The Stingers enter Birmingham Alabama for the first time to take on the
Bulls. Of course the Birmingham Bulls may have been new but the franchise began with the
league. The team began as the Ottawa Nationals for the 1972-73 season. The club relocated
to Toronto and was reborn as the Toros. The Toros lasted three seasons in Canada before
heading south to Birmingham. The owners of the relocated team changed the clubs nickname
from Toros to Bulls and kept the team logo the same.
The Stingers played the Bulls in an
exhibition game in Huntsville Alabama prior to the season and had a big edge in shots.
Taking thirty seven shots to the Bulls seventeen. However, Birmingham won the game by a
score of 2-1. Slater would say 'Both clubs are explosive". And that was indeed the
case in their first regular season mtachup.
The Bulls were the first club to get on
the board in the contest. The first goal coming from Mark Napier, with assists coming from
Frank Mahovich and Gavin Kirk. The Bulls scored again at 7:31 to make it 2-0. Stingers
Blaine Stoughton scored after a pass from Jacques Locas at 11:00 in the period to make in
2-1 and the scoring wouldn't end there. Cincinnati went on to take a 3-2 lead after Guite
netted back-to-back goals. But the Birmingham Bulls retaliated themselves with three
straight goals to close the first period. The goals coming from left winger Paul
Henderson, right winger Mark Napier and right winger Tom Simpson.
Cincinnati was behind by a score of 5-3
at the end of the period. However, the score should have been closer. Richie Leduc had a
goal taken away from him during the period. The puck crossed the line then bounced out of
the net. The officials would not count the goal. The lost goal would come back to haunt
them.
In the second period, Leduc would get
his goal back at 6:35 in the second period. And add another goal at 10:40 in the period.
Had his first period goal stood, he was have completed the hat-trick.
The Stingers entered the third period
with the game tied and that is how the third period ended. However, the score at the
beginning of the period was 5-5 and at the end of the period the score would be 7-7.
Pierre Guite scored the first goal of
the final period at 3:45. The goal would be his third of the game and would complete his
hat-trick. But the Bulls answered when Paul Henderson beat the Stingers goalkeeper Norm
LaPointe on a breakaway. Henderson's goal would tie the game back up. Rick Dudley would
score for the Stingers at 6:59 after he took a shot from the left circle during a power
play. The puck deflected off of a Birmingham player and into the net for the score.
Shortly after Dudleys score, Guite was sent to the penalty box for high sticking and the
Bulls Mark Napier went on to score his third goal of the game to complete his hat-trick.
The goal sent the game into overtime.
With some fine defensive plays by both
teams goalies, neither club managed to put in the winning puck. Had Leducs erased goal
stood, the game would have never needed to go into overtime. But be that as it may, the
game concluded with a final score of 7-7. Which was the same score in their previous game
which ended in a tie also. It would be the Stingers second tie in two games. |
