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January 14, 1994
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.


Hockey night in Syracuse may soon become reality
The American League has failed in Syracuse four times, but fans in the central New York city are trying to show the fifth time will be the charm. A bid to bring the AHL back to Syracuse received a huge boost when a capacity crowd of 6,185 watched a neutral-site game between the Binghamton Rangers and Hershey Bears Dec. 28 at the Onondaga County War Memorial. About 600 fans were turned away because the game was sold out. “Hopefully we had some sort of impact on the AHL officials,” said Paul Abe, executive director of the On-Center civic complex. “People can call it a flash in the pan, but I don’t think it was. The game showed this city’s desire for hockey.” The last AHL franchise in Syracuse was the Firebirds in 1979-80. The…


Probert will be in big demand
Expect Bob Probert to be one of the hottest commodities on the free-agent market this summer, assuming of course, the Detroit Red Wings don’t sign him in the meantime. Teams that pursue the pugilistic winger will be banking on the return of his belligerence. So far this season, Probert has needed a fire lit under him to fight. At one time he did it for recreation. And he hasn’t come close to demonstrating the skill level he did in 1987-88 when he collected 29 goals, 62 points and a league-leading 398 penalty minutes. Probert also played in the All-Star Game that year. Probert was on pace for nine goals, 21 points and 354 PIM this season. Still, the 6-foot-3, 225-pound left winger is just 28 years old and one of…


SCOREBOARD
SUNDAY, DEC. 26 MONDAY, DEC. 27 WEDNESDAY, DEC. 29 THURSDAY, DEC. 30 SATURDAY, JAN. 1…


Hockey needs massive overhaul
It’s time to re-design hockey. Quickly. The stars are being strangled, there’s gridlock on the rink and the slugs (a.k.a. clutchers and grabbers) have annexed the sport. For all the excitement-and there’s plenty of it-moments of boredom have grown and only the myopic will offer denials. The best proof is in the spectacle. The NHL’s greatest stars are unable to strut their stuff or they are too often injured. Big-time changes are overdue when you consider that it is exactly a half-century since the last major NHL re-tooling took place. In 1943, NHL president Red Dutton commissioned New York Rangers’ coach Frank Boucher to redesign the rulebook. While he was at it, the Hall of Famer also concluded improvements were necessary. “The game was losing its end-to-end excitement,” Boucher explained. “Long periods of scrambling were developing.” Boucher’s…