Detroit Free Press from Detroit, Michigan • Page 74

7 2 Expansion Teams Culled Worst Ever Adroit 4rceress 1 1 The Inside of Sports Berry9 Picks EAST DIVISION WEST DIVISION i 8-D SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1970 1 Boston 2 New York 3 DETROIT 4 Montreal 5 Toronto 6 Buffalo 7 Vancouver 1 Chicago 2 St. Louis 3 Minnesota 4 Pittsburgh 5 Philadelphia 6 Oakland 7 Los Angeles 4 jasaWtf Berry and Bill White, late last season and gave up a 25-year-old goalkeeper for a 31-year-old goalkeeper. Hal Laycoe, fired by Regan one-third of the way Into last season, is getting a second chance with Vancouver. Al Arbour, who handled the St. Louis Blues after they, clinched their second straight West Division title last year so Scotty Bowman could do some scouting, will coach the Blues fulltime this season.

Arbour's already starting off behind Bowman Al doesn't have an Arbour to play defense for him. He also has Chicago in his division and the Black Hawks, winner of the tightest race in history last year, should walk over the West Division. GORDON AND Minnesota could supply the biggest surprise in the NHL this season and leapfrog St. Louis to finish second to Chicago. Gordon is well-respected as a coach and the North Stars have plenty of talent.

Besides the new faces, there will be a new uniform look this season and the curve in the stick blades will be mini instead of maxi. The fines will be maxi, however. Taking them one at a time, teams will wear their white sweaters at home and colors on the road so the fans in the other cities can see the more colorful uniforms. The rulesmakers, to the relief of the goalkeepers, reduced the stick blade curve a half inch for the second straight year and now the maximum curve is one-half inch. And last, In keeping with rising prices, all the automatic fines were doubled.

BY JACK BERRY Fre Prist SporU Writer Bigger but not better, the National Hockey League began professional sport's longest season this weekend. We'll go through fall and winter, the trees will be in bloom and the Kentucky Derby will be history by the time the Stanley Cup playoffs end next May. The citizenry of Buffalo and Vancouver may declare war on the rest of the NHL before the long season ends. They paid $6 million each for the worst teams in history and were put in the East Division where they have no hope of making the playoffs. The owners of the six old clubs did make a peace offering to the six original expansion teams plus Buffalo' and Vancouver, however, by agreeing to a balanced schedule.

Everyone plays each other six times, three home and three away. After a season of that the fans in the six old cities might declare war. The Red Wings play. 39 games at Olympia this season and only 15 are against the good old boys Boston, Chicago, Montreal, New York and Toronto. SEASON TICKET SALES are up all around the league despite ticket hikes in many cities including a $1 raise in.

Detroit. Vancouver greeted its Canucks by. buying 12,000 season tickets. The only financially weak franchises are Pittsburgh, controlled by Detroiter Don Parsons, and Oakland, which was purchased during the summer by Charlie Finley. IFi7i Mickey Lolich Be Packing Next? Charlie O.

has changed the Seals' colors to green and gold, hastened the introduction of colored skates, wants to put a pair of trained seals in the Oakland Coliseum lobby and hosted a party for Bay Area barbers because he figures they have the sports fans' ear. Finley also tried all manner of tricks to drum up interest in his baseball team but Oakland isn't a money city. Finley isn't the only new face in the NHL. Half of the 14 teams have new coaches this season and it will be the first NHL coaching experience for four of them the Red Wings' Ned Harkness, Boston's Tom Johnson, Los Angeles' Larry Regan and Minnesota's Jackie Gordon. OUTSIDE OF THE two new teams and maybe including them Regan has the team in the NHL.

He traded away the Kings' two best defensemen, Dale Rolfe CINCINNATI Sunday's Best: How NHL Teams Shape Up East Division BOSTON The Bruins are packed with power Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, John McKenzie, Johnny Bucyk, Derek Sanderson, Fred Stanfield and should be better defensively with the return of Ted Green, who missed last season with a skull fracture. Winning the Stanley Cup boosted the confidence of an already supremely confident team. Tom Johnson is the Bruins' new coach and his election to the Hall of Fame in June certainly doesn't hurt his standing with the players. If the Bruins have a weak point it's their defensive play where they have a tendency to be sloppy because they know they can score a bundle themselves. NEW YORK Injuries crippled New York and the Rangers barely made the playoffs after dreaming much of the season of their first championship in 21 years.

Gllles Ville-mure figures to give the Rangers solid backup goalkeeplng and slapshooter Jack Egers is a strong rookie of the year prospect. Egers scored three goals in six games at the end of the season and three more in five playoff games. The Rangers have a good, young, solid club which could press the Bruins hard for first place. It's certainly a better defensive club than Boston. DETROIT The Red Wings will be hatd put to match last season's record of 95 points, four less than Chicago and' Boston which tied for first in the East.

The Wings had the best road record in the NHL and the best East vs. East record. They've lost second-team All-Star defenseman Carl Brewer. The backup goalkeeping is in the hands of a sophomore pro, one who played only 35 games last season. But new coach Ned Harkness instilled a large amount of enthusiasm, a smothering offense and showed courage and imagination in switching Gordie Howe from right wing to a Bobby Orr-style defenseman.

Detroit struck a fine offense-defense balance last season. Holding up the defense will be the major problem. MONTREAL The Canadiens' fortunes had to be reassessed after John Ferguson retired Wednesday and if he's talked into returning, the Canadiens could make it to third. Ferguson missed 28 games last season because of injuries and suspensions and it became obvious how important he was to the team he was the leader. After missing the playoffs for the first time in 22 years, the Canadiens i considerable shuffling, dispatching Bobby Rousseau and Tad Harris to Minnesota and Chris Bordeleau to St.

Louis. Gump Worsley, of course, went during last season. Montreal has many fine youngsters West Division CHICAGO From first in the East' to best in the West is the a i i the Black Hawks should make this season. Not even a sophomore jinx on goalie Tony Esposito, defenseman Keith Magnuson and right wing Cliff-Koroll should prevent the Hawks from being the only team to lead the NHL's two divisions. Chicago is starling out with a better club than it had a year ago since it acquired defenseman Bill White late last season after Pat Stapleton was hurt.

Now Sta-pleton is back. ST. LOUIS The Blues had things pretty much to themselves in the West the last two years but times have changed. Not only has powerful Chicago moved into the division but Minnesota is considerably stronger, both on the Ice and behind the bench. The Blues dropped power-play specialist Phil Goyette because of his age (37) and added youngsters Chris Bordeleau from Montreal and Jim Lorentz from Boston and they should help.

The defense was hurt though with the retirement of Al Arbour, who was promoted to coach when Scotty Bowman decided he needed more time to devote to his general manager duties. MINNESOTA The North Stars went 20 games without a victory last season and still made the playoffs. Now the team is improved to the point it could finish second to Chicago. Defense was a major problem for Minnesota but with Gump Worsley and Ces-are Maniago in goal Worsley lost only one game in eight starts for Minnesota after his trade from Montreal and Ted Harris added to the blue line, Minnesota has the best paper improvement of the clubs behind Chicago. Jack Gordon makes his NHL coaching debut and everyone expects him to be a huge success based on his minor league achievements.

PITTSBURGH How Red Kelly does It, no one knows. Los Angeles was the laughingstock of the initial expansion draft but Kelly put the club in the playoffs two straight years and just missed the West Division title the first year. Kelly didn't get along with Kings owner Jack Kent Cooke and quit, moving to Pittsburgh which failed to make the playoffs its first two years. So LA crumbled after Kelly left and Pittsburgh climbed all the way to second place. "We don't have any stars," Kelly said, "everyone just has to work hard." They'll have to work even harder this year because of the tragic loss of center Michel Brlere, still in a coma after a car accident four months ago.

but the blend doesn't seem right yet nor does Claude Ruel seem the right coach. TORONTO Hardly a man is left from the Maple Leafs 1967 Stanley Cup champions with Bob Pulford the latest to be broomed. The Leafs have excellent shooters in Mike Walton, Ron Ellis and Norm Ullman who had a terrible year last season but they still have a very green defense. Bruce Gamble and 41-year-old Jacques Plante will split the goaltending and the headaches of playing behind the defense which yielded more goals than seven of last year's 12 teams. BUFFALO Punch Imlach is back in the saddle as general manager and coach and it's going to be a long, long ride to respectability for his expansion team.

He has a fine goalkeeper in Roger Crozier if Roger can keep his stomach under control. He has one playmaker in Phil Goyette who was fourth in the league in scoring last season but Is 37 years old and he has Gilbert Perreault, the first pick in the amateur draft and a lad described as "the next Jean Beliveau." But he doesn't have much else. VANCOUVER Everyone wants go to Vancouver but no one wants to play there. The city is Canada's San Francisco many say it is superior. But general manager Bud Poile and coach Hal Laycoe have little player talent with which to work.

They're hoping the enthusiasm of the fans will lift the team they'd better be v-e-r-y enthusiastic. "What we've got is" a bunch of strangers we're trying to mold into a hockey club," Laycoe said. "We may have drafted three of the best rookies in Canada but at 19 years of age, they aren't going to be key factors in any NHL club." PHILADELPHIA The Flyers have a perb 1-2 goalkeeper combination of Bernie Parent and Doug Favell but they still don't have an offense and still won't trade one of the goalies to get a real scorer. Consequently they keep slipping in the standings, making it to first in expansion's initial year, then dropping to third the next year and finally dipping to fifth last season. They lost their last two games, 1-0, and that cost them fourth place.

OAKLAND The Seals have some goodA talent but they don't get much backing at home and it's difficult to work up enthusiasm when you're playing to empty-seats. Charlie Finley is the new owner and he likes to play with his toys and that can only mean problems for general manager Frank Selke Jr. and coach Fred Glover, two competent men who have worked under the most adverse circumstances. Until Finley put some money In the pot the Seals wondered if they could pay hotel bills they' certainly couldn't afford to draft players to improve the club. LOS ANGELES Larry Regan has been itching to get his fingers in the pie ever since the Kings were formed and he went through two coaches last season, Hal Laycoe and Johnny Wilson.

Now he's decided to be general manager and coach. But GM Regan didn't do Coach Regan any favors by trading most of the Kings' best players last season. Regan is banking on two former Maple Leafs to light the Kings' fire Bob Pulford and Dick Duff. It looks like a cold winter In sunny southern California. Is Mickey Lolich next? It could be.

The Tigers are even more disenchanted with him than they were with Denny McLain. They felt Mickey ha'd his chance to be No. 1 this year and let them down. Now they're willing to trade him, but only if they can get a starting pitcher in return. A possibility: Lolich for Steve Carlton of the St.

Louis Cardinals. Street Scene: The first thing general manager Jim Campbell did when he left the hotel here after, the announcement of the McLain deal was to toss away a pack of Turns (for the tummy). 1 Best crack when Bowie Kuhn announced Denny was going to Washington: "Jeez, he really threw the book at him this time." Kuhn, by the way, tipped Denny's salary by saying his third suspension cost him $11,000. In the current Sporting News, Alex Karras Is asked to name the three leading linebackers in professional football. He says: "Butkus inside, of course, and Matt Hazeltine md Joe Fortunato outside." Let's hope Mike Luccl doesn't tee the current edition of the Sporting News.

Jim Palmer, Baltimore's winner in Saturday's Series opener, credits Dr. Russell Wright, former team physician of the Tigers, with straightening out his back and helping him become a 20-game winner. "My back used to hurt all the time and he found out that one of my legs was shorter than the other and prescribed corrective shoes," said Palmer. The big rumor in the Denny deal is that the Tigers gave up as much as $250,000 to sweeten the pot and this set Jim Campbell off the pad. He became almost violent about it.

"Not a nickel changed hands in this deal and I'll stake my career in baseball on it," he fumed. And That's No Pipe Dream You must visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Sid Gillman's bow tie and pipe are on exhibit The NFL set a single weekend attendance record when 746,884 turned out for the games of Oct. 3-4-5. That represented 97 percent capacity of the 13 stadiums in use.

The average attendance so far is 53,226. Idle Thought: No wonder Billy Martin said he didn't anticipate any trouble from Denny McLain. Already the motels in Flint, Saginaw, Bay City, Lansing and other outstate cities are reporting heavy business for the Nov. 1 blacked out game with the Minnesota Vikings Charlie Waller, coach of the San Diego Chargers, after deadlocking Oakland: "They say a tie is like kissing your sister, but I have a beautiful sister." Joe Louis has recovered enough that he is planning to do some of the advance publicity work in Denver for the Cassius Clay-Jerry Quarry telecast Oct. 28 Why was George Mira cut by the Philadelphia Eagles? One reason might have been his salary: $50,000.

It may have been the second, third, fourth and fifth reasons, too. How tough is it to break into the NFL as an official? The league got 800 applications this year and added two new men Second idle thought: Wonder if Ted Williams is glad now he's got three more years left on his contract? Quote-Unquote: Brooks Robinson "I'm sure glad we're not playing the Mets again. Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Gary Gentry were the three toughest pitchers I saw all year." B. Robby has something to prove in Series. He went 7-for-14 in last year's playoff, then flopped to l-for-19 in the Series.

Now he was even better in this year's playoff, going 7-for-12, and he wonders what'll happen to him in the rest of the Series. i The Mets drew second-best mark in the history of baseball, and if you figure this at $3 a ticket, the total take comes to around $8 million As if the Chicago White Sox don't have enough troubles already, they were one of the teams bidding for Denny McLain. And to think.they had him once before Penalty Shots So-o-o Rare If you've wondered whatever became of the penalty shot in hockey, Ron Andrews, the demon NHL statistician, figured out there have been only 31 penalty shots taken since 1963 or about four a season whatever became of Hooley Smith? Sparky Anderson, manager of the Reds, can't understand the other managers voting Pittsburgh's Danny Mur-taugh "Manager of the Year." Anderson's choice is Earl Weaver. He said: "Here's a man who wins 108 and 99 games and he gets only three votes And remember, when Weaver took over the Orioles, they weren't winning." Anderson tells about his first day on the Job as Cincy boss. The clubhouse man, Bernie Stowe, came up to him and wid: "Let's get one thing straight.

I was here before you got here and I'll be here after you're gone, so don't give me any crap." Deacon Dan Towler "If O. J. Simpson played for the Rams, he'd gain about 2,000 yards. He is a helluva runner. But by the time that team in Buffalo gets enough good players to go with him, he may be punch drunk." Indiana football coach Johnny Pont likes a calm, officelike atmosphere on the sidelines at games.

One student manager does nothing but keep his colfee cup filled. And now Pont's got a sideline secretary, pretty blond Debbie Phillips, who keeps statistics. "I'm just one of the guys," ays Debbie. Sure she Is. My neighborhood's slipping.

They let Pam Eldred hold her Miss America crown for only one year and now Don Wert, who just bought a house on the next block, is gone to Washington. How come they never trade sports writers? Jim Northrup wonders that, too. Derek Sanderson has signed for a major part in a Mexican western movie next summer. He plays the bad guy, of course. "In the end," sayl Derek, "the good guy, Andre Lawrence, gets the girl and Derek is dead." It's what you call a surprise ending.

Do Tigers Have Nerve WMiM.mil i imi I I ii nil Mil i' Denny McLain, a mixed traveling bag To Swing More Deals? Now that they've solved their crises, at shortstop and third base, why stop there? Why not go all the way. the way Campbell wanted to during those dog days in September when the Tigers literally laid down and died? Shortstop and third base aren't the only places the Tigers need help. Five days after the World Series ends, the season for inter-league trading will open. And it'll stay open for two months, until December 15. That's when you can really clean house; and you can send 'em over to the other league where they can't come back to haunt you, either.

CAMPBELL IS already under attack In some quarters for letting Denny loose within the American League. But by rights he should be commended for one of the best moves he has ever made. If the tickets went on sale tomorrow, you can bet there'd be a line outside the Tiger Stadium ticket window waiting to buy ducats for the night Denny will pitch. And you can be sure there'll be plenty of people in the park when Denny does pitch against the Tigers for the first time next summer. And for the second and third and fourth times, too.

Okay, so what if Denny beats the Tigers. And you can bet he'll be trying like he has never tried before. Does that make it a bad trade? No way. You make trades where they will strengthen your ball club the most. Arid if the other team improves, too.

well, that's baseball. BUT YOU don't walk into a trade worrying about how well the other club ia going to come out of it. That's for them to worry about. And in Denny the Senators do have something to worry about. BY JIM HAWKINS FrM Prm SMrtt Wfittr Does the Denny McLain deal mean Jim a 11 is beginning his house-cleaning early and in earnest.

or is the Tiger general manager now ready to put his broom back in the closet for another season? No doubt about it Friday's four-for-four swap was a real sweeper. But plucking one bad apple out of the barrel doesn't necessarily quarantee a sweet batch of cider next spring. UNLOADING publicity prone Denny on attention-hungry Bob Short of Washington, and at the same time solving half of the Tigers pressing infield problems, may not prove medicine enough. But do the Tigers have the nerve to make another major swap or two? Tradition says they do not. Campbell has already wheeled and dealed more this fall than he did all last winter.

and he has only made one move. Altogether, the Joe Sparma-for-Jerry Robertson deal, the Pat Dobson-and-Dave Camp-b 1 1 -f -J Niekro swap, and the Tom Matchick-for-Dalton Jones deal barely begin to add up to the transaction that took place Friday afternoon. So what happens now to Mickey Lolich and Jim Northrup and the assorted other items that the Tigers had available for trade when they finally stumbled to the finish line in 1970? WOULD CAMPBELL dare trade Lolich, too, and thus wipe out his one-two pitching punch in one winter? Probably not. 1 And that's too bad. Not because the Tigers would be better off without the Mick although at least one of this year's coaches would argue with you all night on that point.

But rather because the Tigers should be able to get even more for Lolich than they received in exchange for McLain..