| When
goaltender Ernie Wakely was sold to the Houston Aeros by the Cincinnati Stingers he
carried a staggering 5.08 goals-against average and was winless in five starts. Wakely, a
veteran of both the National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association, had been
signed by Cincinnati to bolster what had been a rather weak goalie corps. Then young Michel Dion was signed, a goaltender who had an impressive record
at Indianapolis and was high on coach Jacques Demers' list. Wakely became expendable and
was dealt to the Aeros. Wakely is the first to admit he has no real explanation for his
complete turnaround in Houston, but since arriving in that Texas city he has compiled a
16-9-3 record and has won eight of his last nine starts in the net.
"I don't know why things turned around," said Wakely,
"but it seems to happen that way a lot. Sometimes a change in teams makes the
difference." Wakely said he was naturally disappointed when he learned the Stingers
had unloaded him because he had moved his family to Cincinnati. But there was no malice in
his tone as he talked about the deal. "I can't say what might have happened," he
said. "I might have turned things around if I had stayed in Cincinnati. I'll never
know. But things weren't going well on the team and I was having my problems."
Wakely said he hadn't altered his style since joining Houston.
"I don't think I've changed the way I play or the way I think about the game in the
last five years. I'm doing the same things now I did in Cincinnati." That's not quite
accurate. He's winning now, something he was unable to do with the Stingers. Wakely, a
soft spoken, friendly man who doesn't fit the off-beat stereotype of the professional
goalie, said he understood the Stingers' action and added, "It's a part of the game
you accept. We like Houston now that we're settled."
His teammates have credited Wakely with much of the Aeros' success
the past two months, but the goalie pointed out that "the whole team has been playing
extremely well. That makes my job easier." He explained that there had been personal
changes on the team as well as new ownership and changes in the Aeros' front office.
"There was a lot of pressure on the team early in the season because no one knew
whether they would finish the season," he said. "Everything was up in the air.
Now that the ownership thing is stable the players can concentrate on playing hockey. The
new players have worked in with the players who have been around. Everyone is closer now
and they're playing as a team."
The Stingers can't really be faulted in selling Wakely. When the
deal was made he wasn;t winning and the team was in the midst of an early season losing
streak. But it's ironic the veteran should now be playing so well just when the Stingers
are facing a crisis at goalie with rookie Mike Liut recovering from surgery and Dion
facing possible (and probable) suspension. Cincinnati could use Ernie Wakely right now. |
