| | If the 1992 U.S. Olympic hockey team had won a gold medal, Ray LeBlanc might have had a movie made about him like Jim Craig in 1980. But the U.S. team didn't win a medal of any kind in Albertville, France that year, and Hollywood never called LeBlanc.
Which is too bad because even if he's the quiet type, LeBlanc's hockey life has been fascinating.
|  | | LeBlanc is especially proud of his 1992 Olympic experience. |
The man who was the best goalie in the world for two weeks in '92 and
almost single-handedly got the US into the medal round, is still playing hockey for
a living.
LeBlanc, 35, is the No. 1 goaltender for the Jacksonville Lizard Kings of
the ECHL. The Lizard Kings are his 13th professional team in a career that began in the Atlantic Coast Hockey League in 1983. He has played in close to 700 pro games, and all that brilliant play in the Olympics got him was one game -- a 5-1 victory for the Blackhawks -- in the NHL.
"It used to get me down about not having an NHL career," he said. "But
the older I get, the more I realize how fortunate I am to have made a career out of playing
the sport I love, and for so long. I've been blessed. The Olympics were a dream come
true, and that's something I'll always have."
This is LeBlanc's second season in Jacksonville. In the offseason, he's
the club's Director of Community Relations and would like to stay in the game in some
capacity when his playing days are over. That may be a couple of years away. His
workload is as heavy as ever -- 53 games last year and 16 of Jacksonville's first 19 this season. "I feel that I'm getting better as I get older," he said.
Getting better, older, and with no regrets, either. Refreshing.
Notes from the AHL
Look out for defending the Calder Cup champion Providence Bruins. They got goalie John Grahame
back from the Boston when the parent Bruins signed Byron Dafoe. Then
Providence acquired Chris Ferraro on loan from the Islanders to join identical twin
brother, Peter.
While the Isles send most of their AHL talent to Lowell, Providence owner Ed
Anderson and Islanders GM Mike Milbury go back to when they were both together with
the old Maine Mariners. On the same team, and particularly the same line, the twins
can be devastating.
The NHL is advised to be careful before
falling too deeply in love with the 4-on-4 overtime format. While about 60 percent of
tie games were decided in OT after the AHL adopted 4 on 4 last February, almost no games are being decided this season. In fact, only nine of the first 42 regulation ties -- 21
percent -- resulted in OT goals. That's even fewer than in 1994-95, the last season of straight winner-take-all overtime, when about 32 percent of tie games ended with decisions.
At the one-quarter pole of the season (some 20 games), 11
points separated first-place Portland and last-place Worcester in the New England Division, while 13 points separated first-place Rochester and second-place Albany in the Empire Division.
Louisville went 7-3-0 on the first 10 games of its epic 15-game road trip.
That was actually in line with the league in general. Through 210 games, AHL teams
had a losing record on home ice. Combined, the league was 84-93-33 at home, which is
almost inconceivable in a league where home teams used to win two-thirds of the
time.
The two best games of the year happened within two days of each other. Lowell tied
Springfield, 3-3, on Nov. 24. The Lock Monsters trailed, 3-1, with less than 30 seconds
left in the third period, then Jason Podollan scored at 19:36 and Dave MacIsaac, with a
Podollan assist, at 19:58. Two days later the league's fiercest rivals, Hershey and
Philadelphia, played at the Spectrum before 13,435. Philly had a 2-0 lead with 90 seconds
to go, but Brad Shearer scored at 18:44. Brian Willsie tied it at 19:19; and
league-leading scorer Christian Matte gave the Bears a 3-2 win with 13 seconds left in overtime.
Notes from the IHL
The Grand Rapids Griffins find themselves in first place in the IHL East for
the first time since December 20, 1997. It would be hard to find better goaltending in the
minors than the tandem of Jani Hurme and Mike Fountain.
Milwaukee signed veteran
forward Fred Knipscheer to a 25-game tryout after he'd severed ties with the Cincinnati
Cyclones. The Cyclones tried to demote him to the United Hockey League, but Knipscheer refused to go. Milwaukee is his fifth IHL team.
Cleveland forward Chris Herperger had a memorable game in his team's 5-4 shootout victory over Cincinnati. Herperger was
awarded a penalty shot just 13 seconds into the first period, and missed. He scored a
shorthanded goal three minutes later, however, then connected with two seconds left in regulation to tie the game. Herperger also scored during the shootout to help the Lumberjacks get the extra point.
The once-powerful Detroit Vipers started the season 5-4-0, then went into a
horrific slump -- a 12-game winless streak that included 10
outright defeats and two shootout losses. The Vipers signed veteran defenseman Dave
Baseggio, who had been at home in Cleveland recuperating from knee surgery, and had
undergone 37 different roster moves since opening night. Detroit also finally got
all-time leading scorer Peter Ciavaglia back after a long-term injury, and he recorded an
assist in his return.
Bill Ballou covers professional hockey and baseball for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. | |
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