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.

October 16, 1987

The Hockey News October 16, 1987

<div class="byline">BY BOB FACHET</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011128/5327793-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="182" height="137"></div>LANDOVER, Md.&mdash;Coach Bryan Murray called his Washington Capitals together following a training-camp workout at Lake Placid, N. Y., and told them how good they were.&ldquo;I said that from a team point of view this is the best team we&rsquo;ve had around here,&rdquo; Murray reported. &ldquo;But I didn&rsquo;t have to say it. They can sense it. We made some major changes after last season and I think they have really helped the attitude of the players.&rdquo;Team captain Rod Langway added, &ldquo;This is the best team we&rsquo;ve had. I believe we have a chance to get 100 points and as good a chance to be first as ever. Two years ago, we had 107 points and went to the last day (battling Philadelphia for first in the Patrick Division), but I think we&rsquo;re better now.&rdquo;The Capitals&rsquo; optimism has been fueled by the excellent training camps enjoyed by all the off-season additions&mdash;centers Bengt Gustafsson and Dale Hunter, winger Peter Sundstrom and goaltender Clint Malarchuk.Strengths: Probably the best defense in the league, with a solid foursome of Larry Murphy, Scott Stevens, Rod Langway and Kevin Hatcher, plus more depth than ever before.Reliable goaltending from Pete Peelers and Clint Malarchuk.Three well-balanced forward lines: Mike Ridley-Gustafsson-Dave Christian, Michal Pivonka-Hunter-Mike Gartner, Sundstrom-Bob Gould-Kelly Miller. A carefully-arranged travel schedule that does not call for a single one-game trip farther than Buffalo.Weaknesses: Lack of scoring punch on the left side, which may be corrected by the shift from center of Ridley and Pivonka. Mentally, there are some carryover problems of a poten-tially-disruptive nature, like a history of inability to beat Philadelphia (4-152 over the last three seasons), a history of ineptitude on the power play and a history of playoff failure against the Islanders (elimination in four of the last five years).An early schedule that puts the team on the road for seven of the first 11 games when it is trying hard to overcome the mental bloc formed by repeated poor starts.Newcomers: Gustafsson, one of hockey&rsquo;s outstanding two-way players, returns after a year&rsquo;s absence. Hunter and Malarchuk were obtained from Quebec for a first-round draft pick and forwards Gaetan Duchesne and Alan Haworth.Sundstrom, who played in Sweden last year, was acquired from the Rangers for a fifth-round draft choice. The only rookie with a chance to stick is Paul Cavallini, who would be a seventh defenseman.Camp Developments: Ridley, a center during his two previous NHL seasons, was moved to left wing in an apparently successful experiment.Winger Craig Laughlin saw considerable service as a fourth-line center, adding to the team&rsquo;s versatility.The Capitals played only seven exhibition games, fewest of any NHL team, and instead concentrated on preparing a veteran club for a fast start.Additionally, a four-day mini-camp at Lake Placid, designed to build togetherness while concentrating on basics, was pronounced a success by management and players. Hatcher, after playing well in the Canada Cup, missed 10 days during camp because of a bruised left knee. &#9632;

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Experienced Capitals Expect Best Year Yet

<div class="byline">BY GREGG DRINNAN</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02362/5328835-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="593" height="767"><figcaption class="caption-body">Scott McCrady was lost to Medicine Hat after hurting his knee at Minnesota&rsquo;s camp.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01516/5328842-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="183" height="135"></div>Bill Shinske would like to believe he is in the process of leading the Brandon Wheat Kings out of the Western League wilderness.But every step seems to lead him further into the bush.Shinske took over the Wheat Kings last year, fresh from a 24-46-2 season in 1985-86. They got worse before they could get better. Brandon tumbled to a 19-49-4 mark in 1986-87.Oh, to turn the calendar back about 10 years.In 1977-78, Shinske was general manager of the New Westminster Bruins, who had won their fourth consecutive league title and were on the way to their fourth straight Memorial Cup tournament.Shinske&rsquo;s return to the WHL has not been an easy one.Maybe the old Bruin should have stayed in hibernation. He has found a number of changes in the WHL. Not all of them pleasant. Among them is the management situation.&ldquo;There were more coaches and managers who owned clubs so they worked at it and made a living off it,&rdquo; he recalled. &ldquo;Right now, coaches are all looking after their own jobs, managers are all looking after their own jobs, everybody&rsquo;s looking after themselves instead of worrying about the league.&rdquo;Shinske said that may be changing, however, since WHL president Ed Chynoweth separated governors&rsquo; meetings from general managers&rsquo; caucuses. The idea is to let governors handle the business end, while GMs concentrate on the game itself.&ldquo;The biggest thing is to get the governors back working at the league instead of going to a meeting and worrying about catching an airplane to get home,&rdquo; Shinske said. &ldquo;Get them more involved in what&rsquo;s going on in the league, where the money&rsquo;s being spent.&rdquo;Other differences, besides those in the board room, stand out to Shinske.&ldquo;We (New Westminster) used to go to Westlock (Alta.) to train,&rdquo; he explained. &ldquo;There might be one parent there. Now you go and every scrimmage has got 100 people and most of them are parents. I noticed it in midget hockey last year. They&rsquo;re always there; the parents travel everywhere. Before, when I was involved, they never used to. And there&rsquo;s so much parental involvement now that it has an effect on the kids.&rdquo;Shinske isn&rsquo;t sure the effect is positive.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I want to say,&rdquo; he laughed, &ldquo;but it does have an effect on their thinking.&rdquo;On the ice. Shinske said, the first thing he noticed on his return last year was the way the slash-and-hack style of play has permeated the game.&ldquo;We were firm believers in not using the stick,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the way Ernie (former New Westminster coach McLean) coached&mdash;if you&rsquo;re going to get a guy, drop your stick and have a fight with him and don&rsquo;t use the stick. There&rsquo;s more stickwork now, more interference. It&rsquo;s just unreal.&ldquo;The year I really noticed it started to come in was the 1978 Memorial Cup. We played Peterborough in Sudbury and they just took every one of our players, interfered with them, and a guy goes in and scores. We caused quite a commotion with the referees and were told that&rsquo;s the way they play (in the Ontario League). They were setting all kinds of picks.&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t that bad out in Western Canada but everybody learned the next year and I think that&rsquo;s when it started.&rdquo;Shinske recalled watching a hockey school this summer &ldquo;and one drill is to grab the guy&rsquo;s stick and hold it off because the referees don&rsquo;t call it. That&rsquo;s what was said. And these are 10-year-old kids!&rdquo;But the wheel may be starting to turn, because the WHL has instructed its officials to crack down on the flagrant holding and interference that has become so prevalent over the past few winters.&ldquo;I think that&rsquo;s great,&rdquo; said Shinske.Now, if he can only get those Wheat Kings turned around.WESTERN ROUNDUP&mdash;Brandon dealt defenseman Steve Kloepzig, 19, to Kamloops for forward Brian Shantz, a 17-year-old with the Alberta Junior League&rsquo;s Fort McMurray Oil Barons. Kloepzig had refused to report to Brandon, but later surfaced with the Humboldt Broncos of the Saskatchewan League. &ldquo;He told us he didn&rsquo;t want to play on the Prairies and he ends up in Humboldt,&rdquo; said Brandon GM Bill Shinske&hellip;The Wheat Kings also acquired center Neil Pogany, 20, from Moose Jaw to complete an earlier transaction&hellip;Medicine Hat lost defenseman Scott McCrady for four to six weeks when he suffered ligament damage to his left knee while at the Minnesota North Stars&rsquo; camp&hellip;Saskatoon traded two 18-year-olds&mdash;veteran defenseman Marty Prazma and rookie center Calvin Wiltshire&mdash;to Lethbridge for the rights to center Dwight Mullins, 20. Mullins is one of 10 players to have played more than 300 regular-season games in the WHL. If he reports to the Blades he will begin his sixth season. His 18-year-old brother, Darryl, is a rookie goaltender with the Blades, who are hoping that will help bring Dwight into the organization. &#9632;

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The Juniors

Wheat King GM Longs For The Old Days

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01602/5328404-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="536" height="1004"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-05137/5328411-1-eng-US/f0030-052.jpg" title="f0030-05" width="183" height="135"></div><h2>OCTOBER</h2><h2>NOVEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02440/5328397-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="530" height="46"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03301/5328390-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="534" height="1020"></div><h2>DECEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04204/5328383-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="530" height="68"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-06106/5328376-1-eng-US/f0030-062.jpg" title="f0030-06" width="510" height="605"></div><h2>JANUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0786/5328369-1-eng-US/f0030-072.jpg" title="f0030-07" width="509" height="326"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0877/5328362-1-eng-US/f0030-082.jpg" title="f0030-08" width="514" height="848"></div><h2>FEBRUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-0969/5328355-1-eng-US/f0030-092.jpg" title="f0030-09" width="508" height="222"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1060/5328348-1-eng-US/f0030-102.jpg" title="f0030-10" width="512" height="804"></div>CCHA PLAYOFFS<h2>MARCH</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1154/5328341-1-eng-US/f0030-112.jpg" title="f0030-11" width="562" height="156"></div><h2>APRIL</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1250/5328334-1-eng-US/f0030-122.jpg" title="f0030-12" width="560" height="48"></div> &#9632;

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Departments

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011359/5327524-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="376" height="424"><figcaption class="caption-body">Frank Orr</figcaption></div>ANYONE WHO HAS a head-coaching job in the National Hockey League as a career goal should study the statistics of that position as the league starts its new season.Of the 21 positions, four are filled by men making their head-coaching debuts at the NHL level. Three are starting their first full seasons at the controls of teams they took over during the 1986-87 season. Three more fit into the recycled category, meaning they have NHL experience but are starting fresh with new teams. And yet another five are starting their second seasons.That means that only six coaches remain in the same job with the same team as they held at the conclusion of the &lsquo;85-86 season, a rather staggering turnover.Which one of these factors best explains these numbers?1. A total of 15 coaches were incapable of doing a good job.2. That same number of NHL teams has general managers who aren&rsquo;t doing a very good job but manage to save their own backsides when it&rsquo;s time for the axe to fall.3. Fifteen teams have impatient owners.4. Many teams have playing personnel of a calibre that indicates Doug Henning should be hired as coach.Of course, these explanations don&rsquo;t apply in all situations. As an example. Badger Bob Johnson could have held the Calgary Flames&rsquo; job as long as he wanted but he took the big chore of running the amateur hockey program in the U.S.Three of the &lsquo;new&rsquo; coaches are back after previous head-coaching experience&mdash;Herb Brooks (Minnesota), Michel Bergeron (N.Y. Rangers) and Bob McCammon (Vanouver).The other four are top young coaching prospects who have paid their dues and served an apprenticeship to prepare for the job&mdash;Terry Crisp (Calgary), Bob Murdoch (Chicago), Pierre Creamer (Pittsburgh) and Andre Savard (Quebec).Crisp is the most prominent of them and has, perhaps, the most difficult job.Badger Bob was a strong personality who placed his own stamp on the team, Murdoch was an assistant on his staff and Crisp was hired into the Flame organization as a strong development team coach, a long-range candidate for the NHL spot.When Johnson departed, Crisp, not Murdoch, was the only candidate considered seriously. Murdoch had been a good friend of Blackhawk GM Bob Pulford during their days with the Los Angeles Kings and, several years ago in a casual chat, Pully said that he figured &lsquo;Mud&rsquo; would be an outstanding coach someday. Pulford obviously hasn&rsquo;t changed his viewpoint.Crisp was the type of player who often makes a good coach. He had only a small amount of natural ability but by studying the game and how he could fit into it, Crisp had an NHL career that was longer than the big-league pay-days of many players with more skill.He also had the benefit of playing for teams handled by men who won 11 consecutive Stanley Cup crowns from &rsquo;72 to &rsquo;83&mdash;Scotty Bowman, Fred Shero and Al Arbour.When Crisp decided that coaching was a career he wanted to try, he didn&rsquo;t chase an NHL assistant&rsquo;s job. He spent six seasons as head coach of Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, where he was very successful in two areas: The team did well on the ice and Crisp learned well how the young player of today thinks and behaves.&ldquo;Young hockey players had changed a great deal since I was a junior in the early &rsquo;60s, just as young people in general have changed a large amount,&rdquo; Crisp said.&ldquo;The junior coaching time was invaluable for me in learning that the players today don&rsquo;t want to be told what to do with no explanations on why it&rsquo;s a good idea that they do it.&rdquo;It will be up to Crisp to come up with those good ideas. Many others before him in the NHL apparently haven&rsquo;t. &#9632;

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Columnists

Is New Coach’s Fate To Be Burned To A Crisp?

Islander Superstar&rsquo;s Career In JeopardyNHL Previews Team Profiles Strengths Weaknesses Newcomers &#9632;

IN THIS ISSUE

WILL BOSSY BE BACK?

In next week&rsquo;s Oct. 23 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS, we will unveil a whole new look.Our NHL, minor-league, college and junior coverage will be revamped. We&rsquo;ll provide you with more of the behind-the-scenes stories while still keeping you abreast of day-to-day happenings.Next week, we&rsquo;ll bring you all the details of the NHL&rsquo;s first weekend of play, plus the first set of league statistics. In addition look for statistics on the American League&rsquo;s first week and our preview of the International League.Look also for the return of Stops &lsquo;N&rsquo; Starts, a weekly look at the offbeat and unusual in hockey, and a new-and-improved Hockey Notebook, featuring more of those newsy tidbits that we all love to read about.Don&rsquo;t miss all that plus much more in the Oct. 23 issue. &#9632;

NEXT WEEK

<div class="byline">BY STAN FISCHLER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0003-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-011325/5327100-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Bossy, during happier times, is surrounded by teammates Tomas Jonsson (left) and Ken Morrow after scoring a goal. Bossy has 573 goals through 10 years. He&rsquo;s determined to add to that total.</figcaption></div>UNIONDALE, N.Y.&mdash;Mike Bossy&rsquo;s hockey career has been put on hold.The back injury that contributed to the New York Islander superstar missing the 50-goal mark for the first time in his 10-year career last season, has now sidelined him indefinitely.How long that will be remains the most significant question surrounding the eight-time allstar right winger.Bossy emphasized he has not called it quits at a Nassau Coliseum press conference Oct. 5, but Islander general manager Bill Torrey said the Islanders don&rsquo;t expect him back this year.&ldquo;There are some abnormalities at the base of his spine,&rdquo; said Torrey. &ldquo;Therefore, our plans for this season do not include him. The most important thing to this organization is to get Michael&rsquo;s health to that of a normal person.&rdquo;Bossy, who turns 31 on Jan. 22, indicated he has not given up hope of once again playing for the Islanders.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m going about it day by day,&rdquo; said Bossy, who has 573 career goals. &ldquo;As I am now, I will not be able to play.&ldquo;I am still optimistic that it will clear up, or at least subside. I am relieved that it is nothing incurable, or that will require surgery. I would like to stress that Mike Bossy is not retiring.&rdquo;The path to a comeback is regular therapy, said Bossy.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m approaching the therapy with hope that the problem will clear up and I will be able to play again with the New York Islanders,&rdquo; continued Bossy. &ldquo;If I have success, fine, if not, c&rsquo;est la vie. It will be an ongoing battle until I decide I&rsquo;m not going to play anymore.&rdquo;Bossy, rumored to have strained relations with the Islanders, was among the 17 skaters protected by New York in the waiver draft.&ldquo;I do not think there was ever a moment that the New York Islanders did not consider protecting him,&rdquo; said Torrey. &ldquo;I was not going to allow for the opportunity for him to go anywhere else.&rdquo;The three-time Lady Byng Trophy winner said the back injury has not been a trouble-spot between he and the Islanders.&ldquo;I have been well understood by Bill (Torrey) as far as my back is concerned. My back is not operable. I haven&rsquo;t even thought of a timetable for a comeback. Without hockey, the therapy will have a chance to work.&rdquo;While Torrey ruled out Bossy for this season, it&rsquo;s likely the Islanders are being so conservative in their hopes to ensure there is no pressure on the future Hall of Famer to return before he is completely ready.The last time Bossy appeared on the ice was in the Islanders&rsquo; final game of the 1986-87 season, a 5-1 seventh-game playoff setback to the Philadelphia Flyers.It was only his sixth game of the playoffs. He played in the first two games against Washington in the Patrick Division semi-finals and then missed eight with back problems after absorbing a hit by Lou Franceschetti. He played in the last four games against Philadelphia.He also missed 17 games during the regular season, too great a handicap to overcome in his bid to score 50 for the 10th straight season. Bossy, who played hurt more often than he cares to remember, finished the season with 38 goals.&ldquo;I guess I shouldn&rsquo;t have played in some of the games I played in last year,&rdquo; Bossy allows, &ldquo;but I was shooting for another 50-goal season and that was important to me,&rdquo;Bossy&rsquo;s troubles can be traced to September, 1986, when he injured himself during training camp. The aches came and went, disappearing as unexpectedly as they came, causing Bossy endless consternation and uncertainty over when to play and when not to play.&ldquo;I was hoping,&rdquo; said Bossy, &ldquo;that once the doctors figured out what was wrong, they could come up with a cure.&rdquo;The problem defied medical diagnosis. When training camp opened last month, Bossy&rsquo;s back still ached and he was sent home. A final examination&mdash;a mylogram performed at New York University Hospital late last month&mdash;preceded meetings with Torrey.As training camp wore on, speculation increased that Bossy&rsquo;s career was over.He was rarely seen around the Coliseum, although he did watch a New York RangerIslander exhibition game from Torrey&rsquo;s private box.&ldquo;When they came out on the ice,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I felt so far away from it&hellip;When people ask me how I feel, I tell them &lsquo;not too bad&rsquo; but, really, it&rsquo;s no different, no better, than it&rsquo;s been for the last six months.&rdquo;His teammates have adjusted their thinking to life without Bossy, at least for the fall.&ldquo;If he rejoins us,&rdquo; said Denis Potvin, Bossy&rsquo;s career-long teammate, &ldquo;it&rsquo;ll be later on. It really is a shame.&rdquo;The opinion is shared by friends, foes and fans.He has established himself as one of the finest players in history. Chosen 15th overall in the 1977 amateur draft, Bossy won the Calder Trophy as top rookie with a record-setting 53-goal freshman season.He suffered no sophomore jinx, scoring a career-high 69 goals to go along with 57 assists. He joined with center Bryan Trottierand Clark Gillies to form the most-feared line in the league, a line that largely propelled the Islanders to four straight Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983.Bossy, who terrorizes goalies with his trademark lightning-fast release, scoring the Cup-winning goal in both 1982 and 1983.Only twice, last year and 1979-80 when he &ldquo;slumped&rdquo; to 51 goals and 41 assists, has he not been named to the first or second all-star team.He also played a pivotal role in what is remembered as one of the greatest games ever played&mdash;the Canada-Soviet Union semi-final meeting at the 1984 Canada Cup.Bossy ended that overtime thriller with a deflection of defenseman Paul Coffey&rsquo;s shot. &#9632;

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Bossy Hasn’t Given Up

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0004-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011348/5327131-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pierre Turgeon, Buffalo&rsquo;s big hope for the future, and Joe Nieuwendyk (inset) are two of the top rookies entering the 1987-88 season.</figcaption></div>The top seven choices in the 1987 entry draft were making spirited bids to crack NHL lineups in their first years of eligibility.Pierre Turgeon, Brendan Shanahan, Glen Wesley, Wayne McBean, Chris Joseph, Dave Archibald and Luke Richardson all stood good chances of making the quantum leap from junior to professional hockey as 18-year-olds.An eighth player, third-round defenseman Mathieu Schneider, was still with the Montreal Canadiens but all indications were that he would be sent back to Cornwall of the Ontario League.Last year, Los Angeles&rsquo; Jimmy Carson, Toronto&rsquo;s Vincent Damphousse and St. Louis&rsquo; Jocelyn Lemieux were the only first-year draftees to stay in the NHL the entire season.If the past has taught us anything, it&rsquo;s unlikely all of this year&rsquo;s group will remain with their NHL teams throughout the season.&ldquo;A month from now, I guarantee you the list of players making the jump from junior will be knocked down to a small handful, as usual,&rdquo; says Detroit Red Wing general manager Jim Devellano.&ldquo;The calibre of the league has gone up, and very few (juniors) are ready to play. History has told us that, and I don&rsquo;t see a trend the other way.&rdquo;This year&rsquo;s numbers hardly signal a trend toward fuzzy-cheeked teenagers taking over NHL teams&mdash;the sometime circumstance in the late 1970s, when the NHL was at war for players with the WHA.The fallout from that conflict continued into the early 1980s&mdash;12 of 21 first-round picks from the 1983 entry draft either started the 1983-84 season with an NHL club or played at least 30 games&mdash;but has since abated.Since the 1979-80 season, when Edmonton, Hartford, Quebec and Winnipeg were added, the NHL has been a stable 21-team circuit. That fact makes it more difficult for juniors to make the immediate jump into the NHL.&ldquo;It depends on who the player is,&rdquo; says Toronto Maple Leaf GM Gerry McNamara. &ldquo;The NHL is getting stronger and parity is here, which makes it more difficult for kids to make it. But there&rsquo;s no pattern to it. You have to take each case on its own. It&rsquo;s the merit of the player that counts. Luke Richardson made our club on merit. We didn&rsquo;t care if he was 18, 28 or 38.&rdquo;Toronto&rsquo;s last seven first-round picks have made the NHL in their first years of eligibility. Some have blamed the Leafs&rsquo; continued mediocrity on precisely that&mdash;the practice of rushing young prospects into the league before they&rsquo;re ready.This year&rsquo;s top underage player is pre-season Calder Trophy favorite Turgeon, the 18-year-old center Buffalo selected first overall from Granby of the Quebec League.Turgeon was superb during the pre-season, counting two goals and four assists in seven games. &ldquo;He has a way of creating scoring chances,&rdquo; says Buffalo GM Gerry Meehan. One of the players expected to convert some of those opportunities is 21-year-old rookie Ray Sheppard, a right winger whose scoring touch netted him 81 goals in the OHL two seasons ago.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve had the Sheppard-Turgeon image dancing in my mind since the draft.&rdquo; says Meehan, who watched Sheppard score five goals and one assist in five exhibition games.Questions remain, of course, about Buffalo&rsquo;s heir-apparent to Gilbert Perreault, but at least Turgeon&rsquo;s off to a better start than last year&rsquo;s No. 1 choice, problem child Joe Murphy. Murphy, who played only five games with Detroit before being demoted to Adirondack last season, had a good training camp this year&mdash;counting two goals and three assists in seven games&mdash;and started the 1987-88 season in Detroit.Here&rsquo;s a look at some of the other top rookies expected to join the NHL this season. They come from the ranks of junior, college, minor-pro and European leagues. Pre-season scoring totals (games-goals-assists-points) and goals-against averages are included in parentheses.<h2>JUNIOR</h2>Center Shanahan, taken second overall from London, didn&rsquo;t have much chance to prove himself at training camp. Shanahan sprained his left ankle Sept. 22, missed four pre-season games, and was held pointless in four others.Three of the first four defensemen selected in the draft&mdash;Boston&rsquo;s Wesley (7-2-5-7) from Portland, Los Angeles&rsquo; McBean (8-0-2-2) from Medicine Hat, and Richardson (7-0-1-1) from Peterborough&mdash;made their respective clubs.In Pittsburgh, Joseph (5-0-0-0) from Seattle, was playing well, and the highly-anticipated Zarley Zalapski (3-0-0-0) dropped by from the Canadian Olympic team for an eight-game regular-season cameo with the Penguins.Minnesota center Dave Archibald, a Portland standout, was going to start the season with the North Stars despite suffering a shoulder injury during camp.Derek King (7-2-4-6) of Oshawa and right winger Brad Dalgamo (8-1-1-2) of Hamilton, the New York Islanders&rsquo; 1985 first-rounders, were expected to make the big club.In Detroit, the Wings were trying to find a place for center Adam Graves, the 22nd overall pick from Windsor in 1986. He had three goals and three assists in seven pre-season games.Kerry Huffman (9-1-4-5) of Guelph was working toward earning a berth on the Philadelphia blue line.Two notables in Chicago were left wingers Everett Sanipass from Granby and Daniel Vin-celette (5-2-0-2) of Drummondville.The trading of Clint Malarchuk to Washington opened a spot in Quebec City for 20-year-old Mario Brunetta (2.48 goals-against average) of Laval to share a backup role to Mario Gosselin with Richard Sevigny.Further down the St. Lawrence River, an injury to defenseman Larry Robinson created a vacancy that Schneider (8-1-0-1) was doing his best to fill.<h2>MINOR PRO</h2>It used to be that Chicago couldn&rsquo;t find a good goaltender. Now, they think they may have had a decent one all along in Saginaw&rsquo;s 23-year-old Darren Pang, who earned the third-string job behind Murray Bannerman and Bob Mason with a 1.60 pre-season goals-against average.Other minor-league goalies expected to start the year in the NHL are Moncton&rsquo;s Doug Dads-well (3.57 GAA) in Calgary, New Haven&rsquo;s Glen Healy (3.90) in Los Angeles, Maine&rsquo;s Kirk McLean (2.55) in Vancouver, Nova Scotia&rsquo;s Darryl Reaugh (2.58) in Edmonton and Muskegon&rsquo;s Frank Pietrangelo (1.48 GAA) in Pittsburgh.Though Hartford claims to have a set lineup, it may be hard to keep right winger Mike Millar on the sidelines. He&rsquo;s scored 95 goals the last two seasons. Fifty of them came with the Canadian national team two years ago, and 45 at Binghamton of the American League last year. He had two goals and seven assists in 10 preseason games.<h2>COLLEGE</h2>The biggest name coming out of U.S. college hockey is St. Louis center Tony Hrkac, who did it all with the NCAA-champion North Dakota Fighting Sioux last year. In the process, he reserved a spot for himself in St. Louis.Hrkac, who got his first taste of the NHL in three playoff games with the Blues last year, scored two goals and two assists in seven preseason games.Hrkac&rsquo; Fighting Sioux teammate, defenseman Ian Kidd (6-0-3-3), signed a big free-agent deal with the Vancouver Canucks, who need all the defensive help they can get.Joe Nieuwendyk was definitely the man at Cornell, where he was an all-star before scoring five goals in just nine games with the Calgary Flames last season. He added two more goals in six playoff games, two goals and four assists in seven pre-season games, and was expected to join Brett Hull and second-year pro Gary Roberts on a Kid Line. Hull, the first rookie ever to score 50 goals in the AHL, and Roberts both played for Moncton last year.<h2>EUROPE</h2>One of the most bellicose Swedes ever&mdash;left winger Magnus Roupe&mdash;joins the Philadelphia Flyers. Roupe had a goal and an assist for Team Sweden in the Canada Cup.Defenseman Tommy Albelin (8-2-1-3), also of Team Sweden, will bolster the Quebec Nordique defensive corps.The Rangers are hoping Ulf Dahlen (5-1-12) blossoms, but his play the past two seasons has not been nearly as impressive as his second year in the Swedish Elite League when he scored 33 goals in 1984-85 for Ostersund.Czechoslovakian defector Peter Prajsler (50-2-2) earned kudos for his strong play at training camp. &#9632;

f0004-01

Freshman Class Looks Promising

<div class="byline">BY DICK CHUBEY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-011229/5327162-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="178" height="132"></div>EDMONTON&mdash;This promises to be the most difficult season yet for the Edmonton Oilers.There are cracks in the foundation that could spring a leak in Edmonton&rsquo;s hopes for a fourth Stanley Cup in five years.&ldquo;It sure seems like it&rsquo;s crumbling,&rdquo; whispered one veteran.The National Hockey League is at its most competitive stage in years, with only Edmonton and Philadelphia finishing with 100 points last season. Should the Oilers slip a notch or two, there will be precious few tears shed.Strengths: Ever hear of Wayne Gretzky? Well, following the Canada Cup, there&rsquo;s a strong feeling that the Oilers not only have the world&rsquo;s finest player in their midst, but also the best stopper in goaltender Grant Fuhr.Mark Messier has also picked up some long overdue outside recognition, courtesy of his pugnacious international play in Rendez-vous &lsquo;87 and the Canada Cup.Toss in capable Craig MacTavish and no other NHL team has three centers in the mould of the Oilers. But, with Messier holding out in hopes of renegotiating his contract, only two were at training camp.On the wing, Gretzky is flanked by Finnish delights Jari Kurri and Esa Tikkanen, while Glenn Anderson can be found to either Messier&rsquo;s right or left. All three wingers have excellent noses for the net.Weaknesses: An expanding list of woes starts in the Oilers&rsquo; own end.Capable of being a starting goaltender on most other NHL teams, Andy Moog grew tired of awaiting a trade and made good on a threat to sign with the Canadian Olympic team.Half of the Stanley Cup defensive corps&mdash;Paul Coffey (holding out), Randy Gregg (Olympic team) and Reijo Ruotsalainen (return to Finland)&mdash;isn&rsquo;t with the team.Gregg will probably be back following the Olympics and there&rsquo;s a possibility Ruotsalainen will also return.But the Oilers&rsquo; present crop of young rearguards lack the experience and, in some cases, perhaps the capability to compete over an 80-game NHL season.There are but five returning defensemen, although the experience of 1983 No. 1 draft Jeff Beukeboom is limited.Replacing Kent Nilsson, who is off to Italy, promises to be a most difficult task. Performing on a line with Mesier and Anderson, Nilsson excelled, particularly defensively, in the Oilers&rsquo; drive toward the Stanley Cup.Newcomers: According to co-coach John Muckier, there is a silver lining amid the discontent.&ldquo;The good thing is we&rsquo;ve had an opportunity to evaluate our farm,&rdquo; he said, rhyming off a list of possible new Oilers that includes left winger Ralph Vos of Northern Michigan, defenseman Jim Ennis of Boston University, Windsor Spitfire left winger Scott Metcalfe, Nova Scotia farmhand right winger Normand Lacombe and Czechoslovak defector Ivan Matulik, a winger.&ldquo;(Kitchener&rsquo;s Darren) Beals and (Nova Scotia&rsquo;s Daryl) Reaugh have improved,&rdquo; Muckier added, &ldquo;and our future in goal looks excellent.&rdquo;Lacombe, Reaugh, rugged winger Kelly Buchberger and possibly Ennis, a sixth-round draft in 1986, appear ready to land spots with the varsity. The other youngsters will be headed for the farm.Camp Developments: Muckier has downplayed the severity of the rash of holdouts and defections, but the situation is serious.&ldquo;We finished in first place without Ruotsalainen and Nilsson and we only lost two of 20 games that Coffey missed,&rdquo; said Muckier. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s not a knock on Coffey, but it just goes to show it&rsquo;s not impossible to replace people.&rdquo;Messier&rsquo;s suspension for failing to report further complicated a sticky situation.Center-winger Mike Krushelnyski has also been holding out. His loss wouldn&rsquo;t be as devastating as that of Coffey or Messier, but he is a valuable role player. &#9632;

f0005-01

Widespread Unhappiness Threatens Oilers

I&rsquo;M NOT SURE Dallas is ready for the NHL. But then I must confess to my not being ready for Dallas, either.When the start of the exhibition game between the Oilers and Flyers was delayed about 10 minutes&mdash;after a small patch of concrete showed up in a corner where there was supposed to be ice&mdash;I expected oil to spring up any minute.Even more to my disappointment, J.R. never showed at the game, perhaps because he figured Sue Ellen wanted to get her scheming, illicit, hands on Wayne Gretzky.I had come to town with the theory than an NHL game in Dallas was just another one of Pam&rsquo;s dreams, but I was wrong, podnah. The fall season had begun in East Texas with nothing better than scab football on TV. So 15,343 wandered in off the ranch and into Reunion Arena Sept. 30, only to learn the hard truth: Even in Texas, they don&rsquo;t grow &lsquo;em any bigger than Kjell Samuelsson.The ice was fixed soon enough and the fans got what was, for an exhibition game, a pretty good show. Gretzky dazzled with three points. The Flyers brought along their usual bump-and-thump. And a good time was had by everybody but that noted cowboy &lsquo;Slats&rsquo; Sather, who unhappily rode the range looking for one of his favorite little dogies, Mark Messier.As a place to spend a September night, it sure beat Worcester, Mass. But what the whole thing proved as far as the future of the NHL in Dallas, I&rsquo;m not sure. Neither was the promoter.&ldquo;There are two false assumptions about us putting on this game,&rdquo; said Brad Thomas of the Dallas-based Events Inc. &ldquo;One is that the NHL is paying us to do this to test the market for an NHL franchise. I can tell you that I had to put up everything but my first-born to put this on. It&rsquo;s just not true.&ldquo;The other false assumption is that I&rsquo;ve been hired by some guy with long arms and deep pockets to do this because he wants to buy an NHL team.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re a small marketing-and-promotions firm that wants to bring a top-notch event to Dallas and, of course, make some money. And we&rsquo;ve done that. As far as, &ldquo;Could an NHL team go here?&rdquo;, I don&rsquo;t know. It&rsquo;s an exciting question. It would have to be extremely well marketed.&rdquo;Last year&rsquo;s game, pitting the Oilers against Detroit, sold out. This one fell 1,300 short. While certainly this was reason for encouragement that there is some NHL interest here, you can&rsquo;t bring in Wayne Gretzky once a year, sell a lot of tickets, and declare this a city starving for hockey. Put &ldquo;Garth Butcher and the Canucks Here Tonight&rdquo; on the Reunion Arena marquee&mdash;and if they bust the doors down then, you know you&rsquo;ve got something.There are things that recommend Dallas as a market the NHL should study. It has a largely white-collar economy. It is loaded with transplanted Northerners, not all of whom left because they hated hockey, either.Not only is Dallas-Fort Worth the eighth-largest television market in the country, but it would open up an entire new region for hockey on television in the United States.Hmmm. Dallas sounds in fact, like Atlanta did in 1972. And we know how that turned out.It&rsquo;s been seven years since the Flames moved to Canada, eight since the four WHA teams joined the NHL, and nine since the Cleveland Barons died and willed their bodies to Minnesota. And seventeen since they&rsquo;ve had a team in Vancouver. As long as the NHL is enjoying its best financial health and competitive balance since the six-team days, expansion strikes many of its owners as a smelly old can of worms that should stay sealed shut.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011411/5327193-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="342" height="474"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jay Greenberg</figcaption></div>Nevertheless, a small and pushy group of NHL movers and shakers won&rsquo;t let the issue die. A new committee, which has Flyer president Jay Snider as its unofficial spokesman, wants the NHL empire expanded. John Ziegler has told the expansionists to cool down until its major television contracts are settled within the next two years, but Snider wants to keep pushing.&ldquo;There are four or five of our teams that want expansion,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;And four or five, the usual non-visionaries, who are against it. The rest, I think, could be convinced.&ldquo;I want hockey to be on a par with the other sports in the United States. And we can&rsquo;t do that if we&rsquo;re only in 14 U.S. markets.&ldquo;We have plenty of players. We&rsquo;ve added the European market, the U.S. is producing more players than ever and Canada is producing the same amount as ever.&ldquo;Any successful business looks to expand. Sure, there is some risk, but I don&rsquo;t see how we can look back on our expansions and say they failed. We lost one team and a few others moved. Look at baseball. They&rsquo;ve moved teams, too.&ldquo;I can see a 28-team league not that far down the road. You&rsquo;re in 20 U.S. cities, then you&rsquo;re viable.&rdquo;Either that or you&rsquo; re over your heads in bankruptcies and litigation, and have returned to the diluted product associated with the WHA days. Twenty-eight teams sounds a bit ambitious. But expansion is worth a look.If two U.S. cities and Hamilton are brought in one by one, at two or three-year intervals, and given decent expansion drafts, there&rsquo;s no reason why three smart new ownerships wouldn&rsquo;t be an asset.Surely there was some puck-hungry oilspilling tycoon in the Reunion crowd that saw possibilites. The people were enthusiastic, and cheered at the right times, as if they had more than a passing acquaintance with the sport.One sobering note however, came between periods, when I walked up to 10 different persons eating beans and tacos in the concourse and asked them if they knew who Tex Evans was.What kind of a hockey crowd was this? They&rsquo;d never heard of the dude. &#9632;

f0006-01

But Will Dallas Watch Garth Butcher’s Canucks?

<div class="byline">BY ERIC DUHATSCHEK</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0006-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-03658/5327224-1-eng-US/f0006-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Big Joel Otto (left), shown here checking Wayne Gretzky during the Canada Cup, gives Calgary a physical presence down the middle.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021011/5327231-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="179" height="138"></div>CALGARY&mdash;In any new season, the Calgary Flames establish only one small goal: Try to hold onto the gains they made in the old season.Last year, the Flames established team records in a half-dozen categories, including wins (46), road wins (21) and points (95). They chased the Edmonton Oilers until the last month of the season and they defeated them six times in eight regular-season meetings.But their first-round playoff loss to Winnipeg put a damper on what was an otherwise successful season. So when new coach Terry Crisp took over from Bob Johnson, he knew that even if he couldn&rsquo;t improve upon his predecessor&rsquo;s regular-season record, he would get a second chance in the post-season.Strengths: Once again, the Flames possess perhaps the most balanced team in the NHL. They began training camp five deep across the three forward positions: Centers Joel Otto, Mike Bullard, Carey Wilson, Perry Berezan and Joe Nieuwendyk; left wingers Jim Peplinski, John Tonelli, Colin Patterson, Steve Bozek and Gary Roberts; right wingers Joey Mullen, Hakan Loob, Lanny McDonald, Tim Hunter and Brett Hull.Moreover, all 15 are of NHL calibre.The addition of Brad McCrimmon from Philadelphia to a rearguard that includes Al MacInnis, Paul Reinhart and Gary Suter (suspended the first four games of the season) gives the Flames four above-average defensemen. Neil Sheehy and Ric Nattress play steadily and rookie Brian Glynn impressed with his physical play in camp.Weaknesses: The absence of Reggie Lemelin eliminates some of the team&rsquo;s depth in goal. The Flames released Lemelin with the idea of grooming 23-year-old Doug Dadswell as the backup to starter Mike Vernon. Dadswell, with exactly two games of NHL experience, is considered a good, if unproven, prospect. Potentially, an injury to Vernon could leave the team vulnerable in goal.Up front, McDonald and Tonelli must recover from mediocre 1986-87 seasons and prove to their critics that they&rsquo;re not too old to play the game.Defensively, the Flames finished 13th in the league last season&mdash;up from 14th the year before&mdash;something they&rsquo;ll need to improve further to become more competitive in the playoffs. In two of the last three years, they were eliminated in the first round.The only problem with the team&rsquo;s balanced scoring is that the Flames lack a star, a player who can take control of the game and alter its outcome on the strength of his individual talents&mdash;a Wayne Gretzky or a Mario Lemieux or a Mike Bossy. The closest they came last season was the high-scoring Mullen, who led the league with 12 game-winning goals.The biggest question is: Can Crisp replace Johnson? The new coach is a little more earthy, a little less innovative and more than willing to let a player know when he&rsquo;s made a mistake. His old-school style will be a change from Johnson&rsquo;s ultra-positive approach.Newcomers: Apart from Crisp, who coached in Moncton of the American League last year, the most significant addition was McCrimmon. McCrimmon replaces Jamie Macoun, who will miss a minimum of six months as the result of an arm injury he suffered in a car crash last May. McCrimmon gives the team a defensive presence.Nattress (from St. Louis) and 19-year-old Glynn of the Saskatoon Blades are two other new faces on the blue line.Technically, Nieuwendyk and Hull are rookies, even though they were playing regularly for the team in last season&rsquo;s playoffs. Nieuwendyk, from Cornell University, is a strong, twoway player who scored five goals in his first nine NHL games last season. Hull&rsquo;s strength is his overpowering slapshot, which last season helped him become the first rookie ever to score 50 goals in the American League.In goal, Dadswell will replace Lemelin. Dadswell, formerly of Cornell, played in Moncton last season.Camp Developments: The only major change Crisp made was to experiment with four of his forwards in new positions. He wanted to try Peplinski at center to give the team a second physical player in the middle to supplement Otto. He switched Loob to the left side and Patterson to the right in an attempt to get more goal production out of them. &#9632;

f0006-03

Flames Will Be Judged By Playoff Season

<div class="byline">BY GRANT McGINNIS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0007-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02887/5327262-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">The goaltending of Eldon Reddick, above, and Daniel Berthiaume should keep Winnipeg among the league&rsquo;s best defensive teams.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011259/5327269-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="178" height="137"></div>WINNIPEG&mdash;The Winnipeg Jets are a lot like the straight-C student who just brought home his first report card smattered with As and Bs.Now everyone knows the ability is there, and the tolerance level for mediocrity just went down a major notch or two.Coach Dan Maloney, in his first year on the job, took the Jets from 17th to sixth overall in the NHL and to the Smythe Division finals, thanks to a vastly-improved defensive game and the arrival of solid, consistent goal tending. A repeat isn&rsquo;t out of the question but a lack of snipers may hold back an otherwise solid Winnipeg team.Strengths: The Jets were one of the best defensive teams in the NHL a year ago and look to be even stronger this season.The team gave up just 271 goals (only Hartford, Philadelphia and Montreal allowed fewer) and Winnipeg had the best penalty-killing percentage in the league. The addition of rookie Pat Elynuik to the shorthanded squad should pay dividends.Goaltending, with second-year pros Eldon (Pokey) Reddick and Daniel (the Bandit) Berthiaume, minding the nets and rookie Bob Essensa waiting in the wings, should be another strong point.Weaknesses: The Jets are suffering from a serious lack of goal scoring. Winnipeg found the net just 279 times a year ago, 17th in the NHL, and no knew offensive giants have emerged. Beyond superstar center Dale Hawer-chuk (47-53-100) and veteran winger Paul MacLean (32-42-74), the Jets are thin. Only four players topped the 20-goal plateau. The trading of third-leading scorer Brian Mullen (19-3251) to the New York Rangers won&rsquo;t help.The lack of scoring carries over to the power play where the Jets ranked 18th in the league and look no better this time around.Newcomers: A number of newcomers should contribute to the Jets&rsquo; efforts but the impact from any one player is likely to be marginal.Elynuik (6 feet, 185 pounds), a right winger from the Prince Albert Raiders, and Hannu Jarvenpaa will probably see the most action. Used primarily in a defensive role in training camp, Elynuik, the Jets&rsquo; 1986 first-round pick (8th overall), should be a regular.Jarvenpaa is a scrappy forward who plays the game the way few Europeans do. He&rsquo;s a hard-nosed, grinding cornerman who dressed for 20 games last year before a knee injury ended his first NHL season. Jarvenpaa has looked at home on the big line with Hawerchuk and MacLean.Left winger Roger Ohman (6-foot-3, 215 pounds) is a raw talent fresh from Sweden who&rsquo;ll slowly work his way into the lineup.Defenseman Peter Taglianetti has been on the Jets&rsquo; farm for two seasons and an injury to rookie sensation Fred-rik Olausson will allow &lsquo;Tags&rsquo; to step into the Jets&rsquo; lineup for the first time.Others who may contribute include left winger Iain Duncan from Bowling Green, Regina&rsquo;s ace left winger Craig Endean, winger George McPhee, picked up from the Rangers in a training-camp deal, and defenseman Bryan Marchment, the Jets&rsquo; first-round choice this summer.Camp Developments: Unlike years past, no single player has emerged in training camp as a legitimate star candidate. But injuries&mdash;Olausson is out at least a month with shoulder surgery and veterans Gilles Hamel, Tim Watters and Doug Smail missed most of camp&mdash;have created a real battle among the newcomers for fourthline spots.Endean, who will return to Regina Pats of the WHL if he can&rsquo;t crack the lineup, has been the most pleasant surprise.Maloney is already mulling over what the Jets must do to take the next step and become legitimate contenders.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re gonna have to figure out a way to stop Wayne Gretzky,&rdquo; Maloney said. &ldquo;Getting out of our division is probably the toughest thing. It&rsquo;s the toughest division in hockey.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0007-02

Jets Await Results Of Second Report Card

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0008-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011344/5327300-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg"></div>IT IS TIME the NHL eliminated the nonsensical waiver draft. It isn&rsquo;t worth the problems teams have adjusting their rosters to accommodate the draft list.Why should talented executives (past and present) such as Bill Torrey and Keith Allen have to lose players they drafted, purchased or acquired through shrewd trading, to teams that employed less competent people, such as George Maguire, Ray Miron or Max McNab?It is highly unfair to force teams to expose players they don&rsquo;t want to lose, or force them to make trades they wouldn&rsquo;t have otherwise, just so they won&rsquo;t lose players for practically nothing in the waiver draft. Having the weaker teams receive first choice in the entry draft is equitable enough.If a team is a consistent loser, it is the responsibility of the ownership to replace the people who assembled the player personnel. The successful teams shouldn&rsquo;t be punished.Tom O&rsquo;Hara, Olyphant, Pa.<h2>MARIO MAGNIFICENT</h2>Bob McKenzie&rsquo;s attitude toward Mario Lemieux, as expressed in his column (THN, Sept. 18), is unfair.Lemieux is an extremely talented young man, and is generally acclaimed as the second greatest hockey player in the world&mdash;behind only the incomparable Wayne Gretzky. But we should remember that Lemieux has a mind of his own, and the right to a life outside hockey.The idea that the NHL should take sanctions against Lemieux, or any other player who chooses not to play in the World Championships or the Canada Cup, is absurd. Enough of the players&mdash;star calibre and otherwise&mdash;will make the choice to play on their own. There is no reason to force people to play. Our society is supposed to be free. Lemieux, a free man, chose not to do something to which he was not obligated, contractually or otherwise. Big deal. Let him be.Put simply, during the recent Canada Cup, Lemieux was awesome. Along with Gretzky, he created some of the most beautiful moments in the history of the game. He was able to do so due partly to the fact he was rested after declining to play in the World Championships.Don&rsquo;t knock Lemieux for wanting a breather after the long NHL season. He knows his physical limitations far better than you or I do. We should respect his desire for a rest, and appreciate the results that come from his being back at the top of his game.Richard and Lisa Diakun, Williamsburg. Va.<h2>HAB FAN IS HOT</h2>To say that I was amused by the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; calendar developed by Art McDonald (THN, Sept. 18) would be a lie. It never ceases to amaze me that so-called hockey aficionados spend so much of their time berating the accomplishments of the greatest sports franchise in history.With due respect to Mr. McDonald, a quick review of any hockey yearbook shows that the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; last Stanley Cup victory was in 1955. The Habs have won 16 Stanley Cups since then. So much for calendars, Mr. McDonald.Though the Habs passed on Mike Bossy in the 1977 draft, they used the 10th pick overall to select Mark Napier, who is still playing in the NHL (with the Buffalo Sabres) and has two Stanley Cup rings to show for his efforts. The Detroit Red Wings, on the other hand, used the first pick overall in the 1977 draft to take Dale McCourt. Only the Pope knows where McCourt is playing these days.Don Routledge, Fort Simpson, N. W. T. &#9632;

f0008-01

Not Worth The Hassles, Draft Should Be Waived

Let your voice be heard. Send your comments to Fan Forum, THE HOCKEY NEWS, 85 Scarsdale Rd., Suite 100, Don Mills, Ont. M3B 2R2. THN reserves the right to edit submis-sions. &#9632;

FAN FORUM

THE FLAKE, APPARENTLY, doesn&rsquo;t want to play hockey this season.Nobody knows for sure because no one, at least no one connected with the Minnesota North Stars, The Flake&rsquo;s most recent employer, knew where he was during training camp.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m disappointed,&rdquo; says North Star GM Lou Nanne, who has about 20,000 reasons to feel that way.By way of re-introduction, The Flake is 24-year-old Todd Bergen, who, among other things, has:&bull; Been a star for his hometown Prince Albert (Sask.) Raiders of the Western League.&bull; Dazzled the hockey world for the briefest of periods as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers (11 goals and five assists in 14 regularseason games late in 1984-85 and four goals and nine assists in 17 playoff games the same year).&bull; Announced, in the fall of 1985, that he had no use for Flyer coach Mike Keenan and was quitting pro hockey to try his luck on the pro golf tour.&bull; Played only 27 games in Springfield of the American League since being traded by the Flyers to the North Stars in November, 1985.Evidently, his short game betrayed him on the links, and one of those mysterious stomach muscle injuries has failed him at the rink.The 6-foot-3, 185-pound center has since become a free agent without compensation, not bound to attend any training camp. He did, however, promise Nanne he would show up if he received monies he felt were owed him.Neither Philadelphia nor Minnesota were taking responsibility for the contentious back pay. The Stars say they received damaged goods, the Flyers say they shipped out a healthy body. Then, under protest, Nanne volunteered to pay the $20,000, give or a take a few bucks, if Bergen would attend camp.Bergen promised he would be there, got his money (the Flyers and Stars will go to arbitration to determine who is ultimately responsible for the settlement) and promptly failed to show up at the Met Center.A quick look on Twin Cities golf courses did not turn him up and since the next space shuttle isn&rsquo;t due to leave for a while, no one quite knows where to look next.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s somewhere in Minneapolis, that much we know,&rdquo; says his agent Bill Watters, one of the few people, on earth anyway, with whom Bergen maintains regular contact.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021107/5327355-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="393" height="444"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bob McKenzie</figcaption></div>&ldquo;He landed at the airport, his girlfriend picked him up but then dropped him off at some friend&rsquo;s house. That&rsquo;s the last we&rsquo;ve heard from him.&rdquo;Bergen, if you hadn&rsquo;t surmised by now, is nothing if not unpredictable.&ldquo;He dances to his own drummer,&rdquo; says Watters. &ldquo;He does what he feels is right. And he has his own set of values. Let me put it this way: Todd Bergen is not totally enamored with the allure and excitement of professional hockey.&rdquo;Nor pro hockey with him.&ldquo;He promised he&rsquo;d show up if we paid the money,&rdquo; says Nanne. &ldquo;We did. He didn&rsquo;t.&rdquo;Still, Nanne isn&rsquo;t prepared to dismiss the matter.&ldquo;At this point,&rdquo; Nanne says, &ldquo;I&rsquo;d just like to talk to him. Beyond that, I don&rsquo;t know.&rdquo;But the Lou Nannes of the world can sometimes find forgiveness when the object of their largesse is gifted and teeming with potential.And make no mistake, Bergen, for all his idiosyncracies, is all of that.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s a superb athlete,&rdquo; Watters says. &ldquo;He has the talent and ability to be among the top 50 players in the NHL.&rdquo;Nanne concurs, but qualifies the evaluation.&ldquo;Sure, he&rsquo;s got a lot of ability,&rdquo; the GM says. &ldquo;But being disciplined is part of being talented. He&rsquo;s not disciplined.&rdquo;Time, then, would appear to be running out for Bergen, though if he&rsquo;s worried, he doesn&rsquo;t show it.Perhaps he just doesn&rsquo;t have a watch. Or perhaps he&rsquo;s in another time zone. Only The Flake knows for sure. &#9632;

f0008-02

Star Search: Ground Control To Missing Todd

<div class="byline">COMPILED BY RICHARD BEALES Editorial Staff</div>The Pittsburgh Penguins may have finally found the sniping winger they have always wanted for Mario Lemieux.The Penguins, picking fifth in the NHL waiver draft Oct. 5, chose left winger Charlie Simmer, a career 331-goal scorer, from the Boston Bruins. Payment was $2,500.Simmer, 32, scored 29 goals and 40 assists last year, his third as a Bruin. His best years came as a member of the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; &lsquo;Triple Crown Line&rsquo; with right winger Dave Taylor and center Marcel Dionne. In both 1979-80 and 1980-81, he scored 56 goals.The Buffalo Sabres selected first in the draft and took rugged right winger Kevin Maguire from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Maguire&rsquo;s price tag of $40,000 was the richest in the draft.The New Jersey Devils then selected defenseman Reijo Ruotsalainen ($12,500) from the Edmonton Oilers, and the Vancouver Canucks took rearguard Randy Boyd ($ 12,500) from the New York Islanders. The Minnesota North Stars followed by taking tough defenseman Al Tuer ($20,000) from the Edmonton Oilers, before Pittsburgh chose Simmer to end the first of six rounds. A total of 15 players were chosen overall.The Devils made the only selection of the second round, taking defenseman Risto Siltanen ($5,000) from the Quebec Nordiques. All other teams passed. In the third, Los Angeles took high-scoring minor-league center Tim Tookey ($10,000) from Philadelphia, while the Chicago Blackhawks took tough defenseman-forward Glen Cochrane ($5,000) from Vancouver.The St. Louis Blues picked defenseman Bill Root from Hartford, and the Whalers opted to take center Doug Wickenheiser from the Blues instead of a cash payment of $7,500. Wickenheiser stayed on the Whalers&rsquo; unprotected list and was later lost in the fourth round, when Vancouver claimed him. The Whalers elected to take Vancouver center Brent Peterson instead of $10,000.Other third-round movement saw Boston claim right winger Willi Plett from the New York Rangers for $2,500.In the fourth round, defenseman Ed Hospodar was claimed by Buffalo from Philadelphia (the Flyers took Dave Fenyves instead of the $7,500 fee), defenseman Jack O&rsquo;Callahan ($7,500) moved to New Jersey from Chicago, and Wickenheiser moved to Vancouver.Other fourth-round movement saw right winger Stu Kulak move from the Rangers to Quebec. The Rangers grab-bed center Richard Zemlack as payment instead of the $20,000 fee. Zemlack, who was not placed on the Rangers&rsquo; protected list, in turn moved to Minnesota for $20,000 in the only transaction of round five.All teams passed in round six.<h2>OGRODNICK A RANGER</h2>Not known for his defense as a player, Phil Esposito has developed into quite a back-checker since taking over as general manager of the New York Rangers in July, 1986.In his 19th trade in 14monthsasGM of the Rangers, Esposito acquired left winger John Ogrodnick, 28, and defenseman David Shaw, 23, from Quebec in exchange for left winger Jeff Jackson, 22, and defenseman Terry Carkner, 21.Esposito admitted he made the Sept. 30 deal, in part, to prevent the Pittsburgh Penguins from acquiring Ogrodnick and teaming him with superstar center Mario Lemieux.The Penguins and Rangers, separated by just four points last year, figure to be in a three-way battle (with the New Jersey Devils) for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Patrick Division.&ldquo;If he (Ogrodnick) had gone to Pittsburgh,&rdquo; Esposito said, &ldquo;I think he probably could have scored 55 or 60 playing with Lemieux.&ldquo;We watched Lemieux play in New Jersey the other night and, if he put that Bob Errey in (to scoring position) once, he put him in six times. Lemieux had one goal and three assists and Errey got a goal. With a guy there like Ogrodnick, who can put the puck in the net&hellip;forget it.&rdquo;Ogrodnick. who scored 55 goals with Detroit in 1984-85, had been unhappy in Quebec since being traded there last season.In the past. Esposito has admitted that part of his reasoning in acquiring goalie Bob Froese and center Bobby Carpenter (since traded to Los Angeles) was to keep them away from division rivals Washington and New Jersey, respectively.<h2>JUNIORS REINSTATED</h2>The Canadian and Soviet hockey players who were suspended 18 months for their bench-clearing brawl at the World Jr. Championships in Piestany, Czech., last January, will be eligible to participate again in international hockey on Dec. 1.However, the coaches of both teams&mdash;Canadian head coach Bert Templeton, his assistant Pat Bums and Soviet head coach Vladimir Vasiliev&mdash;must serve their entire three-year suspensions.The 10-member International Ice Hockey Federation council heard appeals from both countries on Oct. 2 at its four-day congress in Biarritz, France.Canadian Amateur Hockey Association president Murray Costello had received assurances from IIHF president Gunther Sabetzki of West Ger-many, that he would pardon the players under presidential prerogative. But Sabetzki discovered in Biarritz that such a power is no longer contained in IIHF statutes and appeals had to be presented.Representatives from Sweden, the Netherlands, Canada, Hungary, Japan, Switzerland, the United States, Austria, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia serve on the IIHF council.&ldquo;I was a bit concerned when it went to council,&rdquo; Costello said from Biarritz. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re never quite sure on these things. But I can tell you I was relieved when I walked out of that room.&rdquo;Eleven Canadians on the 1987 team are eligible by age to play in the 1988 championships in Moscow.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011312/5327386-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg" title="f0009-01" width="582" height="1463"><figcaption class="caption-body">Charlie Simmer, above, could return to 50-goal form on Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s wing.</figcaption></div>Costello said the players will remain on probation for the next two years and, if any receives a match penalty or gross misconduct in international competition, his suspension will be reinstated for the full term of the probationary period.Costello said the council &ldquo;was not nearly as ready to listen to the appeals for the coaches as they were for the kids. There was considerable sympathy for the kids but the adults were the ones who concerned council members.&rdquo;Templeton was not permitted by IIHF bylaws to represent himself at the appeal hearing. He said the verdict didn&rsquo;t surprise him.&ldquo;They formed an opinion of me nine months ago and they weren&rsquo;t going to change,&rdquo; he said from North Bay, where he coaches the Ontario League&rsquo;s Centennials.<h2>MESSIER SUSPENDED</h2>The Edmonton Oilers have suspended Mark Messier, after the star center refused to report to training camp.Messier, who finished in a tie for third in league scoring last year with 107 points, wanted his contract re-negotiated.Messier&rsquo;s father, Doug, who is acting as his son&rsquo;s agent, has informed the Oilers that the pugnacious centre will not report to the team. The eightyear NHL veteran was in Mannheim, West Germany, visiting his brother Paul and practising with a team there.<h2>FRAWLEY WEARS &lsquo;C&rsquo;</h2>The Pittsburgh Penguins have named 25-year-old right winger Dan Frawley captain of the team.Frawley, acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1985 waiver draft, enjoyed his best year ever in 1986-87 with 14 goals and 14 assists in 78 games.He succeeded Terry Ruskowski as team captain. Ruskowski, 32, left the Penguins for the Minnesota North Stars as a free agent, in the off-season.<h2>GOALIE BREAKS JAW</h2>Goalie John Vanbiesbrouck of the New York Rangers was expected to miss the first one or two games of the NHL regular season, after breaking his jaw in a practice session.Vanbiesbrouck, the 1986 winner of the Vezina Trophy as the league&rsquo;s top goalie, had the jaw wired shut and was unable to eat solid foods while recovering.<h2>SPENCER ON TRIAL</h2>The murder trial of former NHL player Brian Spencer started Oct. 5 in West Palm Beach, Fla., with the selection of jurors.Spencer is accused of killing real estate agent Michael James Dalfo five years ago. Dalfo, 32, was found near a railway building, shot twice in the head with a. 25-calibre pistol.Spencer, a native of Fort James, B.C., played 553 NHL games with Toronto, the New York Islanders, Buffalo and Pittsburgh, scoring 80 goals and 143 assists. &#9632;

f0009-01

Penguins Go For Simmer In Draft

You want to know what&rsquo;s so special about the Winnipeg Jets this year?If you answered Dale Hawerchuk, you&rsquo;re wrong. The correct answer is Mike Smith.Mike who? That&rsquo;s right; Michael A. Smith, the Jets&rsquo; assistant general manager who has just published the best hockey book of the year, if not the decade.It&rsquo;s called Life After Hockey (Codner Books, St. Paul, Minn.), 300 pages worth of genuine ice talk from 22 former stickhandlers including Hall of Famers Henri Richard, Dickie Moore and my all-time favorite goaltender, Glenn Hall. Not to mention fascinating second-stringers such as Don Saleski, Gary (Suitcase) Smith and Tommy Williams.But, wait a minute, what&rsquo;s John Ferguson&rsquo;s assistant general manager doing in the publishing business in the first place? And why this book?&ldquo;I had been getting the impression that youth hockey was heading in the wrong direction,&rdquo; says Smith, a native of Potsdam, N.Y. &ldquo;That kids were being pushed too hard by their parents; not for the sake of the kids but for the sake of the parents. My basic theory was that there&rsquo;s more to life than hockey. With that in mind, I decided to interview a cross-section of players about their experiences. But as I talked to them, other themes came out.&rdquo;Smith, who has a doctorate in political science and Russian studies from Syracuse University, worked on the interviews in his free time but admits none of this would have been possible had Ferguson not been supportive. Once he had Fergie&rsquo;s green light, Smith began looking for potential subjects. Not surprisingly, some hockey players refused to talk.&ldquo;There were six players who decided not to do the interviews,&rdquo; says Smith. &ldquo;Two had good reasons; one, I thought, had a very poor reason and the others just weren&rsquo;t comfortable so I told them I didn&rsquo;t want them either in that case.&rdquo;The stories from those who did speak up are excellent. How about this Glenn Hall story? Mister Goalie, as we knew him, teamed with The Golden Jet, Bobby Hull on the Chicago Blackhawks and tells this one about Hull.&ldquo;The day after a game when we would be practising, the cleaning crew, mostly women, would be working in the stands. Bobby would see a lady bent over, maybe 35 or 40 rows up, sweeping. He&rsquo;d bounce a puck off the seat next to her. He&rsquo;d grin. Finally, they refused to work while we practised.&rdquo;Unlike a reporter-athlete relationship, which often is strained, the rapport established by Smith was so warm that players such as Suitcase Smith told him stories that a journalist could never obtain.&ldquo;For me,&rdquo; says Mike Smith, &ldquo;it was an emotional experience. I&rsquo;d finish an interview and, later on the plane, I&rsquo;d go over the material and say to myself, &lsquo;I can&rsquo;t believe this guy told me these things.&rsquo; It really was fulfilling.&rdquo;Suitcase Smith revealed how difficult it was for his wife to adjust to life after his hockey career was over.&ldquo;My problem with alcohol was the same problem I always had with alcohol,&rdquo; the exgoalie told Smith. &ldquo;I enjoyed getting hammered, but I don&rsquo;t think it was a real problem. So, she gassed me and the divorce came about&hellip;What this had to do with hockey is I think she had more trouble adjusting to not making big money&mdash;not real big money, but, you know, $70,000 or $100,000&mdash;than I did.&rdquo;The author wanted a cross-section of players in his book and was very selective in obtaining them.&ldquo;I not only wanted average players and superstars,&rdquo; Smith reveals, &ldquo;but I also wanted some Americans and at least one European.&rdquo;Former Jet and New York Ranger Ulf Nilsson was Smith&rsquo;s European subject. The swift Swede recalls his nights on a dazzling line with Hull and fellow countryman Anders Hedberg.Nilsson; &ldquo;It was an interesting experience playing with those two guys because I felt if I passed the puck to Bobby I got s&hellip;from Anders and if I passed to Anders, I got s&hellip;from Bobby and if I shot myself, I got s&hellip;from both of them.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011384/5327417-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="333" height="455"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stan Fischler</figcaption></div>Smith had no idea how the players would respond to him when he began his round of interviews. For the most part he was pleased with the responses and, in some cases, surprised.&ldquo;The biggest surprise,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;was that the players were so positive. There was very little talk about this guy screwing me or or if it wasn&rsquo;t for that guy I would have been a great player. It reflects a lot of maturity. I found a lot of funloving guys.&rdquo;One of them was former NHLer-turned-priest. Father Les Costello. A member of the 1947-48 Stanley Cup-champion Toronto Maple Leafs, Costello tells one about the tyrannical Leaf boss Hap Day.&ldquo;We were coming back from Detroit after we won (the Stanley Cup). I was the rookie and was told to be the guard. I didn&rsquo;t pay any attention and Hap Day, the coach, came by and found the boys drinking and he really gave them hell. He grabbed a hold of (goalie Turk) Broda, gave him a shot in the cheeks, poured the booze down the toilet and told them to smarten up, that we were going on a parade (the next day) to the city hall. Turk didn&rsquo;t hold any grudges but he really gave me hell for not keeping guard at my post.&rdquo;In his probing, Smith found sad stories to go along with the funny. Among them were those of Mark Heaslip, the former Ranger and Jet, who had both alcohol and drug problems, and Tommy Williams, who lost his wife at age 30 and had to raise five children by himself.There were also lingering feelings of bitterness, most notably those of former Philadelphia forward Gary Domhoefer.&ldquo;The injuries were numerous and I was never able to play a full season,&rdquo; said Domhoefer. &ldquo;Today, I have difficulty walking 18 holes of golf or playing tennis or racquetball because of my knees. Year after year, the knees get worse. So, looking at both sides, if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn&rsquo;t do it. It wasn&rsquo;t worth it.&ldquo;I knew going in the price I had to pay, and I was willing to pay that price. The experiences from playing 15 years professionally I wouldn&rsquo;t trade. But if I had a choice of doing it all over again, I wouldn&rsquo;t do it. Maybe I&rsquo;d try the golf tour; You don&rsquo;t break legs doing that.&rdquo;The overall tone, however, is positive.&ldquo;The most significant thing that comes out of it,&rdquo; the author explains, &ldquo;is that these fellows are glad they played the game. They&rsquo;re proud of themselves because they reached the highest level but, at the same time, they recognize that it&rsquo;s something in the past. Now they realize that they have the same problem, the same hours that regular working people have and that there is life after hockey.&rdquo;Nothing reveals that more than Smith&rsquo;s account of his farewell chat with Tommy Williams.&ldquo;He spoke as we walked. &lsquo;I had a long day today,&rsquo; he said. &lsquo;I was up at 3:30 this morning to do something with one of my sons. I then drove to Binghamton and put in a long day. I knew I said I&rsquo;d be here at 7:30 tonight. If I was a player, I never would&rsquo;ve shown. I would&rsquo;ve figured he can call me again. But, you know, I&rsquo;m not a player any more. I said I&rsquo;d be here. That meant I had to be here.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0010-01

Life After Hockey. Funny And Touching

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021059/5327455-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="590" height="898"><figcaption class="caption-body">New acquisition Kirk McLean has sparkled in the Canucks&rsquo; nets during camp.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-03689/5327462-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="179" height="133"></div>VANCOUVER&mdash;The Vancouver Canucks are feeling the rejuvenating effects of a new management team.The crew of general managerpresident Pat Quinn, hockey operations director Brian Burke and coach Bob McCammon is assembled and on the job. The big mystery is how long it will take them to build a winner. It won&rsquo;t be accomplished this season.Still, the feeling is that the club is already a winner, because the patients are no longer running the asylum. If changes need to be made, they&rsquo;ll be made. If there is a chance to improve the team, that chance will be taken. And therein lies the most positive weapon the club takes into its 18th season in the league.&ldquo;I think the change in attitude can mean as many as 10 more wins,&rdquo; said center Barry Pederson.Strengths: Right wing is perhaps the only area on the club that isn&rsquo;t a punchline to one of the latest Canuck jokes. Big things are expected from Jim Sandlak and Tony Tanti&mdash;though Tanti now must face life without his old friend and linemate Patrik Sund-strom, the Swedish center who specialized in setting up the Maltese Falcon. Sundstrom was shipped to New Jersey in a deal for goalie Kirk McLean and center Greg Adams.Sandlak is due to justify his selection fourth overall in the 1985 draft and this could be the year. Stan Smyl is still alive and well, while David Bruce and Rich Sutter provide more than adequate depth. Their presence has sent Ronnie Stern, a promising rookie, to the minors for seasoning.Depending on how Richard Brodeur plays, goaltending can be a strength&mdash;particularly if the early form shown by McLean is for real. The off-season acquisition shone in training camp to the point where he&rsquo;ll likely be a backup capable of taking some work away from the 35-year-old Brodeur.Weaknesses: The left side is a disaster area. There is Petri Skriko, a natural right winger forced to play left wing, and Raimo Summanen, but after that the cupboard is bone-dry. Dave Lowry played on the left side last year and, based on a 40-goal American League season in Fredericton, John LeBlanc deserves a shot but the brass isn&rsquo;t too keen on his physical contribution.Coverted defenseman Glen Cochrane has looked like he&rsquo;ll add size and snarl to the tiny Vancouver forwards.Defensive quality and depth are also found wanting. After Garth Butcher and Doug Lidster, the defense begins to fill with question marks. Is Michel Petit ever going to have a good year? Can Daryl Stanley play as well as he can play tough? Is Jim Benning a fourth defenseman? Is Dave Richter mobile enough to play on an improving team? With Stanley (from Philadelphia) and lan Kidd (free agent from the University of North Dakota) having come in, the depth is improved, but an injury to Butcher or Lidster will send the goals against through the roof.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-04493/5327448-1-eng-US/f0010-042.jpg" title="f0010-04" width="583" height="900"><figcaption class="caption-body">Michel Petit, Vancouver&rsquo;s top pick in 1982, has yet to establish himself.</figcaption></div>Newcomers: The all-America Kidd looked certain to make the team with his offensive skills on defense. Center Dan Woodley, the Canucks&rsquo; first choice in 1986, could crack the lineup at center. McCammon had the Portland grad fourth on the depth chart, though he may prefer to have him playing in the AHL.Adams has to match or increase the production of Sundstrom at center, and Stanley could help with the physical aspects of the game. Cochrane, Stanley and Richter are all rugged individuals and should pile up the penalty minutes. Darren Jensen, who came over from Philadelphia with Stanley for farmhand goalie Wendell Young, is a possibility, but he has struggled early in goal. McLean will likely take the second net job.Camp Developments: The excellent play of 1987 top pick, second-rounder Rob Murphy from Hull, was a pleasant surprise. So was the play of defenseman Steve Veilleux, the Canuck third-rounder from Trois-Rivieres. The two Quebec League players look like NHL players of the future.It&rsquo;s been a long time since a top pick has come to the Vancouver camp and looked good. The new management team has had an impressive start. &#9632;

f0010-02

Canucks Slowly Moving In Right Direction

<div class="byline">BY RICK SADOWSKI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011261/5327493-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="178" height="133"></div>LOS ANGELES&mdash;Only the Edmonton Oilers are beyond the Los Angeles Kings&rsquo; grasp in the Smythe Division.That&rsquo;s the opinion of Los Angeles general manager Rogie Vachon.&ldquo;I expect our club to finish second,&rdquo; general manager Rogie Vachon said. &ldquo;For now, we&rsquo;ll concede first place to Edmonton, but I&rsquo;ll be very disappointed if we don&rsquo;t finish second.&rdquo;The Kings are coming off a 31-41-8 season in which they lost their coach (Pat Quinn) in mid-season and their all-time leading scorer (Marcel Dionne) toward the end.Still, they improved 16 points over the previous season and this year&rsquo;s camp was the most competitive in some time.&ldquo;Our goals have to be higher than they were in the past,&rdquo; says Mike Murphy, who begins his first full season as coach. &ldquo;We can&rsquo;t be content just to make the playoffs. That isn&rsquo;t good enough anymore.&rdquo;<blockquote class="pullQuote">There isn&rsquo;t much beef up front. Los Angeles has only three 200-pound forwards.</blockquote>In their past three playoff appearances, the Kings have had to play Edmonton in the first round. They&rsquo;ve finished fourth or fifth six straight seasons.Strengths: An offense that produced 318 goals (tied for second in the NHL) and a league-leading 97 powerplay goals is led by Calder Trophywinner Luc Robitaille (45-39-84), Bernie Nicholls (33-48-81) and Jimmy Carson (37-42-79).Dave Taylor, Jim Fox and Bobby Carpenter (9-18-27) should return to form, giving them scoring balance throughout the front lines.Goaltender Rollie Melanson is coming off a strong second half and will play in as many as 60 games. Improvement is expected&mdash;required&mdash;from a big, young and mobile defense led by Tom Laidlaw and Steve Duchesne.Weaknesses: The Kings permitted 341 goals (second worst in the NHL), including 92 while shorthanded. They&rsquo;ve given up at least 300 goals six straight years.Their 73.4 penalty-killing percentage was the league&rsquo;s worst. They need drastic improvement in each of those areas.There still isn&rsquo;t much beef up front. Only three forwards (Bob Bourne, Joe Paterson and rookie Bob Kudelski) tip the scales at 200 pounds. There&rsquo;s inexperience behind Melanson.Remarkably, the Kings haven&rsquo;t improved their record in consecutive seasons since 1974-75. &ldquo;The history of this franchise is to make progress one year, then fall back the next,&rdquo; Murphy said.Newcomers: The rookie crop has promise, though it&rsquo;s doubtful they&rsquo;ll place three players on the all-rookie team as they did last year with Robitaille, Carson and Duchesne.First-round pick Wayne McBean (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), from Medicine Hat, and Czechoslovak defector Petr Prajsler (6-foot-3, 200) add size and mobility to the defense. Vachon says Prajsler already is the team&rsquo;s &ldquo;best passer.&rdquo;Kudelski (6-foot-2, 205), a right winger/center who starred at Yale for four years, is strong on the boards. Rookie Glen Healy of New Haven will back up Melanson, with Mark Fitzpatrick returned to Medicine Hat of the WHL.Former No. 1 picks Dan Gratton and Craig Duncanson, and former No. 2 pick Brian Wilks were fighting for forward jobs. Gratton and Wilks played in New Haven last year, Duncanson for Cornwall.Camp Developments: Carpenter, off his play there for Team USA in the Canada Cup, has been moved to left wing. It&rsquo;s expected he&rsquo;ll skate with Nicholls and Fox.That created an opening in the middle for Wilks and Gratton. Healy&rsquo;s fine play in goal resulted in the demotions of veterans Bob Janecyk and Al Jensen.A center in college, Kudelski was shifted to the right side due to his size and ability to work the boards and corners. &#9632;

f0011-01

Kings Need Defensive Breakthrough Badly

<div class="byline">BY KEITH GAVE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021134/5327555-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="180" height="135"></div>DETROIT&mdash;Jacques Demers, the ever-optimistic Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; coach, speaks boldly not of what his team would or could or should accomplish this season, but what it will not.&ldquo;No way we&rsquo;re going to improve 38 points,&rdquo; he said, referring to the remarkable rise to 78 points from the 40 Detroit achieved in 1985-86, the season before the coach&rsquo;s arrival. &ldquo;And we&rsquo;re not going to win the Stanley Cup this year. If we do, it would be another Miracle on Ice.&rdquo;But that&rsquo;s the talk this fall among Wing fans after their team&rsquo;s success in the playoffs last spring.&ldquo;They should be excited about our hockey club,&rdquo; Demers said, &ldquo;but they shouldn&rsquo;t expect more than we can give them.&rdquo;Strengths: Coaching tops the list. Whatever Demers says publicly, he has his players believing that what they accomplished last spring was no fluke. And he will challenge them by making them prove it.Left wing is also a strong point. Brent Ashton scored 40 goals, though 25 came while he played for Quebec. Gerard Gallant led the team in bonus money, scoring 38 goals, 72 points and logging 216 penalty minutes. Petr Klima scored 30 goals last season, 32 in his rookie season the year before&mdash;and the Wings are still waiting for him to break out.At center. Steve Yzerman is coming off a career-high 90-point season (3159). Shawn Burr (22-25-47) should carry more of the offensive load after a rookie season highlighted by excellent defensive performances. Adam Oates (15-32-47) seems to improve with every game he plays and had an excellent training camp. And free-agent new-comer John Chabot is a big, two-way centerman who will anchor the checking line.Somehow, a defense that included Dave Lewis, 34, Harold Snepsts, 32, and Mike O&rsquo;Connell, 31, helped the Wings&rsquo; finish fifth overall in goals-against. They&rsquo;re all back this season, along with Doug Halward, 31. Demers will need his mirrors again this season.The Wings led the NHL in penalty minutes the last two seasons, and Demers isn&rsquo;t about to change styles. Not with Joe Kocur (276 minutes), Bob Probert (221) and Gallant in the lineup, and Dwight Schofield, who split last season between Pittsburgh and Baltimore. and Steve Martinson (163 penalty minutes in 31 American League games) auditioning for jobs.Weaknesses: The team lacks scoring punch, especially from the right side. Dave Barr (13 goals), Tim Higgins (12). Kocur (eight) and Ric Seiling (three) were the right wingers last year who let down the NHL&rsquo;s lowest-scoring team.Seiling is gone, coaching in the American League, and Demers held tryouts in camp in search of anybody who can fill the net from the right side. Notable among them were Mark Kumpel and left-hand-shot centermen Joe Murphy and Adam Graves. Kumpel looks better than a lot of people thought. Graves looks like a keeper. And Murphy looks like a center.Didn&rsquo;t we just Say defense is a strength? Well, it could also be a weakness. The Wings were successful because everybody played defense. The group is a year wiser perhaps, but also a year older and slower.Goaltending is another weakness, but only because Demers doesn&rsquo;t consider it a strength&mdash;at least not strong enough to carry the Wings into the top five or six teams in the league. Glen Hanlon is solid as backup but Greg Stefan has to prove he&rsquo;s No. I again after taking himself out of the lineup during the Norris Division final series against Toronto last spring. He was excellent in camp.Newcomers: Three forwards for sure&mdash;Murphy from Adirondack, Graves from Windsor and Chabot from Pittsburgh. Demers called Chabot &ldquo;the steal of the summer.&rdquo; He will help as a defensive center, but Demers can&rsquo;t stop talking about his offensive skills.Camp Developments: For the first time since Mike Hitch bought the team six years ago and turned it over to GM Jimmy Devellano, the Red Wings seem to have a surplus of legitimate NHLers.Throughout the camp, Demers raved about Murphy, Graves, right winger Brent Fedyk and young defensemen Doug Houda, Steve Chiasson, and Jeff Sharpies.All are on the verge of taking some veterans&rsquo; jobs away, Demers said. Murphy should start the season in Detroit. Graves probably will, too. And the one thing Demers knows about his defense is that he has to have reinforcements standing by, so that should give hope to Houda and Chiasson. Fedyk and Sharpies were sent to Adirondack after so-so performances in camp. &#9632;

f0012-02

No 38-Point Rise In Store For These Wings

<div class="byline">BY SCOTT MORRISON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03761/5327586-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg" title="f0012-03" width="180" height="146"></div>TORONTO&mdash;At last count, a whopping 20 springs had uneventfully sprung since the Toronto Maple Leafs were last in eyeshot of a Stanley Cup.And roughly the same number of rebuilding projects have been scrapped, dismantled, rewritten and occasionally botched. Still more reclamation work is in order this season.The Maple Leafs definitely will not win a Stanley Cup this season, and that is not a bold prediction. It&rsquo;s fact, the starkest reality. It figures, however, that some growing pains should be relieved and the overall product be slightly improved in a division that is the most forgiving.Strengths: The overall character and toughness has been severely upgraded in the off-season, with acquisitions of Al Secord, Ed Olczyk and Dave Semenko. But the question remains, Leafs can play it tough, but can they play it well?Goaltender Ken Wregget appears ready to establish himself as a first-rate big-leaguer, while left winger Wendel Clark, who scored 37 goals last season, is quickly approaching greatness.The added size and strength up front should offer space and relief for the Leafs&rsquo; meeker playmakers, such as Russ Courtnall and Vincent Damphoussse, both very stylish players.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re bigger, stronger and we have more overall talent,&rdquo; said coach John Brophy. &ldquo;And we&rsquo;re all a year older. Some of our younger guys are coming into their own. Hopefully we&rsquo;ll be able to stay away from injuries, but if this team wants to be with the best, I think we can finish in the top 10 in the league.&rdquo;Weaknesses: Defense remains a big question mark. If Todd Gill and Al lafrate mature into solid defensemen, they will be fine. If there is still considerable work to be done, then the Leafs will be in severe trouble&mdash;again&mdash;especially since it&rsquo;s obvious that Borje Salming can no longer handle a heavy workload. The Leafs did manage to trim 67 goals last season, but there is plenty of room for improvement.Several forwards, Tom Fergus, Mirko Frycer, Al Secord and Ed Olczyk must re-establish themselves after in-different seasons, while patience is wearing thin with Courtnall, who may finally be in for a big year.Offense could be a major problem if the likes of Courtnall, Fergus, Frycer and Secord don&rsquo;t produce&hellip;and big, especially with the loss of Rick Vaive and Steve Thomas. Leafs removed 104 goals in those three and added 49.Newcomers: Secord and Olczyk came over from Chicago in the blockbuster pre-training camp trade that sent Vaive, Thomas and Bob McGill to the Windy City. Olczyk is the key. If he becomes the player many projected at the 1984 entry draft, when he was chosen third overall, the deal will swing in the Leafs&rsquo; favor.Long-time Oiler strongman Dave Semenko was obtained from Hartford in return for defenseman Bill Root, who has been demoted to the minor leagues.And rookie Luke Richardson, an 18-year-old defenseman, earned a job scant months after being chosen seventh overall.It&rsquo;s not clear where defenseman Dale Degray will fit in&mdash;with Toronto or Newmarket of the American League. He was picked up from Calgary during training camp.Camp Developments: Clark was shifted to defense during camp but the experiment was quickly aborted. Coach John Brophy said it would be asking a lot of one of the league&rsquo;s &ldquo;premier wingers&rdquo; to make the switch.In his first game back on left wing, Clark&mdash;loaned to the Newmarket Saints along with several other regulars&mdash;scored three times as the Leafs&rsquo; AHL affiliate drubbed the parent club 10-2 in Toronto&rsquo;s final pre-season game.Brophy, by the way, has taken to calling Clark, &lsquo;Rambo.&rsquo; It&rsquo;s Rambo-like intensity that the Leafs want Clark to have on a more consistent basis.The move of sophomore Vincent Damphousse from left wing to center was another experiment that failed. Damphousse, who scored 21 goals and 25 assists off left wing as a rookie, couldn&rsquo;t get comfortable in the pivot. &#9632;

f0012-03

Leafs Are Bigger, But Are They Better?

<div class="byline">BY JERRY ZGODA</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011281/5327617-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="178" height="137"></div>BLOOMINGTON, Minn&mdash;He is trying to keep a low profile. It isn&rsquo;t the most realistic of goals.Herb Brooks says he is just a worker in this company, that the players are the stars. Yet it&rsquo;s Brooks that has been the talk of the town ever since he was hired as coach of the North Stars last April.The talk centers on Brooks&rsquo; ability to perform another Miracle on Ice. He inherits Team Dissension, Team Dis-appointment, Team Disinterested, whatever you want to call them.Brooks has been hired to take a team that fell about as far as it could go last season&mdash;the Stars missed the playoffs in the mediocre Norris Division. And now, with a dash of his European-style weave and a smattering of his swaggering self-confidence, he&rsquo;ll try to raise them up again.Strengths: A pack of forwards that includes 52-goal-man Dino Ciccarelli, Brian Bellows, Scott Bjugstad, Dirk Graham (out until two weeks into the season with a knee injury), Brian Mac-Lellan, Basil McRae and Bob Brooke.Brooks has to decide on his line combinations, a decision that will be complicated when Graham returns in late October and if left winger Steve Payne recovers from knee surgery.Weaknesses: Defense. Captain Craig Hartsburg, the only Star to play for Team Canada in the Canada Cup, is the big gun. Bob Rouse has shown flashes of being a solid, defensive defenseman. and has been paired with Hartsburg in pre-season.Second-year Frantisek Musil hasn&rsquo;t yet realized his potential, but he&rsquo;s young and will play a lot.Other blueliners include Gordie Roberts, Ron Wilson and Pat Price, acquired from the New York Rangers in exchange for Willi Plett. Brooke&mdash;who played defense at Yale&mdash;has been given a look on the blueline. Rookie Mike Berger, who will miss the first two weeks of the regular season with a knee injury, may get a shot. Brad Max-well, who was in camp on a tryout contract, retired to a sales job with a Minneapolis brick and supply company.The goaltending is set with Don Beaupre and Kari Takko, although Beaupre&rsquo;s inconsistency is a concern and prompted GM Lou Nanne into talking with Edmonton and Vancouver about free agent Andy Moog and veteran Richard Brodeur, respectively.Newcomers: Free-agent signees McRae and Terry Ruskowski, from Quebec and Pittsburgh, respectively.Rookie centers Warren Babe of Kamloops, the team&rsquo;s No. 1 pick in 1986, Dave Archibald of Portland, No. 1 in 1987, and Berger of Spokane may crack the lineup.Camp Developments: Center Dennis Maruk ruptured tendons in his right foot in a Sept. 25 pre-season game against the New York Rangers and is sidelined three months. He scored 16 goals and 30 assists last season, and wasn&rsquo;t protected by the Stars in the waiver draft.The Stars have been on the ice morning, noon, and night for two hours a crack. Surprisingly, there has been no complaining.Said Brooks: &ldquo;Professional athletes will work hard if you show them why they should work hard, tell them why this will benefit&mdash;whether to win more games, make more money or extend their careers.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0013-01

After The Fall, North Stars Must Rebound

<div class="byline">BY MIKE PERRICONE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02935/5327648-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="179" height="137"></div>CHICAGO&mdash;It&rsquo;s a good thing the Chicago Blackhawks have their names printed on the backs of their jerseys.Actually, the Hawks have not had a complete makeover. It only seems that way, after the unaccustomed off-season bursts of spending and trading gave the Hawks a new look they hope brings better results.Strengths: Any team starting out with Denis Savard and Troy Murray can&rsquo;t be all that bad at center, can it?But the best and deepest position on the Hawks should be right wing, with three snipers who have scored at least 30 goals in their career: Rick Vaive, Steve Larmer and Wayne Presley.Thomas and Curt Fraser are a good top two on left wing.Defenseman Doug Wilson, 30, is still one of the game&rsquo;s better point men. Gary Nylund is the brawn on the blue line. The coaching staff of Bob Murdoch, Wayne Thomas and Darryl Sutter is a major improvement over last season&rsquo;s combination of Bob Pulford, the reluctant coach, and Roger Neilson.Weaknesses: There&rsquo;s a vacuum at center after Savard and Murray, and there is no offensive heir-apparent to Wilson among the defensemen.Goaltending still has to be considered a weakness. Murray Bannerman is still here, after the worst season of his career, and free agent signee Bob Mason has played only 60 NHL games. He and Bannerman are backed up by 5-foot-5 Darren Pang, while Jimmy Waite was sent back to Chicoutimi juniors and Ed Belfour starts the year in the IHL with Saginaw.The Hawks&rsquo; penalty killing ranked 17th last year; the power play was last. And did they give up too much toughness when they traded left winger Al Secord to Toronto?Newcomers: Vaive, obtained from the Leafs along with left winger Steve Thomas and defenseman Bob McGill, has scored 312 NHL goals in nine seasons. He and Thomas should give the Hawks more scoring depth and balance, and should help revive the power play.Right winger Duane Sutter brings spirit and backbone from the Islanders.Brian Noonan, 22, a converted right winger who played for Nova Scotia last year, looked good at center in camp, while Everett Sanipass, 19, impressed in a seven-game tryout with the Hawks last year and will stick in 1987-88. The hard-hitting left winger from Granby was a first-round pick, 14th overall in 1986.Dan Vincelette, 20, whom the Hawks took from Drummondville with their third pick in 1985, could find a spot on left wing along with 6-foot-3, 190-pound David Mackey, 21, who scored 75 points with Saginaw of the International League.Camp Developments: The major change has been attitude, due to Murdoch&rsquo;s spirited, well-organized camp that stressed teaching. The specialty team units displayed more life throughout the pre-season games. &#9632;

f0013-02

Finally, Hawks Sporting A New Look

<div class="byline">BY STAN FISCHLER</div>Kerry Fraser, who hoped to open the new season with a new lease on his officiating life, is sidelined with hepatitis and could miss the first month of the campaign. Bumped from the playoff rotation last spring, Fraser worked diligently over the summer for a solid start. &ldquo;The league,&rdquo; Fraser tells BLUELINES, &ldquo;has been very supportive.&rdquo;&hellip;Soviet megastar Vladislav Tretiak, who&rsquo;s been hustling his new book across the continent, is being pursued by a Madison Avenue ad agency which is interested in employing the Russian for a big 1988 Olympic promotion. &ldquo;We&rsquo;d like to get some of the other Russians,&rdquo; ad chief Marty Blackman (an early WHA organizer) tells BLUELINES, &ldquo;but that doesn&rsquo;t seem possible. &ldquo;&hellip;F-lame GM Cliff Fletcher tells BLUELINES he wouldn&rsquo;t be surprised to see Canadian Olympian Randy Gregg rejoin the Oilers after the Olympics for a playoff run.Canadiens-watchers are closely eyeing the Chris Nilan-Jean Perron relationship. Management&rsquo;s problem with the enforcer stems from the fact Nilan is terribly popular with his teammates who tend to follow him; a circumstance that could be a problem for the coach. One tale has it that Nilan&rsquo;s benching last year, allegedly for missing a curfew, had less to do with that and more to do with giggling on the bench&hellip;Injured polo player Larry Robinson may be back earlier than expected&hellip;A miffed Mike Liut appeared on New York&rsquo;s all-sports WFAN radio station and, among other things, ridiculed Inside Sports&rsquo; analysis of the Whalers, which suggested that Liut had slipped a bit.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011335/5327686-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="357" height="540"><figcaption class="caption-body">Chris Nilan</figcaption></div>Friends of Mark Pavelich assert that his decision to play hockey in Europe this season guarantees that he&rsquo;ll never play in the NHL again&hellip;The Rangers and Hall of Fame referee Bill Chadwick have ended their relationship. &lsquo;The Big Whistle&rsquo; long had been the Blueshirts&rsquo; TV color commentator and, more recently, ran the Rangers&rsquo; Alumni Association&hellip;Canuck railbirds will be watching Tony Tanti to determine how much the absence of traded Patrik Sundstrom affects the sharpshooter&hellip;The most vigorous training during the off-season was completed by veteran Minny hockey broadcaster Al Shaver. He ended last season at 275 pounds and has since dropped to 225. The 6-foot-2 ice warbler hopes to get down to 200&mdash;and stay there&hellip;Glen Sather&rsquo;s latest business venture is in Alberta beef&mdash;raising and selling.Phil Esposito, who has vigorously opposed international play, tells BLUELINES he&rsquo;s found another reason for disliking the Canada Cup. &ldquo;After what Mario Lemieux did against the Russians,&rdquo; says Espo, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m afraid it&rsquo;s going to turn him into a monster against us in the Patrick Division.&rdquo;&hellip;ESPN will be using a voice-activated computer for in-game analytical stats for all its hockey telecasts&hellip;Now that Bob McCammon is behind the bench again, Ranger people are wondering whether he&rsquo;ll go back to his &lsquo;Smurf&rsquo; description of the Broadway Blueshirts whose roster is peopled by such smallish skaters as Marcel Dionne, Kelly Kisio and Pierre Larouche&hellip;The U.S. Olympic hockey team has made a music video, &ldquo;This Time for Sure!&rdquo; Team USA GM Art Berglund is more reserved in his appraisal. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have the stars the 1980 team had with Mark Pavelich, Neal Broten and Mark Johnson or the 1984 team had with Pat LaFontaine, but we&rsquo;ll be a good team,&rdquo; says Berglund.A fascinating revelation on the Jacques Demers-Ron Caron relationship in St. Louis is emerging. Their ex-boss, Harry Omest, reveals that the pair was not exactly buddy-buddy toward the end of Demers&rsquo; stint in St. Lou, particularly after Demers urged Caron to obtain center Mel Bridgman from the Devils, and Ron refused. Not surprisingly, two of Demers&rsquo; favorites, Bridgman and Gil Delorme, are now with him in Detroit&hellip;Wayne Gretzky and ex-Philippines first lady Imelda Marcos have something in common: a passion for shoes. While The Great One can&rsquo;t quite match Marcos&rsquo; closets full, his stock numbers in the hundreds.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021045/5327679-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg" title="f0014-02" width="359" height="507"><figcaption class="caption-body">Ron Caron</figcaption></div>An advocate of expansion, Wings&rsquo; GM Jimmy Devellano tells BLUELINES the NHL should grow to 24 teams&mdash;but in stages. &ldquo;We should bring in one new team every two years until we reach 24 clubs,&rdquo; says Jimmy D. &ldquo;By the time we get to the 24th San Francisco figures to have a new building and that would make that city ideal for us.&rdquo;&hellip;Ex-NHLer Brian Conacher, now with the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, figures the rink&rsquo;s Canada Cup crowds demonstrate the steel town is ready for an NHL club. &ldquo;The tournament showed that Hamilton would be a viable location,&rdquo; Conacher tells BLUELINES. &ldquo;This was proven by the fact that at $30 at ticket, four out of nine games were sold out.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0014-01

Hard-Luck Referee Out With Hepatitis

<div class="byline">BY JEFF GORDON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-04511/5327717-1-eng-US/f0014-042.jpg" title="f0014-04" width="587" height="1152"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Blues are hoping Greg Paslawski, above, and Tony McKegney can score 30 goals.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-03733/5327724-1-eng-US/f0014-032.jpg" title="f0014-03" width="177" height="134"></div>ST. LOUIS&mdash;Last season the St. Louis Blues were top-notch survivors, winning the Norris Division with 79 points, despite losing 361 man-games to injuries.Eddy Beers suffered a career-ending back injury in training camp. Kent Carlson missed the 1986-87 season after undergoing back surgery. Captain Brian Sutter missed all but 14 games after reinjuring his shoulder. And mainstays Bernie Federko, Rob Ramage, Jocelyn Lemieux and Mark Reeds all missed big chunks of the season with assorted ailments.This season promises to be better. General manager Ron Caron&rsquo;s goal is to elevate the Blues from the middle of the NHL pack to the upper third and then take his chances in the postseason. If the Blues stay healthy and get a lift from their newcomers, they could take big strides&mdash;86 to 90 points would not be out of reach. This team figures to be bigger and deeper than last season.Strengths: The Blues are small but skilled at center.Doug Gilmour doubled his scoring production, from 53 to 105 points last season. Bernie Federko overcame an awful start and a broken jaw to produce 72 points in 64 games. Rick Meagher is an excellent penalty-killer and a solid third center. Creative youngsters Cliff Ronning and Tony Hrkac provide depth and future hope.When second-year coach Jacques Martin teamed Gilmour and Federko on the man-advantage unit, the results were outstanding. The Blues had the fourth-best power play in the league. Gilmour also helped the Blues rank eighth in penalty killing. Quebec was the only other team ranked in the top eight of both special teams.Last season, left wing was a disaster, with Beers, Sutter and Carlson missing from action. Gino Cavallini, one of only three Blues to play all 80 games, led left wingers with 18 goals. This season, the port side could produce 50 more goals, with the return of Sutter and the acquisition of 31-goal scorer Tony McKegney from the New York Rangers and former 30-goal-man Perry Turnbull, who scored only once in 26 games with Winnipeg last season.Weaknesses: Last season, the Blues struggled to score in even-strength situations, finishing 15th in the league in scoring despite their solid power play. They lacked a sniper and they didn&rsquo;t go to the net nearly as well as Caron hoped.In their first five exhibition games, the Blues scored just 10 goals. After failing to land a big gun in the off-season&mdash;Al Secord topped his shopping list&mdash;Caron must hope that streaky scorers McKegney and Greg Paslawski net 30 goals each, while power forwards Cavallini, Sutter, Turnbull and Herb Raglan wreak havoc around the crease.Newcomers: McKegney and Turnbull were brought in to patch up left wing. Hrkac, who played briefly in the Blues&rsquo; first-round playoff disaster against Toronto, came ready to compete for work. He led the University of North Dakota to the 1986 NCAA title and won the Hobey Baker Award.With Ric Nattress gone from right defense&mdash;the Blues shipped him to Calgary for draft choices&mdash;Swedish import Robert Nordmark and exRanger Rob Whistle were prominent in training camp. Both are excellent, though unproven, puck-carriers who can skate well and man the point on the power play.When Caron dealt Bruce Bell to the Rangers for McKegney and Whistle, he created a gap at left defense. Rookie Robert Dirk and journeyman Larry Trader, who spent a fruitful last season with Canada&rsquo;s national team, were filling the gap with excellent camps.The Blues ended up with an excellent combination of size and athletic ability on defense, but can these guys play as a unit?Camp Developments: The Blues want to play tough this season, so Martin was using hit men Jocelyn Lemieux, Todd Ewen and Raglan at right wing, perhaps making Reeds expendable. He also moved 6-foot-4, 225-pound defenseman Michael Dark to right wing as a reinforcement.Dirk, from Peoria of the International League, emerged in camp because of his willingness to inflict punishment. Carlson was offered a new contract for much the same reason. With Doug Wickenheiser unlikely to stick with the team this season, Martin is left with his small centers, so he wants the rest of the team to be as big and physical as possible.After offering Rick Wamsley to a few teams in the off-season, Caron seems set to stick with him and Millen in goal for another season. &#9632;

f0014-04

Blues Aim For Top Seven After Injury-Filled ’86-87

<div class="byline">BY AL MORGANTI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011249/5327755-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg" title="f0015-01" width="579" height="661"><figcaption class="caption-body">Scott Mellanby, above, may take the place of injured Tim Kerr on the power play.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02899/5327762-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg" title="f0015-02" width="175" height="135"></div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;The slippers didn&rsquo;t quite fit on their Cinderella feet last spring, but the Philadelphia Flyers aren&rsquo;t yet ready to turn into pumpkins.But the problem for coach Mike Keenan will be keeping his team motivated during the regular season, when all it really hankers for is a shot at dethroning the Edmonton Oilers in the Stanley Cup finals.A fourth consecutive Patrick Division crown would be nice, but it will sit like a crown of thorns on the Flyers&rsquo; heads if they don&rsquo;t follow through with a Cup triumph.The Flyers have to watch that they don&rsquo;t stumble out of the gate this year. Several players could fall into concentration lapses after participating in the Canada Cup; leading scorer Tim Kerr will be out for at least six weeks due to shoulder surgery, and goalie Ron Hex-tall will sit out an eight-game suspension for his Samurai goalie act on Kent Nilsson.Strengths: Once again, a balanced scoring attack and an ingrained concept of team defense. It&rsquo;s truly incredible that a club which has not had a 100-point scorer since 1976 can be so successful, but it also points out the team concept.Left winger Brian Propp looks ready for a big season and should help ease the absence of Kerr. Also, thrust into the limelight by a superior effort in the Canada Cup, forward Rick Tocchet should rocket to new heights.A crew of forwards such as captain Dave Poulin, Ron Sutter, Derrick Smith and Peter Zezel will play twoway hockey. Somehow, the Flyers score more than enough goals.Of course, after those first eight games the goaltending should be safely in the hands of Hextall.Again, Mark Howe will lead a pack of veteran defenseman, with big things expected from both Doug Crossman and Kjell Samuelsson. And an energetic, hard-working coaching staff should be able to stave off complacency.Weaknesses: No doubt there will be a hole left by the trading of Brad McCrimmon. There is some feeling that the club&rsquo;s management underestimated the defenseman&rsquo;s contribution to the club.The absence of Kerr in the early part of the year will put some pressure on the power play, where winger Scott Mellanby may be asked to help fill the vacancy.Once again, critics will look at the club and insist that it needs one more sniper to win it all.Newcomers: Not much here. With goalie Chico Resch retired, it&rsquo;s likely that Mark Laforest will serve as backup to Hcxtall. Laforest was picked up from Detroit on the day of the NHL entry draft for a third-round pick.The biggest change will be at defense, where somebody has to fill in for McCrimmon. Early indications are that it will be either Kerry Huffman of the Guelph Platers or Mike Stothers of the Hershey Bears.At forward, the club is impressed with Swede Magnus Roupe.Camp Developments: The Flyers liked what they saw of Huffman and Roupe.Laforest, Wendell Young (acquired in trade from Vancouver) and Hershey farmhand John Kemp had a sprited competition to serve as Hextall&rsquo;s backup. The camp was hampered in that Keenan and general manager Bob Clarke were involved with Team Canada.Clarke has already been on the hot seat about trading McCrimmon. Camp, for him, has been an exercise in auditioning replacements for the departed defenseman.&ldquo;If we thought that was going to be a major problem, we obviously wouldn&rsquo;t have made the trade,&rdquo; said the general manager. &ldquo;I think we have enough young defensemen who are ready to play in the league.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0015-01

Can Flyers Get Up For The Regular Season?

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03695/5327824-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="402" height="450"><figcaption class="caption-body">Al Strachan</figcaption></div>SO THE NATIONAL Hockey League is going to impose huge fines for bench-clearing brawls is it? Don&rsquo;t hold your breath.Even if those fines are imposed once, don&rsquo;t expect them to be imposed for a second time.In theory, it&rsquo;s a nice idea. The new rules, passed by the board of governors in September, provide for substantive punishment for both the teams and the players involved in precipitating a bench-clearer.The first player to leave the bench and join a fight will get a 10-game suspension and his coach will get a five-game suspension. The team will be fined $10,000.The second player off the bench (if he&rsquo;s on the other team) will get a five-game suspension; his coach gets three games and the team a $10,000 fine.There will also be individual fines to the people involved and if the team pays on their behalf, a further fine of $100,000 imposed.But it&rsquo;s a long way from the governors&rsquo; boardroom to the ice surface.You may remember the league approving similarly-onerous punishment for players who &ldquo;physically abuse&rdquo; an official. A 20-game suspension, no less.So what happened? The Chicago Blackhawks&rsquo; Tom Lysiak tripped a linesman (accidentally, he said) and was banished for 20 games. The outcry from the hockey community was so great that the punishment was never again imposed and the linesman left the NHL.On a lesser scale, you see similar occurrences every year in the NHL. A rule is approved, imposed frequently in the early stages of the season, and then forgotten.The major problem with this new legislation is the same problem that affected the &ldquo;abuse-of-officials&rdquo; rule. There&rsquo;s no grey area.We&rsquo;ve all seen cases where the first player off the bench is misidentified. Now, that misidentification could cost a team the services of an innocent player for one-eighth of the season.We&rsquo;ve also seen cases where a line change begins just as a fight breaks out. A player coming on the ice legally doesn&rsquo;t see the fight until he&rsquo;s on the ice, then he goes back to the bench. In the meantime, players on the other team assume that the opponents are about to clear their bench and come over the boards. As hockey fans know (and as the Soviet juniors found out last January) one opponent coming over the boards triggers a mandatory benchclearing by the opposition.Now what? Who is the league going to penalize? Which of these players is going to get the 10-game suspension? The first man over the boards went back to the bench. The next man was, in fact, the second player over the boards. Can he be given a five-game suspension when no 10-gamer has been handed out? Or will the league decide for the sake of convenience that the second was the first?The league might say that no penalty can be imposed because the players didn&rsquo;t join the fight. Fine. Next game, there&rsquo;s a bench-clearer but the first players over the boards don&rsquo;t join the fight. They fight each other. Now what?You may also remember a game last year between the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs in which a fight began and a Detroit player started to jump over the boards. Wings&rsquo; coach Jacques Demers grabbed his charge by the sweater and pulled him back.Let&rsquo;s suppose that a similar situation happens again this year. If Demers were one step away, he couldn&rsquo;t have reached the player. Does he deserve a five-game suspension? Or if he were to make the grab and his grip were to slip, does he deserve a five-game suspension?Once again, there is no grey area. A coach who tries to hold back his players and fails gets the same punishment as a coach who actively pushes his players over the boards.And what about a shorthanded situation? Suppose a team is playing five-on-three and a melee begins. Does the NHL seriously expect the undermanned team to sit quietly on the bench while five opponents pummel their three penalty-killers?I can&rsquo;t answer these questions. I doubt if anybody can. The only thing that seems likely to me is that this crushing punishment, when it is finally brought to bear, will be used on a pair of weak teams to whom the loss of a player or a coach will make little difference.Then a major outcry will result and the rule will be shelved, put away to gather dust forever.Granted the league deserves credit for trying to cut down on the brawling. But the same old problem that has plagued the league for years makes a mockery of the intent. There&rsquo;s no leadership at the top.This kind of discipline should be handled by the league president, John Ziegler, not by a vice-president. And the president should have a full range of options available in order to make the punishment fit the crime.But if that were the case, you see, the president might actually have to make a tough decision and then face the heat that would inevitably follow.NHL watchers know better than to expect that. &#9632;

f0016-03

NHL’s New Brawling Rules Considered Too Impractical

<div class="byline">BY RICH CHERE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02900/5327855-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="179" height="134"></div>EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.&mdash;The way Doug Carpenter sees it, the difference between last season&rsquo;s New Jersey Devils and a team which will make the playoffs is &ldquo;six or seven&rdquo; victories.If each of six key newcomers&mdash;Bob Sauve, Patrik Sundstrom, Tom Kurvers, David Maley, Jim Korn and Brendan Shanahan&mdash;can make the difference in one victory this season, the Devils may be able to shed their doormat image for good.Strengths: Not surprisingly, the club&rsquo;s primary strength was in place before any off-season changes were made. The Devils are a team that can score goals. The No. 1 line of captain Kirk Muller (26-50-76), Pat Verbeek (35-24-59) and Aaron Broten (26-5379) is an energetic unit which could produce well over 100 goals this season. John MacLean (31-36-67) is ready to crack the 35-goal plateau, while No. 1 draft choice Shanahan is capable of doing the same if Carpenter can find two wingers worthy of his talents.Steady scoring from veterans Mark Johnson (25 goals) and Doug Sulliman (27), as well as the addition of Sund-strom, will make the Devils&rsquo; offense tough to shut down.Weaknesses: One of the reasons the Islanders were able to become contenders so quickly in their early years was defensive stability. The Devils have yet to find it.In fact, unless there is marked improvement on defense, general manager Lou Lamoriello&rsquo;s master plan could be undermined by too many high-scoring losses. Training camp indications are that the Devils have serious deficiencies on defense, where Craig Wolanin has battled injuries and inexperience, and Joe Cirella has had to be better than his talents allow. The supporting cast is shaky. In six preseason games the Devils gave up 29 goals.&rdquo;Similarly, New Jersey&rsquo;s penalty killing has been a liability. The team&rsquo;s best penalty-killers of the past&mdash;Mel Bridgman, Rick Meagher and Rich Preston&mdash;are long gone, and no one has stepped in to fill the gap.Newcomers: The changes start at the top, with the addition of GM Lamoriello from his post as commissioner of Hockey East.The most exciting newcomer to the Devils&rsquo; roster, Shanahan, has spent most of training camp on the sidelines with a sprained left ankle he suffered in the third pre-season game. Regardless, the Devils&rsquo; No. 2 overall draft choice out of London will be on the roster.Four others&mdash;Sauve (free agent from Chicago), Maley (trade from Montreal), Korn and Kurvers (trades from Buffalo)&mdash;had little impact on the team, except that the Devils obviously play tougher with Korn on the ice.Sundstrom&rsquo;s attitude and performance have observers thinking the Devils made a wise trade with the Canucks.Perhaps the most impressive &ldquo;newcomers&rdquo; are defenseman Marc Laniel, a 19-year-old who will be sent back to Oshawa, and Maine right winger Doug Brown, who played in four games with New Jersey last season.Camp Developments: By all accounts, defenseman Bruce Driver was ticketed for Utica this season, yet his pre-season play changed the minds of the coaching staff.At the same time, some players were privately betting that the 32-year-old Sauve might wind up as the No. 1 goalie. He will start the season as at least Alain Chevrier&rsquo;s backup. The third goalie, Craig Billington, was sent to Utica without a fair chance to make the club. Billington was given only 58 minutes of playing time in pre-season.Neil Brady (No. 3 pick overall, 1986) was given an outside shot at making the club, but showed he needs another year of junior. The addition of Korn and the improving play of Perry Anderson have put physical defenseman Steve Richmond in jeopardy of losing his job.Right winger Chris Cichocki and defenseman Murray Brumwell were both sent to Utica. Cichocki had been bothered by a bone chip in his right foot. Gord Mark fractured his knuckle punching Tom Martin in a pre-season game with Hartford. His right hand remains in a cast and he may miss a month.Left winger Al Stewart was impressive, but has developed a pre-hemial condition that made his status day-to-day. &#9632;

f0016-02

Defensive Troubles Plague New Jersey

<div class="byline">BY JIM SMITH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-01990/5327886-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="179" height="136"></div>UNIONDALE, N.Y.&mdash;The New York Islanders are coming off their worst record (35-33-12) and lowest victory count at home (20) since 1973-74&mdash;but since they drew within one victory of the Stanley Cup semi-finals, they had an unbeat attitude in training camp.&ldquo;I want to make sure we don&rsquo;t fall back,&rdquo; said second-year coach Terry Simpson, &ldquo;and that we build on where we left off. We are changing the makeup of the team because of age factors. We have to maintain an attitude of enthusiasm that you expect with a younger team.&rdquo;A bad back was frustrating 30-year-old Mike Bossy, who couldn&rsquo;t start the season with the Islanders. Denis Potvin, 34 on Oct. 29, has announced this will be his last season. Bill Smith is playing out his option and will be 37 on Dec. 12. Bryan Trottier is 31. Ken Morrow will be 31 on Oct. 17. They are the last five survivors of the team which opened the 1980s by winning four straight Stanley Cups.The key question this club has to answer is whether players such as Brent Sutter, Pat LaFontaine, Mikko Makela and Patrick Flatley can pick up the slack and fulfill their potential.If the Islanders&rsquo; young veterans do not score more goals, they are destined for another third-place finish in the Patrick Division.Strengths: The Islanders have as good an overall defense as any team in the NHL, with nine veterans. No rookies were expected to make the defensive lineup. Potvin, a revitalized Tomas Jonsson and Randy Boyd are offensive threats. The other six are solid in their own end.With Smith and Kelly Hrudey, the club also has one of the best goaltending duos. Smith is gambling on having a good year to obtain a new contract and was psyched and sharp from day one in camp. Hrudey, 25, reported late after being a backup for Team Canada and should play 45 to 50 games at or near all-star level.The Islanders return the second-best power-play unit in the league, although Bossy will not be part of it. They are strong down the middle with soon-to-be-named captain Sutter, Trottier, LaFontaine and Bob Bassen. They also have their hard-working tradition and a capacity to get up for big games.Weaknesses: Goal scoring and size on the wings continue to be the biggest problems. Only three teams scored fewer than the Islanders&rsquo; 279 goals last year&mdash;and now there is no Bossy. He averaged 57 goals a year over 10 seasons and, despite chronic back problems, tied LaFontaine for the club lead with 38 last year.Trottier is still a crafty playmaker but comes off the lowest goal-scoring year of his career (23). The team&rsquo;s left wingers collectively could be the least awesome in the NHL, topped by Rich Kromm, who had 12 goals last year.And while you can&rsquo;t knock the effort of players such as Bassen, Greg Gilbert, Ari Haanpaa, Dale Henry, Alan Kerr and Brad Lauer, none scored more than seven goals last year.Injuries derailed Sutter and Flatley in the second half last season, after they were among the team&rsquo;s most-productive players in the first half. Makela has a tendency to float at times. The Islanders were only 13th in penalty killing last year. They no longer intimidate at home. And they were only 17-21-7 in games outside their division. Their lack of consistency is a function of their youth.Newcomers: Only three were locks to make the opening-day squad: left winger Derek King of Oshawa, right winger Brad Dalgamo of Hamilton and all-purpose forward Randy Wood. King and Dalgamo were No. 1 draft picks in 1985 and will be worked in slowly. Wood, a former free agent from Yale, spent most of last year in Springfield sharpening his defensive skills and was impressive playing 13 of 14 playoff games.Camp Developments: Defenseman Brian Curran played only one of the first six exhibition games due to a thigh muscle pull. Without him the Islanders have no enforcer. Mick Vukota and Rod Dallman tried to fill that role in camp but need minor-league seasoning. Tough-guy left winger Dale Kushner separated his shoulder in his first workout.General manager Bill Torrey was still looking for scoring punch. He made inquiries about the availability of John Ogrodnick, but the price was too high. The former 50-goal scorer was dealt from Quebec to the Islanders&rsquo; chief rivals, the New York Rangers.With all of his defensive depth&mdash;including prospects Bill Berg, Dean Chynoweth, Jeff Finley and Dunc MacPherson in the organization&mdash;Torrey could be considering parting with a defenseman or two to land a scorer. &#9632;

f0017-01

Lack Of Offense Could Seal Islanders’ Fate

<div class="byline">BY DAVE MOLINARI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02787/5327917-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="178" height="136"></div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;The standard procedure at the Civic Arena is to hope for the best and settle for less.It is somewhat disconcerting, then, to hear whispers from within the Pittsburgh Penguins&rsquo; organization that a team which has missed the playoffs for five consecutive years is ready to challenge not only for a playoff berth, but for third place in the Patrick Division.Such optimism is not without foundation, however. The benefits&mdash;i.e., high draft picks&mdash;of the Penguins&rsquo; wretched records throughout this decade have begun to appear in force.Not that this team is to be mistaken for a Stanley Cup contender. As the regular season approached, general manager Eddie Johnston had a shopping list that included goalie Andy Moog, defenseman Paul Coffey and left winger Mike Krushelnyski of Edmonton, Quebec left winger John Ogrodnick and Sherbrooke tough guyleft winger Steven Fletcher.The Rangers ended up with Ogrodnick, even though Pittsburgh was willing to give up a first-round draft choice for the high-scoring forward.Strengths: The Penguins have assembled a collection of centers possibly without peer in the NHL.Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s extraordinary ability was proven beyond contention at the Canada Cup, while both Dan Quinn and Craig Simpson have established themselves as strong offensive forces.Then there is rookie Dave McLlwain, whose surprisingly sound play all but assured him a berth on the checking line from the earliest days of camp.So strong is the group that Rob Brown, the junior player of the year last season and all-time Western League scoring leader, was no better than the No. 5 center through training camp.Similarly, the Penguins have put together the nucleus of a superb young defense. Doug Bodger, Ville Siren, Moe Mantha and Jim Johnson are among the key performers on a unit that will include rookies Chris Joseph and Zarley Zalapski.Zalapski is expected to rejoin the Canadian Olympic team late this month, but almost certainly will step directly back into the lineup at the conclusion of the Calgary Games.Weaknesses: The Penguins have not had a sniper on the wing since Rick Kehoe retired several seasons ago, and while they have long recognized the problem, they never have adequately addressed it.The Penguins signed free-agent right winger Wilf Paiement to play alongside Lemieux, but there is no guarantee he will be the 35- to 50-goal scorer the Penguins are hoping for. Rookie right winger Lee Giffin embodies some promise.There also is the matter of goaltending. Pat Riggin and rookie Frank Pietrangelo were impressive during camp, but neither carved out a niche as the obvious No. 1 goalie.That is the role the Penguins envisioned for Moog, which explains their protracted efforts to acquire him.Newcomers: Nearly half the Penguins&rsquo; early-season lineup figures to be comprised of players not around at the end of last season.They include Paiement, a free-agent signing from Buffalo, and a brace of rookies&mdash;among them McLlwain (from North Bay), Brown (Kamloops), Giffin (Oshawa), Joseph (Seattle), Zalapski and Pietrangelo (Muskegon), who outplayed Steve Guenette.At least two other rookie forwards, Risto Kurkinen of Jypht (Finland) and Dwight Mathiasen of Baltimore, could nudge into the lineup before the end of the season.And then there are perhaps the most significant arrivals: New coach Pierre Creamer and his assistants, Clement Jodoin and Kehoe.Camp Developments: The most significant event of camp, aside from the massive influx of young talent, was the way the players embraced Creamer&rsquo;s upbeat philosophy and personality.Even privately, they praised his practices and marveled at the way every facet of the pre-season preparation was designed to address situations in the 80 games ahead. &#9632;

f0017-02

Enough Of Promise, Let’s See Prowess

<div class="byline">BY WALT MacPEEK</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011028/5327948-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="180" height="138"></div>NEW YORK&mdash;The New York Rangers will undoubtedly score a lot of goals during the 1987-88 season&mdash;but will they be able to stop their opponents from doing the same?With six players&mdash;John Ogrodnick, Marcel Dionne, Pierre Larouche, Walt Poddubny, Tomas Sandstrom and Ron Duguay&mdash;who have scored 40 or more goals in an NHL season, new head coach Michel Bergeron has reason to smile about offense as he enters his first season as coach of the Rangers.He and general manager Phil Esposito also have reason to frown, due to what Esposito described as a &ldquo;possible career-ending injury&rdquo; to defenseman Barry Beck, who dislocated his chronically. troubled left shoulder in a preseason game against Winnipeg in Denver on Sept. 29.Beck had an impressive training camp after sitting out last season over &ldquo;philosophical differences&rdquo; with former Ranger coach Ted Sator. His uncertain future fuels concerns about the Rangers&rsquo; team defense, consistency and toughness, especially considering the fact New York traded tough blueliner Terry Carkner to Quebec to acquire Ogrodnick.Strengths: John Vanbiesbrouck and Bob Froese provide outstanding goaltending, experience is everywhere and firepower is substantial. Overall team depth has been improved and the acquisition of Willi Plett adds size.Some of the designated defensive role-players, such as center Kelly Kisio, Duguay and defenseman Ron Greschner, have scoring skills, too.When he traded a first-round draft choice to Quebec for the right to hire Michel Bergeron as coach, Esposito worried about making the playoffs, but he sounded much more confident after acquiring Ogrodnick and defenseman David Shaw from the Nordiques on Sept. 30, for left winger Jeff Jackson and Carkner.&ldquo;We like our position much better&mdash;we&rsquo;ve got to be honest here&mdash;as far as this year and next year,&rdquo; said Esposito.Weaknesses: The &lsquo;Strangers&rsquo; will probably be the oldest team in NHL and may also have the least personnel continuity. There appears to be a shortage of grinders and diligent back-checkers.&ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; Esposito admitted, &ldquo;we gave up some toughness (in trading Carkner and George McPhee, the latter to Winnipeg for a fourth-round choice in &rsquo;89) but we&rsquo;ve got muscle we can bring in if we need it.&rdquo;Newcomers: Bergeron is the most important addition, of course. He should provide stability behind the bench, after a year which saw the Rangers go through three coaches&mdash;the fired Ted Sator, ill-fated Tom Webster and reluctant Esposito.Rookie center-right winger Ulf Dahlen, from Ostersund in Sweden, enjoyed a good camp and may stay. Rookie center Steve Nemeth (Kamloops and Canadian Olympians) was also impressive but lacked opportunity. Ogrodnick, Plett (acquired from Minnesota for Pat Price), Shaw and left winger Brian Mullen (picked up from from Winnipeg for a draft choice), all appear to fit into Bergeron&rsquo;s plans.Camp Developments: Bergeron kept a low profile in camp, mindful that Sator&rsquo;s &ldquo;my-way-or-the-high way&rdquo; approach last year led to a player revolt.Still, the coach has been tinkering. He has suggested a three-goalie system to accommodate impressive 27-year-old rookie Ron Scott, who spent last year in New Haven. And he has toyed with the idea of moving center Walt Poddubny back to left wing&mdash;a position where he was inconsistent during his years in Toronto.Right winger Sandstrom was the most impressive player in camp. In fact, Esposito dropped out of bidding for Edmonton&rsquo;s Paul Coffey because he refused to include Sandstrom in the deal. &ldquo;I won&rsquo;t trade Tomas,&rdquo; the GM said, &ldquo;unless Gretzky is included.&rdquo;Veteran right winger Lucien DeBlois appeared to reclaim a lost step and was among most pleasant preseason surprises. &#9632;

f0018-01

There’ll Be Few Dull Games At The Garden

The No. 1 on the back of his Toronto Maple Leaf jersey was more than just a means of identification to Hall of Fame goaltender Johnny Bower.It was proof that he was the team&rsquo;s top goalie. It was something that had to be earned. And once earned, it wasn&rsquo;t to be given up easily.&ldquo;I wanted my sweater to be No. 1,&rdquo; Bower recalled of his days with the powerhouse Leaf teams which won four Stanley Cups during the 1960s.From the 1959-60 season&mdash;a year after he joined Toronto full-time following four seasons in the New York Ranger chain&mdash;until the 1964-65 season when Terry Sawchuk arrived in a trade from Detroit to split goaltending chores, Bower was the Leafs&rsquo; undisputed No. 1 man.&ldquo;When Sawchuk came over, Punch (Imlach, the Leaf coach) said we&rsquo;d alternate,&rdquo; Bower said.And who was Bower to argue? Sawchuk, who died following the 1969-70 season, was en route to the Hall of Fame himself. By the time Sawchuk&rsquo;s 21-year NHL career ended, he had posted a record 103 regular-season shutouts, plus 12 more in the playoffs. Bower, whose career goals-against-average was 2.54, had 37 regular-season shutouts and five in the playoffs.&ldquo;He (Sawchuk) kept me on my toes,&rdquo; said Bower, 63, now a scout and goaltending coach with the Maple Leafs. &ldquo;Actually, he was five times better than I was, but I wouldn&rsquo;t give him that No. 1 sweater.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01706/5327979-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="572" height="877"><figcaption class="caption-body">Johnny Bower, above, formed a successful partnership with Terry Sawchuk.</figcaption></div>Today, the significance of numbers for goaltenders has been reduced. Two of the best, Edmonton&rsquo;s Grant Fuhr (No. 31) and Philadelphia&rsquo;s Ron Hextall (No. 27) wear numbers that were rarely seen on goaltenders in Bower&rsquo;s day.But the art of puckstopping hasn&rsquo;t changed radically, Bower said.&ldquo;The only difference I can see is that goalies handle the puck more,&rdquo; Bower said, noting Hex-tall&rsquo;s practice of shooting the puck out of his own zone, or passing it to teammates.Bower played against Jacques Plante&mdash;perhaps the first goaltender to get involved outside the crease&mdash;but says Hex-tall is the best he&rsquo;s seen.&ldquo;He really fires that puck, which can frustrate the other team,&rdquo; said Bower.The opposition also has to be wary of Hextall&rsquo;s infamous stick, which he wields machetelike in an effort to keep his crease clear.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like that,&rdquo; Bower said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t believe a goalie has to do that. I would &lsquo;accidentally&rsquo; tap someone on the ankle, but I preferred pushing a player out of the crease. Hextall is just wicked with that stick.&rdquo;Bower was saying the same thing about forwards with their sticks when the curved blade made its appearance in the early 1960s. The invention changed the game forever, as more players began slapping the puck&mdash;although only a few knew where it was going. That was a change from the days of the straight blade, when snipers could thread the needle.&ldquo;I remember &lsquo;The Rocket&rsquo; (Montreal&rsquo;s Maurice Richard),&rdquo; said Bower. &ldquo;Boy, could he pick those corners. He&rsquo;d come down and pick a different one every time. He had me so confused, every time he came in I&rsquo;d say my prayers because I didn&rsquo;t know where he was going to shoot.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0022-01

Bower Played Numbers Game While With The Maple Leafs

They&rsquo;re only five years old, but winning is already old hat to the Toronto Metros Oldtimers.&ldquo;These guys don&rsquo;t play a tournament to finish second,&rdquo; says coach Don Lyons. &ldquo;This is serious hockey.&rdquo;There&rsquo;S no doubt the Metros play to win. They&rsquo;ve won 94 of 100 games since their birth in 1982, and captured world old-timers (35 and over) championships in 1985 and 1986.Toronto didn&rsquo;t defend its title last year, Lyons says, due to &ldquo;politics.&rdquo; The Metros didn&rsquo;t feel the tournament, held in Montreal, was worthy of their participation since most of the top competition avoided the Canadian team by playing in the &lsquo;B&rsquo; pool.The Metros&rsquo; lineup has a nucleus which includes team captain Mike Walton, Norm Ullman, Mike Palmateer, Nick Libett, Mickey Redmond, Dick Redmond, Dale Rolfe, Claire Alexander, Brad Selwood, Darryl Edestrand, Dennis Hextall and Pat Boutette&mdash;plus a group of former college, junior and semi-pro players.That the hockey is of a high calibre was demonstrated in 1986, when Darryl Sittler joined the Metros for the world tournament in Paris. According to Lyons, Sittler, who had retired only a year earlier, considered the event to be a lark. It wasn&rsquo;t.&ldquo;I remember telling him that it was serious, and he had a big smile on his face,&rdquo; recalls Lyons. &ldquo;Then we got over there and started playing and he said, &lsquo;You weren&rsquo;t kidding.&rsquo;&rdquo;That was the tournament that featured a best-of-three final between Canada, represented by the Metros, and a Swedi team led by Sittler&rsquo;s former Toronto Maple Leaf teammate, Inge Hammarstrom.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;We went over on an empty tank.&rsquo;&mdash;Lyons</blockquote>&ldquo;Those guys wore jets, not skates, they were so fast,&rdquo; said Lyons.The Canadians slowed them down enough to win 6-5 and 3-1.Though that was a fiercely competitive series, perhaps the best ever, typically enough, was a three-game set against a Soviet side in 1983 in Moscow.The Soviet selects were bolstered by several veterans from the famous 1972 team&mdash;Alexander Yakushev, Alexander Gusev, Vladimir Shadrin, Gen nady Tsygankov, Vyacheslav Starshinov&mdash;and they beat an understaffed Metros team.&ldquo;We had just beaten them 4-3 a short time before in Whitby (Ont.), and we went over there on an empty tank,&rdquo; Lyons says. &ldquo;A lot of our guys couldn&rsquo;t make it.&rdquo; &#9632;

Toronto Oldtimers Big-Time Winners

<div class="byline">BY GLENN COLE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01636/5328034-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="180" height="133"></div>MONTREAL&mdash;In a city where second place is not good enough, coach Jean Perron will again try to get his Montreal Canadiens back into the Stanley Cup finals.He&rsquo;ll attempt the job with a minimum amount of change to his roster.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see any need for us to make changes,&rdquo; Perron said. &ldquo;We were within two games of making the Stanley Cup finals for the second straight season. If some of our young players improve, we might get there this Reason.&rdquo;Strengths: Defense has been the strength for the Canadiens since the days when Toe Blake coached the team to five consecutive Stanley Cups. In this case, defense does not mean just the six or seven players that are listed as team defensemen, but the forwards as well. All are trained to play both ends of the ice.The Canadiens will be tested at the start of the season because of the loss of Larry Robinson, the dean of their defense crew. Robinson, recuperating from a leg fracture suffered during an off-season polo game, will be out until late November or early December. Montreal will miss his on-ice presence and his off-ice leadership.Chris Chelios will be called upon to handle much of Robinson&rsquo;s quarterback role on the power play. The veteran American will also have to emerge as an on-ice leader.Now that Craig Ludwig has signed a new two-year pact with the Canadiens, he can concentrate on the game. Rick Green is the other key man on the blue line.Another part of Montreal&rsquo;s defensive game is the play of people such as team captain Bob Gainey, clever center Guy Carbonneau, sophomore pivot Shayne Corson and a cast of pluggers and grinders.People such as Chris Nilan, Ryan Walter, Claude Lemieux (recovering from a Canada Cup knee injury), Mike McPhee and Brian Skrudland are crucial to Montreal&rsquo;s overall defensive play as well. Without the backchecking forwards, the defense would not look half as good as it has.The final elements of team defense is the Jennings Trophy netminding of Patrick Roy and Brian Hayward.Weaknesses: Last season, the Canadiens ranked 19th in overall NHL offense&mdash;a far cry from the days of firewagon hockey and the Maurice Richard-Jean Beliveau era. Simply stated, the Canadiens do not have firepower to match that of the Edmonton Oilers or the Winnipeg Jets.Mats Naslund is a question mark. Is the little Swedish left winger closer to the 25-55-80 totals he put up last year, or the stellar 43-67-110 campaign he enjoyed in &rsquo;85-86?Center Bobby Smith&rsquo;s offensive totals also dropped off last season (from 86 to 75 points) and must improve if the Canadiens are to make a serious challenge for the Adams Division crown.This also should be the year that Stephane Richer turns into a bona-fide NHL scorer. He has all the tools&mdash;he&rsquo;s a good skater, he&rsquo;s big and he can make the right plays at the right time. But there is no consistency to his game.Newcomers: Defensemen Mathieu Schneider, the Canadiens&rsquo; 1987 third-round draft choice from Cornwall and Sherbrooke&rsquo;s Scott Sandelin, a second-year pro, should be with club when the season starts because of injuries to veterans.Camp Developments: Managing director Serge Savard told the players at the start not to expect many changes. He has kept Chelios, Ludwig and a few others happy by signing them to better deals. Roy has agreed to a one-year contract plus an option.Richer was given a chance to get his career back on track, when he was teamed with Naslund and Corson on a line, late in camp. If the threesome gets off to a fast start, it could take some pressure off the Robinson-less defense.The defensemen have been getting plenty of work in camp, because Perron knows the team&rsquo;s performance without the &ldquo;Big Bird&rdquo; will be crucial.Montreal plays 13 games in the first month of the season and none of them should be considered soft touches. A young, well-disciplined defense, helped by backchecking from the forwards, can compensate in part for the loss. &#9632;

f0023-01

Habs Prenaring For Life Without Robinson

<div class="byline">BY MIKE KANE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0024-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02484/5328065-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Former NHLer Fred Stanfield, above, provided Ric Seiling with sound advice&mdash;discipline is needed off the ice as well as on the ice.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01688/5328072-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="181" height="138"></div>After 10 years and 738 National Hockey League games, Ric Seiling is trying something new&mdash;not a complete career change, per se, but definitely a career move.Just prior to the start of the Detroit Red Wings&rsquo; training camp last month, Seiling, 29, decided to accept an assignment to the Adirondack Red Wings, where he will be a playerassistant coach for Bill Dineen. Few players leave the NHL by their own volition; Seiling did just that.&ldquo;I had a choice,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They told me, &lsquo;If you want to stay, you can stay here. If you want to take this, you can take this. They gave me a choice. They were up front with me and I decided to take the position.&rdquo;Seiling replaces defenseman Barry Melrose, Who retired in August to accept the head coaching job with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the Western League.&ldquo;I talked to Jacques (Demers) about a month ago,&rdquo; Seiling said, &ldquo;and he mentioned that he had a plan for me if I was interested in it. He didn&rsquo;t say exactly what it was, but in the back of my mind I thought that might be what it was. When I finally came into Detroit, he and Jimmy (Devellano) sat me down and we discussed it and I accepted the position.&ldquo;I mentioned to Jimmy last year during the playoffs that I&rsquo;d be interested in getting into coaching. They saw a perfect opportunity when Barry Melrose moved out to go to Medicine Hat. They were going to hire somebody, so they gave me a shot at it.&rdquo;When Seiling plays against the Sherbrooke Canadiens in Adirondack&rsquo;s season-opener Oct. 10, it will be his first minor-league game. He spent nine season with the Buffalo Sabres, who made him their first-round pick in 1977, and was traded to Detroit in October, 1986. During his NHL career, the defensive-minded right winger scored 179 goals and 387 points.Dineen said Seiling should be able to fill the dual role nicely and contribute as an active player and instructor.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s really an experienced guy at the National Hockey League, and he&rsquo;s played for some outstanding coaches. He&rsquo;s going to be able to do a lot. He&rsquo;s a particularly defensive hockey player and he&rsquo;s going to be a big help to us killing penalties and teaching the younger players how to do it.&rdquo;The way Seiling sees it, his experience and willingness to learn should help him ease smoothly into coaching.&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s put it this way,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not a natural. I played for what I consider to be the top three coaches: Jacques, the best motivator; Scotty Bowman, the winningest; and Roger Neilson, the best strategist. And I played with three of the smartest hockey players: Craig Ramsay, Don Luce and an old guy, a veteran who really taught me a lot my first year, Fred Stanfield. These guys taught me.&ldquo;Freddy taught me one lesson. We were out in California having some refreshments and Freddy said, &lsquo;Look, don&rsquo;t try and earn your respect off the ice. You work hard and you do your job on the ice and the respect will come. You get some guys that want to be the hit of the party and want to be in the limelight off the ice, but when it comes to doing their work, it doesn&rsquo;t work that way. They don&rsquo;t get any respect.&rsquo;&ldquo;He taught me that and that&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ve tried to do, work hard and not let my teammates down, and be there to help them.&rdquo;AROUND THE LEAGUE&mdash;Nineteen players, including many members of last year&rsquo;s Calder Cup championship team, were assigned by Buffalo to the Rochester Americans. The group included defensemen Richie Dunn and Dave Fenyves, the playoff MVP, and forwards Jody Gage and Benoit Hogue&hellip;Detroit assigned veteran center Mark Lamb and rookies Brent Fedyk and Jeff Sharpies to Adirondack. Fedyk, a right winger, and Sharpies, a defenseman, were Detroit&rsquo;s top two picks in 1985&hellip;Center Bill O&rsquo;Dwyer, a veteran of several seasons with New Haven, was making a serious run at a job with the Boston Bruins. O&rsquo;Dwyer had two goals and an assist in Boston&rsquo;s 6-3 exhibition victory over the New York Islanders at Portland, Me. The game drew a packed house of 6,016&hellip;When the Newmarket Saints ran into a conflict at home and needed an arena for a couple of exhibition games against Saginaw, they landed in St. Catharines, the city they left in 1986&hellip;Veteran forward Marc Crawford will return to Fredericton with another hat to wear. He will work with Express coach Ron Lapointe as a liaison with the Vancouver organization&hellip;Quebec assigned three players to Baltimore, center Wayne Groulx and right wingers Paul Gerlitz and Brit Peer. &#9632;

f0024-02

The Minors

Seiling Accepts Ground-Floor Coaching Job

<div class="byline">BY BOB WAGNER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01601/5328103-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="161" height="135"></div>Georges Gagnon played eight seasons in goal for the International League&rsquo;s Kalamazoo Wings and was a key player on the team&rsquo;s Turner Cup championship in 1980.Today, Gagnon is an unemployed hockey player. But not by choice. The K-Wings are one of six clubs in the league now serving as No. 1 affiliates of a National Hockey League club.Kalamazoo will have at least 18 players under contract to the Minneso-North Stars. An IHL team is permitted a 20-man roster, including two in reserve&mdash;one skater and one goaltender.The Wings, then, will have a complete turnover in personnel from 198687, when 22 players wore the red-white-and-blue uniform.Much the same situation prevails in five other IHL cities where teams have acquired No. 1 affiliations with NHL teams.That leaves the Fort Wayne Komets, Milwaukee Admirals and Flint Spirits as the only outposts in the league where free agents may be welcome. But the Admirals and Spirits have working agreements with four NHL clubs and the Komets with two.Nearly 100 players were cast into hockey unemploment this season because of the changing of the guard.&ldquo;And there is nowhere else for them to go,&rdquo; said Bill Inglis, general mana-ger of the Wings. &ldquo;There are no more minor leagues beyond the IHL or the American League.&rdquo;It doesn&rsquo;t leave much for guys such as Georges Gagnon or his old teammate Brent Jarrett, a center who was the IHL&rsquo;s leading scorer and MVP in 1982. Both are 28 years old.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d hoped to play a couple of more seasons and then start looking for fulltime work (off the ice),&rdquo; said Gagnon. &ldquo;I heard about the change in sponsorship at the same time as everybody else, by reading it in the newspaper.&ldquo;I never heard anything definite about (Kalamazoo) going to Minnesota until a month ago, which I felt was pretty poor to keep somebody in limbo that long. I&rsquo;m not considering myself retired by any means.&rdquo;.Gagnon was unemployed off the ice, too, although he held a number of summer jobs in the Kalamazoo area.Jarrett, co-owner of a Kalamazoo sporting goods store, was not enthralled with the manner in which he was released by the K-Wings.&ldquo;I think they could have done it a bit differently, that&rsquo;s all,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I think they could have done it in a classier way. I was never notified that I was released.&rdquo;Where does Jarrett go from here?&ldquo;Flint called a couple of times and I just flatly told them I&rsquo;m going to retire. I would have liked to have played some more in the league if it was with Kalamazoo. They got five good years out of me. We broke our backs playing for them.&rdquo;I-LITES&mdash;Bob Lakso, a 6-foot, 180-pound left winger, and Claude Noel, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound centerman, have been signed to contracts by the Milwaukee Admirals. Lasko accumulated 94 points with the Indianapolis Checkers in 1986-87 to rank among the top 10 scorers in the IHL, while playmaker Noel, who starred for the Turner Cup-champion Toledo Goaldiggers in 1983, had 70 points for the Kalamazoo Wings&hellip;The Fort Wayne Komets have agreed to terms with four of their veterans&mdash;centerman Colin Chin, left winger Mike Lekun, centerman Rod Matechuk, and defenseman Jim Burton. Burton signed a two-year contract, the first Komet since the legendary Len Thorson to ink more than a one-season pact-&hellip;With the Indianapolis Checkers going on the shelf this season, the club&rsquo;s radio voice, Mike Barack, will switch his allegiance to the Salt Lake City Golden Eagles&hellip;The Milwaukee Admirals will play their home games this season in the Wilson Park Arena. The Admirals have increased the seating, at their own expense, from 1,600 to 2,000 (2,200 with standees). &ldquo;We will have free rent for a year,&rdquo; said GM Phil Wittliff. Wilson Park is a far cry from the 8,900-seat MECCA, the building the Admirals once called home. But plans call for them to move eventually into the new Bradley Center, where there will be 17,000 seats for hockey. Milwaukee interests have NHL ambitions. &#9632;

f0025-01

NHL Links Put The Freeze On Free Agents

<h2>TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE&hellip;</h2>1. Which two current NHL goaltenders were chosen with successive picks in the second round of the 1980 NHL entry draft?2. Who played on Stanley Cup winners with both the New York Islanders and Edmonton Oilers?3. Name the three former NHLers coaching in the WHL.4. What two current Vancouver Canucks were first-round picks in the 1978 NHL amateur draft?5. What goaltender posted 10 consecutive victories in the 1970 Stanley Cup playoffs?6. What former Boston Bruin is now the penalty timekeeper at Boston Garden?7. What two teams played before an NHL-record 21,019 fans on Nov. 25, 1983?8. What team drafted Edmonton Oiler forward Kevin McClelland?9. What two men have served as both coach and captain of the Los Angeles Kings?10. How many players in NHL history have scored at least 400 career goals?<h2>ANSWERS TO THE QUIZ</h2>1. Don Beaupre (37th, Minnesota); Kelly Hrudey (38th, New York Islanders).2. Billy Carroll.3. Barry Melrose (Medicine Hat); Butch Goring (Spokane); Rick Wilson (Prince Albert).4. Brent Peterson (Detroit); Steve Tambellini (New York Islanders).5. Gerry Cheevers.6. Ed Sandford.7. Detroit and Pittsburgh at Detroit&rsquo;s Joe Louis Arena.8. Hartford.9. Bob Pulford, Mike Murphy.10. 25.BONUS ANSWER: Bill Collins.<h2>BONUS QUESTION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02394/5328134-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="580" height="794"><figcaption class="caption-body">BONUS: In January, 1971, the Montreal Canadiens shipped this journeyman, along with Guy Charron and Mickey Redmond, to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Frank Mahovlich.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0025-02

THN HOCKEY TRIVIA

<div class="byline">BY TOM BOGGIE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0026-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01640/5328165-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">The goal scoring of Steve Spott (inset) is one reason the Colgate Red Raiders are optimistic about 1987-88 being a special season.</figcaption></div>Another National Collegiate Athletic Association season is almost upon us. THN provides a pre-season look at the four conferences and their teams, beginning with the Eastern College Athletic Association. Others previewed are Hockey East, the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Schedules for all four leagues complete the section. The CCHA schedule gives the road to the NCAA championships in Lake Placid, N. Y. It is applicable for all four conferences. On page 28 is a legend of junior leagues where many of this year&rsquo;s freshmen played during the 1986-87 season.That grinding sound you hear coming out of Hamilton, N.Y., is the Colgate hockey team, champing at the bit.It&rsquo;s been six months since the Red Raiders, strong at every position and confident to the point of being cocky, were stunned in the Eastern College Athletic Conference quarter-finals by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institution. It&rsquo;s been six months since RPI freshman Brian Ferreira whipped a seemingly impossible shot through the legs of Colgate goalie Wayne Cowley in a special mini-game, to send the Raiders packing.Terry Slater, the Red Raiders&rsquo; no-nonsense coach, has seen some tough times in his 11 years at Colgate. He has never had a team in an ECAC championship game at the Boston Garden, but this could be the year he takes Colgate all the way.Here&rsquo;s a look at how this year&rsquo;s teams shape up, in predicted order of finish. Last year&rsquo;s records (league, overall) appear in parentheses.<h2>COLGATE RED RAIDERS (15-6-1, 23-9-1)</h2>Coach: Terry Slater.Key players: Premier goalie Wayne Cowley; rugged defense led by juniors Scott Young, Mike Bishop, Todd Wolf and Peter Webb; right winger Rejean Boivin (19-28-47), left winger Greg Dreschel (20-21-41), all-purpose forward Brad Martel (15-24-39), center Joel Gardner (10-20-30) and the ECAC&rsquo;s 1986-87 rookie of the year runner-up, right winger Steve Spott (team-high 21 goals).Newcomers: Right winger Marc Dupere, who missed all of the 1986-87 season with a back injury; rookie left wingers Hugh Rivard of Ste-Foy, Que., and Craig Woodruff of Toronto; defenseman Greg Wolf of East Aurora, N.Y.Outlook: Eighteen lettermen return, making Colgate one of the most experienced teams in the league.<h2>ST. LAWRENCE SAINTS (15-7-0, 24-11-0)</h2>Coach: Joe Marsh.Key players: The Lappin brothers, center Pete (34-25-59) and right winger Tim (12-2941); defensemen Hank Lammens, Mike Hurl-but, Brian McColgan and Peter McGeough.Newcomers: Center Bill MacCuaig of Massena, N.Y., and goalie Les Kuntar of Buffalo.Outlook: The offense is positively explosive. If junior goalie Paul Cohen is as good as his record indicates, St. Lawrence could take it all.<h2>RPI ENGINEERS (9-13-9, 13-18-2)</h2>Coach: Mike Addesa.Key players: One of the best goaltending tandems in the league in sophomore Gavin Armstrong and junior &ldquo;reliever&rdquo; Steve Duncan; sophomore forwards Brian Ferreira (19-17-36 at center), left winger Tony Hejna and center Denis Poissant; defense led by cocaptains Steve Moore and Graeme Townshend.Newcomers: Goalie Jamie Bellanca of Northwood Prep in Lake Placid; center Joe Juneau of Pont-Rouge, Que.; left winger Mickey Leblanc of Essex Junction, Vt.; and defenseman Clint Thomas of Anchorage, Alaska.Outlook: The Engineers actually appear to be a year away from dominating the league, but if they get out of the blocks quickly, will challenge for the title this year.<h2>HARVARD CRIMSON (20-2, 28-6)</h2>Coach: Bill Cleary.Key players: Senior goalie John Devin (9-1, 2.30 GAA as backup for departed Dickie McEvoy); Jerry Pawloski, fully recovered from last year&rsquo;s knee injury, Josh Caplan and Don Sweeney on defense; sophomore center C.J. Young and senior winger Steve Armstrong up front.Newcomers: Winger Pete Ciavaglia of Snyder, Mass.; center Michael Vukonich of Duluth, Minn.; defenseman Matt Silwa of Acton, Mass.Outlook: Harvard never lacks for talented hockey players, but the losses appear too big to overcome to put the Crimson in position for a second straight title.<h2>CLARKSON KNIGHTS (13-9, 17-13-1)</h2>Coach: Cap Raeder.Key players: Last year&rsquo;s top five scorers, including senior center Luc Borsato (16-41-57) and right winger Steve Williams (28-13-41); sophomore goalie John Fletcher (.907 save percentage, 2.99 GAA), ECAC rookie of the year last season.Newcomers: Right winger Mark Green of Watertown, N.Y.; defenseman Dave Treto-wicz of Liverpool, N.Y.; and forward Jarmo Kekalainen of Finland.Outlook: Inexperience was a problem last year and once the Knights prove they&rsquo;ve matured, the rest of the league may have trouble keeping up.<h2>YALE ELIS (14-7-1, 15-12-3)</h2>Coach: Tim Taylor.Key players: Junior goalie Mike O&rsquo;Neil; the Baseggio brothers, Dave (8-17-25) and Rob (4-18-22) on defense; junior center Julian Binavince and captain Dave Tanner, a winger.Newcomers: Defensemen Bruce Wolanin of Winnipeg and Lance Marciano of of New Rochelle, N.Y.; and goaltender Ray LeTourneau of Penacook, N.H.Outlook: Taylor has a habit of taking what looks like a weak team and building a contender. O&rsquo;Neil must repeat great sophomore year, when he backstopped the Elis to 11 one-goal &#2404; wins.<h2>VERMONT CATAMOUNTS (12-10-0, 18-14-0)</h2>Coach: Mike Gilligan.Key players: All-America center candidate Kyle McDonough (28-12-40), left winger Ian Boyce (8-23-31) and right winger Toby Ducolon (9-11-20); sophomore defenseman Marc Lebreux, recovered from a serious wrist injury that sidelined him for much of 1986-87 season.Newcomers: Goaltender Mike Millham of Chenango Bridge, N.Y.; freshman center John LeClair of St. Albans, Vt., picked 33rd overall by Montreal in 1987 NHL entry draft; defenseman Stephane Venne of Repentigny, Que.Outlook: Until the goaltending comes around, the Catamounts are going to struggle.<h2>PRINCETON TIGERS (7-14-1, 8-17-1)</h2>Coach: Jim Higgins.Key players: Top line of junior center John Messuri (17-21-38), plus 1986-87 ECAC rookie-of-the-year runner-up Greg Polaski (2113-34) and Bart Blaeser on the right and left sides, respectively.Newcomers: Goalies Ron High of Danver, Mass., and Mark Salisbury of Minneapolis; defensemen Paul Krepelka of Arlington, Mass., and Andy Cesarski of New Alexandria, Pa.; sophomore right winger Mark Payson, who missed the entire 1986-87 season with knee injury.Outlook: The Messuri line won&rsquo;t be able to carry Princeton by itself.<h2>BROWN BRUINS (9-13-0, 11-16-0)</h2>Coach: Herb Hammond.Key players: Sophomore goalie Chris Harvey; center Mike Langton and the Bums brothers, right winger Kelly and left winger Karl.Newcomers: Right winger Dave Bolduc of Colchester, Vt.; left winger TJ. Paolino of Philadelphia; and defenseman Todd McCallum of Kalamazoo, Mich.Outlook: If the scoring picks up, a second straight trip to the playoffs is a very realistic goal.<h2>CORNELL BIG RED (8-14, 11-16)</h2>Coach: Brian McCutcheon.Key players: Junior center Chris Granier and senior left winger Dave Crombeen; senior Chris Norton, still one of the best defensemen in the league.Newcomers: The jury is still out on McCutcheon&rsquo;s first recruiting class.Outlook: McCutcheon&rsquo;s influence will help the Big Red forget the disastrous 1986-87 season, but there aren&rsquo;t enough proven players to make Cornell a contender.<h2>DARTMOUTH BIG GREEN (2-19-1, 2-22-1)</h2>Coach: Brian Mason.Key players: Juniors Mark Glover, a center, and Tim Finks, a winger; goaltenders Steve Laurin and Tim Osby.Newcomers: Winger Chris Driscoll of Stoneham, Mass., and center Sean Tomalty of St. Bruno, Que.; defenseman Kevin Aube of Nepean, Ont.Outlook: Dartmouth may not be a contender, but it could pay back some debts this season.<h2>ARMY CADETS (6-16, 9-19-1)</h2>Coach: Rob Riley.Key players: Defensemen Vinny Bono and Scott Custer, both starters last year as fresh-men, and sophomores Brian Cox and Mark Hudak; sophomore center Rich Sheridan; goalie Corey Averill.Newcomers: New Hampshire all-state goaltender Brooks Chretica.Outlook: Without the line of Rob Brenner, Matt Wilson and Kevin Keenan, who combined for 50 goals last year, Army is going to have problems. &#9632;

f0026-01

Highly-Rated Red Raiders Take Aim At National Title

<div class="byline">BY LARRY MAHONEY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0027-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01596/5328196-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">The Northeastern Huskies will continue to rely on netminder Bruce Racine, who was selected to the east&rsquo;s all-America team last year.</figcaption></div>The New Hampshire Wildcats have been mired in the Hockey East cellar the past two years and it looks like they&rsquo;ll be there this year, too.But that is not the primary concern of those affiliated with the hockey program at UNH. It takes a distant back seat to the health of head coach Bob Kullen, who underwent heart transplant surgery at Presbyterian University Hospital in Pittsburgh on Aug. 29.Former 18-year UNH head coach Charlie Holt has come out of retirement to direct the Wildcats in their first seven regular-season games, before Dave O&rsquo;Connor takes over the helm after fulfilling his football commitment.O&rsquo;Connor is the defensive line coach for the UNH football team and has been an assistant hockey coach for 11 years. Holt is expected to stay on and help O&rsquo;Connor along with assistants Sean Coady and Wayne Wilson.The 38-year-old Kullen, who was a first-year head coach last year after assisting Holt for eightyears, will consult the coaching staff as he recuperates.&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve kept the kids abreast of the (Kullen) situation,&rdquo; said O&rsquo;Connor. &ldquo;They&rsquo;ve been great. They&rsquo;ve handled it well.&rdquo;But they&rsquo;re still not expected to make waves on the ice. This year should belong instead to the Maine Black Bears.After lowly finishes the first two years of Hockey East&rsquo;s existence, the Bears started to claw their way to the top last year. This could be the season they finish the job.Here&rsquo;s how Hockey East shapes up for 198788. Teams are listed in projected order of finish, with last year&rsquo;s records (conference, overall) in parentheses.<h2>MAINE BLACK BEARS (19-12-1, 24-16-2)</h2>Coach: Shawn Walsh.Key players: Center Dave Capuano, the league&rsquo;s leading freshman scorer a year ago (16-30-46); left winger Mike McHugh, voted the top defensive forward in New England; Jack Capuano, a second-team league all-star; goalie Scott King, owner of the lowest goals-against average in the league&rsquo;s history (3.06).Newcomers: Defensemen Campbell Blair of Vernon, the top-scoring rearguard in BCJHL, and highly-touted Dan Fowler of Stratford (MOJHL); speedy center-left winger Mario Thyer of St. Laurent, Que.; right winger Dan Capuano, cousin of Dave and Jack, and a promising prospect who transferred from Michigan.Outlook: The Bears have plenty of scoring punch and two solid goaltenders. They could contend for the national title.<h2>LOWELL CHIEFS (20-10-2, 22-12-2)</h2>Coach: Bill Riley.Key players: All-America center Jon Morris (35-35-70), who turned down the U.S. Olympic team; right winger Randy LeBrasseur (2019-39) a member of the all-freshmen team; goalie Dave Delfino was second team All-HE last year; defenseman Carl Valimont is underrated.Newcomers: Sniper Steve Ablitt of Richmond Hill (OJHL); right winger Eric Richard, the No. 2 all-time scorer at Avon Old Farms High School (Conn.); defensemen Mike Erickson of St. John&rsquo;s High School in Shrewsbury, Mass., and Peter Sentner of Swampscott (Mass.) High School.Outlook: The senior-laden Chiefs seem ready to make a run at the national title. However, Paul Ames, the leader of the defense corps a year ago, will be hard to replace.<h2>NORTHEASTERN HUSKIES (11-18-3, 13-21-3)</h2>Coach: Fem Flaman.Key players: First-team All-America goalie Bruce Racine; right winger Dave O&rsquo;Brien (16-24-40), center Kevin Heffernan; Claude Lodin (2-23-35), a clever, shifty defenseman.Newcomers: Defenseman Will Averill, a prep school all-star at Belmont Hill in Mas-sachusetts; 6-foot-4, 210-pound left winger Brian Sullivan from the Springfield (Mass.) Jr. Olympics; defenseman Rob Cowie of St. Michael&rsquo;s (MTJHL); center Robbie Grant of Barrie (CJHL).Outlook: Racine is one of the best collegiate goalies in the nation and should get more support up front this year than last, when the Huskies finished fifth in league goal production. The Huskies need better years from defenseman Marty Raus and John Ridpath and center Rico Rossi.<h2>BOSTON COLLEGE EAGLES (26-6-0, 31-8-0)</h2>Coach: Len Ceglarski.Key players: Left winger Danny Shea (2145-66), second-team all-star last year; right winger Tim Sweeney (31-16-47), the league&rsquo;s No. 2 goal-scorer; defenseman Paul Marshall; goaltender David Littman, No. 1 for the first time in his career.Newcomers: Belmont (Mass.) high school right winger Dave Pergola, a fifth-round draft choice of the Buffalo Sabres; center David Emma, Bishop Hendricken&rsquo;s (R.I.) all-time leading scorer; Archbishop Williams (Braintree, Mass.) right winger Matt Glennon, a sixth-round pick of the Boston Bruins; big (6-foot-3, 185 pounds) left winger John Reilly of Phillips Andover (Mass.) Academy, an eighthrounder of Chicago.Outlook: The Eagles will have a new look this year after losing five of their top seven scorers. The talented Eagles won&rsquo;t be nearly as explosive as in past years but will play tight-checking hockey and hope Littman comes through in the nets.<h2>PROVIDENCE FRIARS (7-22-3, 7-23-3)</h2>Coach: Mike McShane.Key players: Second-team all-star Gord Cruickshank (59 career goals in 92 games); left winger Rick Bennett (15-12-27), an allfreshman team pick as was goalie Matt Merten; Shawn Whitham (9-11-20) is a smooth-skating defensman.Newcomers: Defenseman Larry Rooney, a prep school all-star at Thayer Academy (Brain-tree, Mass.); center Lyle Wildgoose of Nickel Center, leading scorer in the Northern Ontario Jr. A League; right winger Patrick Madigan, a USHL all-star at Iowa, and center Mario Aube from Victoriaville (Que.) Jr. B.Outlook: The Friars should be improved in all areas and could finish higher than fifth. But they are still one of the youngest teams in a league that hasn&rsquo;t been kind to young teams.<h2>BOSTON TERRIERS (15-14-3, 19-15-3)</h2>Coach: Jack Parker.Key players: Center Mike Kelfer (21-1940), one of the league&rsquo;s best returning forwards; center Mike Sullivan (13-18-31); winger Eric Labrosse (10-12-22); defenseman Tom Ryan.Newcomers: All-star left winger Joe Sacco of Medford (Mass.) high school; Dave Tomlin-son of Richmond (BCJHL); swift-skating defenseman Phil von Stefenelli of Langley (BCJHL) and blueliner Mark Krys out of St. Michael&rsquo;s (MTJHL).Outlook: Like any young team, the Terriers will have their ups and downs. However there will be probably be more downs than ups with just one seasoned veteran on defense and a goalie, Peter Fish, who has played in just six games over the past two years.<h2>NEW HAMPSHIRE WILDCATS (5-24-3, 8-27-3)</h2>Coaches: Charlie Holt and Dave O&rsquo;Connor.Key players: Right wingers Steve Horner and Tim Hanley; left winger Dave Aiken, a 19-goal scorer as a freshman; center Mike Rossetti.Newcomers: Big, mobile defenseman Kevin Dean, a fifth-round pick of the New Jersey Devils out of Culver Military Academy (Wise.); defenseman Adrien Plavsic of Lac St. Louis (Que.); goaltender Pat Szturm, a three-year all-star in the USJHL with Thunder Bay; Pat Morrison, a standout goalie from Charlottetown, P.E.I.Outlook: The Wildcats&rsquo; season started poorly when they lost coach Kullen. But they have a good freshman class that could lead a resurgence. UNH will need big years from Hanley and Rossetti if it is to escape the cellar. &#9632;

f0027-01

Recovery Of Coach Foremost Concern

<div class="byline">BY VIRG FOSS</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0028-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01610/5328227-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">High-scoring center Tony Hrkac, the best player in U.S. college hockey last year, will be missed by the North Dakota Fighting Sioux.</figcaption></div>It may be a long time before another team skates through the Western Collegiate Hockey Association the way North Dakota did last season.The Fighting Sioux set an NCAA record for wins (40) on the way to their third national title in seven years.But the heart of that club is gone. Hobey Baker Award-winning Tony Hrkac and fellow all-Americans Bob Joyce, Ian Kidd and Ed Belfour. have all left with college eligibility remaining.&ldquo;To say the Sioux have a lot of question marks this year is an understatement,&rdquo; sighed coach Gino Gasparini.From where will the power rise?&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t see anyone being all that exceptional,&rdquo; Gasparini said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;d have to look at teams like Denver and maybe Northern Michigan, with a lot of players back, and of course Minnesota and Wisconsin.&rdquo;Minnesota finished second to UND in the league race last season and placed third in the nation, but was among the hardest hit by the Olympic team.Four players with eligibility remaining&mdash;goalie John Blue, left winger Dave Snuggerud, and right wingers Todd Okerlund and Tom Chorske&mdash;were snapped up by the Olympians.Here then, is a look at the WCHA for 198788, with last year&rsquo;s records (league, overall) in parentheses. Teams are listed in their projected order of finish.<h2>DENVER PIONEERS (16-16-3, 19-18-3)</h2>Coach: Ralph Backstrom.Key Players: Sophomore center David Shields (18-30-48), WCHA rookie of year last season; right wingers Daryl Seltenreich (27-1340) and Daryn McBride; senior goalie Chris Gillies.Newcomers: Goalie Lucien Carignan of Kelowna (BCJHL); defenseman Ken MacArthur of Penticton (BCJHL); center Jay Moore of St. Paul, Minn.; wingers Rick Berens of Rochester, Minn., and Jason Fairman of Roseville (Minn.) High School.Outlook: The Pioneers figure to benefit most from heavy losses to pros suffered by North Dakota and to the U.S. Olympic team by Minnesota.<h2>MINNESOTA GOPHERS (25-9-1, 34-14-1)</h2>Coach: Doug Woog.Key players: Center-winger Jay Cates and center Paul Broten up front; goalie Robb Stauber; defensemen Todd Richards, David Espe, Lance Pitlick and Randy Skarda.Newcomers: A slew of Minnesota high school grads. They include defensemen Sean Fabian, a physical type from Hill-Murray in St. Paul, and Luke Johnson of Osseo in Brooklyn Park; right wingers Ben Hankinson from Edina (younger brother of Peter Hankinson, last year&rsquo;s team rookie of the year) and Ken Gernander of Grainway in Coleraine; center Jason Miller of Kennedy in Bloomington; center-left winger Lance Werness of Burnsville; left winger Grant Bischoff of Grand Rapids and goalie Al Fritsinger of Burnsville.Outlook: Offense is suspect with Corey Millen, Dave Snuggerud and Steve MacSwain gone. Goaltending solid with Stauber back.<h2>NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING SIOUX (29-6, 40-8)</h2>Coach: Gino Gasparini.Key Players: Center-winger Steve Johnson (26-44-70), centers Scott Koberinski and Lee Davidson; defensemen Russ Parent, Murray Baron, Mike LaMoine and Tom Benson.Newcomers: A load of players from the BCJHL, including three from Langley&mdash;center Neil Eisenhut, linemate Bruce Kenward, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound grinding right winger, and center Jeff McLean; left winger-centers Mike McCormick from Richmond (BCJHL) and Garry Valk from Sherwood Park (AJHL), and defenseman Geoff Smith from St. Albert (AJHL); Warroad (Minn.) High School defensemen David Marvin.Outlook: The Sioux could contend if a goalie steps forward to replace second-team all-American Belfour, who left to join the Chicago Blackhawks.<h2>WISCONSIN BADGERS (17-17-1, 23-18-1)</h2>Coach: Jeff Sauer.Key Players: Left winger Paul Ranheim (2435-59), right winger Steve Tuttle (31-21-52); centers Chris Tancill and Gary Shuchuk; goalie Dean Anderson and defenseman Shaun Sabol.Newcomers: Defensemen Rob Andringa of Madison (USJHL), Chris Jensen and Rodger Sykes, both from Northwood Prep, Lake Placid; wingers Joe Decker of Kennedy (Bloomington, Minn.) High School, 6-foot-4, 212-pound Jon Helgeson of Roseau (Minn.) High School and Don Granato of Madison (USJHL), younger brother of ex-Badger star Tony Granato.Outlook: With goalie Mike Richter gone to the U.S. Olympic team, the key for the Badgers is how Anderson plays in goal. He has no proven backup.<h2>COLORADO COLLEGE TIGERS (12-22-1, 17-24-1)</h2>Coach: Mike Bertsch.Key Players: Forward-defenseman Cal Brown and goalie Derek Pizzey (.903 save percentage, second-best in league last year).Newcomers: Goalie Jon Gustafson of Fort Frances, Ont.; defensemen Trevor Pochipinski of Penticton (BCJHL), Jody Praznik of Selkirk (MJHL); centers Jon Manthey (school-record 37 goals at Anoka, Minn.) and Ed Zawatsky, 68-84-152 with Yorkton (SJHL); right winger Kevin Lee of Stratford (MOJHL).Outlook: Loss of senior Doug Clarke to the Calgary Flames hurts. Pizzey&rsquo;s goaltending is a key for the extremely young Tigers.<h2>NORTHERN MICHIGAN WILDCATS (16-18-1, 18-21-1)</h2>Coach: Rick Comley.Key Players: Defenseman Darryl Olson and goalie Mike Jeffrey.Newcomers: Left winger Daryl Plandowski from Lloydminster (SJHL), and right winger Dave Shyiak of Humboldt (SJHL); BCJHL scoring champ Kevin Scott of Vernon, a center and eighth-round draft pick of Detroit.Outlook: The Wildcats are strong in goal with Jeffrey, and solid defensively. But can they score with Gary Emmons and Joe West gone?<h2>MICHIGAN TECH HUSKIES (11-23-1, 11-28-1)</h2>Coach: Herb Boxer.Key Players: Right wingers John Archibald and Brian Hannon, center Tom Bissett and defenseman Scott White.Newcomers: Goaltender Damian Rhodes of Richfield High School, where he was named top goalie in the state of Minnesota; Cariboo College (Kelowna, B.C.) transfers Rod Ceder-berg, a right winger, and Jamie Russell, a defenseman.Outlook: The Huskies finished strongly the last two years, but still occupied the basement. They should escape cellar if Rhodes and holdover Frank Furlan can do job in goal.<h2>MINNESOTA-DULUTH BULLDOGS (11-23-1, 11-27-1)</h2>Coach: Mike Sertich.Key Players: Defensemen Mike DeAngelis and Dennis Vaske; right winger Sandy Smith, left winger Bob Alexander and goalies Mike Cortes, Rick Hayko and John Hyduke.Newcomers: Center-winger Darrin Amundson of Duluth East (Minn.) High School; centers Jerry Chumola of Winnipeg South (MJHL), Shawn Howard of Vernon (BCJHL), 104-point man Scott Keller of St. Boniface (MJHL), and quick Chris Lindberg of Estevan (SJHL); winger Darren Nauss of North Battleford (SJHL); defensemen Greg Andrusak of Kelowna (BCJHL), Kris Miller of Greenway (Minn.) High School, a fourth-round draft pick of Montreal, and U.S. International transfer Shjon Podein.Outlook: Only Michigan Tech gave up more goals than the Bulldogs last year, so improved goaltending is a must for Duluth to make a move on the first division. The Bulldogs graduated players who totalled 80 of last year&rsquo;s 121 goals. &#9632;

f0028-01

Olympics, Defections Take Toll On WCHA

AJHL&mdash;Alberta Jr. A Hockey League, BCJHL&mdash;British Columbia Jr. A Hockey League, CJHL&mdash;Central Ontario Jr. B Hockey League, COJHL&mdash;Central Ontario Jr. A Hockey League, GHJHL&mdash;Golden Horseshoe (Ont.) Jr. B Hockey League, MJHL&mdash;Manitoba Jr. A Hockey League, MOJHL&mdash;Midwestern Ontario Jr. B Hockey League, MTJHL&mdash;Metropolitan Toronto Jr. B Hockey League, OJHL&mdash;Ontario Jr. A Hockey League, SJHL&mdash;Saskatchewan Jr. A Hockey League, USJHL&mdash;United States Hockey League, WOJHL&mdash;Western Ontario Jr. B Hockey League. &#9632;

LEGEND

<div class="byline">BY BILL CRAWFORD</div>As the cynic says, &ldquo;If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we&rsquo;d all have a merrier Christmas.&rdquo;Well, cynicism or not, &ldquo;ifs and buts&rdquo; are very real factors in predicting a finish for the Central Collegiate Hockey Association this season.On paper, Western Michigan is very strong. But second-year players are anchoring the Bronco hopes, and we all know how sophomoric they can be.Michigan State, Bowling Green, Ohio State, and Ferris State all lost a lot of production. Lake Superior State lost numbers and leadership, but maintained the bulk of its scoring and defense. Illinois-Chicago has 16 veterans back, but lost valuable defenders.&ldquo;If&hellip;but&hellip;&rdquo;Teams are listed in predicted order of finish, with last year&rsquo;s records (conference, overall) in parentheses.<h2>WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS (16-16, 23-20)</h2>Coach: Bill Wilkinson.Key Players: Junior goalie Bill Hom (3.95 goals-against average); centers Paul Polillo and Jeff Green (28 goals); left winger Bill Armstrong; defenseman Mike Posma (12-31-43).Newcomers: CenterTom Augue, 56-47-103 in 37 games with St. Michael&rsquo;s (MTJHL), and Mike Eastwood, a 103-point center-winger from Pembroke (COJHL).Outlook: The Broncos can win the regularseason title, but they must gel as a team.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01525/5328303-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="760" height="1252"><figcaption class="caption-body">Nifty Nelson Emerson, a 61-point scorer, is a key man for Bowling Green.</figcaption></div><h2>MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS (23-8-1, 30-9-2)</h2>Coach: Ron Mason.Key Players: Centers Kip Miller (22-20-42), Brian McReynolds and Bobby Reynolds; left winger Bruce Rendall, right winger Danton Cole; defensemen Tom Tilley, Brad Hamilton and Sean Clement.Newcomers: Center Shawn Heaphy (67-63130) and 6-foot-3 winger Pat Murray (109 points), linemates with Stratford (MOJHL); goaltenders Jamie Stewart of Richmond (BCJHL) and Jason Muzzati of St. Michael&rsquo;s (MTJHL).Outlook: Potential is there, as usual. State has a great program. If the goaltenders show they can replace departed Bob Essensa and Norm Foster, look out for the Spartans.<h2>LAKE SUPERIOR LAKERS (19-11-2, 22-16-2)</h2>Coach: Frank Anzalone.Key Players: Mike de Carle (34-18-52); right winger Mark Vermette, winger Pete Stauber; defensemen Rene Chapdelaine and Kord Cernich; goaltender Mike Greenlay (3.54 GAA).Newcomers: Freshman goaltenders Bruce Hoffort of Melville (SJHL) and Brandon Reed of Detroit Jr. Falcons; five players 6-foot-2 or taller&mdash;centers Jim Dowd of the Brick Rockets (N.J.) Jrs. and Dean Dyer of the Notre Dame Hound midgets; wingers Tim Harris of Pickering (MTJHL) and Brett Barnett of Wexford (MTJHL); defenseman Dave Divita from Stratford (MOJHL).Outlook: The Lakers lost nine players to graduation, but plenty of production returns, along with solid defense. If they establish a team concept early, they can finish at the top. They could also be fifth or sixth.<h2>BOWLING GREEN STATE (24-6-2, 33-8-2)</h2>Coach: Jerry York.Key Players: Centers Nelson Emerson (2635-61) and Greg Parks (26-35-61); left winger Don Barber (17-31-48); right winger Marc Potvin; defenseman Scott Paluch (13-38-51).Newcomers: Big defensemen Rob Blake, a Stratford (MOJHL) graduate, and Alex Herle of Lloydminster (SJHL); left winger Pierrick Maia of Stratford; goaltender John Burke of Cushing Academy in Newton, Ma.Outlook: A rebuilding season for the Falcons, who were hit hard by graduation. Losing center Paul Ysebaert, who signed with the New Jersey Devils, really hurt. So did the graduation of all-America goaltender Gary Kruzich. The Falcons have a good nucleus, but depth is questionable.<h2>ILLINOIS-CHICAGO FLAMES (18-13-1, 22-17-1)</h2>Coach: Vai Belmonte.Key Players: Centers Jeff Nelson (23-31-54) and Paul Tory; wingers Sheldon Gorski and Rob Klenk; defensemen Darin Banister and Darin Alexander; goaltenders Brad Ryan and Dave Depinto.Newcomers: Dominic Dunlap, a good playmaking right winger from Rochester (USJHL); Jim Marchi, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound defenseman for Rochester.Outlook: The Flames have 16 returning players and lots of offensive power. If the defense comes together, they&rsquo;ll be tough.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02363/5328296-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="758" height="1260"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kip Miller accounted for 22 goals with the Michigan State Spartans last year.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03236/5328289-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="758" height="1256"><figcaption class="caption-body">Brad McCaughey will be counted upon to get Michigan some goals.</figcaption></div><h2>MICHIGAN WOLVERINES (11-20-1, 14-25-1)</h2>Coach: Red Berenson.Key Players: Center and team captain Todd Brost; wingers Brad McCaughey (26-23-49), Billy Powers, and Bryan Deasley, Calgary&rsquo;s first-rounder who is sidelined until December with a broken ankle; defensemen Myles O&rsquo;Connor (15-30-45) and Todd Copeland.Newcomers: Forward Don Stone, who scored 65 goals with the Detroit Jr. Falcons; defenseman Kent Brothers, who played Newfoundland senior hockey; rugged defenseman Mark Sorenson of Penticton (BCJHL).Outlook: The Wolverines improved a lot late last season, but the loss of 40-goal man Brad Jones to graduation and ace defenseman Jeff Norton to the U.S. Olympic team hurts.<h2>OHIO STATE BUCKEYES (12-19-1, 19-23-1)</h2>Coach: Jerry Welsh.Key Players: Center Derek Higdon; wingers Mark Anderson (21-26-47) and Andy Forcey (15-26-51); defenseman Sean Clifford; goaltenders Roger Beedon and Todd Fanning.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04163/5328282-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="756" height="1262"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Posma gives Western Michigan a defenseman with offensive talents.</figcaption></div>Newcomers: Defenseman Sean and center Stacy Hartnell, twins who played for Penticton (BCJHL) last year. Stacy, a 30-goal man, broke his arm during the summer and may not start the season; defenseman Al Novakowski (6-foot-4, 220) of Humboldt (SJHL).Outlook: The Buckeyes suffer offensively with the loss of right winger Jeff Madill to New Jersey in the supplemental draft, and the graduation of Rick Brebant. Ohio State will start slowly and struggle, but Welsh has a knack for being right in the thick of things come playoff time.<h2>FERRIS STATE BULLDOGS (9-23, 16-27)</h2>Coach: John Perpich.Key Players: Center Rod Schluter (22-3153); wingers Darren Fridgen and Andy Black; defensemen Tim Corkery and Clark Davies.Newcomers: Highly-touted goalie Mark Felicio out of Northwood Prep in Lake Placid, who will fight Marc Farrell for the starting job; Penticton (BCJHL) center John dePorque and 6-foot-6, 210-pound winger Justin Lafayette of Mississauga (MTJHL); Brockville (COJHL) defenseman Dan Rolfe, who is as big as his dad, former NHLer Dale Rolfe, at 6-foot-5, 205 pounds.Outlook: Perpich did well last season, but it seems the Ferris wheel is always starting from the ground up. The Bulldogs&rsquo; goaltending must come through.<h2>MIAMI REDSKINS (8-24, 8-31)</h2>Coach: Bill Davidge.Key Players: Center Mike Om (22-23-45); right winger Jeff Sisto (21 goals); left winger Boyd Sutton; goaltender Steve McKichan.Newcomers: Right winger Scott and defenseman Jaan Luik from Toronto Marlboro midgets; Todd Harkins, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound winger with Aurora (OJHL); center Jim Bodden, a 32-goal-man with Chatham (WOJHL); defenseman Joe Silvestre of St. Catharines (GHJHL).Outlook: A lot must go right for the Redskins to improve on a last-place finish. &#9632;

f0029-01

Western Michigan Favorites To Prevail

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1347/5328512-1-eng-US/f0030-132.jpg" title="f0030-13" width="530" height="836"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1735/5328519-1-eng-US/f0030-172.jpg" title="f0030-17" width="183" height="130"></div><h2>OCTOBER</h2><h2>NOVEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1443/5328505-1-eng-US/f0030-142.jpg" title="f0030-14" width="512" height="222"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1543/5328498-1-eng-US/f0030-152.jpg" title="f0030-15" width="556" height="922"></div><h2>DECEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1635/5328491-1-eng-US/f0030-162.jpg" title="f0030-16" width="524" height="166"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1830/5328484-1-eng-US/f0030-182.jpg" title="f0030-18" width="506" height="482"></div><h2>JANUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-1924/5328477-1-eng-US/f0030-192.jpg" title="f0030-19" width="510" height="453"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-2020/5328470-1-eng-US/f0030-202.jpg" title="f0030-20" width="508" height="1154"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-2114/5328463-1-eng-US/f0030-212.jpg" title="f0030-21" width="494" height="122"></div><h2>FEBRUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-2212/5328456-1-eng-US/f0030-222.jpg" title="f0030-22" width="528" height="746"></div><h2>WCHA PLAYOFFS</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-2310/5328449-1-eng-US/f0030-232.jpg" title="f0030-23" width="532" height="50"></div><h2>MARCH</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-248/5328442-1-eng-US/f0030-242.jpg" title="f0030-24" width="540" height="42"></div> &#9632;

f0030-13

WESTERN COLLEGIATE

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-257/5328613-1-eng-US/f0030-252.jpg" title="f0030-25" width="511" height="189"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-304/5328620-1-eng-US/f0030-302.jpg" title="f0030-30" width="184" height="130"></div><h2>OCTOBER</h2><h2>NOVEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-266/5328606-1-eng-US/f0030-262.jpg" title="f0030-26" width="502" height="728"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-276/5328599-1-eng-US/f0030-272.jpg" title="f0030-27" width="507" height="346"></div><h2>DECEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-285/5328592-1-eng-US/f0030-282.jpg" title="f0030-28" width="505" height="547"></div><h2>JANUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-295/5328585-1-eng-US/f0030-292.jpg" title="f0030-29" width="507" height="58"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-314/5328578-1-eng-US/f0030-312.jpg" title="f0030-31" width="496" height="887"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-324/5328571-1-eng-US/f0030-322.jpg" title="f0030-32" width="502" height="512"></div><h2>FEBRUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-334/5328564-1-eng-US/f0030-332.jpg" title="f0030-33" width="534" height="462"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-344/5328557-1-eng-US/f0030-342.jpg" title="f0030-34" width="522" height="850"></div>ECAC PLAYOFFS<h2>MARCH</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-353/5328550-1-eng-US/f0030-352.jpg" title="f0030-35" width="552" height="70"></div> &#9632;

f0030-25

EASTERN COLLEGES

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01548/5328707-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg" title="f0031-01" width="516" height="360"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-03280/5328714-1-eng-US/f0031-032.jpg" title="f0031-03" width="185" height="136"></div><h2>OCTOBER</h2><h2>NOVEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-02383/5328700-1-eng-US/f0031-022.jpg" title="f0031-02" width="534" height="356"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-04208/5328693-1-eng-US/f0031-042.jpg" title="f0031-04" width="493" height="832"></div><h2>DECEMBER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-05164/5328686-1-eng-US/f0031-052.jpg" title="f0031-05" width="485" height="272"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-06132/5328679-1-eng-US/f0031-062.jpg" title="f0031-06" width="502" height="276"></div><h2>JANUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-07115/5328672-1-eng-US/f0031-072.jpg" title="f0031-07" width="518" height="982"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-08103/5328665-1-eng-US/f0031-082.jpg" title="f0031-08" width="505" height="409"></div><h2>FEBRUARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-0989/5328658-1-eng-US/f0031-092.jpg" title="f0031-09" width="507" height="721"></div>H. EAST PLAYOFFS<h2>MARCH</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-1076/5328651-1-eng-US/f0031-102.jpg" title="f0031-10" width="560" height="89"></div> &#9632;

f0031-01

HOCKEY EAST

<div class="byline">BY RANDY RUSSON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01578/5328752-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="593" height="1236"><figcaption class="caption-body">Windsor Spitfires acquired defenseman Scott Taylor from the Kitchener Rangers.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-02423/5328759-1-eng-US/f0032-022.jpg" title="f0032-02" width="183" height="136"></div>Trade winds blew, axes fell, tempers flared and pucks filled the nets as the new Ontario League season welcomed October.Windsor Spitfires&rsquo; general manager Jim Rutherford, trying to figure out what to do with seven last-year defensemen on his roster, swung a trade in hopes of following it with another.But after getting 19-year-old defenseman Scott Taylor from the Kitchener Rangers for 19-year-old blueliner Joe Ranger and overage forward Wilf Payne, the Spitfires ran into a snag when a proposed deal with the Kingston Canadians fell through.Steve Seftel, a 19-year-old left winger, was supposed to be heading for Windsor, but Kingston general manager Gord Wood nixed the deal that would have made the big forward a Spitfire and Taylor a Canadian.Taylor, who was told to stay home and await a second trade, eventually joined the Spitfires&mdash;bringing back to seven the number of final-year rearguards.Kitchener, meanwhile, inherited the continuing injury woes of Ranger. Though the defenseman was healthy in camp, the question was, &ldquo;For how long?&rdquo; Shoulder problems have limited Ranger to 74 OHL games in three years, including just one last season. He was the 10th-round pick of the NHL&rsquo;s New York Rangers in 1986.At Sault Ste. Marie, meanwhile, coach and general manager Don Boyd not only moved a former first-round draft choice in Steve Bisson, but handed releases to three players who played with the Greyhounds last season.Tired of waiting for defenseman Bisson to reach his potential. Boyd sent the 19-year-old to Cornwall in return for 18-year-old right winger Glen Johnston.Just a few days after making the trade, Boyd put the OHL careers of veteran forwards Mike Kolodziejczyk and Rob Reid, plus goalie Rob Watson in doubt, by placing the trio on waivers.While Boyd was bidding adieu to four of his veterans, Oshawa Generals* coach Paul Theriault was saying hello to one of his.After being granted time off to go home and consider his options, big forward Tony Joseph returned to the Generals.Joseph, who produced just five goals and 121 penalty minutes over 85 games in his first two seasons with the Generals, spent a few days in Cornwall after an incident during the Generals&rsquo; second game of the season, a 4-2 win over the Hamilton Steelhawks.The trouble started when Steelhawk tough guy Dennis Vial speared Joseph and received a five-minute major. Realizing Joseph was angry, Theriault kept his charge on the bench for 15 minutes, hoping he&rsquo;d cool down.But when Joseph was allowed to return to the ice, he defied Theriault and tried to get at Vial, earning himself a game misconduct.Theriault left Oshawa for two days, before returning without missing a game. In two games this season, Joseph had one goal&mdash;half of what he counted in 44 games last season.Theriault downplayed the incident involving Joseph, though he added that, &ldquo;something like this can bring out the market value in a player. All of a sudden, we had 14 teams pretty interested in Tony Joseph.&rdquo;ONTARIO OUTTAKES&mdash;The London Knights briefly lost overage forwards Greg Vey and Billie McMillan to academic red tape. The two, acquired from the Peterborough Petes for a 1989 fifth-round draft choice, ran into difficulties getting accepted into the University of Western Ontario. Vey returned after missing one game, however, while general manager Wayne Maxner said McMillan had also solved his problems and was expected back. Both players attended Trent University in Peterborough last season&hellip;As the league finished its second week of action, there were a couple of surprises in the Emms Division. The London Knights and the Kitchener Rangers, picked by many to finish out of the playoffs, were tied for first place with identical 3-1 records. London rookie goalie David Schill, a 12th-round pick, made his first OHL start a winning one. He earned first-star status in a 4-3 win over the Greyhounds at the Soo&hellip;Kitchener, meanwhile, was 3-1 despite allowing 23 goals. The Rangers were averaging 6.5 goals per game, and overager Ron Goodall had nine goals to start the season&hellip;Sudbury Wolves got off to a good start, and then reverted to their usual losing ways. New coach John Wallin&rsquo;s first three games back of the Wolves&rsquo; bench produced two over the North Bay Centennials and another over the Soo. In beating the Soo, Sudbury allowed the Greyhounds just one shot on goal in the entire first period. The Wolves, who missed the playoffs six of the last seven years, then lost their next three games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-0684/5328745-1-eng-US/f0032-062.jpg" title="f0032-06" width="544" height="756"><figcaption class="caption-body">Michael Arsenault</figcaption></div>THE HOCKEY NEWS is delighted to announce that JOFA/TITAN will again spon-sorthe Minor Hockey Player of the Week Showcase in THN.Starting with the Oct. 23, 1987 issue of THN, the first of 22 issues, a minor hockey player will be chosen from nominees submitted by minor coaches and parents in both the U.S. and Canada. All nominees will be eligible for selection as 1987-88 JOFA/TITAN Minor Hockey Player of the Year.The winner will receive a special award at the THN awards ceremony in Toronto. The winner and his parents will be invited to attend, with all hotel and transportation expenses paid by JOFA TITAN. Last year&rsquo;s winner wasMichael Arsenault, a nine-year-old goalie from Stoney Creek, Ont.Minor hockey coaches and parents are invited to submit their nominees for the weekly Player of the Week showcases. Complete details on the nominees, including a photograph and biography with pertinent statistics and background should be sent to: Minor Hockey Showcase, c/o THE HOCKEY NEWS, 85 Scarsdale Road, Suite 100, Don Mills, Ont. M3B 2R2 &#9632;

f0032-01

It’s Early, But It’s Busy In Ontario League

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-03281/5328804-1-eng-US/f0032-032.jpg" title="f0032-03" width="382" height="467"><figcaption class="caption-body">RON GOODALL Kitchener</figcaption></div><h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>The Kitchener Rangers are happy to have overage junior Ron Goodall back this year.The 5-11,175-pound right wing, was Kitchener&rsquo;s top scorer last season with 105 points. Goodall began the new season with eight points in his first two games to win OHL Player of the Week honors.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-04171/5328797-1-eng-US/f0032-042.jpg" title="f0032-04" width="378" height="470"><figcaption class="caption-body">MIKE MODANO Pr. Albert</figcaption></div><h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>Mike Modano is off to a fast start in his second year with the Prince Albert Raiders.The 6-1, 175-pound center scored twice and assisted on another goal in the Raiders&rsquo; seasonopening 8-6 win to get the nod as WHL Player of the Week. Modano had 32 goals in 70 games with Prince Albert in 1986-87.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-05112/5328790-1-eng-US/f0032-052.jpg" title="f0032-05" width="374" height="469"><figcaption class="caption-body">SYLVAIN HURTEAU Granby</figcaption></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>With Pierre Turgeon gone from the Granby scene some of the pressure will be on Sylvain Hurteau to take up the slack.The overage 20-year-old left wing came out flying for the new season with 11 points, on six goals and five assists in his first four games to be named QMJHL Player of the Week.At the end of the current season, THE HOCKEY NEWS will select a Micron Junior Player of the Year.Bio-engineered for skating performance &#9632;

f0032-03

MICRON JUNIOR PLAYERS OF THE WEEK FOR SEPT. 23-30

<div class="byline">BY RICK MAYOH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-04201/5328873-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="566" height="737"><figcaption class="caption-body">Shawinigan&rsquo;s Patrice Lefebvre is proof good things come in small packages.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03260/5328880-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="184" height="137"></div>The Shawinigan Cataractes line of Patrice Lefebvre, and the Lebeau brothers could well be the most exciting in the Quebec League this season.Center Stephan Lebeau had eight goals and nine assists in four games, third in league scoring, right winger Lefebvre six goals and 11 assists in five games for fifth in scoring, and left winger Patrick Lebeau six goals and six assists in four games for seventh in league scoring.Their combined scoring touch is hardly surprising.Lefebvre (57-122-179) and Stephan Lebeau (77-90-167) were second and third in league scoring behind Chicoutimi Sagueneen center Marc Fortier (66-135-201) last year. Patrick Lebeau scored 25 goals and 52 assists for 78 points in his first year with the Cats.&ldquo;I think Lefebvre is the most spectacular player in the league,&rdquo; said Shawinigan coach Jacques Gregoire. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s only 5-foot-5 and 160 pounds, but he&rsquo;s built like a rock. He&rsquo;s a very good skater and a magician with the puck.&ldquo;His size is no problem. He&rsquo;s very Rough, aggressive and he can fight, too. Another six inches and he&rsquo;s an NHL player.&rdquo;Lefebvre, 20, a Montreal native, is considering playing in Switzerland next year.Stephan Lebeau, 19, a 5-foot-10, 181-pounder, was invited to the Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; training camp.&ldquo;He did well,&rdquo; Gregoire said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a good playmaker and can score. We use him on defense in shorthanded situations and he already has two shorthanded goals. He&rsquo;s a complete player.&ldquo;Andre Boudrias (Montreal&rsquo;s recruiting director) said he could play for the Canadiens in two or three years.&rdquo;The younger of the Sherbrooke-native Lebeaus, Patrick, is 17 and heading into his NHL draft year. He is 5-foot-11 and 172 pounds.&ldquo;He wants to go to the NHL very badly,&rdquo; Gregoire said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s tough, aggressive and has good hockey sense. But he must concentrate more on his defensive play.&rdquo;Though he thinks he has the league&rsquo;s top line, Gregoire admits there&rsquo;s some competition in Drum-mondville where the Voltigeur unit of Martin Bergeron, Daniel Dore and Steve Chartrand has also been awesome.Left winger Chartrand led the QMJHL in scoring with 10 goals and nine assists. Center Bergeron was fourth with six goals and 11 assists and right winger Dore ninth with two goals and 10 assists.That gave them 48 points, two more than the 46 accumulated by Lebeau, Lebeau and Lefebvre.The Cats (3-3) drafted for size this year and took center Francois Belanger, a 6-foot-3 205-pounder from the Ste-Foy Gouvemeurs AAA midgets in the first round. Second-round defenseman Enrico Ciccone is 6-foot-4, 173 pounds. Third-round pick, defenseman Patrick Hebert, is 6-foot-3, 205 pounds.Gregoire tried sixth-round left winger Serge Lirette, a 6-foot-2, 205-pounder, with Lefebvre and Stephan Lebeau but didn&rsquo;t think Lirette was ready to handle the speed of the play. He likened Lirette to former Voltigeur Daniel Vincelette, now playing for the Chicago Blackhawks.Shawinigan has a solid second line of Jean-Francois Quintin, Robert Paget and Stephane Morin and is considered a contender for the Dilio Division title.&ldquo;We were supposed to have a good defense but Stephane Guerard is still with the Quebec Nordiques and Stephane Lavigne has quit playing hockey,&rdquo; Gregoire said.The Cats have rookies Hebert, Ciccone, Alain Peeks and Aldo Decarolis on the blue line with veterans Stephane Carrier and Eric Cour-chesne. There are 10 first-year players on the club.&ldquo;If Guerard doesn&rsquo;t come back, we may be looking for a trade / &lsquo;Gregoire said.Shawinigan has two fine goaltenders in Francois Gravel, 18, Montreal&rsquo;s third-rounder in 1987 and Eric Metivier, 18.QUEBEC CACHE&mdash;Hull Olyumpique first-year coach Alain Vigneault was feeling some heat after his highly-touted club lost its first six games. &ldquo;Now is the time for the veterans to take charge,&rdquo; Vigneault said. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not discouraged. We&rsquo;rein a hole and we have to dig our way out.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0033-04

Cataractes’ Hot Little Big Line Scoring Goals At Prolific Pace

<h2>NHL EXHIBITION SCOREBOARD</h2><h3>Final Standings as of Mon., Oct. 5</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01591/5329002-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="550" height="597"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>SAT., SEPT. 26U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM 3, DETROIT 1EDMONTON 3, MINNESOTA 3(OT)PITTSBURGH 3, MONTREAL 3(OT)NY ISLANDERS 8, PHILADELPHIA 1NY RANGERS 5, HARTFORD 3TORONTO 5, BUFFALO 3WINNIPEG 6, VANCOUVER 4CHICAGO 3, ST. LOUIS 2SUN., SEPT. 27CHICAGO 5, EDMONTON 1MONTREAL 5, QUEBEC 3BUFFALO 4, NEW JERSEY 2HARTFORD 4, NY RANGERS 4(OT)HERSHEY (AHL) 4, PHILADELPHIA 2CALGARY 7, VANCOUVER4MON., SEPT. 28PITTSBURGH 6, NEW JERSEY5BOSTON 6, NY ISLANDERS 3TUE, SEPT 29CDN. OLYMPIC TEAM 6, CALGARY 4LOS ANGELES 8, VANCOUVER 0QUEBEC 3, HARTFORD 1DETROIT 6, EDMONTON 2MINNESOTA 4, U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM 2MONTREAL 4, NY ISLANDERS 3WINNIPEG 4, NYRANGERS 4(OT)PHILADELPHIA 5, BOSTON 4(OT)WED., SEPT. 30TORONTO 9, QUEBEC 3U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM 4, ST. LOUIS 2LOS ANGELES 6, WINNIPEG 4CHICAGO 4, CALGARY 4(OT)PHILADELPHIA 5, EDMONTON 3CDN. OLYMPIC TEAM 5, MINNESOTA 3NEW JERSEY 4, PITTSBURGH 0BUFFALO 4, NY ISLANDERS 2NY RANGERS 5, VANCOUVER3THU OCT 3EDMONTON 6, CHICAGO 2NY RANGERS 6, MINNESOTA 2NEW JERSEY 6, BUFFALO 3BOSTON 3, NY ISLANDERS 0PHILADELPHIA 4, QUEBEC 2PITTSBURGH 3, HARTFORD 1DETROIT 6, ST. LOUIS 4FRI, OCT. 2WASHINGTON 2, HARTFORD 0PITTSBURGH 2, MONTREAL 1BOSTON 8, PHILADELPHIA 5TORONTO 5, BUFFALO 2WINNIPEG 2, VANCOUVER 1CALGARY 5, U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM 4SAT, OCT. 3CHICAGO 4, MINNESOTA 1NY ISLANDERS 2, MONTREAL 0QUEBEC 5, PHILADELPHIA 4CALGARY 5, ST. LOUIS 2DETROIT 8, TORONTO 4WINNIPEG 4, VANCOUVER 4(OT)HARTFORD 4, WASHINGTON 3SUN, OCT. 4ST. LOUIS 4, EDMONTON 2CHICAGO 6, MINNESOTA 5(OT)BOSTON 2, MONTREAL 2(OT)PITTSBURGH 4, QUEBEC 3(OT)<h2>EXHIBITION SCORERS</h2>MON, SEPT. 28PITTSBURGH (6)&mdash;DAN QUINN, TROY LONEY, JIM JOHNSON, WILF PAIEMENT, BOB ERREY, MARIO LEMIEUX. NEW JERSEY (5)-KIRK MULLER (3), PAT VERBEEK, AARON BROTEN.BOSTON (6)&mdash;BILL O&rsquo;DWYER (2), ALAIN COTE, RANDY BURRIDGE, KRAIG NIENHUIS, RICK MIDDLETON. NY ISLANDERS (3)&mdash;BRAD DALGARNO, RANDY BOYD, DEREK KING.TUE. SEPT, 29QUEBEC (3)&mdash;MICHEL GOULET, MIKE EAGLES, TOMMY ABELIN HARTFORD (1)&mdash;PAUL LAWLESS.MONTREAL (4)&mdash;SERGIO MOMESSO, KJELL DAHLIN, BRIAN SKRUDLAND, BOBBY SMITH. NY ISLANDERS (3)&mdash;PAT LAFONTAINE, MIKKO MAKELA, DENIS POTVIN.PHILADELPHIA (5)&mdash;PELLE EKLUND (2), ILKKA SINISA LO, LINDSAY CARSON, MARK HOWE. BOSTON (41)&mdash;RICK MIDDLETON (2), CHARLIE SIMMER, KRAIG NIENHUIS.LOS ANGELES (8)&mdash;BERNIE NICHOLLS (2), CRAIG DUNCANSON, JOE PATERSON, DAVE TAYLOR, LUC ROBITAILLE, JIMMY CARSON, JIM FOX. VANCOUVER (01-NONE.MINNESOTA (4)&mdash;PAT MICHRLETTI (2), MITCH MESSIER, RICK BOWA. U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM (2)&mdash;STEVE LEACH, COREY MILLEN.WINNIPEG (4)&mdash;DALE HAWERCHUK, PAUL MacLEAN, LAURIE BOSCHMAN, RANDY CARLYLE. NY RANGERS (4)&mdash;WALT PODDUBNY, PIERRE LAROUCHE, TOMAS SANDSTROM, MARCEL DIONNE.CDN. OLYMPIC TEAM (61)&mdash;RAY COTE, VAUGHAN KARPAN, KEN BERRY, CLAUDE VILGRAIN, SERGE ROY, BRIAN BRADLEY. CALGARY (4)&mdash;COLIN PATTERSON, JOE NIEUWENDYK, HAKAN LOOB, PETER BAKOVIC.DETROIT (6), EDMONTON (2)&mdash;NO SCORERS AVAILABLE.WED, SEPT. 30TORONTO (9)&mdash;MARK OSBORNE (2), DALE DEGRAY, RUSS COURTNALL, GREG TERRION, WENDEL CLARK, P. IHNACAK, GARY LEEMAN, AL IAFRATE. QUEBEC (3)&mdash;JEFF BROWN, PETER STASTNY, MIKE HOUGH.CDN. OLYMPIC TEAM (5)&mdash;BRIAN BRADLEY (2), MARC HABSCHEID (2), BOB JOYCE. MINNESOTA (21)&mdash;GEORGE SERVINIS, RAIMO HELMINEN.BUFFALO (4)&mdash;MIKE FOLIGNO, SCOTT ARNIEL, RAY SHEPPARD, DAVE ANDREYCHUK. NY ISLANDERS (2)&mdash;BRENT SUTTER (2).NEW JERSEY (4)-PERRY ANDERSON (2), PATRIK SUNDSTROM, JOHN MacLEAN. PITTSBURGH (0)&mdash;NONE.CHICAGO (4)&mdash;WAYNE PRESLEY (2), DENIS SAVARD, DAN VINCELETTE. CALGARY (4)&mdash;JOE NIEUWENDYK, NEIL SHEEHY, BOB BODAK, HAKAN LOOB.PHILADELPHIA (5)&mdash;PELLE EKLUND, RON SUTTER, BRIAN PROPP, BRIAN DOBBIN, LINDDAY CARSON. EDMONTON (3)&mdash;GLENN ANDERSON (2), WAYNE GRETZKY.NY RANGERS (5)&mdash;RON DUGUAY (2), GORDON WALKER (2), WILLIE HUBER. VANCOUVER (3)&mdash;MICHEL PETIT (2), STEVE TAMBELLINI.U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM (4)-SCOTT FUSCO, KEVIN STEVENS, COREY MILLEN, JIM JOHANNSON. ST. LOUIS (2)&mdash;CLIFF RONNING, GINO CAVALLINI.THU, OCT. 1EDMONTON (6)&mdash;STEVE GRAVES (2), WAYNE GRETZKY, JARI KURRI, KEVIN MCCLELLAND, GLENN ANDERSON. CHICAGO (2)&mdash;MIKE STAPLETON (2).PITTSBURGH (3)&mdash;RANDY CUNNEYWORTH (2), BOB ERREY. HARTFORD (1)&mdash;DAVID BABYCH.NEW JERSEY (6)&mdash;JOHN MacLEAN (2), PAT VERBEEK, KEN DANEYKO, ANDY BRICKLEY, DOUG SULLIMAN. BUFFALO (3)&mdash;ADAM CREIGHTON, MIKAEL ANDERSSON, MIKE RAMSEY.BOSTON (3)&mdash;RICK MIDDLETON, GLEN WESLEY, NEVIN MARKWART. NY ISLANDERS (0)-NONE.DETROIT (6)&mdash;JOHN CHABOT (2), GERARD GALLANT, ADAM OATES, SHAWN BURR, STEVE YZERMAN. ST. LOUIS (4)&mdash;TONY McKEGNEY, RANDY TURNBULL, DOUG GILMOUR, GINO CAVALLINI.NY RANGERS (6)-JAMES PATRICK (2), KELLY KISIO, WALT PODDUBNY, MARCEL DIONNE, ULF DAHLEN MINNESOTA (2)&mdash;BOB BROOKE, BASIL McRAE.PHILADELPHIA (4)&mdash;MURRAY CRAVEN, BRIAN DOBBIN, BRIAN PROPP, DON NACHBAUR. QUEBEC-MICHEL GOULET, LANE LAMBERT.FRI, OCT. 2WASHINGTON (2)&mdash;DALE HUNTER (2). HARTFORD (Ol-NONE.BOSTON (8)&mdash;GEOFF COURTNALL (4), GORD KLUZAK (2), STEVE KASPER, NEVIN MARKWART. PHILADELPHIA (5)&mdash;ILKKA SINISALO, BRIAN DOBBIN, BRIAN PROPP, SCOTT MELLANBY, LINDSAY CARSON.TORONTO (5)&mdash;MIRO FRYCER (3), TOM FERGUS, MIKE ALLISON. BUFFALO (2)&mdash;ANDY RISTAU, MIKE FOLIGNO.PITTSBURGH (2)&mdash;MARIO LEMIEUX, DAVE HANNAN. MONTREAL (11-MATS NASLUND.CALGARY (5)&mdash;HAKAN LOOB (2), MIKE BULLARD, JOEL OTTO, JOEY MULLEN. U.S. OLYMPIC TEAM (4)-TONY GRANATO (2), GREG BROWN, BRAD JONES.WINNIPEG (2)&mdash;IAIN DUNCAN, DALE HAWERCHUK. VANCOUVER (1)&mdash;TONY TANTI.SAT, OCT. 3DETROIT (8)&mdash;JOE MURPHY (2), STEVE CHIASSON, BOB PROBERT, SHAWN BURR, ADAM GRAVES, JOHN CHABOT, MARK KUMPEL. TORONTO (4)&mdash;RUSS COURT-NALL, AL IAFRATE, RICK LANZ, KEN YAREMCHUK.QUEBEC (5)&mdash;PETER STASTNY (2), JEFF JACKSON (2), JASON LAFRENIERE. PHILADELPHIA (4)&mdash;MARK HOWE (2), RON SUTTER, MIKE STOTHERS.HARTFORD (4)&mdash;PAUL MacDERMID, SYLVAIN TURGEON, PAUL LAWLESS, STEWART GAVIN. WASHINGTON (3)&mdash;MICHAL PIVONKA, MIKE GARTNER, ED KASTELIC.NY ISLANDERS (2)&mdash;BRENT SUTTER, DEREK KING. MONTREAL (0)-NONE.CALGARY (5)&mdash;JOEL OTTO (2), PAUL REINHART, LANNY MCDONALD, AL MacINNIS. ST. LOUIS (2)&mdash;TONY HRKAC, ROBERT NORDMARK.CHICAGO (4)&mdash;CURT FRASER, DUANE SUTTER, STEVE THOMAS, MARC BERGEVIN. MINNESOTA (1)&mdash;BRIAN BELLOWS.WINNIPEG (4)&mdash;RAY NEUFELD (2), PATELYNUIK, CRAIG ENDEAN. VANCOUVER (4)&mdash;BARRY PEDERSON, DOUG LIDSTER, TONY TANTI, CRAIG COXE.SUN, OCT. 4ST. LOUIS (4)&mdash;BERNIE FEDERKO, DOUG GILMOUR, TONY HRKAC, BRIAN SUTTER. EDMONTON (2)&mdash;KELLY BUCHBERGER, JARI KURRI.BOSTON (2)&mdash;KEN LINSEMAN, RICK MIDDLETON. MONTREAL (2)&mdash;GASTON GINGRAS, MATS NASLUND.PITTSBURGH (4)-MARIO LEMIEUX, DAN FRAWLEY, CRAIG SIMPSON, DOUG BODGER. QUEBEC (31-TOM MY ALBELIN, TERRY CARKNER, ROBERT PICARD.CHICAGO (6)&mdash;DUANE SUTTER (2), CURT FRASER, DENIS SAVARD, DAVE MANSON, STEVE THOMAS. MINNESOTA (5)&mdash;BRIAN LAWTON (2), BRIAN BELLOWS, KEITH ACTON, MIKE BERGER.<h2>NHL SCHEDULE</h2>THU., OCT. 8WASHINGTON AT BOSTONQUEBEC AT HARTFORDMINNESOTA AT BUFFALOMONTREAL AT PHILADELPHIANY ISLANDERS AT LOS ANGELESPITTSBURGH AT NY RANGERSTORONTO AT CHICAGODETROIT AT CALGARYST. LOUIS AT VANCOUVERFRI., OCT. 9PITTSBURGH AT NEW JERSEYDETROIT AT EDMONTONSAT., OCT. 10BOSTON AT QUEBECNY RANGERS AT HARTFORDBUFFALO AT MONTREALNY ISLANDERS AT VANCOUVERNEW JERSEY AT TORONTOPHILADELPHIA AT MINNESOTACHICAGO AT WASHINGTONST. LOUIS AT LOS ANGELESWINNIPEG AT CALGARYSUN, OCT. 11HARTFORD AT BOSTONWASHINGTON AT BUFFALOPHILADELPHIA AT CHICAGOEDMONTON AT LOS ANGELESMON, OCT. 12QUEBEC AT MONTREALMINNESOTA AT NY RANGERSDETROIT AT VANCOUVERCALGARY AT WINNIPEGTUE, OCT. 13BUFFALO AT PITTSBURGHWED, OCT. 14HARTFORD AT NEW JERSEYTORONTO AT MINNESOTAST. LOUIS AT CHICAGOCALGARY AT EDMONTONTHU, OCT. 15BOSTON AT LOS ANGELESNY ISLANDERS AT PHILADELPHIANY RANGERS AT PITTSBURGHFRI, OCT. 16HARTFORD AT WASHINGTONQUEBEC AT BUFFALOMONTREAL AT NEW JERSEYTORONTO AT DETROITEDMONTON AT CALGARYSAT, OCT. 17BOSTON AT EDMONTONNEW JERSEY AT HARTFORDBUFFALO AT QUEBECPITTSBURGH AT MONTREALPHILADELPHIA AT NY ISLANDERSNY RANGERS AT WASHINGTONDETROIT AT TORONTOCHICAGO AT ST. LOUISWINNIPEG AT MINNESOTASUN, OCT. 18BOSTON AT CALGARYPITTSBURGH AT PHILADELPHIAWINNIPEG AT CHICAGOVANCOUVER AT LOS ANGELESMON, OCT. 19MINNESOTA AT MONTREALWASHINGTON AT NY RANGERSTUE, OCT. 20CALGARY AT NY ISLANDERSWINNIPEG AT ST. LOUISWED, OCT. 21BOSTON AT VANCOUVERHARTFORD AT BUFFALOMONTREAL AT TORONTOCALGARY AT NY RANGERSNEW JERSEY AT PITTSBURGHCHICAGO AT DETROITLOS ANGELES AT EDMONTON<h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>Standings as of Mon, Oct. 5<h3>LEYDEN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02460/5328995-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="542" height="209"></div><h3>EMMS DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03355/5328988-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="544" height="235"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>TUE, SEPT 29SUDBURY 4 AT S.S. MARIE 2WED, SEPT. 30TORONTO 7 AT GEULPH 3THUR, OCT. 1KINGSTON 4 AT CORNWALL 7OTTAWA 3 AT NORTH BAY 4SUDBURY 0 AT PETERBOROUGH 5BELLEVILLE 4 AT WINDSOR 7FRI, OCT. 2CORNWALL 5 AT GUELPH 6SUDBURY 2 AT HAMILTON 8KINGSTON 2 AT KITCHENER 6BELLEVILLE 3 AT LONDON 4OTTAWA 5 AT S.S. MARIE 4SAT OCT 3BELLEVILLE 3 AT PETERBOROUGH 6SUN, OCT. 4CORNWALL 4 AT KITCHENER 7HAMILTON 8 AT NORTH BAY 4TORONTO 4 AT OSHAWA 3OTTAWA 7 AT SUDBURY 4LONDON 4 AT S.S. MARIE 3GUELPH 4 AT WINDSOR 8<h3>SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04257/5328981-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="550" height="465"></div><h3>GOALTENDING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-05200/5328974-1-eng-US/f0034-052.jpg" title="f0034-05" width="577" height="154"></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>Standings as of Mon, Oct. 5<h3>DILIO DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-06173/5328967-1-eng-US/f0034-062.jpg" title="f0034-06" width="549" height="154"></div><h3>LeBEL DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-07159/5328960-1-eng-US/f0034-072.jpg" title="f0034-07" width="548" height="155"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>MON, SEPT. 28ST-JEAN 2 AT LAVAL 4TUE, SEPT. 29CHICOUTIMI 5 AT SHAWINIGAN 3DRUMMONDVILLE 6 AT T-RIVIERES 5(OT)WED, SEPT. 30ST-JEAN 7 AT GRANBY 4FRI, OCT. 2T-RIVIERES 4 AT CHICOUTIMI 9LAVAL 6 AT DRUMMONDVILLE 5HULL 7 AT GRANBY 4VERDUN 7 AT ST-JEAN 0SHAWINIGAN 3 AT VICTORIAVILLE 6SUN, OCT 4SHAWINIGAN 5 AT CHICOUTIMI 1DRUMMONDVILLE 5 AT GRANBY 2T-RIVIERES 10 AT HULL 6LAVAL 8 AT ST-JEAN 4VICTORIAVILLE 7 AT VERDUN 4<h3>SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-08150/5328953-1-eng-US/f0034-082.jpg" title="f0034-08" width="557" height="364"></div><h3>GOALTENDING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-09137/5328946-1-eng-US/f0034-092.jpg" title="f0034-09" width="575" height="156"></div><h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>Standings as of Mon, Oct. 5<h3>EAST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-10134/5328939-1-eng-US/f0034-102.jpg" title="f0034-10" width="551" height="230"></div><h3>WEST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-11125/5328932-1-eng-US/f0034-112.jpg" title="f0034-11" width="553" height="180"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>WED, SEPT. 30BRANDON 6 AT PRINCE ALBERT 8SEATTLE 4 AT VICTORIA 7FRI, OCT. 2SWIFT CURRENT 5 AT REGINA 2PRINCE ALBERT 4 AT SASKATOON 8MOOSE JAW 7 AT BRANDON 5VICTORIA 5 AT KAMLOOPS 7SPOKANE 2 AT SEATTLE 5SAT. OCT 3LETHBRIDGE 7 AT MED. HAT 8(OT)BRANDON 5 AT MOOSE JAW 4(OT)NEW WESTMINSTER 8 AT PORTLAND 3SEATTLE 6 AT SPOKANE 4KAMLOOPS 8 AT VICTORIA 4SUN, OCT. 4REGINA 4 AT SWIFT CURRENT 5LETHBRIDGE 3 AT PRINCE ALBERT 5BRANDON 2 AT SASKATOON 7KAMLOOPS 10AT NEW WESTMINSTER 8<h3>SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-12121/5328925-1-eng-US/f0034-122.jpg" title="f0034-12" width="557" height="310"></div><h3>GOALTENDING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-13112/5328918-1-eng-US/f0034-132.jpg" title="f0034-13" width="578" height="159"></div><h2>UNITED STATES LEAGUE</h2>Standings as of Mon, Oct. 5<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-14108/5328911-1-eng-US/f0034-142.jpg" title="f0034-14" width="554" height="283"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>FRI, OCT. 2MADISON 9 AT OMAHA 6NORTH IOWA 3 AT THUNDER BAY 7SAT OCT 3NORTH IOWA 0 AT THUNDERBAY 3MADISON 1 AT SIOUX CITY 5DES MOINES 5 AT ROCHESTER 6OMAHA 0 AT ST. PAUL 12WATERLOO 7 AT DUBUQUE 4SUN, OCT. 4DES MOINES 4 AT ST. PAUL 8MADISON 5 AT WATERLOO 2ROCHESTER 7 AT DUBUQUE 4 &#9632;

f0034-01

SCOREBOARD

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0035-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01556/5329033-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Canadiens&rsquo; Chris Chelios (left) and Brian Hayward are looking to celebrate Montreal&rsquo;s second straight NHL defensive title.</figcaption></div><h2>BOSTON</h2>G&mdash;Doug Keans, Rejean Lemelin, Bill Ranford, Robert Romano.D&mdash;John Blum, Ray Bourque, Alain Cote, Gord Kluzak, Allen Pedersen, Frank Simonetti, Michael Thelven, Glen Wesley.C&mdash;Steve Kasper, Tom Lehman, Ken Linse-man, Tom McCarthy, Bill O&rsquo;Dwyer, Bob Sweeney.RW&mdash;Keith Crowder, Greg Johnston, Cam Neely, Dave Pasin, Willi Plett.LW&mdash;Randy Burridge, Geoff Courtnail, Nevin Markwart, Rick Middleton, Jay Miller, Kraig Nienhuis.INJURED&mdash;Lyndon Byers, RW, Stephane Quintal, D. Reed Larson, D, still absent over contract.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Tony Camazzola, D, and Francis Breault, RW, assigned to Maine of AHL. Returned to junior teams were Greg Hawgood, D, and Garth Premak, D, to Kamloops of WHL, Darwin McPherson, D, to New Westminster of WHL, and Todd Lalonde, LW, to Sudbury of OHL. Released outright were Randy Oswald, D. and Scott Neely, C. Staffan Malmqvist, C, returned to Sweden.<h2>BUFFALO</h2>G&mdash;Tom Barrasso, Jacques Cloutier, Daren Puppa.D&mdash;Shawn Anderson, Steve Dykstra, Mark Ferner, Bob Halkidis, Phil Housley, Ed Hospodar, Calle Johansson, Uwe Krupp, Brad Miller, Mike Ramsey, Joe Reekie.C&mdash;Paul Brydges, Adam Creighton, Ken Priestlay, Christian Ruuttu, Doug Smith, John Tucker, Pierre Turgeon.RW&mdash;Mikael Andersson, Scott Arniel, Mike Foligno, Mike Hatman, Jan Ludvig, Mark Napier, Jeff Parker, Andy Ristau, Ray Sheppard.LW&mdash;Dave Andreychuk, Jeff Capello, Paul Cyr, Clark Gillies, Bob Logan, Lindy Ruff.INJURED&mdash;Kenton Rein, G.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Doug Trapp, LW, retired from hockey.<h2>CALGARY</h2>G&mdash;Doug Dadswell, Mike Vernon.D&mdash;Al Maclnnis, Brad McCrimmon, Ric Nattrass, Paul Reinhart, Ken Sabourin, Neil Sheehy, Gary Suter.C&mdash;Perry Berezan, Mike Bullard, Joe Nieuwendyk, Joel Otto, Carey Wilson.RW&mdash;Brett Hull, Tim Hunter, Hakan Loob, Lanny McDonald, Joe Mullen.LW&mdash;Steve Bozek, Colin Patterson, Jim Peplinski, Gary Roberts, John Tonelli.INJURED&mdash;Jamie Macoun, D.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Salt Lake of CHL: Grant Blair, G, Rick Kosti, G, Marc D&rsquo;Amour, G, Chris Biotti, D, Doug Clarke, D, Eric Johnson, D, Darwin McCutcheon, D, Mike Mersch, D, Rick Barko-vich, C, Randy Bucyk, C, Benoit Doucet, C, Don Mercier, C, Jeff Wenaas, C, Peter Bako-vic, RW, Marc Bureau, RW, Rich Chernomaz, RW, Steve McSween, RW, Martin Simard, RW, Bob Bodak, LW, Bill Gregoire, LW, Stu Grimson, LW, and Martin Nicoletti, LW. Returned to junior teams were: Joe Aloi, D, to Hull of QMJHL, Kevan Guy, D, to Kitchener of OHL, Theoren Fleury, C, to Moose Jaw of WHL, Scott Mahoney, RW, to Peterborough of OHL, and Doug Picked, LW, to Kamloops of WHL. Released outright were Rene Badeau, D, Ernie Hall, D, Bruce Holloway, D, Bill Loshaw, D, Alain St. Arnaud, D, Randy Siska, C, Shawn Green, RW, and Greg Vey, LW.<h2>CHICAGO</h2>G&mdash;Murray Bannerman, Bob Mason, Darren Pang.D&mdash;Marc Bergevin, Keith Brown, Dave Manson, Bob McGill, Bob Murray, Gary Nylund, Jim Playfair, Behn Wilson, Doug Wilson.C&mdash;Steve Ludzik, Troy Murray, Brian Noonan, Denis Savard, Mike Stapleton.RW&mdash;Steve Larmer, Mark LaVarre, Wayne Presley, Duane Sutter, Rick Vaive.LW&mdash;Curt Fraser, Dave Mackey, Everett Sanipass, Steve Thomas, Dan Vincelette, Bill Watson.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Saginaw of IHL: Ed Belfour, G, Mark Paterson, D, Rik Wilson, D, Kent Paynter, D, Dave Donnelly, C, Bill Gardner, C. Following players were returned to junior teams: Jimmy Waite, G, to Chicoutimi of QMJHL, Andy Helmuth, G, and Lonnie Loach, LW, to Guelph of OHL, Mike Dagenais, D, to Peterborough of OHL, Mario Doyon, D, to Drummondville of QMJHL, Mark Kurzawski, D, and Geoff Benic, LW, to Windsor of OHL, Ryan McGill, D, to Swift Current of WHL, Cam Russell, D, to Hull of QMJHL, Sean Williams, RW, to Oshawa of OHL, and Dale Marquette, LW, to Brandon of WHL. Released outright were Ralph DiFiore, D, Rick Herbert, D, John Mynatt, D, Ian Pound, D, and Michael Breslin, C.<h2>DETROIT</h2>G&mdash;Glen Hanlon, Greg Stefan.D&mdash;Steve Chiasson, Gilbert Delorme, Doug Halward, Doug Houda, Dave Lewis, Lee Norwood, Mike O&rsquo;Connell, Darren Veitch, Rick Zombo.C&mdash;Mel Bridgman, Shawn Burr, John Chabot, Adam Graves, Joe Murphy, Adam Oates, Steve Yzerman.RW&mdash;Dave Barr, Tim Higgins, Joe Kocur, Mark Kumpel, Dwight Schofield.LW&mdash;Brent Ashton, Gerard Gallant, Petr Klima, Steve Martinson, Bob Probert.INJURED&mdash;Harold Snepsts, D.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Adirondack of AHL: Darren Eliot, G, Jeff Sharpies, D, Doug Kostynski, C, Mark Lamb, C, Bill Shibicky, C, Brent Fedyk, RW, and Kris King, LW. Returned to their junior teams were: Tom Cheveldae, G, to Saskatoon of WHL, Mark Gowans, G, to Hamilton of OHL, Gord Kruppke, D, to Prince Albert of WHL, Dean Morton, D, to Oshawa of OHL, Yves Racine, D, to Victoriaville of QMJHL, Jan Stark, D, to Portland of WHL, and Bob Wilkie, D, to Swift Current of WHL. Tim Friday, D, retired.<h2>EDMONTON</h2>G&mdash;Don Edwards, Grant Fuhr, Daryl Reaugh, Warren Skorodenski.D&mdash;Jeff Beukeboom, Jim Ennis, Charlie Huddy, Kevin Lowe, John Miner, Craig Muni, Steve Smith.C&mdash;Steve Graves, Wayne Gretzky, Craig MacTavish, Kevin McClelland.RW&mdash;Glenn Anderson, Jari Kurd, Normand Lacombe, Kevin McClelland, Marty McSorley.LW&mdash;Kelly Buchberger, Steve Graves, Dave Hunter, Scott Metcalfe, Esa Tikkanen.INJURED&mdash;None. Paul Coffey, D, Mark Messier, C, and Mike Krushelnyski, LW, absent over contract problems.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Nova Scotia of AHL: Shawn Evans, D, Selmar Odelein, D, Dean Hopkins, RW, Moe Lemay, LW. Lemay suspended for refusing to report.<h2>HARTFORD</h2>G&mdash;Mike Liut, Steve Weeks.D&mdash;David Babych, Sylvain Cote, Scot Kleinendorst, Randy Ladouceur, Dana Murzyn, Joel Quenneville, Ulf Samuelsson, Brad Shaw.C&mdash;Dean Evason, Ray Ferraro, Ron Francis, Doug Jarvis.RW&mdash;Shane Churla, Kevin Dineen, Stewart Gavin, Paul MacDermid, Mike Millar.LW&mdash;John Anderson, Paul Lawless, Tom Martin, Dave Tippett, Sylvain Turgeon.INJURED&mdash;Torrie Robertson, LW.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Binghamton of AHL: Sean Evoy, G, Peter Sidorkirwicz, G, Kay Whitemore, G, Bill Root, D, Shawn Cronin, D, Jim Culhane, D, John McLean, D, Mike Vellucci, D, Mark Vichorek, D, Gary Callaghan, C, Greg Dornbach, C, Dallas Gaume, C, Roger Kortko, C, Jean-Marc MacKenzie, C, Chris Brant, LW, Todd Channell, RW, and Yves Courteau, RW. Wayne Babych, RW, retired.<h2>LOS ANGELES</h2>G&mdash;Glenn Healy, Roland Melanson.D&mdash;Steve Duchesne, Mark Hardy, Dean Kennedy, Tom Laidlaw, Grant Ledyard, Wayne McBean, Larry Playfair, Petr Prajsler, Jay Wells.C&mdash;Bob Bourne, Jimmy Carson, Bernie Nicholls, Tim Tookey, Brian Wilks.RW&mdash;Bryan Erickson, Jim Fox, Bob Kudelski, Sean McKenna, Dave Taylor.LW&mdash;Bob Carpenter, Craig Duncanson, Dan Gratton, Joe Paterson, Luc Robitaille, Phil Sykes, Dave Williams.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to New Haven of AHL: Bob Janecyk, G, Al Jensen, G, Ken Baumgartner, D, John English, D, Eric Germain, D, Ken Hammond, D, Denis Larocque, D, Glen Currie, C, Shannon Deegan, C, Greg Batters, RW, Paul Guay, RW, Paul Kelly, RW, Sean Krakiwski, RW, Chris McSorley, RW, Brian Martin, LW, and Lyle Phair, LW. Following players were returned to their junior teams: Mark Fitzpatrick, G, to Med. Hat of WHL, Brian Hayton, D, to Guelph of OHL, Ross Wilson, RW, to Peterborough of OHL, and Sylvain Couturier, LW, to Laval of QMJHL. Greg Strome, G, and Tim Flanagan, RW, released.<h2>MONTREAL</h2>G&mdash;Brian Hayward, Patrick Roy.D&mdash;Chris Chelios, Gaston Gingras, Rick Green, Craig Ludwig, Scott Sandelin, Mathieu Schneider.C&mdash;Guy Carbonneau, Shayne Corson, Brian Skrudland, Bobby Smith.RW&mdash;Jose Charbonneau, Kjell Dahlin, John Kordic, Chris Nilan.LW&mdash;Bob Gainey, Mike McPhee, Sergio Momesso, Mats Naslund, Ryan Walter.INJURED&mdash;Larry Robinson, D, Mike Lalor, D, Petr Svoboda, D, Claude Lemieux, RW.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players assigned to Sherbrooke of AHL: Vincent Riendeau, G, Luc Gauthier, D, Gilles Thibaudeau, C, Perry Ganchar, RW, Steven Fletcher, LW, Ernie Vargas, LW. Mark Pederson, LW, returned to Medicine Hat of WHL.<h2>MINNESOTA</h2>G&mdash;Don Beaupre, Kari Takko.D&mdash;Paul Boutilier, Craig Hartsburg, Frantisek Musil, Gord Roberts, Bob Rouse, Ron Wilson, Al Tuer, Richard Zemlack.C&mdash;Keith Acton, Dave Archibald, Neal Broten.RW&mdash;Brian Bellows, Dino Ciccarelli, Basil McRae, Terry Ruskowski.LW&mdash;Scott Bjugstad, Bob Brooke, Larry DePalma, Raimo Helminen, Brian Lawton, Brian MacLellan.INJURED&mdash;Mike Berger, D, Tom Hirsch, D, Dennis Maruk, C, Dirk Graham, RW, Steve Payne, LW.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players assigned to Kalamazoo of IHL: Jon Casey, G, Mike Sands, G, Jari Gronstrand, D, Chris Pryor, D, Stephane Roy, C, Paul Houck, RW, Mitch Messier, RW.<h2>NEW JERSEY</h2>G&mdash;Alain Chevrier, Bob Sauve.D&mdash;Joe Cirella, Ken Daneyko, Bruce Driver, Tom Kurvers, Marc Laniel, Gordie Mark, Jack O&rsquo;Callahan, Steve Richmond, Reijo Ruotsa-linen, Risto Siltanen, Randy Velischek, Eric Weinrich, Craig Wolanin.Johnson, Claude Loiselle, Kirk Muller, Patrik Sundstrom.RW&mdash;Doug Brown, Dan Dorion, John MacLean, Brendan Shanahan, Pat Verbeek.LW&mdash;Perry Anderson, Andy Brickley, Aaron Broten, Jim Korn, Dave Maley, Al Stewart, Doug Silliman.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Utica of AHL: Craig Billington, G, Peter Fry, G, Murray Brumwell, D, John Bless-man, D, Shayne Doyle, D, Alan Hepple, D, Jamie Huscroft, D, Dave Marcinyshyn, D, Jay Octeau, D, Chris Cichocki, RW, Rich Adolphi, RW, Dave Anderson, LW, Jamie McKinley, RW, Wally Chapman, RW, John Walker, LW, Brian Verbeek, RW, Jeff Madill, RW, Paul Yse-baert, C, Steve Tsujiura, C, Alain Charland, C, Pat Conacher, C, Dave Gans, C, and Tim Lenardon, C. Troy Crowder, RW, returned to North Bay of OHL.<h2>NY ISLANDERS</h2>G&mdash;Kelly Hrudey, Billy Smith, Marty Wakelyn.D&mdash;Brian Curran, Gerald Diduck, Gord Dineen, Jeff Finley, Tomas Jonsson, Steve Kon-royd, Ken Leiter, Ken Morrow, Denis Potvin, Vern Smith.C&mdash;Bob Bassen, Pat LaFontaine, Brent Sutter, Bryan Trottier.RW&mdash;Neal Coulter, Brad Dalgarno, Patrick Flatley, Alan Kerr, Mikko Makela, Garnet McKechney.LW&mdash;Greg Gilbert, Dale Henry, Derek King, Rich Kromm, Brad Lauer, Randy Wood.INJURED&mdash;Mike Bossy.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Allister Brown, D, Charlie Meitner, LW, Tim Ferguson, C, and Charlie Callahan, C, sent to Peoria of IHL. Following players were assigned to Springfield of AHL: Royden Gunn, G, Brian Ford, G, Gord Paddock, D, John Mokosak, D, Bill Berg, D, Dunc MacPherson, D, Mike Neill, D, Todd McClellan, C, Bruce Boudreau, C, Tom Weiss, RW, Stu Burnie, RW, Kurt Lackten, LW, Dale Kushner, LW, Glenn Johannesen, LW, Rod Dall-man, LW, and Mike Walsh, LW. Dean Chy-noweth, D, returned to Prince Albert of WHL, and George Maneluk, G, sent back to Brandon of WHL. Gary Kruzich, G, released.<h2>NY RANGERS</h2>G&mdash;Bob Froese, Ron Scott.D&mdash;Jeff Crossman, Ken Duggan, Ron Gres-chner. Curt Giles, Willie Huber, Don Jackson, Jim Leavins, Larry Melnyk, James Patrick, Dave Shaw.C&mdash;Ulf Dahlen, Marcel Dionne, Kelly Kisio, Pierre Larouche, Steve Nemeth, Walt Poddubny, Darren Turcotte.RW&mdash;Jay Caufield, Lucien DeBlois, Ron Duguay, Chris Jensen, Stu Kulak, Willi Plett, Tomas Sandstrom, Gordon Walker.LW&mdash;Mike Donnelly, Jan Erixon, Don Maloney, Brian Mullen, John Ogrodnick.INJURED&mdash;John Vanbiesbrouck, G, Bruce Bell, D, Barry Beck, D.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Norm Maciver, D, Jeff Brubaker, LW, and Alain Lemieux, C, sent to Colorado of IHL.<h2>PHILADELPHIA</h2>G&mdash;Ron Hextall, John Kemp, Mark Laforest, Wendell Young.D-Mark Bar, Doug Crossman, J.J. Daig-neault, Mark Howe, Kerry Huffman, Brad Marsh, Darren Rumble, Kjell Samuelsson, Mike Stothers.C&mdash; Pelle Eklund, Mark Freer, Don Nach-baur, Dave Poulin, Ron Sutter.RW&mdash;Dave Brown, Brian Dobbin, Mark Lofthouse, Scott Mellanby, llkka Sinisalo, Rick Tocchet.LW&mdash;Lindsay Carson, Murray Craven, Ross Fitzpatrick, Brian Propp, Magnus Roupe, Glen Seabrooke, Derrick Smith.INJURED&mdash;Tim Kerr, RW.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Greg Smyth, 0, Jeff Chychrun, D, Craig Berube, LW, Tim Tookey, C, sent to Hershey of AHL.<h2>PITTSBURGH</h2>G&mdash;Steve Guenette, Frank Pietrangelo, Pat Riggin, Rick Tabaracci.D&mdash;Doug Bodger, Rod Buskas, Todd Char-lesworth, Chris Dahlquist, Randy Hillier, Jim Johnson, Moe Mantha, Ville Siren, Zarley Zalapsky.C&mdash;Rob Brown, Mario Lemieux, Dave McLIwain, Dan Quinn, Craig Simpson.RW&mdash;Dan Frawley, Lee Giffin, Dave Hannan, Dwight Mathiasen, Wilf Paiement.LW&mdash;Randy Cunneyworth, Jeff Daniels, Bob Errey, Risto Kurkinen, Troy Loney, Charlie Simmer.INJURED&mdash;Gilles Meloche, G, Norm Schmidt, D, Roger Belanger, RW, Jimmy Mann, RW.DEMOTIONS&mdash;None.<h2>QUEBEC</h2>G&mdash;Mario Brunetta, Mario Gosselin, Richard Sevigny, Ron Tugnutt.D&mdash;Tommy Albelin, Jeff Brown, Gord Donnelly, Terry Carkner, Steve Finn, Randy Moller, Robert Picard, Normand Rochefort.C&mdash;Paul Gillis, Alan Haworth, Jason Lafre-niere, Ken McRae, Peter Stastny.RW&mdash;Lane Lambert, Ken Quinney, JeanMarc Routhier.LW&mdash;Alain Cote, Mike Eagles, Michel Goulet, Mike Hough, Jeff Jackson, Anton Stastny.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Garth Snow, G, returned to Mt. St. Charles High School in Mass. Michel Vallieres, G, and Tom Karalis, D, released. Bryan Fogarty, D, returned to Kingston of OHL. Daniel Poudrier, D, sent to Fredericton of AHL.<h2>ST. LOUIS</h2>G&mdash;Pat Jablonski, Darrell May, Greg Millen, Rick Wamsley.D&mdash;Brian Benning, Tim Bothwell, Charlie Bourgeois, Kent Carlson, Mike Dark, Robert Dirk, Jim Pavese, Rob Ramage, Bill Root, Larry Trader.C&mdash;Bernie Federko, Doug Gilmour, Tony Hrkac, Rick Meagher, Cliff Ronning.RW&mdash;Todd Ewen, Mark Hunter, Greg Pas-lawski. Herb Raglan.LW&mdash;Gino Cavallini, Ron Flockhart, Jocelyn Lemieux, Brian Sutter.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Rob Whistle, D, assigned to Peoria of IHL.<h2>TORONTO</h2>G&mdash;Allan Bester, Jeff Reese, Ken Wregget.D&mdash;Todd Gill, Al lafrate, Chris Kotsopoulos, Rick Lanz, Luke Richardson, Borje Salming.C&mdash;Mike Allison, Russ Courtnall, Vincent Damphousse, Dan Daoust, Tom Fergus, Peter Ihnacak, Greg Terrion, Ken Yaremchuk.RW&mdash;Miro Frycer, Gary Leeman, Ed Olczyk, Brad Smith.LW&mdash;Wendel Clark, Mark Osborne, Al Secord, Dave Semenko.INJURED&mdash;None.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Darryl Shannon, D, returned to Windsor of OHL. Dale Degray, D, assigned to Newmarket of AHL.<h2>VANCOUVER</h2>G&mdash;Richard Brodeur, Frank Caprice, Kirk McLean.D-Jim Benning, Garth Butcher, Ian Kidd, Doug Lidster, Michel Petit, Dave Richter, Daryl Stanley.C&mdash;Greg Adams, Barry Pederson, Brent Peterson, Doug Wickenheiser.RW&mdash;Dave Bruce, Jim Sandlak, Stan Smyl, Rich Sutter, Tony Tanti.LW&mdash;Craig Coxe, John LeBlanc, Dave Lowry, Petri Skriko, Raimo Summanen.INJURED&mdash;NoneDEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players were assigned to Fredericton of AHL: Darren Jensen, G, Curtis Hunt, D, Robin Bartel, D, Steve Veilleux, D, Rob Murphy, C, Dave Saunders, LW, Dan Hodgson, C, and Jean-Marc Lanthier, RW.<h2>WASHINGTON</h2>G&mdash;Clint Malarchuk, Pete Peeters.D&mdash;Paul Cavallini, Garry Galley, Tony Kellin, Rod Langway, Larry Murphy, Greg Smith, Scott Stevens.C&mdash;Bengt Gustafsson, Dale Hunter, Dave Jensen, Michal Pivonka, Mike Ridley.RW&mdash;Dave Christian, Mike Gartner, Ed Kastelic, Craig Laughlin.LW&mdash;Greg Adams, Lou Franceschetti, Kelly Miller.INJURED&mdash;Kevin Hatcher, D, John Barrett, D, Bob Gould, C.<h2>WINNIPEG</h2>G&mdash;Daniel Berthiaume, Eldon Reddick.D&mdash;Randy Carlyle, Dave Ellet, Jim Kyte, Mario Marois, Brad Berry.C&mdash;Laurie Boschman, Dale Hawerchuk, Thomas Steen, Ron Wilson.RW&mdash;Peter Douris, Pat Elynuik, Hannu Jarvenpaa, Andrew McBain, Paul MacLean, Ray Neufeld, Jim Nill, Ryan Stewart.LW&mdash;Gilles Hamel, Steve Rooney, Doug Smail, Roger Ohman, Jan Ingman.INJURED&mdash;Fredrik Olausson, D, Tim Watters, D.DEMOTIONS&mdash;Following players assigned to Moncton of AHL: Bob Essensa, G, Steve Penney, G, Joel Baillargeon, LW. Bryan Marchment, D, returned to Belleville of OHL. &#9632;

f0035-01

NHL ROSTERS

<div class="byline">BY RANDY SMITH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01532/5329064-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="602" height="786"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Liut is still a premier NHL goaltender, despite his playoff struggles.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02400/5329071-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg" title="f0036-02" width="181" height="132"></div>HARTFORD&mdash;Emile Francis has not made anything close to a major move in 18 months, when he dealt Risto Sil-tanen to Quebec for John Anderson in March, 1986.That&rsquo;s a long time between drinks, and it reveals volumes about Francis and how he feels about his Hartford Whalers, the defending Adams Division champions.&ldquo;I have never been more optimistic about our hockey club than I am this year,&rdquo; said the fifth-year Hartford general manager. &ldquo;This is a solid team. We&rsquo;ve matured a great deal over the last two years.&rdquo;Francis&rsquo; reluctance to deal, coupled with his sunny outlook, indicate just one thing&mdash;the Cat is mighty pleased with the hand he&rsquo;s got.Strengths: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got the best goaltending tandem in the league,&rdquo; insists Francis.Up until last year&rsquo;s playoff series against Quebec, No. 1 man Mike Liut had excelled in Hartford, performing very much like the league&rsquo;s best goaltender&mdash;which management believes he is. Against Quebec, however, Liut failed rather badly, and he knows it. The team knows it, too.Steve Weeks remains a capable backup, who may see more playing time this year.On defense, Ulf Samuelsson is an all-star, Dave Babych was an all-star, and Joel Quenneville is as trusted as they come.The one definite Stanley Cup quality the Whalers possess is speed.&ldquo;If I could pick one ingredient for a team I was coaching, it would be speed,&rdquo; coach Jack Evans said. &ldquo;I like a fast team.&rdquo;In Paul Lawless, Stewart Gavin and high-scoring Sylvain Turgeon, the Whalers have three wingers who can really fly.At center ice, Ronnie Francis is coming off a 30-goal, 93-point season and has his sights set on surpassing the 100-point plateau for the first time in his seven-year career. Dean Evason (22 goals) is a good centerman, while Ray Ferraro (27) is anxious to prove that he&rsquo;s more than a power-play specialist. Doug Jarvis returns to spearhead the checking line.Dave Tippett, Anderson and Paul MacDermid are proven wingers, while Kevin Dineen (40-79) returns with his colossal bag of heroic tricks.Weaknesses: Even the Whaler faithful have to be worried about the team&rsquo;s lack of size on the forward lines, and particularly, at center ice. Francis, 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, is legit. But Evason, Ferraro and Jarvis all are pint-sized.What makes this deficiency doubly dangerous is that it is not likely to surface during an 80-game season, with teams basically passing one another in the night. It is more likely to show in the playoffs, when players face off against one another night after night.&ldquo;Guys like Kevin, Evason and Tippy play like 6-footers,&rdquo; Francis said.&ldquo;I&rsquo;d rather have small guys who play big than big guys who play small.&rdquo;The power play lacks punch at the points and has struggled mysteriously for about half a season.Newcomers: Mike Millar, a 5-foot-10, 170-pound right winger who shoots left, will probably be the only new face in the opening-night lineup. Millar gunned 45 goals in 61 games for Binghamton last year.Tough guy Shane Churla (249&mdash;yes, 249 penalty minutes in 24 games at Binghamton) will try to hold the line while Torrie Robertson mends from a broken leg. Robertson is expected back sometime in November.Camp Developments: The expected duel for the backup goaltender job, between Weeks and American League veteran Peter Sidorkiewicz, never materialized. Sidorkiewicz struggled throughout the pre-season and was demoted to Binghamtom.Bill Root, a defenseman who joined the Whalers in a trade from Toronto, and center Roger Kortko, acquired from the New York Islanders, also packed up for Binghamton. Right winger Wayne Babych, on the other hand, announced his retirement rather than report to the baby Whale. &#9632;

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Maturing Whalers Are Wiser For Experience

<div class="byline">By Bob Duff</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-05192/5329102-1-eng-US/f0036-052.jpg" title="f0036-05" width="457" height="457"></div>Q: Who holds the record for most shots on goal in one NHL season without scoring a goal?Raymond Khermouch, Queens, N. Y.A: Back in the first year of NHL expansion, 1967-68, Chicago Blackhawk defenseman Gilles Marotte earned that dubious distinction by failing to dent the twine despite aiming 153 shots on goal.In 1986-87, Quebec rearguard Dave Shaw gave Marotte a run for his money. Shaw failed to score in 136 shots, earning him second spot on the all-time list.Q: Which NHL player holds the record for most assists in one season without scoring a goal?Norm Autio, Sudbury, Ont.A: Barry Wilkins holds that record. Playing with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1975-76, Wilkins scored no goals and 27 assists in 75 games. It was the only full season of Wilkins&rsquo; 418-game NHL career that he did not register at least two goals.Q: What was the average height and weight of the Toronto Maple Leafs last season? Were they the smallest team in the NHL?J. Belcastro, Welland, Ont.A: In point of fact, the Leafs were nowhere near the lightest or smallest team in the NHL last season.Based on the final NHL rosters, Toronto&rsquo;s average was 6 feet, 190.6 pounds&mdash;virtually identical to the league average of 6 feet and 191 pounds. Every team in the league except Buffalo, Philadelphia and Washington (all 6-foot-l) had an average height of 6 feet. As for weight, Pittsburgh, at 187.5 pounds, was the lightest team. Seven other clubs&mdash;Hartford, Los Angeles, Boston, Minnesota, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Quebec&mdash;also had average weights lighter than that of the Maple Leafs.Q: In the spring of 1986, the Toronto Maple Leafs finished third-last overall. In the draft that year, they selected sixth and chose Vincent Damphousse. I do not recall the Leafs having traded draft choices that year with anyone, so why didn&rsquo;t they have the third choice overall?A. L. Ostner, Waterloo, Ont.A: The Leafs chose sixth because no matter their record, the five teams which missed the Stanley Cup playoffs make the first five selections in the draft, in reverse order of their regular-season point totals.In 1986, that meant the five non-playoff clubs&mdash;Detroit, Los Angeles, New Jersey, Pittsburgh and Buffalo&mdash;drafted in that order. Then the playoff teams entered the picture. Toronto, with the worst record of all playoff clubs, picked sixth and chose Damphousse.If you want your question answered by the Duffer, send the query to:ASK THE DUFFER,347 Whitewood Rd.,Saskatoon, SKS7J 4K8 &#9632;

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ASK THE DUFFER

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04240/5329133-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="595" height="778"><figcaption class="caption-body">Best news out of Bruin camp is the return to health of defenseman Gord Kluzak.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03323/5329140-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="181" height="137"></div>BOSTON&mdash;General manager Harry Sinden had a blunt assessment of his Boston Bruins last spring, after they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, for the fourth straight year.&ldquo;We must improve our team in order to go head-to-head in a sevengame series with three teams&mdash;Montreal, Edmonton and Philadelphia,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think the way we&rsquo;re made up now we can beat them.&rdquo;Nearly six months have passed since the Bruins submitted quietly to Montreal in four straight games. Players have come and gone. Are the Bruins ready to challenge Montreal, Edmonton and Philadelphia?Not yet.Strengths: Defense should be the Bruins&rsquo; biggest asset, with the acquisition of veteran goaltender Rejean Lemelin, the return of Norris Trophywinner Ray Bourque, the rejuvenation of the injury-racked Gord Kluzak and the coming of Glen Wesley, the team&rsquo;s No. 1 draft pick, third overall.Lemelin, obtained from Calgary as a free agent without compensation, figures to provide the Bruins with frontline goaltending while second-year pro Bill Ranford leams the fine points of his trade. Doug Keans is still available for veteran backup duty.Bourque, at the peak of his game at the age of 26, is the best defenseman in the NHL. Kluzak, who missed two of the last three full seasons with knee miseries, indicated in training camp that he is ready to play all-out once again. Wesley, at 18, has already been pencilled in as Bourque&rsquo;s partner on the power-play point.Michael Thelven, the Swede who was vastly underrated as a rookie last season, is the fourth standout on defense, with journeymen John Blum, Allan Pedersen, Frank Simonetti and Wade Campbell in the background. Reed Larson, who sat out training camp in a contract dispute, may have at least one good year left. As of early October, however, he still had not reported.Weaknesses: There are holes or potential holes all across the front lines.&ldquo;We assessed all the positions after last season,&rdquo; said Sinden. &ldquo;Right wing got off most lightly, but no position came out good enough.&rdquo;Right winger Cam Neely, who wasn&rsquo;t supposed to, led the Bruins in goal scoring last season. The year before, it was right winger Keith Crowder, who wasn&rsquo;t supposed to either. The team is still seeking that elusive explosive scorer up front. The who&rsquo;s team has to work too hard for its goals.The two 50-goal scorers of yesteryear are aging. Both Rick Middleton and Charlie Simmer turn 34 during the season. Simmer, never a speedster, may be losing one step too many. Tom McCarthy, with 30 goals last year, is still inconsistent.Newcomers: Lemelin and Wesley of Portland add to an already competent defensive side, so it is up front where newcomers will have the greatest impact.Swedish rookie Tommy Lehman (who won&rsquo;t be ready until late November because of tom ligaments in his left knee), and Moncton&rsquo;s Bob Sweeney (who missed much of training camp because of surgery for a stomach hernia), were supposed to be the bright new additions to the team at center. Until both are ready, look for veteran minor-leaguer Billy O&rsquo;Dwyer, a free agent, to fill in.Camp Developments: If the Bruing learned two important things, they were these: Defenseman Kluzak has recovered from all those surgical procedures on his left knee and is ready to shine; and Glen Wesley, arguably the best junior defenseman a year ago, is ready to play in the NHL.And if there was a surprise in training camp it was O&rsquo;Dwyer, a 27-year-old center who has been around for five years in the minor-league systems of the Los Angeles Kings and the New York Rangers. He may have played himself into a permanent spot on the team, regardless of what happens to Lehman and Sweeney. &#9632;

f0036-04

Bruins No Match For Habs, Oilers Or Philadelphia—Yet

<div class="byline">BY KEVIN JOHNSTON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02335/5329171-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="597" height="898"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gaetan Duchesne was acquired from Washington for his defensive skills.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01461/5329178-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="181" height="136"></div>QUEBEC CITY&mdash;Everything&rsquo;s new in the Old Capital.There&rsquo;s a new coach, a new outlook, more new faces than old ones&mdash;and newer, higher expectations for the Quebec Nordiques.After seven colorful years, coach Michel Bergeron has left for the New York Rangers, and been replaced by Andre Savard.With only two years experience as head coach in Fredericton of the American League, the ex-NHLer has a tough job ahead.Strengths: The Nordiques&rsquo; strong position is defense. In fact, the Nords have so much depth on the blue line that they&rsquo;ll probably start the year with eight backliners.The leader of the bunch is veteran Normand Rochefort. Canada&rsquo;s best defenseman in the Canada Cup tournament, Rochefort has become a poised, mature stay-at-home blueliner.Rochefort is assisted by Robert Picard, who had an outstanding playoff season last spring. And even though he&rsquo;s still young, the 24-year-old Randy Moller is starting his sixth full season in Quebec.A pair of bruisers, Steven Finn and Terry Carkner, will also vie for jobs. Finn impressed in half a season with the Nords last year. Carkner was acquired from the New York Rangers, along with left winger Jeff Jackson, for disgruntled left winger John Ogrodnick and defenseman David Shaw.Jeff Brown is a smooth puckhandler. He&rsquo;ll get lots of action on the power play this year. Others of note are Swedish import Tommy Albelin and impressive junior Stephane Guerard.Weaknesses: Goaltending is a question mark, with the trade of last year&rsquo;s No. 1 man, Clint Malarchuk, to Washington. Mario Gosselin is now the unquestioned starter.Gosselin&rsquo;s backup will be Mario Brunetta, who played for Laval of the Quebec League last season. He won the training camp battle with another ex-junior, Ron Tugnutt of Peterborough, who will start the season with Fredericton.Veteran Richard Sevigny is still around in case of an emergency.The offense must rebound from a sub-par &rsquo;86-87, during which it fell off by 63 goals. More will be expected from a healthy Peter Statsny, who accounted for 77 points (in 64 games) after six seasons of 100-plus.Left winger Michel Goulet continued his strong play with 49 goals, but missed recording his fifth straight 50-goal season. He will miss long-time pal Dale Hunter at center. Hunter was sent to Washington with Malarchuk for Gaetan Duchesne, Alan Haworth and Washington&rsquo;s first-round pick (used to secure Joe Sakic of Swift Current).Newcomers: Savard, the new coach, welcomed Haworth, Duchesne and Jackson. All are accomplished two-way forwards. Right winger Lane Lambert, acquired from the Rangers late last season, was one of the best players at training camp.Albelin is a mobile, offensive defenseman. A standout on Sweden&rsquo;s world championship team, he can move the puck well. He could be the &ldquo;quarterback&rdquo; Quebec has been seeking for years.Another new kid on the block is young Guerard, Quebec&rsquo;s third choice in 1986. The Shawinigan product is still eligible for another year in junior hockey, but he showed so much poise during pre-season games that Filion and Savard couldn&rsquo;t afford to send him down because he wouldn&rsquo;t be eligible for recall except under emergency conditions.The other rookie is the 20-year-old Brunetta.Camp Developments: Savard might not be the most flamboyant of coaches, especially in comparison to Bergeron.But during training camp, he managed to gain the respect of everyone connected with the Nordiques. Mild-mannered, he doesn&rsquo;t get excited easily. The players seem to appreciate his style.Savard, with assistant coaches Guy Lapointe and Alain Chainey, held a camp which focused on skating, basics and physical conditioning, unlike Bergeron&rsquo;s, which put more emphasis on scrimmages. &#9632;

f0037-02

New Regime Will Put Emphasis On Defense

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03254/5329209-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg"></div> &#9632;

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The Hockey News Classified

<div class="byline">BY JIM KELLEY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01538/5329240-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg" title="f0038-01" width="182" height="131"></div>BUFFALO&mdash;Reality can be extremely painful.The Buffalo Sabres and their fans have finally come to grips with that.The Sabres are no longer mentioned as challengers for the Stanley Cup. Two years out of the playoffs will do that.Finally, though, it is a new era in Buffalo. Scott Bowman is gone. General manager Gerry Meehan and coach Ted Sator have been installed in his place.Expectations, once high in this championship-starved city, have been tempered by the reality of losing. The slow process of rebuilding a once highly-successful team has begun.Strengths: Most of these are unproven, but there are positive signs.For starters, management definitely has control of the team now. Players no longer look to the front office for signs of instability. The GM appears secure. So do his coaches.On the ice, the Sabres are strong up the middle with centers John Tucker, Christian Ruuttu and rookie wonder Pierre Turgeon. There is a quality scorer on the left side in Dave Andreychuk and a tenacious winger on the right side in Mike Foligno. Buffalo is formidable in goal with Tom Barrasso, Jacques Cloutier and rookie Daren Puppa and has two quality defensemen&mdash;Mike Ramsey and Phil Housley.Weaknesses: There is still a dearth of scoring on the left side, where only Andreychuk is a consistent threat. Things are marginally better on the right, where Foligno is clearly No. 1, but the Sabres don&rsquo;t yet know what to expect from veteran Mark Napier (obtained late last season from Edmonton) or rookie Ray Sheppard (up from Rochester of the American League).The defense is still likely to be a trouble spot, especially if second-year man Joe Reekie is slow to return from a shoulder injury. The unit has young but unproven talent in rookie Calle Johansson and second-year men Shawn Anderson and Uwe Krupu Rochester veteran Mark Ferner holding down the spot vacated by the retired Lee Fogolin.Brad Miller of Regina, the team&rsquo;s first pick in the second round of the 1987 entry draft, and Bob Halkidis of Rochester were still with the big team but are also unproven and likely to be sent back to their respective clubs for more seasoning. There is some toughness back there, courtesy of Steve Dykstra, but he too needs more polish at his position.Newcomers: Turgeon, the No. 1 pick in the 1987 draft and the most awaited player since Mario Lemieux, is the key new arrival.The rookie center from the Granby Bisons scored a goal on his first shot on his first shift of exhibition play and was a factor in every game he played.Johansson, the team&rsquo;s No. 1 selection in 1985, could also be a force this season. The 20-year-old defensement had a strong training camp, showen good ability to move the puck and is strong, yet quick on his feet.Sheppard is the big unknown in the equation. The former junior scoring sensation (81 goals with Cornwall in the Ontario League two seasons ago) was given the role of sniper alongside Turgeon during the pre-season and performed well.His skating is still supsect, but Sheppard, once relatively cavalier about what he had to do to perform in the NHL, now seems serious about his career. He reported to camp six pounds under his playing weight of a season ago and his bodyfat ratio is one of the lowest on the team.Camp Developments: The biggest have been in the promise of youth and the attitute of veterans.Youthful players showed well in the pre-season and helped the Sabres the club-record six (as of Sept. 30) pre season victories. The attitute of the veterans also seems much improved with traditional laggards reporting in extrodinary shape. Having Sator available from day one of camp had a positive effect.On paper and in pre-season, it would appear the Sabres have enough to challenge for as high as third in the division. There are loads of question marks, however, the biggest being how well Turgeon, Sheppard and Johanson perform over the long haul and how well disappointing veterans accept the mantle of responsibility. &#9632;

f0038-01

Buffalo’s Improvement Starts At The Ton

<div class="byline">BY LARRY HUMBER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01508/5329278-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04209/5329271-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="600" height="568"></div><h2>ACROSS:</h2>1. Islander president and general manager, he&rsquo;s pictured (6).4. When players drop them, a fight usually results (6).9. Former Kings&rsquo; netminder was named to NHL second all-star team in 1981 (7).10. Still in contention (5).11. Throws out (5).12. First of two Oilers named Smythe Trophy winner (7).13. Was an NHL official for 18 seasons, Bruce-&mdash;(4).15. The first Calder Trophy winner, he eventually became NHL Referee-in-chief (4).18. Nickname given line of Ken Wharram-Stan Mikita-Ab McDonald (7).21. Had a brief stint as Red Wings&rsquo; coach in 1985 (5).23. Was Canucks&rsquo; leading pointgetter last season (5).24. Holds NHL record for power-play goals in a season (3,4).25. Jitters (6).26. Toronto suburb is Paul Coffey&rsquo;s birthplace (6).<h2>DOWN:</h2>1. Canucks&rsquo; first-ever draft pick, Dale&mdash;(6).2. Breaks (5).3. Expired (7).5. Hap Day captained this club, 1927-37 (5).6. Nickname of Mario Lemieux&rsquo;s junior team, Laval&mdash;--(7).7. Jabs opponent with blade of stick (6).8. Red Wings&rsquo; Oates (4).14. Obscure Ranger was NHL most valuable player in 1948, Buddy (7).15. Flyers&rsquo; second captain (3,4).16. Appeared in 81 NHL games in 1986-87 after being dealt to Detroit in mid-season (6).17. Shared first William Jennings Trophy with Rick Wamsley (6).19. Number of times Bobby Orr topped NHL points race (5).20. Holds Canuck record for most points in a season by left winger (4).22. Dave Poulin was one when acquired by Flyers in 1983, free (5).Crossword solution in Classified Section on oaae 37. &#9632;

f0039-01

CROSSWORD

<h2>35 YEARS AGO:</h2>&bull; The New York Rangers&rsquo; hopes of making the 1952-53 playoffs after a fifth-place 1951-52 campaign were dealt a blow, when their best center, Don Raleigh, broke his wrist before the season started. Raleigh missed 15 games, but it was doubtful his healthy presence could have helped much. The Blueshirts published last in &rsquo;52-53, 19 points out of the playoffs.&bull; Toronto Maple Leaf rookie defenseman Tim Horton set a new trend in the NHL. It was believed he was the first player ever to play while wearing contact lenses. The contacts didn&rsquo;t hurt him; he enjoyed a fine rookie campaign, the first of his 22 NHL seasons.<h2>25 YEARS AGO.</h2>&bull; A poll of media experts in the NHL&rsquo;s six cities picked the Detroit Red Wings to finish fifth and out of the playoffs for the second year in a row. But the Wings, led by 1962-63 scoring champ Gordie Howe, finished fourth, seven points above. 500, and went all the way to the Stanley Cup finals before losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs.&bull; Eleven-year minor-pro goalie Bob Perreault finally got the chance he was waiting for&mdash;an NHL job. Perreault, who had only nine games of NHL experience before being called up by the &rsquo;62-63 Boston Bruins, played 22 games for the Beantowners before being sent back for good. Ten years later, as a 41-year-old, he played his only other major pro game, for Los Angeles of the World Hockey Association. &#9632;

THIS MONTH…

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02353/5329333-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Pittsburgh Penguin goalie Roy Edwards smothers the puck and in turn gets smothered by teammate Dave Burrows (2), during an early-&rsquo;70s game in Buffalo against the Sabres. Buffalo&rsquo;s Ron Anderson (16) and Pittsburgh&rsquo;s Keith McCreary (14) provide a cushion for Burrows&rsquo; fall.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0039-02

THE WAY WE WERE

<div class="byline">BY HOWARD BERGER</div>Mike Walton&rsquo;s 16-year professional hockey career was nothing if not unpredictable&hellip;or in his words &ldquo;topsyturvy.&rdquo;A self-admitted &ldquo;cocky and arrogant kid,&rdquo; Walton turned pro with the Toronto Maple Leafs organization in 1964-65 and his subsequent battles with coach and general manager Punch Imlach became legendary.&ldquo;I was among the first members to join Alan Eagleson and the new NHL Players&rsquo; Association back in 1967 and that&rsquo;s what really started my troubles with Punch,&rdquo; Walton explains.&ldquo;I scored 40 goals with Tulsa and won the Central League rookie award in 1964-65 and I scored 35 goals with Rochester of the American League the next year. I felt I had earned a spot with the Leafs but Punch wanted to keep me in the minors for another season.&ldquo;When I asked the NHLPA to try and renegotiate my contract, everything with Punch fell to pieces. We never saw eye to eye from that moment on.&rdquo;Nicknamed &lsquo;Shakey&rsquo;, after his dad Bob Walton, an American League veteran, Walton played parts of six seasons with Toronto. He led the Leafs with 30 goals in 1967-68 but he still considered himself the target of Imlach&rsquo;s wrath.&ldquo;Punch would try to get back at me by sitting me out of games for no apparent reason,&rdquo; recalls Walton, who scored 201 goals in 589 career NHL games. &ldquo;I remember one time during that 1967-68 season, I was having a great year and Punch suddenly decided not to dress me for a game in Chicago.&ldquo;We were on the overnight train from Toronto when King Clancy came up and said I wouldn&rsquo;t be playing against the Blackhawks. That type of thing happened every so often and I knew what Punch was up to.&ldquo;Only thing is, I couldn&rsquo;t do anything about it.&rdquo;Imlach was fired by the Leafs after the 1969 playoffs and Walton was dealt to Boston in February, 1971, as part of a three-way transaction that saw Toronto land goalie Bernie Parent from Philadelphia.Walton jumped to the World Hockey Association with Minnesota in 1973-74 and led the league in scoring that season with 117 points. After three years with the Fighting Saints, he came back to the NHL with Vancouver and finished his career in 1978-79 with St. Louis, Boston (once again) and Chicago.Now 42 years of age, Walton is president of his own Toronto-based real estate company.&ldquo;I had a pretty stormy career but there were some great times,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;And, despite my problems with Punch, I&rsquo;d like to be remembered foremost as a Maple Leaf.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03259/5329364-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="592" height="999"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mike Walton</figcaption></div> &#9632;

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October 16, 1987

Experienced Capitals Expect Best Year Yet

Wheat King GM Longs For The Old Days

CENTRAL COLLEGIATE

Is New Coach’s Fate To Be Burned To A Crisp?