Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 2, 1995 TAG: 9504040023
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
That's what a grinder does. It's the kind of work many players don't like to do. It requires a certain toughness.
It's a good thing Hawley is tough, because he has had to grind through one of the toughest stretches of his six-year professional hockey career.
Hawley scored only one goal in the last 17 regular-season games for the Roanoke Express. Hawley's slump came at a crucial time for the Express, which was engaged in a battle for the East Coast Hockey League's East Division title.
To be fair, Hawley continued to play hard and fulfill his role as a grinder. The puck just wasn't going into the net. Hawley never had been a prolific scorer, but Express coach Frank Anzalone thought enough of his offensive skills to trade Roanoke's leading scorer, Oleg Yashin, to Charlotte for Hawley on Feb.9.
So, Hawley and Anzalone had a meeting before the playoff series with Knoxville.
``Things weren't really going well for me,'' Hawley said. ``It was frustrating for me. I've never been a big goal-scorer, but I wasn't contributing in any way. [Anzalone] and I talked together about what I could do to help the team.''
One major change Anzalone made was putting Hawley at one of the points on power plays, a role Hawley had performed with the Checkers. Hawley did a good job of directing the power play against Knoxville as the Express scored six goals with a manpower advantage. Hawley finished the series, which Roanoke won three games to one, with two goals and two assists.
``As long as I feel confident with him there, and as long as he has something to offer, he'll stay there,'' Anzalone said. ``Joe has become more comfortable. He's on the same page mentally with the rest of us.''
A lot has been asked of Hawley. After fellow forward Marty Schriner suffered a knee injury, Hawley was given more puck-handling duties. He also has been used as a defenseman.
Hawley is showing he can handle the responsibilities. Not only is he a grinder, he's a veteran.
``I think my experience took over,'' Hawley said. ``It's a big time of the year. It's time to excel.''
SERIES STARS: There's little doubt Ilya Dubkov would have been named the most valuable player of the Knoxville series had such an award been given. The Express forward had four goals - including two game-winners - and an assist in four games.
Roanoke had other stars, including Hawley. Jeff Jestadt had two goals and a game-winner. Dave Stewart scored two goals and had a great defensive series. Derek Laxdal had a goal and three assists. Tony Szabo assisted on four goals. Michael Smith got off to a slow start but scored two important goals in the final game of the series.
The contributions of some players can't be measured on the stats sheet, however. Craig Herr didn't score a goal and finished the series with a minus-4 rating, but there were few guys who could say they played harder than Herr. He was one of the most aggressive players on the ice, often taking the action to the bigger Cherokees.
He did it while in pain, too. Herr has a sore knee and an injured thumb. Against Knoxville, though, he was the one inflicting the pain.
SCHEDULING CONFLICTS: It took the Express and the Renegades two days to settle on a schedule for next week's game(s) in Roanoke. Express management, desperately wanting a weekend home game, tried to push Game 3 back to Friday and Game 4, if necessary, to Sunday, April 9. However, the ECHL requires each playoff series be completed in a 10-day span, so Game 3 will be played at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
If the series goes to a fourth game, it will be played Friday in Roanoke. The series would shift back to Richmond for a fifth game on April 9.
UNION VOTES: As expected, ECHL players overwhelmingly approved the Professional Hockey Players Association as their collective bargaining representative. The results of the March 17 vote were released last week - 246-13 in favor of the PHPA.
Larry Landon, the PHPA's executive director, announced that the union would like to open negotiations with the league before the end of the playoffs.
BROPHY FEELING BLUE: There always has been a place in the world for ``little old ladies with blue hair,'' but who was that dude with the blue hair standing behind the Hampton Roads bench? It was none other than Admirals coach John Brophy, who dyed his silver mane blue after losing a bet with one of his players.
Late in the regular season, Brophy made a wager with Brian Goudie that if the Admirals finished in the top eight of the ECHL's overall standings he would dye his hair blue for the playoffs. Hampton Roads finished at No.8, so Brophy kept his part of the bargain. However, after the Admirals lost the first game to Tallahassee 4-3, Brophy washed that dye right out of his hair.
Brophy probably felt bluer after the Admirals lost the series 3-1.
by CNB