ldquo;I could see he was frustrated,&rdquo; said Landon. &lsquo;&lsquo;Here was a fellow with a lot of talent who even stopped enjoying wins, because he was too worried about the next game. I had a feeling Jim wouldn&rsquo;t long for the game.&rdquo;Not having had time to think, Ralph isn&rsquo;t so sure he wants to leave the game. While Chicago tries to find a place for their young goalie to play, Ralph sits and ponders his future.&ldquo;What I&rsquo;m working on now is getting the feeling again where I want to come back,&rdquo; said Ralph.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t want to go through life thinking one guy caused me to leave hockey.&rdquo;AROUND THE SOUTH&mdash;On Nov. 10, two days before the Doug Sauter-Jim Ralph blowout, Warren Skorodenski told a reporter in Binghamton he wasn&rsquo;t playing for Springfield because he and Sauter had had &ldquo;a disagreement, difference of opinion&rdquo; dating back to their junior hockey days in Calgary.Skorodenski, on loan to Sherbrooke by Chicago but currently suspended for an incident with referee Dave Lynch, teamed with Bob Janecyk in New Brunswick two seasons ago and were the AHL&rsquo;s best goaltending tandem. Janecyk was demoted to Springfield&mdash;to team with Philadelphia-owned Gil Hudon&mdash;just as Ralph left.This is not Chicago&rsquo;s first problem with Ralph. Last season, when the young goalie was being shipped all over, he refused to report to Birmingham of the CHL. That incident, coupled with this season&rsquo;s saga, prompted Chicago assistant GM Jack Davison to tell a Spring-field reporter, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s time he grew up.&rdquo;The Indians lost Dan Frawley to Chicago and Len Hachbom to Philadelphia. Hachbom, who scored a point in his first 17 games this season before the recall, will have a chance to extend the mark if he returns.The NHL ruled earlier this season that New York Islander defenseman, Denis Potvin lost a point-scoring streak when he missed a game due to injury, but AHL vice president-secretary Gordon Anziano ruled Hachbom&rsquo;s streak hasn&rsquo;t ended.&ldquo;We maintain that if the player doesn&rsquo;t dress for the game, it shouldn&rsquo;t affect his streak,&rdquo; Anziano said.Commissioner Jack Butterfield is taking his time studying the delicate Skorodenski situation. When he&rsquo;s done ruling on that one, it&rsquo;ll be time for him to jump into &ldquo;Cro&rsquo;s Comer.&rdquo;Amerk coach Joe Crozier&rsquo;s weekly television show on WHEC-TV focuses on hockey&rsquo;s fine points. Butterfield wasn&rsquo;t too happy when last week&rsquo;s video clinic showed Crozier explaining how hockey players fight.Val James and Louis Crawford were shown wrestling on camera. Crozier completed the segment by warning potential hockey fighters to, &ldquo;be sure you get in the first punch.&rdquo;&ldquo;The rulebook is designed in every way to prevent fighting&hellip;and we try to curtail fighting and brawling in every way we can,&rdquo; Butterfield told a reporter from the Associated Press.Crozier can&rsquo;t understand all the fuss.&ldquo;I did seven segments at once,&rdquo; he explained. &ldquo;We did taking guys out of the boards, power plays. I used one with James and Crawford on wrestling. In any other place there would have been nothing to it, but a newspaperman called to ask Butterfield what he plans to do about it.&ldquo;The whole thing&rsquo;s been overexposed.&rdquo;Somehow, it is not likely Butterfield will feel the same way.Binghamton snapped a three-game losing streak by whipping Fredericton 85 at home. It was the first time all season the defensive-minded Express had given up more than six goals. Whaler center Roberto Lavoie scored four points in the game. With 20 points in his last 11 games, Lavoie has moved into the lead in the rookie scoring race with 22 points, two more than St. Catharine&rsquo;s Greg Britz and Rochester&rsquo;s Claude Verret.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02354/4831891-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="584" height="794"><figcaption class="caption-body">Suspended Springfield goalie Jim Ralph will spend the next while pondering his future.</figcaption></div>Baltimore gave a 25-game pro tryout to center Dan McCarthy, who started the season in Austria. The &lsquo;Jacks lost center Tim Tookey on emergency recall to Pittsburgh&hellip;New Haven released Mike Fidler from his 25-game pro tryout agreement&hellip;Hershey, after playing 19 games without going into overtime, played three straight extra sessions. The Bears are winless in their last five (0-32). &#9632;

f0025-01

Criticism Of Indian Coach Sauter A Bit Caustic For Goalie Ralph

<div class="byline">BY MIKE KANE</div>PORTLAND&mdash;After nearly a decade in professional hockey, John Paddock knows all about opportunities&mdash;and timing. He knows they go hand in hand, it&rsquo;s that old line about being in the right place at the right time.For Paddock, the right place was Portland and the correct time was the afternoon of Nov. 21. That day he was presented with an opportunity that will affect him for the foreseeable future. While the timing wasn&rsquo;t quite what he expected, Paddock didn&rsquo;t let the offer slip away.In a little less than 24 hours, Paddock, 29, went from team captain to coach of the Maine Mariners in a major shakeup of the New Jersey Devils&rsquo; organization. Paddock&rsquo;s appointment at Maine was the final of a series of moves that began with the firing of Devil general managercoach Billy MacMillan. Tom McVie, who was in his second season at Maine, succeeds MacMillan as the New Jersey coach and Paddock assumes the job in Maine.Everything happened quickly for Paddock. On Monday, the 21st, he was asked if he was interested. An answer was expected quickly and he made his decision. The next morning, he retired as a player and took over the coaching job.Paddock admits that changing roles during the season will be difficult. He knows his relationship with his former teammates will never be the same.&ldquo;Missing the good times of being in the dressing room with the guys, hearing the stories and enjoying yourself with them, I guess that&rsquo;s going to be the toughest part,&rdquo; Paddock said. &ldquo;I guess it coulcHiave been tougher, though. When Tommy (McVie) mentioned to me that it might happen, he said that it wasn&rsquo;t like I had played five or six years with a guy like I had with (Wayne) Schaab or (Dennis) Patterson, (two longtime Mariners who retired at the end of last season). I&rsquo;ve known these guys two or three months and they&rsquo;re all good friends, but it could have been worse. It&rsquo;s going to be an adjustment of sure.&rdquo;Paddock returns to a position he held briefly in the spring of 1982 when he, Patterson and Schaab guided the Mariners after Bob McCammon was promoted to Philadelphia to replace Pat Quinn. While he says he had thought about trying his hand at coaching after ending his playing career. Paddock is quick to point out that it was not his chief ambition.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know if I saw myself in it or that it was just something that I wanted to do,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It was in the back of my mind for the last two or three years and some people in hockey knew that I would consider it someday. I don&rsquo;t think that things happen for luck, they happen for a reason. I had the opportunity and I accepted it.&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t a goal. I didn&rsquo;t have to do it financially, I have a farm to go back to when I&rsquo;m fired or done playing hockey or done coaching. It was something that interested me and, I think, presented a challenge. I hope I can do the job.&rdquo;Paddock inherited a team with a 9-6-2 record. Paddock started off his coaching record on the right foot as the Mariners beat Rochester 4-3. Paddock says he&rsquo;ll rely upon advice from McVie and doesn&rsquo;t expect to make any major changes.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not an individually talented team, but as a team we&rsquo;ve outshot the other teams by an unbelievable margin all year, except for one team, Rochester, (in an earlier game), and we happened to win that one,&rdquo; Paddock said. &ldquo;Stylewise, I certainly hope I can have the guys playing the same. I know our record doesn&rsquo;t look that good at the moment, but if we win our games in hand and our games at home it will look great. We&rsquo;re going to be trying our very best to play the same style.&rdquo;AROUND THE DIVISION&mdash;Sherbrooke goaltender Warren Skorodenski faces a suspension of as long as 20 games for an incident with referee Dave Lynch at the conclusion of a game with New Haven at Sherbrooke on Nov. 20. The confrontation occurred after Daryl Evans scored the winning goal for New Haven 51 seconds into the overtime on a power play. Five seconds earlier, Skorodenski received a minor penalty for tripping a player while the two were fighting for the puck behind the Sherbrooke net.Immediately after giving up the winning goal, Skorodenski threw his stick into the crowd and began chasing after Lynch. He allegedly pushed Lynch against the boards and struck him before Sherbrooke players intervened. AHL president Jack Butterfield handed Skor-odenski an indefinite suspension and launched an investigation&hellip;Moncton ended an eight-game homestand with a 4-4 record. The Alpines went straight to Halifax after completing the homestand and defeated the Voyageurs 4-3 to end the Vees&rsquo; unbeaten streak at nine games&hellip;Sherbrooke lost player-assistant coach Rick Bowness when he was promoted to Winnipeg to serve as an assistant to newly-appointed head coach Barry Long. Sherbrooke also has been playing without Alain Daigle (back spasms) and Kelly Elcombe (fractured wrist). Forward Dave Chartier, who underwent knee surgery, may be able to return to the lineup&hellip;Garry Howatt, Mike Moher and leading scorer Mike Hordy missed Mariner games because of injuries. Glen Merkosky and Larry Floyd are starting to pick up the scoring attack. Merkosky has six goals and 13 points in 17 games&hellip;Clint Malarchuk was sent down to Fredericton from Quebec to regain his form and has recorded a 2-1 record and a 2.33 goals against mark for the Express&hellip;Adirondack forward Dennis Polonich extended his point-scoring streak to a team record-tying nine games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01539/4831929-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="574" height="784"><figcaption class="caption-body">John Paddock won his first game behind the Mariner bench with a. 4-3 win over Rochester.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0026-01

Paddock Benefits From The Devils’ Shuffle

<div class="byline">BY BUD GALLMEIER</div>MILWAUKEE&mdash;The Admirals completed a successful four-game road trip atop the International League and are hoping a lengthy trip will bring continued good fortune.Milwaukee posted a 3-0-1 record, with the only blemish a 2-2 tie in Toledo. The three victories came at Kalamazoo (5-2), Flint (9-6) and at home against Toledo (6-3).Milwaukee increased its record to 125-1 and now leads Fort Wayne and Peoria by two points. The 12 victories are the most of any team in the league and Milwaukee has also played fewer games than either of its chief rivals. The Ads have played 18 games, with 11 at home, where the Ads have lost just twice. But Milwaukee&rsquo;s road record thus far would indicate the Ads are qualified contenders.On the road, they are 3-3-1.Milwaukee will be challenged on the road in the immediate future. Five of the next seven games are on foreign ice. Two of the stops are in Fort Wayne, where Milwaukee lost its only appearance so far. The other road assignments are at Kalamazoo, Muskegon and Flint.FORT WAYNE&mdash;The Komets enjoyed another successful week despite general manager-coach Ron Ullyot having to juggle his lines because of injuries. All three of the Komets&rsquo; starting centers were sidelined for two games. Mike Clarke missed four games but returned to the lineup. Ron Leef is expected to miss a minimum of two weeks. Doug Rigler, the Komets&rsquo; Rookie of the Year last season, was also injured but he&rsquo;s back.There was some good news, too. Veteran Barry Scully, the most prolific goal scorer in the history of the league, is expected to return to the lineup shortly. Scully suffered a knee injury in the Komets&rsquo; opening game of the season and hasn&rsquo;t played since. Scully has averaged over 50 goals a season in his six seasons in the IHL and has had three seasons in which he scored 60 or more goals.The Komets stayed close to the top with a 2-1 record in three games. One win was a 6-2 romp over Peoria at home, the other a 4-3 overtime triumph in Toledo. In between, the Komets lost a 5-1 decision to Toledo at home.Clarke got the winner in the overtime at Toledo. It was his second goal of the game. Danny Sanscartier, making his first appearance since returning from Hershey of the American League, kicked out 32 Toledo shots. The Komets are 10-7-3.Peoria Prancers had a rather light week, playing but two games. The week opened with a trip to Fort Wayne, where the Prancers lost 6-2, their second whipping in as many visits. In two games in Fort Wayne, Peoria has been outscored 15-4.&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have any players on five-game tryouts and that&rsquo;s going to end,&rdquo; said an unhappy Prancer coach Pat Kelly. &ldquo;I guess everybody thinks they have a spot on the team sewed up. But they haven&rsquo;t.&rdquo;The Prancers rebounded from the Fort Wayne loss by beating Muskegon 4-2 at home. Peoria is 11-7-1.TOLEDO&mdash;The Goaldiggers who had the best home record in the league a year ago, are having trouble at home this season. The defending league and playoff champions managed just one point in two home games, while breaking even in a pair of road games this week.The 1-2-1 record dropped Toledo to 8-8-3, five points out of first place and three behind second place Fort Wayne and Peoria.The Diggers played probably their best game of the season in beating Fort Wayne 5-1 on the road, but the Komets got even the next night in Toledo with a 4-3 overtime win. Also at home, Toledo managed a 2-2 with Milwaukee. They closed out the week by losing 6-3 in Milwaukee.FLINT&mdash;The Generals moved to within one point of four place with a 2-1-0 record for the week. Featured in the win wasa 10-4 blitzing of Muskegon. the most goals scored by any team this season. Pierre Giroux provided most of the fireworks with the Generals&rsquo; first hat trick of the season.Flint completed a clean sweep of the Mohawks with a 6-5 overtime victory the next night in Muskegon. Tom Thomson scored the winning goal. Muskehon had a 5-4 lead with less than 30 seconds to play, but Lawrie Nisker tied the game for Flint with 27 seconds left in regulation time.Flint&rsquo;s three-game winning streak, the Generals&rsquo; longest winning streak of the season, ended with a 9-6 loss to Mil waukee at home.KALAMAZOO&mdash;If the K-Wings ever start winning at home, the rest of the IHL clubs could be in for trouble. Kalamazoo has the best road record in the league at this juncture (4-4-2). But the Wings are not better than.500 at home (3-3-1). The home-ice jinx continued as Milwaukee snapped a six-game unbeaten string with a 5-2 triumph before a crowd of about 5,000 fans, including the Famous Chicken. The loss dropped the Wings&rsquo; record to 7-7-3. Prior to the loss to Milwaukee, the Wings won five straight. Included in the streak was a 4-1 win at Peoria and a 7-5 victory over Fort Wayne at home, in which Jim MacRae tied a team record by scoring five goals.MUSKEGON&mdash;Things have to get better for the Mohawks soon. And maybe they will. Scott Gruhl, one of the highest scoring forwards in the league when he played for Saginaw, could be in the Mohawk lineup soon. Gruhl was picked up by Muskegon in the dispersal draft of Saginaw players. Gruhl is now skating, reports his knee feels &ldquo;fine&rdquo; and is looking forward to joining the Mohawks soon.Meanwhile, Muskegon lost three more games, dropping their record to 4-15-0. Muskegon is 14 points out of first place and six behind sixth-place Kalamazoo. The Hawks lost twice to Flint, 10-4 on the road and 6-5 at home in overtime. The other loss was at Peoria, a 4-2 setback. &#9632;

Ads Looking To Extend Good Fortune On Road

<div class="byline">BY BILL PICKETT</div>Louisville HockeyH&B 100 YEARS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01512/4831991-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="291" height="204"></div>INDIANAPOLIS&mdash;With half of their starting lineup composed of rookies, it appears Indianapolis Checkers face a big challenge defending their two straight Adams Cup championships.A couple of administrative problems in the last few weeks, however, have further weakened the Checkers&rsquo; attempt for a third-straight title.The first such setback was not related to the league, but put a substantial dent in the Checkers&rsquo; pocketbook. Fred Creighton, Indianapolis&rsquo; general managercoach, had his travel schedule almost set when Continental Air Lines closed its service to Indianapolis.&ldquo;About 75 per cent of our travel was booked with them,&rdquo; Creighton explained, as he had to go back to the drawing board to arrange other itineraries.The shortest trip for the Checkers, who are the league&rsquo;s most eastern franchise, is from Indianapolis to Tulsa (about 650 miles). Salt Lake City is more than 1,500 miles away and Denver and Billings are in between these two.But Creighton and his staff got that problen;. ironed out, although at somewhat more expense than his original travel plans. Then, early in November, the Checkers got an unscheduled &ldquo;vacation&rdquo; in Tulsa under circumstances which affected not only Indianapolis, but the league as well.After starting the first 10 games of the season on the road, Tulsa was supposed to be host to the Checkers in its home opener at the renovated Fairgrounds Pavilion on Nov. 8 and then play another engagement at the same venue the next night.A malfunction of the Pavilion&rsquo;s icemaking equipment had the Checkers sitting in their hotel rooms for three days. No ice, no games, not even any practice.While Tulsa, Indianapolis and the league were trying to find acceptable dates to reschedule those contests, another snag was discovered. There would be no ice in Tulsa March 6 and 7, further fouling up Creighton&rsquo;s travel plans.The league solved the initial problem, with the Nov. 8 and 9 games rescheduled to Jan. 23 and 25.That means the two teams will face each other four times in six days, since the Oilers will be in Indianapolis Jan. 28 and 29.&ldquo;We haven&rsquo;t been able to decide on make-up dates for the March games, though,&rdquo; said Bill Adler, the league&rsquo;s vice-president and director of media relations.The Checkers will be at home for six games between March 3-17 as the season winds down and their last scheduled road trip will be March 20-27, during which they will play two games each at Salt Lake and Tulsa. Adler was waiting for Creighton to get back in town to firm up dates for the remaining games.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had to make several schedule changes,&rdquo; Adler noted. &ldquo;After we get the conflicts settled we&rsquo;ll just put out a complete revised schedule.&rdquo;Another conflict at Tulsa was resolved more quickly last week when Colorado defeated the Oilers 5-2, a night later than the originally scheduled game.As a result of their scheduling problems at home, Tulsa played only two games in their Pavilion in the first six weeks of the season, winning one and losing the other. The Oilers have proved to be the best team on the road so far, however, winning eight of 11.Tulsa, incidentally, is one of two teams with a winning record on the road. The other team, Salt Lake, was 4-3-0 after seven road games. Oddly enough, only two of the five teams in the league boasted winning marks at home nearly seven weeks into the season.League-leading Colorado (10-9-0) was 7-4-0 in McNichols Arena, while the Checkers picked up six of their seven victories at home.CHL CHAT&mdash;Jim Jackson and Bobby Francis led Colorado&rsquo;s drive into first place. Jackson was Player of the Week with three goals and seven assists and claimed the CHL scoring lead with 25 points (four goals, 21 assists). Francis was a point behind, following the Hames&rsquo; four victories at home, in which they averaged seven goals a game&hellip;Indy center Scott Howson has a six-game scoring string going, averaging a goal a game and adding six assists. He leads the league in goals with 12. Garth MacGuigan, who is the career leader in almost every statistical category for Indi-anapolis, became the first Checker player to reach the 300-point mark with an assist in a 5-4 victory over Salt Lake. In just over four seasons in Indianapolis, Mac-guigan has 130 goals and 170 assist-s&hellip;Colorado and Tulsa, ranked first and second in the CHL standings, also claim the top four goaltenders in the league. Mike Vernon&rsquo;s 3.64 goals-against mark leads the circuit, while teammate Marc D&rsquo;Amour is fourth at 3.88. Tulsa&rsquo;s John Vanbiesbrouck is second with a 3.68 mark and Ron Scott of the Oilers is third at 3.71.Salt Lake center Richie Hansen is ex-pected back in action after suffering a shoulder injury and the Golden Eagles also hope to see Dirk Graham return to duty from a knee injury. That was only nart of the Salt Lake injury list, however, as defenseman Jeff Brownschidle has a cast on a broken right wrist and Tim Couiis and goalie Mike Sands have groin ailments and Bob Bergloff is sidelined with a bad knee. Rookie Jean-Francois Boutin, with 10 points in 10 games, is out with a shoulder separation. The Golden Eagles had but 13 healthy players at one point.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02333/4831984-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="588" height="610"><figcaption class="caption-body">Garth MacGuigan became the first player in the Indy player to reach the 300-point mark.</figcaption></div>St. Louis recalled Alain Lemieux from Montana and reassigned right winger Dan Wood to the Canadian Olympic team. The New York Rangers called up defenseman Scot Kleinendorst from Tulsa. &#9632;

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Checkers Running Into Obstacles In Defense Of Third Straight Title

<div class="byline">BY TOM BURKE</div>CAMBRIDGE&mdash;It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, a full six weeks after the first Eastern Colleges Athletic Conference Division One team, RPI, began playing non-conference opposition to begin the 1983-84 season. Everybody in the 17-team loop except for Yale had finally played at least one contest that counted in league play. With 17 games on tap for the following week the Eastern hockey season had finally arrived.This will, of course, be the final season for balanced scheduling throughout the East&rsquo;s three divisions because the Ivy League and the ECAC West will secede and do their own thing next year, leaving the ECAC East plus Lowell in a separate league. Nobody really seems to want it to happen but, like World War One after Sarajevo, nobody seems able to stop it either.Judging from the smattering of games played thus far, the 1983-84 race will be a tight one. Teams such as Maine, Vermont and Princeton, all far back in last year&rsquo;s standings, are much improved while the likes of Harvard and Providence. faced with major rebuilding, look a bit better than expected.Harvard opened its season with a 5-3 triumph at Dartmouth, then journeyed home to nip Vermont 4-3 in overtime. Missing a total of 10 players off last season&rsquo;s playoff champion team, the Crimson haven&rsquo;t lost a step in their strong skating game but their youth shows. The jury is still out.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re fortunate to win our first two,&rdquo; commented coach Bill Cleary after the Vermont game. &ldquo;It gives the kids some confidence, but more importantly it gives us a bit of a cushion going into some tougher games on the schedule.&rdquo;Within the next week, the Crimson were slated to take on Boston University and RPI, two of the league&rsquo;s powerhouses. Moreover, the twin wins were as close as they could have been. After Gary Martin&rsquo;s second power-play score late in the second period moved Harvard&rsquo;s lead to 4-1, Harvard rallied on scores by. Bruce Cullen and Mark Lamoreux by the 4:17 mark of the third frame. Harvard only managed five shots on rookie Dartmouth goalie Jeff Bower in the third period and didn&rsquo;t have the game sewn up until an empty-net goal by Phil Falcone with 11 seconds to go.Vermont has found itself a goalie in freshman Tom Draper and had the better of the play for two periods. The Catamounts held a 4-3 lead going into the second intermission after Craig Staff, Don Crowley and Matt Winnicki beat Grant Blair for second-period goals.Fourth-line right winger Peter Follows, who just learned he&rsquo;d be playing an hour or so before the game, tipped home a crease pass midway through the third period to tie the score for Harvard. Vermont wilted a bit, couldn&rsquo;t capitalize on a late power play, and lost the game in overtime when Harvard winger Rob Wheeler wrested the puck away from defense in the Vermont end, swooped around in front of the cage, and beat Draper with a backhander.&ldquo;We actually played a little better tonight than we did when we beat St. Lawrence a week ago,&rdquo; commented a disappointed Jimmy Cross, who will leave the UVM coaching job after this season.&ldquo;One thing I know about this year,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;Nobody in the East is going to run away with it.&rdquo;Boston College, New Hampshire and Cornell all won their first league contests of the year and joined Harvard and Boston University in the elite but ready-to-shrink undefeated ranks of the league.BC got 41 saves from sophomore goalie Scott Gordon enroute to a 3-1 win over Northeastern. Long shots by Robin Monleon and Chris Delaney eluded Tim Marshall in the first period and gave the Eagles all they needed.Maine journeyed to Ithaca, NY, and gave Cornell a fit before yielding 6-3. Paul Giacalone tallied for the Black Bears to narrow Cornell&rsquo;s lead to 4-3 with 13:01 to play in the game. The Red didn&rsquo;t put the contest away until the final minute when Geoff Dervin and Terry Gage scored.Princeton pushed New Hampshire to the limit up in Durham before absorbing a 4-3 loss to the Wildcats. Junior Ed Lee. a late cut from the U.S. Olympic team, had a pair of second period goals as the Tigers moved out to a 3-2 lead.UNH&rsquo;s Scott Ellison poked a short shot past Princeton goalie Wally McDonough to tie the score with 10:21 to play. Kirk Lassier slapped home the game winner from the blueline at the 15:11 mark. UNH goalie Bruce Gillies made 38 stops for the Cats, who have two wins in seven games.Dartmouth dropped its third game overall and its second league tilt when Clarkson drubbed them 9-2 in Potsdam. Bower thought he was headed for another Harvard-type game when the score was tied 2-2 after two periods. But the Golden Knights ended things quickly, as Mike Harvey scored at 1:01 and Pat O&rsquo;Brien followed suit at 1:19 of the third frame. Five more goals were to follow, including three consecutive ones by freshman Al Hill for a natural hat trick within a span of 6:02.In non-league play, the Olympic team finished cutting its swath through Eastern hockey with wins of 5-1 over RPI, 7-1 over Providence, 10-2 over Boston University, and 6-2 over Yale.In other non-league play, RPI took the Empire Cup at Glens Falls with a 6-5 victory over St. Lawrence in the title game. The Engineers led 5-1 after two periods. Every game in the toumey, which also included Colgate and Cornell, was decided by a single goal.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01512/4832022-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="588" height="703"><figcaption class="caption-body">Harvard coach Bill Cleary admitted the Crimson were fortunate to win their first two.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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ECAC Underway With Tight Race Expected

<div class="byline">BY JIM SCHNEIDER</div>BOWLING GREEN&mdash;Defending league champion Bowling Green defeated Miami 5-3 and 6-3 to set up a showdown with unbeaten Central Collegiate Hockey Association leader Ohio State.Ohio State, 10-0 in league play, meets Miami in a mid-week contest before meeting the Falcons in a home-and-home series. The Buckeyes were idle this past weekend.In other CCHA play, Michigan and Northern Michigan split a pair of games in Marquette with the host Wildcats winning the opener 5-3, before Michigan took the second game 5-1.Michigan State and Ferris State split a pair of conference games with the visiting Spartans winning the opener 8-2, before Rob Houghston backstopped the host Bulldogs with 48 for a 2-1 in the second game.In non-league play, Western Michigan defeated Denver 3-2 and 4-3. Michigan Tech split a pair of games at Minnesota-Duluth, winning the second game 4-1 after a 4-3 overtime loss in the opener. Illinois-Chicago lost two games at Wisconsin (9-3 and 7-3).Western Michigan&rsquo;s Dan Dorion earned CCHA Player of the Week honors as he scored three goals and added two assists in the sweep of Denver. Dorion scored the game-winning goal in each game and he has a seven-game goalscoring streak and his 14-game scoring streak is the tops in the CCHA this season.Miami grabbed a 1-0 lead in the opener at Bowling Green as Jay Lees scored his first goal of the season in the first period. The score was tied at two when Miami&rsquo;s Paul Beimes scored at 9:04 of the second period.The Falcons rallied with Dave O&rsquo; Brian scoring the tying goal at eight minutes of the third period and Dave Randerson and Jamie Wansbrough scored goals 21 seconds apart to clinch the win.Bowling Green scored four goals in the second period of the second game to blow open a 1-1 tie with Gino Cavallini and Wansbrough scoring power-play goals.The Falcons have now won 10 games in a row.Michigan held a 3-1 lead in the opener at Northern Michigan on goals by Paul Spring, Jim McCauley and John DeMartino, but the Wildcats used a pair of goals by Charlie Lundeen, sandwiched around a Dave Mougush goal, to rally for the win despite 35 saves by Michigan&rsquo;s Mark Chiamp.In the rematch, Michigan&rsquo;s Ray Dries and NMU&rsquo;s Kory Wright exchanged goals in the first two periods, as Chiamp battled with NMU freshman Dennis Jian-naras in goal.Michigan co-captain Kelly McCrimmon snapped a tie at 8:04 of the third period as he scored on a Greg Hudas rebound. Linemate Brad Jones made the score 3-1 with an unassisted goal just 24 seconds later. McCrimmon finished off the rally with his second goal of the game at 10:47.Chiamp finished the second game with 27 saves and Jiannaras made 25, with 11 in the third period.The balanced Michigan State was in full force in the opener at Ferris State. Eight different Spartana scored goals in the 8-2 victory with defenseman Jeff Eisley pacing the attack with three assists.Graham Craig sparked the Ferris State offense in the series, scoring two goals and adding two assists to account for all four goals the Bulldogs scored against the Spartans.Newell Brown gave Michigan State a 1-0 lead in the first period of the second game, but Craig scored once in &lsquo;the second period and once in the third for the win. Ferris. State&rsquo;s Rob Houghston made 48 saves in the second game.Michigan Tech rallied to send the opener in Duluth into overtime as Doug Harris and Mark Marsote scored third-peirod goals after the Huskies fell behind 3-1 after two periods. But UMD&rsquo;s Bill Watson scored after just 1:07 of overtime for the win.In the second game, MTU freshman Dave Rosch made 50 saves and captain Bill Terry scored two goals. Kurt Pearson had the winner for Tech in the second game.Mike Rucinski scored two goals to pace Illinois-Chicago&rsquo;s offense in the series at Wisconsin. But his seven-game scoring streak was snapped in the opener in Madison. Goalie John Whelan made 89 saves in the series for the Flames, while UIC&rsquo;s other goalie, Jim Hickey, was injured in the first minute of play in the second game. &#9632;

Bowling Green Aiming To Blemish Buckeyes

The University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux are a team to be reckoned with in U. S. college hockey this season and one of the reasons is Perry Berezan.Berezan is a freshman center from Edmonton, Alta., who scored three goals and three assists for the week ending Nov. 27 to earn Bauer College Player of the Week honors.The 19-year-old, who is 6-foot-2, 180 pounds teamed with linemates Dan Brennan and Chris Jensen to collect 10 points in the 7-4 win over Maine.Berezan has 10 goals in his first 14 games and leads the Fighting Sioux in scoring.At the end of the season, THE HOCKEY NEWS will select a Bauer College Player of the Year.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02357/4832077-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="562" height="942"><figcaption class="caption-body">PERRY BEREZAN North Dakota</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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Bauer Player of the week

Official publication includes rosters, coaches, athletic directors, schedules, records and location of over seventy college varsity teams in the Eastern United States. A veritable bible for coaches, players and fans. A must for the quality American & Canadian athlete wanting a college education with financial aide. Small cost for a possible four year scholarship.Price per copy&mdash;$5.50 (U.S.) or $7.00 (Canadian) including postage. Mail check to:ECAC Hockey Guide Department, P.O. Box 3, Centerville, MA, 02632 &#9632;

1983-84 ECAC HOCKEY GUIDE

<div class="byline">BY VIRG FOSS</div>MADISON&mdash;You can scratch the premature obituary report on University of Wisconsin hockey.The Badgers, the defending U.S. collegiate champions who opened the 198384 season by losing five of their first six games, have returned to the form that won them the 1983 NCAA Division One title.Wisconsin has reeled off nine straight victories to jump back into the thick of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association race.Even so, Wisconsin coach Jeff Sauer is quick to attribute his team&rsquo;s resurgence to the schedule as much as to improved play by the Badgers.&ldquo;Our streak has a lot to do with our schedule,&rdquo; Sauer said. &ldquo;We started the season by playing six of our first 10 league games against North Dakota and Minnesota.&rdquo;The Badgers lost four of those games, but turned their season around by beating Minnesota 3-1 and 9-0 in Madison after losing twice to the Gophers earlier in Minneapolis.Since then, Wisconsin has knocked off Illinois-Chicago three times and Colorado College twice to run its winning streak to nine games.&ldquo;At the start of the season, our defense was young and we were not ready to play,&rdquo; Sauer said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve come around since then and have improved from week to week.&rdquo;A key in the turnaround has been the play of sophomore goaltender Gary Baxter, a walk-on from Don Mills, Ont., who took over when regular goaltender Terry Kleisinger was sidelined with illness.Baxter has played so well that he has replaced North Dakota senior Jon Casey as the No. 1 goalie in the WCHA with his 2.14 goals-against average and impressive.931 save percentage, a shade better than Casey&rsquo;s 2.16 GAA and.924 save percentage.&ldquo;Gary has been a very big key for us,&rdquo; Sauer said. &ldquo;We won those two very big games against Minnesota, allowing just one goal and that was really the turnaround in our season.&rdquo;Wisconsin&rsquo;s offense has picked up, too.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s always been there, it&rsquo;s just that it&rsquo;s now come to the forefront,&rdquo; Sauer said. &ldquo;Even so, two of our big scorers of a year ago, Paul Houck and John Johann-son, haven&rsquo;t gotten off to the prolific start they did a year ago.&rdquo;North Dakota&rsquo;s 4-3 and 1-0 losses at Minnesota recently helped Wisconsin get back into the league race.&ldquo;If North Dakota&rsquo;s hadn&rsquo;t lost both those games, we&rsquo;d have been chasing them all the way,&rdquo; Sauer said. &ldquo;Now, we&rsquo;re back in the picture.&rdquo;Wisconsin&rsquo;s latest triumphs came over Illinois-Chicago, a team still struggling for respectability in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association.Wisconson&rsquo;s 9-3 and 7-3 victories over Illinois-Chicago in Madison, coupled with a 10-4 victory over the same club earlier in Chicago, indicates Illinois-Chicago still has a ways to go to compete with the collegiate powers in the U.S.Wisconsin broke open a close game in the opener with four goals in the first seven minutes, including a pair by Paul Houston. Ernie Vargan and Jim Johannsen had the other goals in Wisconsin&rsquo;s late barrage. John Johannson added two goals to Wisconsin&rsquo;s attack.In the rematch, Houston and Tim Ryan scored two goals each and defenseman Gary Suter collected four assists as Wisconsin ran its season record to 10-5.Minnesota ran its mini-streak to four games by beating U.S. International 9-3 and 7-3 in San Diego. U.S. International, a Division One independent, took a 2-1 lead over the Gophers in the second game before the Gophers rallied behind the sniping of Tom Rothstein, who scored four times in the 7-3 win.North Dakota got back on the winning track after losing twice at Minnesota by beating the University of Maine twice in Grand Forks by 5-1 and 7-4 margins.The newly-formed line centered by Perry Berezan, with Dan Brennan and Chris Jensen on the wings, did much of the damage against the Black Bears.All three of them scored a goal in the 5-1 victory and Berezan had two goals and one assist in the rematch as the line accounted for 10 points, with Jensen and Brennan again adding one goal each.Berezan, Rick Zombo and Jensen broke a goalless tie in the second period to send the Sioux to victory in the opening game. Goals by Mickey Krampotich and Jensen got the Sioux off to a 2-0 lead in the first period on their way to victory in the rematch.Minnesota-Duluth had mixed results against Michigan Tech in another nonconference series, played in Duluth.Bill Watson, who is tied for the scoring lead in the WCHA, scored 1:08 into overtime in the opener to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 win over Michigan Tech.Watson&rsquo;s goal came on the first shot by either team in overtime and gave Duluth a 2-2-1 record in the five overtime games the Bulldogs have been involved in already this season.The rematch never got into overtime as Bill Terry scored two goals to lead Michigan Tech to a 4-1 victory. The only goal for Duluth came off the stick of defenseman Tom Kurvers with Duluth skating shorthanded.Denver University continues to struggle. The Pioneers stepped outside of the league and absorbed 4-3 and 3-2 losses from Western Michigan of the CCHA.A shorthanded goal by Dan Dorion gave Western Michigan a 3-0 lead in the second game and it proved to be enough to drop Denver to 2-12 on the season. &#9632;

Badgers Revived With Help Of Schedule

<div class="byline">BY ROBERT MacLEOD</div>WATERLOO&mdash;The Warriors find themselves in a rather unfamiliar position&mdash;near the top of the heap&mdash;after the first few weeks of play in the Ontario Universities Athletic Association.Usually it&rsquo;s the other way around for the much-improved Warriors, who even trailed Royal Military College Redmen and Ryerson Rams in the standing last year, with only two wins and a tie in 24 games and finished last in the 13-team loop.What a difference a year makes. With a pair of victories in Waterloo over Laurentian Voyageurs&mdash;9-2 and 3-1&mdash;the Warriors moved into second place ahead of defending champion Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (4-1-2) with a record of 5-3-1.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re coming along,&rdquo; said second-year coach Jack Birch. &ldquo;We had a long way to go. We were right at the bottom of the pile last year. Our objective was to gain a playoff berth and we appear on our way to doing that.&rdquo;Following last year&rsquo;s experience, Birch cleaned house.&ldquo;We had 19 players available to us from last year&rsquo;s team,&rdquo; Birch said. &ldquo;We cut six and another five elected not to come out. We realized that the talent we had on the club wasn&rsquo;t going to be enough for advancement so we went out and did some extensive recruiting.&rdquo;Birch said he contacted 62 players he felt could help the Warriors this year, including forward Jay Green, a junior B player from the Waterloo area. Green, who scored eight points (three goals, five assists) in Waterloo&rsquo;s 9-2 thrashing of the Voyageurs, is the Ontario Universities Athletic Association&rsquo;s second-leading scorer with 13 goals and 22 points. Toronto Blues&rsquo; veteran Andre Hidi leads the way with 13 goals and 25 points.Toronto, which topped winless Windsor Lancers 10-6 and Ryerson 10-2, raised their first-place record to 7-0. Three other teams are tied in third place along with Laurier&mdash;McMaster Marlins (4-2-2), Guelph Gryphons (5-4) and York Yeomen (5-3), who have won their past five after going 0-3 at the start of the season.<h2>AUAA</h2>PEI Panthers registered one of their biggest Atlantic Universities Athletic Association victories in recent years when they tripped up defending champion Moncton Blue Eagles 10-2 on the Island. Coupled with a 7-1 win over St. Francis Xavier X-Men, the Panthers are now tied with Moncton in second place with 5-1 records.New Brunswick Raiders, who posted victories over St. Mary&rsquo;s Huskies (6-3) and Acadia Axemen (4-3), have taken over first place with a 6-2 record.The strong goaltending of Avelino Gomez Jr., a former netminder with Kingston Canadians in the Ontario Hockey League, is pacing PEI. Gomez has played in five of PEI&rsquo;s six games, allowing just five goals.&ldquo;And we put two in on him ourselves,&rdquo; said Panther coach Vince Mulligan.<h2>QUAA</h2>On the strength of a 5-2 triumph over defending champions Concordia Stingers, McGill Redmen lifted their record to 5-2-1 to jump into first place. The Stingers, whose record dipped to 5-2, are tied in second with Chicoutimi Inuk (4-52).<h2>GPAC</h2>With a pair of weekend victories over Winnipeg Wesmen&mdash;5-4 (in overtime) and 8-7&mdash;Brandon Bobcats strengthened their hold on first place, raising their record to 7-1 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.Clint Haight scored the overtime winner for Brandon with just 18 seconds left. Manitoba Bisons, who had the week off, remain in second with a 4-3-1 record.<h2>CWUAA</h2>Defending national champion Saskatchewan Huskies swept both games of a doubleheader from Alberta Golden Bears&mdash;2-1 and 4-2&mdash;in Canada West Universities Athletic Association play in Edmonton.The victories broke a first-place tie between Saskatchewan and Alberta, giving the Huskies sole possession with a perfect 6-0 mark. The Golden Bears are now in second place at 4-2.British Columbia Thunderbirds registered their first wins of the year by topping winless Calgary Dinosaurs 5-4 and 4-1. &#9632;

Ooh, Aah, Warriors On Warpath

<h2>ECAC CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<h3>EAST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01498/4832264-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="539" height="196"></div><h3>WEST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02372/4832257-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="534" height="172"></div><h3>IVY DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03254/4832250-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="536" height="202"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Vermont 9, Norwich 5Vermont 4, Plattsburgh 3Team USA 6, Yale 2Lowell 3, Dalhousie 2<h3>GAMES THIS PAST WEEK</h3>Harvard 5, Dartmouth 3Cornell 6, Maine 3Bost. Coll 3, Northeastern 1Harvard 4, Vermont 3N. Hampshire 4, Princeton 3Clarkson 9, Dartmouth 2<h3>NON-CONFERENCE GAMES</h3>Team USA 5, RPI 1Team USA 7, Providence 1Bost. College 10, Holy Cross 2Northeastern 5, Bowdoin 1<h3>EMPIRE CUP TOURNAMENT</h3>First RoundRPI 5, Colgate 4St. Lawrence 5, Cornell 4Consolation FinalColgate 6, Cornell 5Championship FinalRPI 6, St. Lawrence 5(RPI wins tournament)<h2>WCHA CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Fri. Dec. 2)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04171/4832243-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="539" height="199"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Wisconsin 2, Colorado Coll. 1Wisconsin 3, Colorado Coll. 2Minn-Duluth 7, Denver 5Minn-Duluth 4, Denver 3Minnesota 4, North Dakota 3Minnesota 1, North Dakota 0Wisconsin 10, Illinois-Chicago 4North Dakota 5, Maine 1North Dakota 7, Maine 4Wisconsin 9, Illinois-Chicago 3Wisconsin 7, Illinois-Chicago 3Minnesota 9, U.S. Inti 3Minnesota 7, U.S. Inti 3Minn-Duluth 4, Mich Tech 3Mich Tech 4, Minn-Duluth 1W. Michigan 4, Denver 3W. Michian 3, Denver 2<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-05110/4832236-1-eng-US/f0030-052.jpg" title="f0030-05" width="545" height="116"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0684/4832229-1-eng-US/f0030-062.jpg" title="f0030-06" width="544" height="321"></div><h2>CCHA CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Tue. Nov. 29)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0766/4832222-1-eng-US/f0030-072.jpg" title="f0030-07" width="551" height="346"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Ohio State 8, Ill-Chicago 2Ohio State 9, Ill-Chicago 2Wisconsin 10, Ill-Chicago 4Mich Tech 7, Ferris State 5Mich Tech 7, Ferris State 1N. Michigan 5, L. Superior 1N. Michigan 4, L. Superior 3W. Michigan 8, Miami 3W. Michigan 6, Miami 2Mich State 6, Michigan 3Michigan 5, Mich State 3Bowling Green 6, N. Hampshire 5Bowling Green 4, N. Hampshire 3Bowling Green 5, Miami 3Bowling Green 6, Miami 3N. Michigan 5, Michigan 3Michigan 5, N. Michigan 1Mich State 8, Ferris State 2Ferris State 2, Mich State 1W. Michigan 4, Denver 3W. Michigan 3, Denver 2Min-Duluth 4, Mich Tech 3Mich Tech 4, Min-Duluth 1Wisconsin 9, Illinois-Chicago 3Wisconsin 7, Illinois-Chicago 3<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0857/4832215-1-eng-US/f0030-082.jpg" title="f0030-08" width="552" height="372"></div><h2>WEST PENN CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Wed. Nov. 16)<h3>GREATER PITT DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0949/4832208-1-eng-US/f0030-092.jpg" title="f0030-09" width="542" height="179"></div><h3>WEST PENN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1041/4832201-1-eng-US/f0030-102.jpg" title="f0030-10" width="542" height="178"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Duquesne 8, Gannon 2Carnegie 4, West Virginia 1Duquesne 14, Allegheny 1Duquesne 12, Slippery Rock 3<h2>ONTARIO CONFERENCE</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1135/4832194-1-eng-US/f0030-112.jpg" title="f0030-11" width="545" height="404"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Queen&rsquo;s 6, Western 5Laurier 6, Laurentian 6Brock 8, RMC 7York 5, McMaster 4Toronto 11, Waterloo 1Brock 4, McMaster 4Waterloo 4, Guelph 3Queen&rsquo;s 1, Western 1York 7, Brock 1Toronto 10, Windsor 6York 6, Western 1McMaster 4, Queen&rsquo;s 1Waterloo 9, Laurentian 2Ryerson 7, Windsor 4Queen&rsquo;s 6, Guelph 4Toronto 10, Ryerson 2Guelph 4, RMC 3Waterloo 3, Laurentian 1Toronto 5, York 2Laurier 5, Waterloo 2Toronto 9, Brock 2Queen&rsquo;s 5, York 2Laurier 5, McMaster 2Windsor 10, Ryerson 0Western 6, Waterloo 1Queen&rsquo;s 5, Guelph 4RMC 6, Laurentian 6York 7, Ryerson 2<h3>QUEBEC CONFERENCE</h3>Chicoutimi 9, McGill 3Chicoutimi 11, T-Rivieres 8<h3>ATLANTIC CONFERENCE</h3>Moncton 6, St. Mary&rsquo;s 4Moncton 9, Acadia 4N. Brunswick 5, Mt. Allison 3N. Brunswick 3, St. F. Xavier 2Mt. Allison 17, St. Thomas 3<h3>G-PAC CONFERENCE</h3>Brandon 5, Manitoba 1Brandon 6, Manitoba 3Winnipeg 13, Regina 3Regina 6, Winnipeg 3<h2>ONTARIO COLLEGES</h2>(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1232/4832187-1-eng-US/f0030-122.jpg" title="f0030-12" width="544" height="231"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Canadore 6, Humber 1Seneca 14, Conestoga 2Humber 5, Sherwood 4Canadore 6, Conestoga 4Seneca 9, Centennial 1St. Clair 4, Conestoga 3<h3>LEADING SCORERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1329/4832180-1-eng-US/f0030-132.jpg" title="f0030-13" width="542" height="434"></div> &#9632;

f0030-01

HOW THEY STAND

<h2>ECAC</h2><h3>NOVEMBER</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1426/4832337-1-eng-US/f0030-142.jpg" title="f0030-14" width="540" height="172"></div><h3>DECEMBER</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1526/4832330-1-eng-US/f0030-152.jpg" title="f0030-15" width="569" height="1015"></div><h2>CCHA</h2><h3>NOVEMBER</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1621/4832323-1-eng-US/f0030-162.jpg" title="f0030-16" width="497" height="37"></div><h3>DECEMBER</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1721/4832316-1-eng-US/f0030-172.jpg" title="f0030-17" width="566" height="926"></div><h3>JANUARY</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1819/4832309-1-eng-US/f0030-182.jpg" title="f0030-18" width="551" height="173"></div><h2>WCHA</h2><h3>DECEMBER</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1914/4832302-1-eng-US/f0030-192.jpg" title="f0030-19" width="542" height="877"></div><h3>JANUARY</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-2014/4832295-1-eng-US/f0030-202.jpg" title="f0030-20" width="544" height="298"></div> &#9632;

f0030-14

GAMES TO COME

<div class="byline">BY BEN KUZMA</div>Louisville HockeyH&B 100 YEARS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01473/4832413-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="283" height="204"></div>KAMLOOPS&mdash;Razor blades are becoming extinct in the Western Hockey League.It started with the National Hockey League&rsquo;s underage draft. Suddenly, junior teams were stocked with 17-year-old players looking to catch the scout&rsquo;s eye. Next came the 16-year-old prospect and now the 15-year-old performer.Kamloops Oilers are a perfect example of the trend.The Western Division club, which entered week nine of the regular season with a first-place 14-8 mark, has been injury riddled. And while rookies and veterans have blended together to keep the Oilers atop the division, it&rsquo;s been a pair of 15-year-old defensemen from St. Albert, Alta., who have shared the workload.That&rsquo;s right. Rob Brown and Greg Hawgood are defensemen.While you might expect a coach to insert a 15-year-old forward between two seasoned wingers, the thought of a youngster defending a seasoned scorer in a one-on-one situation is like opening the flood gates.Not only are Brown and Hawgood taking regular shifts, they don&rsquo;t look out of place.&ldquo;If you would have told me this year I&rsquo;d have two 15-year-old defensemen who are not only playing but contributing I wouldn&rsquo;t believe you,&rdquo; said Kamloops&rsquo; general manager-coach Bill LaForge. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re not here to sit on the bench. If that was the case I wouldn&rsquo;t have brought them up.&rdquo;&ldquo;We knew Brown was very talented and would blossom. And we knew Hawgood was a great skater. The thing is even if we had everybody healthy we would have to make room for them. They&rsquo;re better than 17-year-olds.The Oilers traded for veterans Ken Daneyko and Ron Viglasi in the offseason, but Daneyko caught on with New Jersey Devils (though he broke his leg on Nov. 2) and Viglasi went down in training camp with a knee injury and is gone for the season.That opened the door for Brown to eventually see regular action. Hawgood impressed so much in three games he, too, has been promoted for the remainder of the season.&ldquo;It hasn&rsquo;t sunk in that I&rsquo;m a 15-year-old playing in the WHL,&rdquo; said Brown, who had 10 points in his first 18 games. &ldquo;If I think about the pressure it&rsquo;s going to bother me. I just try to be happy-go-lucky.&rdquo;&ldquo;Coach LaForge knows the game I play and he will let me carry the puck. That helps. I know right now there&rsquo;s no way I&rsquo;m going to knock guys off the puck&mdash;I just try to use my speed and my stick.&rdquo;Brown and Hawgood are not big, even by 15-year-old standards. Brown is 5-foot-11, pounds. What they are is smart and speedy&mdash;two assets that far outweigh their lack of height and bulk.The age question can best be put into perspective by what&rsquo;s happening in the NHL. Brown and Hawgood aren&rsquo;t the only 15-year-olds in the WHL. Seattle center Craig Endean is another who is expected to jell into one of the league&rsquo;s better young players.&ldquo;I see an 18-year-old goalie (Tom Barrasso) playing and playing well for Buffalo,&rdquo; said LaForge. &ldquo;And I see Steve Yzerman who seems to be the best player on Detroit&rsquo;s roster. If he&rsquo;s the best, they have to play him.&rdquo;&ldquo;Each year there&rsquo;s less and less available. The big thing now in the WHL is a 50-man list. You can&rsquo;t afford to carry a 17-year-old if he can&rsquo;t play in his 17th year. And there&rsquo;s no sense trading for a 19-year-old either. I&rsquo;d rather go with the young guys because you know they&rsquo;re only going to get better.&rdquo;LaForge did that last season and got a tremendous season out of rearguard Doug Bodger. As a 16-year-old, Bodger finished with 92 points&mdash;just one shy of the WHL record for rookie defensemen.Kamloops&rsquo; director of player personnel and Edmonton Oilers&rsquo; scout, Bruce Haralson, said Brown and Hawgood may just be exceptions to the rule. Or are they?&ldquo;I think you&rsquo;re just seeing a couple of rare cases,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve been way beyond their years for a long time. Brown, Hawgood and Endean are the only 15-year-olds capable of playing major junior hockey this year.&rdquo;&ldquo;The NHL is taking players at a younger age and making room for them. Brown was the best I ever saw as a bantam and right now he might have the best hands of any player in the WHL. Aside from that, the rare talents are being moved into major junior quicker than normal because they want to go against the best competition they can.&rdquo;WHL WEEK&mdash;Portland sent 19-year-old defenseman Jim Playfair, a 1982 Edmonton Oilers first-round draft choice, to Kelowna for 17-year-old rearguard Craig Butz (1983 eighth-round Detroit pick) in the only trade of the week&hellip;Dan Hodgson continued to lead the scoring parade entering week nine with 70 points, including a league-high 42 assists. If Hodgson continues his recordsetting pace, he&rsquo;ll finish the season with 228 points and 135 assists and break the points and assists record owned by Brian Propp (228) and Bruce Eakin (125), respectively. Ray Ferraro of Brandon is second in scoring with 48 points, including a league-high 30 goals in 23 games. Should Ferraro keep his torrid pace, the WHL single-season record of 96 goals established by Bill Derlago could be in jeopardy. Russ Courtnall of Victoria was third in scoring with 38 points, while Barry Bracko of Calgary had 42&hellip;Ken Wregget of Lethbridge continued to lead all goalies with a 2.71 goals-against average&hellip;Regina led all WHL clubs in Canadian Major Junior Hockey League ratings entering week nine in fifth place. Lethbridge was ranked sixth, Portland eighth and Kamloops ninth.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02344/4832406-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="574" height="864"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kamloops&rsquo; GM-coach Bill LaForge isn&rsquo;t hesitant to ice a pair of 15-year-old defensemen.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0032-01

Kamloops Putting All Their Chips On Two 15-Year-old Defensemen

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03223/4832451-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="294" height="374"></div>&ldquo;Where readers get together to do business&rdquo;<h2>MERCHANDISE</h2>COLOR NHL PHOTOS, 8x10 past and present $3.50. For free list write: Dwayne Labakas, 33133 Crestwell, Sterling Heights, Ml, 48077.<h2>PUBLICATIONS</h2>COLLEGE HOCKEY REPORT: Comprehensive NCAA coverage. One year $22.95 (U.S.) Send check, name, address, to: P.O. Box 115-Z, LeRoy, NY, 14482.<h2>BOOKS</h2>GOALTENDING BY PROGRESSIONS as taught by Canadian Professional Hockey Schools. Send $5.00 to Box 487, Winnipeg, Man., R3C 2J3.<h2>MISCELLANEOUS</h2>HOCKEY CLUB TOULOUSE, France. Cherche FRANCO CANADIAN disponible immediatement pour cette saison, voyage paye, travail, logement, experience minimum Jr. B. Telephone (33) (61) 81 97 14.MISCELLANEOUSSENIOR HOCKEY TEAMS 23 and over wanted to play on Long Island, N.Y. Contact Mike Harris (212) 255-3377.FOR SALE: 10-day hockey tour. New York-Switzerland, $799 U.S. Bill Cameron, Sport International, 29683 Greenland, Livonia, Ml, 48154, (313) 522-2643.<h2>MISCELLANEOUS</h2>NOVELTIESHOCKEY CARD SETS and singles. Let&rsquo;s Collect, Box 1926, Prince George, B.C., V2L 5E3 for list.MAD BANNERS BUTTONS-Hockey, sports personalized buttons, free catalogue. 753B, N. Morgan, Orange, CA, 92667.<h2>MISCELLANEOUS</h2>SENIOR HOCKEY TEAMS 23 and over wanted to play on Long Island, N.Y. Contact Mike Harris (212) 255-3377.FOR SALE: 10-day hockey tour. New York-Switzerland, $799 U.S. Bill Cameron, Sport International, 29683 Greenland, Livonia, Ml, 48154, (313) 522-2643.<h2>MISCELLANEOUS</h2><h3>NOVELTIES</h3>HOCKEY CARD SETS and singles. Let&rsquo;s Collect, Box 1926, Prince George, B.C., V2L 5E3 for list.MAD BANNERS BUTTONS-Hockey, sports personalized buttons, free catalogue. 753B, N. Morgan, Orange, CA, 92667.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-04129/4832444-1-eng-US/f0032-042.jpg" title="f0032-04" width="1808" height="1104"></div> &#9632;

f0032-03

The Hockey News The Classified

<div class="byline">BY RICK MAYOH</div>QUEBEC&mdash;The buses of Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams may have to clear customs and immigration next season before rolling down Interstate 87 to Crete Civic Centre in Plattsburgh, NY.A group headed by Denis Methot and Yves Beaudry of Trois-Rivieres has submitted a proposal for an American QMJHL franchise in the city located about an hour&rsquo;s drive south of Montreal. The league has struck a committee to study the possibility.The team would be the first allAmerican squad in major junior history. Two teams in the Western Hockey League&mdash;defending Memorial Cup champion Portland Winter Hawks and Seattle Breakers&mdash;lus short-lived WHL franchises in Spokane, WA, and Billings, MO, are stocked primarily with Canadians.&ldquo;We&rsquo;d be very happy to have Plattsburgh in the league so we can expand to 12 teams,&rdquo; said QMJHL president Paul Dumont. &ldquo;It would be very difficult to expand within Quebec. The Quebec Ice Hockey Federation wants us to have fewer teams than we already have.&ldquo;This team would consist of Americans and it would not draft or trade in the league, so it would not affect our reserve of players.&rdquo;Although Chicoutimi Sagueneens would have to find ways to occupy themselves on a 330-mile trek, five teams are within 75 miles of the northern New York center.The distances are reasonable when compared with another suggested expansion site in Rimouski, Que., more than 400 miles east of Hull. Chicoutimi already travels 395 miles to Hull.Ottawa 67s journey almost 500 miles to meet the Windsor Spitfires and that can be just the first leg of an WHL swing for Winnipeg Warriors, who travel almost 1,400 miles to play Victoria Cougars and further to take on Portland.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve been thinking of something similar for two years but I don&rsquo;t think there are players of suitable caliber for another team in Quebec,&rdquo; said Methot, a sports sciences teacher at University of Quebec-T rois-Rivieres.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ll be looking for high school and junior players in the Boston area and throughout Massachusetts, as well as Rhode Island and the rest of New England. We&rsquo;ll go to Minnesota as a second priority.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had a few meetings with the mayor and city council and they&rsquo;ve been very receptive.&rdquo;Plattsburgh has a population of about 22,000 and the surrounding area, which includes an air force base, boosts the number to about 45,000. Methot also expects to draw fans from Burlington, VT, a city of about 40,000 on the other side of Lake Champlain.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re very excited about the prospect,&rdquo; said Plattsburgh mayor, Carlton E. Rennell. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re a hockey town. Plattsburgh State College (National Collegiate Athletic Association Division Two) makes the playoffs every year and draws 3,000 fans to every game. About half of the people are from the city.&ldquo;Our arena is a beautiful facility, about 10 years old, and can easily be expanded from 1,300 seats to more than 2,000.&rdquo;Methot wants the capacity increased to between 2,100-2,500 seats.Plattsburgh State reached the Division Two final two of the past three years and Jacques Lemaire helped the team qualify two seasons ago as an assistant coach.Athletic director Ernie Rangazas is among those most interested in the proposal.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough to assess whether the town can support both teams,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I understand they need an average of 1,800 a game to break even and that&rsquo;s going to take some promotion.&ldquo;But it&rsquo;s possible. We&rsquo;d like to sitdown with them and come up with some computable format. We&rsquo;re locked into a schedule way ahead, our 1987-88 schedule is already three-quarters complete.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a question mark. The colleges recruit pretty heavily and I don&rsquo;t know if he&rsquo;ll be able to find that kind of talent.&rdquo;The committee studying Methot&rsquo;s proposal will meet early next month and likely will report to a board of governors meeting tentatively scheduled for Hull on Dec. 10.The committee is chaired by Laval Voisin owner Claude Foumel and consists of Hull governor Francois Pichard, Quebec Remparts&rsquo; president Gilles Leger and Chicoutimi governor Georges Marcotte.&ldquo;We&rsquo;d like to file a protection list of about 45 players with the league by May and start training camp early in August,&rdquo; Methot said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re negotiating a longterm lease on the arena with the city and we&rsquo;d like to run a pro shop and summer school as well.&rdquo;&ldquo;They&rsquo;d better have some people ready to throw a couple of hundred thousand dollars down the drain,&rdquo; said Verdun Juniors&rsquo; general manager Eric Taylor. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to cost them about $400,000 to operate and Detroit is trying to get into the Ontario Hockey League as well. It&rsquo;s going to be tough.&rdquo; &#9632;

Quebec League Looking At American Entry

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01432/4832520-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="365" height="496"><figcaption class="caption-body">PETER ZEZEL Toronto</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02306/4832513-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="356" height="498"><figcaption class="caption-body">DAN HODGSON Prince Albert</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03216/4832506-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="359" height="494"><figcaption class="caption-body">LUC GUENETTE Quebec</figcaption></div><h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>Peter Zezel hopes to make it to the National Hockey League with the Philadelphia Flyers and right now he&rsquo;s doing everything in his power to get a ticket to Philly.The 18-year-old Toronto Marlboros&rsquo; center was the Flyers&rsquo; first pick in the 1983 National Hockey League draft and this past week he solidified his pro future by scoring four goals and adding four assists to earn Ontario Hockey League Player of the Week honors.Zezel, who impressed the Flyers by scoring 39 goals in 66 games with the Marlies last season, has been even more productive this season with 18 goals in his first 20 starts.<h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>The Toronto Maple Leafs are smiling these days with the exciting performance of Dan Hodgson of the Prince Albert Raiders.Hodgson, who was drafted by the Leafs last season after winning the Rookie of the Year Award in the Western Hockey League, has been burning up the WHL this season and was chosen as the league&rsquo;s Player of the Week after scoring 10 goals in four games and contributing nine assists.Hodgson, who is a 5-foot-10, 170-pound center, leads the WHL individual scoring race with 32 goals, 47 assists and 79 points in only 25 games.<h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>The Quebec Nordiques have prepared well for the day when veteran goaltender Dan Bouchard retires.The NHL team has drafted some promising netminders the past few years including Clint Malarchuk, Michel Dufour, Brian Ford and Luc Guenette, the Quebec Remparts&rsquo; goalie and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League&rsquo;s Player of the Week. Guenette, 19, contributed to back-to-back victories by the Remparts over Drummondville in the battle for first place.Guenette, who averages 35-40 shots a game, has a 17-11 won-lost record and a 4.89 GAA for a team which ranks only seventh in defense while holding the lead in the Dilio Division. &#9632;

f0033-01

Players of the Week

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0034-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01484/4832579-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg"></div><h2>GOALTENDING STATISTICS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01459/4832572-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="556" height="2083"></div><h2>GOALTENDING LEADERS</h2><h3>GOALS AGAINST AVERAGE</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02362/4832565-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="539" height="290"></div><h3>MOST WINS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03281/4832558-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="542" height="262"></div><h3>SAVE PERCENTAGE</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04232/4832551-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="545" height="178"></div> &#9632;

f0034-01

NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE SCORING

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0035-05" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05187/4832610-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg"></div><h2>BOSTON</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>31&mdash;KEANS, Doug1&mdash;PEETERS, Pete<h3>Defensemen</h3>7&mdash;BOURQUE, Ray23&mdash;HILLIER, Randy6&mdash;KLUZAK, Gord27&mdash;LAPOINTE, Guy26&mdash;MILBURY, Mike20&mdash;O&rsquo;CONNELL, Mike13&mdash;SCHOENFELD, Jim<h3>Centers</h3>28&mdash;FERGUS, Tom11&mdash;KASPER, Steve8&mdash;McNAB, Peter10&mdash;PEDERSON, Barry<h3>R. Wings</h3>32&mdash;CROWDER, Bruce18&mdash;CROWDER, Keith16&mdash;MIDDLETON, Rick24&mdash;O&rsquo;REILLY, Terry. Cpt.21&mdash;SILK, Dave<h3>L. Wings</h3>29&mdash;DUFOUR, Luc25&mdash;KRUSHELNYSKI, M.14&mdash;MacTAVISH, Craig17&mdash;MARKWART, Nevin<h2>BUFFALO</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;BARRASSO, Tom28&mdash;SAUVE, Bob<h3>Defensemen</h3>24&mdash;HAJT, Bill44&mdash;KORAB, Jerry27&mdash;PLAYFAIR, Larry5&mdash;RAMSEY, Mike3&mdash;VIRTA, Hannu19&mdash;WIEMER, Jim<h3>Centers</h3>25&mdash;ANDREYCHUK, Dave6&mdash;HOUSLEY, Phil11&mdash;PERREAULT, Gil-Cpt.20&mdash;PETERSON, Brent7&mdash;TUCKER, John<h3>R. Wings</h3>8&mdash;CLOUTIER, Real17&mdash;FOLIGNO, Mike12&mdash;McKENNA, Sean14&mdash;MOLLER, Mike16&mdash;SEILING, Ric<h3>L. Wings</h3>18&mdash;CYR, Paul9&mdash;HAMEL, Gilles10&mdash;RAMSAY, Craig22&mdash;RUFF, Lindy<h2>CALGARY</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>1&mdash;EDWARDS, Don31&mdash;LEMELIN, Rejean<h3>Defensemen</h3>4&mdash;BAXTER, Paul20&mdash;ELORANTA, Kari6&mdash;HANSON, Keith3&mdash;KONROYD, Steve34&mdash;MACOUN, Jamie23&mdash;REINHART, Paul5&mdash;VOLCAN, Mickey<h3>Centers</h3>7&mdash;EAVES, Mike24&mdash;PE PLINSKI, Jim8&mdash;RISEBROUGH, D.-Cpt.<h3>R. Wings</h3>19&mdash;HUNTER, Tim17&mdash;HISLOP, Jamie9&mdash;MCDONALD, L-Cpt.14&mdash;NILSSON, Kent11&mdash;PATTERSON, Colin15&mdash;TAMBELLINI, Steve25&mdash;MEREDITH, Greg<h3>L. Wings</h3>27&mdash;BEERS, Ed26&mdash;BOZEK, Steve18&mdash;HINDMARCH, Dave12&mdash;LOOB, Hakan<h2>CHICAGO</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;BANNERMAN, M.35&mdash;ESPOSITO, Tony<h3>Defensemen</h3>4&mdash;BROWN, Keith3&mdash;FEAMSTER, Dave2&mdash;FOX, Greg6&mdash;MURRAY, Bob5&mdash;O&rsquo;CALLAHAN, Jack23&mdash;WILSON, Behn24&mdash;WILSON, Doug<h3>Centers</h3>14&mdash;GARDNER, Bill12&mdash;LYSIAK, Tom19&mdash;MURRAY, Troy26&mdash;PATERSON, Rick18&mdash;SAVARD, Denis<h3>R. Wings</h3>32&mdash;FRAWLEY, Dan15&mdash;HIGGINS, Tim28&mdash;LARMER, Steve16&mdash;RESTON, Rich7&mdash;YAREMCHUK, Ken<h3>L. Wings</h3>8&mdash;FRASER, Curt29&mdash;LUDZIK, Steve17&mdash;MARSH, Peter22&mdash;ROBIDOUX, Flo20&mdash;SECORD, Al27&mdash;SUTTER, D.-Cpt.<h2>DETROIT</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>41&mdash;MIO, Eddie30&mdash;STEFAN, Greg<h3>Defensemen</h3>3&mdash;BARRETT, John4&mdash;CAMPBELL, Colin21&mdash;GAGE, Jody29&mdash;LADOUCEUR, Randy28&mdash;LARSON, Reed26&mdash;MELROSE, Barry22&mdash;PARK, Brad5&mdash;SMITH, Greg<h3>Centers</h3>20&mdash;FOSTER, Dwight16&mdash;KISIO, Kelly34&mdash;ST. LAURENT, Andre19&mdash;YZERMAN, Steve<h3>R. Wings</h3>10&mdash;DUGUAY, Ron18&mdash;GARE, Danny-Cpt.17&mdash;JOHNSTONE, Ed14&mdash;LAMBERT, Lane&mdash;SMITH, Brad<h3>L. Wings</h3>12&mdash;BOLDIREV, Ivan23&mdash;MANNO, Bob8&mdash;NOLAN, Ted25&mdash;OGRODNICK, John15&mdash;WOODS, Paul<h2>EDMONTON</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>31&mdash;FUHR, Grant35&mdash;MOOG, Andy<h3>Defensemen</h3>28&mdash;BLUM, John7&mdash;COFFEY, Paul2&mdash;FOGOLIN, Lee21&mdash;GREGG, Randy22&mdash;HUDDY, Charlie29&mdash;JACKSON, Don4&mdash;LOWE, Kevin5&mdash;PLAYFAIR, Jim<h3>Centers</h3>15&mdash;CONACHER, Pat99&mdash;GRETZKY, W-Cpt.13&mdash;LINSEMAN, Ken<h3>R. Wings</h3>9&mdash;ANDERSON, Glenn16&mdash;HUGHES, Pat17&mdash;KURRI, Jari20&mdash;LUMLEY, Dave24&mdash;ROULSTON, Tom<h3>L. Wings</h3>18&mdash;BERRY, Ken12&mdash;HUNTER, Dave19&mdash;LINDSTROM, Willy11&mdash;MESSIER, Mark10&mdash;POUZAR, Jaroslav27&mdash;SEMENKO, Dave<h2>HARTFORD</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;MILLEN, Greg1&mdash;STANIOWSKI, Ed<h3>Defensemen</h3>23&mdash;HOSPODAR, Ed24&mdash;KOTSOPOULOS, C.5&mdash;LACROIX, Pierre8&mdash;SILTANEN, Risto4&mdash;DUNN, Richie27&mdash;HOWE, Marty3&mdash;QUENNEVILLE, Joel<h3>Centers</h3>10&mdash;FRANCIS, Ron12&mdash;JOHNSON, M.-Cpt.14&mdash;MALONE, Greg28&mdash;YATES, Ross34&mdash;ZUKE, Mike<h3>R. Wings</h3>25&mdash;CRAWFORD, Bob18&mdash;CROMBEEN, Mike17&mdash;NEUFELD, Ray21&mdash;STOUGHTON, Blaine22&mdash;SULLIMAN, Doug<h3>L. Wings</h3>15&mdash;DUPONT, Normand32&mdash;ROBERTSON, T.7&mdash;STOYANOVICH, S.16&mdash;TURGEON, SylvainINJURED: Steve Kasper, Terry O&rsquo;Reilly, Jim Schoenfeld (Bos), Steve Patrick (Buf), Greg Meredith (Cal), Curt Fraser. Al Secord (Chi), Ted Nolan (Det), Pierre Lacroix (Har).<h2>LOS ANGELES</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;BLAKE, Mike29&mdash;LASKOSKI, Gary<h3>Defensemen</h3>4&mdash;ANDERSON, Russ3&mdash;CHORNEY, Marc5&mdash;ENGBLOM, Brian20&mdash;HARDY, Mark2&mdash;McEWEN, Mike24&mdash;WELLS, Jay<h3>Centers</h3>16&mdash;DIONNE, Marcel26&mdash;JARVIS, Wes9&mdash;NICHOLLS, Bernie8&mdash;RUSKOWSKI, T.-Cpt.23&mdash;SMITH, Doug<h3>R. Wings</h3>12&mdash;CHRISTOFF, Steve19&mdash;FOX, Jim21&mdash;HAKANSSON, Anders25&mdash;HOUSTON, Ken17&mdash;KELLY, John-Paul18&mdash;TAYLOR, Dave<h3>L. Wings</h3>14&mdash;LAVALLEE, Kevin27&mdash;MacLELLAN, Brian11&mdash;SIMMER, Charlie<h2>MINNESOTA</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>33&mdash;BEAUPRE, Don27&mdash;MELOCHE, Gilles<h3>Defencemen</h3>2&mdash;GILES, Curt4&mdash;HARTSBURG, C.-Cpt.3&mdash;LINDGREN, Lars32&mdash;MANDICH, Dan5&mdash;MAXWELL, Brad29&mdash;RICHTER, Dave10&mdash;ROBERTS, Gord<h3>Centers</h3>12&mdash;ACTON, Keith7&mdash;BROTEN, Neal21&mdash;FERGUSON, George9&mdash;MARUK, Dennis<h3>R. Wings</h3>23&mdash;BELLOWS, Brian20&mdash;CICCARELLI, Dino25&mdash;MacADAM, Al11&mdash;McCarthy, Tom31&mdash;NAPIER, MARK<h3>L. Wings</h3>17&mdash;ASHTON, Brent14&mdash;DOUGLAS, Jordy98&mdash;LAWTON, Brian44&mdash;PAYNE, Steve24&mdash;PLETT, Willi<h2>MONTREAL</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>33&mdash;SEVIGNY, Richard1&mdash;WAMSLEY, Rick<h3>Defensemen</h3>2&mdash;CARLSON, Kent27&mdash;DELORME, Gilbert5&mdash;GREEN, Rick28&mdash;HAMEL, Jean17&mdash;LUDWIG, Craig19&mdash;ROBINSON, Larry18&mdash;ROOT, Bill<h3>Centers</h3>21&mdash;CARBONNEAU, Guy29&mdash;CHABOT, John6&mdash;MONDOU, Pierre15&mdash;SMITH, Bobby25&mdash;WICKENHEISER, Doug<h3>R. Wings</h3>20&mdash;HUNTER, Mark10&mdash;LAFLEUR, Guy26&mdash;NASLUND, Mats30&mdash;NILAN, Chris14&mdash;TREMBLAY, Mario<h3>L. Wings</h3>23&mdash;GAINEY, Bob-Cpt.8&mdash;PASLAWSKI, Greg22&mdash;SHUTT, Steve11&mdash;WALTER, Ryan<h2>NEW JERSEY</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;LOW, Ron.1&mdash;RESCH, ChicoDefense2&mdash;ClR ELLA, Joe3&mdash;DANEYKO, Ken21&mdash;HOFFMEYER, Bob26&mdash;KITCHEN, Mike25&mdash;LEWIS, Dave4&mdash;LORIMER, Bob22&mdash;PALMER, Brad5&mdash;RUSSELL, Phil<h3>Centers</h3>23&mdash;ANTONOVICH, Mike24&mdash;BROTEN, Aaron10&mdash;CAMERON, Dave16&mdash;MEAGHER, Rick12&mdash;VERBEEK, Pat<h3>R. Wings</h3>29&mdash;LUDVIG, Jan11&mdash;MacMILLAN, Bob15&mdash;MacLEAN, John20&mdash;MARINI, Hector21&mdash;MULVEY, Grant19&mdash;VAUTOUR, Yvon<h3>L. Wings</h3>18&mdash;BRIDGMAN, Mel17&mdash;GAGNE, Paul7&mdash;LARMER, Jeff9&mdash;LEVER, Don-Cpt.34&mdash;McADAM, Gary<h2>NY ISLANDERS</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>30&mdash;HRUDEY, Kelly1&mdash;MELANSON, Rolland31&mdash;SMITH, Billy.<h3>Defensemen</h3>3&mdash;JONSSON, Tomas24&mdash;LANE, Gord26&mdash;LANGEVIN, Dave6&mdash;MORROW, Ken7&mdash;PERSSON, Stefan5&mdash;POTVIN, D.-Cpt.<h3>Centers</h3>25&mdash;CARROLL, Bill91&mdash;GORING, Butch11&mdash;MERRICK, Wayne21&mdash;SUTTER, Brent&mdash;TROTTIER, Bryan<h3>R. Wings</h3>22&mdash;BOSSY, Mike9&mdash;GILLIES, Clark23&mdash;NYSTROM, Bob12&mdash;SUTTER, Duane<h3>L. Wings</h3>14&mdash;BOURNE, Bob17&mdash;GILBERT, Greg20&mdash;HALLIN, Mats28&mdash;KALLUR, Anders27&mdash;TONELLI, John<h2>NY RANGERS</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>1&mdash;HANLON, Glen31&mdash;WEEKS, Steve<h3>Defensemen</h3>5&mdash;BECK, Barry-Cpt.4&mdash;GRESCHNER, Ron27&mdash;HUBER, Willie3&mdash;KLEINENDORST, S.2&mdash;LAIDLAW, Tom26&mdash;MALONEY, Dave29&mdash;RUOTSALAINEN, R.<h3>Centers</h3>14&mdash;ALLISON, Mike8&mdash;FTOREK, Robbie10&mdash;LAROUCHE, Pierre40&mdash;PAVELICH, Mark17&mdash;ROGERS, Mike<h3>R. Wings</h3>24&mdash;ANDERSSON, K.E.18&mdash;BLAISDELL, Mike15&mdash;HEDBERG, Anders9&mdash;McClanahan, Rob25&mdash;SUNDSTROM, Pet.<h3>L. Wings</h3>20&mdash;ERIXON, Jan22&mdash;FOTIU, Nick12&mdash;MALONEY, Don19&mdash;OSBORNE, Mark<h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>35&mdash;FROESE, Bob31&mdash;LINDBERGH, Pelle<h3>Defensemen</h3>5&mdash;BATHE, Frank29&mdash;COCHRANE, Glen3&mdash;CROSSMAN, Doug9&mdash;DVORAK, Miro6&mdash;ERIKSSON, Tom24&mdash;HOLT, Randy2&mdash;HOWE, Mark10&mdash;McCrimmon, Brad8&mdash;MARSH, Brad<h3>Centers</h3>19&mdash;ALLISON, Ray16&mdash;CLARKE, Bobby&mdash;HACHBORN, Len14&mdash;SUTTER, Ronnie<h3>R. Wings</h3>18&mdash;CARSON. Lindsay17&mdash;HOLMGREN, Paul12&mdash;KERR, Tim21&mdash;MacLEISH, Rick15&mdash;SUTTER, Rich<h3>L. Wings</h3>7&mdash;BARBER, Bill-Cpt.20&mdash;POULIN, Dave26&mdash;PROPP, Brian23&mdash;SINISALO, Ilka27&mdash;SITTLER, DarrylINJURED: Rick Green. Mark Hunter, Pierro Mondou (MU), Ken Daneyko (NJ). Mike Allison (NYH), Frank Bathe. Lindsay Carson, Michel Larocque (Pha).<h2>PITTSBURGH</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>29&mdash;DION, Michel1&mdash;HERRON, Denis<h3>Defensemen</h3>7&mdash;BUSKAS, Rod25&mdash;CARLYLE, R.-Cpt.33&mdash;GLADNEY, Bob6&mdash;HOTHAM, Greg3&mdash;MAXWELL, Bryan4&mdash;McSORLEY, Marty34&mdash;TEBBUTT, Greg<h3>Centers</h3>22&mdash;BULLARD, Mike9&mdash;FLOCKHART, Ron20&mdash;GARDNER, Paul19&mdash;HANNAN, Dave11&mdash;TOOKEY, Tim<h3>R. Wings</h3>13&mdash;HAMILTON, Jim18&mdash;McClelland, Kevin17&mdash;KEHOE, Rick14&mdash;SHEDDEN, Doug16&mdash;TAYLOR, Mark<h3>L. Wings</h3>15&mdash;BOUTETTE, Pat23&mdash;BRICKEY, Barry24&mdash;BULLEY, Ted10&mdash;ERREY, Bob27&mdash;SCHUTT, Rod29&mdash;YOUNG. Wrren<h2>QUEBEC</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>35&mdash;BOUCHARD, Dan34&mdash;FORD, Brian<h3>Defensemen</h3>28&mdash;DONNELLY, Gord22&mdash;MAROIS, M.-Cpt.21&mdash;MOLLER, Randy29&mdash;PICHETTE, Dave7&mdash;PRICE, Pat5&mdash;ROCHEFORT, N.4&mdash;VAN BOXMEER, J.2&mdash;WEIR, Wally25&mdash;WESLEY, Blake<h3>Centers</h3>32&mdash;HUNTER, Dale9&mdash;McKEGNEY, Tony15&mdash;SAUVE, J.F.11&mdash;SAVARD, Andre26&mdash;STASTNY, P.<h3>R. Wings</h3>17&mdash;BERGLUND, Bo27&mdash;PAIEMENT, Wilf12&mdash;SLEIGHER, Louis18&mdash;STASTNY, Marian<h3>L. Wings</h3>19&mdash;COTE, Alain16&mdash;GOULET, Michel20&mdash;STASTNY, Anton<h2>ST. LOUIS</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>31&mdash;HEINZ, Rick1&mdash;LIUT, Mike<h3>Defensemen</h3>25&mdash;BOTHWELL, Tim16&mdash;BROWNSCHILDE, J.2&mdash;DORE, Andre26&mdash;JOHNSON, Terry5&mdash;RAMAGE, Rob21&mdash;SCHOFIELD, Dwight34&mdash;WILSON, Rik<h3>Centers</h3>17&mdash;CHOUINARD, Guy24&mdash;FEDERKO, Bernie18&mdash;GILMOUR, Doug23&mdash;LEMIEUX, Alain6&mdash;PATEY, Larry9&mdash;TURNBULL, Perry<h3>R. Wings</h3>10&mdash;BABYCH, Wayne7&mdash;MULLEN, Joe15&mdash;REEDS, Mark<h3>L. Wings</h3>12&mdash;ANDERSON, Perry20&mdash;CARLSON, Jack61&mdash;HICKEY, Pat22&mdash;PETTERSSON, Jorgen11&mdash;SUTTER, Brian-Cpt.<h2>TORONTO</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>29&mdash;PALMATEER, Mike1&mdash;ST. CROIX, Rick&mdash;WREGGET, Ken<h3>Defensemen</h3>3&mdash;BENNING, Jim28&mdash;FARRISH, Dave11&mdash;GINGRAS, Gaston33&mdash;HUTCHISON, Dave20&mdash;KORN, Jim21&mdash;SALMING, Borje4&mdash;LEEMAN, Gary17&mdash;STEWART, Bill<h3>Centers</h3>24&mdash;DAOUST, Dan19&mdash;DERLAGO, Bill18&mdash;IHNACAK, Peter12&mdash;McCOURT, Dale7&mdash;TERRION, Greg<h3>R. Wings</h3>14&mdash;FRYCER, Miroslav9&mdash;GAVIN, Stewart15&mdash;HARRIS, Billy32&mdash;NIGRO, Frank22&mdash;VAIVE, Rick-Cpt.<h3>L. Wings</h3>10&mdash;ANDERSON, John23&mdash;GRAHAM, Pat25&mdash;MARTIN, Terry8 PODDUBNY, Walt<h2>VANCOUVER</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>35&mdash;BRODEUR, Richard31&mdash;GARRETT, John<h3>Defensemen</h3>15&mdash;BELLAND, Neil29&mdash;BUBLA, Jiri5&mdash;BUTCHER, Garth2&mdash;HALWARD, Doug4&mdash;LANZ, Rick25&mdash;McCarthy, Kevin27&mdash;SNEPSTS, Harold<h3>Centers</h3>23&mdash;GRADIN, Thomas16&mdash;KIRTON, Mark20&mdash;MARTIN, Grant17&mdash;SUNDSTROM, Pat.<h3>R. Wings</h3>24&mdash;CURRIE, Tony19&mdash;DELORME, Ron26&mdash;MOLIN, Lars8&mdash;NILL, Jim12&mdash;SMYL, Stan-Cpt.9&mdash;TANTI, Tony<h3>L. Wings</h3>10&mdash;LEMAY, Moe7&mdash;LUPUL, Gary18&mdash;ROTA, Darcy22&mdash;WILLIAMS, Dave<h2>WASHINGTON</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>35&mdash;jfeNSEN, Al1&mdash;RIGGIN, Pat<h3>Defensemen</h3>2&mdash;ANDERSSON, Peter17&mdash;BLOMQVIST, Timo5&mdash;LANGWAY, R.-Cpt.8&mdash;MURPHY, Larry26&mdash;SHAND, Dave3&mdash;STEVENS, Scott20&mdash;THEBERGE, Greg6&mdash;VEITCH, Darren<h3>Centers</h3>10&mdash;CARPENTER, Bobby27&mdash;CHRISTIAN, Dave12&mdash;CURRIE, Glen15&mdash;HAWORTH, Alan25&mdash;JARVIS, Doug28&mdash;VALENTINE, Chris<h3>R. Wings</h3>11&mdash;GARTNER, Mike23&mdash;GOULD, Bobby&mdash;McADAM, Gary<h3>L. Wings</h3>22&mdash;ADAMS, Greg14&mdash;DUCHESNE, Gaetan16&mdash;GUSTAFSSON, B.18&mdash;LAUGHLIN, Craig<h2>WINNIPEG</h2><h3>Goaltenders</h3>1&mdash;HAYWARD, Brian30&mdash;SOETAERT, Doug&mdash;VEISOR, Mike<h3>Defensemen</h3>44&mdash;BABYCH, Dave4&mdash;CAMPBELL, Wade14&mdash;GIBSON, John6&mdash;KYTE, Jim2&mdash;MANTHA, Moe3&mdash;PICARD, Robert7&mdash;WATTERS, Tim<h3>Centers</h3>16&mdash;BOSCHMAN, Laurie10&mdash;HAWERCHUK, Dale25&mdash;STEEN, Thomas17&mdash;YOUNG, Tim24&mdash;WILSON, Ron<h3>R. Wings</h3>23&mdash;DEBLOIS, L.-Cpt.22&mdash;LUNDHOLM, Bengt15&mdash;MacLEAN, Paul8&mdash;MANN, Jimmy20&mdash;McBAIN, Andrew<h3>L. Wings</h3>11&mdash;ARNIEL, Scott12&mdash;LUKOWICH, Morris19&mdash;MULLEN, Brian9&mdash;SMAIL, DougINJURED: Rod Schutt (Pit), Larry Patey, Mark Reeds (StL), Frank Nigro, Gary Nylund. Walt Poddubny, Rick St. Croix (Tor), Gary Lupul, Lars Molln (Van), Peter Andersson. Darren Veitch (Was). &#9632;

f0035-05

NHL TEAM ROSTERS

<h2>NOVEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06168/4832676-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="518" height="346"></div><h2>DECEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07157/4832669-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="469" height="62"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-08137/4832662-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="528" height="498"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-09130/4832655-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="518" height="493"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-10115/4832648-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="521" height="498"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-11107/4832641-1-eng-US/f0035-112.jpg" title="f0035-11" width="525" height="493"></div> &#9632;

f0035-06

NHL GAMES TO COME

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1482/4833046-1-eng-US/f0036-142.jpg" title="f0036-14" width="526" height="378"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1582/4833039-1-eng-US/f0036-152.jpg" title="f0036-15" width="514" height="362"></div> &#9632;

f0036-14

Top Rookies In The NHL

(Standings on Mon. Nov. 28)<h2>CAMPBELL CONFERENCE</h2><h3>NORRIS DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1679/4833098-1-eng-US/f0036-162.jpg" title="f0036-16" width="544" height="172"></div><h3>SMYTHE DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1773/4833091-1-eng-US/f0036-172.jpg" title="f0036-17" width="544" height="178"></div><h2>WALES CONFERENCE</h2><h3>ADAMS DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1869/4833084-1-eng-US/f0036-182.jpg" title="f0036-18" width="548" height="176"></div><h3>PATRICK DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1967/4833077-1-eng-US/f0036-192.jpg" title="f0036-19" width="548" height="206"></div><h3>GAMES COMPLETED</h3>Mon. Nov. 21Los Angeles 4 at Calgary 7Winnipeg 6 at Edmonton 7Tue. Nov. 22Boston 2 at Montreal 4Quebec 2 at NY Islanders 3Toronto 4 at St. Louis 7Wed. Nov. 23St. Louis 0 at Detroit 3Montreal 4 at Hartford 3Edmonton 7 at Los Angeles 3Toronto 6 at Minnesota 4Buffalo 6 at NY Rangers 4NY Islanders 4 at Philadelphia 2New Jersey 1 at Pittsburgh 4Chicago 2 at Washington 2 (OT)Vancouver 4 at Winnipeg 1Thu. Nov. 24Quebec 6 at Boston 3Winnipeg 4 at Calgary 4 (OT)Fri. Nov. 25Chicago 2 at Buffalo 5Pittsburgh 2 at Detroit 5Edmonton 2 at Minnesota 2 (OT)NY Rangers 1 at Washaington 3Sat. Nov. 26New Jersey 2 at Boston 6NY Rangers 3 at Hartford 4 (OT)Calgary 4 at Los Angeles 1Washington 5 at Montreal 2Chicago 3 at NY Islanders 9Detroit 7 at Pittsburgh 4Buffalo 2 at Quebec 3Edmonton 6 at St. Louis 8Minnesota 7 at Toronto 6 (OT)Philadelphia 5 at Vancouver 4Sun. Nov. 27No games scheduled. &#9632;

f0036-16

THE NHL SCOREBOARD

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2063/4833143-1-eng-US/f0036-202.jpg" title="f0036-20" width="550" height="670"></div><h2>POINTS RACE</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2160/4833136-1-eng-US/f0036-212.jpg" title="f0036-21" width="544" height="640"></div><h2>HOW THEY DID IN LAST 10 GAMES</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-2259/4833129-1-eng-US/f0036-222.jpg" title="f0036-22" width="1156" height="182"></div> &#9632;

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HOW NHL TEAMS RATE

BOSTON&mdash;K Crowder 7, McNab 6, Mac-Tavish 8, Pederson 9, 10, Silk 2, O&rsquo;Connell 7, Middleton 12, Markwart 7, Fergus 10, Bpur-que 11. Winning goals-Markwart.BUFFALO&mdash;Tucker 1,2, 3,4, Andreychuk 5, Hamel 8, Foligno 10, McKenna 3, Housley 10, 11, 12, Ramsey 3, Perreault 15. Winning goals-McKenna, Housley.CALGARY&mdash;Nilsson 7, 8, 9, Eloranta 2, Reinhart 4, 5, Beers 12, 13, 14, Macoun 1, McDonald 12, 13, 14, Tambellini 2, Hindmarch 5. Winning goals-Nilsson, Reinhart.CHICAGO&mdash;T. Murray 6, Paterson 2, Marsh 3, Gardner 8, D. Wilson 6, Savard 18,19. Winning goals-none.DETROIT&mdash;Manno 4, 5,6, Ogrodnick 12,13, 14, Boldirev 8, 9, Yzerman 4, Lambert 1, 2, Duguay 7, Kisio 7, B. Smith 1, Larson 5. Winning goals-Manno, Lambert, Larson.EDMONTON&mdash;Coffey 10, 11, Kurri 24, 25, Anderson 14, Gretzky 28, 29, Hunter 8, 9, Lumley 5, Pouzar 4, Messier 8,9, Jackson 4,5. Winning goals-Hunter.HARTFORD&mdash;Stoughton 11, 12, Dupont 5, Turgeon 9, 10, Johnson 7, Crawford 8. Winning goals-Stoughton.LOS ANGELES&mdash;Anderson 2, MacLellan 11, Wells 1, Simmer 11, Chorney 2. Winning goals-none.MINNESOTA&mdash;Broten 8, 9, 1Q, 11, Bellows 11,12, McCarthy 10,11, Payne 8, MacAdam 5, Maruk 6,7, Maxwell 8. Winning goals-Broten.MONTREAL&mdash;Gainey 5, Robinson 3,4, Car-bonneau 6,7, Tremblay 6, Smith 14,15, Wick-enheiser 5, Walter 6. Winning goals-Carbonneau, Smith.NEW JERSEY&mdash;Hoffmeyer 1, Ludvig 8, MacMillan 2. Winning goals-none.NY ISLANDERS&mdash;Jonsson 3, Nystrom 6, 7, Tonelli 5, 6, 7, 8, Bossy 17,18,19, 20, Trottier 12, 13, Gillies 6, B. Sutter 13, Gilbert 5. Winning goals-Tonelli, Bossy, Trottier.NY RANGERS&mdash;Beck 3, Don Maloney 12, Ftorek 1, Ruotsalainen 5, Pavelich 9, Rogers 11, Larocque 16, Hedberg 11. Winning goals-none.PHILADELPHIA&mdash;Sittler 6, 7, Holmgren 3, Howe 4, MacLeish 5, Propp 10, Kerr 14. Winning goals-Sittler.PITTSBURGH&mdash;Flockhart 6, 7, Kehoe 10, 11, Bullard 13, 14, 15, Taylor 9, 10, Bulley 3. Winning goals-Kehoe.QUEBEC&mdash;Hunter 12, P. Stastny 10, 11,12, M. Stastny 10,11, Goulet 11,12,13, Paiement 16, Sleigher 8. Winning goals-M. Stastny, Goulet.ST. LOUIS&mdash;Lemieux 2, Mullen 6, 7, Chouinard 3, Anderson 2, Ramage 6, 7, Hickey 3,4, Sutter 8, Dore 3, Turnbull 10,11, Bothwell 1, Gilmour 5. Winning goals-Ramage, Gilmour.TORONTO&mdash;Derlago 9, 10, 11, Anderson 10,11,12,13, McCourt 8,9,10,11, Harris 3,4, 5, Daoust 6, Gingras 4. Winning goals-McCourt.VANCOUVER&mdash;Lupul 8, Halward 4, Lanz 6, Rota 16, Smyl 8, 9, Snepsts 1, Sundstrom 11. Winning goals-Halward.WASHINGTON&mdash;Haworth 7, Carpenter 3, 4, 5, 6, Currie 2, 3, Gustafsson 10, Gould 5,6. Winning goals-Carpenter 2.WINNIPEG&mdash;Lukowich 6, Hawerchuk 6, 7, Steen 8, Smail 7, Mantha 6, 7, Lundholm 1, DeBlois 9, Arniel 7, 8. Winning goals-none.Overtime winners&mdash;Stoughton (Har), Broten (Min), 1 each.Hat tricks&mdash;Bossy (NYI), Broten (Min), 1 each.Penalty shot goal&mdash;erreault (Buf). &#9632;

NHL SCORERS THIS WEEK

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02328/4833001-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="554" height="870"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01438/4833008-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="200" height="190"></div><h2>Mon. Nov. 21 LOS ANGELES 4, CALGARY 7</h2><h2>WINNIPEG 6, EDMONTON 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03256/4832994-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="560" height="862"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04181/4832987-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="588" height="242"></div><h2>Tues. Nov. 22 BOSTON 2, MONTREAL 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05142/4832980-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="582" height="758"></div><h2>QUEBEC 2, ISLANDERS 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-06120/4832973-1-eng-US/f0036-062.jpg" title="f0036-06" width="582" height="98"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-07112/4832966-1-eng-US/f0036-072.jpg" title="f0036-07" width="592" height="650"></div><h2>TORONTO 4, ST. LOUIS 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-08107/4832959-1-eng-US/f0036-082.jpg" title="f0036-08" width="586" height="1024"></div><h2>Wed. Nov. 23 ST. LOUIS 0, DETROIT 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-09101/4832952-1-eng-US/f0036-092.jpg" title="f0036-09" width="582" height="636"></div><h2>MONTREAL 4, HARTFORD 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1098/4832945-1-eng-US/f0036-102.jpg" title="f0036-10" width="584" height="124"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1195/4832938-1-eng-US/f0036-112.jpg" title="f0036-11" width="586" height="635"></div><h2>EDMONTON 7, LOS ANGELES 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1291/4832931-1-eng-US/f0036-122.jpg" title="f0036-12" width="586" height="926"></div><h2>TORONTO 6, MINNESOTA 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-1388/4832924-1-eng-US/f0036-132.jpg" title="f0036-13" width="585" height="547"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01387/4832917-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="537" height="351"></div><h2>BUFFALO 6, RANGERS 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02274/4832910-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="536" height="524"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03205/4832903-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="603" height="103"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04167/4832896-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="602" height="100"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-05142/4832889-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="602" height="97"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-06119/4832882-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg" title="f0037-06" width="563" height="53"></div><h2>ISLANDERS 4, PHILADELPHIA 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1634/4832875-1-eng-US/f0038-162.jpg" title="f0038-16" width="584" height="702"></div><h2>CHICAGO 2, WASHINGTON 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1731/4832868-1-eng-US/f0038-172.jpg" title="f0038-17" width="583" height="752"></div><h2>NEW JERSEY 1, PITTSBURGH 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1828/4832861-1-eng-US/f0038-182.jpg" title="f0038-18" width="591" height="129"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-1927/4832854-1-eng-US/f0038-192.jpg" title="f0038-19" width="612" height="698"></div><h2>VANCOUVER 4, WINNIPEG 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2024/4832847-1-eng-US/f0038-202.jpg" title="f0038-20" width="614" height="787"></div><h2>Thu. Nov. 24 QUEBEC 6, BOSTON 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2122/4832840-1-eng-US/f0038-212.jpg" title="f0038-21" width="609" height="117"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2220/4832833-1-eng-US/f0038-222.jpg" title="f0038-22" width="599" height="793"></div><h2>WINNIPEG 4, CALGARY 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2317/4832826-1-eng-US/f0038-232.jpg" title="f0038-23" width="621" height="901"></div><h2>Fri. Nov. 25 CHICAGO 2, BUFFALO 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2413/4832819-1-eng-US/f0038-242.jpg" title="f0038-24" width="614" height="832"></div><h2>PITTSBURGH 2, DETROIT 5</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2512/4832812-1-eng-US/f0038-252.jpg" title="f0038-25" width="612" height="762"></div><h2>EDMONTON 2, MINNESOTA 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2610/4832805-1-eng-US/f0038-262.jpg" title="f0038-26" width="572" height="782"></div><h2>RANGERS 1, WASHINGTON 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-2710/4832798-1-eng-US/f0038-272.jpg" title="f0038-27" width="570" height="650"></div><h2>Sat. Nov. 26 NEW JERSEY 2, BOSTON 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-287/4832791-1-eng-US/f0038-282.jpg" title="f0038-28" width="568" height="100"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01423/4832784-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg" title="f0039-01" width="560" height="923"></div><h2>RANGERS 3, HARTFORD 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02291/4832777-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg" title="f0039-02" width="593" height="910"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03203/4832770-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="584" height="172"></div><h2>CALGARY 4, LOS ANGELES 1</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-04169/4832763-1-eng-US/f0039-042.jpg" title="f0039-04" width="588" height="637"></div><h2>WASHINGTON 5, MONTREAL 2</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-05134/4832756-1-eng-US/f0039-052.jpg" title="f0039-05" width="592" height="774"></div><h2>CHICAGO 3, ISLANDERS 9</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-06112/4832749-1-eng-US/f0039-062.jpg" title="f0039-06" width="588" height="634"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0796/4832742-1-eng-US/f0039-072.jpg" title="f0039-07" width="584" height="326"></div><h2>DETROIT 7, PITTSBURGH 4</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0886/4832735-1-eng-US/f0039-082.jpg" title="f0039-08" width="586" height="1156"></div><h2>BUFFALO 2, QUEBEC 3</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-0974/4832728-1-eng-US/f0039-092.jpg" title="f0039-09" width="576" height="634"></div><h2>EDMONTON 6, ST. LOUIS 8</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1067/4832721-1-eng-US/f0039-102.jpg" title="f0039-10" width="584" height="92"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1159/4832714-1-eng-US/f0039-112.jpg" title="f0039-11" width="546" height="1070"></div><h2>MINNESOTA 7, TORONTO 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-1251/4832707-1-eng-US/f0039-122.jpg" title="f0039-12" width="556" height="1267"></div> &#9632;

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NATIONAL LEAGUE SUMMARIES

A regular feature of the Chrysler Scoreboard each week will be the Rookie Spotlight This week&rsquo;s profile is of Pittsburgh Penguing Bob Errey.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-07101/4833198-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="556" height="1025"></div>The key to success in today&rsquo;s NHL is speed and Pittsburgh Penguin Bob Errey has plenty to burn.The 18-year-old native of Peterborough, Ont., who was the Penguins first-round draft pickinthe 1983 National Hockey League entry draft, is one of the quicker players in the league and he puts his speed to good use, creating scoring opportunities.In his first 21 games, he had three goals and three assists and the Penguins have big plans for the rookie left winger. &#9632;

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Chrysler Rookie Award

<h2>NATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>BOSTON&mdash;Steve Kasper, C, and Guy Lapointe, D, returned from injury list.CALGARY&mdash;Jamie Macoun, D, back from injury list. Richard Kromm, LW, recalled from Portland of WHL but later returned without playing an NHL game.CHICAGO&mdash;Dan Frawley, RW, recalled from Springfield of AHL Bob Janecyk, G, sent back to Springfield along with Jerome Dupont, D.DETROIT&mdash;Jody Gage, D, recalled from Adirondack of AHL. Greg Smith, D, back from injury list.EDMONTON&mdash;Ken Linseman, C, and Dave Semenko, LW, both returned from injury list. Jim Playfair, D, recalled from Kamloops of WHL. John Blum, D, recalled from Moncton of AHL. Reg Kerr, C, sent back to Moncton. Todd Strueby, C, recalled from Moncton but returned after one game.HARTFORD&mdash;Ross Yates, C, recalled from Binghamton of AHL. Mark Paterson, D, sent back to Ottawa of OHL.MONTREAL&mdash;ierre Mondou, C, sidelined for two weeks with rib injury. Dave Orleski, RW, recalled from Nova Scotia of AHL and traded to Minnesota for future considerations. North Stars promptly assigned him to Salt Lake of CHL.NEW JERSEY&mdash;Rob Palmer, D, and Yvon Vautour, RW, recalled from Maine of AHL. Billy MacMillan fired as general managercoach. Max McNab takes over as GM and Tom McVie elevated from Maine to coach. John Paddock, RW, placed on retirement list to become new coach of Maine.PHILADELPHIA&mdash;Len Hachborn, C, recallgd from Springfield of AHL.PITTSBURGH&mdash;Steve Gatzos, RW, returned to Baltimore of AHL. Tim Tookey, C, and Warren Young, LW, recalled from Balti-more of AHL.QUEBEC&mdash;J.F. Sauve, C, recalled from Fredericton of AHL. Paul Gillis, C, sent to Fredericton. Michel Goulet, LW, and Nor-mand Rochefort, D, both back from injury list.ST. LOUIS&mdash;Dan Wood, RW, recalled from Montana of CHL and assigned to Canadian Olympic Team.TORONTO&mdash;Jim Korn, D, Terry Martin, LW, and Peter Ihnacak, C, all returned from injury list. Rick St. Croix, G, sidelined for three weeks with knee injury. Bob Parent, G, recalled from St. Catharines of AHL as replacement.VANCOUVER&mdash;Kevin McCarthy, D, returned from injury list. Gary Lupul, LW, sidelined with injury. Grant Martin, C, recalled from Fredericton of AHL as replacement. Tony Curtale, D, returned by Fredericton for reassignment.WASHINGTON&mdash;Greg Theberge, D, recalled from Hershey of AHL.WINNIPEG&mdash;Mike Veisor, G, John Gibson, D, and Ron Wilson, C, all recalled from Sherbrooke of AHL. Don Spring, D, returned to Sherbrooke. Rick Bowness, player-asst. coach of Sherbrooke, recalled by Jets to become assistant to new head coach Barry Long.<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>BALTIMORE&mdash;Dan McCarthy, C, signed to 25-game tryout as free agent from Austrian Hockey League.BINGHAMTON&mdash;Steve Baker, G, released as free agent.FREDERICTON&mdash;Claude Julien, D. recalled from Milwaukee of IHL.MONCTON&mdash;Chris Smith, G, and Paul Miller, C, both dropped from active roster. Serge Boisvert, RW, returned to active roster.NEW HAVEN&mdash;Howie Scruton, D, sidelined indefinitely with injury. Mike Fidler, LW, released from 25-game tryout as free agent.NOVA SCOTIA&mdash;Dave Orleski, LW, assigned to Flint of IHL but refused to report. Orleski returned to Montreal of NHL. Whitney Richardson, LW, signed to pro tryout but later sent to Flint of IHL.ST. CATHARINES&mdash;Ron Choules, RW, returned to Quebec of Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.SHERBROOKE&mdash;Warren Skorodenski, G, suspended indefinitely by AHL for striking a referee. Kelly Elcombe, D, sidelined with broken wrist.SPRINGFIELD&mdash;Jim Ralph, G, quit AHL team and was suspended by parent Chicago club.<h2>CENTRAL LEAGUE</h2>SALT LAKE&mdash;Chris Trinceri, G, recalled from Toledo of IHL. Jeff Brownschidle, D, sidelined with broken wrist. Tim Coulis, RW, and Mike Sands, G, both out with groin injuries. Bob Bergloff, D, sidelined with knee injury. Jean-Francois Boutin, RW, out with shoulder separation. &#9632;

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December 9, 1983

History May Repeat For Generals With The Help Of Veteran Players

MINOR SCOREBOARD

Did You Know…

THE YEAR IN REVIEW