The Ottawa Citizen from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • 61

COPY turn Pages D1-D16 Business Health Noticeboard THE OTTAWA CITIZEN FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 1988 SSM BBBBSHBX era BEST AV 0 Citizen sports columnist 1 A. Mint tv O-for-April: Baltimore Orioles pitcher Mike Boddicker sits alone in the dugout following loss to Minnesota Twins lift's Only thing Baltimore beats are the odds against losing Twins 4, Orioles 2 By Peter Richmond Knight-Ridder MINNEAPOLIS In a poignant yet humbling ceremony the streak came of legal age Thursday, and can now vote and drink in all 50 states. It will need to. The Baltimore Orioles' consecutive-game string reached 21 Thursday in front of an invitation-only throng of 23,006 beneath an attractive Teflon party tent, amid raucous noise and festive music. Baltimore's historic loss gave the Orioles the American League consecutive-loss record previously shared by three teams at 20.

They need three more to beat the '61 Phillies' record of all-time incompetence. Not everyone enjoyed the fete, however. "I don't think this is anybody's ideal way of coming to the ballpark," said a disgruntled designated hitter named Larry Sheets, after contributing very little to the proceedings. Nevertheless, the streak is ready now to venture out into the world on its own, and will test its newfound freedom Stellick no savior Look at it this way: Can Gord Stellick do any worse than Gerry McNamara? Even if he was Sam Pollock, it wouldn't matter; when you work under Harold Ballard, brains and experience get as much respect as a junkyard dog. Ballard doesn't want a general manager who knows what he's doing.

General managers who know what they're doing might tell Ballard he doesn't know what he's doing. Gord Stellick isn't about to tell Ballard he doesn't know what he's doing. Gord Stellick is 30 years old and he's accepted Ballard's offer to run the Maple Leaves, which is to say how can Gord Stellick tell Ballard he doesn't know what he's doing when Gord Stellick has just proven he, himself, doesn't know what he's doing? Gord Stellick has never managed a hockey team before. The Newmarket Saints? Like I say, Gord Stellick has never managed a hockey team before. Gord Stellick isn't, of course, managing one now, either, and it's doubtful Gord Stellick remembers the last time there was a hockey team in Toronto.

The year was 1967. The Leaves won the Stanley Cup. Gord Stellick was nine. It's entirely possible Gord Stellick was pushing his dinky car around the living room rug the night the Leaves won the Stanley Cup. The Leaves haven't won the Stanley Cup since Harold Ballard was 64 and they won't win it again when Harold Ballard is 94 or 104 or as long as Harold Ballard decides to stay alive and run the Maple Leaves.

They say the game has passed Harold Ballard by. Wrong. The game never reached him. Ballard isn't calling Gord Stellick general manager. He's calling him acting general manager.

That's true. Gord Stellick is most definitely acting at general manager, but what we don't know is whether he's from the Lee Stras-berg School or did Mickey Rooney, Shirley Temple and Jackie Cooper show him their old movies? One month into next season, it's very likely Gord Stellick will file a grievance against Harold Ballard under the child labor laws. There is, it must be pointed out, another reason why Gord Stellick's now run-; ning the Leaves, aside from his sterling qualifications of not having any qualifications. Nobody else wanted it. Well, maybe a street sweeper in Guadalajara, but Ballard didn't find out in time, or he'd have got it.

People less qualified Scotty Bowman, Don Cherry, Bob Johnston, John Muckler would have demanded, had they been so insane, things Ballard doesn't believe in: (a) a salary, (b) an opportunity to run the team, (c) the right to criticize OHIP Salming, (d) a hardship bonus. The hardship bonus would be all the gold in Fort Knox, a small pittance for the next-of-kin following the Ballard-in-duced leap off the Bloor St. viaduct. Harold Ballard did go through the motions of knowing what he was doing before proving he didn't six weeks ago, says the Toronto Star, he phoned some general managers with other teams to get their opinions on who should run the Maple Leaves and what way? Beautiful. I mean, Aces's Hamburger Stand phones McDonald's all the time saying, "Excuse me, but could you tell me who I might hire so we could blow you out of hamburger heaven by next spring?" "Why, of course," says McDonald's, "we'll encourage our top guy to join you and then there's that big shot over at Burger King; he'd have us in trouble in no time." No.

What McDonald's says is: "Yeah, sure, we really sympathize, we really understand, we really want to help the only way to kill us is by you hiring that kid you've got trimming the dandelions out back by the incinerator." "You mean Gord Stellick." "You got it." "He's a closet hamburger genius?" "The best." "I never would have known." "You never do." "Pardon?" "Just clearing my throat" "What about Brophy, the guy I've got teaching my cooks how to move the patties from the back of the grill to the front without them falling apart?" "Did you say patties! "Yes, why?" "We thought the loose ground beef you serve was intentional" "Gee, I never thought" "You never do." "Pardon?" "I said, keep Brophy, he scares the hell out of us." "No kidding?" "Absolutely." "OK, Brophy stays." "Thanks." "My pleasure." by journeying to Chicago tonight. The White Sox will no doubt be honored to play host to the O's, whose generosity has earned accolades from the citizens of such diverse cities as Milwaukee, Kansas City and the Twin Cities. Baltimore general manager Roland Hemond, in particular, turned out for this momentous afternoon in sartorial splendor, sporting a rumpled gray pinstripe suit that had arrived, via air express, from White Sox owners Eddie Einhorn and Jerry Reinsdorf, who employed Hemond when he won a division for the Sox in 1983. "It got here in the eighth, because Eddie thought we were playing a night game," Hemond explained afterward, in one of the concrete tunnels of the Metrodome. "I ran in and put it on, but it didn't work.

I was wearing it the night we clinched in '83, and it was covered in champagne. It's been in a display case outside the Barge Room in Comiskey ever since. But now I'm going to wear it until we win." The accompanying note, embossed and inscribed on royal White Sox read, "Hope this suit gets the Orioles their first win before they come here. Eddie and Jerry." v- Devils handcuffed by Capitals' AP photo over his head (at great cost the winning two runs scored). Kent Hrbek's two-run home run in the fourth provided the other two his fourth in three days, and his fourth of the season.

The Orioles' offence was particularly languid. Against Allan Anderson, who was playing for a team called the Beavers earlier this week, the Orioles managed six hits, none of which came when most needed: In the seventh, Anderson and Mike Mason walked the bases loaded, and Mason walked in a run to make it 4-2. But with one out, Mark Portugal came in, he of the 1-10 AAA record in '87, and retired Fred Lynn and Ripken with ease. The real festivities, of course the party of the season will be held outdoors, on Fantastic Fan Day, Monday in Memorial Stadium. An advance sale of 32,000 has heightened expectations for a glorious affair of some 55,000.

"I don't want that," Frank Robinson, the Baltimore manager, said Thursday, before rearranging his thoughts. "I mean, it's for the wrong reasons. It's very nice. But if they're planning to be there to see us go for our first win, I hope to break their hearts. 1 offence tered the game 4-38 on power plays (11 per cent) after scoring on 20Nper cent of their man-advantage situations during the regular season.

Leach made it 3-1 with 2:57 left in the period, taking Stevens' centring pass in mid-slot and beating Burke over the glove. In the second period, New Jersey's passes repeatedly found Washington sticks. At 10:43, Corriveau converted a breakaway for his first goal after intercepting a pass from Devils defenceman Randy Velischek's just inside the New Jersey blue line. Christian made it 5-1 with 2:12 left in the period when left unattended in the goalmouth. Miller gave Washington a 6-1 lead at 5:25 of the third period and Dave Maley made it 6-2 at 7:21.

Mike Gartner completed the scoring with 1:28 left Lumber Kings sweep Flyers Kings 6, Flyers 5 PEMBROKE (CP) The Pembroke Lumber Kings edged the Thunder Bay Flyers on Thursday to sweep the Central Canada Centennial Cup hockey finals. Pembroke took the Central Canada championship for the second year in a row after winning the first four games in the best-of-seven series. The team's advance against other regional champions in the Centennial Cup finals, beginning this weekend in Pembroke. The Lumber Kings got two goals from Peter White with Brian Downey, Jim Way, Matt Hendricks and Chris Clarke adding singles. Scoring for Thunder Bay were Shawn Jourdain, Dave Williams, Dan Vailland, Pat Malone and Scott Glamba.

Mere magical robes, of course, will not shake this spell. Baltimore is in a trance, the deepest funk ever known at the start of a professional sports season. "We're battling ourselves now, not the other teams," Sheets says. "I'm not battling the pitchers anymore. We're making them all look like Hall of Farriers." The Orioles, of course, are now immortal, and can speak of such things with impunity.

Even if they win before Sunday, the AL mark should stand for generations. Such is the stuff of royal lineage. To lose 21 is remarkable. To lose them at the season's start borders on the mystical. And no one even wants to consider the team's state of mind once it wins, and the haze clears, and it realizes that it is 16 games out of first place.

In April. In Thursday's affair, the Orioles' loose edges were constantly on display. Mike Boddicker hit three batters and walked six. Cal Ripken, of all people, booted an easy double play. And Keith Hughes, yet another entrant in the outfield derby, allowed a pop fly to fall in front of him (at no cost) and a long John Moses fly ball get 1 ered from a two-goal deficit in the series.

New Jersey collapsed in the second period when Ivan Corriveau and Dave Christian gave Washington a 5-1 lead by capitalizing on sloppy defensive plays. Ridley tied the score at 6:40 of the first when his centring pass from behind the goal line hit a New Jersey player's stick and bounced in for his sixth goal of the playoffs. Hunter gave the Capitals the lead at 13:07, lifting the rebound of Scott Stevens' power-play point shot over Burke for bis seventh goal. Washington en Capitals 7, Devils 2 By Gerry Monigan United Press International EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. Refusing to allow a fluke goal 18 seconds into the game to shake their resolve, the Washington Capitals took advantage of numerous New Jersey mistakes Thursday night for a victory over the that forced a deciding seventh game in the Patrick Division final.

"It certainly shocked me," Washington's Kelly Miller said of Claude Loi- selle's goal, the result of a bad bounce off the backboards shortly after the opening faceoff. "I certainly could have done without that, but we've showed a lot of character. "We've bounced back when people thought we were out of it, but we haven't proved anything yet." Game Seven will be played Saturday night at Landover, with the winner advancing to the Wales Conference final against the Adams Division champion Boston Bruins. New Jersey has won three of its last four games in the Capital Centre after a 0-19-1 streak. "We've won every big game we've had so far this season," said New Jersey goaltender Bob Sauve, who replaced starter Sean Burke at the beginning of the third period.

"We have the recipe; we just have to do it again." Washington entered the playoffs 0-5 wben facing post-season elimination but has survived elimination three times in the first two rounds this year. The Devils face elimination for the first time. "New Jersey knows it needs to win," Washington Coach Bryan Murray said. "And they'll do everything they can. Tonight, everything fit together for us.

We played tight and forechecked them to death." Pete Peeters mado.25 saves although not Severely tested as the Devils lacked cohesion but looked sharp on several AP photo Caps' Dale Hunter reacts after scoring over goalie Sean Burke shots. Peeters, who has recorded all seven Washington victories in the playoffs, suffered a slight concussion Sunday when bit in the face mask by Aaron Broten's slap shot and missed Tuesday's game. Each team has won twice on the road in the series. "What we need is a road game at home," Capital Bob Gould said. After Loiselle's goal, Washington replied with three straight first-period goals, by Mike Ridley, Dale Hunter and Steve Leach.

Neither team has recov.