Prolific Peca earns kudos for scoring

Michael Peca, captain o: the Buffalo Sabres is or a roll. It would be nice if the rest of the team would go along with him. The 1996-97 Selke Trophy winner as the league’s best defensive forward had scored 11 goals in 15 games through Jan 13, including goals in four of his past five games. However the Sabres struggled during that time falling from first in the Eastern Conference and Northeast Division to the middle of the pack. Once nearly invincible at home the Sabres had lost four straight al Marine Midland Arena. A recently completed road trip through Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Jose and Phoenix produced just one win and three points. “We play a period here, 10 minutes there, and that’s the reason we’re not winning hockey games,” Peca said,…

Almanac glides in with Titan blade

The Crow’s Tuuk pulled one over the skate industry in the 1970s and, with the ’90s winding down, Almanac now has a Titan on the way. The Crow skate blade, invented by George ’Crow’ Smith a designer with more than 40 years’ experience, put Almanac Manufacturing of Ajax, Ont. on the map in 1998. Smith had previously created the Tuuk blade, which revolutionized the skate manufacturing industry in the mid-1970s. Now the company is introducing a new runner called the Titan, which will be on display at major sporting goods shows in Montreal and Las Vegas in January. “The new Titan blade will likely be the norm in a few years,” said Terry Rowland, Almanac’s vice president of sales. The blade has a Teflon-like, satin finish and a hardness similar to that of titanium which…

Vanbiesbrouck makes record book with shutout string for hot Flyers

John Vanbiesbrouck was taking quite a few shots in early December and a lot of them didn’t involve pucks. The Philadelphia Flyers’ goaltender was mired in one of the deepest slumps of his career, got pulled from one game and was skipped over for a scheduled start Dec. 10. And he heard about it-from the fans, the media and even a coach or two who said the veteran’s timing was off. Vanbiesbrouck doesn’t seem like the vengeful sort, but he has taken out his frustration on Flyers’ opponents. Between Dec. 12 and Jan. 13, he went 8-0-4, lowered his goals-against average to 1.79 and became the first goalie in team history to record shutouts in three consecutive starts. A 3-0 win at Washington Jan. 13 extended his shutout streak to a team-record 212 minutes,…

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