MONDAY DECEMBER 23, 1940
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
BRUINS, RANGERS LEAP FROG LEAFS
The Boston Bruins and New York Rangers both enjoyed a successful week as each moved ahead of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL standings and can now set their sights on the league leading Detroit Red Wings.
The Rangers unbeaten streak reached 5 games with three wins this week. The blueshirts started the week with a 3-2 victory in Toronto as Ranger goaltender Bill Horvath had an outstanding game. Next came a 5-1 victory over the Montreal Maroons followed by a 6-3 drubbing of their cross-town rivals, the New York Americans.
24 year old defenseman Jean Fulatte (6-27-33) has been a big reason for the Rangers recent success. The Quebec City native has a goal and 8 assists during the 5 game unbeaten string. A former CJHL MVP with Sherbooke, he was picked 9th overall by the Rangers in the 1934 draft, and is now in his 5th full NHL season. A veteran of 290 NHL games with 133 career points he is one of the few players who went straight from junior to the NHL without ever playing a game in the minor leagues.
The Bruins have been the league's hottest team for the past month, going 10-0-4 before losing to the Americans 3-2 last Wednesday. Boston picked it right back up on Saturday with a 3-0 shutout of the Canadiens in Montreal as veteran Andre Ravelli made 31 saves for his 3rd shutout of the season.
Code:
NHL STANDINGS GP W L T PTS
Detroit 38 19 7 12 50
Boston 36 18 10 8 44
NY Rangers 38 17 11 10 44
Toronto 37 18 12 7 43
NY Americans 35 14 18 3 31
Mon Canadiens 36 11 20 5 27
Chicago 33 8 14 11 27
Mon Maroons 37 10 23 4 24
SCORING LEADERS TM GP G A PTS
Ryan Dirk NYR 38 28 16 44
Chris Maxwell TOR 37 9 29 38
Neil Frank NYA 34 18 19 37
Anthony Manca DET 38 17 20 37
Darren Vaness TOR 37 11 26 37
Chris Bishop TOR 37 20 15 35
Matt Jambrosich BOS 36 19 16 35
Conner Hendricks DET 38 15 19 34
Jean Fulatte NYR 38 6 27 33
Tyler Wing NYA 35 13 19 32
Nicolas Frenette NYR 38 7 25 32
AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
The Hershey Bears are on a roll, winning 6 straight and 9 of their last 10 games to move into fourth place in the American Hockey League. The Bears won 3 times this week finishing off with a Sunday night 10-4 pounding of the last place Cleveland Barons. 20 year old rookie pro Charlie St. Martin had a career game in that contest, scoring once and adding 4 assists. On the season the former London Knight, who was selected 16th overall by Detroit in the 1938 draft, has 24 points on 6 goals and 18 assists. He was a member of the Knights Memorial Cup winning team in 1937-38 and is the franchise's all-time point leader with 335 in his 4 year junior career.
Code:
AHL STANDINGS
GP W L T PTS
Providence 38 19 13 6 44
Buffalo 36 18 12 6 42
Rochester 35 17 10 8 42
Hershey 37 20 16 1 41
Pittsburgh 38 15 19 4 34
Springfield 33 15 15 3 33
Quebec 37 13 19 5 31
Cleveland 36 7 20 9 23
SCORING LEADERS TEAM GP G A PTS
Corey Stewart HER 37 20 28 48
Andre Tanguay PROV 38 23 23 46
Angelo Rukkino HER 28 19 20 39
Philippe Morin HER 32 11 28 39
Jordan Donald PIT 31 10 29 39
Jacob Vanderhoek ROC 34 16 22 38
Steve Amner QUE 37 12 25 37
Todd Dyck ROC 33 11 23 34
Francis Belair PIT 38 18 15 33
Jack Bobek CLE 29 16 17 33
BASEBALL
GULLS MOVE TO SIOUX FALLS
The Salt Lake Gulls franchise in the Western Academy League has decided to relocate and will be know as the Sioux Falls Canaries going forward. At the bottom of this post is the Canaries new logo as well as their uniform being modeled by pitcher Tom Scheffler, a 17 year old lefthander who was 15-5 with a 3.92 era last season.
The reason for the move is the franchise found it difficult to compete for fans in the Salt Lake area with the professional Class B Western League Salt Lake City Bees squad, a farm team of the Boston Braves. I originally did not want to have an academy league team in Salt Lake City but could not find a suitable uniform and logo until the Canaries logo and jersey file was recently posted in the mods section by txranger.
PLAYERS TO WATCH - FLORIDA ACADEMY LEAGUE
With academy league ball just a few weeks away here is a look at the key players to watch from the 16 team Florida Academy League.
1-
JIM CONNER: Pitcher Bradenton Marauders - Went 19-5 and was named Florida Gulf Pitcher of the Year after helping the Maruaders to the Florida Academy Series title. The Richmond, Virginia native is 42-22 with 2.80 era in 3 seasons in Brandeton.
2-
ART COREA: Outfielder Tallahassee Rebels - As a 16 year old last season he hit 24 homers and batted .293. Tabbed as a can't miss major league prospect but still is 3 years away from the draft.
3-
JOE HOWES: Pitcher Fort Lauderdale Lobsters - Still just 16 years old, Howes was 17-5 with a 2.56 era for the Fort Lauderdale Lobsters.
4-
JACK MARCO: third base Fort Lauderdale Lobsters - 18 year old won a gold glove at third base last season while batting .327 with 14 homers and 91 rbi's. In his 3 year career he is a .340 hitter and the Peachtree, Georgia native will be watched very closely by major league scouts this season.
5-
PEDRO ESPINOZA: Outfield Panama City Flamingos - 17 year old hit 21 homers and 119 rbi's while batting .305 in his second season in the Florida Academy Leagues. Native of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
NCAA FOOTBALL
FLORIDA STATE CLAIMS #1 WITH WIN OVER FLORIDA
With an impressive season ending victory over Florida, the Florida State Seminoles found themselves with a perfect 11-0 record and a number 1 ranking heading in to the post-season bowl games. The Seminoles moved past idle Texas, Michigan and Stanford with a 31-14 victory over the 18th ranked Gators. Little-used sophomore running back Dennis Grant gained a career high 102 yards rushing and freshman quarterback Thomas Harris threw a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns to lead the Seminoles to their first unbeaten season since going 13-0 in 1914.
Florida State will face another team that enjoyed it's first perfect season as they face Houston in the Peach Bowl. The key to Florida State's success has been true freshman Harris. The young quarterback threw for 29 touchdowns while being picked off just 6 times as he started 10 games, missing one because of injury. A native of Elloree, South Carolina Harris was overlooked in recruiting by most programs and rightly so as he was considered the 22nd best quarterback available.
Texas drops to number two and will have to hope for a win over #19 Penn State in the Cotton Bowl and help from Houston if the Longhorns are going to claim the National Title.
BOWL MATCHUPS SET
Here is the complete Bowl Schedule
December 24
Fiesta Bowl: #4 Stanford (10-1) vs #7 Army (11-0)
December 25
Liberty Bowl: #21 Michigan State (8-3) vs #16 LSU (9-2)
Bluebonnet Bowl: #25 Alabama (7-4) vs #20 Ohio State (8-3)
Pasadena Bowl: Arkansas (7-4) vs #23 Minnesota (8-3)
December 29
Holiday Bowl #12 SMU (9-2) vs #22 Fresno State (9-2)
Sun Bowl : #15 North Carolina (10-1) vs New Mexico (9-2)
Independance Bowl : #17 Mississippi State (8-3) vs Hardin-Simmons (9-3)
DECEMBER 30
Citurs Bowl: #5 Wisconsin (10-1) vs Virginia (6-5)
Tangerine Bowl: Duke (9-2) vs Yale (9-2)
DECEMBER 31
Peach Bowl : #1 Florida State (11-0) vs #5 Houston (11-0)
Gator Bowl : Oklahoma (9-2) vs Furman (9-2)
JANUARY 1
Sugar Bowl : #9 Notre Dame (10-1) vs #18 Florida (8-3)
Orange Bowl: #10 Tennessee (9-2) vs #8 Nebraska (11-1)
Rose Bowl: #11 California (10-2) vs #3 Michigan (10-1)
Cotton Bowl: #19 Penn State (9-2) vs #2 Texas (11-0)
Code:
Rank Team Conf Record Points Last Weeks Result Next week opponent PREV RANK
1. Florida State IND 11-0 (8-0) 1594 W, 31-14 #18 Florida at #6 Houston 4
2. Texas SWC 11-0 (7-0) 1532 OPEN #19 Penn State 1
3. Michigan B10 10-1 (7-1) 1466 OPEN #11 California 2
4. Stanford Pac8 10-1 (6-1) 1412 OPEN at #7 Army 3
5. Wisconsin B10 10-1 (7-1) 1354 OPEN at Virginia 7
6. Houston MVC 11-0 (7-0) 1264 W, 24-6 Rice #1 Florida State 5
7. Army IND 11-0 (8-0) 1186 OPEN #4 Stanford 6
8. Nebraska B8 11-1 (6-1) 1126 OPEN #10 Tennessee 8
9. Notre Dame IND 10-1 (8-0) 1068 OPEN at #18 Florida 9
10. Tennessee SEC 9-2 (6-2) 1004 OPEN at #8 Nebraska 11
11. California Pac8 10-2 (6-1) 934 OPEN at #3 Michigan 12
12. SMU SWC 9-2 (5-2) 868 OPEN at #22 Fresno State 13
13. Auburn SEC 8-3 (5-3) 806 OPEN OPEN 14
14. Texas Christian SWC 9-2 (5-2) 759 OPEN OPEN 15
15. North Carolina ACC 10-1 (6-1) 699 OPEN at New Mexico 19
16. LSU SEC 9-2 (6-2) 640 OPEN #21 Michigan State 16
17. Miss State SEC 8-3 (5-3) 585 OPEN at Hardin-Simmons 17
18. Florida SEC 8-3 (6-2) 540 L, 14-31 at #1 Florida State #9 Notre Dame 10
19. Penn State IND 9-2 (6-2) 455 OPEN at #2 Texas 18
20. Ohio State B10 8-3 (6-2) 369 OPEN #25 Alabama 20
21. Michigan State B10 8-3 (6-2) 320 OPEN at #16 LSU 21
22. Fresno State PCAA 9-2 (7-0) 258 OPEN #12 Southern Methodist 24
23. Minnesota B10 8-3 (5-3) 193 OPEN Arkansas 22
24. UCLA Pac8 7-4 (4-3) 141 OPEN OPEN 25
25. Alabama SEC 7-4 (5-3) 114 OPEN at #20 Ohio State 26
Dropped out of top 25: Georgia Tech (23)
NFL PLAYOFFS
EAGLES AND PACKERS ADVANCE TO TITLE GAME
It will be a rematch of the 1929 NFL Championship game as the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers will meet in the 28th league title game. If it is anything like the '29 game that saw Philadelphia beat the Packers 23-17 overtime, fans will be in for a great contest.
The Packers have won 3 NFL titles, in 1932, 1933 and 1938. The Eagles have won twice: 1918 and the above mentioned 1929 game.
At Lambeau the visiting Baltimore Colts took an 8-0 lead on a safety and a pair of Robert Cole field goals before the Packers finally got on the board with a field goal of their own to make the score 8-3 at the half. The second half was all Green Bay as Packer quarterback Christopher Jordan finally got untracked and lead a 71 yard drive right after the break that culminated in a 3 yard touchdown pass to David Esparza. It was certainly not one of Jordan's best outings but the second year pro out of Georgia Tech who has started every game for the Packers since being drafted did just enough to win. He completed less than half of his passes (17-38) but did throw for 338 yards. He was picked off once but so was Baltimore signal caller Charles Myers....but Myers pick came at the most inopprotune time as cornerback Leland Glass returned it 51 yards for a fourth quarter touchdown that sealed the win for Green Bay.
Code:
GREEN BAY 23 BALTIMORE 8
First Quarter Bal GB
SF 11:09 Christopher Jordan tackled for a safety. 2 0
FG 3:37 36 yd FG by Robert Cole 5 0
Second Quarter Bal GB
FG 8:59 21 yd FG by Robert Cole 8 0
FG 6:34 32 yd FG by David Smith 8 3
Third Quarter Bal GB
FG 11:45 22 yd FG by David Smith 8 6
TD 2:43 David Esparza 3 yd pass from Christopher Jordan.
(David Smith kick) 8 13
Fourth Quarter Bal GB
TD 11:31 Leland Glass 51 yd interception return. (David Smith kick) 8 20
FG 3:00 34 yd FG by David Smith 8 23
The Philadelphia Eagles are peaking at the right time. The club started the season with 4 straight wins before falling into a funk that saw them go a 5 game stretch without a win (2 losses and 3 ties) before the rebounded to end the season with 3 straight victories. On Sunday they made it 4 in a row with a 37-10 win over the hometown Washington Redskins.
Former Stanford star Angel Bates (24-35, 294 yards passing) outduelled ex-USC Trojan Michael Huff (15-32, 179 yards, 2 ints) for the win but the real offensive hero for the Eagles was running back David Jones, who rushed for 91 yards, caught 3 passes for 31 yards and scored 4 touchdowns in the victory. It was the second time in his 2 year career the former North Carolina Tar Heel scored 4 majors, the first being in week two of this season against Detroit.
Code:
PHILADELPHIA 37 WASHINGTON 10
First Quarter Phi Was
FG 10:25 37 yd FG by Keith Medina 0 3
TD 4:31 David Jones 14 yd pass from Angel Bates. (Shane Ford kick) 7 3
Second Quarter Phi Was
TD 10:44 David Jones 2 yd run. (Shane Ford kick) 14 3
TD 7:28 Vincent Newton 2 yd run. (Keith Medina kick) 14 10
TD 2:35 David Jones 4 yd run. (Shane Ford kick) 21 10
Third Quarter Phi Was
TD 9:35 David Jones 4 yd run. (Shane Ford XP no good) 27 10
FG 2:11 26 yd FG by Shane Ford 30 10
Fourth Quarter Phi Was
TD 10:59 John Jackson 31 yd pass from Paul Knight. (Shane Ford kick) 37 10