DECEMBER 8, 1947
PACKERS JOIN VALS AT TOP OF NAHC
The Chicago Packers are the hottest team in the NAHC and thanks to a 9-1-1 record over their last 11 games the Packers have moved into a tie with the Montreal Valiants for top spot in the North American Hockey Confederation. The Packers have outscored their opponents 21-9 in winning their last 4 games. The Valiants have been steady, going 6-3-1 in their last ten but have lost twice to the Packers in the past four weeks and will face them again next Sunday in the Windy City.
Tommy Burns has once more been the key cog in the Chicago attack. Burns recently had an 8-game scoring streak snapped but he has a 10-game point streak active heading into the Packers next game, which will be Wednesday when the Boston Bees visit Lakeside Auditorium.
Third place Boston has struggled since beginning the season with 6 wins in the first 8 games. Since then, the Bees are just 3-8-1 and will limp into Chicago Wednesday on a 3-game losing streak.
Tommy Burns (left) and his brother Wes Burns are once again leading the Chicago Packers.
Code:
NAHC Standings
TEAM GP W L T PTS GF GA
Chicago 20 12 7 1 25 74 53
Montreal 20 12 7 1 25 66 61
Boston 20 9 10 1 19 59 54
Toronto 21 9 11 1 19 62 73
New York 18 7 10 1 15 53 55
Detroit 19 7 11 1 15 48 66
SCORING LEADERS
NAME GP G A PTS
T Burns, Chi 20 15 13 28
Mahoney, Chi 19 11 17 28
W Burns, Chi 20 9 18 27
Chandler, Bos 20 9 13 22
Pollack, Tor 21 10 10 20
Sauer, Tor 20 9 10 19
Skinner, Mon 20 9 10 19
Cabbell, NY 17 12 6 18
Albers, NY 18 3 15 18
Lanceleve, Mon 20 9 8 17
Lynch, Mon 16 6 11 17
Hart, Bos 19 7 9 16
Haines, Mon 26 6 10 16
Gubb, Chi 19 6 10 16
Carlson, Tor 19 5 11 16
GOALIE LEADERS
NAME GP W L T ShO GAA
Tremblay, NY 11 5 5 0 1 2.73
Brockers, Bos 15 7 8 0 0 2.74
Hanson, Chi 16 8 7 1 0 2.83
Touhey, Mon 18 11 7 0 1 3.18
Sorrell, NY 9 2 5 1 2 3.39
Broadway, Tor 19 7 10 1 1 3.43
Chasse, Det 15 6 8 1 0 3.57
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 3
Chicago 4 at 3 Boston: The Packers beat the Bees for the first time in four meetings this season thanks to third period goals from Jarrett McGlynn -his second of the game- and Tommy Burns. The Bees had scored 3 answered goals in the second to take the lead including a pair from Jacob Gron.
Toronto 3 at 3 New York: The Shamrocks winless streak stetched to 5 games but they did end a 4-game losing skid with a 3-3 tie on home ice against the Toronto Dukes. The Dukes had been in a slump entering the game was well, with a 2-5 record to show for their last 7 outings. With Etienne Tremblay still nursing an injury, rookie goaltender Alex Sorrell came up big for the Greenshirts, who were outshot 37-23. Bobbie Sauer scored twice for Toronto while Robert Sharpley, Orval Cabbell and Gil Corbeil, with the tying marker at the 16 minute mark of the third period provided the New York offense.
SATURDAY DECEMBER 6
New York 1 at 0 Boston : 22-year-old Shamrocks rookie Alex Sorrell had an outstanding game, turning aside all 34 shots he faced for his second career NAHC shutout in a 1-0 New York victory. Laurel Albers provided all the offense with an unassisted goal early in the first period. It was the battle of rookie goaltenders as Boston's Oscar James was at the other end and stopped 27 of the 28 shots he faced.
Detroit 0 at 6 Montreal: After the two clubs tied in Detroit last week, the Valiants thoroughly dominated the rematch at the Montreal Arena. Clarence Skinner scored twice and Adam Sandford added one to give Montreal a 3-0 lead just over 3 minutes into the game and the offensively challenged Motors never recovered. Montreal outshot Detroit 42-14 making for possibly the easiest shutout Millard Touhey has ever had.
Chicago 5 at 2 Toronto: The Packers ran their unbeaten streak to 8 games with a 5-2 win at the Dominion Gardens. Tommy Burns saw his 8-game goal scoring streak come to an end but the Packers star did notch a pair of assists to run his consecutive point streak to 10 games, during which he has accumulated 19 points. Five different players scored for Chicago in Jarrett McGlynn, Marty Mahoney, Ed Delarue, Jeremy MacLean and Derek Gubb. Dick Zimmerman and Philippe Dubois replied for the Dukes.
SUNDAY DECEMBER 7
Montreal 3 at 2 Boston: The Bees are in a slump with 3 straight losses and just 1 victory to show for their last six games. After a scoreless first period Ian Doyle and Adam Sandford staked the Vals to a 2-0 lead in the middle frame. Boston's Robert Walker and Montreal's Rey Sclisizzi swapped third period goals and the Bees had pulled Tom Brockers in the third trying to score two to force a tie. George Anderson beat Montreal's Touhey to cut the gap to 3-2 but that was with only 2 seconds remaining so the Bees were unable to pull even.
Toronto 2 at 6 Chicago: The Packers won the second half of the weekend home and home series with Toronto as easily as they took the opener last night. Four goals in an 7-minute span early in the second period proved the Dukes undoing and forced Toronto coach to pull Terry Russell, who started in the Toronto net in an effort to give Gordie Broadway a day off. Tommy Burns was held to just one point, an assist, but it was enough to keep his scoring streak going at 11 games.
Detroit 4 at 2 New York: In the battle for fifth place the Detroit Motors doubled the Shamrocks 4-2 at Bigsby Garden to leave both clubs tied with 15 points. Third period goals by Adam Vanderbilt and Ben Witt snapped a 2-2 tie and lifted the visitors to victory.
UPCOMING REGULAR SEASON GAMES
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 10
Boston at Chicago
Toronto at Detroit
Montreal at New York
THURSDAY DECEMBER 11
New York at Montreal
SATURDAY DECEMBER 13
Chicago at Detroit
New York at Toronto
SUNDAY DECEMBER 14
Toronto at Boston
Montreal at Chicago
Detroit at New York
AROUND THE LEAGUE
ROOKIE GOALIES MAKING THEIR MARK
A pair of rookie goalies had stellar NAHC debuts recently with both Oscar James of Boston and the New York Shamrocks Alex Sorrell recording shutouts in their debuts. James has been especially impressive in Boston, pushing veteran Juneau Award winner Tom Brockers for playing time while going 2-2-1 with a 2.41 goals against average. The 24-year-old British Columbia native was the Bees 1st round draft pick in 1943 but spent 4 seasons apprenticing in Cleveland of the HAA. He was called up from the minors in late November and shutout Montreal in his NAHC debut.
Sorrell is just 22-years-old and already owns two NAHC shutouts including blanking Toronto in his debut November 6. Last week he shutout the Boston Bees, with James as his opponent, 1-0 but consistency has been a concern. With two shutouts Sorrell has obviously looked good but he has struggled at times as well in allowing both Detroit and Chicago to beat in 6 times in November matchups. With starter Etienne Tremblay nursing a couple of minor injuries there has been plenty of pressure on the young goalie who grew up just outside Toronto. He was a third round pick of the Shamrocks in the 1945 draft and has spent the previous 3 seasons playing in the coast league for Portland and Tacoma.
OTHER HEADLINES THIS WEEK
- The Fighting Saints of St Blane subdued Coastal California 31-21 in Los Angeles on Saturday, closing up a perfect football campaign and staking a commanding claim as the top college football team in the nation.
- With a week remaining in the AFA season neither division title is set. Cleveland meets Chicago on Sunday with the West berth in the AFA title game on the line while Washington and Philadelphia are still alive in the East Division.
- In a rematch of last seasons CFC title game the Kansas City Cowboys and New York Gothams will meet Sunday in Kansas City to crown a champion in year two of the new football league.
- John Edmonds defends his world middleweight champion against Frank Melanson -the man he took the belt from- in Chicago on Saturday.
- Strikes continue to plague France as leaders of the Communist-dominated General Confederation of Labor defied the government's anti-strike legislation. A new much stricter, anti-strike, anti-sabotage law went into effect on the weekend.
- In urging the House to quickly approve the $590 million emergency stopgap aid, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs committee warned that Russia could take over Europe in 24 hours if it saw fit to do so. This following his committee's report stating Russia has military supremacy in terms of troops at this time.
Full national sports coverage is available in this week's edition of
THIS WEEK IN FIGMENT BASEBALL.