SCOREBOARD

Pulford feels pressure to swing trade

With his team playing like it was lost in a fog, the heat was on Chicago Blackhawks’ GM Bob Pulford. A 2-10-1 tailspin, mainly the result of a lack of goal scoring, had the Hawks in a freefall. Following an embarrassing 3-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs Dec. 9 that saw the Hawks’ home record dip to 5-9-0, coach Craig Hartsburg fired off some comments that seemed directed at Pulford. “Maybe somebody needs to give us some help,” Hartsburg said. “Anybody that can help us should help us and that means players, management and coaches.” Pulford called criticism of him “fair” and took the blame for the slide. Since trading center Jeremy Roenick to the Phoenix Coyotes in August for center Alexei Zhamnov, the only additions Pulford made to the Hawks were…

Dizzying run finally ends

The Hartford Whalers had surfed a couple of wicked waves. They were bound to hit the beach sooner or later. The Whalers lost 3-2 to the Philadelphia Flyers in their first visit to the CoreStates Center in Philadelphia Dec. 12. The loss halted two eye-popping streaks: They were 4-0-4 on the road and 4-0-2 overall. Although they were wary of the remainder of their December schedule-which included road games against the Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks after Christmas-the feeling in Hartford was that the Whalers were quickly moving beyond the “don’t adjust your dial” phase. After showing some third period vulnerability throughout November, the Whalers put a tighter grip on first place in the Northeast Division establishing themselves as bona fide contenders. During their six-game unbeaten streak, they mounted comebacks five times in…

Former NHL rearguard faces difficult Watters

Tim Watters knew the Xs and Os of hockey when he became Michigan Tech head coach this summer. But moving from the professional ranks to the college game meant he had to hit the books again-namely the National Collegiate Athletic Association manual. “The biggest adjustment, believe it or not, has been the administrative work, dealing with the NCAA rules and regulations and paperwork,” Watters said. “You can’t believe how much is involved in all that.” Watters has been studying hard since his quickie appointment in Houghton, Mich., Aug. 1. He succeeded Bob Mancini, who left for a post with USA Hockey. “I’m learning daily,” Watters said. “The program has gone through a lot of changes since I played here.” Watters, 37, was an all-America defenseman at Michigan Tech in 1981, the year after he…