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November 15, 1991

November 15, 1991

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.

IN THIS ISSUE

Statistics don’t show just how bad things are

The Pittsburgh Penguins didn’t get their team—or their game—together until March last season. The team’s performance in the first month of this season suggests they’re intent on following the same formula. Pittsburgh was on a 1-5-1 skid as it entered the first full week of November, and the numbers didn’t reflect the poor quality of the play. The Pens were behind in 11 of their first 13 games and trailed after two periods in 10 of them. They had a stretch with eight of nine games on home ice, but went only 2-4-1 in the first seven. The slump included an 8-0 pasting against Washington Oct. 29 that matched the largest home-ice margin of defeat in franchise history. The Penguins followed that with an 8-1 spanking of Minnesota Oct. 31—easily their best performance…

IN THIS ISSUE

Taylor suspended for season

The stick-swinging incident which hospitalized Hampton Roads’ Harry Mews has ended with the stiffest penalty in East Coast League history. Commissioner Pat Kelly suspended Columbus center Jason Taylor for the rest of the season including the playoffs for hitting Mews in the face with his stick. Taylor was sitting on the bench when the incident happened near the end of the first period of the Chill’s 6-3 loss Oct. 25. Kelly reviewed written reports, radio tapes and discussed the incident with officials and witnesses before assessing the penalty. “This wasn’t an easy decision,” Kelly said. “I talked with a lot of people and commissioners from other leagues, people who have been in this business for many years and got a lot of different advice. “There were sleepless nights spent thinking about it. Being an…

IN THIS ISSUE

The State Of Michigan

It’s more than a tale of two cities, it’s a tale of two college hockey programs in nearby cities. And while the Michigan State Spartans of East Lansing, Mich., have enjoyed more success in recent years than Ann Arbor’s Michigan Wolverines, the tide is slowly turning in the Wolverines’ favor. Michigan finished 34-10-3 overall and 24-5-3 in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association last season under coach Red Berenson, good for second place behind the league-leading Lake Superior State Lakers. The Spartans on the other hand—one of college hockey’s perennial powers in the 1980s—slipped below .500 for the first time in a decade, finishing 17-18-5 overall and fifth in the CCHA. A similar scenario will likely occur this season, as Berenson’s team has been selected by both CCHA coaches and college hockey writers…

IN THIS ISSUE

Skrudland latest victim of Samuelsson check

Brian Skrudland’s season is on hold until the new year. The scrappy Montreal Canadiens’ center got the word from team doctors his injured left knee will keep him out of the lineup until January, at least. Skrudland suffered a tom medial ligament when hit—some say illegally, though there was no penalty on the play—by Pittsburgh’s Ulf Samuelsson Oct. 26. The Penguins’ defenseman caught Skrudland with a low knee-on-knee hit. Skrudland was due to undergo further tests once the swelling and inflammation subsided. Montreal coach Pat Bums thought he might be without his world-class agitator, an all-star last season, for perhaps a couple of weeks—maybe a month. But two months? “You don’t lose a guy like Brian Skrudland for that period of time without feeling it,” said Bums. “A lot.” Skrudland joined Russ Courtnall and Denis…