ASK THE REFEREE

Q: Does the NHL follow a system for starting and stopping the game clock, in order to avoid someone altering the elapsed time of a game? G. Smeltzer,Kalamazoo, Mich. A: Each NHL city has off-ice officials, known as minor officials, whose responsibility includes both the game and penalty clocks. The official timekeeper is instructed to turn the main clock on and off with each stoppage. A stopwatch is also used as a backup for the official time kept on the main clock. The stopwatch is also used in the event the main clock malfunctions. Constant monitoring eliminates any deliberate acts which could alter the elapsed time and affect the outcome of a game. Q: I attend games in New York’s Madison Square Garden on a regular basis, and also follow summaries of other…

Full Military Honors Due ‘Little General’

Until the end, Lars-Erik Sjoberg, ‘The Little General,’ remained strong of heart, if not body. It sounds apocryphal, but it’s true. “Right up to the last phone call we had,” says New York Ranger director of player development Jack Ferreira, “he was concerned about how the job was going to get done.” For eight years, the former World Hockey Association standout got the job done in Sweden and Finland, where he was the Rangers’ scout. (See Hockey Notebook on page 9.) On his advice, the Rangers drafted the likes of Tomas Sandstrom, Reijo Ruotsalainen, Jan Erixon, Peter Sundstrom and Ulf Dahlen. “He not only knew the players who made the teams but the players who didn’t and why they didn’t,” says Ferreira. Sjoberg suffered from cancer of the stomach and oesophagus. Few knew, however. He…

Claude Lemieux: More Calculating Than Crazy

LET’S PLAY word association. Claude Lemieux. Hot dog. Claude Lemieux. Theatrical. Claude Lemieux. Smug, arrogant, obnoxious, ill-mannered, infuriating, outrageous, abrasive, mouthy, phony… Whoa, wait a minute. If you’re going to play, at least follow the rules. Only one response per inquiry. Regardless, you’re going to get a multitude of answers, except maybe the one that’s most appropriate: Excellent. Okay, it is difficult to get past the scowl on his kisser. And the protracted bouts of suffering from grievous injuries, which make you wonder if he’ll need a life support system just to get back to the bench. But when you do, everything is there to suggest that the 22-year-old Montreal Canadien winger is ready to emerge as a star in the NHL. “When his name comes up,” says linemate and road roommate Bobby Smith, “it’s in the context…

NATIONAL LEAGUE FUTURE GAMES