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| By: Tom Conaway, KW Record - April 28th, 1982 |
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It was Friday, Jan 9, and the Ottawa 67s had just beaten the Kitchener Rnagers 7-4 at the Auditorium to move nine points in front of the Oshawa Generals in the Leyden Division race. When the 68-game schedule ended two months later, they were still in first, first in the whole league, in fact. But by then the 67s had extended their lead to 14 over the Gens, whom they would oust in a brawling seven-game divisional final a few weeks later. Coach Brian Kilrea wasn’t gloatting that early January night. He never does. Besides his young squad had opened a three-game road trip with a 7-5 loss in Windsor only the night before. “We’re something like those no-name products in the grocery stores,” said the chunky, cigar-chompin’ veteran of nine junior campaigns. “People mention our top scorers’ Moe Lemay and Jeff Vaive but they don’t know anyone else.” That was Jan. 9. Today, 30-odd league and 14 playoff games later, you can be sure most major junior A fans have more than just heard about such former “no names” as John Ollson, Larry Power, Fraser Wood, Don McLaren and John Odam. They’re among a solid supporting cast that’s made major contributions to the 67s unexpected success this year. Of course goaltender Jim Ralph’s name should have received prominent mention along with Lemay and Vaive. That was a simple oversight by Kilrea who’d be in a spectator’s role today if the four-year veteran hadn’t performed so spectacularly in post-season play against Toronto and Oshawa. After losing 6-2 in Oshawa in game six of the Leyden final, the 67s returned home faced with almost a must-win situation in that homer series. Ralph’s superb puckstopping made the difference in a 5-4 triumph that most observers felt the aggressive Generals deserved to win. The adjective aggressive might be a little too mild to describe the league’s most penalized team on most nights. Certainly in the first five games of that Leyden showdown, Oshawa’s intimidating tactics bordered on what Jim Ralph called “insanity.” But after assaulting the 67s non-stop, the Generals abandoned their game plan in game six, stuck to hockey and, lo and behold, won. Using the same approach, they nearly made it two in a row in Ottawa two nights later. Even Kilrea will admit that the 67s were lucky to advance to play the Rangers. The candid Ottawa coach also thought his club was fortunate to escape with a 4-4 tie in the opener of the eight-point series last Friday. “Without Ralph we wouldn’t have been in it,” said Kilrea who still can’t get over how well his group of no-names has played in what is basically a rebuilding year. Ottawa has 11 rookies, among them 1981 second-round draft pick Paul Loutitt of Listowel and ninth-rounder Brad Shaw of Kitchener. Ex-Ranger B winger Larry Power (25-48) is also in his first year of major A along with Don McLaren (16-17 in 26 games) who the Rangers allowed to escape via the waiver route. Despite his modest offensive contributions, Loutitt (1-5) has played well. But Shaw (13-59) has been an absolute sensation and Power and McLaren have contributed tremendously with their two-way play. A clever puckhandler, the slender Shaw had three assists in the opener against the Rangers, all on the power play. The Kitchener GreenShirt midget gread also assisted on the 67s lone goal last Sunday. Kilrea still can’t believe the elusive 160-pounder was available in the ninth-round. Shaw also possesses an abundance of courage. Although in severe pain with a cracked rib and bruised shoulder during the Oshawa series, he slipped on a flak jacket and didn’t miss a single game or practice. Which brings up an important point. There has been a lot of talk since the Kitchener-Ottawa series started about the 67s’ turn-the-other-cheek tactics. After game one in which Ottawa had seven powerplay opportunities to Kitchener’s three, Rangers’ coach Joe Crozier suggested that the gentlemanly 67s (the least penalized team in the OHL) have the referees feeding out of their hands. Naturally, the Ranger players have bombarded their grinning opponents with an assortment of insults about their lack or intestinal fortitude. Although the 67s appear vulnerable to a physical game, remember that they survived everything the Generals threw at them. Cowards they are not. They’re an exciting young team that lacks strength, not skill or courage. A disciplined approach has carried Kilrea’s no-names a long way this season. To match muscle with the Rangers would be foolish.
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