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Rams bounce back The Richmond Hill Provincial Junior A Rams, despite missing four regulars, got back on the track Monday night drubbing Royal York Royals 7-3 at Westwood Arena. It was a vastly different scene from Tuesday night of last week at Rich- mond Hill when the Rams just went through the motions against Weston and los;_8-3. note in that game was the return of ex-Major defenseman Billy Stephenson who saw limitqd action.” S-tephenson has been playing with Windsor in the Major A but will be with the Rams the remainder of the There‘s lots happening on the local sports scene and if I can ever get the cobwebs out of the attics of my mind I'm going to tell you all about it. Okay everyone, let’s take a deep breath and get on with 1976. Then came Tuesday of last week against the Weston Dodgers which saw me arrive at the end of the second period, bound expectantly up the arena ramp, then shudder convulsiver as I saw the score. It was 7-1 for Weston. Hurt myself I almost hurt myself going down the stairs to the refreshment area of the building. However, it wasn‘t all that bad. The Rams, short-handed four or five players, were respectable in the last period and emerged just 8-3 losers. Stephenson returns I suppose the biggest news of this game was the announced return of defenceman Billy Stephenson who has been doing his sojourning of late with the Major A Sault Ste. Marie and Windsor clubs. But he hung in there and within a season or two he was the anchorman on the Rams‘ defence along with Jack Guest. and the body had grown much sturdier. Thought the management of the Provincial Junior A Rams would be happy to note that I managed to be in attendance at the last two home games of the Rams. Both of which, naturally, they lost. The first one was the North York Ranger 5-3 defeat of a couple of weeks ago which heralded the end of a 15-game undefeated streak. Sorry. Karl. (PIC) It was packed. Got a feeling a few of them sat out the third period nursing their gloom. It seems like Billy has been around for a few hundred years, but that's only because he joined the Rams a few seasons back while still a bantam. Looked delicate He looked so delicate out there that first year one had a tendency to close one‘s eyes whenever Billy moved to intercept an oncoming player. Came last year and Billy headed north to Sault Ste. Marie and things May I have this waltz? Richmond Hill players Jack Guest (2). Joe Greentre (6) a “wave: Deep breath Waltzing in the New Year? just didn't seem the same last season on that Rams blueline. But he was back Tuesday night and while there were no shining lights on the Rams‘ team this time out, there’s no doubt in my mind that obtaining Stephenson was a key move for the still high-flying Rams. Just logic, Watson, just logic. Rams, tough When you have two Major A dfefenders on the blueline such as Bill Belzun (who played at the $00 with Stephenson) and Stephenson plus fellows like Jack Guest and the rest, and goalie Brian Stankiewicz, you're making motions toward a championship. It was a welcome victory for the Rams who were minus Larry Kimble. Rick Febbo (suspension), John Nickieson and Stephenson who was unavailable. Fred Simpson Mark my words and if you do and I'm wrong you can punish me by buying me with a season‘s pass to all the Toronto Maple Leaf and California hockey games. sea son Paraskevin hot Monday night’s game saw Ken Paraskevin wielding the hot stick for the Rams as the ex-Detroit midget player fired in three goals and added an assist. They came out of the gate in the opening stanza and peppered Royals‘ goalie Dennis Blair with 26 shots and jumped into a 4-0 lead by the 15:47 Staying on hockey, that’s quite a race developing for the last playoff spot in the Mid Ontario Junior B race between the two local clubs, Richmond Hillâ€"Oak Ridges Dynes Jewellers (I'm a diplomat), the Thornhill Thunderbirds and Owen Sound. Neck and neck It's a race because all three are neck-and-neck in the seven team loop which sees six of the clubs in the playoffs. Thornhill is currently in the cold but just a few points out of the last playoff spot now occupied by Owen Sound. The Jewellers are only a slight step ahead. Close. 'falked to Pete Artemchuk recently of the Jewellers and he‘s still slightly puzzled as to why his team hasn‘t been able to really hit its stride. “I've been waiting for the turn- around all season." he said. “We continue to be inconsistent. It has to come soon because suddenly you look around and there’s only about 10 or so games left." Junior B That frightens a coach. Personally speaking I‘ve been surprised at the inconsistency of the Jewellers. On paper. they have a pretty strong1 line-up which includes such (Continued on 8-3) and sundry others get in the mood for New Year's Eve in this exchange last week with mark The Yorkers managed to break the goose egg with less than a minute to go in the period as Mark Todd rattled a shot off the post behind Brian Stankiewicz. Clement starts it Richmond Hill’s Jim Clement started proceedings at 2:35 as he connected after Myles McCauley and Frank Nigro had drives from a wild scramble in front of the Royals' net. The second period saw the Royal Yorkers fighting back strongly and outplaying the Rams by a wide margin after Mike Rowley had given the Rich- mond Hill team at 5-1 lead on the first shot of the session. Stankiewicz brilliant A combination of brilliant goalten- ding by Brian Stankiewicz and good defensive clearing by the Rams allowed them to come out of the period main- taining their three goal advantage. Midland’s Bill Pressgrave opened the scoring at the 5:00 mark of the first but Thomhill’s Ross Gordon tied it at 11:42 from Paul Hogg: Mike Gallaugher backhanded a low shot under a sprawling Blair to give the Rams a 2-0 lead. Paraskevin then took over to widen the Rams’ margin to 4-0 as he cashed two set-ups by his Detroit buddy. Brad Thompson. Lead 2-1 Thornhill moved into a 2-1 lead at 15:52 with Ross Gordon doing the job again assisted by Kim Mabley and Dan Somers. Royél York contiriued to press in the third and managed to narrow the margin to two on Al McCrae’s goal at It was not until 11:41 when McCauley rifled a Jack Guest pass into the net past Blair that the Rams were able to breath easy. Paraskevin completed his hat-trick at 16:41. Rob Dynes of the juveniles, the only replacement brought up for the game, centred a line with Thompson and Paraskevin, and played an industrious and effective game. Flu Guest arrived at the game with a case of the flu and wasn’t intending to play. He showed great intestinal fortitude by playing an effective game with a pair of borrowed skates, yet. A wipe out Tuesday’s game was strictly a wipe- ’I‘he Thornhill Thunderbirds probably knew it all the time but they’ve been getting it rubbed in to them lately. It's a cruel world. The Thunderbirds, in a desperate struggle to get out of last place and into the playoffs, dropped a 3-2 game to Midland Monday night at Thornhill. It was a game they should have won. To add salt to an alread open wound it was the third game in a row that the Thunderbirds have lost by one goal and by the same 3-2 score. Good hockey but “We’re playing good hockey but we‘re pressing and making mistakes,” said a club spokesman following Monday nights Mid Ontario Junior B tilt. “Two of the three Midland goals were giveaways,“ he said. “That happens with a young team when they start to press.” Woe, woe, woe Then entered a mistake as Midland's ’Birds lose 3-2 Weston who won by 8-3. The Rams bounced back to whip Royal York 7-3 Monday. out for the short-handed Rams who had seven defencemen to six forwards plus the absence of the aforementioned regulars. The Rams trailed 7«1 into the third and that just about tells the story. They never really got untracked. H For the Rams it was Bill Belzun scoring in the second from Rowley and Paraskevin; Jim Clement in the third from Wally Stankov; and McCauley from Edwards and Belzun in the third. Scott Parker scored two for Weston with the others going to Greg Ahbe, Danny Stothers, Brian Dudgeon, Roy O’Neill, Brad Hall, and Paul Mancini. It's a “must” game for the birds. All of them are from here on in. The Rams outshot the visitors 40 to 31. Richmond Hill is at Markham next Saturday and are at home Tuesday night to Dixie Beehives. Dave Dinan was left uncovered in front of Thornhill‘s Dan Hildebrand and he slipped the disk home. The second period was scoreless. Out of the money Thornhill was out of the money at 4:11 of the final session as John Beauchamp beat Hildebrand on a good effort. “It gets kind of disheartening for the kids when you lose three games in a row by one goal,” said the club spokesman. “But we have the material and we’re still in there.” The Thunderbirds are at Orillia next Saturday and the following Monday are at home to Owen Sound, one of the teams they have to beat. The Thunderbirds wére outshot 35-30 by the visitors with Hildebrand stan- ding out in the nets. An indication of the bad luck plaguing the birds these days came in the second period. Loses puck Thornhil‘s Barry Howson got a clean breakaway, sailed in on the goalie, pulled him out, only to have the puck slide off the end of his stick before he could fire it home. Ouch. The game starts at 8 pm. at Markham Community Centre. Ken Paraskevin ...3 big goals (Phow by H099) Richmond Hill Dynes Jeweller coach Pete Artemchuck thinks he may have glimpsed some daylight up ahead in that Mid Ontario Junior B tunnel Monday night. Dynes Jewellers whip Owen Sounders 5-3 “I‘ve been looking for the turning point all year," he said following a 5-3 win over Owen Sound at Bond Lake Arena. “Maybe, just maybe we've reached it.” It was a four-pointer win for the Jewellers who did it despite the absence of five regulars and bounced them two points in front of Owen Sound in the continuing struggle for the sixth and last playoff spot in the standings. ' Tense race With some 10 regular games remaining the race is turning into a dog-fight between the Jewellers, Owen Sound, and last-place Thornhill with only five points separating the three teams. Robinson the hero The Jewellers won the day at Bond Lake Arena courtesy of the sparkling play of ex-Ram Tony Robinson and a newcomer but familiar person in John Lenneville, an Oak Ridges boy, who fired home two of the Richmond Hill goals. But it was left up to Robinson to be the shining knight in the third period with the score tied 3-3 and the Jewellers a man short and Owen Sound pressing. Winning goal 4 Robinson picked up a pass from Ian Crockford at his own lblueline and threaded the needle over the Owen Sound blueline before flicking the puck home for the winning goal with five minutes to go. All there was left to do after this was throw the dirt over the body and Kirk Stover performed this ceremony aptly with only 2:56 left as he scored from, yes. Robinson. Lenneville stars Richmond Hill opened the scoring in the first period with Lenneville doing the job from Robinson and Ian Crock- ford. Owen Sound’s Mark Kazarian scored the first of his three goals to tie the game. Then it was Greg Bogaerts of Dynes putting Oak Ridges in front on assists from Robinson and Lenneville on a power play goal with less than five minutes remaining. Richmond Hill had the sags after this and Kazarian rapped in two straight goals, the second one a power play effort, and this set the stage for the Robinson heroics. 5 points for Robinson It was easily Robinson's most im- pressive efforts since joining the Jewellers from the Provincial A Rams as he picked up a total of five points. four assists and a goal. The Jewellers m'ade it 3-1 early in the second on Lenneville's second goal from Ian Crockford and Robinson again- “Both Robinsofi and Lenneville By Fred Simpson Wednesday, January 7, 1976 Iihtral Classified Word has it that Roffey, who has played and stood out in two games with the Norsemen, is destined to stay with that team for. the remainder of the season. “If we lose Jim it‘ll be a loss all right," said Artemchuk, “but it's a great break for him. In the meanwhile our defence rose to the occasion last night. They played well." Artemchuk was also happy with the way goalie Doug Brumwell played. “Doug has been in something of a slump but he came through last night." - Beat Pickering The Jewellers were also hot in an exhibition tilt in Beaverton against the Metro Junior B leagueâ€"leading Pickering squad downing that team +2. Leading the way in his initial outing with the Jewellers was Lenneville who fired home two goals. The others went to Stover and Tom Tidman. The Jewellers play in Midland Friday night and are at home to the same team next Monday at Bond Lake Arena at 7:30 pm. played particularly well," said coach Artemchuk in a postgame interview. “You can‘t ask {or mere. I was really elated with the play of Lenneville who we brought up from the juveniles. “He wias always a good scorer and tonight he was going both ways. If he keeps that up he’ll be a great helpf' Lenneville was elevated to the Jewellers along with midgets Bruce Wilton and Ted Clague in the absence of five regulars, four of them out on suspensions. Missing were suspended (due to a previous game confab) Davey Stuart, Dale Roffey, Vince Gyles, Bill Cromb, plus defenseman Jim Roffey. Roffey with Norsemen Roffey was out of the line-up due to a five-game trial with Buffalo Norsemen, farm club of the Toronto Toros and Buffalo Sabres. Section B Tony Robinson ..goal. 4 assists