Delvecchio’s last-minute marker does it

The Detroit Red Wings now sit atop the National Hockey League standings after they edged the Montreal Canadiens 3-2 last night in Detroit.

Alex Delvecchio’s second goal of the game with only five ticks left on the clock was the game-winner for the Wings.  Delvecchio showed great determination as he  regained his own rebound and snapped it past a startled Charlie Hodge in the Montreal goal.  The win enabled the Wings to sweep the home-ice portion of their season series versus the Habs with six wins and a tie.

Alex Delvecchio scored the winner with only five seconds left.

Gordie Howe was also a standout for Detroit, as he had a hand in all three of his team’s goals, with three assists.  Norm Ullman was the other Detroit marksman, netting  his 32nd of the season.  Ullman is in third place in the NHL scoring race.

Veteran Ted Lindsay, 39, couldn’t contain his excitement at the Red Wings’ run to first place and the dramatic victory over Canadiens.

“That was like being given a pint of blood.”

Montreal players called Delvecchio’s winning goal lucky, and the Detroit captain didn’t disagree, but neither did he care.

“I just swished at the rebound with my backhand.  You can call it luck, determination or whatever you like.”

Jean Beliveau and Bobby Rousseau were the Montreal goal-getters.  The Canadiens outplayed the Red Wings overall, but Detroit’s rookie goalie Roger Crozier once again rewarded coach Sid Abel’s faith in him with another great performance.  Montreal outshot Detroit 27-25.

Abel would have been satisfied with a tie, based on the play.  He called the contest “a man’s game.”

Canada wins fourth straight

The Canadian National Hockey Team won its fourth straight game at the world championships yesterday by trouncing East Germany 8-1.  The Canadians scored four first period goals and were never headed.

Gary Aldcorn

Former Toronto Maple Leaf Gary Aldcorn paced the Canadian attack with two goals.  Other scorers were Gary Dineen, Bob Forhan, Grant Moore, Reg Abbott, Barry MacKenzie and Al Johnson.

Coach says new system is key

National Team coach Gord Simpson says that a new system employed by the team will be the key to any success that Canada will have at this tournament.  He is convinced it is the answer to the patterns of play used by the Russians, Czechs and Swedes.

Canadian National Team coach Gord Simpson.

“We used this system for one period against the Russians when they were in Canada last December.  They had only four shots on goal.”

Simpson calls the strategy “wing on wing.” It requires Canadian wingers to stick with their counterparts whenever the opposition has possession in their own zone.

Simpson says, “This way they cannot get pass plays started.  They could come up the middle, but they are taught to pass laterally, especially the Russians.”

U.S. coach Ken Yackel is a fan of the strategy. “It will work.  It’s not good hockey to watch, but it looks like the right answer to the Russians and Czechs.  Because of the dull style of Canada’s games here, they look bad but they actually impressed me very much.”

Marlies storm back to tie Jr. Habs

Trailing 5-1 at the end of the second period, the Toronto Marlboros stormed back to tie the Montreal Junior Canadiens 5-5 in the opening game of their OHA playoff series last night at Maple Leaf Gardens.

The Marlboros, second place finishers in the regular season, looked  anything but contenders over the first two periods.  They were particularly awful in the first period when the Junior Habs compiled a 3-1 lead.  Christian Bordeleau fired a pair of first-period goals for Montreal, both coming after Don Liesmer had given them a 1-0 lead.   Wayne Carleton put Toronto on the board in the final minute of the first frame.

Wayne Carleton

Junior Canadiens went up by four on goals by Jacques Lemaire and Robin Burns in the second frame and that’s the way the middle stanza ended.

Ray Winterstein started the Toronto comeback at 1:10 of the third.  Neil Clarke followed up with a goal two minutes later to narrow the gap to only two, and Mike Byers scored at the seven-minute mark to pull the Marlies to within one.

With just over five minutes left in the game, Carleton fired his second goal of the game to tie the score.  Carleton, who missed most of the season with knee injuries, was easily Toronto’s best player.  He was a force all over the ice all night, and should prove to be a great addition for the playoffs.

Montreal’s best player was defenceman Serge Savard.  Savard was outstanding on the penalty kill and also earned two assists, despite sustaining a four-stitch cut from a stick in the first period.

Notes

• Reports out of New York indicate that Bert Olmstead will likely not return to the New York Rangers next season.  He had been touted by report Stan Fischler as the next coach of the Blueshirts.
• Johnny Bower and Terry Sawchuk of the Maple Leafs now trail Detroit’s Roger Crozier by two goals in the race for the Vezina Trophy.
• Stan Mikita still leads the NHL scoring derby with 79 points, a 12-point margin over team mate Bobby Hull.  Mikita has scored 26 goals and added 53 assists.
• Hockey Hall of Fame member Frank Nighbor, 72, is seriously ill in a hospital in Pembroke, Ontario.  Known as “The Pembroke Peach”, Mr. Nighbor played 18 seasons in the NHL, mostly with the Ottawa Senators.

Frank Nighbor

• Chicago’s Pierre Pilote is nearing the NHL record for points for a defenceman with 55.  Walter (Babe) Pratt holds the record of 57, set in a 50-game schedule.
• Murray Oliver of Boston is the second-half NHL leader in goals, with 15.
• New York Rangers sent centre Ted Taylor to Baltimore of the AHL and recalled another centre, Gordon Labossiere, who has scored 31 goals for the Clippers.
• Vienna has been awarded the 1967 World Hockey Championships.  Canada had made a bid for the tournament, hoping to make it part of the 1967 Centennial celebrations.
• Ken Hodge won the OHA Junior A scoring title with 123 points. He scored 63 goals and added 60 assists. Andre Lacroix of Peterborough was second.
• The NHL committee studying expansion possibilities will report to the governors in New York on Thursday.
• The  NHL governors will likely pass a rule to raise the minimum age at which a player can be signed to a professional contract from 18 to 19.  An exception would be made for an 18-year-old who is given a big-league contract.