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BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - For just the second time in his post-playing career, and the first time at Dunkin' Donuts Park, Blaine Stoughton was back to Hart City, a place he still holds many fond memories of. Dunkin' Donuts Park is the home of the Eastern League Hartford Yard Goats, the affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, Stoughton's first visit was the infamous Whale Bowl outdoor game on a frigid Saturday in 2011. "(His time in Hartford) was the biggest and most successful part of my career. Our kids were born here, and the fans were great to me, and I love coming back here," Stoughton said. STASH Before arriving in Hartford, he was the first seventh overall pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in the early 1970s. He was known as 'Stash' in his playing days for his well-manicured hair above his lip. He came out of one of the time's great junior franchises, the Flin Flon (Manitoba) Bombers (WCHL now WHL). His teammates included Bob Clarke and Reggie Leach, whom he played with in his first junior year. "Some of the young guys here don't know my nickname, but my old teammates sure do. I always knew I could score since I was ten years old. I always knew I could score, and you never acted like you were better than everybody else. You can learn from everybody you watch in practice. You can't be jealous of others. To have a Reggie (Leach) there my first year - he had 60 goals (65) - I learned a lot," Stoughton said on a sultry Saturday night. A SPEARING LESSON An ill-advised spear in his second season of juniors cost him a 29-game league suspension. The length and severity of the suspension in the early 1970s hockey taught Stoughton an early and valuable lesson about his stick. He would cross the century mark only once more in his entire hockey career after that. Stoughton blossomed in his third year of junior. He led the league in goals (60) and points (126) and came on also the scout's radars as a WCHL First Team All-Star. In his last year of juniors, he tallied 54 markers and 115 points. He was not only selected by the Penguins but also the Quebec Nordiques of the rabble-rousing, upstart-league, the WHA, in their draft on June 12, 1973. They took him in the second round (#14). That year the league had only twelve teams. His first year in the NHL didn't go as well as expected, and he was sent down to the Hershey Bears (AHL). Stoughton responded to the demotion and answered back quickly. RESPONDING TO A DEMOTION "I was young. We had like only five married guys on the team. I enjoyed the night life, a little too much my first year. We had fun. I learned a lot in those three years though. I promised I would change when I got another crack." And he did. Stoughton was shipped off to the Toronto Maple Leafs just before training camp on September 13, 1974, with future considerations for Rick Kehoe. "I knew this was a business about money and results." Stoughton, who approached his career as a business, got a Ph.D. in mid-70s hockey economics from Maple Leafs' owner Harold Ballard, who was known for his unwillingness to spend money. "He was…" as Stoughton calculated his response, "tough to deal with,. (He was) very controlling, kinds like George Steinbrenner was, but at least he would pay you," quipped the one-time right winger. Ballard's treatment of players and his general business practices were instrumental in creating a need for a player's union. POST BALLARD After two years, Stoughton was low-balled by Ballard and was re-sent to the minors to Oklahoma City in the old Central League. Stoughton responded by taking his talents to the WHA's Cincinnati Stingers. They acquired his rights in the 1976 WHA Expansion Draft, and a memorable bee logo and their yellow uniforms. "It was an easy call. They (Cincinnati) offered me $75,000, and in those days, that was a lot of money and the length of the deal (three years) and no way Ballard was gonna pay me that much to stay or even try to match it and I found the right spot." The junior 'Stash came out in his now hometown his first year. He produced 52 goals and led a hot, young scoring team that featured Richie Leduc, current Florida senior advisor and former Nighthawks coach Rick Dudley, former junior opponent and scorer Dennis Sobchuk, and another WCHL product, Dennis Abgrall. "Off the ice was the biggest change, on the ice I got put with the right people when we were down by a goal, we could put our line out there and score two or three," remarked the former 50-goal scorer who played with Leduc and fellow WHA-NHL draftee, who later played for the Nighthawks and Rangers as well, Claude Larose. Another trio was sometimes formed with Rick Dudley with the humorous line tag-the LSD line. THE LSD LINE He became a financial casualty and frustrated by new coach Jacques Demers's defense-first philosophy in Cincy. He was sent to the Indianapolis Racers with Gilles Marrotte for Byron Baltimore and Hugh Harris in December 1977. He lasted a year in Indy, and in another cash move the Racers dealt him to the Whalers for Dave Inkpen and the cash they badly needed just before the team folded. Stoughton arrived for the last season of the WHA in Hartford. First, he played in the iconic kelly-green uniforms emblazoned with the harpoon Whaler logo. He was living every Canadian boy's dream. He took the ice with legends Dave Keon, Johnny McKenzie (#19), who's retired to the XL Center rafters, Andre Lacroix, the all-time WHA points leader, Bobby Hull, and "Mr. Hockey," Gordie Howe. Three important things happened to him in Hartford. The first was he met his wife, Cindy. The second was being taken in the expansion draft away from the hated Toronto Maple Leafs, who still owned his NHL rights, by the Whalers as part of the terms of the merger. He also got hooked up with a former WCHL top scorer and centerman, Mike Rogers (Calgary). It was a match made for him as the Whaler duo proved the NHL thinking of the day that WHA players couldn't hack it in the NHL was wrong. SECOND CHANCES In his second crack in the NHL, Stoughton collected 100 points, second to Rogers 105 that first year. Rogers equaled the mark the following year, and Stoughton, two years later, eclipsed the 50-goal mark again and led the team in scoring. "The biggest thing? That was meeting Cindy. It changed my lifestyle. We're still together and had two great kids. (I) stopped going out as much and now have four grandchildren, and hooking up with Mike and then Ronnie (Francis) were two very important elements of my success." He had his secret formula. "I always kept my secret to myself, didn't tell anyone, even my teammates. I drove some of my coaches crazy, but I could weave my game to what the coaches wanted. The secret was to get open, and somebody feeds you the puck. Mike could do that. "We developed some good chemistry together." Stoughton, Rogers, and Pat Boutette formed the Dash, Bash, and Stash line in an era where line nicknames were common. Stoughton led the NHL along with Danny Gare (Buffalo) and Charlie Simmer (Los Angeles) from its famed "Kings Triple Crown Line" with 56 goals and won the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the NHL's top goal scorer. He's in the record books with Hull as the ONLY two players to score 50 goals in the NHL and WHA. Nope, not even Gretzky did that. ROGERS-STOUGHTON As a pair, Rogers-Stoughton was right up there with Gretzky-Kurri, Trottier-Bossy, and Lemaire-Lafleur as one of the premier dynamic duos of the NHL in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He started a four-year run of 40-plus goals as he would lead the Whalers in goal scoring and be in the top five in points. He went to his only NHL All-Star game in LA in the 1981-82 season. In the entire Whaler time of 25 years, the mark of Rogers 105 and Stoughton's 56 still stand as team records. Mark Howe set the WHA—NHL mark of 107 in the last year of the WHA. Only two other players in the WHA surpassed 100 points for the Whalers. They are all-time WHA Whalers points leader, the late Tom "Hawkeye" Webster (103) and Terry Caffrey (100) in the first season in Boston. The only other player to come close in points was NHL Hall of Famer Seattle GM Ron Francis (101) in his last full season in Hartford before his infamous trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Eric Staal had 100 in Carolina's 2005 Stanley Cup win with the Hurricanes. In his only season in Hartford, Toronto Maple Leafs' Team President Brendan Shanahan came the closest to Stoughton's mark with 44 in 1995-96. Geoff Sanderson came close twice with 46 and 41. REUNITED WITH ROGERS When the magic was leaving Stoughton's stick, and with the Whalers fading, he was traded to the New York Rangers for Scot Kleinendorst. There he was reunited with Rogers at MSG. "I never complained. I had some back issues at that time that impacted my game, and it wasn't an operational situation. The Rangers were very good to me and my wife, and we realized we were at the end of the line." It was a short-lived ride, and when his NHL career ended after 546 games with nearly a point-a-game average (449), Stoughton proved he could play in the NHL. He ended the North American portion of his playing career with the New Haven Nighthawks. He played sixty games at the old New Haven Coliseum, potting 20 goals. He took off a year and finished overseas with then HC Asiago in Italy. After his career ended, he was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame. "We had so much fun over there (Italy). It was a lot of fun. The hockey was very different over there." LAWLESS He dabbled in coaching in his post-playing career. Stoughton was an assistant coach for the Cincinnati Cyclones (IHL) in the league's first year and during the last two years in the ECHL. That tenure saw the memorable signing of a former teammate in Hartford, Paul Lawless, from the woe begotten New Haven Senators (AHL). Lawless basically released himself by getting tossed in his last game of a 20-game PTO. The ejection came just 37 seconds into that game. Lawless called the referee every name in the book and skedaddled to Cincinnati, where Stoughton had an excellent IHL deal waiting for him. The pair went into ownership and management for five years in the old independent minor league WPHL along the I-5 corridor in the American Southwest with the first edition of hockey in the Texas capital with the remarkable logo of the Austin (TX) Ice Bats. They were co-owners, GM, and the coach at various times. HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOME Read the full article

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - Hockey has been ingrained in Kevin Morrison’s DNA from his early days in Nova Scotia through the time he passed through Connecticut in the late 1960s and early 1970s, leaving an indelible mark in New Haven. In the fall of 1969 New Haven, while much of America was embroiled in tremendous social change and a great degree of civic disorder very similar to the turmoil the nation faces currently. Student protests against the Vietnam War raged on in The Elm City at nearby Yale University. The country was coming apart on the heels of two very public and brutal assassinations of the Reverend, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Senator Robert Kennedy. Meanwhile, the 1969 trial of Black Panther Bobby Seale and the “New Haven Nine” was just starting. However, amid the chaos and disorder, there was one thing that was a uniting and dominant force, hockey on Saturday nights with the Eastern Hockey League's, New Haven Blades at the old New Haven Arena. “It was a crazy time," then Blades d-man, Morrison said. "Cops told us what streets to avoid to get away from any hassles. We all mostly lived in East Haven, so about eight of us met at a gas station and followed one another in (on I-95 South). We got off the first exit over the bridge (Q-Bridge/Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge) and worked our way down to the arena (via Chapel Street), which had a gated parking garage (on Grove and Orange Street) at the time and we all parked there." Entering Read the full article

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - Planning for the 2020-2021 AHL season is well underway as is the possible return of the NHL in the summer and a possible late-in-the-year start to the following season are dominant news stories this week. North American players have been signing deals to play next season in Europe. The first few of those, even though this AHL season is still a "suspended" rather than a "canceled" season, but expect that designation could change by week's end or by early next week. Last week, the Hartford Wolf Pack's signings for next season of Vincent LoVerde and Mason Geerstsen to AHL contracts combined with two of the five players confirmed heading across the Atlantic Ocean would certainly make it seem like the towel has been tossed in on 2019-20 season. Nikolai Goldobin of the Utica Comets was the first to announce he was heading back to play with CSKA Moscow (Russia-KHL). On Sunday, Zach Redmond, 31, an assistant captain the last two season with the Rochester Americans, signed a one year deal with EHC Munich (Germany-DEL). His production slipped to 30 points from 50 after having played in 50 games last season with Rochester. A Ferris State college grad, then in the original CCHA, played 373 AHL games with 70 goals, 157 assists for 227 points. Last year he played in his second AHL All-Star game and was named winner of the Eddie Shore Award as the AHL’s top defenseman. He was selected to the AHL First Team All-Star with the most goals by an AHL defenseman (21) in 2018-19 including a league-best 10 game-winners. He played 133 NHL games with five different teams garnering 29 assists and 38 points. Redmond played three seasons of junior hockey with Sioux Falls (SD) Stampede (USHL) in 2008-09. Two players are expected to sign in Switzerland are Cory Conacher (Syracuse Crunch) and Philippe Hudon (Laval Rocket). Peter Cehlarik (Providence Bruins) is weighing offers from several Swedish Hockey league teams. The list of US college players signing with North American teams is up to 90, Including Division III players and Euro signings, such as Zach Remers of Buffalo State College (SUNYAC) with Kalmar HC (Sweden Division-1), the total number is 146. Former New Haven Nighthawk, Grant Ledyard, was the head coach this past season with the college club program at the University of Buffalo Bulls (ACHA Division-1) in the NECHL (Northeast College Hockey League). His assistant coach was one of his three sons, Ryall, a graduate of the school. AHL NEWS It would seem to be a forgone conclusion that by mid-to-late May, the AHL season officially will be canceled. The current blueprint that's being worked on is to pivot to next season. Players were paid through what would have been the end of the 2019-20 season. Several independent sources have stated that’s the working AHL philosophy, meaning there will, sadly, be no Calder Cup champion this year. The NHL, on the other hand, seems to be intent on finishing the 2019-20 season that had about 14-15 games left before the Covid-19 pandemic shut it down. They are discussing finishing the regular season and commencing with a summertime Stanley Cup playoffs. Cantlon's Corner has learned that four-to-five cities have been identified with low COVID-19 rates and restrictions that have been or about to be lifted. Those US cities are Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Columbus, In Canada, the cities are Edmonton and Toronto. Las Vegas was also under consideration, but the NBA plans on having one of its camps to resume their season there. It’s a numbers game in how many people can be in one facility at any one given time. While logic would say that with the NHL, having a team in Las Vegas with none in the NBA, that the NHL would get first shot at it, that's not where the conversation is at this point in time. The players are being asked what their status is with all of this. The NHL does not want to get into a nitpicking negotiation for the re-opening. However, some players are balking at the idea of returning with the plan of locking down and isolating the players to reduce the chance of an outbreak occurring while the season is resumed. Some players are not happy that they would be taken away from their families for that long of a time. The cost of canceling the remaining NHL season and the playoffs is estimated at $1.1 billion. The losses if they do play are expected to be only $500 million. There is a myriad of tricky issues, one of which is that players with contracts that are set to expire on June 30th. There would likely need an addendum or some other sort of legal instrument that would be approved by both the NHL and NHLPLA to extend the deals till September 1st. Assuming everything is done by August, free agency would begin in September for both the NHL and AHL. At that time, the NHL Draft, potentially virtually as the NFL did, could possibly be held. The discussion also includes starting the 2020-21 NHL and AHL hockey seasons after Thanksgiving with the NHL All-Star Game likely to be scrapped. However, the AHL All Star Classic is set for Laval in late January and still could receive the green light. This all subject to change. CHARLOTTE  Relationships change like seasons. Some are equitable, amiable, and a mutually parting of the ways. While others can be more contentious and acrimony ensues. It's safe to safe the odd exit of the Carolina Hurricanes from the Charlotte Checkers as their top farm team, clearly falls in the bitter category. On Tuesday, the Checkers issued a very rare, extraordinarily biting and snarky press release that upstaged the worst kept secret in hockey that is frankly, baffling, The Hurricanes are moving their AHL team to the Chicago Wolves and leaving the Bojangles Coliseum behind. “While we are aware that the Carolina Hurricanes are nearing an affiliation agreement with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, the Hurricanes have had little dialogue with us regarding this matter. In an era when NHL teams are placing great value on affiliations with closer proximity between the two clubs, we understand the confusion such a move would cause.” Street chatter has the Checkers becoming the affiliate of the Florida Panthers, the only team in the NHL without a clear affiliation with any AHL team. Could this be a sign of a bigger move lurking in the background? NWHL DRAFT Congrats to the Danbury-based Connecticut Whale on their picks in the NWHL Draft. The five-round event for the league’s six teams saw the Whale take Kayla Friesen of Clarkson University in the first round (second overall). Yale University’s Saroya Tinger went fourth overall to the Metropolitan Riveters. The other Whale selections included Victoria Howan (University of New Hampshire) in the second round (seventh overall) and in the third round (13th overall) forward Savannah Rennie (Syracuse University) was selected. In the fourth round, the Whale chose Amanda Conway (Norwich University - 19th overall), and in the fifth and final round, they had two picks taking, with the 25th pick, Nicole Gaigliaro (Adrian College) and their final pick (27th overall), Maddie Bishop (Sacred Heart University). The league expanded to Toronto, a former CWHL (Canada Women’s Hockey League) city for 2020-21. With six teams, the NWHL's status as a minor league operation will help in getting visas for their players from Canada and Europe. The Toronto team will conduct a name the team contest this summer. NEW COLLEGE HOCKEY PROGRAM This came out of left field, but it might fit into a regional puzzle. The Long Island University (LIU) Sharks announced they will launch the 61st NCAA Division I college hockey program. The school, located in Brookville, Long Island (Nassau County) already has a women’s program that won their conference (New England Women’s Hockey Alliance) post-season title in year one. when they knocked off Sacred Heart University (Bridgeport, CT) in the semifinals and St. Anselm (Goffstown, NH) in the final. One NCAA requirement hurdle is now out of the way with a men and women’s program in the same sport. The surprising announcement stated they would start the program as a Division I independent immediately for the 2020-21 season. They’re already in a national search for its first head coach and are paring candidates down to three finalists. The press release didn’t mention a conference it might join, but the AHA (Atlantic Hockey Association) would seem to be the most logical choice as they said they have talked to the AHA, ECACHL and Hockey East. The men’s team, like the women’s team, will be using three rinks to play their home games in. They are The Ice Works in Syosset, the Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow, and a game or two at the newly renovated, Nassau Coliseum, the home of the NHL New York Islanders who are building a new arena at Belmont Park. Interestingly, the school is 20-25 minutes from Ronkonkoma (Suffolk County) where there is a proposed 7,500 seat arena that has been talked about and whose initial proposal was submitted. A group, JJL Group, of Chicago has hired former Islander and New York Rangers great, Pat LaFontaine, to gain letters of commitment from an AHL team and college program to be the primary tenants in the proposed new arena. The JJL Group was given a second extension by Suffolk County until April to gain the necessary commitments, but with the COVID-19 crisis there has been no word on the project. This announcement might change things, Over the coming weeks more info will be coming on LIU and the arena in Ronkonkoma. AWARD WINNERS The Double AA affiliate of the Wolf Pack, the Maine Mariners announced their team's season awards. Center, Terrence Wallin (Gunnery Prep), was named the Community Leader Award winner. He played 23 games with the Wolf Pack in the 2018-19 season. “Terrence has devoted himself to the community in Portland,” said Maine Head Coach, Riley Armstrong, in the team's press release, “He continues doing work even now with his zoom hockey skills to help develop and grow the game in Maine.” The other winner of note as the team’s Most Improved Player went to Ty Ronning, who finished up the year with the Wolf Pack. “The way Ty approached this season on being sent to Maine was a 180 from last season,” said Armstrong. “His maturity level both on and off the ice was eye-opening for me. The way he played in Maine, he really deserved to be up in Hartford.” Ronning had 11 goals and 26 points in 28 games for the Mariners and had a pair of call ups to the Wolf Pack – first on October 24th, 2019, and again on February 3rd, 2020, after which he stayed in the AHL for the remainder of the season. With the Mariners in 2019-20, Ronning had three multi-goal games, highlighted by his second career hat trick on January 24th, 2020 in an 8-1 home win against the Worcester Railers. Ronning will forever hold unique status in Mariners history for his five-point ECHL debut on November 24th 2018 versus the now-defunct Manchester Monarchs, still a single-game franchise record. USHL DRAFT The USHL draft will be held this coming Monday (Phase 1) and Tuesday, (Phase II). Phase I of the Draft is ten rounds of “Futures” age players only, U-17 players for next year’s season (2004 birth year players only for the 2020 Draft). Phase II of the Draft will take place the following day beginning with round one. This draft is open to players of all ages eligible to play junior hockey and are not currently protected by another USHL team. BEIJING OLYMPICS 2022 The final rankings by the IIHF for 2020 for men’s and women’s hockey were announced and they are the bases for seeding and grouping for the 2022 Beijing Olympics to be held February 4-20 2022 in the capital of Communist China. Group A: Canada (1), USA (6), Germany (7), China (12). Group B: Russia (2), Czech Republic (5), Switzerland (8), Qualifier 3 (11). Group C: Finland (3), Sweden (4), Qualifier 1 (9), Qualifier 2 (10). The Olympic Qualification for the men’s teams has already started in November 2019 and will end with the Final Olympic Qualification scheduled for 27-30 August 2020 in the following groups: Group D: Slovakia, Belarus, Austria, Poland. In Bratislava, Slovakia. Group E: Latvia, France, Italy, Hungary. In Riga, Latvia. Group F: Norway, Denmark, South Korea, Slovenia. In Norway (city TBA). The women’s side has also been set. Sadly, the US and Canada both were placed in Group A derailing a possible Gold Medal game between the two best teams in the tournament. With only two tournaments played this season, the 2020 IIHF Women’s World Ranking also didn’t change much. The top-six countries remained in the same order and will be the ones directly qualified for the Olympic women’s ice hockey tournament in Beijing 2022, which will be played in two-tiered groups: Group A: USA (1), Canada (2), Finland (3), Russia (4), Switzerland (5). Group B: Japan (6), Qualifier 1 (7), Qualifier 2 (8), Qualifier 3 (9), China (10). The chance of a US-Japan or Canada-Japan or some other nation Gold Medal guarantees no ratings outside of the US and Canada. A best of three Gold medal series between them would be a ratings winner and help the women’s game on the grandest stage of all. The US and Canada are clearly heads and shoulders above everyone else in women’s ice hockey someday other nations will join them-just not now. The women’s world championships were scheduled to be in Halifax and Truro, Nova Scotia in March and were among the first international hockey events canceled because of COVID-19 as the US was seeking its fifth straight title. CARLSON ON THE MEND The last six weeks of COVID-19 has demonstrated that nobody is spared from it. One-time New England Whaler, Steve Carlson, 64, the youngest of the Carlson brothers, was released from a Johnstown, PA hospital and has initially tested negative for COVID-19. "Steve is home from a two-day hospital stay. He is continuing to gain strength and is in good spirits. Prognosis looks good with further cardiologist consulting and more testing is needed. He is COVID-19 negative. A special thank you to the doctors, EMT, emergency room, seventh-floor nurses, technicians and security guards at Conemaugh (Memorial Medical Center)," remarked his wife, Vicki Carlson, in a press released late last Friday afternoon. Carlson and his brothers Jack and Jeff, along with Dave Hanson, made brawling an art form. They were the inspiration of one of the all-time greatest hockey and sports movies, Slapshot as the infamous, Hanson brothers. Carlson himself addressed the concern for his well being. "I am grateful and humbled for the outpouring of prayers, concern, and well-wishes. To have friends, fans, and the hockey family, put on the foil during this time, gives me strength. I, and my family, are looking forward to a full recovery," using one of the more memorable quips from the movie in his foil reference. Jack had been recalled to the Minnesota Fighting Saints (WHA) during filming, so he didn’t appear in the movie, so Dave Hanson was his replacement and his name helped create the iconic characters. Steve was not nearly the fighter. His two brothers were never going over the century mark in penalty minutes. He was a more defensive-minded center. In Johnstown, of the old North American Hockey League (NAHL), he led the team in scoring with 88 points. His brothers were on the wings along with Hanson creating controversy whenever they played. They won the NAHL championship. He played one full NHL season with the LA Kings in 1979-80. He played with Edmonton on the last WHA Oilers team with his roommate being a very young, Wayne Gretzky. He played for the harpoon Kelly green uniformed New England Whalers in 1976 and half a season in 1977 each totaling 69 games with 10 goals and 26 points. He was acquired from the Minnesota Fighting Saints, who originally drafted him in the 1974 WHA Amateur Draft, as a free agent, when the first edition of the Fighting Saints folded in May 1976. He was reacquired on the WHA Intra-League Draft in 1976 by the reincarnation of the Fighting Saints that were originally supposed to be a WHA team in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Then in a cash move, he was traded along with brother Jack, Bill Butters, Mike Antonovich, J.P. Levasseur, and Johnny McKenzie in January 1976 to Edmonton. Nearly a year later, in January 1977, the Oilers traded him, his brother Jack again, along with the legendary Dave Keon, McKenzie and goalie Dave Dryden (the great Ken Dryden's older brother) to the Whalers for future consideration in future Hartford Whalers Dave Debol, winger Danny Arndt and cash. He was claimed off waivers by Edmonton in May 1978 prior to the last WHA season and played the whole season with the Oilers. Carlson’s entrance to the NHL wasn’t simple either. His NHL rights were traded to Detroit for a physical minor-league defenseman, Steve Short on December 6, 1978, by LA-even though he wasn’t in the NHL at the time or drafted by either team. The Kings reclaimed him on waivers from Edmonton prior to the NHL expansion draft on June 9, 1979, the first season after NHL-WHA merger. Carlson had six solid AHL seasons, two with the Springfield Indians, and the last four of his playing career with the Baltimore Skipjacks finished his AHL career with 207 points in 341 games. Former New Haven Nighthawk, Dan McCarthy, who played with him in Baltimore, and a full season with the Birmingham South Stars in the old Central Hockey League, has fond memories of their playing days. “Carly was a great teammate and player. His sense of humor was fantastic. He always had a smile on his face and would pull pranks on players regardless of who they were. Every team needs a Steve Carlson on their team and in the locker room. Hope he gets healthy quickly.” TOM WEBSTER Canlton's Corner received a nice e-mail from former New England Whaler and all-time WHA leading scorer, Andre Lacroix, regarding the passing of Tom Webster last week. “Tommy Webster was a true natural goal scorer. He was a great teammate and he never looked for the glory. He played both ends of the ice as good as anybody. You could always depend on Tommy in a critical situation. The best part about Tommy, he was even a better individual.” Read the full article

eing t: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack hockey season stopped suddenly but is still getting awards from across the hockey universe. Wolf Pack captain, Steven Fogarty, was named the winner of the Wolf Pack's IOA/American Specialty Team Man-Of-The-Year. He and the winners from the other 31 AHL Teams became eligible to win the AHL Yanick Dupre Award. Over the past five seasons and recently as the Wolf Pack team captain this year, Fogarty is one of the most admired players both on-and-off the ice. Fogarty is a Notre Dame grad and always expresses his calm and friendly demeanor toward fans, teammates, and media alike, and always willing to participate in ways to help the community. He's attended several fan-related events, volunteered his time at shelters, worked with youth programs such as the Police Athletic League (PAL), the annual Bowl-a-Thon for Special Olympics, and many other team-related community initiatives. Fogarty, of Edina, MN, was actively involved in youth/school reading programs, has made several hospital visits at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Newington, and has been a leader behind the commitment and participation of Wolf Pack players at community and team events. Fogarty is now one of 31 finalists for the AHL's 2019-20 Yanick Dupre Memorial Award, honoring the overall winner of the IOA/American Specialty AHL Man-Of-The-Year. The naming of the Yanick Dupre Award is after the former Hershey Bears forward and AHL All-Star who died in 1997 following a 16-month battle with leukemia. The announcement of the winner of the Yanick Dupre Memorial Award will be later this spring. The first winner of the award was defenseman John Jakopin from the Beast of New Haven in 1997-98. Jakopin played one season for the Wolf Pack 2003-04. Some other team winners include Sound Tigers winner, goaltender, Christopher Gibson, former Wolf Pack, Daniel Walcott (Syracuse), and former Yale University Bulldog, Kenny Agostino (Toronto). Another milestone day would be this Good Friday. It would have been the last regular season home game for the Wolf Pack scheduled against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The day was to be the celebration of the 2000 Calder Cup Championship team complete with the Calder Cup, autograph and picture signings, and a post-game party at the Tavern, but, like everything else, the COVID-19 pandemic caused its cancelation. Those scheduled to attend included Derek Armstrong, Brad "Shooter" Smyth, Terry Virtue, Todd Hall, J.F. Labbe, Tony Tuzzolino, P.J. Stock, Daniel Goneau, Mike Harder, Chris Kenady, Stefan Cherneski, and head coach John Paddock. Also on the invite list would have been Medical trainer Tim Macre and equipment manager Jason Levy, then Wolf Pack GM, Don Maloney, and Rangers president Neil Smith. Former Wolf Pack reporters, Bruce Berlet (Hartford Courant), and George Dalek (Meriden Record-Journal) were also going to take part in the festivities. TOM WEBSTER Sad news for New Englan / Hartford Whaler fans was the passing of Tom Webster, 71, of brain cancer at his home in Windsor, Ontario, with family at his side. His wife, Carole, passed away earlier in the past year. His daughter, Stacy, and his son, Brent, as well as grandchildren, survive him. Webster was "Mr. New England Whaler." He played six-of-their-seven WHA years, and his number 8 brought many a cheer at Hartford Civic Center in the glistening early years of professional hockey in Hart City. Bruce Landon, the then goalie for the New England Whalers, was complimentary in praise, "Tom was a great guy and good teammate, tremendous player. It's a sad day for hockey," Webster finished first with 215 career goals and 425 points. He was third in assists with 205, just behind Larry Pleau and Rick Ley. Webster was fourth in games played at 352 games behind only Rick Ley, Brad Selwood, and Larry Pleau. He finished as the 13th all-time leading goalscorer in the seven wild years of the WHA. The WHA elected him to their Hall-Of-Fame in 2012. He hung with the best of the WHA, including Real "Buddy" Cloutier, Robbie Ftorek, Anders Hedberg, and eventual teammate, Andre Lacroix. Webster topped the Whalers as their only 50-goal scorer in franchise history (53) and 103 points in their first season in Boston winning their Avco Cup title and first and only franchise title. "He was a dynamic player," commented former teammate, Tim Sheehy from Florida. "He, Terry Caffery, and Brit Silby were an excellent line. Silby was an NHL Calder Trophy winner (with Toronto in 1965-66), and Caffery (WHA Rookie of the Year) set him up so many times. He was a great finisher." In Webster's second season, he didn't lead the team in scoring. He was second by two points behind John French with 43 goals and 70 points. In the first year in Hartford, 1974-'75, he finished second to Wayne Carleton but tallied 40 goals and 64 points. In 1975-76 Webster was limited to just 55 games due to injuries but still managed to lead the Whalers with 33 goals and 83 points for the Kelly-Green harpooned logo Whalers. In 1976-77 he scored 33 goals and 85 points behind only Mike Rogers in assists. In 1977-78 his last active season in Hartford, his severe back injury limited him to just 20 games, but he was a point-a-game producer still with 15 goals and 20 points. The Whalers knocked off Edmonton and Quebec before losing in four to the mighty Winnipeg Jets in the Avco Cup final. He missed the entire last season of New England Whaler 1978-79 because of third back surgery. Many New England Whaler fans felt Webster's number eight should have been retired instead of the late Johnny "Pie" McKenzie's 19. Howard Baldwin, Sr. strictly did it, to antagonize the Bruins. The Bruins led by owner Jeremy Jacobs never voted for the Whalers to be a part of the NHL and forced them to abandon New England from their team name as a price of admission into the NHL. It was then and still is, a glaring oversight that it was never retired. After a low-ball post-career job offer, Webster ended his playing days in Glen Falls, NY, with a brand new AHL team, the Adirondack Red Wings as a player-coach and got in his last NHL game with Detroit. Before landing in Hartford, Webster was drafted by the Boston Bruins with the fourth pick, 19th overall, in the 1966 NHL Draft. They were the last six team draft before the first NHL expansion in 1967. He led the Niagara Falls Flyers and then OHA (now OHL) ins scoring 50 goals and 114 points in 54 games winning the Eddie Powers Trophy, but was voted only to the OHA Second All-Star team. The team won their second Memorial Cup in three years by downing the Estevan Bruins in five games with Webster scoring the double-overtime winner in Game 4, still the longest game in Memorial Cup history. Webster posted 18 points in 10 games of the tournament In 1965, they beat the Edmonton Oil Kings in five games as well in Edmonton. The 1968 team would feature three future New England Whaler teammates in Gary Swain, who finished number two behind him in scoring, Rick Ley and Brad Selwood and two future NHL'ers, Phil Roberto and Phil Myre. He played at the beginning of the early big, bad Bruins before they won a pair of Stanley Cups, but only got 11 games in three years. He played two years in Oklahoma City (CHL) before being involved in a merry-go-round of transactions. The Buffalo Sabres took him in the 1970 NHL expansion draft on June 10, 1970, but before he ever got to wear a Sabres sweater, he was dealt the same day to Detroit for Roger Crozier. Webster took advantage of the chance with the Red Wings and, in 1970-71, led them in scoring in 78 games with 30 goals and 67 points. Webster played on the last Gordie Howe Red Wing team that also featured Alex Delvecchio, Garry Unger, Red Berenson, and future star a rookie named, Mickey Redmond. He would play against Howe in the WHA when he was in Houston and was reunited with him on the New England Whalers in 1977. In 1971-72 his back problems first surfaced that saw him limited him to five games with the Red Wings and was traded again to the California Golden Seals for Ron Stackhouse on October 22, 1971. Then four months later, on February 12, 1972, he was taken in the WHA General Draft by the New England Whalers, and his hockey course was set. Webster had an even longer coaching career starting with an AHL Calder Cup championship for Adirondack in 1980-81 in just their second year of existence and the first of four the franchise would have. After two years, he went to coach the Tulsa Oilers in the old Central Hockey League, winning the title with future Whaler Dave Barr and future Ranger and current Vegas President of Hockey Ops, George McPhee. He then migrated to Salt Lake City (IHL) and was hired by the Rangers, but he coached just 15 games with Rangers in 1985-86 before resigning, because an acute inner ear infection prevented him from flying. Webster then spent two years with Windsor (OHL) in a bus orientated league from 1987-89, leading the Spitfires to their first OHL championship. The team had a 21 game playoff winning streak in 1988, getting to the Memorial Cup final in Chicoutimi, Quebec, but wound up losing in heartbreaking fashion 7-6 to the Medicine Hat Tigers coached by Barry Melrose. The team featured Ranger great Adam Graves and two current NHL coaches Peter DeBoer and Paul Maurice and NHL playing brothers, Darryl and Darrin Shannon. Maurice, who collected his 700th win this season, holds Webster as his primary coaching role model. "Tom Webster would be the guy," he said." He was my junior coach, who I eventually hired as an assistant coach in the NHL. He would absolutely be the man who influenced me the most. Really, really intense guy, but a big family guy, very emotional guy. Systems. That was kind of the first time I heard of the word systems, like, 'Hey, we've got a plan here.' After coaching the 1989 Canadian National Junior Team at the WJC tournament in Anchorage, Alaska finishing fourth, Webster returned to the NHL. He spent four years as the head coach of the Los Angeles Kings from 1989-1992 amassing, a solid record of 115-94-31 helping the Kings win their first franchise division title in 1991. Ironically, he was replaced with Barry Melrose. Webster coached the Detroit Jr. Red Wings (OHL) for one year in 1992-'93, then the next five seasons, he was as an Assistant Coach in the NHL for the two years in Philadelphia, the last season of the Hartford Whalers in Connecticut and their first two seasons in Carolina with the Hurricanes. He concluded his coaching career back in Windsor with the OHL Spitfires for four seasons till 2002. He was a long time pro and amateur scout with the Calgary Flames from 2003-2014 before retiring. Webster is the seventh member of the 1972 championship team to pass away being preceded by Mike Byers, John Cunniff, Teddy Green, Rick Jordan, Al Smith, and Tommy Williams. Read the full article