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.

April 22, 1988

The Hockey News April 22, 1988

<div class="byline">BY RANDY SMITH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-011016/5468777-1-eng-US/f0017-012.jpg" title="f0017-01" width="176" height="130"></div>HARTFORD&mdash;The best thing about the NHL playoffs is that they are tremendously revealing.One playoff road game reveals more about a player&rsquo;s makeup, both his physical and mental toughness, than all the regular-season games lumped together.The playoffs are a scout&rsquo;s dream. If a player can&rsquo;t play in the playoffs, he can&rsquo;t play.Period.Through four games, in which Montreal had erected a seemingly insurmountable 3-1 lead over Hartford in their best-of-seven Adams Division semi-final series, Dave Babych had played.Maybe that doesn&rsquo;t surprise people who hold Babych in high esteem, but after two years of iffy, up-and-down play in Hartford, the Whalers themselves were thrilled with Babych&rsquo;s efforts.With three goals and two assists in those four games against Montreal, Babych joined Ronnie Francis, Kevin Dineen, Lindsay Carson and Stewart Gavin as the Whalers&rsquo; top playoff performers.&ldquo;Babs is a great guy,&rdquo; coach Larry Pleau said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s really a good person. But he is gentle. That&rsquo;s his personality. You&rsquo;re not going to change it.&rdquo;The Whalers acquired Babych from Winnipeg Nov. 20, 1985 for Ray Neufeld. When Babych first arrived, he virtually wowed &lsquo;em in Hartford But his game steadily slipped thereafter, to the point where the Whalers&rsquo; brass began wondering if Winnipeg GM John Ferguson knew something they didn&rsquo;t.Babych was all right, mind you, but the Whalers were left to wonder whatever happened to the all-star defenseman they thought they were obtaining.The playoffs brought the best out of Babych. In no time at all, he was back playing to his old, higher level.&ldquo;Babs is playing the best hockey he has since he first came here,&rdquo; Joel Quenneville said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s certainly shown that he&rsquo;s capable of coming up with the big play when we need it.&rdquo;Whether Babych was rushing the puck, quarterbacking the power play or taking a regular shift on the blue line, he was a strong factor against the Canadiens.&ldquo;The big thing he&rsquo;s doing different is going to the net,&rdquo; Francis said. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s not just standing there at the blue line. He&rsquo;s been our best defenseman.&rdquo;Babych had a bad season last year. Plagued by injuries and distracted by personal problems off the ice, the 26-year-old defenseman had only eight goals and 33 assists.This year, he had 14 goals and 36 assists and re-established himself as a quality NHL performer.Babych admittted he played conservatively during the regular season.&ldquo;When I took those chances in the regular season, it seemed to always wind up with the other team getting a goal,&rdquo; Babych said. &ldquo;It was like I lost my horseshoe.&rdquo;A sprained left knee didn&rsquo;t help matters, either.&ldquo;With that injury, I was getting the puck and trying to stand there and make the play,&rdquo; Babcyh said. &ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t do it.&rdquo;As the knee healed, so did Babych&rsquo;s game. When the playoffs arrived, his game took off.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s an important player,&rdquo; Pleau said. &ldquo;For us to get to where we want to go, we need Babs.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Ulf Samuelsson was voted the Whalers&rsquo; MVP by the players, while the Booster Club selected Mike Liut&hellip;Paul MacDermid won the Unsung Hero and True Grit awards, while Samuelsson was tabbed the team&rsquo;s top defenseman for the second year in a row. Ron Francis was tabbed Favorite Whaler by the fans.<h2>WHALERS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 7: Peter Sidorkiewicz, G, recalled from Binghamton (AHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Ronnie Francis, Carey Wilson, Ray Ferraro, Brent Peterson.LW&mdash;Lindsay Carson, Dave Tippett, Sylvain Turgeon, Torrie Robertson.RW&mdash;Kevin Dineen, Dean Evason, Paul MacDermid, Stewart Gavin, Mark Reeds, Scott Young, Mike Millar, Gord Sherven.LD&mdash;Joel Quenneville, Randy Ladouceur, Mike McEwen, Scot Kleinendorst.RD&mdash;Dave Babych, Ulf Samuelsson, Sylvain Cote, Neil Sheehy, Charlie Bourgeois.G&mdash;Mike Liut, Richard Brodeur.<h3>INJURIES</h3>John Anderson, LW, rotator cuff, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0017-01

Babych Recaptures Old Spark Against Habs

<div class="byline">BY MURRAY TOWNSEND</div>Guy Lafleur&rsquo;s dramatic rise to stardom in 1974-75 represents the largest single-season improvement ever recorded by an NHL player. He went from 56 points to 119, a jump of 63 points.Hakan Loob&rsquo;s 62-point improvement this year is as close as anyone has come to threatening Lafleur&rsquo;s record.On the all-time list below are the players&rsquo; game and point totals for two-year periods and their increases (Inc.) in production.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-03613/5468229-1-eng-US/f0007-032.jpg" title="f0007-03" width="732" height="600"></div> &#9632;

f0007-03

IN THIS ISSUE

ALL-TIME INCREASES

<div class="byline">BY TOM HENSHAW</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-02726/5468908-1-eng-US/f0019-022.jpg" title="f0019-02" width="582" height="909"><figcaption class="caption-body">Cam Neely scored late in game four to force overtime, but the Sabres beat the Bruins.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0019-01981/5468915-1-eng-US/f0019-012.jpg" title="f0019-01" width="176" height="137"></div>BOSTON&mdash;Call it the Glen Wesley scries.The 19-year-old Boston Bruins&rsquo; defenseman. who played the game quietly and efficiently (7-30-37 in 79 games) during his rookie season, was front and center at the most critical times in the Boston-Buffalo Adams Division semi-final.Not only did he score three goals in the first three games, he also took the controversial tripping penalty in overtime that led to John Tucker&rsquo;s winning goal on the power play. The Sabres&rsquo; 6-5 win tied the series at two games apiece.The tripping call on Wesley came at 5:08 in the overtime period. The Sabres&rsquo; Mike Foligno broke in alone on goalie Reggie Lemelin. Wesley caught him and swept the puck off his stick, bringing Foligno down on top of him.That was tripping, ruled referee Kerry Fraser, even though the TV replay clearly showed that Wesley knocked the puck away well before he took Foligno&rsquo;s legs out from under him with his body.Twenty four seconds later, Tucker&rsquo;s shot from the right faceoff circle bounced off Lemelin, then hit Boston defenseman Gord Kluzak and went in the net to give the Sabres the game.&ldquo;I thought it was a terrible call.&rdquo; said Wesley, who was assessed a gross misconduct penalty for arguing his case too strenuously. &ldquo;I knocked the puck away and Foligno fell on top of me. It was a terrible call.&rdquo;Boston Globe writer Kevin Paul Dupont quoted Bryan Lewis, supervisor of officials for the NHL. as saying:<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;We&rsquo;re the big, bad Bruins, they say. If anyone wants to fool around with us, we&rsquo;ll have to take care of things&hellip;&rsquo; &mdash;Miller</blockquote>&ldquo;I think it was a horse&mdash;call. It will be in the report.&rdquo;Cam Neely&rsquo;s goal with 1:33 remaining in regulation tied the game for the Bruins.Wesley&rsquo;s contribution to the Bruins&rsquo; cause in the opening game was more positive, and a little more painful.He was going for the puck behind the Bruins&rsquo; net in the third period when Sabre captain Lindy Ruff caught him looking the other way and delivered a solid check against the boards.&ldquo;It was probably mostly my fault,&rdquo; said Wesley. &ldquo;I just kept looking at the puck. I never noticed him at all and he just hit me blind-side. But it was a late hit. I blanked out.&rdquo;The Bruins were leading 6-2 at the time, so there was little to lose by trying to restore the &ldquo;big. bad Bruins&rdquo; reputation that was tarnished in the process of losing four straight to the Montreal Canadiens last spring.First the Bruins&rsquo; Bob Sweeney tangled with Ruff; then Lyndon Byers met Clark Gillies; Jay Miller took on Foligno; Bruce Shoebottom went at it with Mike Hartman, and so on.In all. referee Don Koharski whistled 146 penalty minutes on the two teams.&ldquo;Something like that always brings us closer together.&rdquo; said Miller, the baddest of the Bruins. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re the big. bad Bruins, they say. If anyone wants to fool around with us. we&rsquo;ll have to take care of things, especially in our building.&rdquo;Although no Bruins cared to say it in so many words, their response to the Ruff-Wesley incident went a long way toward making up for last spring when Canadiens twice ran at goalie Doug Keans and the Bruins failed to respond.Coach Terry O&rsquo;Reilly was inclined to blame the rough stuff on the officials.&ldquo;When the officiating doesn&rsquo;t do justice on the ice then the players tend to take it into their own hands.&rdquo; He said. &ldquo;Glen Wesley was hit late and hard into the boards when the game was out of hand. There&rsquo;s no place for that.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Defenseman Bruce Shoebottom, brought up from Maine late in the season, saved his first NHL goal for the right moment. It was the game-winner in the second game. a 4-1 victory for the Bruins. One fan celebrated by throwing a running shoe on the ice. Shoebottom subsequently broke his collarbone in game four&hellip;When an illegally-parked car prevented the Bruins&rsquo; bus from leaving the Civic Center in Hartford for a half hour April 2. Terry O&rsquo;Reilly took direct action. He smashed the window with a tire iron looking for keys. Then he and six Bruins pushed the car out of the way of the bus&mdash;but in the way of traffic&mdash;so the bus could leave. Bruins&rsquo; publicist Nate Greenberg said O&rsquo;Reilly will pay for the smashed window.<h2>BRUINS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 4: Alain Cote, D, assigned to Maine (AHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Ken Linseman, Steve Kasper, Craig Janney, Tom McCarthy, Bob Sweeney.LW&mdash;Bob Joyce, Randy Burridge, Rick Middleton.RW&mdash;Cam Neely, Keith Crowder, Willi Plett.LD&mdash;Gord Kluzak, Glen Wesley, Allen Pedersen.RD&mdash;Ray Bourque, Michael Thelven.G&mdash;Reggie Lemelin, Andy Moog.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Lyndon Byers, RW, bruised left thigh, day-to-day.Reed Larson, D, right shoulder separation, day-to-day.Tommy Lehmann, C, left kneecap inflammation, indefinite.Nevin Markwart, RW, groin strain, day-to-day.Jay Miller, LW, strained right knee ligaments, indefinite.Billy O&rsquo;Dwyer, C, left knee injury, day-to-day.Bruce Shoebottom, D, broken collarbone, indefinite. &#9632;

f0019-02

Blueliner Wesley Man In Middle For Bruins

<h2>Wed. Apr. 6</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-01548/5469759-1-eng-US/f0033-012.jpg" title="f0033-01" width="598" height="3513"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-02391/5469752-1-eng-US/f0033-022.jpg" title="f0033-02" width="596" height="3561"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-03284/5469745-1-eng-US/f0033-032.jpg" title="f0033-03" width="611" height="598"></div><h2>Thur., Apr. 7</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-04224/5469738-1-eng-US/f0033-042.jpg" title="f0033-04" width="602" height="2904"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-05184/5469731-1-eng-US/f0033-052.jpg" title="f0033-05" width="590" height="1969"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0033-06152/5469724-1-eng-US/f0033-062.jpg" title="f0033-06" width="598" height="1910"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-01625/5469717-1-eng-US/f0034-012.jpg" title="f0034-01" width="589" height="454"></div><h2>Sat., Apr. 9</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-02478/5469710-1-eng-US/f0034-022.jpg" title="f0034-02" width="600" height="843"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-03371/5469703-1-eng-US/f0034-032.jpg" title="f0034-03" width="613" height="1377"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-05210/5469696-1-eng-US/f0034-052.jpg" title="f0034-05" width="604" height="1758"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-06180/5469689-1-eng-US/f0034-062.jpg" title="f0034-06" width="595" height="2661"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-07165/5469682-1-eng-US/f0034-072.jpg" title="f0034-07" width="608" height="1722"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-04271/5469675-1-eng-US/f0034-042.jpg" title="f0034-04" width="569" height="751"><figcaption class="caption-body">Laurie Boschman scored twice in Winnipeg&rsquo;s 6-4 win over Edmonton.</figcaption></div><h2>Sun., Apr. 10</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0034-08155/5469668-1-eng-US/f0034-082.jpg" title="f0034-08" width="587" height="841"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-01494/5469661-1-eng-US/f0037-012.jpg" title="f0037-01" width="604" height="1346"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-02359/5469654-1-eng-US/f0037-022.jpg" title="f0037-02" width="602" height="1374"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-03276/5469647-1-eng-US/f0037-032.jpg" title="f0037-03" width="604" height="1368"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-04228/5469640-1-eng-US/f0037-042.jpg" title="f0037-04" width="596" height="1372"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-05199/5469633-1-eng-US/f0037-052.jpg" title="f0037-05" width="602" height="1364"></div> &#9632;

f0033-01

NHL SUMMARIES

<div class="image-hero"><img title="Cover-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/cover-01832/5470379-1-eng-US/cover-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">(Hakan Loob Photo by Bob Mummery, Photos by Bruce Bennett)</figcaption></div>Bruin At Center Of Storm/19Tom BarrasseGord KluzakINSIDE: It&rsquo;s Time To Secede/6 A Creamer Critique/10 Officiating Milestone/16 &#9632;

Cover-01

Comeback players of the Year

The NHL&rsquo;s 840-game regular schedule is behind us, and the &ldquo;second season&rdquo; in full swing. Suddenly, those early November Canucks-vs.-North Stars matchups are distant memories. The Stanley Cup playoffs are for keeps, and regular season records no longer mean a thing.THN is in all 16 NHL playoff team camps to bring you the latest-breaking news on trends and developments that could tip the balance of power. We&rsquo;ll be with you all the way until the precious silverware is awarded, after 15 gruelling best-of-seven rounds of hard-fought hockey.Playoffs have started in the International League, as well. Starting with the April 29 issue of THE HOCKEY NEWS, you&rsquo;ll be getting IHL post-season updates from that league, as well as our continuing reports from the American League and three major junior loops. &#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/f0003-011359/5468022-1-eng-US/f0003-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Many NHL goalies are moving to lighter sticks for greater flexibility, but Ron Hextall says he&rsquo;ll stay with his current model.</figcaption></div>Hall-of-Famer Bobby Orr told the Boston Herald he inspired a double-take from his sons Darren. 13. and Brent, 11, after he showed them some old tapes of himself in action. &ldquo;As soon as they saw my haircut (a close-cropped crewcut during his early career), they roared,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve got a hunch that&rsquo;s all they remembered. I know it&rsquo;s all they talked about.&rdquo; Orr remains the subject of considerable talk, now that he&rsquo;s reached the milestone 40-year mark. &ldquo;I suppose I sound 40 saying this,&rdquo; Orr goes on, &ldquo;but young guys think they&rsquo;re going to play forever. I look at them and then I look at myself, and I just can&rsquo;t believe it went by so fast. They retired my jersey in 1979, and this is 1988. Even that amazes me, because it seems it wasn&rsquo;t that long ago when I was standing in the (Massachusetts) State House chamber, saying goodbye. Nine years ago? In-credible.&rdquo;<h2>BIG YEN FOR HOCKEY</h2>Would you pay the equivalent of three months&rsquo; wages to compete in a hockey tournament? Well, that&rsquo;s what a group of women from Japan did. Each shelled out $4,500 from her own pocket to play in the 10th National Women&rsquo;s Hockey Tournament held in Bloomington, Minn., in late March. If this doesn&rsquo;t tell you that women&rsquo;s hockey is booming world-wide, bear in mind that even China is loaded with teams&mdash;and its top women&rsquo;s clubs practise five days a week&hellip;The Bloomington tournament featured 32 American clubs from Alaska to New York, and included multi-sport star Cindy Thompson, co-captain of the U.S. national women&rsquo;s team. A softball ace as well as a first-rate stickhandler, Thompson makes this distinction between hockey and softball: &ldquo;I was playing shortstop in the 13th inning of a ball game, two outs, bases loaded. I said to myself, &lsquo;What did I do the last time this happened?&rsquo; In hockey, nothing happens the same way twice. It&rsquo;s as active and challenging and changing as a sport can get.&rdquo; Thompson says the difference between female and male hockey championships is that with the men, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s dog-eat-dog.&rdquo;<h2>ROCKY EXPERIENCES</h2>Former NHLer Chico Resch, who broadcast North Star games through their miserable 198788 campaign, could relate back to his own dismal season (1981-82) goaltending for the Colorado Rockies. &ldquo;Nothing was worse than that,&rdquo; Resch recalls, &ldquo;and it started right out in training camp. We didn&rsquo;t even have a real dressing room&mdash;it was a mobile trailer on wheels. To get to the showers, we had to run from the trailer to a building where the showers were. We&rsquo;d put a towel around our waists and run out, past an office building where the secretaries would watch us. After a while they began putting signs up, rating each of the guys.&rdquo; Resch remembers that it was so bad playing in Denver that teammate Lanny McDonald once resorted to the ultimate downer during a long losing streak. &ldquo;There was a big pan of ice that we kept around for the guys to soak their hands in,&rdquo; Resch chuckles. &ldquo;Well, we were in the midst of a long losing streak when Lanny just up and stuck his face in the pan of ice, kept it there and started blowing, like he was doing a motorboat imitation. It was like he needed a cold, slap in the face to wake him up&mdash;because none of us could believe we were in such a ridiculous situation. We all felt like General George Custer at Little Big Hom.&rdquo;<h2>HULL TO HAWKS NIXED</h2>Chicago fans got a good look at Brett Hull during the Blues-Blackhawks opening Norris Division round, but didn&rsquo;t realize Bobby Hull&rsquo;s kid could have been a permanent member of the Windy City sextet had a couple of pieces fallen into place. The Flames offered Brett to Chicago before completing the deal with Blues&rsquo; GM Ron Caron that landed Hull in St. Lou&hellip;Don&rsquo;t be surprised if NHL coaches follow the lead of their pro basketball counterparts and organize a National Hockey Coaches Association. The hoop version is eight years old and, although it is not a bargaining unit which makes demands, it does give coaches a voice and leverage in the industry.<h2>FUHR&rsquo;S BODY &lsquo;A MESS&rsquo;</h2>Kevin Lowe on teammate Grant Fuhr&rsquo;s body: &ldquo;Its like a patchwork quilt&mdash;red here, blue there, a mess everywhere. He&rsquo;s all bumps and bruises.&rdquo;&hellip;Word from the goaltending fraternity has it several NHL netminders will be in touch with stick manufacturers this summer, with an eye toward obtaining lighter sticks which can be used to propel passes in the Ron Hextail style. However, Hextall tells BLUELINES he has no such plans. &ldquo;I like the weight of my stick the way it is,&rdquo; Hexy explains&hellip;Flyer boss Ed Snider will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in September, but few realize how he saved the rink housing the Flyers from bankruptcy and thereby saved the hockey team. It happened in 1972, five years after the club was bom. The Spectrum was bankrupt and Philly city fathers were upset about the future. Snider saved the rink by putting together $8 million in financing, paid creditors 100 cents on the dollar, and negotiated a 50-year lease. &ldquo;Today,&rdquo; says Snider, &ldquo;the Spectrum is probably the busiest, most profitable arena in the world, with 300 events a year.&rdquo;<h2>NYLUND ON BLOCK?</h2>The Blackhawks are expected to try peddling Gary Nylund after the playoffs&hellip;Flames&rsquo; boss Cliff Fletcher reminds BLUELINES this spring marks the 17th anniversary of &ldquo;The Great St. Louis Purge,&rdquo; when Blues owners Sid Salomon, Jr. and Sid III fired their high command&mdash;which included Fletcher, Scotty Bow-man. Gary Darling. Bill McCreary and Jimmy Devellano. Fletcher reveals the sacking was so traumatic&mdash;two weeks before he was due to obtain the &ldquo;green card&rdquo; which would allow him to work in the States&mdash;he came very close to giving up hockey for good. &ldquo;I had an offer to take a job running a sound equipment distributorship in British Columbia,&rdquo; Fletcher admits. &ldquo;Because of the green-card problems, I couldn&rsquo;t even apply for a job in St. Louis at the time.&rdquo; Fletcher credits former NHL president Clarence Campbell and ex-Canadiens&rsquo; leader Sam Pollock with keeping him in hockey. &ldquo;They told me to sit tight, that things would be happening in the NHL and I&rsquo;d be part of them.&rdquo; A half-year later, Fletcher was hired as GM of the Atlanta (now Calgary) Flames. Regarding the Edmonton-Calgary rivalry, Fletcher says that Calgary fans are more intense than their Oiler counterparts. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s because Edmonton has won the Cup three times,&rdquo; Fletcher explains.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0003-021102/5468015-1-eng-US/f0003-022.jpg" title="f0003-02" width="720" height="1296"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bobby Orr&rsquo;s sons were more entertained by his crewcut than his moves.</figcaption></div><h2>TIGER AS A GM?</h2>Rogie Vachon appears likely to remain as Kings&rsquo; general manager, according to L A. sources&mdash;although another report has none other than Dave (Tiger) Williams being considered for the slot, should owner Bruce McNall decide to make a change. The Williams-McNall relationship dates back to Tiger&rsquo;s playing days in California&hellip;Even though the Penguins &ldquo;lost&rdquo; $200,000 through their &ldquo;Playoff or Payoff&rdquo; campaign, the promotion was still a success. The club had to fork over a $ 1 refund on every individual ticket sold as part of a season package, but the promotion hiked total ticket sales by 20 per cent to some 480,000. The Pens played to 93-per-cent capacity this year. &ldquo;We wouldn&rsquo;t have done the program if we didn&rsquo;t have a lot of confidence that we&rsquo;d make the playoffs,&rdquo; says club marketing VP Tom Rooney. &ldquo;But we buffered ourselves by having an extra dollar in the price increase.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0003-01

Departments

Orr Crewcut Gets Big Yuks

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-011382/5468067-1-eng-US/f0004-012.jpg" title="f0004-01" width="568" height="557"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-021271/5468060-1-eng-US/f0004-022.jpg" title="f0004-02" width="151" height="152"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0004-031081/5468053-1-eng-US/f0004-032.jpg" title="f0004-03" width="553" height="806"><figcaption class="caption-body">Mario Lemieux</figcaption></div>NEW YORK&mdash;Pittsburgh Penguin center Mario Lemieux, who led all NHL scorers with a 16-26-42 mark in his final 16 games of 1987-88 was named the Dodge Performer of the Month for March.Lemieux, who captured the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL&rsquo;s leading scorer with 168 points, edged Edmonton Oiler center Wayne Gretzky, New Jersey Devil netminder Sean Burke and right winger Hakan Loob of the Calgary Flames to capture the honor.The Dodge and Chrysler Canada divisions of Chrysler Motors will donate $1,000 to the local charity of Lemieux&rsquo;s choice. The Dodge and Chrysler Canada divisions of Chrysler Motors also sponsor the Performer of the Week and the Performer of the Year Awards, for which the latter receives the Dodge vehicle of his choice.Lemieux, who completed his fourth season with Pittsburgh on April 3, scored at least one point in 14 of his last 16 games. Highlighting the month were three four-point performances&mdash;versus Winnipeg (5-4, March 13), Philadelphia (7-0, March 19) and Washington (7-6, April 2)&mdash;and two consecutive five-point nights&mdash;against Montreal (5-2, March 25) and Quebec (6-3, March 27). Five of his 16 goals were shorthanded, four came on the power-play and three were game-winners. Lemieux ended 1987-88 by recording 49 multiple-point games, including eight four-point, four five-point and one six-point effort. &#9632;

f0004-01

Mario Lemieux selected this month’s Dodge-NHL Performer of the Month

<div class="byline">BY BARRY MEISEL</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0005-011264/5468098-1-eng-US/f0005-012.jpg" title="f0005-01" width="174" height="136"></div>UNIONDALE, N.Y.&mdash;First there was game seven, last spring&rsquo;s fourovertime Easter Epic between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals. Now there is game four, 1988, Islanders versus New Jersey Devils.There&rsquo;s no sense comparing classics. Let&rsquo;s just say the 19,096 fans at Meadowlands Arena who saw the Islanders square their best-of-seven Patrick Division semi-final series with the Devils at two games each April 10, were treated to a pretty fair piece of hockey.&ldquo;It was unbelievable,&rdquo; Islander Brad Lauer said.It was historic, too&mdash;Brent Sutter&rsquo;s winner was only the second shorthanded overtime goal in the history of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The goal came at 15:07 and gave the Never-Say-Dielanders an utterly improbable 5-4 victory.(Busher Jackson of the Boston Bruins scored the only other shorthanded overtime goal on March 25, 1943, when his marker sank the Montreal Canadiens.)After winning game one 4-3 at Nassau Coliseum on Pat LaFontaine&rsquo;s OT goal at 6:11, the Islanders lost games two and three by scores of 3-2 and 3-0. They were being outchecked, outhit, outgoaltended, outmuscled&mdash;and outscored 3-0 at 16:50 of the second period.But when Alan Kerr broke Sean Burke&rsquo;s shutout string at 18:49 of the second, after Pat LaFontaine started a 2-on-1 by stripping the puck from Aaron Broten, they sensed hope.Brent Sutter scored at 11:30 of the third, after Joe Cirella tried to wind the puck behind the boards. It glanced off Randy Wood and found Sutter in front for an easy stuff.When Lauer tied it at 14:53, a pokein of Mikko Makela&rsquo;s rebound, the game had turned completely around.Then LaFontaine scored with 1:30 left in regulation, after Kerr checked Craig Wolanin near the Devils&rsquo; net, and Makela picked up the puck for a quick feed to Lafontaine in front.LaFontaine buried it. The Islanders&rsquo; bench went nuts. The Arena began to empty&hellip;quietly.The fans were a little louder when, with 12 seconds left and Burke off for a sixth attacker, John MacLean, the Devils&rsquo; DH (Designated Hero), snapped in a rebound of Tom Kurvers&rsquo; blocked shot to tie it.The Islanders outplayed the Devils in overtime, but failed to score with MacLean in the penalty box for hooking Wood at 4:42.Give referee Ron Hoggarth credit. He threw away his OT rulebook, the one with all the blank pages. He penalized Bob Bassen for slashing Aaron Broten near the net at 6:56, Kerr for boarding Cirella at 10:12 and Morrow for tripping Peter Sundstrom in the neutral zone at 13:37.Morrow&rsquo;s was a questionable call because the defenseman got his leg and part of his hip, into Sundstrom.But that&rsquo;s academic. When Kurvers&rsquo; pass for Wolanin hit him in the skates and Wolanin fumbled with it near the Devils&rsquo; blue line, Sutter poked the puck away and burst down left wing.From the bottom of the left circle, Sutter shot. Burke made the pad save, but the puck squeezed behind him. Just as Sutter charged toward the rebound lying tantalizingly close to the goal-line, Kurvers, who had slid face-first in an attempt to block Sutter&rsquo;s first shot, swiped at it&mdash;and inadvertently knocked it into the net.NOTES&mdash;The Islanders upped their record to an incredible 24-7 in Stanley Cup overtime games, easily the best in NHL history. Philadelphia (17-13), Chicago (21-17) and Montreal (46-42) were next.<h2>ISLANDERS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 4: Jeff Finley, D, and Todd Okerlund, RW, recalled from Springfield (AHL). Jeff Hackett, G, recalled from Oshawa (OHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Brent Sutter, Pat LaFontaine, Bryan Trottier, Bob Bassen, Todd McLellan.LW&mdash;Derek King, Randy Wood, Rich Kromm, Dale Henry.RW&mdash;Mikko Makela, Brad Lauer, Alan Kerr, Brad Dalgarno, Mick Vukota, Todd Okerlund.LD&mdash;Denis Potvin, Steve Konroyd, Ken Leiter, Jeff Finley.RD&mdash;Gerald Diduck, Ken Morrow, Tomas Jonsson.G&mdash;Kelly Hrudey, Billy Smith, Jeff Hackett.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Neal Coulter, RW, fractured left thumb, indefinite.Patrick Flatley, RW, reconstructive knee surgery, out for season.Greg Gilbert, LW, left foot, day-to-day.Jeff Norton, D, strained groin, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0005-01

Islanders Spin Yet Another Overtime Classic

OKAY, ZIGGY, LISTEN up. Here in the Patrick Division we&rsquo;ve been jumping up and down and screaming about the playoff system since Gilles Meloche was just a rookie.We&rsquo;ve calmly and logically appealed to your good reason from the blue seats at Madison Season Garden. We&rsquo;ve sent our master negotiator, Phil Esposito, and even he couldn&rsquo;t work out a deal.We jumped up and down like Ron Hextall after he&rsquo;s allowed a goal and we&rsquo;ve held our breath until Doug Carpenter turned blue. You haven&rsquo;t listened. So we sent Dave Brown to bounce you around your office, and we tied you to a chair and stuck Dale Hunter under your fingernails and made you watch tapes of Minnesota playing Toronto until you screamed. And still you wouldn&rsquo;t listen to reason.So, we&rsquo;re sorry it&rsquo;s come to this, but here&rsquo;s the way it&rsquo;s going to have to be. Either you take Toronto and Los Angeles out of the playoffs right now and put the Rangers and Penguins in, or we secede and form our own league.We&rsquo;ve had it. We don&rsquo;t need you and your lousy, stinking playoff system any more. So take whathissname, the guy in Edmonton who used to be better than our Mario, and stuff it.What&rsquo;s more, we don&rsquo;t care if we never see Dirk Graham again. We got everything we need to have our own league right here in the good, old. Lester Patrick Division.We got Mario. We got all the best young goalies. He got Kelly Hrudey, we got John Vanbiesbrouck. We thought we had never seen a rookie like Hextall and never would again and then along came Sean Burke.The way things are going, nobody except Mario is ever going to score a goal again. But we think scoreless ties are great here in the Patrick. We sent all our goal judges home.When guys like Paul Coffey figure the Smythe Division is getting too easy for them, they hold out to play with us. Just cause they like a challenge.Here in the Patrick, we got Sutters, brothers who would kill each other to win a hockey game. We got young guys like Ulf Dahlen and Brian Leetch who look too good for even Phil to trade. We don&rsquo;t got Claude Lemieux, true. But we got mean coaches, like Mike Keenan, a man so hard that he took his post-Canada Cup vacation in a Bermuda hurricane. And liked it.We got Terry Simpson, a quote so tough that he wouldn&rsquo;t say &ldquo;Diduck&rdquo; if he had a mouthful. We got young stars like Pat LaFontaine and Kirk Muller. We got guys like Bryan Trottier and Denis Potvin and Billy Smith with one foot in the Hall of Fame and the other still on their opponent&rsquo;s throats. We got something called Zalapski, although we&rsquo;re not exactly sure what it is yet. We&rsquo;re pretty sure, though, it&rsquo;s going to turn out to be pretty good.What else would you need to have your own league besides what we&rsquo;ve got? We got The Big Apple. We got those creepy Flyers. We got Mick Vukota. We got empty seats for playoff games at the Capital Centre. We got it all here in the Patrick, so why should we share Andy Brickley?<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-011446/5468129-1-eng-US/f0006-012.jpg" title="f0006-01" width="344" height="462"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jay Greenberg</figcaption></div>We&rsquo;re all winners here in the Patrick Division. All six of us. We&rsquo;re so good you have to go unbeaten in your last eight just to make the playoffs.We&rsquo;re so tough that in years we don&rsquo;t make the playoffs, we don&rsquo;t use one of the top five picks in the next draft the league offers as compensation. We trade it to Quebec, instead.We don&rsquo;t take charity here in the Patrick Division. We&rsquo;re too proud. Besides, we hear it&rsquo;s a lousy draft anyway. We take care of our own. When we get in trouble we just pass Dave Pichette around.We&rsquo;re so tough in Pittsburgh that when our team president proposed we ask the league to move us to the Norris Division, we hooted him down. We&rsquo;d rather stay where we are and miss the playoffs. We had a chance to get Andy Moog and passed, because we figured if you needed better goaltending to make the playoffs, then they wern&rsquo;t worth being in anyway. And boy, you don&rsquo;t get any tougher than that.It&rsquo;s so rough here that the Flyers can run up 100 points and go to the Stanley Cup finals one year, and the next be praying the Rangers tie Winnipeg three nights from the end of the season just so they can make the playoffs. Ooo, that&rsquo;s tough.We&rsquo;re so tough that we got a Washington team that&rsquo;s averaged 97 points the last five years and has yet to get out of the divisional playoffs alive. That&rsquo;s even tougher than the steak Wayne Van Dorp eats.We ride busses here in the Patrick Division. We don&rsquo;t need airplanes. When we gotta go to Pittsburgh, we walk. It&rsquo;s not a glamorous life we lead. We eat cold cheeseburgers on the turnpike at 1 a.m. becuase it gives us gas. That&rsquo;s what makes us go.The regular season is so good in the Patrick Division, we don&rsquo;t need playoffs. We just play 80 games until everybody has a winning record and there&rsquo;s only seven points separating the top and bottom teams.Of course when every game comes down to a pulled goalie, the pressure builds. If it gets to be too much sometimes, we put on tapes of Chicago and St. Louis and have a good laugh.They call that hockey? Once, here in the Patrick Division it took us four overtimes until somebody scored. And we were just getting warmed up. &#9632;

f0006-01

Columnists

General Greenberg Leads Patrick Secession

<div class="byline">BY RICH CHERE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0006-021036/5468160-1-eng-US/f0006-022.jpg" title="f0006-02" width="176" height="133"></div>EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.&mdash;The New Jersey Devils needed John MacLean&rsquo;s overtime goal on the final night of the regular season to make the playoffs, so it might be considered poetic justic that their first two post-season losses came in sudden death.Fittingly, it was MacLean who set up both playoff OT games. He scored with 1:56 remaining in regulation time in game one at Nassau Coliseum, and again with 12 seconds left in game four at the Meadowlands Arena.The Devils, of course, hadn&rsquo;t had much time to ponder such ironies. Despite appearing in the playoffs for the first time since the 1982 franchise shift from Colorado, New Jersey was locked in a classic duel with the experienced Islanders. When Brent Sutter scored after 15:07 of OT April 10, it evened the series at two games apiece.&ldquo;I guess the Islanders showed me what we all thought,&rdquo; said defenseman Craig Wolanin. &ldquo;We knew they were a quality team. We didn&rsquo;t take them for granted by any means.&rdquo;The Devils have been the big surprise. In fact, coach Jim Schoenfeld showed he had a few tricks up his sleeve to keep his battle-worn troops at the top of their game.After game one, a 4-3 overtime loss in which Pat LaFontaine beat goalie Sean Burke after 6:11 of sudden death, Schoenfeld surprised everyone by starting veteran Bob Sauve in goal and playing Jim Korn for the first time in two months since undergoing shoulder surgery.Korn assisted on a MacLean goal and Sauve, making only his second start since March 1, stopped 24 of 26 shots as the Devils won 3-2 and evened the series at 1-1.&ldquo;I was a little surprised, which is normal, but I wasn&rsquo;t shocked,&rdquo; said Sauve. &ldquo;I know with Schoeny anything goes. He did the same thing starting me in Buffalo (March 25) this year.&rdquo;In both cases, Sauve responded.&ldquo;Without Bobby&rsquo;s save in Buffalo (on Ken Priestlay&rsquo;s OT breakaway, to preserve a 2-2 tie) we wouldn&rsquo;t be here,&rdquo; said defenseman Jack O&rsquo;Callahan. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a real pro. He knows how to be ready for a playoff game. It shows this is a real team effort. It&rsquo;s not six or seven guys doing all the work and getting the credit.&rdquo;Burke returned to the nets for game three in New Jersey and Schoenfeld looked like a genius. The 21-year-old rookie stopped all 31 shots in registering his first Stanley Cup shutout, 3-0, while putting the Devils ahead in the series.The Islanders even took a few runs at Burke but were unable to rattle him. As he stood his ground and raised his overall NHL record at that point to 11-2 with two shutouts, the home crowd chanted, &ldquo;Sean Burke&hellip;Sean Burke.&rdquo;&ldquo;I was as nervous as anybody else out there,&rdquo; Burke insisted. &ldquo;When you get into the game the excitement overrules that. Luckily I got into the game early. The shutout is nice but the biggest thing is the win. The shutout shows the total team effort.&rdquo;&ldquo;Burke is so big (6-foot-3, 185 pounds) he comes up and cuts down the angle,&rdquo; said the Islanders&rsquo; Alan Kerr. &ldquo;He stops that first shot and they&rsquo;ve been very good at clearing the rebounds.&rdquo;Burke was sensational once again in game four, but his scoreless streak ended after 98 minutes and 49 seconds, when the Islanders capitalized on turnovers by Aaron Broten, Joe Cirella, Wolanin and Tom Kurvers to turn a 3-0 deficit into a 4-3 lead.It did not help that the Kirk Muller, Pat Verbeek, Broten failed to score a single goal in the first four games. The Devils, leading 3-1 with 8:30 remaining in the third period, were within minutes of putting the Isles in a 3-1 hole in the best-of-seven series.&ldquo;They kept coming at us and we kept trying to hold our thumb in the dike,&rdquo; said Broten. &ldquo;It cost us.&rdquo;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s been on its way,&rdquo; added Schoenfeld. &ldquo;We were a little fatigued the night before, and after we had the lead the players thought they could conserve energy. That&rsquo;s a dangerous way to play. The Islanders got the momentum and we couldn&rsquo;t get it back.&rdquo;The Devils were hoping they hadn&rsquo;t lost it for good.NOTES&mdash;Devils&rsquo; No. 1 line had only one assist in first four games, with much of the credit going to the checking of Brent Sutter&rsquo;s line&hellip;The line of Patrik Sundstrom (0-3-3), Mark Johnson (3-1-4) and John MacLean (4-3-7) was New Jersey&rsquo;s biggest weapon&hellip;Joe Cirella missed game two with a back injury, but returned April 9 to enjoy the first playoff game in New Jersey history. A sellout crowd of 19,096 was in attendance&hellip;Denis Potvin&rsquo;s mugging of MacLean in game two. and his ability to avoid a third-man penalty in game one, angered the Devils. Jim Schoenfeld, who convinced his players to avoid costly retaliatory penalties, said of Potvin&rsquo;s stickwork: &ldquo;You could lose an eye from stuff like that. We should send the films to the league.&rdquo;<h2>DEVILS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 3: Anders Carlsson, LW, recalled from Utica (AHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Kirk Muller, Mark Johnson, Claude Loiselle, David Maley.LW&mdash;Aaron Broten, Patrik Sundstrom, Doug Sulliman, Pat Conacher, Jim Korn, Anders Carlsson.RW&mdash;Pat Verbeek, John MacLean, Doug Brown, Perry Anderson, Brendan Shanahan.LD&mdash;Bruce Driver, Ken Daneyko, Randy Velischek, Tom Kurvers.RD&mdash;Craig Wolanin, Joe Cirella, Jack O&rsquo;Callahan.G&mdash;Sean Burke, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Andy Brickley, LW, groin pull, indefinite.George McPhee, LW, groin pull, out for season. &#9632;

f0006-02

Overtime Goals Playoff Nemesis Of Devils

<div class="byline">BY KARLO BERKOVICH AND JEFF HALE Editorial Staff</div>The Buffalo Sabres became a team&mdash;and Tom Barrasso truly became a Buffalo Sabre&mdash;on Dec. 23, 1987.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s when they realized I wanted to play forthem, and they wanted to play for me,&rdquo; said Barrasso.The scene was Detroit&rsquo;s Joe Louis Arena, a day after the Boston Bruins chased goalies Darren Puppa and Jacques Cloutier and the rest of the Sabres out of Boston Garden by a 9-0 count.&ldquo;I got the call,&rdquo; remembers Barrasso, who was returning to action after suffering a broken bone in his right ankle. &ldquo;There was a lot of pressure. It was time to forget the injuries, forget everything. Put out or shut up.&rdquo;Prospects looked bleak.Barrasso, who hit the skids last season after establishing himself as an all-star, was 3-7-4 with a 3.47 goals-against average and taking heat for the Sabres&rsquo; 12-16-6 last-place standing in the Adams Division.He put out&mdash;stopping 26 Red Wing shots in a 5-2 Sabre victory&mdash;and began to shut up his critics. He also took a punch in the head from Detroit tough guy Bob Probert, while helping out teammate Kevin Maguire during a fight. That act did not go unnoticed.&ldquo;Any doubts as to whether I cared about the guys, or would go to the wall for them, were put to rest during that game and the rest of the season,&rdquo; says Barrasso.He went 22-11-4 the rest of the way, leading the Sabres to a 37-32-11 record, third-place finish in the Adams Division and their first playoff berth in three seasons. Barrasso finished with a 3.31 GAA. His.896 save percentage was the NHL&rsquo;s third best.Barrasso&rsquo;s turnaround earned him selection as one of three THN Comeback Players of the Year. Boston Bruin defenseman Gord Kluzak and Calgary Flame right winger Hakan Loob round out the trio representing the positions of goalie, defense and forward.Kluzak and Loob overcame injuries in strong comeback seasons.Kluzak&rsquo;s outlook fluctuated between resignation and determination during an ordeal that saw him miss two of the previous three seasons with knee problems.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-011291/5468198-1-eng-US/f0007-012.jpg" title="f0007-01" width="722" height="1032"><figcaption class="caption-body">Tom Barrasso hit rock-bottom near Christmas, then regained his old form.</figcaption></div>A stop-and-start NHL career made him a candidate for the lead role in a medical mini-series: As The Knee Wrenches.The first pick in the 1982 draft, Kluzak missed the entire 1984-85 and 1986-87 seasons. He underwent four arthroscopic procedures in seven months last year to correct a damaged left knee cap. The knee cap was sucked into the knee area, permitting Kulzak no more than a 50-degree bend, without pain.&ldquo;There were times I wanted to say forget it,&rdquo; says Kluzak, &ldquo;but my family really supported me a lot.&rdquo;Among Kluzak&rsquo;s chief supporters were his parents, Glen and Betty. But heart-to-heart talks with his sister, Norma, helped most. When Norma&rsquo;s first baby became sick last summer it affected Kluzak as much as anyone.&ldquo;He started to realize how fortunate he was,&rdquo; says Norma. &ldquo;I think that was kind of a turning point. (He realized) he could get it if he worked hard. If he kept at it, he would see progress.&rdquo;Kluzak divided his rehabilitation last summer between the family&rsquo;s 4,000-acre wheat farm in Climax, Sask., and the family cabin in Cypress Park, 85 miles north of Climax. He cycled daily and played golf on a nearby course.He often wondered if he&rsquo;d ever walk properly, let alone skate again. But he persevered.I never really saw him get that mad,&rdquo; says his father. &ldquo;He&rsquo;d get teed off, thought it (knee) wasn&rsquo;t reacting the way it was supposed to and the next day he&rsquo;d go at it just as hard.&rdquo;But a season wouldn&rsquo;t be a season for Kluzak without some sort of knee injury. He tore ligaments in his right knee Feb. 12 and missed 13 games this year, though the injury wasn&rsquo;t nearly as serious as the previous ones to his left knee. In 66 games, he had six goals and 31 assists.&ldquo;I think the biggest surprise was right from the beginning of the season he was able to play at such a high level,&rdquo; said Bruin general manager Harry Sinden. &ldquo;We felt it would take him 40 or 50 games to (get to) that level but he came back right away.&rdquo;Loob, 27, was plagued by tom ligaments in his right shoulder last season. He managed just 18 goals and 26 assists in 68 games after scoring 30 or more goals in each of his first three NHL seasons.This season, Loob emerged as the high-powered Flames&rsquo; scoring leader with 50 goals and 56 assists. The increase of 62 points from last season is the second-largest of all time. Guy Lafleur, who went from 56 points in 1973-74 to 119 in 1974-75, tops the list at 63.Loob acknowledged a comeback season implies a poor one the year before.&ldquo;Not many guys can fit into that, I guess,&rdquo; Loob says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always fun to get recognized for playing better.&rdquo;Loob&rsquo;s play improved for three reasons. His bothersome shoulder injury healed, his ice time increased substantially, and he was teamed with rookie sensation Joe Nieuwendyk for most of the regular season. The duo combined to produce 101 goals and 198 points for the Flames.Off-season surgery corrected the constantly-dislocating joint which would occasionally pop out of its socket. The sound shoulder enabled the 5-foot-9, 175-pounder to take a more aggressive approach.Loob began his turnaround last spring by playing a key role in Sweden&rsquo;s surprise gold-medal performance at the World Championships. He completed it this season.&ldquo;The key for Loob is that he&rsquo;s a hell of a competitor,&rdquo; says Calgary GM Fletcher. &ldquo;In my opinion, he&rsquo;s our MVP.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0007-02907/5468191-1-eng-US/f0007-022.jpg" title="f0007-02" width="1490" height="1762"><figcaption class="caption-body">Gord Kluzak, injured for much of his career, wasn&rsquo;t able to show what he could do for the Boston Bruins until this year.</figcaption></div>Barrasso is the Sabres&rsquo; most valuable player. He was voted the honor by teammates during the last week of the regular season.It signaled formal acknowledgement of his return to all-star form. As does his recognition as one of THN&rsquo;s Comeback Players of the Year.&ldquo;I wish I&rsquo;d never had to win the (Comeback) award,&rdquo; said Barrasso. &ldquo;I wish I never slid down the ladder so far that I&rsquo;d have to climb back up.&rdquo;He had a long way to fall.Barrasso burst upon the NHL as an 18-year-old in 1983-84, winning the Vezina and Calder Trophies as the league&rsquo;s best goalie and rookie, respectively. He was named first all-star and all-rookie team goalie. In his second year, the Sabres allowed the fewest goals in the league and Barrasso shared the William Jennings Trophy with Bob Sauve. He was named a second all-star.Buffalo missed the playoffs the next two years and Barrasso became the scapegoat, after posting 3.61 (1985-86) and 3.65 (1986) averages.&ldquo;Last year was strange,&rdquo; Barrasso says. &ldquo;I drifted away from the team because of my play and the team&rsquo;s play. It was just difficult for me to take all the criticism for the downfall of the team when players who were just as responsible, if not more so, weren&rsquo;t criticized&hellip;I&rsquo;ve always thought a goaltender gets far too much credit when his team wins and too much criticism when it loses.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0007-01

Back In The Saddle Again

I AM AGITATED about the articles I&rsquo;ve been reading comparing Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky.And I&rsquo;m particularly upset that most of them say Gretzky is better than Lemieux. I don&rsquo;t believe this is true. Don&rsquo;t get me wrong, there is no doubt Gretzky is one of the best hockey players ever. But in my opinion. Lemieux is unmatchable.Gretzky is continually referred to as a better goal-scorer and playmaker. How true is that? Lemieux finished on top in goal and point production.People seem to forget Lemieux got where he is by himself. He has not constantly been surrounded by great players. Lemieux is a great player who needs help from no one. And that is why, when you put the two up against each other&mdash;as in the 1988 All-Star Game&mdash;there is no comparison. The truth shines through.Gretzky has had his recognition. It&rsquo;s time he and his fans face facts and move over. It&rsquo;s Mario&rsquo;s turn.Jennifer L. Nied, Mars, Penn.<h2>TICKET PRICES OUTRAGEOUS</h2>As a faithful Red Wings&rsquo; fan, 1 am totally disgusted with team owner Mike Hitch. I am furious over the increase in ticket prices by $8 apiece.The Red Wings have played to full houses all season and led the league in attendance. Is this how Mr. Hitch shows his appreciation? Paying $22 for standing-room tickets is like paying $25 for one of his Little Caesar&rsquo;s pizzas. Is it really worth it?Joe Polizzi,&nbsp; Warren. Mich.(Ed. Note: Prices for regular-season Red Wing games at Joe Louis Arena ranged from $8 to $20, with standing-room pegged at $14. Playoff prices range from $16 to $24, with standingroom at $22.)<h2>COLOR BLIND</h2>The one thing I don&rsquo;t understand about the L.A. Kings is the uniform change. They say they want their own identity, separate from the Lakers&rsquo; purple and gold, but now they&rsquo;re talking black and silver. Everyone knows these are Raider colors. Sure, they might be Hull Olympique colors too, but in L.A. they are Raider colors.Come on Mr. (Bruce) McNall, don&rsquo;t associate the Kings with the goon team of the NFL. Get them their own colors, ones that are different from any other L.A. team in any sport. Other friends and fans feel the same way&mdash;that if black and silver or maroon and gray are the only options&mdash;keep the purple and gold! Above all, bring us a winner.David R. Brockie,&nbsp; Lancaster, Calif.<h2>READER SHOULD GO FISH</h2>I&rsquo;m sick and tired of people complaining about the New York Ranger organization and its fans.Take, for example, reader Gary Cast&rsquo;s letter in THN&rsquo;s April I issue. Cast complained about the &ldquo;classless&rdquo; Rangers failing to honor Denis Potvin during his last regular-season visit to Madison Square Garden.What are hockey organizations supposed to do. throw out the red carpet for every player who retires? Granted, Potvin was a good hockey player, but I&rsquo;m sure not every organization gave him fishing gear as did the Hartford Whalers. So what!As for Cast&rsquo;s snide remark about Ranger fans shouting boring chants, why should it bother him. You will never find hockey fans as dedicated as Ranger fans. I&rsquo;ve been to that hole-in-the-wall Nassau Coliseum, and I would say about half the fans at a Ranger-Islander game there are Ranger fans.Bud Cavallo, Jr.&nbsp; Vineland, N.J. &#9632;

Fans Should Face Facts: Lemieux Best In Hockey

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0008-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-011379/5468284-1-eng-US/f0008-012.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0008-01

ELSTON

THERE ARE TWO ways to explain why New Jersey Devil John MacLean has only now emerged as the NHL&rsquo;s clutch scorer of the month.One is that the Devils were never good enough, until now, to be involved in a game that would permit aclutch goal. The second, coming from no less than authority than John MacLean Sr., is that John MacLean Jr., given the opportunity, has always been a clutch scorer.&ldquo;Yep,&rdquo; said the proud father, &ldquo;he always got the big goal. I coached him when he was nine years old and when I needed a goal, I&rsquo;d put him out. More often than not, he&rsquo;d get it.&ldquo;That was the only year I coached him, but I saw him do it over and over again&hellip;in bantam, in midget and in junior with the (Oshawa) Generals. He&rsquo;s always had a knack for scoring the important goal.&rdquo;John MacLean Sr.&rsquo;s coaching experience&mdash;20 years in the Oshawa Minor Hockey Association&mdash;exceeds that of New Jersey&rsquo;s Jim Schoenfeld, who has but 77 NHL games with the Buffalo Sabres and Devils in the bank.To Schoenfeld&rsquo;s credit, though, he has quickly come to realize what John MacLean Sr. has known for a long time&mdash;the kid can cash it in when it counts.As a result, the feisty Devils found themselves tied 2-2 with their suburban rivals, the New York Islanders, in the Patrick Division semi-final.Even with the excitement of eight playoff series on at the same time, and a radical new style of officiating that threatened to steal the spotlight, the Devils have become the postseason story. Something of a Cinderella one at that.If Sean Burke&rsquo;s stellar netminding doesn&rsquo;t make the headlines, then MacLean&rsquo;s timely goal-scoring heroics do.Were it not for MacLean&rsquo;s two-goal effort on the final night of the season, the Devils wouldn&rsquo;t even be around for the post-season parade.MacLean scored the tying goal in the third period against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 3, sending the contest into overtime. Needing a win to advance to the playoffs, New Jersey got it when MacLean scored at 2:21 of the five-minute sudden-death period.In game one against the Isles, he scored the tying goal with 1:56 remaining, sending it into overtime. Unfortunately for the Devils, and MacLean, the Islanders&rsquo; version of Mr. Clutch, Pat LaFontaine, salted it away in OT.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0008-021133/5468315-1-eng-US/f0008-022.jpg" title="f0008-02" width="390" height="447"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bob McKenzie</figcaption></div>In game two, MacLean had to settle for the Devils&rsquo; first goal in a 3-2 win; in game three, it was two assists in a 3-0 shutout.In game four, he scored a pair of goals, including the tying one with only 12 seconds left in regulation time. In OT, he had an excellent opportunity but missed. Minutes later, Brent Sutter scored to end the game and temporarily screw up what&rsquo;s developing into a first-rate script.&ldquo;I thought Johnny had it (the OT winner),&rdquo; said John Sr. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t say I expected him to get it, but his mother and 1 were sure hoping.&rdquo;So were the gaggle of friends and family back at the MacLean&rsquo;s Elizabeth Street home in Oshawa, where the satellite dish that was purchased in John Jr.&rsquo;s second season with the Devils was getting a workout.John Sr., and his wife Rose, were not among them. They were at the Brendan Byrne Arena, just as they were the night before for game three.&ldquo;We left them (friends and family) a key to our place,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They all know how to work the dish.&rdquo;For game five, the retired General Motors employee was back on Elizabeth Street &ldquo;working the dish&rdquo; and hoping for more special moments.With the Devils and John Jr. playing as well as they are, the potential is high. For now, though, John Sr. considers the win over Chicago as tops.&ldquo;We had a whole houseful of people over,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There were about 25 of us. When Johnny scored those two goals, you could probably hear us all the way to New Jersey.&rdquo;Loud and clear. &#9632;

f0008-02

John Sr. Not Surprised John Jr. Comes Through

<div class="byline">COMPILED BY JEFF HALE Editorial Staff</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0009-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0009-011337/5468346-1-eng-US/f0009-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Missing star defenseman Craig Hartsburg for 53 games contributed to Minnesota&rsquo;s league-leading total of 495 man-games lost.</figcaption></div>When it comes to explaining hockey injuries, Minnesota North Stars coach Herb Brooks doesn&rsquo;t pretend to be a medicine man. But a meteorologist&hellip; that&rsquo;s another story.&ldquo;It seems that one team in the NHL each year gets hit severely hard (with injuries),&rdquo; said Brooks. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s this black cloud that follows you around and says, &lsquo;Who are we going to pick on this year?&rsquo; &ldquo;The North Stars had a hurricane follow them this season, as they led the National Hockey League in mangames lost due to injury with 495. A man-game lost is any game missed by an injured player and the total mangames lost accounts for all games missed by all players.For example, the Boston Bruins led the NHL in man-games lost for 19861987 with 390. Eighty of those belonged to defenseman Gord Kluzak, who missed the entire season because of arthroscopic knee surgery (See story on page 7.) With a healthy Kluzak, the Bruin total would have dropped to 310.Based on figures available from 19 of the 21 NHL teams, the 1986-87 team average for man-games lost was 223. This season&rsquo;s average, with all 21 teams reporting, was 261. Of the 19 teams providing back-to-back figures or the last two seasons, 12 increased in lost man-games.Buffalo was second with 400 mangames lost, Pittsburgh third with 397 and Toronto, which had right winger Brad Smith out the entire season, fourth at 336. The Edmonton Oilers had the lowest total with 68 games. The rest of the teams in the league and their man-games lost were: New York Islanders, 322; Calgary, 305; Chicago, 298; Detroit, 290; Boston, 276; Los Angeles, 264; New York Rangers, 262; New Jersey, 254; St. Louis, 253; Philadelphia, 244; Vancouver, 233; Hartford, 175; Winnipeg, 169; Montreal, 158; Washington, 142; and Quebec, 137.Minnesota&rsquo;s total would have been higher if sidelined defenseman Pat Price didn&rsquo;t become an assistant coach three months into the season. He played 14 games.&ldquo;A lot of medical people, who know a lot more about this than I do are scratching their heads and saying Why, why, why?&rsquo;&rdquo; said Brooks. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s just a run of bad luck on our organization this year.&ldquo;It breaks the continuity for both player and coach. You&rsquo;re not able to expand the base of the system (of designed strategy and plays) you want. You don&rsquo;t have time to polish.&ldquo;In our case, it was about seven guys out every night. Depth is what everyone in the NHL wants, but 1 don&rsquo;t think anyone really has it. When it hurts your core&mdash;we lost (defenseman Craig) Hartsburg and (center Neal) Broten&mdash;then it compounds the situation.&rdquo;Hartsburg missed 53 games (shoulder) and Broten 26 (shoulder).North Star general manager Lou Nanne said it affects a team&rsquo;s operating budget too, since both the injured players and replacements are paid.<h2>NEW HALL CATEGORY</h2>The Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum in Toronto has added a new category for induction. The veterans category will be open to players who have been out of hockey for 20 to 25 years. Hall president Ian (Scotty) Morrison said it should give players from the past a better chance of induction opposite more contemporary candidates.One veteran selection will be announced each year, along with the other player inductions. To be inducted, a nominee must receive nine votes from the 12-member player selection committee, chaired by former Montreal Canadien broadcaster Danny Gallivan. This year&rsquo;s inductees will be announced during the NHL&rsquo;s annual meetings June 12-14. The induction dinner is Sept. 7 in Toronto.<h2>ALL-AMERICANS</h2>Hobey Baker Award-winning Robb Stauber headed up All-American selections for 1987-88. Minnesota&rsquo;s Stauber was named first-team goalie on the American Hockey Coaches Association-Titan All-American university West squad.Others on the first West team were defensemen Scott Paluch of Bowling Green and Paul Stanton of Wisconsin, center Steve Johnson of North Dakota, left winger Paul Ranheim of Wisconsin and right winger Mark Vermette of Lake Superior State.On the first East team were goalie Bruce Racine of Northeastern, defensemen Jack Capuano of Maine and Brian McColgan of St. Lawrence, center Pete Lappin of St. Lawrence, right winger Rejean Boivin of Colgate and left winger Dave Capuano of Maine. The Capuanos are brothers.(For complete listing of university and college All-American selections, see page 35.)<h2>BITS AND PIECES</h2>The Prince of Wales and Clarence Campbell Conference finals begin May 2 and 3, respectively, regardless of how soon the division finals end. The Stanley Cup final could begin as early as May 12 or 13 if the conference finals are best-of-seven sweeps. If both finals go to seven games, the Stanley Cup final begin May 18&hellip;This season&rsquo;s winners of the Stanley Cup will receive $25,000 per player, while players on the losing team receive $18,000. Conference championship losers receive $11,000, division final losers $6,000 and division semi-final losers $3,000.The order of selection for the first round of the NHL entry draft, June 11 in Montreal, is as follows: 1. Minnesota; 2. Vancouver; 3. Quebec; 4. Pittsburgh; 5. Quebec (obtained from the New York Rangers for signing coach Michel Bergeron); 6. Toronto; 7. Los Angeles; 8. Chicago; 9. St. Louis; 10. Winnipeg; 11. Hartford; 12. New Jersey; 13. Buffalo; 14. Philadelphia; 15. Washington; 16. New York Islanders; 17. Detroit; 18. Boston; 19. Edmonton; 20. Montreal; 21. Calgary&hellip;New Jersey Devil goalie Sean Burke was selected the NHL&rsquo;s rookie of the month for March/April. Burke won 10 of 11 games, posting a 3.05 goals-against average.Harrah&rsquo;s Race and Sports Book in Reno, Nevada listed the Calgary Flames as favorites to win the Stanley Cup at 2-1. Calgary began the season as 6-1 favorites. Toronto was the longest longshot at 100-1. New Jersey, which started the season off as 100-1 shots to win the Cup, went to 25-1 after a good first half, and were 40-1 heading into the playoffs&hellip;WOR Radio (710 AM) in New York will end its five-year agreement to broadcast New York Islander games at the conclusion of this season. The station, which features a talk radio format of interviews and commentaries, said the games disrupted their regular programming and didn&rsquo;t appeal to their main audience of women over 35 years of age. Islander vice-president of marketing Art Adler said WOR hadn&rsquo;t officially dropped the broadcasts, but added the team was looking at three other New York stations, with a decision expected in two months.Hockey books due out this year: New York Islander Mike Bossy&rsquo;s autobiography, tentatively titled Firepower, and Montreal Canadien Larry Robinson&rsquo;s autobiography, from McGraw-Hill; Phil Esposito&rsquo;s autobiography from Prentice-Hall; plus Fuhr On Goaltending, an instructional book by Oiler goalie Grant Fuhr and an anthology of hockey fiction titled How To Spend Time Between Games, both from Polestar Press. Detroit Little Caesar&rsquo;s won the United States midget (ages 16-17) hockey championship March 27 in Oak Park, Mich., defeating Chicago Young Americans 3-2. The Canadian midget championship, the Air Canada Cup, runs April 19-23 in Thunder Bay, Ont.Don Martin, a left winger on the Ontario League&rsquo;s London Knights, will be sentenced May 10 after a provincial judge found him guilty March 25 of two counts of assault at a 1987 New Year&rsquo;s party. Martin, 20, and a friend pleaded not guilty to assaulting a 17-year-old male youth and his mother in a London home&hellip;Kudos to Saskatchewan Junior League statistician Russ Besenki of Humboldt, Sask. In his first year on the job, Besenki is putting together one of the most complete reports of any hockey league. In addition to travelling to many games, Besenki subscribes to 13 newspapers. His secret? &ldquo;My wife (Sandra) helps me,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;She reads a lot of the newspapers.&rdquo;<h2>OVERHEARD</h2>&ldquo;That&rsquo;s one article I&rsquo;ll keep.&rdquo;&mdash;Detroit Red Wing right winger Joe Kocur after he appeared on the front page of the April 5 Wall Street Journal. &#9632;

f0009-01

Black Cloud Rains Upon North Stars

PIERRE CREAMER WAS a stoic, heroic figure behind the Pittsburgh bench.His team was two minutes from seeing its season melt into disappointment, and Creamer was calm and collected, without even a hint of panic.Turns out, according to his players, Creamer didn&rsquo;t realize he should have been worried.For as the Capital Centre clock clicked off the final minutes of overtime in a 6-6 tie between Pittsburgh and Washington on April 2, they said, Creamer was blissfully unaware a tie would have eliminated the Penguins from playoff contention.That detail finally was brought to his attention by the players and Creamer decided he would, after all, replace goalie Steve Guenette with an extra forward.The move proved unnecessary, since Mario Lemieux preserved the Penguins with 58 seconds left in overtime, allowing them to avert elimination until the following night.Even so, the incident is a strong indictment of Creamer, whose first season as a coach in the NHL was slightly less successful than the Titanic&rsquo;s maiden voyage.Creamer, whose relations with much of the Pittsburgh media were severely strained this season, declined to be interviewed about the incident in Washington.Speaking through the team&rsquo;s public relations department, however, he denied his players&rsquo; allegations.The only remaining mystery is why Creamer believes his players would concoct such an outrageous story.It was appropriate Creamer&rsquo;s first year in the NHL should end on such a controversial and confusing note, for it was a most perplexing season.When the Penguins named Creamer to replace Bob Berry last spring, he was touted as a superb communicator, teacher and defensive strategist.That was the reputation he compiled during three years in Sherbrooke, where he coached Montreal&rsquo;s farm team to one AHL championship and another trip to the finals.Those glowing assessments of Creamer&rsquo;s capabilities did not survive his first NHL season intact.Creamer struggled with the nuances of English, a serious shortcoming when one is coaching a team made up almost entirely of Anglophones.The good thing is, the problem was minimized&mdash;because, according to most players, Creamer rarely spoke to them. Before, during, after or between games.No fewer than 17 rookies passed through Pittsburgh this season, but most said Creamer provided little direction or instruction.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-011418/5468377-1-eng-US/f0010-012.jpg" title="f0010-01" width="357" height="460"><figcaption class="caption-body">Dave Molinari</figcaption></div>The case of forward Rob Brown is compelling. He spent most of the season on the bench and in the press box.When he finally was given a chance to play regularly during the final quarter of the season. Brown became the Penguins&rsquo; No. 4 scorer among forwards.Pittsburgh has one of the NHL&rsquo;s most promising young defensive units and a rather diligent collection of forwards, but the fundamental flaws in the Penguins&rsquo; defensive structure are evidenced by their goals-against total.They allowed 316, most in the Wales Conference.Anyone puzzled by the Penguins&rsquo; absence from the playoffs for the sixth consecutive spring need only refer to that total, or the leaguerecord 120 power-play goals they surrendered.While these circumstances may represent the most costly aspects of Creamer&rsquo;s NHL debut, they are not necessarily the most confounding.The most exasperating question is how one goes about keeping a team with the likes of Mario Lemieux and Paul Coffey out of the NHL&rsquo;s bloated playoff field.Forget about changing the format. Eight more points, and that team&mdash;absurd as it sounds&mdash;had a division championship.But the sour, strange memories of this season will linger longer than the disappointment of sitting out the post-season again.&bull; Like Creamer&rsquo;s proclivity for scrambling line combinations and defensive pairings, to the point where the players did not know their coworkers&rsquo; names, let alone their tendencies.&bull; Like the week-long 11 p.m. curfew he slapped on right winger Jimmy Mann for taking ill-conceived penalties during a win in Calgary.&bull; Like his decision to have steaks at pregame meals, thus undermining the team&rsquo;s nutritional program.There is more, enough to strain the confines of this page.Suffice to say Creamer need not hurry to clear space for his first Jack Adams Trophy. Or, most likely, make any long-term plans for his future in Pittsburgh. &#9632;

f0010-01

Creamer’s Debut A Baffling Disappointment

<div class="byline">BY AL MORGANTI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-03705/5468408-1-eng-US/f0010-032.jpg" title="f0010-03" width="578" height="743"><figcaption class="caption-body">Kjell Samuelsson&rsquo;s playoff performance has justified his all-star selection.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0010-021088/5468415-1-eng-US/f0010-022.jpg" title="f0010-02" width="175" height="134"></div>PHILADELPHIA&mdash;In early February when Philadelphia Flyer coach Mike Keenan named defenseman Kjell Samuelsson to the Wales Conference all-star team, some people snickered.Kjell Samuelsson over others like Chris Chelios? Who was Keenan kidding?Hey, maybe the Flyers were just trying to cover up for the Brad McCrimmon trade. You know, put Samuelsson on the all-star team and it would take some of the heat off management for trading McCrimmon to Calgary.However, Keenan insisted he wasn&rsquo;t throwing Samuelsson any bones. He thought Samuelsson belonged on the team.In the first round of the playoffs, Samuelsson was making Keenan look pretty good. He was also making the Flyers look pretty good, playing key roles in Philadelphia&rsquo;s April 9-10 home-ice sweep of two games against the Washington Capitals in their best-of-seven Patrick Division semi-final. The Flyers led the series 3-1.Samuelsson scored the gamewinning goal in a 5-4 victory at the Spectrum April 9 and one night later scored the game-tying goal with just 13 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime.From there, the Flyers won 5-4 on a goal by Murray Craven, but it was Samuelsson who gave them the opportunity to get into overtime. Trailing 4-3 with 62 seconds to play, Keenan yanked goalie Mark Laforest in favor of an extra skater.He also made sure he kept Samuelsson on the ice and the big Swede (at 6-foot-6, the tallest player in the NHL), swooped into the slot where he gained control of a loose puck. He whisked a shot past Washington goalie Clint Malarchuk for the game-tying goal.&ldquo;Kjell Samuelsson is showing why I picked him on the all-star team,&rdquo; said Keenan. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s had a great year, an all-star year. And he&rsquo;s been important to us all season. This isn&rsquo;t something he&rsquo;s just turned on during the playoffs. He&rsquo;s been doing it through 80 games.&rdquo;Indeed, Samuelsson was one half of the Flyers&rsquo; only consistent defensive pairing all season. Teamed with Howe, Samuelsson turned in a plus-28, opposite Howe&rsquo;s plus-23. He finished with six goals and 24 assists in 74 games.Many Flyer fans were surprised by Samuelsson&rsquo;s play. There was some criticism of the trade two years ago which brought Samuelsson to Philadelphia from the New York Rangers for popular goalie Bob Froese.&ldquo;We checked him out,&rdquo; said Flyer assistant coach E.J. McGuire, &ldquo;and we got great reports on Kjell.&rdquo;One of the people the Flyers checked with was Jack Birch, a former Ranger assistant coach under Ted Sator and a former Flyer assistant under Keenan.&ldquo;There was never any doubt in our minds that he could play in the NHL,&rdquo; said Birch. &ldquo;Hey, when he came over here, he didn&rsquo;t even have a contract.&ldquo;We sent him to New Haven (of the American League) without even giving him a guaranteed contract and he went along with it. Remember, he could have returned to Sweden at any time to play for real good money.&ldquo;He went to the AHL, got his nose broken, and he never let anything bother him.&rdquo;With the Flyers, his nose was broken three times in one game. &ldquo;That was it,&rdquo; said Dr. John Gregg, who set Samuelsson&rsquo;s nose. &ldquo;After that he wasn&rsquo;t going to let anybody bash him, not unless he bashed back.&rdquo;His biggest asset is his size. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s got that reach,&rdquo; said Birch. &ldquo;First you have to get around the reach he has with his stick, and then you have to get around him.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not easy.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Right winger Rick Tocchet returned from his shoulder injury to play in the third and fourth games. In his first game back, Tocchet played like he was shot out of a cannon. &ldquo;I guess I have to calm down a little,&rdquo; said Tocchet, &ldquo;but I&rsquo;m so wired for the playoffs.&rdquo;&hellip;After publicly scolding defenseman Doug Crossman. Mike Keenan asked the Spectrum crowd to back off the defenseman, who was being booed every time he carried the puck&hellip;The Flyers trailed game four 4-1 with less than 10 minutes to play. They scored three goals in a span of 9:07&hellip;Defenseman Willie Huber resprained his knee during the victory.<h2>FLYERS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Dave Poulin, Ron Sutter, Pelle Eklund, Peter Zezel, Murray Craven, Don Nachbaur.LW&mdash;Brian Propp, Derrick Smith, Al Hill, Craig Berube, Nick Fotiu.RW&mdash;Tim Kerr, Scott Mellanby, Ilkka Sinisalo, Dave Brown.LD&mdash;Mark Howe, Brad Marsh, Kerry Huffman.RD&mdash;Kjell Samuelsson, Greg Smyth, Doug Crossman, J.J. Daigneault, Bill Root.G&mdash;Ron Hextall, Mark Laforest.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Willie Huber, D, twisted knee, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0010-03

Samuelsson Turns Sharpshooter In Playoffs

<div class="byline">BY BOB FACHET</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0011-011294/5468446-1-eng-US/f0011-012.jpg" title="f0011-01" width="177" height="135"></div>LANDOVER, Md.&mdash;It happens every April.For the past five seasons, the Washington Capitals have advanced to the playoffs. In those five seasons, they have lost three times in the first round and twice in the second round.During the regular season, the Capitals give their fans reason to believe they are destined to attain some post-season success. Then, after acting out scenarios that increasingly defy belief, the Caps head for the golf course before May rolls around.It was nearly time to polish the clubs after the Philadelphia Flyers defeated Washington twice in Philadelphia to hold a 3-1 advantage over the Capitals in their best-of-seven Patrick Division semi-final. Washington failed to hold a three-goal lead during the last 10 minutes of game four at the Spectrum on April 10 and lost 5-4 in overtime.There were extenuating circumstances. The Capitals were missing their two best defensemen, Scott Stevens and Rod Langway, both of whom were injured during a 4-3 loss in game three on April 9.Still, after they chased Flyer goalie Ron Hextall with a four-goal barrage, the Capitals seemed home free with 10 minutes left. The Flyers closed the gap on goals by Mark Howe and Brian Propp, tied it with 53 seconds left on a goal by Kjell Samuelsson and won it on Murray Craven&rsquo;s score at 1:18 of overtime.&ldquo;It was good to watch for a long time,&rdquo; Stevens said. &ldquo;I was proud of the guys. They played a great game and took it to the Flyers. I was thinking, &lsquo;It&rsquo;s great that we&rsquo;re winning and Rod and I get a rest.&rsquo;&ldquo;Then we get a couple of bad bounces on their third and fourth goals, and once again it kills us. That was tough to take.&rdquo;Defenseman Kevin Hatcher, one of the three stars of both games in Philadelphia, said, &ldquo;With Scotty and Rod out, everybody felt the pressure and we had to pick up our boots and play a little better. For 50 minutes we were the best team on the ice, but the last 10 minutes killed us.&ldquo;We started to lay back too much and we just kept dumping it out. They&rsquo;d send it right back in and they put a lot of pressure on us.&rdquo;Although the defeat left the Capitals&rsquo; backs to the wall once again, coach Bryan Murray remained defiant.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just in the right spot now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Last year when we were ahead (of the Islanders) 3-1, everybody said we choked. Now we&rsquo;ll see if the Flyers can finish us off.&rdquo;The Flyers won the opener 4-2 at the Capital Centre on April 6 and Washington evened it 5-4 the next night.The third game saw 40 penalties called by referee Ron Hoggarth. Flyer right winger Rick Tocchet crosschecked center Dale Hunter in the side of the head during one stoppage in play and Hunter was cut above the left eye and on the eyelid. Tocchet received a major penalty for high-sticking and a minor for roughing. He eventually was ejected in the third period.&ldquo;If that&rsquo;s the way it has to be,&rdquo; said Murray, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s a damn disgrace for the league. I like tough hockey, I like guys taking the body and I like hard-nosed hockey. But the use of sticks was atrocious.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Right winger Mike Gartner presented a $48,000 cheque to Children&rsquo;s Hospital in Washington, representing pledges by him and others that amounted to $ 1,000 per regularseason goal&hellip;Canadian Olympic defenseman Chris Felix made his NHL debut in the fourth game against Phildelphia.<h2>CAPITALS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 7: Sam McMaster, assistant director of player personnel, announced he is resigning effective July 31 to become general manager of the Sudbury Wolves (OHL).April 10: Chris Felix, D, recalled from Fort Wayne (IHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Bengt Gustafsson, Mike Ridley, Dale Hunter, Bob Gould.LW&mdash;Michal Pivonka, Kelly Miller, Greg Adams, Peter Sundstrom.RW&mdash;Mike Gartner, Dave Christian, Yvon Corriveau, Steve Leach, Ed Kastelic.LD&mdash;Greg Smith, Grant Ledyard, Garry Galley.RD&mdash;Kevin Hatcher, Larry Murphy, Chris Felix.G&mdash;Pete Peeters, Clint Malarchuk.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Lou Franceschetti, RW, bruised shin, day-to-day.Rod Langway, D, Charley-horse in thigh, day-to-day.Scott Stevens, D, bruised shoulder, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0011-01

Capitals’ Spring Swoon Right On Schedule

AWARDS THE NHL has never coined but should&hellip;&#9633; Kansas City Scouts Cup (Most disappointing team of the season): Winnipeg Jets. Sure, it would easy to give it to the Canucks or North Stars but that duet was genuinely stinko. The Jets, on the other hand, boast a super-superstar in Dale Hawerchuk, a future Norris Trophy-winner in Dave Ellett and a pair of goalies (Pokey Reddick and Daniel Berth-iaume) who once looked like the best one-two kid combo in the NHL. You can&rsquo;t tell me that with those assets and Paul Mac Lean, Mario Marois. Laurie Boschman and Randy Carlyle, they shouldn&rsquo;t have been well over.500.&#9633; Miami Screaming Eagles Plaque (Most surprising team): Boston Bruins. Let&rsquo;s face it, they had no goaltending, no offense, a coach that almost quit a year ago, and they play in a pygmy rink. Yet, Terry O&rsquo;Reilly coaxed a superb year out of Rejean Lemelin, managed with an ineffective Rick Middleton, rekindled Ken Linseman&rsquo;s fire and put a scare into the Canadiens.&#9633; The Frank Sinatra Gold Record (GM who keeps saying &lsquo;I&rsquo;ll do it my way&rsquo;): Phil Esposito. He not only peddled a first-rounder for a coach who couldn&rsquo;t get his club into the playoffs, he also had the best line for media critics: &ldquo;So what, I might be dead next year!&rdquo;&#9633; The Alfred E. Newman Trophy (What me worry about making the playoffs when Minnesota is in my division?): John Brophy. The story is apocryphal but tells it all nevertheless. Sometime in February, the Leafs coach was thought to have said, &ldquo;If we can win two of our next 35 games, we should clinch a playoff berth.&rdquo;&#9633; The Rodney Dangerfield Decal (For the coach who gets no respect, but should): Jean Perron. They sneer about him; whisper about him and people like Claude Lemieux and Larry Robinson have publicly put him down. The man is accomplished, tough and wants to instill in his team something all athletes should cherish&mdash;discipline.&#9633; The Punch Imlach Memorial Cup (For successfully leading his team to a miraculous homestretch finish): Jim Schoenfeld. Not since Imlach led the Maple Leafs from seven points out of a playoff berth with two weeks to go in 1959, to a final-night win and fourth place, has anyone accomplished what the Devils did from mid-March through April 3. Schoenfeld&rsquo;s cool, perceptive handling of his youngsters, enabled the Devils to orchestrate one of the most exciting sudden-death symphonies in NHL history.&#9633; The Ken Dryden Look-Alike Mirror (For looking and playing the way Dryden did as a Canadien rookie in March-April, 1971): Sean Burke. If this kid didn&rsquo;t act like the second coming of the Hall of Famer during the Devils&rsquo; dynamic stretch drive, then my name is John McCauley.&#9633; The Peter Principle Plaque (For accomplishing little and getting a lot): Lou Nanne. The ever-lovable Louie takes a sabbatical from the pitiful North Stars and returns, promoted no less, from GM to president of the hockey club. Now that&rsquo;s nice work if you can get it.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-011393/5468477-1-eng-US/f0012-012.jpg" title="f0012-01" width="333" height="446"><figcaption class="caption-body">Stan Fischlar</figcaption></div>&#9633; The Don Rickles Trophy (For G-rated goaltenders humor): Clint Malarchuk. Asked to name the kind of people he admires most, the Caps goalie remarked, &ldquo;Women who chew tobacco!&rdquo;&#9633; The Mister Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons Prize (To western-based stars who are ignored by eastern writers): Gary Suter. If this remarkably-unacknowledged defenseman played in New York, he&rsquo;d have the Norris Trophy by now.&#9633; The Winston Churchill Bronze Stogie (For world-class cigar smoking by an NHL executive): Pat Quinn. Hey, pal, the Vancouver Canucks have to win something this year.&#9633; The Nick Fotiu Survival Cup (To the chap who just hangs in there year after year after year): Ed Hospodar.&#9633; The &lsquo;Put The Blame On Mame&rsquo; Gold Record (For assorted and sundry alibiing throughout the season): Michel Bergeron, who wept about the Patrick Division playoff system, goon hockey, officiating, more officiating and more officiating, ad nauseam.&#9633; The Goodyear Blimp Tabletop Replica (To the NHL&rsquo;s highest-scoring floater): Michel Goulet. He amassed 106 points and finished with a plus-minus rating of minus-31.&#9633; The Golden Goat Medallion (Dumbest and most expensive penalty of the season): Tomas Sandstrom. With his Rangers leading the listless Jets 6-5 on the final Friday night of the season and less than five minutes remaining in the third period, Sandstrom stupidly interfered with Winnipeg&rsquo;s Dave Ellett on a New York rush. While Tomas was cooling his heels in the penalty box, Paul MacLean tied the score and the Rangers were stuck with a 6-6 tie. A win would have virtually guaranteed the New Yorkers a playoff berth. In the end, the tie sent the Blueshirts into fifth place. Total cost to the Rangers in potential playoff ticket sales: At least $1 million. As much as $3 million.&#9633; Steve Buzinski, The Puck Goesinski, Bronzed Red Goal Light (To the goalie with the best nickname and worst performance): Warren (Scoreagainstme) Skorodenski. In three games with the Stanley Cup-champion Edmonton Oilers this season, he had a goals-against average of 6.89. He allowed seven goals on 25 shots. &#9632;

f0012-01

Schoenfeld Is First Winner Of Imlach Cup

<div class="byline">BY DAVE MOLINARI</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0012-03" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-03776/5468508-1-eng-US/f0012-032.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Coach Pierre Creamer wouldn&rsquo;t contribute to speculation on his future in Pittsburgh. He was roundly criticized this season.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0012-021162/5468515-1-eng-US/f0012-022.jpg" title="f0012-02" width="175" height="136"></div>PITTSBURGH&mdash;There are a few rites of early April in this city.The Pirates start playing baseball. The Penguins stop playing hockey. And the Civic Arena braces for a shakeup.Last spring, it was coach Bob Berry and assistant Jim Roberts who paid with their jobs for the Penguins&rsquo; failure to make the playoffs.This time, coach Pierre Creamer and, to a lesser degree, general manager Eddie Johnston seem to be in peril as the Penguins sit out the post-season for the sixth straight year.There is no timetable for any decision on their futures.&ldquo;That (decision) doesn&rsquo;t belong to me,&rdquo; Creamer said. &ldquo;That belongs to the management. As a coach, 1 try to do my best. The best for me is 81 points.&ldquo;I won&rsquo;t evaluate my job. I cannot do that. 1 will be unfair to me&hellip;or too fair to me.&rdquo;Both of the city&rsquo;s major newspapers, The Press and Post-Gazette, ran post-season analyses highly critical of Creamer and supportive of Johnston.In early March, Mario Lemieux, Paul Coffey, Dan Quinn, Dave Hunter and Dan Frawley were summoned to an unorthodox meeting with Edward DeBartolo Jr., son of the team&rsquo;s owner. The five players were expected to pay a return visit to corporate head-quarters in Boardman, Ohio, in the weeks following the season.Many players were privately critical of Creamer&rsquo;s tactics and techniques throughout the season, although none went public with anything more than veiled criticism.And even after the Penguins&rsquo; year ended on the final night of the regular season, players were reluctant to convey their thoughts on what changes were expected or needed.&ldquo;We can&rsquo;t say anything about that,&rdquo; Lemieux said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not our job to fire anybody or to point the finger at anybody.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s up to Mr. DeBartolo and (vice president) Paul Martha to make the right decision&hellip;we&rsquo;ll see what they do.&rdquo;&ldquo;When you start looking to blame other people, that&rsquo;s wrong,&rdquo; left winger Randy Cunneyworth said. &ldquo;You look in the mirror first. That&rsquo;s what everyone&rsquo;s going to have to do over the summer.&rdquo;But while a coaching change seemed likely&mdash;with Rick Ley of the Penguins&rsquo; Muskegon farm team the early favorite as Creamer&rsquo;s successor&mdash;there was great uncertainty about whether the team would remain intact, regardless of any restructuring of management.&ldquo;Everybody talks about management positions being at stake,&rdquo; Quinn said. &ldquo;Well, how does management stay pat with a team that doesn&rsquo;t make the playoffs for the last couple of years?&rdquo;It was, however, the quality of the talent assembled by Johnston that makes Creamer so vulnerable. The Penguins were expected to make the playoffs this year.Creamer said the talent level rose as the season progressed, when the Penguins picked up the likes of Coffey, Zarley Zalapski and Kevin Stevens, and suggested he could lead the club to more than 81 points in 1988-89.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to have to build for next year, and I think I&rsquo;m going to be a better coach because I know the players.&rdquo;So while 16 other teams&mdash;including six who finished with fewer points&mdash;prepared for the playoffs, the Penguins cleaned out their lockers and wondered what might have been.&ldquo;Given the chance to actually be there (in the playoffs), I think we would have surprised a few teams,&rdquo; Cunneyworth said. &ldquo;I really do.&rdquo;But the only surprises awaiting the Penguins could be the identities of those who will lead them into new season.NOTES&mdash;Defenseman Randy Hillier underwent surgery to remove bone fragments from his hand a few days after the season&hellip;Mario Lemieux was one who couldn&rsquo;t be blamed for the Penguins&rsquo; inability to make the playoffs. The Art Ross Trophy winner was named NHL player of the month for March and April&hellip;Paul Coffey was scheduled to undergo an examination of his knee, to determine if arthroscopic surgery was required to repair damage done shortly after the Penguins acquired him from Edmonton in November. &#9632;

f0012-03

Pens Staying Mum About Possible Changes

<div class="byline">BY WALT MacPEEK</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-011314/5468546-1-eng-US/f0013-012.jpg" title="f0013-01" width="580" height="1082"><figcaption class="caption-body">Despite centering the top checking line, Lucien DeBlois&rsquo; future is uncertain.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0013-02955/5468553-1-eng-US/f0013-022.jpg" title="f0013-02" width="176" height="137"></div>NEW YORK&mdash;Of all the New York Rangers who were left with an empty feeling, veteran center Lucien DeBlois seemed to be the one most affected by his team&rsquo;s failure to gain a playoff spot.As the players gathered at their Playland Casino practice facilty in Rye, N.Y., the morning after they became the first Ranger team to miss the postseason since 1977, DeBlois was not certain he would get another chance at the playoffs.&ldquo;My contract is over,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s up in the air. I don&rsquo;t know whether or not they&rsquo;ll offer me another one. When you don&rsquo;t make the playoffs, teams make changes.&rdquo;For DeBlois, who finished with nine goals and 21 assists in 74 games, the end to the 1987-88 season came so suddenly he wasn&rsquo;t sure about the options available to him.&ldquo;Some people are telling me that 1 will be a free agent without compensation (with the Rangers having the right to match a team&rsquo;s offer), but 1 honestly don&rsquo;t know about that,&rdquo; said DeBlois, who will be 31 in June. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t look into it yet.&rdquo;DeBlois did not manoeuver into this position to gain leverage. As a free agent two years ago, he could not command more than a one-year contract with an option year, after coming off two injury-filled seasons with the Montreal Canadiens.&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve played out my option but I don&rsquo;t want to move again.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I really like it here and my family likes it. I&rsquo;d like to think I&rsquo;ll be back, that there won&rsquo;t be any problem, but I don&rsquo;t know. Phil (general manager Esposito) has always been pretty good to me.&rdquo;After an off-season of extensive workouts and rehabilitation, DeBlois bounced back from an injury-filled 1986-87 to center a checking line after 11 seasons as a right winger.DeBlois, claimed by the Rangers in the 1987 waiver draft, earned the praise of coach Michel Bergeron.&ldquo;You must remember that Lucien was a right winger when we put in our list for the waiver draft and we had a lot of wingers,&rdquo; Bergeron recalled, &ldquo;but we were lucky nobody took him.&ldquo;He was our third- or fourth-most valuable player, no doubt about it. His line (with Jan Erixon on right wing and Don Maloney on left wing) stopped a lot of the best lines in the league. It was our best line in a lot of games.&rdquo;Esposito, still in shock after seeing his team fail to make the playoffs with 82 points, did not want to commit himself.&ldquo;Off the top of my head.&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;d think Lucien showed he is still a player. His line had a good season for us.&rdquo;Despite that, Esposito left some doubt.&ldquo;What happens (with DeBlois) is going to be a real big decision for me and my coaching staff.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Coach Michel Bergeron said it was &ldquo;very tough&rdquo; on veteran center Marcel Dionne to receive reduced ice time during the second half of the season but he said the future Hall-of-Famer&rsquo;s contribution was &ldquo;great&rdquo; and expected him to retum-&hellip;General manager Phil Esposito said the Ranger draft choices at center, Mark Janssens of Regina (WHL), Darren Turcotte of North Bay (OHL). Mike Golden of the University of Maine and Corey Millen of the U.S. Olympic team will get a long look in the fall&hellip;Esposito is heading into the last year of his contract and would like it renegotiated. &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t want to go through a whole season (of being a lame-duck GM) the way (former) Craig Patrick was forced to,&rdquo; he said. &#9632;

f0013-01

Time For Rangers’ DeBlois To Check Out?

Jeff Gordon&rsquo;s faith in the New Jersey Devils paid off.Gordon, one of only two THN writers to predict the Devils would make the playoffs, emerged as the best of a bad lot when we reviewed our prognosticators&rsquo; pre-season pre-dictions.Still, a victory is a victory, and the St. Louis writer was suitably smug over being &ldquo;just&rdquo; 20 (of a possible 54) placements off in his guesses, oops, scientific suggestions of probability.For his victory, Gordon received the heartiest good wishes from everyone at THN, and the assurance his contract will be renewed for the 1988-89 season.&ldquo;I was terrified I&rsquo;d finish last,&rdquo; Gordon said. &ldquo;Two years ago, I picked the Devils to make it and everyone laughed. I owe all the credit to (Devil executives) Max McNab and Lou Lamoriello.&rdquo;Barry Meisel of New York was the only other writer to predict New Jersey would make the playoffs.Correspondents&rsquo; choices were assessed by how close they came to the team&rsquo;s actual place of finish. For instance, if a writer picked fourth-place Hartford to finish first in the Adams Division, he would be three placements off.Not everyone was so expert as Gordon at picking darkhorses. Philadelphia correspondent Al Morganti chose the Minnesota North Stars to represent the Campbell Conference in the Stanley Cup finals. The North Stars finished dead last in the NHL.&ldquo;One of the all-time greats, huh?&rdquo; Morganti said sadly of his pick.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-011369/5468584-1-eng-US/f0014-012.jpg" title="f0014-01" width="579" height="795"><figcaption class="caption-body">St. Louis correspondent Jeff Gordon was the best of THN&rsquo;s prognosticators.</figcaption></div>Morganti said he felt as embarrassed as North Star president Lou Nanne should. Nanne announced his impending resignation as general manager during the regular season.&ldquo;If I had as much money as Louie, I&rsquo;d resign now, too,&rdquo; Morganti said.The worst overall prediction record belonged to New Jersey correspondent Rich Chere who, ironically, did not share Gordon&rsquo;s faith in the Devils. Chere was 34 placements out in his calls, including a devastating 12 (of a possible 12) in the Norris Division alone.Chere had Minnesota first, Toronto second, Chicago third. Detroit fourth and St. Louis fifth. The order of finish was Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago, Toronto and Minnesota.Why did he have it so topsy-turvy?&ldquo;Well, it happens to be a topsyturvy division,&rdquo; he shrugged. &ldquo;Actually, my picks were correct, but the league got things screwed up.&rdquo;Other correspondents and their scores: Tom Henshaw. Boston, 22; Mike Perricone, Chicago, 22; Steve Dryden, Toronto, 22; Tony Gallagher, 22; Jim Kelley. Buffalo, 24; Rick Sadowski, Los Angeles, 24; Walt MacPeek, New York (Rangers). 24; Morganti, 24; Bob McKenzie, THN, 24; Eric Duhatschek, Calgary, 26; Keith Gave, Detroit, 26; Dick Chubey, Edmonton, 26; Randy Smith, Hartford, 26; Glenn Cole. Montreal, 26; Bob Fachet, Washington, 26; Grant McGinnis, Winnipeg, 26; Meisel, New York (Islanders), 28; Jerry Zgoda, Minnesota, 30; Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh, 30; Kevin Johnston, Quebec, 30. &#9632;

f0014-01

Prognosticator Praises The Devils

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0014-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0014-021071/5468615-1-eng-US/f0014-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0014-02

How NHL Writers Foresaw Division Races

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-011280/5468646-1-eng-US/f0015-012.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Buffalo Sabre rookie Pierre Turgeon has been hot in the playoffs, scoring four goals and seven points in four games.</figcaption></div>For the first time in 15 years, no team completed a sweep in preliminaryround NHL playoff action this season.Not since 1973 has the first round gone without at least one team winning in the minimum number of games.The Montreal Canadiens came closest to accomplishing a sweep&mdash;taking a three-game lead and one-goal advantage into the final 15 minutes of game four with the Hartford Whalers.But the Whale scored four straight goals to force a fifth game in Montreal, where the Canadiens would be without injured forwards Mats Naslund and Shayne Corson.Other teams sporting 3-1 leads were the Philadelphia Flyers, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers.Only four teams were certain to be playing sixth games.The New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders, in the most exciting series of the first round, and the Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres, in the most violent, were tied 2-2 after four games.New Jersey, which rebounded from a heartbreaking overtime loss to New York in the series-opener, faced the prospect of doing the same after the Isles&rsquo; Brent Sutter won game four in the Patrick Division series with an extraperiod shorthanded goal.It was only the second time in league history that a Stanley Cup playoff game had been decided by a shorthanded goal. The Boston Bruins&rsquo; Busher Jackson was the last to do it, in 1943 against the Montreal Canadiens.Sutter&rsquo;s goal was Scored during the fourth power play of the extra period, a remarkable circumstance for a league that until April 6 had not seen an overtime power play in nearly four years.Referee Ron Hoggarth&rsquo;s crackdown on the Isles and Devils reflected an NHL-wide trend among officials.Meanwhile, the Flyers rallied from three goals down in the final 10 minutes to go up 3-1 on the always-disappointing Washington Capitals.In the Adams Division. Montreal motored to a three-game edge before faltering.When Boston and Buffalo found time to play hockey, the stars included the Sabres&rsquo; T-and-T combination of John Tucker and Pierre Turgeon. Tucker accounted for six goals and three assists as Buffalo came back from a 2-0 deficit with a pair of wins at home. Young Pierre Turgeon earned seven points in two games.The Winnipeg Jets stopped a 16-game playoff losing streak to Edmonton, but lost game four to fall behind 3-1 in the Smythe Division final. The Oilers&rsquo; Craig Simpson scored in all four games&mdash;the only league player to do so.In the meantime, the Calgary Flames averaged six goals a game&mdash;tops in the playoffs&mdash;in racing ahead of the Los Angeles Kings.And in the Norris Division, the Chicago Blackhawks stopped an 11-game playoff losing streak but still trailed 3-1, due in part to rookie Tony Hrkac&rsquo;s four-goal performance in game six.Detroit made short work of the hapless Toronto Maple Leafs after a sloppy effort in game one. The fourth-game 8-0 wipeout represented yet another low for the troubled Maple Leafs. &#9632;

f0015-01

No Sweeps For First Time Since 1973

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0015-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0015-02913/5468677-1-eng-US/f0015-022.jpg"></div> &#9632;

f0015-02

Road To The Stanley Cup

ON APRIL 18, 1987, Andy van Hellemond officiated nearly 69 minutes of overtime between the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals.And never called one man-advantage penalty.On April 6. 1988, van Hellemond granted the New Jersey Devils a power play against the Islanders within two minutes of overtime in the first extra-period game of this season&rsquo;s playoffs.The milestone power play was the first in NHL overtime since April 7, 1984&mdash;one day short of exactly four years.New York&rsquo;s Brent Sutter for tripping at 1:13 in 1988 was separated from St. Louis&rsquo; Rob Ramage for hooking at 36:22 in 1984 by 44 overtime games.Not one man-advantage penalty was called during the interim.Last spring, few in the game complained about that circumstance. Players and management alike preferred a hands-off (the whistle) approach to officiating during overtime.It made no more sense than not calling penalties in football overtime or fouls in basketball overtime but the NHL was delighted to maintain what could charitably be described as a misguided policy.That it threatened the game&rsquo;s credibility escaped league notice&hellip;until the summer, when finally the NHL decreed a penalty in the first period is no different than one in the third period, or fourth.Officials started the season vigilantly, cracking down on restraining fouls. There was a letup as the year wore on and most assumed that by the playoffs a laissez-faire philosophy would once again be adopted.The early returns indicate otherwise.Not only did van Hellemond call an overtime man-advantage penalty April 6, but in the final three minutes of regulation time, he granted two other power plays.On one of them, John MacLean scored the tying goal for New Jersey. The other carried over into overtime.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re changing those thoughts that a guy has to be murdered in the last couple of minutes for there to be a penalty,&rdquo; said van Hellemond, with a most convenient choice of words.Last year, when THN found that it had been 43 overtime games since last a man-advantage penalty was called, it illustrated the point by depicting an official in conversation with a player gripping a smoking gun.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s lucky for you that we&rsquo;re into overtime,&rdquo; said the referee sternly.In eight opening-night playoff games last year, there were 66 power plays. This year, there were 115. On day two last year, there were 89 man-advantage penalties, this year 92.Referees were recently reminded that the playoffs may be a second season but to not continue a policy of increased and consistent vigilance would only invite open season on officials.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-011161/5468708-1-eng-US/f0016-012.jpg" title="f0016-01" width="338" height="457"><figcaption class="caption-body">Steve Dryden</figcaption></div>All league teams received copies of the directive.&ldquo;The philosophy of officiating has changed.&rdquo; said van Hellemond. &ldquo;They (league officials) want more penalties called and they want penalties called throughout (the game).&rdquo;The veteran referee said that had last year&rsquo;s epic Islander-Capital clash occurred this year, he would have felt compelled to call some penalties.&ldquo;I think the players would have expected it,&rdquo; said van Hellemond, who acknowledged there were opportunities to penalize the Islanders and Capitals last Easter.Director of officiating John McCauley believes the image of referees has benefited greatly from the new policy.&ldquo;We think it&rsquo;s a good policy,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;because the perception of our officials has changed. We really got tainted, unfairly tainted-&hellip;There&rsquo;s less public criticism and less media criticism.&rdquo;The NHL had nobody to blame but itself for the black marks liberally applied to those in black-and-white stripes. Referees, pointed out van Hellemond, call the games as they are instructed to call them.The instructions changed this year.Bill McCreary, Kerry Fraser and Ron Hoggarth all got the message judging from their performances on night four ohis year&rsquo;s playoffs. April 10 is destined to be remembered as a monumental evening (good or bad?) of officiating.McCreary and his staff called two five-minute majors in the final 10 minutes of the EdmontonWinnipeg game. Fraser whistled down a controversial tripping call in overtime of the Boston-Buffalo game; John Tucker scored on the ensuing power play.And Hoggarth called four power plays in 15:07 of overtime between New Jersey and the New York Islanders. The Islanders failed to convert their one chance, but capitalized on the Devils&rsquo; third.The scene was thick with irony when Brent Sutter, the first player in 45 overtime games to be called for a man-advantage penalty, scored a shorthanded goal with teammate Ken Morrow watching from the sin bin.The Devils didn&rsquo;t make the most of their opportunities. But at least they had the chances. &#9632;

f0016-01

Milestone Power Play Reflects New Policy

<div class="byline">BY GLENN COLE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-03713/5468739-1-eng-US/f0016-032.jpg" title="f0016-03" width="578" height="793"><figcaption class="caption-body">Larry Robinson earned his 100th career playoff point in game two against Hartford.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0016-02928/5468746-1-eng-US/f0016-022.jpg" title="f0016-02" width="177" height="134"></div>MONTREAL&mdash;The Montreal Canadiens were one game away from making their fifth consecutive appearance in the Adams Division final, but the price they paid en route was high.Center Shayne Corson and left winger Mats Naslund were both sidelined with knee injuries in the best-of-seven division semi-final series against the Hartford Whalers.Corson went down in the second period of game one April 6 while Naslund was hurt in the third game of the series April 9.&ldquo;We are losing an important player,&rdquo; Montreal managing director Serge Savard said after Naslund went down. &ldquo;But the Canadiens have always been based on team play rather than individual effort.&rdquo;There was no doubt, however, that the loss of Corson, a strong playofftype player, and Naslund, arguably the Habs&rsquo; most reliable star and offensive catalyst, could prove critical&mdash;if not against the Whalers, then down the road against superior opponents.Naslund, who had seven assists in the series against the Whalers, caught his skate in a crack on the ice. He suffered ligament damage and the early prognosis was that it was seasonending.&ldquo;I was trying to get away from (Hartford defenseman) Sylvain Cote,&rdquo; said Naslund. &ldquo;I left my leg behind and he fell over it. It was just one of those things. It wasn&rsquo;t a cheap shot or anything. It was an accident.&rdquo;The Corson injury was accidental as well.&ldquo;I went to hit (Hartford defenseman) Randy Ladouceur and he caught me with his knee,&rdquo; said Corson. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s disappointing. I thought I had good legs and things were going well.&rdquo;After game one, coach Jean Perron said Corson would be lost for the rest of the playoffs, although the next day team doctors indicated the center might be back in three weeks.The Canadiens won the first two games on home ice 4-3 and 7-3, but were guilty of loose play in both.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think I have seen this team play two more undisciplined games all season,&rdquo; said veteran defenseman Larry Robinson. &ldquo;We were lucky.&rdquo;The Canadiens handed the Whalers several good scoring opportunities and had it not been for goalie Patrick Roy, they might have lost.&ldquo;We were giving up too many two-on-ones and three-on-twos,&rdquo; said Naslund.Defenseman Mike Lalor said he had trouble with the Whalers&rsquo; aggressive forechecking style. Often Hartford would have all three forwards in deep and the Canadiens didn&rsquo;t react quickly enough to counter the strategy.&ldquo;I am sure their intentions were to come in here and get a game and take the home-ice advantage away from us,&rdquo; Lalor added. &ldquo;Fortunately, that didn&rsquo;t happen. We had the pressure on us for the first two games.&rdquo;Roy&rsquo;s magic continued in game three, a 4-3 Canadiens&rsquo; victory. But in game four the Whalers charged out and staved off elimination with five goals in the third period for a 7-5 victory.&ldquo;They were throwing everything at us,&rdquo; said defenseman Craig Ludwig. &ldquo;We sat back too much.&rdquo;The Canadiens also had to play game four without defenseman Petr Svoboda, their top plus-minus player (plus-46) during the regular season. Svoboda suffered a concussion when hit into the boards behind the Montreal goal by Dave Tippett in game three.NOTES&mdash;Center Gilles Thi-baudeau scored his first two Stanley Cup goals in game two&hellip;Right winger Stephane Richer picked up two goals and two assists in the game four loss at Hartford on April 10. Richer had seven shots in each of the first two games of the series&hellip;Defenseman Larry Robinson&rsquo;s assist in game two was his 100th career playoff point.<h2>CANADIENS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Bobby Smith, Gilles Thibaudeau, Guy Carbonneau, Brian Skrudland.LW&mdash;Ryan Walter, Serge Boisvert, Bob Gainey, Mike McPhee, Sergio Momesso.RW&mdash;Claude Lemieux, Stephane Richer, Jose Charbonneau, Kjell Dahlin, John Kordic.LD&mdash;Craig Ludwig, Mike Lalor, Larry Trader.RD&mdash;Larry Robinson, Chris Chelios, Rick Green.G&mdash;Patrick Roy, Brian Hayward.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Shayne Corson, C, knee, indefinite.Mats Naslund, LW, knee, indefinite.Petr Svoboda, D, concussion, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0016-03

Habs Must Make Do Without Key Players

<div class="byline">BY KEVIN JOHNSTON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0017-02800/5468808-1-eng-US/f0017-022.jpg" title="f0017-02" width="173" height="135"></div>QUEBEC CITY&mdash;There won&rsquo;t be a complete facelift in Quebec, but the Nordiques have determined they won&rsquo;t stand pat over the summer.&ldquo;We foresee a minumum of six changes in our lineup for next year,&rdquo; coach Ron Lapointe said at a press conference the day after the Nordiques&rsquo; season ended.&ldquo;And it would be very possible that we start our 1988-1989 schedule with up to eight or nine new faces on the bench.&rdquo;Their replacements will likely include Western League co-scoring champ Joe Sakic (160 points with Swift Current), NCAA goal-scoring leader Mark Vermette (45 in 46 games with Lake Superior) and big Finnish right winger liro Jarvi (6-foot-2, 200 pounds), who scored 21 goals and 20 assists in 44 games with Helsinki IFK this past season.The Nordiques also have two picks within the first five at this June&rsquo;s entry draft.&ldquo;We have to dress a much bigger team next season,&rdquo; said Lapointe. &ldquo;And we must get our hands on guys who will be proud to wear the Nordiques&rsquo; uniform.&ldquo;We are very weak on the right side. That&rsquo;s where most of our work will be. 1 think we are basically sound on the left side and at the blue line. And we can also use some help in goal.&rdquo;Some observers, believing the tandem of Mario Brunetta and Mario Gosselin to be sound, if not spectacular, expressed surprise at the statement. General manager Maurice Filion elaborated.&ldquo;We absolutely need another goalie who can work 40 games in the net,&rdquo; Filion said. &ldquo;What we need are more stable performances from our goalies. Mind you, I&rsquo;m not criticizing Mario Gosselin. The goalies are surely not the only ones to blame for our dismal season. But we do need more consistency in front of the net.&rdquo;When the Nordiques traded Clint Malarchuk to Washington last summer, they handed the No. I job to Gosselin. But the 24-year-old from Thetford Mines, Que., was overworked, and struggled.&ldquo;We simply asked for too much from Gosselin,&rdquo; Filion said. &ldquo;He was used too much at the beginning of the season. He can&rsquo;t play in too many consecutive games.&ldquo;And young Mario Brunetta also gave us a good hand, but he was also overtaxed.&rdquo;Still, Filion said, he&rsquo;d make the Malarchuk deal again. The Nords also sent off center Dale Hunter, and got back center Alan Haworth, left winger Gaetan Duchesne and the Caps&rsquo; first-round choice, 15th overall, in 1987. The Nords cashed in that choice for Sakic.&ldquo;We only made the deal to get our hands on a first-round draft pick,&rdquo; he maintained. &ldquo;The Capitals wanted Clint and not Mario Gosselin. And we wanted Gaetan Duchesne. So I think both parties got what they were looking for.&rdquo;Gosselin remained optimistic, despite the comments of Filion and Lapointe.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t interpret their wanting another goalie as criticism toward me,&rdquo; Gosselin said. &ldquo;In fact, I&rsquo;m 100 per cent behind them. A team needs two good goaltenders who can split the work in half during the regular season.&ldquo;To be even better, a goalie needs his rest, so if a team has two top-notch guys in net, they can&rsquo;t go wrong. And if Maurice Filion can get his hands on a good goalie, I would get my rest and be able to perform even better.&rdquo;Brunetta, 21, on the other hand, expressed dissapointment.&ldquo;But there is nothing I can really do about it,&rdquo; the Quebec City native said. &ldquo;Even though I proved to everyone I could hold my end in this league, I guess I&rsquo;ll have to start all over again next fall.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Peter Stastny was named the Nordiques&rsquo; player of the year for the fifth time in his eight-year career&hellip;Maurice Filion put an end to rumors which had Alain Cote being waived from the Nordiques. Filion said the 30-year-old left winger would be back at training camp&hellip;Filion said he&rsquo;d like to get his hands on a third first-round pick for this year&rsquo;s entry draft. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s very possible,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t started negotiating in that sense yet, but I&rsquo;ve gotten echoes from interested parties.&rdquo; &#9632;

f0017-02

Nords Plan To Sift In Six Newcomers

<div class="byline">BY JIM KELLEY</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-02804/5468839-1-eng-US/f0018-022.jpg" title="f0018-02" width="581" height="879"><figcaption class="caption-body">John Tucker&rsquo;s four playoff goals in one game against Boston was a team record.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-011059/5468846-1-eng-US/f0018-012.jpg" title="f0018-01" width="177" height="130"></div>BUFFALO&mdash;Center John Tucker was fast approaching hero status for the Buffalo Sabres in their Adams Division playoff battle with the Boston Bruins.Everything else about the series was fast approaching chaos.Tucker scored a team-record four playoff goals in game three of the series April 9 and added two more, including the game-winner in overtime, in game four on April 10. The six goals in two nights helped the Sabres draw even in the best-of-seven division semi&mdash;final. Boston won 7-3 and 4-1 in Boston on April 6 and 7, but the Sabres answered with 6-2 and 6-5 triumphs in Buffalo.Tucker, whose season was marred by a series of injuries that date back to Feburary, 1987, set Sabre playoff records for most goals in one game (four), most power-play goals in one game (two, twice) and most goals in a first-round series (six). He also set the team mark for most points in a first-round game (four), in a first roundseries (nine) and most power-play goals in a first-round series (four). In addition. Tucker successfully took the first penalty shot in Sabre playoff history during the April 9 game.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;Two of the goals I scored weren&rsquo;t even intended to be shots.&rsquo; &mdash;Tucker</blockquote>It was the penalty shot, which beat goaltender Andy Moog, that turned game three in Buffalo&rsquo;s favor.&ldquo;I wasn&rsquo;t even thinking about four goals or records or anything like that,&rdquo; Tucker said. &ldquo;Two of the goals I scored weren&rsquo;t even intended to be shots. On one I was trying to slip it over to (left winger) Dave Andreychuk. The other I was trying to get it over to Howie (defenseman Phil Housley).&rdquo;In the overtime game April 10 it was a different story as Tucker took a pass from Housley and fired in the direction of goalie Reggie Lemelin. The puck bounced around off a few Bruins players, but eventually found the net.If Tucker was Buffalo&rsquo;s reluctant hero, he was the only one showing reluctance about anything in the series.Game three in the series produced 226 penalty minutes, 121 of them to the Sabres. Things quieted down noticeably in game four (19 minutes for Buffalo and 37 for Boston), largely because exhaustion set in.No one&rsquo;s tongue&rsquo;s was tired though, as management on both teams were upset with the work of referee Bill McCreary in game three. The Bruins were especially upset with referee Kerry Fraser in game four.McCreary seemed to lose control of game three early and the resulting fisticuffs upset Bruin general manager Harry Sinden, who exchanged harsh words with a member of the Sabre television broadcast crew afterwards. Sabre general manager Gerry Meehan sought out NHL refereeing supervisor Bryan Lewis after the game.At the end of game four, both Sinden and Boston coach Terry O&rsquo;Reilly blasted Fraser because of a controversial penalty to rookie Bruin defenseman Glen Wesley that set up Tucker&rsquo;s overtime goal.All the commotion, however, couldn&rsquo;t take away from the fact the Sabre offense, virtually nonexistent in Boston, suddenly exploded in Buffalo.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re just getting the puck to the net more and we&rsquo;re definitely shooting more,&rdquo; said Tucker. &ldquo;In Boston, we had a tough time getting the puck to the net. With the way both rinks are built, you just better get the puck on the net and then anything can happen.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Goalie Tom Barrasso played the first two games in Boston and won the third in Buffalo, but came up lame (groin injury) and could not go in game four. Backup Darren Puppa played his first NHL playoff game&hellip;Right winger Kevin Maguire set a team playoff record for most penalty minutes in one game (32 in game three). Through four games, Maguire had established a team playoff record for penalty minutes in a first-round series (48). Maguire returned to the lineup in game two after missing the last quarter of the regular season with a fractured ankle.<h2>SABRES</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Pierre Turgeon, Doug Smith, Ken Priestlay, John Tucker, Christian Ruuttu.LW&mdash;Dave Andreychuk, Mike Donnelly, Clark Gillies.RW&mdash;Ray Sheppard, Mark Napier, Mike Hartman, Scott Amiel.LD&mdash;Joe Reekie, Bob Halkidis, Lindy Ruff, Mike Ramsey.RD&mdash;Phil Housley, Calle Johansson, Ed Hospodar.G&mdash;Jacques Cloutier, Daren Puppa.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Mikael Andersson, LW, twisted ankle, day-to-day.Tom Barrasso, G, groin, day-to-day.Adam Creighton, C, recovering from knee surgery, indefinite.Uwe Krupp, D, head injury, day-to-day.Jan Ludvig, RW, knee, indefinite. &#9632;

f0018-02

Tucker Rattling Biggest Sabre Of Them All

WHEN WAYNE GRETZKY talks, John Ziegler listens.So says the National Hockey League president.When Gretzky questioned the Stanley Cup playoff format&mdash;before the Ranger and Penguin whiners did&mdash;Ziegler took note.&ldquo;I am aware of what Wayne has said and there is some merit to what he is saying,&rdquo; the president said. &ldquo;There are a number of sound-minded people who have differences of opinion as to how our playoff format should work.&ldquo;There is merit in much of the discussion. We will continue to look at our system and decide what is best.&ldquo;We have had three definite proposals to alter the current format in recent years, but all three have been voted down. We will continue to approach this with an open mind.&rdquo;Gretzky called for a change in the system&mdash;a crossover playoff format that would have conference playoffs instead of divisional playoffs.He said it will ensure the strongest clubs meet at the appropriate times, instead of Calgary and Edmonton meeting in round two, as could be the case this year.Gretzky would like to see the conference teams ranked I to 8 according to their finish and the playoffs matching first-place clubs against eighth-place, 2 vs. 7, and so on.Using that system, this year&rsquo;s first round in the Campbell Conference would have Calgary vs. Vancouver, Edmonton vs. Los Angeles, Detroit vs. Chicago and Winnipeg vs. St. Louis.In the Wales, it would be Montreal vs. the Rangers, Boston vs. New Jersey, the Islanders vs. Buffalo and Washington vs. Philadelphia.Under that format, the Penguins would still miss the playoffs.The problem with that format is the schedules would have to be altered to maintain a balance of intra-conference games.And that isn&rsquo;t likely to be approved.Critics of the playoff format&mdash;and there are many&mdash;consistently point to other professional leagues, wondering when the NHL will catch up.I disagree. There are both strengths and inequities in each system, and if anything, the excitement of the last month of what is supposed to be a meaningless regular season demonstrated the strength of the NHL system.It was only because of the embarrassments Toronto and Minnesota have become that there is any complaining at all.Consider what&rsquo;s done in other sports:&bull; In the National Football League, teams play for both playoff and wild-card playoff positions, but do so on schedules which are rarely equitable. That, most certainly, is unfair, but rarely complained about.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0018-03567/5468877-1-eng-US/f0018-032.jpg" title="f0018-03" width="426" height="461"><figcaption class="caption-body">Steve Simmons</figcaption></div>&bull; In baseball, quite often the second-place team in one division is stronger than the first-place team in another. The East Division Toronto Blue Jays, who finished second, were likely a better team in the American League last year than the West Division-winning Minnesota Twins. But when playoff time came, the Jays were out and the Twins became World Series champions. Is that fair? No, but it&rsquo;s the rules and no one was screaming for an alteration of the rules.&bull; Just trying to figure out the playoff format used by the National Basketball Association is difficult enough. Anyone who can explain it in two sentences or less deserves a playoff spot on their own.The NHL debate will continue, year in and year out, which is one of the sport&rsquo;s strengths. People are talking about it. They&rsquo;re interested.But as Toronto coach John Brophy said, everyone knew the rules going in.Do the Rangers have a legitimate complaint? They do and they don&rsquo;t. They do because they finished closer to first place than they had since 1942 and didn&rsquo;t qualify for the post-season. They don&rsquo;t because all they had to do was beat the Winnipeg Jets during the final week.They couldn&rsquo;t do that. To me, that qualifies them for elimination.All Pittsburgh had to do was split one of two final games with the Devils. The Pens couldn&rsquo;t do it. So they&rsquo;re out. Big deal.It&rsquo;s their fault. They knew they had to win. No use complaining now.Were this a perfect league, without sorry excuses for franchises like the Leafs and Stars, there would be nothing wrong with the setup.There is no perfect system. The bottom line in any sport, regardless of the playoff format, is you still have to win. &#9632;

f0018-03

NHL System Isn’t As Bad As You Might Think It Is

<div class="byline">BY KEITH GAVE</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0020-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-02575/5468946-1-eng-US/f0020-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Petr Klima scored the Red Wings&rsquo; first playoff penalty-shot goal and Detroit&rsquo;s first post-season hat trick since 1965.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0020-01849/5468953-1-eng-US/f0020-012.jpg" title="f0020-01" width="178" height="136"></div>DETROIT&mdash;Critics screamed and whined, from New York to Quebec to Pittsburgh, that the Toronto Maple Leafs had no business being in the Stanley Cup playoffs. And after four games, it looked like they were absolutely right.The Detroit Red Wings were surprised 6-2 by the Maple Leafs in the Norris Division semi-final opener at Joe Louis Arena, but returned to their usual efficent form in following up with wins of 6-2. 6-3 and 8-0. The final two came at Maple Leaf Gardens, where the fans turned on their team by throwing garbage, pocket change, assorted beverages, even souvenir pucks and Maple Leaf sweaters.The 8-0 loss may have been humiliating to the Leafs, but they got exactly what they deserved. Wing coach Jacques Demers said, for trying to goon it up in what they described as a &ldquo;must-win&rdquo; game.&ldquo;I call that stupid hockey.&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;If you want to play stupid hockey like the Leafs did in the first 10 minutes (of a 56-penalty-minute period), that&rsquo;s the price you pay. You want to come out and play stupid hockey like that. well, you&rsquo;re down 3-1.&rdquo;Usually diplomatic and vigilant about saying anything in the newspapers that might give the opponent a spark. Demers couldn&rsquo;t seem to say &ldquo;stupid&rdquo; enough when he spoke of the Leafs.He was angry, he said, because several of his players were the recipients of vicious hacks and slashes. But they stood up to it all, and retaliated in the best way&mdash;with a pair of power-play goals by Adam Oates and Dave Barr. They were all Glen Hanlon needed to record his third shutout in two straight playoff series against the Leafs. He stopped 21 shots.&ldquo;We&rsquo;re sitting pretty now,&rdquo; Demers said, before game five of the series, set for April 12 back at Joe Louis.Inside the Wings&rsquo; dressing room, however, players expressed more compassion than anger or bitterness toward their opponents from Toronto.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s playoff hockey and the last thing we&rsquo;re trying to do is embarrass the Leafs.&rdquo; Wings&rsquo; interim captain Gerard Gallant said. &ldquo;I know what it&rsquo;s like to lose like that, and it&rsquo;s no fun.&rdquo;Added Hanlon: &ldquo;That&rsquo;s not fair to any athlete. I know they&rsquo;re an opponent. but you don&rsquo;t wish that on any team. I remember when I was with the Rangers and we lost eight or nine&hellip;to whatever to Philadelphia, and the (Madison Square) Garden fans did that to us. It&rsquo;s not fun. I&rsquo;ll tell you that.&rdquo;Mucker Jim Nill, who scored a surprising four goals in the first four games, called the fan reaction &ldquo;kind of sad&hellip;You hate to see that kind of thing, especially in one of the great hotbeds of hockey.&rdquo;The margin of victory was the most lopsided win in Detroit playoff history since March 29, 1947, when the Wings beat the Maple Leafs 9-1 at Toronto.NOTES&mdash;In 13 playoff games last spring. Petr Klima had one goal (on his first shift) and two assists. After three games this year, he was leading playoff scorers with five goals. That included a hat trick, the first by a Detroit player in post-season since Norm Ullman did it in 1965, and a successful penalty shot, the first in Detroit playoff history&hellip;Of all his team&rsquo;s accomplishments this season, Demers said he is most proud of the club-record 322 goals scored. &ldquo;When I came here, I was known as a defensive-minded coach,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Then, being able to score more goals (than any other team) in the (62-year) history of the franchise&hellip;Now they can&rsquo;t say this guy&rsquo;s all defense, that he doesn&rsquo;t know what&rsquo;s happening on offense. To me, that&rsquo;s the sign of a team capable of playing with the best.&rdquo;<h2>RED WINGS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Adam Oates, John Chabot, Shawn Burr, Mel Bridgman.LW&mdash;Gerard Gallant, Petr Klima, Brent Ashton, Joe Murphy, Dale Krentz.RW&mdash;Bob Probert, Dave Barr, Tim Higgins, Jim Nill, Joe Kocur.LD&mdash;Jeff Sharples, Doug Halward, Lee Norwood, Harold Snepsts, Steve Chiasson.RD&mdash;Rick Zombo, Gilbert Delorme, Jim Pavese, Mike O&rsquo;Connell, Darren Veitch.G&mdash;Greg Stefan, Glen Hanlon.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Steve Yzerman, C, knee, May 15. &#9632;

f0020-02

Demers Calls Toronto Approach ‘Stupid’

<div class="byline">BY STEVE DRYDEN Associate Editor</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0021-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-02353/5468984-1-eng-US/f0021-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Todd Gill felt humiliated by Maple Leaf Gardens fans, who littered the ice during the Leafs&rsquo; 8-0 loss to Detroit.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0021-01636/5468991-1-eng-US/f0021-012.jpg" title="f0021-01" width="174" height="142"></div>TORONTO&mdash;The worst playoff team in NHL history lived up to its reputation April 10, on perhaps the sorriest Sunday in Toronto Maple Leaf history.The sad-sack squad lost 8-0 to the Detroit Red Wings before a surly home crowd that littered the ice surface with garbage and heaped scorn on goalie Ken Wregget.&ldquo;It was humiliating,&rdquo; said defenseman Todd Gill.By the six-minute mark of the third period, with all the scoring complete, fans began to vent their frustrations toward the team that squeezed into the Stanley Cup post-season with the lowest winning percentage (.325) of any league playoff team ever.At least four Leaf sweaters were thrown on the ice. One Brophy&rsquo;s Boys hat. Crumpled cups. Programs. And about a dozen pucks.Like the baseball bleacher bums who toss back home-run balls, Leaf fans tossed back the pucks that left the ice surface during the game.&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t feel anybody should have to go through fans throwing things at you,&rdquo; said Gill. &ldquo;If they want to boo, fine.&rdquo;There was plenty to jeer.After opening the preliminary series with a resounding 6-2 victory in Detroit, the Leafs were outscored 20-5 in the next three games. Glen Hanlon&rsquo;s fourth career playoff shutout was probably his easiest.He faced 21 shots, one or two of the dangerous variety.The Leafs posed a more lethal threat to Wregget than Hanlon. The tone of the game was set in the first period when Detroit scored two power-play goals.Adam Oates emerged from the corner untouched on the first and Dave Barr finished off a 2-on-0 on the other.Wregget, the fans&rsquo; favorite whipping boy, was abandoned in a defensive-offensive collapse that summed up the Leafs&rsquo; many woes.It starts with depth. Toronto doesn&rsquo;t have any. While the Red Wings had 10 defensemen to call on, Toronto coach John Brophy had eight. Make that seven after Rick Lanz sprained his neck in game one.How many are consistently of NHL calibre is debatable. Terry Johnson and Brian Curran are minor-leaguers. Until this year, Dale DeGray had spent most of his four-year professional career in the minor leagues.Luke Richardson is a rookie. Todd Gill and Al lafrate are both in need of tutelage.Brophy&rsquo;s deployment of defensemen in games one through four was curious. Johnson and Curran played games one and two, while Richardson sat out.Richardson appears to have a fine future and would certainly benefit from playoff experience. Neither Johnson nor Curran has storied pasts, let alone bright futures. Yet, Brophy opted for their experience and toughness.Johnson didn&rsquo;t play a single regularseason game this season. Curran suited up for 29, seven with Toronto after coming over from the New York Islanders.Richardson played 78 of 80.Brophy, too, wasn&rsquo;t satisfied with his forwards, who did little to ease the burden on Leaf blueliners. He benched veterans Peter Ihnacak and Mirko Frycer in game four, using in their place Greg Terrion and the 19-year-old Daniel Marois, who made his NHL debut.&ldquo;If the players in front of him were doing their jobs,&rdquo; said Brophy, &ldquo;Marois wouldn&rsquo;t have been put in a situation like this.&rdquo;The four right wingers Toronto employed&mdash;Marois, Mike Blaisdell, Sean McKenna and Ken Yaremchuk&mdash;combined for 13 goals in 104 regularseason games this year.Gary Leeman, the Leafs&rsquo; best right winger, was shelved in game two with a cracked bone in his right hand. With Wendel Clark already out, it was a loss the impoverished Leafs could not survive.&ldquo;We played against a better team,&rdquo; said Borje Salming after the rout. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the whole story.&rdquo;Salming was brilliant in Toronto&rsquo;s series-opening victory, running the defense and engineering a goal by Mark Osborne.Hopes were unrealistically high after Toronto offset Detroit&rsquo;s home-ice advantage. But the Red Wings rebounded with a 6-2 win at home and 6-3 victory at the Gardens.NOTES&mdash;Detroit shut down Ed Olczyk after the center scored two goals and three assists in the first two games. He was held to a single assist in the next-two&hellip;The 8-0 loss was the most lopsided in the playoffs since last year when Edmonton whipped Los Angeles 13-3 on April 19&hellip;Red Wing right winger Jim Nill, who scored three times in 60 regular-season games this year, had four goals in four games against Toronto. One of them was a shorthanded marker&hellip; Detroit-killer Allan Bester earned the game-one win but was replaced in goal early in game two. He returned for game three.<h2>MAPLE LEAFS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Ed Olczyk, Tom Fergus, Russ Courtnall, Dan Daoust, Peter Ihnacak, Marty Datlman.LW&mdash;Mark Osborne, Vincent Dam-phousse, Al Secord, Greg Terrion, Chris McRae.RW&mdash;Mike Blaisdell, Dan Marois, Ken Yaremchuk, Sean McKenna, Mirko Frycer, Derek Laxdal.LD&mdash;Borje Salming, Terry Johnson, Todd Gill, Luke Richardson.RD&mdash;Brian Curran, Al lafrate, Dale DeGray.G&mdash;Allan Bester, Ken Wregget, Tim Bernhardt, Jim Ralph.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Wendel Clark, LW, back, out for season.Chris Kotsopoulos, groin, out for season.Rick Lanz, D, neck sprain, indefinite.Gary Leeman, RW, cracked bone in I right hand, indefinite.Brad Smith, RW, back, indefinite. &#9632;

f0021-02

Maple Leafs Disgraced In Red Wing Rout

<div class="byline">BY JEFF GORDON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0022-01740/5469022-1-eng-US/f0022-012.jpg" title="f0022-01" width="175" height="134"></div>ST. LOUIS&mdash;Just when the Chicago Blackhawks thought they had the St. Louis Blues reeling, the Hrkac Circus came to town and put on a show.And the result was a 3-1 lead in games for the Blues in their Norris Division semi-final against Chicago.Rookie center Tony Hrkac, who scored 11 goals in the regular season, scored four against the Blackhawks on April 10 to lead the Blues to a pivotal 6-5 victory in game four.&ldquo;You dream about having games like this,&rdquo; Hrkac said. &ldquo;But you never know if they will happen.&rdquo;With the Blues&rsquo; injuries mounting and the Blackhawks gaining momentum. St. Louis coach Jacques Martin needed somebody to step forward and keep his team on track. The Blues fell behind 3-1.4-3 and 5-4 in the critical fourth game.But Hrkac saved them, becoming the first Blue to score four goals in a playoff game in the franchise&rsquo;s 18 post-seasons.&ldquo;That&rsquo;s quite an accomplishment,&rdquo; Martin said. &ldquo;Before you go into a series, a playoff, you look for certain players to step to the forefront. This was a big game by Tony. You know he has good skills, he had a pretty good season for a rookie.&rdquo;Hrkac, the former University of North Dakota star who won the 1987 Hobey Baker award, spent most of his rookie season as the Blues&rsquo; No. 4 center. He had 11 goals and 37 assists in 67 regular-season games and was pointless in the first three playoff games.Used primarily as a penalty-killer and a second-unit power-play playmaker. Hrkac scored once on the power play, once just as a power play expired and once shorthanded. The latter goal decided the game with 4:45 left.With forwards Mark Hunter, Greg Paslawski and Steve Bozek sidelined along with defensemen Rob Whistle and Gaston Gingras, Martin had to shuffle his lineup.Hunter missed the first four games of the series with a strained left knee. Bozek missed two games with a strained lower back muscle and Pas lawski pulled his groin muscle in the third game after looking fully recovered from disc surgery early in the series.Paslawski has had a star-crossed year&mdash;he missed 62 games with back and knee problems before finishing the regular season with a flourish.Bozek, who came to the Blues from Calgary with Brett Hull for Rob Ramage and Rick Wamsley, did a good job penalty-killing as the Blues won the first two games of the series 4-1 and 3-2 at home. Then he hurt his back in practice April 8, the day before the Blackhawks climbed back into the series with a 6-3 win at Chicago Stadium.With Hunter, Paslawski and Bozek out, Martin gave Doug Evans his first playoff appearance and reinserted Jocelyn Lemieux into the lineup. Lemieux had missed the last 39 games of the regular season and the first three playoff games with a broken left leg.The Blues&rsquo; defense was weakened by the loss of Whistle, who suffered a broken bone on his foot March 28, and Gingras, who hyperextended his elbow in game four. Whistle was enjoying a surprisingly fast recovery and could play again in the playoffs.NOTES&mdash;Brett Hull paid quick dividends, scoring four goals in the first four games of the series&hellip;Doug Gilmour. who was ineffective last season when the Toronto Maple Leafs eliminated the Blues in the opening round, led the team with eight points in the first four games&hellip;The Blues were seeking their first playoff series victory in five tries against Chicago.<h2>BLUES</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Bernie Federko, Doug Gilmour, Rick Meagher, Tony Hrkac, Cliff Ronning.LW&mdash;Tony McKegney, Brian Sutter, Gino Cavallini, Perry Turnbull, Doug Evans.RW&mdash;Brett Hull, Jocelyn Lemieux, Herb Raglan, Todd Ewen.LD&mdash;Brian Benning, Robert Dirk, Gordie Roberts.RD&mdash;Tim Bothwell, Paul Cavallini, Robert Nordmark.G&mdash;Greg Millen, Darrell May.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Steve Bozek, LW, strained back, day-to-to-day.Ron Flockhart, LW, rheumatoid arthritis, out for the season.Gaston Gingras, D, hyperextended left elbow, day-to-day.Mark Hunter, RW, strained left knee, day-to-day.Greg Paslawski, RW, groin pull, dayto-day.Rob Whistle, D, broken bone in right foot, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0022-01

Hrkac Circus Puts On A Show For Hawks

<div class="byline">BY MIKE PERRICONE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0023-01665/5469053-1-eng-US/f0023-012.jpg" title="f0023-01" width="178" height="137"></div>CHICAGO&mdash;Turn Denis Savard loose, and the Chicago Blackhawks are a different team. But even Savard couldn&rsquo;t make enough of a difference.Savard&rsquo;s hat trick in game three of the Norris Division semi-final against the St. Louis Blues was his third in the playoffs, making him the Hawks&rsquo; alltime leader.But the Hawks faced extinction in the first round for the third straight year, to their third different opponent. St Louis rookie center Tony Hrkac scored four goals in a 6-5 Blues&rsquo; win in game four, leaving the Hawks on the brink.But the Hawks could blame no one as much as themselves and their own bad penalties.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s tough enough beating the other team, but you can&rsquo;t beat the referee, too,&rdquo; said coach Bob Murdoch. &ldquo;If we&rsquo;re going to commit flagrant fouls right in front of the referee, we&rsquo;re going to have problems.&ldquo;They&rsquo;re calling them right now. They&rsquo;ve been calling them all year. After 84 games, when are we going to realize we&rsquo;re just hurting ourselves?&rdquo;Even Savard couldn&rsquo;t help them in game four, despite playing about 40 minutes, including tireless work as a penalty-killer. The 27-year-old center had two assists to follow up his three goals in game three.Savard was held to two shots on goal while the Hawks lost the first two games at St. Louis. But back in Chicago Stadium, he showed the form that netted him 44 goals and 87 assists in 80 games.To Savard, the difference wasn&rsquo;t so much that he got away from the checking of the Blues&rsquo; line of Rick Meagher. Brian Sutter and Herb Raglan. To Savard, the key in game three was having six shots on goal. The Hawks won 6-3.&ldquo;The difference was. 1 shot the puck,&rdquo; Savard said. &ldquo;I was criticized by coach Murdoch for not shooting the puck in the last two games (first two), and he was obviously right. 1 had to shoot the puck more.&rdquo;With Savard&rsquo;s big night, the Hawks ended their 11-game playoff losing streak. They hadn&rsquo;t won a playoff game since May 12, 1985. when they beat Edmonton 8-6 in game four of the Campbell Conference final at Chicago Stadium.They lost the last two games of that series, were swept in three games by Toronto in 1986. swept in four in 1987 by Detroit, and lost the opening two games of this scries at St. Louis.The streak had ended, but the Hawks&rsquo; season was close to being over early once again.NOTES&mdash;With three playoff hat tricks. Denis Savard took over the Hawks&rsquo; all-time lead. Doug Bentley. Bobby Hull. Pit Martin had two each. Jim Pappin and Dick Redmond had one each. Savard is the only Hawk with four goals in a playoff game. He did it against Toronto April 10. 1986. at the Stadium, though the Hawks lost&hellip;Rookie left winger Everett Sani-pass returned from a broken hand and scored two goals in game four his NHL playoff debut&hellip; Rookie goaltender Darren Pang, who lost the opener at St. Louis, recorded his first playoff victory in game three, with 42 saves. It was his first victory since March 9. &ldquo;The worst part of my year was the last month.&rdquo; Pang said. &ldquo;But my holiday is over now.&rdquo;&hellip;Rookie center Brian Noonan returned in game three from a shoulder separation, which he suffered in the final game of the regular season&hellip;The Hawks&rsquo; announced crowds of 15.764 in game three and 15.207 in game four were deceptive. They represented tickets sold. There were large gaps of empty scats in the corners of the mezzanine and second balcony.<h2>BLACKHAWKS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 5: Mike Rucinski, C, recalled from Saginaw (IHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Denis Savard, Troy Murray, Brian Noonan, Steve Ludzik, Mike Rucinski.LW&mdash;Steve Larmer, Dan Vincelette, Everett Sanipass, Glen Cochrane, Steve Thomas.RW&mdash;Rick Vaive, Dirk Graham, Wayne Presley, Duane Sutter.LD&mdash;Trent Yawney, Marc Bergevin, Dave Manson, Gary Nylund.RD&mdash;Keith Brown, Behn Wilson, Bob Murray, Bob McGill.G&mdash;Darren Pang, Bob Mason, Jimmy Waite.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Doug Wilson, D, shoulder surgery, out for season. &#9632;

f0023-01

Savard Helps Stop Hawks’ Losing Streak

THE FIRST HOCKEY game wasn&rsquo;t played at the Montreal Forum, but surely the last will be.So much of the NHL&rsquo;s tradition is tied to the building on Rue Sainte-Catherine where ghosts&mdash;Richard, Beliveau, Blake and Harvey&mdash;and pocket ghosts&mdash;Henri Richard&mdash;regularly stroll the corridors. The Canadiens are to hockey what the Celtics are to basketball. They do not dream of winning. They plan on it.And the city helps them.Hartford is known for insurance. Montreal is known for hockey. Both reputations are well-deserved.In no other NHL city do the stakes seem quite as high as in Montreal. Everyone, from cabbies to bartenders, pays attention. Everyone has an opinion. Everyone cares.&ldquo;I learned all 1 needed to know about this city the year we lost eight games,&rdquo; said Larry Robinson of Montreal&rsquo;s 1976-77 championship season. The Canadiens finished at 60-8-12 that year, including a 33-1-6-home record, and won the Cup. &ldquo;All summer long, people asked me about the eight games and what went wrong. 1 grew to hate those eight games. By the end of the summer I was wondering myself why we didn&rsquo;t win them.&rdquo;Eight losses in a season and the townfolk want to know what went wrong.Montreal possesses all the ingredients of a superior athlete&mdash;speed, size and power.At midnight, the city somehow magically picks up more speed, more size and more power. It can swallow you whole if you&rsquo;re not careful. The Canadiens best understand.Sitting at home in Hartford, I could be persuaded that the Whalers did, too, have a chance to upset Montreal. Once I got to Montreal, however, I thought just the opposite, that the Whalers had no chance of all.I don&rsquo;t know who actually wrote &ldquo;the book&rdquo; on hockey, but I know where it was written.Montreal.The city knocks my socks off.Dave Keon used to say winning the Stanley Cup didn&rsquo;t actually Count in the overall scheme of things unless a team beat the Canadiens.It wasn&rsquo;t easy then. It isn&rsquo;t easy now.&ldquo;We will not be the aggressor,&rdquo; said coach Jean Perron on the eve of the Montreal-Hartford first-round series. &ldquo;The Canadiens are among the least-penalized teams in the league and we are proud of that. Intimidation is not in my book. We are a proud team and a proud organization.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-01720/5469084-1-eng-US/f0024-012.jpg" title="f0024-01" width="413" height="480"><figcaption class="caption-body">Randy Smith</figcaption></div>In Montreal, the seats are red, white and blue, the ice is red white and blue and the uniforms are red, white and blue.Natives, on the other hand, are mostly blue.&ldquo;They judge seasons here in terms of winning the Cup or not winning the Cup,&rdquo; Robinson said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s just the way it is.&rdquo;And has been. And always will be.Mario Tremblay remembers the summer of 1981, after 14th-place Edmonton eliminated third-place Montreal in three straight games (preliminary rounds were best-of-five then) as &ldquo;the worst one of my life.&rdquo;&ldquo;Everywhere 1 went, people wanted to know, What happened? What happened? What happened? It was unbelievable,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I felt like jumping off a bridge.&rdquo;Asked in a playful sense what might happen in the city if the Whalers eliminated the Canadiens in, say, five games, Tremblay let go a laugh.&ldquo;It would be a disaster,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It would be a bad summer here for the organization and the players. A very bad summer.&rdquo;In many NHL cities, fans fawn over players, easing their disappointments with gushing praise and free drinks. If a city doesn&rsquo;t demand much from its athletes, it won&rsquo;t get much. On that you can bet.In Montreal, all that is expected is everything every year. That alone is often enough to push the Canadiens past the first or second round.&ldquo;They must go to the finals or they will get a lot of heat from us (the media) and the fans,&rdquo; said Ronald King of La Presse. &ldquo;People are sour every time they don&rsquo;t win the Cup, but this year it would be worse than that.&rdquo;So much is demanded. So much is expected. So much is delivered. &#9632;

f0024-01

The Pressure Never Lets Up For Les Canadiens

<div class="byline">BY JERRY ZGODA</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0024-02505/5469115-1-eng-US/f0024-022.jpg" title="f0024-02" width="175" height="135"></div>BLOOMINGTON, Minn.&mdash;The Minnesota North Stars are a.500 team.Or so coach Herb Brooks believes.&ldquo;Going into this season, I thought we could challenge for the Norris Division title and I still think that,&rdquo; Brooks said. &ldquo;We went from being an 18th-place team with 200 man-games lost to a last-place team with 500 man-games lost (actually 495). Nobody can withstand that.&rdquo;But jumping from a 19-48-13 record and 51 points to 80 points? Brooks contended it&rsquo;s possible if:Craig Hartsburg returns healthy; Neal Broten returns healthy; Ditto for Scott Bjugstad, Curt Fraser, Shawn Chambers and perhaps Dennis Maruk; And Czechoslovakian national team captain Dusan Pasek, expected to join the Stars next season, can make an impact.&ldquo;We need Hartsburg, that offensive defenseman, badly,&rdquo; Brooks said. &ldquo;And we need Neal Broten, who I believe will score 100 points next year. Factor in Pasek and the draft choices we have coming in (including a No. I overall) and I think we can be a solid 80-point team with the chance to move up.&rdquo;But how realistic is it to believe that Hartsburg will survive an entire season without injury? How realistic is it to believe Broten will score 100 points, since he has done it only once in his career?&ldquo;I&rsquo;m worried about Hartsburg,&rdquo; Brooks said. &ldquo;With the type of injuries and amount of injuries he&rsquo;s had, he&rsquo;s a big if. I don&rsquo;t know if he&rsquo;ll ever be the same.&ldquo;The rehabilitation of them both (Hartsburg and Broten) is a big, big thing&hellip; We can&rsquo;t draft for those type of players. I think Neal is motivated for a 100-point season, but he also is a big if.&rdquo;Brooks, too, is a big if. Will he return next season if he isn&rsquo;t given the general manager&rsquo;s job, being vacated by president Lou Nanne?&ldquo;The first and most important thing is to have a good draft and hire a general manager,&rdquo; Brooks said. &ldquo;For me, all I can say is I like the organization and I feel comfortable here. I never applied for the general manager job and I never seriously thought of applying.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;The first and most important thing is to have a good draft and hire a generar manager&hellip;I like the organization and I feel comfortable here.&rsquo; &mdash;Brooks</blockquote>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m in the same position as the players after a year like this&mdash;I don&rsquo;t have much bargaining power. I have one year left on my contract and there will be a new GM with his own ideas coming in. I accept that part of the business.&ldquo;I can say I&rsquo;m happy being home and, although it&rsquo;s been a frustrating year, I like what I see. The players stuck together, didn&rsquo;t quit and it wasn&rsquo;t a cancerous situation. And because of that, I&rsquo;d want to be around. I made the decision to come here with my heart and now I have to make decisions with my mind.&ldquo;As to my role and job description we&rsquo;ll deal with that down the road.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Team owners George and Gordon Gund say they would like to hire a new GM before the June draft, but that might not be possible if the top candidate has a contract with another team, extending past the draft. Gordon Gund said in that case, he and his brother will select the first pick overall after consulting with those in the organization. The top candidates are center Mike Modano from Prince Albert and Medicine Hat right winger Trevor Linden. Curtis Leschyshyn, a Saskatoon defenseman, is very highly-rated by Minnesota. &#9632;

f0024-02

North Stars Shooting For.500 Next Season

<div class="byline">BY ERIC DUHATSCHEK</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-01633/5469153-1-eng-US/f0025-012.jpg" title="f0025-01" width="578" height="842"><figcaption class="caption-body">A charleyhorse sidelined Mike Bullard for the first three games against Los Angeles.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-02418/5469160-1-eng-US/f0025-022.jpg" title="f0025-02" width="173" height="135"></div>CALGARY&mdash;On the day before the 1988 playoffs were to begin, Calgary Flames&rsquo; coach Terry Crisp was holding court in his office.All the usual issues were addressed&mdash;special teams, goaltending, discipline, injuries. Then the subject switched to Gary Suter&rsquo;s Norris Trophy chances.Crisp considered the question, then slowly began to shuffle papers back and forth across his desk.&ldquo;I listened to a phone-in show the er night,&rdquo; said Crisp. &ldquo;Someone asked, &lsquo;Who&rsquo;s going to win the Norris?&rsquo; They said. &lsquo;Ray Bourque. Automatic.&rsquo; So I come today and look over the stats. I see Gary Suter with 21 goals, 70 assists and 91 points, a plus-39. Then I see Ray Bourque with 17 goals, 64 assists, 81 points, plus-34.&ldquo;Then I turn to the standings. The Calgary Flames won the President&rsquo;s Trophy as league champions. Boston (Bourque&rsquo;s team) finished with 94 points. Suter was a big cog in our machine. I just want to know one thing: Why is it automatic that Bourque wins? 1 mean, I would love to have him or Gord Kluzak or any number of other guys on our team But why is it so cut and dried?&rdquo;Presumably, because the voting for the Norris Trophy so closely resembles the judging in figure skating. You do not win the award in your first year. You pay your dues, you impress the dges and somewhere, some time in future, when your number comes up, you&rsquo;re the winner.Not only did Suter lead the league&rsquo;s defensemen in regular-season scoring, he played impressively in the team&rsquo;s first two playoff games, counting seven points as the Flames opened up a 2-0 lead over the Los Angeles Kings.When the Kings defeated Calgary 5-2 in Game 3, Suter failed to score a point&mdash;for the first time in 18 games. In the Flames&rsquo; 7-3 win in Game 4. Suter got back on the scoreboard by setting up Calgary&rsquo;s first goal.Not since his rookie year did the 22-year-old rearguard look so impressive or composed. He anchored the team&rsquo;s record-setting power play&mdash;28.4-per-cent efficiency&mdash;in the regu-lar season and made it work through the first four playoff games as well. Calgary had six power-play goals on 27 chances&mdash;22-per-cent&mdash;during the first four games.Suter&rsquo;s play fell off last year, his sophomore season, partly because coach Bob Johnson stressed defensive play so much. Suter, a player who relies on good hockey instincts on the ice, could not be as effective trying to think every situation through.&ldquo;A year ago. 1 wasn&rsquo;t really part of the team,&rdquo; Suter said. &ldquo;I was almost phased out of the picture. I&rsquo;m the type of player who responds better when I&rsquo;m left alone. I think I&rsquo;m smart enough to know when I&rsquo;m not playing well and when I make a mistake. Just being harped at all the time isn&rsquo;t going to help me. It&rsquo;s going to put me more in a shell.&rdquo;Suter&rsquo;s game picked up this year when Crisp teamed him with veteran Brad McCrimmon.&ldquo;I think they left me alone when they put me with McCrimmon.&rdquo; Suter said. &ldquo;Getting to play with him steadied my game and. slowly, I came around and regained my confidence. From there, things have gone well for me.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;Right winger Joe Mullen, a 40-goal scorer in each of the last four seasons, bruised his knee in Calgary&rsquo;s 5-2 loss to the Kings, and missed the fourth game of the Smythe Division semi-final. The injury was not considered serious&hellip;Center Mike Bullard missed the first three games as a result of a charleyhorse suffered in a collision with Bernie Nicholls in the 79th regular-season game, but returned to the lineup for game four&hellip; Defenseman Paul Reinhart&rsquo;s goal in the second game of the series was his first of the season. Reinhart played only 14 games because of back problems that put him on the sidelines for almost five months.<div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0025-03272/5469146-1-eng-US/f0025-032.jpg" title="f0025-03" width="1181" height="1015"><figcaption class="caption-body">Defenseman Gary Suter, above, compares favorably with Ray Bourque as a Norris Trophy candidate, says coach Terry Crisp.</figcaption></div><h2>FLAMES</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Mike Bullard, Joe Nieuwendyk, Joel Otto, Gary Roberts, Perry Berezan.LW&mdash;lohn Tonelli, Jim Peplinski, Colin Patterson, Tim Hunter, Craig Coxe, Paul Ranheim.RW&mdash;Hakan Loob, Lanny McDonald, Shane Churla, Jiri Hrdina.LD&mdash;Gary Suter, Al Maclnnis, Paul Reinhart, Dana Murzyn, Brian Glynn.RD&mdash;Brad McCrimmon, Rob Ramage, Ric Nattress.G&mdash;Mike Vernon, Doug Dadswell.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Joe Mullen, RW, bruised knee, April 14.Rick Wamsley, G, pulled groin, April 18. &#9632;

f0025-01

Suter Super Cog In Calgary Flame Machine

<div class="byline">BY RICK SADOWSKI</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-01671/5469191-1-eng-US/f0026-012.jpg" title="f0026-01" width="580" height="945"><figcaption class="caption-body">Bernie Nicholls had a four-point night as the Kings won game three over Calgary.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-02468/5469198-1-eng-US/f0026-022.jpg" title="f0026-02" width="182" height="133"></div>LOS ANGELES&mdash;While the Los Angeles Kings slept during their charter flight out of Southern California, winging their way to Alberta, they were dreaming the impossible dream.Down 3-1 in games to the Calgary Flames in their Stanley Cup playoff series following a 7-3 defeat at the Forum April 10. the Kings were faced with the unlikely prospect of having to win three consecutive times to keep the post-season alive.That would match the Kings&rsquo; longest winning streak this year, something they managed to do only twice during the 80-game regular season.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a four-win series.&rdquo; goaltender Glenn Healy said, trying to sound convincing. &ldquo;They haven&rsquo;t got the fourth win yet. so we&rsquo;re still in it. It&rsquo;s been done before and it can be done again. I still have confidence in our players.&rdquo;After losing the first two games in Calgary. 9-2 and 6-4. the Kings clawed back into the series with an impressive 5-2 victory April 9 before an emotion-charged sellout crowd at home.In what had developed into a series featuring one power play after another&mdash;the teams combined for 57 in the first four games&mdash;the Kings converted 3-of-13 advantages and rode a 28-save performance by Healy and Bernie Nicholls&rsquo; one-goal, three-assist effort to cut the deficit in games to one.But first periods have been a disaster for the Kings, who fell behind 4-0 in game one and 2-0 in game two, then dropped into a quick 3-0 hole in game four.&ldquo;Our problem in the first two games was failing to generate any offense,&rdquo; Healy said. &ldquo;We wanted to initiate, not just react to what they were doing. They played a smart game and didn&rsquo;t give us much.&rdquo;The Kings rallied to make it 3-3 eight minutes into the second period on goals by Dave Taylor. Luc Robitaille and Steve Duchesne. Then they watched Tim Hunter and Hakan Loob (cn route to a hat trick) strike for goals 1:30 apart late in that period and never recovered.The Kings went 18&frac12; minutes spanning the second and third periods without a shot in the steamy Forum&mdash;temperatures reached the 90s during the day&mdash;and looked emotionally and physically spent.&ldquo;They brought in three guys who were fresh and we didn&rsquo;t.&rdquo; coach Robbie Ftorek said of Calgary. &ldquo;We got tired and they&rsquo;re a big team. I think not dressing some new bodies might have been a mistake.&rdquo;&ldquo;We can&rsquo;t keep falling three goals behind against a team like Calgary,&rdquo; said Jimmy Carson, who had four goals in the first four games. &ldquo;We came back and tied it once and it looked good.&ldquo;Then all of a sudden&mdash;boom&mdash;we were in the hole by three again. It&rsquo;s just too tough to come back from three twice in a game. Having to come back all the time takes a lot out of you and we just couldn&rsquo;t do it.&ldquo;It was very discouraging to tie the darned thing up and&mdash;boom&mdash;it goes the other way. What can you do? We had a great, great opportunity to send the series to a sixth game and I really thought we were going to do it.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;The Kings were outscored in first periods of the first four games 10-4. They were outscored 8-3 and outshot 43-21 in third periods&hellip;Winger Jim Fox. who hadn&rsquo;t played since March 10. said he felt well enough to play. He&rsquo;ll undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee after season&hellip;Defensemen Jay Wells and Ken Baumgartner had the left sides of their heads shaved for the playoffs, leaving the hairy letters &ldquo;L.A.&rdquo; Said Baumgartner: &ldquo;We just wanted to do our part for the cause, give our all for the team. Not that a new haircut&rsquo;s going to help&rsquo;you play.&rdquo;&hellip;Several Kings made their Stanley Cup playoff debuts: Baumgartner, Eric Germain, Paul Fenton. Lyle Phair, Chris Kontos, Glenn Healy and John English. It was also the first NHL playoff experience for Robbie Ftorek and Bryan Maxwell as coaches&hellip;The Kings&rsquo; game three victory snapped a six-game playoff losing streak at the Forum since the Miracle on Manchester game April 10, 1982, when they rallied from five goals down in third period to beat Edmonton. 6-5 in overtime.<h2>KINGS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>April 4: Bob Janecyk, G; Craig Dun-canson, LW; Paul Guay, RW, and Dan Gratton, C, recalled from New Haven (AHL).<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Jimmy Carson, Bernie Nicholls, Mike Allison, Bobby Carpenter, Dan Gratton.RW&mdash;Dave Taylor, Phil Sykes, Bob Bourne, Ron Duguay, Craig Laughlin, Paul Guay.LW&mdash;Chris Kontos, Luc Robitaille, Paul Fenton, Lyle Phair, Craig Duncan son.RD&mdash;Tom Laidlaw, Steve Duchesne, Larry Playfair, John English.LD&mdash;Ken Baumgartner, Jay Wells, Dean Kennedy, Eric Germain, Denis Larocque.G&mdash;Rollie Melanson, Glenn Healy, Bob Janecyk.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Jim Fox, RW, knee, day-to-day.Ken Hammond, D, knee, day-to-day. &#9632;

f0026-01

Kings Over Flames? It’s California Dreaming

<div class="byline">BY TONY GALLAGHER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0026-03380/5469229-1-eng-US/f0026-032.jpg" title="f0026-03" width="176" height="132"></div>VANCOUVER&mdash;When the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy is awarded at the Stanley Cup luncheon in May, Stan Smyl will probably be on the outside looking in.But he&rsquo;ll have another chance next year and the year after that. He&rsquo;s such a deserving candidate, he&rsquo;ll almost certainly gain the Vancouver vote until he wins, quits or is traded, whichever comes first.The Masterton Trophy is given annually to &ldquo;the National Hockey League player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.&rdquo;And in Vancouver, Smyl is Mr. Perseverance, Sportsmanship and Dedication.This was not a vintage Smyl year. He played in just 57 games, scoring 12 goals and 37 points. A groin injury put him out in March. As in most years, the captain found the going difficult mentally, since the club was a disappointment yet again.&ldquo;This was maybe the toughest season I&rsquo;ve ever had,&rdquo; said the 30-year-old right winger. And in 10 years as an NHLer, all with the Canucks, Smyl has been through plenty of tough ones, including 1985-86, which ended in knee surgery.&ldquo;This was sort of a confusion year. It was up and down more than any I can remember. 1 think we all thought we were a better team at the beginning of the season than we turned out to be. Our expectations were high.&rdquo;The Canucks started poorly and finished the same way. Smyl played his best hockey in between. While the years of losing have knocked something out of him, he remained adamant the club will improve. And while Smyl admitted a trade could be in the offing, he maintained there are positive signs for the future in Vancouver.&ldquo;What I like most about what happened this year was the beginnings of the development of our farm system,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Before, guys would come up from the minors and wouldn&rsquo;t be able to help at all. Now, with the young guys starting the season down there&mdash;like Ian Kidd and Jim Sandlak, the way they did&mdash;when they come up they are ready to help. It&rsquo;s going to take time, no doubt about it. And that&rsquo;s maybe where my biggest frustration is. I don&rsquo;t like waiting.&rdquo;Smyl said the establishment of the farm system may have hurt the team&rsquo;s on-ice performance this year, but will help in years to come.&ldquo;We made a lot of changes this year, sometimes too many, and it showed on the ice.&rdquo;The groin injury will not require surgery. It&rsquo;s just a matter of waiting and working out in the summer.&ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t believe how long it took to get better,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t skate now, and just walking around the house you feel it. When I first hurt it, I thought I&rsquo;d be out a week, two at the most. But it&rsquo;s still not right.&rdquo;With three years left on his contract, the hard-hitting winger will be back pounding away next season. And as long as he&rsquo;s in Vancouver, the Masterton nod seems destined to be his.&ldquo;lt really gave me a lift to get the nomination,&rdquo; said Smyl. &ldquo;It came when I was feeling down about the season and it perked me up to think people recognized what you&rsquo;ve been trying to do.&rdquo;NOTES&mdash;The Smyls, Stan and Jennifer, are expecting their second child this summer&hellip;Coach Bob McCammon will be pressed into a scouting role this spring, working from his old home in Portland, Maine. McCammon, who worked as the eastern liaison for the Oilers for two years with GM-coach Glen Sather, planned to see a lot of Fredericton during the American League playoffs, then pick up the Montreal-Hartford playoff series. Montreal is one of the teams that has made a serious pitch for the Canucks&rsquo; top draft pick this year, the No. 2 pick overall in the June draft&hellip; Vancouver finished with a 15-20-5 home record, two fewer wins than the previous season. &#9632;

f0026-03

Smyl’s Still Mr. Perseverance After Braving Toughest Year

<div class="byline">BY BOB WAGNER</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-02411/5469260-1-eng-US/f0027-022.jpg" title="f0027-02" width="571" height="1103"><figcaption class="caption-body">Flint center John Cullen broke the IHL single-season record for points.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-01622/5469267-1-eng-US/f0027-012.jpg" title="f0027-01" width="154" height="134"></div>The Muskegon Lumberjacks won their fourth straight East Division title when the Inter-national League concluded its regular season April 10.And they did it in record fashion.Muskegon finished with a 58-14-10 mark and record 126 points. Next best the all-time list were the 1980-81 mazoo Wings, who finished 52-20-10 for 114 points.It&rsquo;s the most wins since the 1981-82 Toledo Goaldiggers won 53 and the Lumberjack totals of 415 team goals, 697 team assists and 1,112 total points are all International records. The previous marks were 407 (by both Milwaukee and Toledo during the 1981-82 season), 662 (by Port Huron in 197879) and 1,055 (by Port Huron in 197879).But the Lumberjack winning percentage of.707 is short of the league record of.833 (50-9-1), set in 1956-57 by the Cincinnati Mohawks, who won five consecutive Turner Cups and six straight regular-season championships&mdash;both league standards&mdash;during the 1950s.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;I&rsquo;m pretty sure the sale is going to go through&hellip;We&rsquo;re anticipating hockey in Indianapolis next year.&rsquo; &mdash;Lindberg</blockquote>The Cincinnati franchise folded after the 1957-58 season and the name Mohawk didn&rsquo;t appear again until 1965-66, with the Muskegon franchise. Muskegon entered the IHL in 1960-61 as the Zephyrs.New ownership bought the franchise in 1984-85, named former pro defenseman Rick Ley coach and renamed the team Lumberjacks. They&rsquo;ve been chopping up the league ever since.A Cinderella story in the league this season was Flint Spirit rookie center John Cullen, a free agent who went on an individual record tear.Cullen, who finished 48-109-157 in 81 games, broke the rookie and overall marks for points and assists in one season. Billy Reichart of Minneapolis had 126 points in his 1959-60 rookie season and Bill Joyce of Toledo (198182) and Rick Bragnolo of Dayton (1974-75) had 72 assists in their rookie seasons. The overall individual mark for points was 141 by Gary Ford of Muskegon in the 74-game 1872-73 season. The overall assist mark was set by Dale Yakiwchuk of Milwaukee during the 82-game 1982-83 season.The Spirits scored 119 power-play goals, another league record. Fort Wayne scored 111 to finish behind Flint. The previous record was 102, set in 1978-79 by Port Huron.The Spirits, one of three teams not affiliated with an NHL team, finished fourth in the East and meets Muskegon in a best-of-seven first-round Turner Cup playoff.In other post-season action, Fort Wayne, second in the East, plays third-place Saginaw. Kalamazoo, the fifthplace finisher in the East, replaces Milwaukee in the four-club West Division and takes on first-place Colorado. Salt Lake City, West runner-up, plays third-place Peoria.Milwaukee, 21-54-7, last in the West, 26 points behind Peoria and out of the playoffs, set a league futility record with its 19-game losing streak, longest since Windsor Ryancretes lost 15 straight in 1948-49. The Admirals lost 36 of their final 38 games.In other news, Indianapolis, which had the IHL Chiefs from 1955-56 to 1961-62 and the Checkers from 198485 to 1986-87, may return to the IHL for 1988-89.Don Lindberg, a financial consultant from Geneva, III., and Horn Chen, a Chicago businessman, have purchased franchise rights from Checker owner Larry Woods.&ldquo;I&rsquo;m pretty sure the sale is going to go through,&rdquo; said Lindberg. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re working on a couple of options, the lease (of an arena), and we must get league approval.&ldquo;We feel the International Hockey League is a strong league. We looked at a couple of opportunities as well, and frankly this was the best one. We&rsquo;re anticipating hockey in Indianapolis next year.&rdquo;An IHL meeting April 14 in Kalamazoo considered the return of Indianapolis, and the status of prospective expansion teams in Phoenix, Ariz., Sacramento, Calif., and Erie, Penn.Meanwhile, when Fort Wayne Komets parted company last month with former major-league baseball pitcher Denny McLain, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, they may have thought they&rsquo;d heard the last of him.Not so. McLain has filed suit in Allen County Superior Court against Fort Wayne owner David Welker for alleged breach of contract and fraud. No amount was disclosed in the law suit.McLain was hired to promote the hockey club and a non-alcoholic wine. Welker said McLain&rsquo;s hockey promotions, however crowd-pleasing, were not money-makers and fired him. &#9632;

f0027-02

The Minors

Lumberjacks Chop Way To IHL Records

<div class="byline">&#x2014;Bob Wagner</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-03264/5469298-1-eng-US/f0027-032.jpg" title="f0027-03" width="578" height="817"><figcaption class="caption-body">John Casey returned to Kalamazoo after the Minnesota North Stars missed the playoffs.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0027-04179/5469305-1-eng-US/f0027-042.jpg" title="f0027-04" width="156" height="134"></div>The five newest members of the Flint Spirits are Devils in disguise.Flint general manager-coach Rick ley acted quickly at International League deadline time to fill five roster spots with players from the Utica Devils, New Jersey&rsquo;s American League farm club.After Utica failed to qualify for the AHL playoffs, Dudley got New Jersey to &ldquo;assign&rdquo; defensemen Steve Richmond. Jamie Huscroft. Dave Marcinyshyn, left winger Alan Stewart and center Paul Ysebaert to his club.Peoria added four reassigned players&mdash;defenseman Bill Berg, left winger Rod Dallman and goalie George Maneluk from Springfield, and defenseman Wayne Gagne from Baltimore. Colorado added goalie Ron Scott from New Haven, and Fort Wayne picked up defenseman Ron Pesetti from Moncton.&ldquo;Those teams found the loophole, that a player could play a full season in the AHL and still be assigned to the IHL,&rdquo; said league information director Mike Meyers.Dudley said the cards were stacked against the independent clubs in the league. Flint and Fort Wayne are the only unaffiliated teams in the playoffs; Milwaukee missed out.This year&rsquo;s playoff roster expansion to 24 players &ldquo;put a burden on the independent teams,&rdquo; he said. Teams keep 21 players, three of whom must be goaltenders, during the regular season. Only two of the 24 playoff roster positions must be reserved for goalies&mdash;so, in essence, a team can add four more skaters.&ldquo;And the deadline for freezing rosters was moved from mid-March until the end of the month (March 29) to increase the access of players available to NHL affiliates,&rdquo; said Dudley. &ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t complain about the rules, but we went out to find out exactly what they were.&rdquo;Dudley discovered loans of playing talent between minor pro leagues were allowable, and went to work.He contacted old friend Marshall Johnston, New Jersey&rsquo;s director of player personnel.&ldquo;Steve Richmond and Alan Stewart volunteered to come, and there is no way we&rsquo;re going to turn down a Richmond or a Stewart,&rdquo; said Dudley.Richmond and Stewart both play a physical game. Richmond had six goals, 27 assists and 141 penalty minutes in 79 games with Utica. Stewart had eight goals, 17 assists and 129 minutes in 49 games.<h2>SPEEDY SCORERS</h2>Center Todd Bjorkstrand and defenseman Craig Channell scored the fastest two goals in Fort Wayne Komet club history, seven seconds apart, against Colorado April 3&hellip;Coach Rick Ley of Muskegon passed the 200-victory mark, bringing his IHL record to 201-100-23 in four regular seasons. His clubs have been Turner Cup finalists the last three seasons, winning the playoff championship once.Kalamazoo Wings left two spots open on their final roster for goalie Jon Casey and defenseman Emanuel Vivetros. who were on emergency recall by Minnesota. When the North Stars failed to make the NHL playoffs on the final date of the NHL season, the two rookies were returned to Kalamazoo. &#9632;

f0027-03

Flint Spirits Five Players Away From AHL’s Devils

<div class="byline">BY MIKE KANE</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-02456/5469336-1-eng-US/f0028-022.jpg" title="f0028-02" width="584" height="966"><figcaption class="caption-body">Richie Dunn scored the winner for Rochester in the opener against Adirondack.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-01643/5469343-1-eng-US/f0028-012.jpg" title="f0028-01" width="178" height="133"></div>When Adirondack Red Wing coach Bill Dineen has a nightmare, it&rsquo;s probably of play ing in Rochester at the War Memorial Auditorium.Rochester Americans benefited from its home-ice domination of Dineen&rsquo;s Adirondack Red Wings to take a 2-0 lead in their Calder Cup best-of-seven quarter-final playoff series. The Red Wings had yet to win a game in Rochester during Dineen&rsquo;s five seasons and were 0-22-3 there since a 3-1 victory on April 1, 1981.A Rochester win on the final day of the season, coupled with an Adirondack loss, gave the Amerks second place in the division with 100 points, one ahead of the Red Wings. That gave the Amerks home ice in the first two games of the series, and they did not waste the advantage, posting 6-4 and 5-3 victories.Adirondack left winger Steve Martinson and Rochester rookie right winger Kevin Kerr received match penalties from referee Mike Noeth for a stick-swinging incident moments after the second game ended on April 10. Kerr was on the player&rsquo;s bench and Martinson on the ice when the exchange occurred.The matter was scheduled to go before American League president Jack Butterfield.In both of the penalty-filled games, the Amerks prevailed because of better play by the special teams. The Rochester power play collected two goals in each game while its penalty-killers limited the Wings to two goals in 16 chances.&ldquo;In the playoffs, emotions run high and the team that shows the most restraint is usually going to benefit from it,&rdquo; said Rochester coach John Van Boxmeer. &ldquo;The fact that our special teams have been the dominant or deciding factors in the two games is a key for us.&rdquo;In the opener, right winger Jody Gage broke a 3-3 tie at 2:23 of the third period and defenseman Richie Dunn delivered the game-winner on a power play at 3:04.<blockquote class="pullQuote">&lsquo;Our special teams have been the dominant or deciding factors.&rsquo; &mdash;Van Boxmeer</blockquote>Defenseman James Gasseau&rsquo;s power-play goal at 19:48 of the second period in the second game gave the Amerks a 4-2 lead and was the winning goal.In the other quarter-finals, home ice proved as beneficial as it was to Rochester.Southern Division-champion Hershey moved into a 3-0 lead in their quarter-final with Binghamton after a pair of overtime wins at home and 4-1 victory in the Whalers&rsquo; home rink on April 8. The winner advances to meet the Rochester-Adirondack winner.Hershey opened its series against Binghamton with a 3-2 overtime victory on April 6. Center Kevin Maxwell poked in the rebound of a shot by right winger Mark Lofthouse at 8:09 of overtime.In the second overtime win. 4-3 on April 9, Lofthouse scored at the 18-minute mark of overtime. Binghamton right winger Yves Courteau forced overtime with a power-play goal with four minutes left in the third period. Binghamton trailed 3-0 in the first period.In the Northern Division home ice ruled again, as Fredericton won its home games April 8 and 9. to take a 2-0 lead against Sherbrooke in their best-of-seven quarter-final.Fredericton rookie defenseman Jean-Marc Richard scored the gamewinner in overtime to give the Express a 4-3 win over Sherbrooke in the series-opener on April 8. The Canadiens tied the game on left winger Sylvain Lefebvre&rsquo;s goal with 49 seconds left in regulation time and goalie Vincent Riendeau on the bench for an extra player.In the second game, left winger Jeff Rohlicek broke a 2-2 tie on the rebound of his own shot at 15:44 for a 3-2 victory.In the other Northern Division ter-final, Maine edged Nova Scotia 5-4 in overtime on April 7 in the first game. Right winger Dave Pasin scored at 3:39 of overtime for Maine. Nova Scotia tied the game at 9:38 of the third period on left winger Tom McMurchy&rsquo;s second goal of the period. The second game was delayed until April 11 by a scheduling conflict in Portland, Maine. &#9632;

f0028-02

Amerks Strengthen Hold On Red Wings

<div class="byline">BY PAUL ABRAMOWITZ</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0028-03327/5469374-1-eng-US/f0028-032.jpg" title="f0028-03" width="177" height="132"></div>Newmarket Saints signed coach Paul Gardner to a one-year contract April 4, despite the team&rsquo;s last-and next-to-last-place finishes in his first two seasons behind the bench.Gardner originally signed a two-year contract when he retired as a player after the 1985-86 season.&ldquo;It was basically the same contract as last time, so it was really easy to accept,&rdquo; said Gardner, who nonetheless acknowledged he was given a raise.Gardner added he was worried during the season about getting another contract offer because Saints&rsquo; general manager Gord Stellick talked with him about a new deal in early March.&ldquo;He said he felt 1 earned another contract.&rdquo; said Gardner, &ldquo;and that we&rsquo;d sit down and work it out at the end of the year.&rdquo;The end of the year for the Saints&rsquo; didn&rsquo;t include the playoffs for the second straight season. Last year, they finished last in the Southern Division. 27 points out of a playoff spot with a 28-48-4 record. This year, after a slow start, they made a run at Binghamton for the final playoff spot. They fell short by seven points and were passed in the standings by Utica in the final week. They finished sixth with a 3339-8 record.&ldquo;I felt I was growing and learning as a coach.&rdquo; Gardner said. &ldquo;I would have been more surprised if I was let go. unless we were a disaster this season. 1 think I &lsquo;m just learning and making myself better.&rdquo;<h2>EXIT LOW, ENTER BAILEY</h2>The Nova Scotia Oilers played their first two playoff games April 7 and 11 without coach Ron Low. who was suspended by the league for five games when left winger Kelly Buchberger left the bench to fight Maine Mariner left winger Mike Stevens during a March 30 game.Buchberger received a six-game suspension, automatic under AHL rules. The Oilers appealed, but the league upheld referee Paul Devorski&rsquo;s ruling after viewing the tape. Low missed the final three regular season games and was replaced by Edmo scout Ace Bailey, who guided the OFF ers to a 2-0-1 record and coached the team for the two playoff games.<h2>NIGHTHAWKS NESTLESS?</h2>New Haven Nighthawk general manager Roy Mlakar went to Los Angeles for the Kings&rsquo; playoff series with the Calgary Flames and to talk with Los Angeles owner Bruce McNall about next season. The Nighthawks&rsquo; one-year agreement at the 5,636-seat New Haven Coliseum expired this season and according to Mlakar the Coliseum would like it renewed.It will be up to the Kings to decide if they want another one-year deal. The Coliseum can&rsquo;t commit for a longer period of time because there are plans to tear the building down and erect a new facility elsewhere in Hew Haven.The Nighthawks are optimistic, however. Mlakar said they have already sold about 400 season tickets for next year.<h2>LAST-PLACE ACHIEVERS</h2>Springfield center Bruce Boudreau was the seventh scoring champ in league history to come from a lastplace team. Four of the other six played before 1950. The two most recent players were Springfield&rsquo;s Bill Sweeney (38-65-103) in 1962 63 and Sherbrooke&rsquo;s Claude Larose (53-67-120) in 1983-84. Boudreau was 42-74116 in 80 games&hellip;Springfield missed the playoffs for the third straight season and have not won a playoff game since the 1980-81 quarter-finals. They were swept in the &lsquo;83-84 quarter-finals by Baltimore and the &lsquo;84-85 quarter-finals by Binghamton. &#9632;

f0028-03

Gardner Signs On For Another Year

<div class="byline">BY KARLO BERKOVICH Editorial Staff</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-01555/5469405-1-eng-US/f0029-012.jpg" title="f0029-01" width="579" height="1018"><figcaption class="caption-body">Jamie Leach came through when it counted most for the Hamilton Steelhawks.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-02385/5469412-1-eng-US/f0029-022.jpg" title="f0029-02" width="177" height="136"></div>Either Ken Hitchcock is a compulsive worrier, or he enjoys putting up a smokescreen.Probably somewhere in between.Before the opening game of the Western League&rsquo;s Kamloops-Spokane West Division final, the Kamloops coach fretted about the impact standout Spokane goalie Troy Gamble would have on the series. (See story on page 30.)The host Blazers bombarded Gamble and the Chiefs 15-3 and 6-3 in the opening two games. Yet Hitchcock found something else to worry about.&ldquo;We had to hold home-ice advantage,&rdquo; said Hitchcock. &ldquo;If we ever get a win down there&mdash;and I don&rsquo;t know how we&rsquo;ll ever do it&mdash;then we&rsquo;ll have a strangehold on this series. But it&rsquo;s win at home and pray on the road against Spokane.&rdquo;The Blazers, who lost the season series 5-4-1 to Spokane, were 17-18-1 overall on the road this season and 1-3-1 in the Spokane Coliseum.But it was the Chiefs praying for relief from the all-out offensive assault launched by Kamloops.The Blazers outshot Spokane 57-18 in game one and chased Gamble from the net with eight goals on 28 shots in the first 27 minutes. Backup Damon Kustra finished, allowing seven more scores on 29 shots. The Western League does not keep playoff powerplay goal records, but Kamloops&rsquo; 10 man-advantage goals (on 14 chances) were believed to be a record. The standard for most goals by one team in a playoff game was set by Regina in a 17-3 rout of Saskatoon in a 1985 first-round series.Tony Horacek and Greg Hawgood had three goals each for Kamloops in game one. In game two, Kamloops outshot Spokane 50-26, prompting Gamble to wonder what Hitchcock was concerned about.&ldquo;I sure haven&rsquo;t been a factor in the series,&rdquo; Gamble said.In the East Division, the Medicine Hat Tigers and Saskatoon Blades began their best-of-seven division final series April 12. Both teams were coming off six-game semi-final victories.Medicine Hat&rsquo;s Trevor Linden scored 20 seconds into overtime April 8 to give the Tigers a 7-6 seriesclinching win over Prince Albert. Mark Pederson had three goals for The Hat in the same game.The sixth game between Saskatoon and Swift Current followed the same script. Dwight Mullins&rsquo; second goal of the game, at 4:11 of overtime, gave the Blades a 7-6 series-clinching victory. Joe Sakic had three goals and two assists in a losing cause for the Broncos.<h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>Sylvain Couturier was only doing what coach Maurice Lemay expects&mdash;scoring big goals.&ldquo;He&rsquo;s always doing that,&rdquo; said Lemay, the Laval Titan coach. &ldquo;Hey, he finished with 70 goals this season.&rdquo;Couturier&rsquo;s play was a big reason the Titan led the favored Hull Olympiques 2-0 in the Quebec League&rsquo;s LeBel Division final. Game three was played April 11 at Hull.Couturier had two goals and two assists in Laval&rsquo;s 5-4 first-game win at Hull. He scored on a breakaway 55 seconds into overtime to give the Titan a 6-5 win in game two. Claude Lapointe tied the game for Laval with 35 seconds left in regulation time.Drummondville was leading Shawinigan 3-0 in the Dilio Division final.Though 94-goal man Stephan Lebeau had four goals, the Voltigeurs held QMJHL scoring champion Patrice Lefebvre to four assists in three games in winning 5-4, 4-3 and 4-1. Lefebvre had four goals and 16 assists and the duo combined for 15 goals and 22 assists in a six-game semi-final win over first-place Chicoutimi. That loss denied the Sagueneens an appearance in the Memorial Cup tournament May 7-14 in Chicoutimi.<h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>Different opponents, different psychological ploys.That&rsquo;s Hamilton Steelhawk coach Bill LaForge&rsquo;s approach.&ldquo;In different games, you play with different minds,&rdquo; LaForge said after his third-place Steelhawks upset the second-place London Knights in a six-game Emms Division final.In an opening-round series against North Bay, the only mind game LaForge played was with his own team. He told them to stay out of the penalty box and stick to hockey. The result was a 4-0 series sweep.&ldquo;Nothing bothers (North Bay coach) Bert Templeton,&rdquo; said LaForge.The Hawks got under the skin of London coach Wayne Maxner and his team.In the first two games&mdash;which the teams split&mdash;Steelhawk goalie Mike Rosati had extra material sewn under each armpit. That violated OHL rule 22 (a) stating a goalie cannot wear any garment that would give him assistance in stopping the puck.Fine, said LaForge. So Rosati wore a different jersey the next game, No. 27 instead of No. 30. The rest of the Hawks followed suit. Maxner and his team&mdash;who had already protested the fact Hamilton players were wearing three-inch red feathers in their helmets&mdash;allowed it to affect their game and lost 8-2.In came the OHL again. No feathers, no garments&hellip;and no new numbers, the league decreed in a reprimand issued by commissioner David Branch. London won game four 11-5.Enter Jamie Leach. The son of former NHLer Reg Leach showed some of his father&rsquo;s goal-scoring touch in the last two games. He scored 15:42 into overtime as Hamilton won the pivotal fifth game 5-4 in London, then scored two more goals in the Steelhawks&rsquo; 6-4 clinching win in Hamilton. The final game marked the first time the home team won a game in the series.Next up for Hamilton are the Windsor Spitfires in the Emms Division final, which began April 12. Windsor dominated the OHL en route to a 5014-2 regular-season record.The Leyden Division final started the same day with Ottawa at Peterborough, the regular-season division champion.The 67&rsquo;s qualified by knocking out the Cornwall Royals 4-1. While OHL scoring leader Andrew Cassels (3-58) and Frank DiMuzio (3-5-8) had big series, the key man for Ottawa was goalie Scott Cumming. He allowed just five goals in the four games&mdash;all wins&mdash;he played.Cumming missed game four, a 5-3 Cornwall win, with a badly-bleeding nose. Backup George Dourian played for Ottawa. &#9632;

f0029-01

The Juniors

Two-Game Blazer Blitz Scalps Chiefs

<div class="byline">BY RICK MAYOH</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-03253/5469443-1-eng-US/f0029-032.jpg" title="f0029-03" width="178" height="133"></div>The Memorial Cup is in Chicoutimi next month, but the hometown Sagueneens won&rsquo;t be there.The fourth-place Shawinigan Cataractes rode their power play to a 4-2 upset of the first-place Sagueneens in a Quebec League Dilio Division best-of-seven semi-final.&ldquo;When you have guys like Patrice Lefebvre and Stephane Lebeau, and our defense, anything can happen,&rdquo; said Shawinigan coach Joe Hardy.Regular-season scoring champion Lefebvre scored four goals and 16 assists in six games.While the Sags took 245 minutes in penalties to the Cats&rsquo; 141, Shawinigan scored on 17 of 43 power plays for a 39.5 per cent success rate. The Cataractes won two games in Chicoutimi, 4-3 in overtime March 20 and 8-2 March 25, before clinching the series with a 7-3 victory on home ice April 1.In that first game, after Chicoutimi put pressure on in the Shawinigan zone during overtime, Lebeau intercepted a pass at center ice and scored the winner.&ldquo;We took bad penalties at bad times and we paid for it. Our goaltending was so-so but that wasn&rsquo;t the most important reason.&rdquo;Goalie Jimmy Waite played in four games and had a 4.81 goals-against average while backup Denis Desbiens played in three games with a 6.75 average.Hebert said Chicoutimi&rsquo;s exit shouldn&rsquo;t affect Memorial Cup ticket sales. About 2,800 Memorial Cup ticket packages had been sold and organizers expect to sell at least 3,500 before the tournament begins.The city&rsquo;s Centre Georges Vezina, site of the tournament, seats about 3,900 spectators and can hold 5,000 with standing room.The national championship runs from May 7 to 14.<h2>BISONS FOR SALE</h2>Owner and president Jean-Jacques Gemme said he is close to selling the Granby Bisons to a group of 20 investors who want to keep the club in Granby.&ldquo;It was too much for just one person,&rdquo; said Gemme, who is asking $325,000 for the club.Bison general manger and coach Real Paiement&rsquo;s future with the team will be decided by the new owners &#9632;

f0029-03

Cat Power Play Leaves Sags Visitors To Hometown Cup

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-04177/5469488-1-eng-US/f0029-042.jpg" title="f0029-04" width="345" height="472"><figcaption class="caption-body">SCOTT CUMMING Ottawa</figcaption></div><h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2>The 19-year-old goaltender won all four games of Ottawa&rsquo;s 4-1 Leyden Division series victory over Cornwall. Cumming gave up just four goals in the last three games to improve his playoff goals-against average to 1.78 in seven games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-05151/5469481-1-eng-US/f0029-052.jpg" title="f0029-05" width="354" height="472"><figcaption class="caption-body">CLAUDE LAPOINTE Laval</figcaption></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>The 19-year-old Laval center had one goal and six assists in two LeBel Division final series games against the Hull Olympiques. Lapointe improved his playoff totals to one goal and 14 assists for 15 points in eight games.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0029-06120/5469474-1-eng-US/f0029-062.jpg" title="f0029-06" width="355" height="469"><figcaption class="caption-body">DEAN COOK Kamloops</figcaption></div><h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>The Kamloops goaltender allowed seven goals in three games&mdash;a 2.33 goals-against average&mdash;as the Blazers eliminated New Westminster in semi-final play and took a two-game lead over Spokane in the West Division final series.At the end of the current season. THE HOCKEY NEWS will select a Micron Junior Player of the Year. &#9632;

f0029-04

JUNIOR PLAYERS OF THE WEEK APRIL 4-10

<div class="byline">BY RANDY RUSSON</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-02461/5469519-1-eng-US/f0030-022.jpg" title="f0030-02" width="578" height="833"><figcaption class="caption-body">Cornwall&rsquo;s Rick Tabaracci was voted the OHL&rsquo;s first-team allstar goaltender.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-01634/5469526-1-eng-US/f0030-012.jpg" title="f0030-01" width="179" height="136"></div>Sam McMaster has returned to the Ontario League.The former general manager of the OHL&rsquo;s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds will leave his job as assistant director of player recruitment for the Washington Capitals July 31 to become general manager of the Sudbury Wolves.McMaster, who will represent Sudbury at the OHL draft May 28 in Toronto, was named GM on April 7, He replaces Marcel Bedard, who resigned three days earlier.McMaster, 44, signed a five-year contract with the lowly Wolves. He expressed no regrets about leaving the NHL, after his third season with Washington.&ldquo;There was a lot of advancement for me, but I felt my niche was in junior hockey.&rdquo; said McMaster, who approached Wolves&rsquo; owner Ken Burgess about the job. &ldquo;My career is in junior hockey. I&rsquo;d like to be here 15 years and build a winner.&ldquo;When I was in the Soo. I always had a feel for Sudbury and (thought) the one junior club in Canada I would come back to is Sudbury.&rdquo;The Greyhounds were 227-104-11 during McMaster&rsquo;s five seasons from 1980-81 to 1984-85. They won an OHL title in 1985 with current Calgary Flame coach Terry Crisp behind the bench.Bedard&rsquo;s departure followed the resignation of former coach John Wallin by six weeks.&ldquo;It had been on my mind (to quit) for some time,&rdquo; Bedard said. &ldquo;Basically, the job was a lot more than I thought it would be&hellip;1 did my best but I guess my best wasn&rsquo;t enough.&rdquo;Wallin left Feb. 23 after THE HOCKEY NEWS researched a story contradicting previous articles describing Wallin&rsquo;s Vietnam War record.Bedard, a former Sudbury justice of the peace, joined the Wolves in December. 1986. after Burgess purchased the club from a group of 14 owners.The Wolves have missed the playoffs seven of the last eight seasons. They finished last in the Leyden Division with a 17-48-1 record this season.Bedard. 44. said he quit because of the Wolves&rsquo; poor season. He said Burgess did not ask him to resign.The same day Bedard resigned, Burgess confirmed Ken MacKenzie will be Sudbury head coach again next season. MacKenzie, 32, was an assistant to Wallin and filled in on an interim basis when Wallin resigned.Burgess said he has reached an undisclosed contract settlement with Wallin, who signed a thrcc-year deal last summer.<h2>LEAGUE ALL-STARS</h2>Cornwall Royal Rick Tabaracci was a 2-to-1 winner over runner-up Robert Fournier of the North Bay Centennials in voting for all-star goaltending honors in the OHL.Tabaracci earned 36 of a possible 70 points in being named the 1987-88 first-team goaltender. Fournier polled 18 points and third-team goalie Jeff Hackett of the Oshawa Generals 17.Voting was conducted among OHL coaches and general managers. Points were awarded on a 5-3-1 basis for first-second-and third-place votes.Coaches and GMs could not select players from their own teams.Cornwall&rsquo;s Mathieu Schneider and Windsor Spitfire Darryl Shannon form the first-team defense pairing. Up front. Ottawa 67 center Andrew Cassels is flanked by Oshawa right winger Sean Williams and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhound left winger Dan Currie. Dick Todd of the Peterborough Petes was voted first-team coach.Cassells, the league scoring champion. led all vote-getters with 53 points.North Bay Centennials placed three players&mdash;Fournier, defenseman Adam Burt and center Len Soccio&mdash;on the second team. It was rounded out by London Knight defenseman Brad Schlegel. Peterborough right winger Jody Hull, Windsor left winger David Haas and Spitfire coach Tom Webster.Oshawa and Windsor placed two players each on the third team. Hackett and defenseman Marc Laniel represent the Generals, center Kelly Cain and defenseman Brad Hyatt the Spitfires. Hamilton Steelhawk right winger Stan Drulia. Ottawa left winger David Rowbotham and North Bay coach Bert Templeton were also named to the squad.Templeton&rsquo;s 31 points were just four less than Todd&rsquo;s 35 and two less than Webster&rsquo;s 33.<h2>NEW OWNER, NEW LOOK</h2>The Kingston franchise will have a new look and name next season, according to new owner Lou Kazowski. The red-white-and-blue color scheme and Montreal Canadien looka-like uniforms will be scrubbed in favor of black, silver and grey duds. The team name. Canadians, will also be changed. A contest will be held in Kingston to select a new nickname. &#9632;

f0030-02

Sudbury Brings McMaster Back To OHL

<div class="byline">BY ED WILLES</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-04216/5469557-1-eng-US/f0030-042.jpg" title="f0030-04" width="577" height="759"><figcaption class="caption-body">Spokane goalie Troy Gamble has the potential to win a series by himself.</figcaption><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0030-03315/5469564-1-eng-US/f0030-032.jpg" title="f0030-03" width="180" height="133"></div>Ken Hitchcock wasn&rsquo;t exactly pleased with the script.Though his team dominated the Western League&rsquo;s West Division&mdash;winning the pennant by 14 points over Spokane&mdash;the Kamloops Blazer head coach dreaded the prospect of facing Chiefs&rsquo; goaltender Troy Gamble in the playoffs.Hitchcock got what he didn&rsquo;t want, but had to expect. The Blazers faced the Chiefs in the best-of-nine West Division final which started April 8.While the Blazers whipped New Westminster in five straight games in one West Division semi-final, Gamble led the Chiefs to a 5-3 series win over Victoria. The Spokane goalie, chosen the West Division&rsquo;s outstanding player by a media panel, stopped two breakaways in the Chiefs&rsquo; 6-5 second-game win. He made 51 saves in game three, a 4-3 Spokane victory.&ldquo;There&rsquo;s no question he was the difference,&rdquo; said Hitchcock.Beyond Gamble, the Chiefs-Blazers series was expected to boil down to a confrontation pitting Spokane&rsquo;s muscle and depth against the Kamloops star system.The Blazers&rsquo; attack, led by center Mark Recchi (61-93-154), defenseman Greg Hawgood (48-85-133) and left winger Darcy Norton (64-43107), scored a league-leading 399 goals in 72 games. Tony Horacek (31-40-71) and Glen Mulvenna (21-38-59 in 38 games) provide depth up front.&ldquo;They have four or five guys who can beat you by themselves,&rdquo; said Spokane general manager Bob Strumm. &ldquo;Outside of Gamble, we don&rsquo;t have anybody.&rdquo;Yet the Chiefs won the season series 5-4-1, including two wins in Kamloops. Spokane&mdash;deep down the middle with centers Rob Friesen, Todd Decker, Travis Green and Korey Sundstrom&mdash;was expected to go with four lines in the series.<h2>PLAYOFF SUSPENSIONS</h2>The East Division semi-final between Medicine Hat and Prince Albert was notable for its punching power.The Raiders lost starting goaltender Glen Seymour for game two. He was suspended one game for using his blocker with intent to injure during a brawl in Medicine Hat&rsquo;s 6-3 first-game win. Despite Seymour&rsquo;s absence. Prince Albert rallied in front of backup goalie Dennis Sproxton to win 5-4.Prince Albert&rsquo;s high-scoring Trevor Jobe (69-63-13) was suspended for game five. He received a match penalty and automatic one-game suspension for having tape on his hand during a fight with Tigers&rsquo; defenseman Dean Chynoweth in game four. Chynoweth was cut above the left eye and on the bottom of his chin during the altercation. The Raiders took advantage of Jobe&rsquo;s absence to register a 6-2 win.<h2>SAKIC BEST IN EAST</h2>Swift Current center Joe Sakic, who shared the WHL scoring title with Moose Jaw&rsquo;s Theoren Fleury, was selected the East Division&rsquo;s outstanding player by a media panel&hellip;Kamloops scored on 11 of 31 power-play chances (35 per cent) in the sweep of New Westminster. Kamloops is 25-1 in first-round series games over the last five seasons. &#9632;

f0030-04

Kamloops Coach Is Wary Of Chiefs’ Goalie Gamble

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0031-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0031-01580/5469602-1-eng-US/f0031-012.jpg"></div><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0032-01612/5469595-1-eng-US/f0032-012.jpg" title="f0032-01" width="3041" height="3219"></div> &#9632;

f0031-01

NHL PLAYOFF REPORT

<h2>AMERICAN LEAGUE</h2>FINAL STANDINGS<h3>NORTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-01591/5469944-1-eng-US/f0035-012.jpg" title="f0035-01" width="583" height="206"></div><h3>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-02464/5469937-1-eng-US/f0035-022.jpg" title="f0035-02" width="584" height="233"></div>PLAYOFF RESULTSNORTHERN DIVISION<h3>SEMI-FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-03369/5469930-1-eng-US/f0035-032.jpg" title="f0035-03" width="579" height="101"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>THUR., APR. 7NOVA SCOTIA 4 AT MAINE 5 (OT)FUTURE GAMES: MON., APR. 11, NOVA SCOTIA AT MAINE; WED., APR. 13, MAINE AT NOVA SCOTIA: FRI, APR. 15, MAINE AT NOVA SCOTIA; SAT., APR. 16, NOVA SCOTIA AT MAINE: TUE, APR. 19, MAINE AT NOVA SCOTIA; THUR, APR. 21, NOVA SCOTIA AT MAINE<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-04301/5469923-1-eng-US/f0035-042.jpg" title="f0035-04" width="579" height="99"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>FRI., APR. 8SHERBROOKE 3 AT FREDERICTON 4 (OT)SAT, APR. 9SHERBROOKE 2 AT FREDERICTON 3FUTURE GAMES: MON, APR. 11, FREDERICTON AT SHERBROOKE; WED, APR. 13, FREDERICTON AT SHERBROOKE; SAT, APR. 16, SHERBROOKE AT FREDERICTON; TUE, APR. 19, FREDERICTON AT SHERBROOKE; THUR, APR. 21, SHERBROOKE AT FREDERICTON.<h3>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h3>SEMI-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-05248/5469916-1-eng-US/f0035-052.jpg" title="f0035-05" width="581" height="101"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>WED, APR. 6BINGHAMTON 2 AT HERSHEY 3FRI, APR. 8HERSHEY 4 AT BINGHAMTON 1SAT, APR. 9BINGHAMTON 3 AT HERSHEY 4 (OT)FUTURE GAMES: MON, APR. 11, HERSHEY AT BINGHAMTON; WED, APR. 13, BINGHAMTON AT HERSHEY; FRI, APR. 15, HERSHEY AT BINGHAMTON; SAT, APR. 16, BINGHAMTON AT HERSHEY.<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-06223/5469909-1-eng-US/f0035-062.jpg" title="f0035-06" width="583" height="103"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>FRI, APR. 8ADIRONDACK 4 AT ROCHESTER 6SUN, APR. 10ADIRONDACK 3 AT ROCHESTER 5FUTURE GAMES: WED, APR. 13, ROCHESTER AT ADIRONDACK; FRI, APR. 15, ROCHESTER AT ADIRONDACK; SUN, APR. 17, ADIRONDACK AT ROCHESTER; TUE, APR. 19, ROCHESTER AT ADIRONDACK; THUR, APR. 21, ADIRONDACK AT ROCHESTER.<h3>PLAYOFF SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-07208/5469902-1-eng-US/f0035-072.jpg" title="f0035-07" width="585" height="473"></div><h3>REGULAR-SEASON CHAMPIONS</h3>NORTHERN DIVISION1988&mdash;MAINE MARINERS1987&mdash;SHERBROOKE CANADIENS1986&mdash;ADIRONDACK RED WINGS1985&mdash;MAINE MARINERS1984&mdash;FREDERICTON EXPRESS1983&mdash;FREDERICTON EXPRESS1982&mdash;NEW BRUNSWICK HAWKS1981&mdash;MAINE MARINERS1980&mdash;NEW BRUNSWICK HAWKS1979&mdash;MAINE MARINERS1978&mdash;MAINE MARINERS<h3>SOUTHERN DIVISION</h3>1988&mdash;HERSHEY BEARS1987&mdash;ROCHESTER AMERICANS1986&mdash;HERSHEY BEARS1985&mdash;BINGHAMTON WHALERS1984&mdash;BALTIMORE SKIPJACKS1983&mdash;ROCHESTER AMERICANS1982&mdash;BINGHAMTON WHALERS1981&mdash;HERSHEY BEARS1980&mdash;NEW HAVEN NIGHTHAWKS1973&mdash;NEW HAVEN NIGHTHAWKS1978&mdash;ROCHESTER AMERICANS<h2>INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE</h2>FINAL STANDINGS<h3>EAST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-08185/5469895-1-eng-US/f0035-082.jpg" title="f0035-08" width="576" height="156"></div><h3>WEST DIVISION</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-09173/5469888-1-eng-US/f0035-092.jpg" title="f0035-09" width="581" height="157"></div><h3>RESULTS</h3>TUE, APR. 5COLORADO 1 AT SALT LAKE 6FLINT 2 AT MUSKEGON 5SAGINAW 4 AT PEORIA 1WED, APR. 6SAGINAW 3 AT KALAMAZOO 2 (OT)MUSKEGON 5 AT MILWAUKEE 2COLORADO 3 AT SALT LAKE 1FORT WAYNE 8 AT FLINT 7THUR, APR. 7SALT LAKE 4 AT PEORIA 5FRI, APR. 8COLORADO 4 AT MUSKEGON 9FLINT 5 AT SAGINAW 2FORT WAYNE 7 AT KALAMAZOO 5MILWAUKEE 3 AT PEORIA 6SAT APR 9SALT LAKE 2 AT FORT WAYNE 8SAGINAW 3 AT MUSKEGON 5FLINT 7 AT KALAMAZOO 4COLORADO 5 AT MILWAUKEE 3SUN, APR. 10KALAMAZOO 3 AT FORT WAYNE 4 (OT)SALT LAKE 3 AT SAGINAW 4 (OT)PEORIA 3 AT FLINT 10(END OF SCHEDULE)<h3>FINAL SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-10151/5469881-1-eng-US/f0035-102.jpg" title="f0035-10" width="582" height="421"></div><h3>GOALTENDING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-11136/5469874-1-eng-US/f0035-112.jpg" title="f0035-11" width="578" height="158"></div><h3>IHL PLAYOFFS</h3>QUARTER-FINALS(ALL SERIES BEST-OF-SEVEN)<h3>FLINT VS MUSKEGON</h3>WED., APR. 13, FLINT AT MUSKEGON: SAT, APR. 16, MUSKEGON AT FLINT; SUN, APR. 17, FLINT AT MUSKEGON; WED, APR 20, MUSKEGON AT FLINT; FRI., APR. 22, FLINT AT MUSKEGON; SAT. APR. 23, MUSKEGON AT FLINT; SUN, APR. 24, FLINT AT MUSKEGON.<h3>KALAMAZOO VS COLORADO</h3>THUR, APR. 14, KALAMAZOO AT COLORADO; FRI, APR. 15, KALAMAZOO AT COLORADO; SAT, APR. 16, COLORADO AT KALAMAZOO; GAMES 4 AND 5 AT KALAMAZOO, DATES UNDECIDED; FRI, APR. 22, KALAMAZOO AT COLORADO; SAT, APR. 23, KALAMAZOO AT COLORADO.<h3>SAGINAW VS FORT WAYNE</h3>WED, APR. 13, SAGINAW AT FORT WAYNE; FRI, APR. 15, FORT WAYNE AT SAGINAW; SAT, APR. 16, SAGINAW AT FORT WAYNE; SUN, APR. 17, FORT WAYNE AT SAGINAW; WED, APR. 20, SAGINAW AT FORT WAYNE; SAT, APR. 23, FORT WAYNE AT SAGINAW; SUN, APR. 24, SAGINAW AT FORT WAYNE.<h3>PEORIA VS SALT LAKE</h3>WED, APR. 13, PEORIA AT SALT LAKE; FRI, APR. 15, PEORIA AT SALT LAKE; SAT, APR. 16, SALT LAKE AT PEORIA; MON, APR. 18, SALT LAKE AT PEORIA; WED, APR. 20, SALT LAKE AT PEORIA; FRI, APR. 22, PEORIA AT SALT LAKE; SUN, APR. 24, PEORIA AT SALT LAKE.<h3>REGULAR-SEASON CHAMPIONS</h3>1988&mdash;MUSKEGON LUMBERJACKS (EAST); COLORADO RANGERS (WEST)1987&mdash;MUSKEGON LUMBERJACKS (EAST); FORT WAYNE KOMETS (WEST)1986&mdash;MUSKEGON LUMBERJACKS (EAST); FORT WAYNE KOMETS (WEST)1985&mdash;MUSKEGON LUMBERJACKS (EAST); PEORIA RIVERMEN (WEST)1984&mdash;FORT WAYNE KOMETS1983&mdash;TOLEDO GOALDIGGERS (EAST); MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS (WEST)1982&mdash;TOLEDO GOALDIGGERS1981&mdash;SAGINAW GEARS (EAST); KALAMAZOO WINGS (WEST)1980&mdash;KALAMAZOO WINGS (NORTH); FORT WAYNE KOMETS (SOUTH)1979&mdash;PORT HURON FLAGS (NORTH); GRAND RAPIDS OWLS (SOUTH)1978&mdash;SAGINAW GEARS (NORTH); FORT WAYNE KOMETS (SOUTH)1977&mdash;SAGINAW GEARS (NORTH); TOLEDO GOALDIGGERS (SOUTH)1976&mdash;SAGINAW GEARS (NORTH); DAYTON GEMS (SOUTH)1975&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS (NORTH); DAYTON GEMS (SOUTH)1974&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS (NORTH); DES MOINES CAPITOLS (SOUTH)1973&mdash;FLINT GENERALS (NORTH); FORT WAYNE KOMETS (SOUTH)1972&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS (NORTH); DAYTON GEMS (SOUTH)1971&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS1970&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS (NORTH); DAYTON GEMS (SOUTH)1969&mdash;DAYTON GEMS1968&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS1967&mdash;DAYTON GEMS1966&mdash;MUSKEGON MOHAWKS1965&mdash;PORT HURON FLAGS1964&mdash;TOLEDO BLADES1963&mdash;FORT WAYNE KOMETS1962&mdash;MUSKEGON ZEPHYRS1961&mdash;TOLEDO MERCURYS (EAST); MINNEAPOLIS MILLERS (WEST)1960&mdash;FORT WAYNE KOMETS (EAST); ST. PAUL SAINTS (WEST)1959&mdash;LOUISVILLE REBELS1958&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1957&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1956&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1955&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1954&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1953&mdash;CINCINNATI MOHAWKS1952&mdash;GRAND RAPIDS ROCKETS1951&mdash;GRAND RAPIDS ROCKETS1950&mdash;SARNIA SAILORS1949&mdash;TOLDEO MERCURYS1948&mdash;WINDSOR HETTCHE SPITFIRES1947&mdash;WINDSOR STAFFORDS<h2>WESTERN LEAGUE</h2>PLAYOFF RESULTS<h3>EAST DIVISION</h3>QUARTER-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-12120/5469867-1-eng-US/f0035-122.jpg" title="f0035-12" width="588" height="337"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>TUE, MAR. 29SWIFT CURRENT 5 AT SASKATOON 4WED, MAR. 30SWIFT CURRENT 4 AT SASKATOON 3SAT APR 2SASKATOON 10 AT SWIFT CURRENT 2SUN APR. 3SASKATOON 7 AT SWIFT CURRENT 3MON APR 4SWIFT CURRENT 7 AT SASKATOON 8WED, APR. 6SASKATOON 7 AT SWIFT CURRENT 6<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-13106/5469860-1-eng-US/f0035-132.jpg" title="f0035-13" width="584" height="103"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>TUE, MAR. 29PRINCE ALBERT 3 AT MED. HAT 6WED, MAR. 30PRINCE ALBERT 5 AT MED. HAT 4SAT, APR. 2MED. HAT 2 AT PRINCE ALBERT 8SUN, APR. 3MED. HAT 3 AT PRINCE ALBERT 2TUE, APR. 5PRINCE ALBERT 2 AT MED. HAT 6WED, APR. 6MED. HAT 7 AT PRINCE ALBERT 6 (OT)<h3>WEST DIVISION</h3>SEMI-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1488/5469853-1-eng-US/f0035-142.jpg" title="f0035-14" width="586" height="208"></div><h3>WEST DIVISION FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1578/5469846-1-eng-US/f0035-152.jpg" title="f0035-15" width="586" height="103"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>FRI, APR. 8SPOKANE 3 AT KAMLOOPS 15SAT, APR. 9SPOKANE 3 AT KAMLOOPS 6FUTURE GAMES: TUE, APR. 12, KAMLOOPS AT SPOKANE; WED, APR. 13, KAMLOOPS AT SPOKANE; FRI, APR. 15, SPOKANE AT KAMLOOPS; SAT/SUN, APR. 16-17, KAMLOOPS AT SPOKANE; TUE, APR. 19, SPOKANE AT KAMLOOPS; THUR, APR. 21, KAMLOOPS AT SPOKANE; FRI, APR. 22, SPOKANE AT KAMLOOPS.<h3>EAST DIVISION FINALS</h3>MED. HAT VS SASKATOONTUE, APR. 12, MED. HAT AT SASKATOON; WED, APR. 13, MED. HAT AT SASKATOON; FRI, APR. 15, SASKATOON AT MED. HAT; SAT, APR. 16, SASKATOON AT MED. HAT; MON., APR. 18, MED. HAT AT SASKATOON; WED, APR. 20, SASKATOON AT MED. HAT; FRI, APR. 22, MED. HAT AT SASKATOON.<h3>PLAYOFF SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1672/5469839-1-eng-US/f0035-162.jpg" title="f0035-16" width="597" height="412"></div><h2>ONTARIO LEAGUE</h2><h3>PLAYOFF RESULTS</h3>PRELIMINARY ROUNDLEYDEN DIVISIONQUARTER-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1756/5469832-1-eng-US/f0035-172.jpg" title="f0035-17" width="586" height="440"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>SUN, APR. 3OTTAWA 2 AT CORNWALL 1 (OT)TUE, APR. 5CORNWALL 2 AT OTTAWA 6WED, APR. 6CORNWALL 1 AT OTTAWA 2THUR, APR. 7OTTAWA 3 AT CORNWALL 5FRI, APR. 8CORNWALL 1 AT OTTAWA 2<h3>DIVISION FINALS</h3><h3>OTTAWA VS PETERBOROUGH</h3>TUE, APR. 12, OTTAWA AT PETERBOROUGH; THUR, APR. 14, OTTAWA AT PETERBOROUGH; FRI, 15, PETERBOROUGH AT OTTAWA; SUN, APR. 17, PETERBOROUGH AT OTTAWA; TUE, APR. 19, OTTAWA AT PETERBOROUGH; WED, APR. 20, OTTAWA AT PETERBOROUGH; SAT, APR. 23, OTTAWA AT PETERBOROUGH.<h3>EMMS DIVISION</h3>QUARTER-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1849/5469825-1-eng-US/f0035-182.jpg" title="f0035-18" width="583" height="444"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>FRI, APR. 1HAMILTON 6 AT LONDON 5 (OT)SUN, APR. 3LONDON 6 AT HAMILTON 5TUE, APR. 5HAMILTON 8 AT LONDON 2THUR, APR. 7LONDON 11 AT HAMILTON 5FRI, APR. 8HAMILTON 5 AT LONDON 4SUN, APR. 10LONDON 4 AT HAMILTON 6DIVISION FINALS<h3>HAMILTON VS WINDSOR</h3>TUE, APR. 12, HAMILTON AT WINDSOR; THUR, APR. 14, WINDSOR AT HAMILTON; SAT, APR. 16, HAMILTON AT WINDSOR; SUN, APR. 17, WINDSOR AT HAMILTON; TUE, APR. 19, HAMILTON AT WINDSOR; THUR, APR. 21, WINDSOR AT HAMILTON; SAT., APR. 23, HAMILTON AT WINDSOR.<h3>PLAYOFF SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-1944/5469818-1-eng-US/f0035-192.jpg" title="f0035-19" width="586" height="287"></div><h2>QUEBEC LEAGUE</h2>PLAYOFF RESULTS<h3>ROBERT LeBEL DIVISION</h3>SEMI-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2041/5469811-1-eng-US/f0035-202.jpg" title="f0035-20" width="585" height="334"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>TUE, APR. 5LAVAL 5 AT HULL 4FRI, APR. 8HULL 5 AT LAVAL 6 (OT)FUTURE GAMES: MON, APR. 11, LAVAL AT HULL; WED. APR, 13, HULL AT LAVAL; FRI, APR. 15, LAVAL AT HULL; SUN, APR. 17, HULL AT LAVAL, TUE, APR. 19, LAVAL AT HULL.<h3>FRANK DILIO DIVISION</h3>SEMI-FINALS<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2134/5469804-1-eng-US/f0035-212.jpg" title="f0035-21" width="588" height="207"></div><h3>FINALS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2228/5469797-1-eng-US/f0035-222.jpg" title="f0035-22" width="573" height="103"></div><h3>GAME RESULTS</h3>TUE, APR. 5SHAWINIGAN 4 AT DRUMMONDVILLE 5FRI, APR. 8DRUMMONDVILLE 4 AT SHAWINIGAN 3SUN, APR. 10SHAWINIGAN 1 AT DRUMMONDVILLE 4FUTURE GAMES: WED, APR. 13, DRUMMONDVILLE AT SHAWINIGAN; FRI, APR. 15, SHAWINIGAN AT DRUMMONDVILLE; SUN, APR. 17, DRUMMONDVILLE AT SHAWINIGAN; TUE, APR. 19, SHAWINIGAN AT DRUMMONDVILLE.<h3>PLAYOFF SCORING LEADERS</h3><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0035-2327/5469790-1-eng-US/f0035-232.jpg" title="f0035-23" width="580" height="207"></div><h2>NCAA</h2><h3>1988 ALL-AMERICAN TEAMS UNIVERSITY DIVISION EAST FIRST TEAM</h3>G&mdash;BRUCE RACINE, NORTHEASTERN; D&mdash;JACK CAPUANO, MAINE; BRIAN MCCOLGAN, ST. LAWRENCE F&mdash;PETER LAPPIN, ST. LAWRENCE; REJEAN BOIVIN, COLGATE; DAVE CAPUANO, MAINE<h3>EAST SECOND TEAM</h3>G&mdash;JOHN FLETCHER, CLARKSON; D&mdash; BRIAN DOWD, NORTHEASTERN; DON SWEENEY. HARVARD; F&mdash;MIKE GOLDEN, MAINE; MIKE MCHUGH, MAINE; LUC BORSATO, CLARKSONS; GORD CRUICKSHANK, PROVIDENCE**&mdash;TIE<h3>WEST FIRST TEAM</h3>G&mdash;ROBB STAUBER, MINNESOTA; D&mdash;SCOTT PALUCH, BOWLING GREEN; PAUL STANTON, WISCONSIN; F&mdash;STEVE JOHNSON, NORTH DAKOTA; PAUL RANHEIM, WISCONSIN; MARK VERMETTE, LAKE SUPERIOR.<h3>WEST SECOND TEAM</h3>G&mdash;DEAN ANDERSON, WISCONSIN; D&mdash; MICHAEL DEANGELIS, MINNESOTA-DULUTH; RANDY SKARDA, MINNESOTA; F&mdash;PHIL BERGER, NORTHERN MICHIGAN; NELSON EMERSON, BOWLING GREEN; STEVE TUTTLE, WIS-CONSIN<h3>COLLEGE DIVISION EAST FIRST TEAM</h3>G&mdash;TONY MONGILLO, ELMIRA; D&mdash;MIKE BOYCE, MERRIMACK; DAN WILLIAMS, ELMIRA; F&mdash;TODD KRYGIER, CONNECTICUT; TOM SASSO, BABSON; JIM VESEY, MERRIMACK<h3>EAST SECOND TEAM</h3>G&mdash;JIM HRIVNAK, MERRIMACK; D&mdash;JEFF GREENE, OSWEGO STATE; CHRIS PANEK, PLATTSBURGH STATE; F&mdash;JOEY FERRAS, PLATTSBURGH STATE; RICK MCCARTHY, NORWICH; JOHN STAERKER, OSWEGO STATE<h3>WEST FIRST TEAM</h3>G&mdash;STEVE O&rsquo;SHEA, BEMIDJI STATE; D&mdash;TIM COGHLIN, WISCONSIN-STEVENS POINT; JOE LAGOO, WISCONSIN-RIVER FALLS; F&mdash;JAN RESCH, BEMIDJI STATE; DALLAS MILLER, AUGSBURG; ARRON SCOTT, WISCONSIN-RIVER FALLS<h3>WEST SECOND TEAM</h3>G&mdash;CHRIS HANSON, WISCONSIN-RIVER FALLS; D&mdash;DAN HORN, MANKATO STATE; MATHEW MONTGOMERY, ST. MARY&rsquo;S; F&mdash;TIM AHCAN, GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS; BRAD MATTSON, ST. MARY&rsquo;S; PAT MCPARTLIN, WISCONSIN-STEVENS POINT &#9632;

f0035-01

SCOREBOARD

<div class="byline">BY DICK CHUBEY</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0036-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-02421/5469975-1-eng-US/f0036-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">Glenn Anderson overcame the shock of a friend&rsquo;s sudden death, to score five points in the Oilers&rsquo; opener against Winnipeg.</figcaption></div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-01566/5469982-1-eng-US/f0036-012.jpg" title="f0036-01" width="176" height="136"></div>EDMONTON&mdash;One of professional sports&rsquo; most incredible streaks of playoff domination is over.It required three hours and 20 minutes of guerrilla warfare April 9 at Winnipeg Arena, but the Edmonton Oilers can no longer refer to the Winnipeg Jets as their personal Stanley Cup whipping boys.The Jets built a 3-0 first-period lead and hung on for an empty-net goal with 37 seconds remaining to post a 6-4 victory and cut the Oilers&rsquo; lead in the best-of-seven Smythe Division semifinal to 2-1.The following night, the Oilers rebounded from another 3-0 deficit to post a 5-3 win and take a 3-1 lead in the series.Still, the Jets were happy to have snapped at 16 the Oilers&rsquo; string of consecutive playoff triumphs, a run that began in 1983.&ldquo;It was 15, 15.&rdquo; said Jets&rsquo; GM John Ferguson. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t rub it in with 16.&rdquo;Sorry. Fergie.&ldquo;Okay. 16.&rdquo; he conceded. &ldquo;But we played with a great deal of determination. That&rsquo;s the way we&rsquo;ve played against Calgary. It&rsquo;s pretty gratifying.&ldquo;I know one thing for sure. We haven&rsquo;t beaten them in the playoffs since the last Avco Cup final.&rdquo;That was in 1979 when the World Hockey Association was in the process of folding its tent, with four of its members moving to the NHL. Of the four, only one had never worn a WHA playoff crown&mdash;the Oilers, who have gone on to bigger and better things, such as three Stanley Cups.The Oilers won the first two games at home. 7-4 and 3-2.With three goals and two assists. Glenn Anderson was the hot news of game one. But that was only half the story.<blockquote class="pullQuote">The Oilers had beaten Winnipeg in 16 straight playoff games.</blockquote>Anderson awoke on game day to a front page headline in the Edmonton Sun: &ldquo;Man dies after pool mishap at Oiler Home-&mdash;Cops conduct routine probe into incident at Glenn Anderson&rsquo;s house.&rsquo;Manager-coach Glen Sather said he felt sick when he picked up the paper and read the report of the death of George Varvis. who died in hospital after being pulled from the Oiler right winger&rsquo;s pool.&ldquo;1 didn&rsquo;t stop worrying for the rest of the day after I saw the headline.&rdquo; said Sather. &ldquo;He (Anderson) lost a dear friend. That&rsquo;s a real tough thing for anybody to go through. I talked to him about it before the game. It&rsquo;s a private situation We&rsquo;re not going to discuss it.&rdquo;The following night. Craig Simpson&rsquo;s goal with 1:05 remaining in regulation time, helped the Oilers run the streak to 16-0.NOTES&mdash;For games two to four, the Oilers were once again without cocoach John Muckier, who was bedridden with the flu&hellip;Wayne Gretzky was also fighting the flu&hellip;Gretzky was upset with the slow pace of the games, attributable in part to the constant pushing and shoving during line changes. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s ridiculous to have a 3&frac12;-hour game.&rdquo; spat a hoarse No. 99. &ldquo;Something&rsquo;s wrong somewhere, especially when there&rsquo;s no fighting. If the referees start giving guys twominute penalties (which lead to power plays)&mdash;not 10-(minute penalties, which don&rsquo;t)&mdash;for that after-the-whistle stuff, it would end in a hurry&hellip;The Oilers lost Glenn Anderson to a five-minute match penalty in the third period of game three. He swung his stick at the Jets&rsquo; Steve Rooney. Anderson was to fly to Toronto between games four and five for an NHL hearing, which could result in a sus-pension.<h2>OILERS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Craig MacTavish. Mike Krushelnyski, Keith Acton.LW&mdash;Craig Simpson, Dave Hannan, Esa Tikkanen, Geoff Courtnall.RW&mdash;Jari Kurri, Glenn Ariderson, Kevin McClelland, Normand Lacombe.LD&mdash;Kevin Lowe, Steve Smith, Randy Gregg, Steve Dykstra.RD&mdash;Charlie Huddy, Marty McSorley, Craig Muni, Jeff Beukeboom, John Miner.G&mdash;Grant Fuhr, Bill Ranford, Darren Beals.<h3>INJURIES</h3>None. &#9632;

f0036-02

Oilers Bounce Back After Jets Snap Streak

<div class="byline">By Bob Duff</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-03341/5470013-1-eng-US/f0036-032.jpg" title="f0036-03" width="447" height="451"></div>Q: I&rsquo;m a Mike Bossy fan and would like to know where I can write to him.Terry Krick, Millstadt. III.A: You can write to Bossy in care of the New York Islanders, Nassau Veterans&rsquo; Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York, 11553.Q: I would like to know when the largest trade in NHL history took place, and who were the players and teams involved.Matt Loney,&nbsp; Sault Ste. Marie. Ont.A: On July 13, 1950, the Detroit Red Wings traded five players to the Chicago Blackhawks and received four in return. The Wings shipped goalie Harry Lumley, defensemen Jack Stewart and Al Dewsbury, center Don Morrison and left winger Pete Babando to the Hawks for goalie Jim Henry, defenseman Bob Goldham, center Metro Prystai and left winger Gaye Stewart.Q: Looks to me like THN&rsquo;s Travellin&rsquo; Man cover story (about the most-traded NHLer) on March 4 was poorly researched. What about Hartford&rsquo;s Mike McEwen?Anthony M. O&rsquo;Connor,&nbsp; New York. N. Y.A: The reason for McEwen&rsquo;s absence is simple. He was not playing in the NHL at press time. McEwen returned from Switzerland and signed with the Whalers shortly thereafter, which was reported in the March 11 issue of THN.For the record, McEwen has played for seven NHL teams: the Hartford Whalers, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Kings, Detroit Red Wings and Washington Capitals. He has been involved in five trades, the same number as Ashton.Q: Being a fan of Detroit&rsquo;s Steve Yzerman, 1 was greatly disappointed by his knee injury. 1 would like to know where I could send him a get-well card.Jackie Dunn,&nbsp; Oromocto, N.B.A: You can write to the Red Wing center at Joe Louis Sports Arena, 600 Civic Centre Drive, Detroit, Mich., 48226.Q: What are Wayne Gretzky&rsquo;s career scoring records in NHL All-Star Games?Earl Morrison,&nbsp; Bras d&rsquo;Or. N.S.A: Including this season&rsquo;s All-Star Game, his eighth, Gretzky has nine goals and one assist in all-star play. His team, the Campbell Conference, has a 2-6 record.Individually, Gretzky holds All-Star Game records for goals scored in a game (four), goals scored in a period (four), points scored in a period (four) and points scored in a game (four).If you want your question answered by the Duffer, send the query to:ASK THE DUFFER, 347 Whitewood Rd., Saskatoon, SK S7J 4K8 &#9632;

f0036-03

ASK THE DUFFER

<h2>TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE&hellip;</h2>1. What current Toronto Maple Leaf twice scored four goals in games against the Leafs?2. Who is the only St. Louis Blue to crack the 1,000-point barrier?3. What Regina Pat recently became the WHL&rsquo;s all-time scoring leader?4. Where is this year&rsquo;s Memorial Cup to be played?5. What city was recently awarded the 1989 Memorial Cup?6. Name the three active NHLers who have scored four goals in one period.7. Which Smythe Division teams were once in the Norris Division?8. Name the coach of the 1988 NCAA-championship Lake Superior Lakers.9. What team hasn&rsquo;t won a game at the Philadelphia Spectrum since Jan. 20, 1974?10. Which Smythe Division team has only one win at Boston Garden?<h2>ANSWERS TO THE QUIZ</h2>1. Al Secord. 2. Bernie Federko. 3. Craig Endean. 4. Chicoutimi, Que. 5. Saskatoon, Sask 6. Al Secord, Wayne Gretzky, Bryan Trottier. 7. Winnipeg and Los Angeles. 8. Frank Anzalone. 9. Pittsburgh. 10. Winnipeg. BONUS ANSWER: Randy Holt.<h2>BONUS QUESTION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0036-04255/5470044-1-eng-US/f0036-042.jpg" title="f0036-04" width="572" height="951"><figcaption class="caption-body">BONUS: He holds the NHL record for most penalties in one period (9).</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0036-04

THN HOCKEY TRIVIA

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0037-06" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-06170/5470075-1-eng-US/f0037-062.jpg"></div>(416) 445-5702 &#9632;

f0037-06

The Hockey News Classified

<div class="byline">BY MURRAY TOWNSEND</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0038-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-01572/5470113-1-eng-US/f0038-012.jpg"></div>Nine years ago, the NHL was in a state of disarray. Cleveland had ceased operations and other franchises were skating on thin ice. Clarence Campbell had just retired after 31 years as league president.And it appeared interest in hockey was on the decline. Attendance, falling off for five years, bottomed out in 1978-79. An average of only 11.409 people attended 680 regular-season games.Attendance picked up during the playoffs, but questions remained. Questions that have since been answered in the affirmative.The situation has brightened considerably. with attendance records being set seven of the past nine seasons-&mdash;culminating this year with an unofficial total attendance of 12,736,151 and league average of 15,162 over an 840-game regular season.No one team is more responsible for the big year than the Detroit Red Wings, who attracted an NHL singleteam record 785,482 fans (19,637 per game).All THN attendance statistics are unofficial, although they are compiled from official NHL game sheets. The NHL has yet to release a regularseason total, and never publishes team-by-team breakdowns.In the past, there have been significant discrepancies between THN and NHL totals. Last year, for instance, official regular-season attendance was 11,855,880. The THN total, using figures gathered from newspaper summaries, was 12.392,365&mdash;for a discrepancy of more than 500,000.Until the NHL publishes its official numbers for this season, comparisons with last season are difficult.Not even team-and THN-generated numbers match up. Typical of that is the situation in Detroit, where the Red Wings list their record as 785,532, a difference of 50 from ours.One conclusion, however, is inescapable. Interest in hockey is on the rise and that resurgence is not restricted to the NHL. Most leagues report increases in attendance.The American League drew close to two million during the 1987-88 regular season with a league average of 3.540 per game. It has shown an increase each of the last three years. Rochester was first in attendance this year with a 6.365 average.The International League hadn&rsquo;t compiled year-end statistics yet, but an IHL spokesman was optimistic a five-year trend toward increased attendance would be maintained.U.S. college hockey is booming.The Central Collegiate Association reported what it believes to be a record attendance&mdash;544,065&mdash;for league, playoff and non-conference games. The per-game average was 2,799. led by Michigan State&rsquo;s 6.545.The Eastern College Athletic Conference, averaging 81 per-cent capacity throughout the league, drew a total of 329,686 fans for a regularseason average of 2,498. St. Lawrence was tops with an average crowd of 100 per-cent-plus capacity and RPI led in average with 3,919 fans per game.Hockey East statistics were unavailable but Maine Black Bears recorded the highest average attendance in Hockey East history&mdash;4,292 in the 4.000-seat Alfond Arena.The Western Collegiate Association, with a total attendance of 827,174, reported an increase over last year. Leading the way was Wisconsin (8,368 avg.), where interest is so high season-ticket holders can only attend one of two games each home series. The Badgers have about 14,000 season-ticket holders! The league average was 5,044.In junior hockey, the Western League reported a regular-season increase to 1,410,465 for a per-game average of 2,799. Portland, as usual, was tops&mdash;drawing an average crowd of 5,596.The Ontario and Quebec Leagues would not release figures, but the OHL said attendance has risen. QMJHL attendance has declined. The loss of big-name underage stars, such as Pat LaFontaine, Mario Lemieux, Jimmy Carson and Pierre Turgeon, has been harmful.<h2>National Hockey League Attendance</h2><h2>Team Drawing Power</h2><div class="figure-block image-bleed"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-02446/5470106-1-eng-US/f0038-022.jpg" title="f0038-02" width="1134" height="580"></div> &#9632;

f0038-01

Wings Draw Record Crowds In Detroit

<div class="byline">BY GRANT McGINNIS</div><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0038-03361/5470144-1-eng-US/f0038-032.jpg" title="f0038-03" width="178" height="134"></div>WINNIPEG&mdash;Not a single member of the Winnipeg Jets had ever experienced the euphoric feeling before.Not in nine years of NHL playoff competition, not in four previous series, not in 16 other games. It was the longest current one-sided streak between two teams in major-league professional sport.Until April 9, the Winnipeg Jets had never defeated the Edmonton Oilers in post-season play, not even once.The spell was finally broken at the Winnipeg Arena, in three hours and 15 minutes of guerilla warfare. When battle number three in a best-of-seven Smythe Division semi-final series came to a merciful conclusion and the casualties had been counted, the Jets were 6-4 winners and had closed the series gap to 2-1 in Edmonton&rsquo;s favor.The heroes of the victory were not the Jets&rsquo; flying aces&mdash;Dale Hawerchuk did not register a point&mdash;but the men in the trenches.Guys like Thomas Steen, Doug Smail, Steve Rooney and Randy Gilhen were the workhorses. It was Gilhen, just recalled from Moncton of the American League prior to the series, who scored the winning goal in the second period.He fired a slapshot through Grant Fuhr&rsquo;s pads with Winnipeg a man short.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s like we went over a barrier,&rdquo; said Steen, who scored once and set up two other goals. &ldquo;They always played enough to beat us every time, even if we played very well.&ldquo;I think we proved something to ourselves.&rdquo;Steen&rsquo;s emergence as a team leader coincided with a change in his teammates. In the first week of April, Winnipeg went from a team gone fishin&rsquo; to a team with a mission. They played aggressive hockey against Edmonton and had the Oilers frustrated.&ldquo;In the past, they&rsquo;ve been getting to us,&rdquo; Winnipeg coach Dan Maloney said of the turnaround. &ldquo;The big thing was to be tough mentally, to be patient defensively and to be the aggressor all the time and that&rsquo;s the way we played.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a big monkey off the back of the franchise, it&rsquo;s a big confidencebuilder for the hockey team and it&rsquo;s a step in the right direction toward winning this series.&rdquo;Edmonton coach Glen Sather agreed his team was frustrated. Glenn Anderson&rsquo;s five-minute match penalty in game four for whacking Rooney over the head with his stick was a blatant example.&ldquo;You can&rsquo;t retaliate in this business,&rdquo; said Sather. &ldquo;You have to take it and keep on going. When you retaliate, you get caught.&rdquo;Goaltender Daniel Berthiaume played a major role in the Jet victory.&ldquo;The more I play against them, the more my confidence is going,&rdquo; said Berthiaume, who also recorded his first victory (regular season included) over Edmonton. &ldquo;Sure I&rsquo;m gonna have pressure but I live with pressure all the time.&rdquo;Winnipeg general manager John Ferguson is one of the few people in the organization who was around for Winnipeg&rsquo;s last playoff win over Edmonton, which came in the last season of the World Hockey Association in the 1979 Avco Cup final.&ldquo;I was very nervous down the stretch,&rdquo; Fergie admitted. &ldquo;The only thing that doesn&rsquo;t sweat on me is my tie.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very gratifying, very gratifying.&rdquo;But 24 hours later, the Jets were facing elimination, thanks to a 5-3 loss in game four.Winnipeg&rsquo;s aggressive nature was curtailed by referee Bill McCreary&rsquo; strict interpretation of the rule boc and a once-dormant Edmonton power play suddenly burst forth.After outshooting Edmonton 21-5 and leading 3-0, the Jets crashed.NOTES&mdash;The Jets drew fewer than 13,000 fans in each of their two home games (12,813 and 12,491), and Winnipeg management was concerned-&hellip;The insertion of Randy Gilhen and Paul Boutilier from Moncton of the AHL was paying dividends for the Jets&hellip;Winnipeg was carrying 35 players, including three juniors and five AHL call-ups&hellip;Fredrik Olausson was moved from defense to right wing and played superbly.<h2>JETS</h2><h3>TRANSACTIONS</h3>None.<h3>ROSTER</h3>C&mdash;Dale Hawerchuk, Laurie Bosch-man, Thomas Steen, Randy Gilhen, Ron Wilson, Brad Jones, Alfie Turcotte.RW&mdash;Paul MacLean, Ray Neufeld, Fredrik Olausson, Mark Kumpel, Peter Douris, Pat Elynuik.LW&mdash;Andrew McBain, Steve Rooney, Doug Smail, lain Duncan, Hannu Jarvenpaa, Stu Kulak, Dwight Schofield, Craig Endean.LD&mdash;Randy Carlyle, Dave Ellett, Peter Taglianetti, Brad Berry, Guy Gosselin.RD&mdash;Mario Marois, Tim Watters, Paul Boutilier, Bryan Marchment.G&mdash;Daniel Berthiaume, Pokey Reddick, Steve Penney.<h3>INJURIES</h3>Gilles Hamel, LW, bruised shoulder, day-to-day.Jim Kyte, D, stress fracture in the lower back, indefinite. &#9632;

f0038-03

Jets Break Free From Oiler Playoff Shadow

<div class="byline">BY LARRY HUMBER</div><div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-01" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-01541/5470182-1-eng-US/f0039-012.jpg"></div><h2>ACROSS:</h2>1. Late hockey great pictured.4. He scored 30 goals for the Bruins in 1984-85 and 31 for the Leafs the next season.9. Rochefort with Quebec.10. Where Pat Quinn began his coaching career.11. Relieve temporarily.12. Hall of Famer &lsquo;Red&rsquo; Kelly&rsquo;s first name.13. Don Cherry&rsquo;s dog.15. Pass the puck to a teammate.18. He was drafted second overall by the Whalers in 1983.21. Regional.23. One-time hockey scribe Ferguson.24. Maintaining possession of the puck by clever stickhandling.25. Cup captured by the Salt Lake Golden Eagles in 1987.26. Famed broadcaster Hewitt, he was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1965.<h2>DOWN:</h2>1. Schooled at the University of Toronto, he played goal for the Penguins, Flyers and Capitals.2. Long-ago netminder Chabot.3. Former netminder Hodge, he&rsquo;s now a scout with Winnipeg.5. He tended nets for the Oilers, Rangers and Red Wings (2,3).6. Distorted facial expression.7. Regular.8. Hero.14. He was with the Islanders during their first two Cupwinning seasons (7).15. He was the Sabres&rsquo; leading goal-getter in 1986-87.16. The Flyers&rsquo; nickname, &lsquo;Broad Bullies.&rsquo;17. Late Blue blueliner, his number eight was retired by the club.19. Bobby Clarke&rsquo;s middle name.20. Hall-of-Famer Ullman.22. Netminder Malarchuk.<h2>CROSSWORD SOLUTION</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0037-07147/5470175-1-eng-US/f0037-072.jpg" title="f0037-07" width="576" height="582"></div> &#9632;

f0039-01

CROSSWORD

<h2>20 YEARS AGO:</h2>&bull; Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffrion of the New York Rangers underwent stomach surgery to repair a bleeding ulcer which forced him to the sidelines during New York&rsquo;s first-round playoff series with Chicago. Geoffrion, who had 393 career goals in 16 seasons, vowed to return for the 1968-69 season to &ldquo;get se seven goals&rdquo; needed for 400. But the slapshot artist never returned as a yer.&bull; The Montreal Forum magic continued to work for the Canadiens in their semi-final series against Chicago. The Habs, 3-0-2 at home against Chicago in the regular season, blasted the Blackhawks 9-2 and 4-1 to take a commanding lead. Montreal won the set in five games to qualify for the Stanley Cup final. The Canadiens beat St. Louis in four straight games.<h2>10 YEARS AGO:</h2>&bull; Colorado Rockies owner Jack Vickers, citing &ldquo;an exorbitant lease arrangement&rdquo; with McNichols Arena and the City of Denver, threatened to relocate the franchise. He claimed he had more than 60 offers to purchase the club. The City of Denver came through with a more favorable lease and Rocky Hockey stayed in town&mdash;until the end of the 1981-82 season, when the franchise moved to New Jersey.&bull; NHL Players&rsquo; Association executive director Alan Eagleson was fit to be tied by the plethora of ties&mdash;132&mdash;during the 720-game regular season. He suggested the league adopt some form of overtime. A five-minute sudden-death overtime period was implemented for regular-season games in 1983-84. &#9632;

THIS WEEK…

<div class="image-hero"><img title="f0039-02" src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-02375/5470237-1-eng-US/f0039-022.jpg"><figcaption class="caption-body">All eyes are on the puck during a late 1960s game between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens at the Montreal Forum. Goaltender Gerry Cheevers covers his crease as teammate Rick Smith tries to work the puck out of danger. Habs&rsquo; forward Jacques Lemaire pesters Smith.</figcaption></div> &#9632;

f0039-02

THE WAY WE WERE

<div class="byline">BY HOWARD BERGER</div>Larry Keenan had a knack for scoring clutch goals&mdash;when he wasn&rsquo;t in the hospital.The North Bay, Ont., native suffered through a string of injuries that interrupted almost five full seasons of his 13-year pro career. His healthy moments were rare, but golden.&ldquo;I was lucky enough to regain my health in time for the playoffs each year,&rdquo; Keenan recalls. &ldquo;So, at least I was able to make a contribution when it counted most.&rdquo;Never was his contribution more evident than during the 1967-68 season when he scored four significant goals for the expansion St. Louis Blues.He scored the first goal in Blues&rsquo; history&mdash;Oct. 11, 1967 against Minnesota goalie Cesare Maniago. He fractured his ankle in Minnesota the following week.&ldquo;It seemed like every time I accomplished something in hockey, an untimely injury would follow,&rdquo; Kennan laments. &ldquo;After starting well with St. Louis and scoring that first goal, 1 hurt myself on a real freak incident.&ldquo;Ron Schock sent me in on a breakaway in Minnesota and my skate caught a rut in the ice. If I&rsquo;d fallen down, everything would&rsquo;ve been alright but 1 tried to keep my balance and my fibia bone snapped in two. I wound up missing almost half the season.&rdquo;<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/f0039-03280/5470268-1-eng-US/f0039-032.jpg" title="f0039-03" width="580" height="838"><figcaption class="caption-body">Larry Keenan</figcaption></div>Keenan sat out 34 games, but returned in time to leave his mark. Ironically, the North Stars were his victims. Keenan&rsquo;s two-goal effort against Minnesota on March 30, 1968 helped St. Louis clinch a playoff spot in the new West Division.Eleven days later, Keenan scored one of his most memorable goals, against first-place Philadelphia in game three of the quarter-finals.&ldquo;I took a great pass from Dickie Moore and beat Bernie Parent in double-overtime to give us a lead in the series,&rdquo; Keenan recalls.The win gave the Blues a 2-1 lead in a series they eventually won in seven games.Keenan spent the first six seasons of his career in the Toronto Maple Leaf farm system with Rochester of the American League and Victoria of the Western League. His first injury was the scariest of all.&ldquo;We were playing Hershey at Rochester in 1961he remembers. &ldquo;I took the puck behind our net and Marc Reaume tripped me. The Zamboni door wasn&rsquo;t completely closed and I hit my head on the edge.&ldquo;1 tore the skin right back to the bone on my forehead and needed 40 stitches to close the wound&mdash;eight on the inside and 32 outside.&rdquo;Keenan&rsquo;s final two seasons in Victoria&mdash;1965-66 and 1966-67&mdash;were practically wiped out by a knee injury, broken wrist and fractured foot.He would have retired were it not for his selection by the Blues in the 1967 expansion draft.Keenan, along with Jean-Guy Talbot, was traded to Buffalo for Bob Baun nine games into the 1970-71 season. He was dealt to Philadelphia a year later for Larry Mickey and retired after finishing the 1971-72 season with the Flyers.Keenan, 47, scored 38 goals and 64 assists in 234 regular-season games. He added 15 goals and 16 assists in 46 playoff contests. He now operates a coffee distributing company in North Bay. &#9632;

f0039-03

Injuries Hampered Keenan

<div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-01203/5470348-1-eng-US/c0004-012.jpg" title="C0004-01" width="286" height="289"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-02121/5470341-1-eng-US/c0004-022.jpg" title="C0004-02" width="406" height="368"></div>Montreal Canadiens&rsquo; right winger Stephane Richer, who scored five goals in his last two games to finish the regular season with 50, totalled 195 points on three-star selections to emerge as the Canadiens&rsquo; Molson Cup champion for 1987-88.Wayne Gretzky repeated as Edmonton Oiler champion. Other winners were Vancouver Canuck goalie Kirk McLean, Calgary Flame right winger Hakan Loob, Toronto Maple Leaf goalie Ken Wregget and Winnipeg Jet center Dale Hawerchuk.Here&rsquo;s how the final standings looked in the Canadian cities participating in Molson Cup balloting:<h2>MONTREAL</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0366/5470334-1-eng-US/c0004-032.jpg" title="C0004-03" width="596" height="296"></div><h2>TORONTO</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0435/5470327-1-eng-US/c0004-042.jpg" title="C0004-04" width="592" height="298"></div><h2>WINNIPEG</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0521/5470320-1-eng-US/c0004-052.jpg" title="C0004-05" width="596" height="296"></div><h2>CALGARY</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0619/5470313-1-eng-US/c0004-062.jpg" title="C0004-06" width="590" height="296"></div><h2>EDMONTON</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0714/5470306-1-eng-US/c0004-072.jpg" title="C0004-07" width="602" height="290"></div><h2>VANCOUVER</h2><div class="figure-block image-block"><img src="/var/site_2854/storage/images/media2/images/c0004-0811/5470299-1-eng-US/c0004-082.jpg" title="C0004-08" width="602" height="302"></div> &#9632;

Search for your favorite player or team

April 22, 1988

Babych Recaptures Old Spark Against Habs

ALL-TIME INCREASES

Blueliner Wesley Man In Middle For Bruins

NHL SUMMARIES