| The
Cincinnati Stingers have returned from a five-game road trip with just one victory, but
they've brought home a happy young all-star, so everything isn't to bad. Claude Larose
didn't believe it when he first heard the news and had to be reassured. Then he gasped,
"I don't know what to say." Only frequently does a rookie make anybody's
all-star team, and Larose swears, "I never thought I had a chance. I thought it was
impossible." But the Stingers' 20-year-old left winger
was a high selection for the World Hockey Association's American team, making the second
line alone with center Dave Keon and right wing Mike Walton, both of Minnesota. Four lines
were chosen altogether. The first 12 players were selected by a poll of media people and
the 20-man squad was finished by coach Bill Dineen of Houston. "This is pretty good
for a rookie, yes?" says Larose, a Quebec native still learning English.
"Somebody told me the other day maybe you will be on the all-star team and I said no,
it's impossible because it's my first year. He said I had a lot of chance because I'm a
left winger and I'm not scoring too bad but I didn't believe it. I never thought I would
be on it. Never."
The extremely swift, agile young winger stepped right into the major
leagues this year from the juniors. He's never spent a minute in the minors. Still he
leads the Stingers in scoring with 18 goals and 13 assists and he's the top rookie scorer
in the league. "He's just got the knack for scoring goals," praises right win
Rick Dudley. "He's really something. I've only seen a couple other hockey players who
have the knack like him." Dudley himself was left off the team. He has scored
three goals in the last three games as part of a recent scoring surge, but it comes too
late to get him any consideration. Also overlooked was center Bryan Campbell and most
surprising, steady defenseman Ron Plumb.
This weekend the Stingers host the New England Whalers and the
Quebec Nordiques, who have enough all-stars to field a team all by themselves. The
Whalers, who play at Riverfront Coliseum tonight at 7:30 p.m., have four all-star
selections, including goalie Chris Abrahamsson, forwards Wayne Carleton and Tom Webster
and defenseman Rick Ley. Despite this , they have trailed the Stingers in the East
Division race much of the season.
Now, however, the Whalers lead by two points, having downed
Edmonton, 4-2 Friday night. The amazing Nordiques who play here Sunday, have placed six
players on the Canadian All-Star team, which will play the Americans January 13th in
Cleveland. They are forwards Mare Tardiff leading scorer in the WHA, Serge Bernier, Real
Cloutier, Chris Bordeleau and Rejean Houle and defenseman J.C Tremblay.
* * *
The Stingers ended their 12-day, five-game road trip
with a humbling 7-3 loss Thursday night in San Diego. Defenseman Kevin Morrison, another
all-star, scored two goals and two assists for the Mariners. Campbell, Dudley and Jacques
Locas scored Cincinnati's goal. Coach Terry Slater attributes the loss to fatigue growing
out of the long trip. "We're physically tired and mentally tired," he says. And
being home doesn't ease his mind.
"The big worry now is you can have a big mental
let down," he points out. "You're just so glad to get home you don't think about
the game. If you get home a couple days early, it's all right. You have time to rest and
then start thinking about the next game. But to just come home after a trip like this and
immediately have to play back-to-back games.......it's pretty rough." |
