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Its an obsession with Flyers Dave Johns it Jim Stewart Per ection By SCOTT IIASKINS the game because there are no fans Last game was bit better hits big time By SCOTT HASKINS Examiner Sports Writer Its long way from the Barrie Minor Hockey Association to the National Hockey League but Jim Stewart has made the trek successfully Stewart 20 played all his minor hockey in Barrie and was third round draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres He started the season playing for Hershey of the American Hockey League but got the call to ijioin the big club last week general manager of the Sabres called Jim into his office the other day and told him to go back to his toothbrush and shirts Tom Stewart Jims father said when contacted Its big day Imlach Punc Hershey and pick up forJim Stewart joined the Sabres on their west coast swing He saw limited action against the Los Angeles Kings but played regular shift against Vancouver Canucks on the weekend Stewart played his Junior hockey for the Kitchener Rangers and Niagara Falls Flyers both of the Ontario Hockey Association Major Junior Hockey League He signed twoyear contract with the Sabres but was sent down to the minors for some seasoning He figured hed be up Christmas Jims father said There were lot of people being where he is He got lot of help from Ken Robertson Tommy Thompson and Mort Hutchinson There were others but theyre just too numerous to mention Stewart senior added Hehad good coaches right up through the ranks of minor hockey Stewart said Those guys helped him up the lad der of life and think theyd be interested in finding out how well hes doing Unlike most hockey players who are picked up in the overage midget draft Stewart played Tier Two Junior with the Dixie Beehives of the Provincial Junior League after only two years of bantam hockey For many young players trying to break into professional hockey the hardest part is sticking with the big club after you make it At 20 years old Stewart seems to have good chance SHEDDEN FINALLY BREAKS SCORING DROUGHT DOUG SHEDIEN finally up the league HERE AND THERE Hoekey League when they birds in crucial game tonight at the Barrie Arena It will be like old home week when the Barrie Flyers host Orillia Terriers in Senior Hockey League game Friday number of exFlyers are now playing in Orillia including Jon Hammond and Jack Smit Barrie The FinlandBarrie scheduled for Jan has been play team from Sweden on the same date Tickets for the FlyersRussia match on Jan are going fast according to general manager Steve Cripps Shedden scored more than 50 midget hockey There is little doubt he is better than his first year record indicates He and Wayne Gretsky were the only underage midgets picked in the draft and Gretsky is tearing Shedden has three years of junior eligibility left so he has lots of time to impress the professional hockey scouts Barrie Colts have chance solidify their hold on secondplace in the MidOntario Junior with the big club before who are responsible for him Somewhere in Hamilton there is very happy young hockey player Doug Shedden 16 in his first season with the Hamilton Fincups of the OHA Major Junior Hockey League has been having trouble finding the net But Sunday it finally hap pened Shedden scored his first goal since joining the club and it turned out to be an important one in 44 tie against the Oshawa Generals Shedden scored Hamiltons third goal of the game and it came against an old teammate Doug Keans Keans another product of the BMHA is the goaltender for the Generals but he had no chance on Sheddens goal which caught the top corner of the net goals in his final season of it QW host the Thornhill Thunder who started the season in COOP Major Midget game ancelled but the COOPs will Jets making run in WHA st By THE CANADIAN PRESS Winnipeg Jets are climbing steadily toward the top of the World Hockey Association stan dings We had little dry spell for about 12 games but we had total team effort out there tonight said Jets left winger Bobby Hull who scored his 25th goal of the season Wednesday night on secondperiod power play to help Winnipeg beat Houston Aeros 43 The win moved the Jets to within four points of firstplace New England Whalers idle Wednesday In other games Edmonton Oilers whipped Soviet Union allstar squad 52 while Bir mingham Bulls blanked the Canadians face test OTTAWA CP 77 Canadas women swimmers ranked third in the world behind those of the United States and East Germany face their first big test of 1978 in an international meet in Providence RI Jan 79 The competition was organ ized by the US Amateur Athi letic Union to strengthen their womens program Jim Shaw program development more dinator of the Canadian Ama teur Swimming Association CASA said Wednesday 830 pm Barrie Arena Junior Hockey League game pm Oro Arena Oro 77s sion sports calendar HOCKEY Thunderbirds Ontario Hockey Association MidOntario Bay Junior Hockey League game pm Eastview Arena Allan Cook Juveniles vs Orillia York Simcoc Minor Hockey League Game SWIMMING 630 pm Barrie Neptune Swim Club regular practice scs andings Czechoslovakian national team 50 Results of games in volving the two touring Eu ropean clubs count in the WHA standings Were back in the hunt said coach Larry Hillman whose Jets now have won six games in row after dropping fivestraight They took 32 lead in the firs st period on goals by Dave Kryskow Anders Hedbcrg and Bill Lesuk while Morris Lukowich and Terry Ruskowski scored for Houston Cam onr nor tied the score in the second period before Hull notched his gamewinner SCORES TIIREE GOALS Juha Widing scored three goals and added an assist to pace Edmonton Ab DcMarcos powerplay goal gave the Oilers 10 lead in the opening period Brent Callighen made it 20 midway through the second pc riod with Widing assisting and Widing scored Edmontons final three goals The Soviet Union now has 3mark againsthlAtwms Two goals by Ken Linscman sparked Birminghams fivc goal blitz in the second period After scoreless first period the Bulls scored four times within seven minutes of the middle session and added fifr th just 23 seconds before the end of the riod Pau Henderson Peter Mars rin and Phil Roberto got the other Birmingham goals as the Bulls handed the Czechoslovaks their sixth defeat in eight games They have tied one other contest Barrie Colts vs Thornhill vs Penetang OHA Georgian 4wwa Examiner Sports Writer Perfection is the aim of every goaltender in hockey but for Dave Johns of the Barrie Flyers its more than an aim Its an obsession Ill never be satisfied with the way play Johns said in an interview Monday No goalie is perfect but want to be the best possibly can have to keep improving all the time Johns 21 is in his first season with the Ontario Hockey Association Senior club and he hopes its his last That isnt meant as rap against the Flyers Johns just has bigger and better things in mind want to play professional hockey he said Hockey has always been big thing with me work at it all the time and if ever get chance Ill take it ill hurry At first glance he looks like anything but goalie with aspira tions of playing with the likes of Bernie Parent and Ken Dryden Hes shorter than most goaltenders at but he has one important quality that makes up for it desire Johns attended the rookie camp of the Detroit Red Wings in September at Kalamazoo Mich and was asked to report to the International Hockey League for seasoning could see right away that there was no chance for me there he said was told the team was going to would only have four or five goaltenders in camp but when got there the team already had one goalie signed and there were 10 others in camp didnt go to camp expecting anything but when was released by the Red Wings was disappointed he added dedicated myself for two months to get in shape before went down there and thought really played well After every practice Johns stayed out with Jimmy Ruther ford regular goaltender with Detroit while Dan Maloney and Dennis Polonich took extra shooting practice at him owe Rutherford lot Johns said He stayed out with me all the time and really helped me with my angles Johns is still on the negotiating list with the Red Wings He is prohibited from attending another pro camp and intends on go ing back for second try next season Johns played all his minor hockey in the Metro Toronto Hockey League and played three seasons with the North York Rangers of the Provincial Junior Hockey League In his last year of junior eligibility he played 20 games with the Kingston Canadiens of the Major Junior Hockey League Johns failed to get drafted after his final year of junior hockey but it really didnt surprise him There has never been goaltender come out of the Provin cial League and make the pros he said goaltender coming back from professional camp faces big change and thats exactly what Johns experienced when he reported to the Flyers after the season had begun The club made it clear it was not satisfied with the work of Ron Patterson and Ernie Miller so when he arrived he stepped right into the number one job Miller has since retired from hockey and Patterson is playing with the Durham Huskies in the lntcrcontincntal Senior Hockey League Theres certainly big difference between the Flyers and pro camp At the camp everyone was dead serious but up hcrc there is more relaxed atmos here For many of the Flyers are wrapping up their hockey careers the country club atmosphere may be just what the doc as he takes dead aim at his second chance and when the fans started to cheer it really got me up for the third period and the overtime There is no doubt that the Flyers have the talent to be suc cessful club but there seems to be problem putting it all together like to work all the time he said dont like practices when we just stand around We have all the talent but we have to work harder like Bob Wasson and Les Burgess Wasson and Burgess are the leading scorers on the club Before Mondays practice Wasson was running to get in better shape and its that type of desire that can turn the club around The whole league is the same Johns said It is really good hockey league but its not as serious as it should be For many hockey coaches the biggest problem they face is deciding which players need pat on the back or kick in the rump Most players perform better with praise but Johns is the ex ception to the rule like to be told when Im doing something wrong but since Ive been here the coach Darryl Sly and the manager Steve Crigps havent been doing it and my work has suffered Johns sai havent really been told anything which will help my game and because of it Im starting to get into bad habits he added have my own standards to aim at My father comes up from Toronto for some of the games and we usually talk about how played during the game He has Level Five in coaching so he should know what hes talking about and his criticism helps me Its very high scoring league so Ill take any criticism can get Johns said Johns sees himself as standup goaltender but hes not afraid to flop if the need arises Hes an excellent young goaltender but the days of one goaltender club are over Goal is dangerous position to play and the odds are against him finishing the season without at least one minor injury that would knock him out of the starting lineup Johns has played every minute of the clubs games since he arrived He started strong had mild slump and is now star ting to play up to his capabilities Regardless of how he plays the club needs another goaltender The season is nearing close and the loss of Johns could spell the end of any chance the Flyers have of winning the lcaguc title Johns has been playing very well for us Cripps said We are still looking for another goalie but if he was injured wed have to put in one of our other players Johns likes the idea of playing all the games but he realizes both he and the team could benefit if there was another goalie like the work get but would like another goaltender with experience so he could help me improve he said There are ccrtain games when Im having an off night and it would be better for thc tcam if they could bring in another guy to do the job The club has not made statement but there is possibility Miller may come out of retirement early in the new year But for the time being Johns is on his own How much help he gets from his defence and how well he performs could go long way In determining how well the Flyers do when the league playoffs start Dave Johns goaltender for the Barrie Flyers of the Ontario Hockey Association Senior Hockey League kicks out his pad to make save during recent game Johns has had the full weight of the netminding job on his shoulders since he arrived on the scene early in the season and although he has played well he still isnt satisfied You can never be tor ordered but for Johns it has hindcrcd his play would say that Im only playing at about 33 per cent of lily potential right now he said Soliictimcs its hard to get up for lt 21 spo If Johns has his way the club will be playing in the Allen Cup playoffs iii May satisfied with the way you play he said You have to keep improving Flyers face Orillia Terriers Friday at the Bar rie Arena Game time is 830 pm and once again Johns will be without backup goaltender Examiner Photo Thats not so great ne skier stands back to evaluate the style of another enthusiast at Horseshoe Valley Wednesday The Annual Molstar Pacesetters Event was held at the resort and Roll Westlakc came away as Southern Ontarios pacescttcr for the upcoming season Molstar is entering its seventh season The Molstar program is not designed for racing but was conceived to rate skiers on their per formance The season gets under way Jan at Horseshoe Valley Exalnincr Photo Molstar program is set So you think youre good skier but dont know how to rate yourself Molstar sponsored by Molson Breweries operates at 20 ski centres during the season and gives interested skiers the op portunity to rate themselves against predetermined stan dard of the course The annual Pacesettcrs event which kicked ff the season was held Wednesday at Horseshoe Valley The purpose of the event was to determine the official Southern Ontario pacesetter for the season Ron Westlakc of sler Bluff in Collingwood was the winner of the event His time on the preset slalom course was used to calculate each paccsctters handicap Pacesetters two skiers from each ski area in Southern tario took part in the oneday event and their times against national standard are used to rate the other skiers when Molstar visits the various resorts Molstar makes it clear it is not racing It is only interested in rating skiers and encourag ing peo le of all ages to rate their ility It measures skicrs performance against the standard and not against the performance of other par ticipants The Molstar concept was developed in British Columbia prior to the 196070 ski season Since its inception the program has attracted more than 200000 skiers George Pimm director of Southern Ontario for Molstar expects up to 4500 skiers to take part this season at the 20 resort areas Its Molstar is seven yearsold now Pimm said Its getting bigger and better all the time and we are expec ting an increase in the number of participants this season Recognition for the skiers comes in the form of gold silver and bronze medals which are handed out depen ding on the skiers perforlnancc against the preset standard For example the gold medal will be presented to malc skiers who come within 20 per cent of the course par time and to women who come within 25 per cent of the time and so on down the line for silver and bronze medals The first date for Molstar competition is Jail at Horseshoe Valley Molstar will make three stops at Horseshoe Valley during the season the last being Mar 25 Pimln also announced that Molstar has added new dimension for the upcoming season The Molstar Gold Challenge Cup will feature racing com petition between teams con sisting of three male and three female competitors represen ting each participating Molstar area The final competition for the cup will beheld Mar 12 but the final location will depend on snow conditions in the province Individual Molstar areas will sponsor their own standard race for gold rating qualifiers and select the top three male and three female skiers who will represent their area for the cup Each member of the winning team will receive free Honda motorcycles and their names will be put on the cup which will spend the summer on display at the Canadian Sports Ila lo Famein Toronto All participants for the cup must be 18 years old or over and the challenge is not open to Molson employees or any employees of Molsons sub sidiary companies WIIAT HAPPENED NEXT In winning the 1934 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Dark Secret finished on three legs one being broken just be fore thewire Thornhill faces Colts in secondplace battle Barrie Colts can solidify their hold on secondplace in the On tario Hockey Association Mid Ontario Junior Hockey League by beating the Thor nhill Thunderbirds in key game tonight at the Barrie Arena starting at830pm month ago the club was in thirdplacc with little hope of improving but since that time Barrie has went undefeated in five games to move into second place ahead of Thornhill ak Ridges Dynes Jewellers still hold comfortable lead at the top of the fiveteam league At the other end of the scale the Owen Sound Kings who lost and tied two games against the Colts last week are in the base ment withjust four wins Colts have 25 points on 11 wins and three ties Thornhill has only 20 points but has also played five fewer games than the Colts Injuries hurt play MOSCOW AP Marc Boil eau coach of the Quebec Nor diques of the World Hockey As sociation said Wednesday his teams play in the Izvestia hockey tournament suffered be cause of player injuries Czechoslovakia clinched the fivecountry tournament title earlier in the day by beating Nordiques 62 The Nordiques representing Canada ended up in last place with only one point gained in tie with Finland on Monday In Wednesdays other game the Soviet Union beat Sweden to finish second with six poin ts The Czcchoslovakians had seven points while Sweden finished third with four and Finland was fourth with two Boileau said Nordiques felt the absence of five players left behind in Canada and the loss of two more during the tourney because of injuries Boileau said his team missed number of scoring chances in the first period of the final game and his goalie Ken Bro derlck let through some easy goals before being replaced in the second period by Jim Corsi Czechoslovakia opened the scoring in the first period on goal by Boguslav Eberman but the Nordiques cheered on by crowd that hoped for an upset that would have renewed the Soviet Unions title hopes mat ched this 16 seconds later with goal by Real Cloutier The Czechoslovakians pressed with series of attacks on the Canadian goal and defenceman Milan Kaikl and forward Marian Stastny each scored III the first period The Nordiques second goal came when Jean Bernier inter cepted pass and set up Marc Tardif Peter Stastny Eduard Novak and Vladimir Martinec added the other Czechoslovakian goals loss tonight could put the Colts in trouble They would have threepoint lead but Thornhill would be right back in the hunt Colts have the talent to match Oak Ridges but the pro blem for coach Howie Forbes is getting the big effort out of his team The club has lacked con sistency but in recent games every player on the team has been pulling his weight The addition of Todd Lalonde and Rick Bowman both pro ducts of the Barrie Minor Hockey Association who were match Wednesday third the were handicap Oilers provided hockey sticks San Diego and Los Angeles nesday fice announced Wednesday Hornets drubbed by Kosice 132 PRAGUE AP Cambridge Hornets of the Ontario Hockey Association Senior series dropped 132 decision to Czechoslovakian club Kosice in their final exhibition tour Dave Peace and Bob Peace scored for the Hornets who held Kosice to 22 tie in the first scored five more goals in the second period and six in the The Hornets had won three and lost three in their previous six games The club was to return home today Hockey for blind catching on EDMONTON CP Hockey for the blind is catching on Interested people here and in Calgary spring and decided to form hockey team for the blind The team won tournament in Toronto defeating the host club and team from Newfoundland They didnt know how to go about getting ice time and they didnt want to push themselves on anyone by saying ped says Ray Kinasewich coach wit Edmonton Oilers of the World Hockey Association But with help from Kinasewich and Glenn Hall former National Hockey League goaltender and Edmontons parks and recreation department ice time was arranged The Raiders may wear pantyhose OAKLAND AP Although Oakland Raiders had lot more important things to think about in their preparation for the National Football League playoffs there was some talk Wednesday about the possibility of wearing pantyhose if its cold in Baltimore on Saturday The Detroit Lions wore pantyhose when was with them said placekicker Errol Mann There was all kind of joking at first but it worked wore them too and would againelm looking for results The Raiders have purchased 60 scts of pantyhose in large sizes for possible use in the playoff opener and equipment manager Richard Romanski said he will more if the team wins Saturday American Football Conference title game which would be played in Denver or Pittsburgh The Raiders have not played game in cold weather this year Their only road games since Oct 30 at Denver were in Newcombe beats Brian Teacher MELBOURNE AP Australian John Newcombe beat American Brian Teacher in straight sets in the opening round of the $200000 Australian Open at Kooyong on Wed League to investigate Blue sale NEW YORK AP The hearing to investigate the Oak land As sale of pitching star Vida Blue to Cincinnati Reds will be held Jan baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhns of playing Junior has given the club an added boost in the goal scoring department Both players have been scor ing regularly since joining the club and Bowman has won number of key faceoffs late in important games Another factor in the clubs rise to prominence has been the play of the defence Defence was weak spot earlier in the season but has improved steadily over the past four weeks Bob Toffan has been giving the club the kind of netminding needed to win hockey games period But the host club got together last robably order and vances to the