THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 23, 1994 TAG: 9412230635
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HARRY MINIUM, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 136 lines
They are in many ways the odd couple of the Hampton Roads Admirals.
Patrick LaLime is a humble, shy French Canadian who doesn't speak English fluently and wouldn't say much even if he did.
Corwin Saurdiff is gregarious, articulate, outgoing and never lost for words.
LaLime dresses plainly, complete with a frayed Charlotte Hornets cap.
Saurdiff is a flashy dresser, whose fashionable clothes hide a unique tattoo on his upper thigh - it pictures Nickelodeon cartoon character Ren smashing a hockey puck through Stimpy's chest.
``In a lot of ways they're as different as night and day,'' Admirals captain Dennis McEwen says of his teammates.
Yet Saurdiff and LaLime have one very important thing in common - their work in goal has sparked the Admirals' climb out of the last place in the ECHL's East Division.
The Admirals are 8-3-2 since suffering through a five-game losing streak in November, and coach John Brophy said the turnaround has much to do with his odd couple, who in recent weeks have been alternating starts.
The Admirals were surrendering nearly five goals per game through 14 contests. They gave up more than six per outing during the five-game losing streak.
But since the losing streak ended Nov. 19, Saurdiff and LaLime have combined for a 3.1 goals-against average heading into tonight's contest with Charlotte at Scope.
``We've gotten great goaltending,'' Brophy said. ``And we've gotten it from both of them.
``They've gotten to be close friends and that's good. They're pushing each other. They're helping each other. And they're competing, trying to outdo one other.''
Both have common roots even though they are from different countries. LaLime was raised in rural Drummondville, Quebec, Saurdiff in rural Warroad, Minn. - hockey-frenzied towns where the local skating rinks outnumber the department stores.
Both began skating before they can remember and moved from forward to goalie in elementary school.
And both played poorly when they first came to Hampton Roads.
LaLime, who played junior hockey in Quebec last season, had a goals-against average of almost five through his first three weeks here. But LaLime, 20, is 5-1-2 in his last eight starts, including a 6-5 shoot-out victory in Richmond in which he blocked all four shots in the shootout.
That came six days after a 6-5 shootout loss to Raleigh in Scope, in which LaLime didn't lay a glove on all four shootout shots.
``That game gave my confidence a big boost,'' he said of his first shootout victory. ``Against Raleigh, I couldn't stop anything. After the Richmond game, I felt I could stop everything.''
Saurdiff, optioned from Kansas City of the IHL, gave up 11 goals in his first five periods with the Admirals. He was booed lustily as he departed after being replaced by LaLime in the second period of his second start.
In his four starts since, Saurdiff, 22, has gone 3-1 with a 2.5 goals-against average.
He received a standing ovation after his first victory at Scope, a 4-3 triumph over Raleigh, after which he skated across the ice and motioned for fans to remove a sign that said: ``All we want for Christmas is to get out of last place.''
The victory moved the Admirals out of last, and gave Saurdiff a memory to savor.
``That game was a thrill, one I'll never forget,'' he said. ``It was a tremendous confidence booster.''
Saurdiff is from one of the most storied hockey towns in America. Warroad, population 1,900 and located 5 miles south of the Canadian border, produced the four Christian brothers, who combined to help America win two Olympic gold medals.
Saurdiff is true to his Warroad roots. On his tattoo, Stimpy is holding a Christian Brothers hockey stick.
``I was a rink rat,'' Saurdiff said. ``There was a rink two blocks from my house. I'd spend five or six hours there a day.''
Saurdiff's career was at first meteoric. He starred in high school, then played a year of junior hockey before going to Northern Michigan University, where he started two seasons. He signed with San Jose after his sophomore season.
Last season, his first as a pro, he was the backup goalie for Kansas City. This season he figured to start there.
But he got sick during the spring - he was diagnosed with a rare form of colitis - and gained weight in part because of his medication.
Despite arriving at training camp overweight, Saurdiff played well and was scheduled to start in Kansas City's first game. But he injured his knee and was scratched from the first game.
``I thought I'd rest, then play the next game,'' he said. Instead, Trevor Robbins, his backup, had a shutout the first game, and Saurdiff was back on the bench.
He was optioned to Hampton Roads five weeks ago at his own request - he wanted to play, even if at a lower level - and came here with his confidence in shambles.
``It took a while, but I'm getting in shape now and playing well,'' Saurdiff said. ``The puck's hitting me consistently. This was a great move for me.''
For LaLime, coming to Norfolk was a difficult move. He came with Martin Woods, a muscular defenseman and a longtime friend, and they hoped to room together. But the ECHL ruled Woods ineligible and he was forced to go back to Quebec to play junior hockey. That left LaLime as the only French Canadian on the team.
Unlike his teammates, most of whom live in apartments at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, LaLime lives with the Norfolk family of Petey Reynolds, longtime Admirals' fans.
``They take care of me,'' he said. ``They take me to the shopping malls, to many interesting places.''
But even with home cooking and a family atmosphere, he's homesick. He misses speaking French. He misses his family.
Which is why he's looking forward to this weekend so much - his parents, brother and sister are coming to Norfolk today to spend two weeks with him.
``It will be good to speak French again,'' he said with a grin.
This is a critical season for both LaLime and Saurdiff. LaLime was drafted by Pittsburgh two years ago but declined to sign after the Penguins offered him just $30,000. He's hoping a standout season for the Admirals will help him lure a better offer.
Saurdiff is in the final year of his two-year deal and hopes to negotiate a contract extension this spring.
``Patrick's playing to get a contract,'' Saurdiff said. ``I'm playing to keep my hockey career going. I'm trying to open up San Jose's eyes a little more. As a free agent, he's trying to open up everyone's eyes.
``I don't think there's a rivalry between us. There is camaraderie between us. We both have the ability to play. We're both rooting for each other. I think he will go a long way and have a great hockey career.
``I hope the same is true for me.'' ILLUSTRATION: CHRISTOPHER REDDICK, Staff color photos
NOT QUITE TWO PEAS IN A POD
Admirals goalies Corwin Saurdiff, left, and Patrick LaLime, have
helped lift the team out of the ECHL's East Division cellar.
Saurdiff's tattoo of Nickelodeon characters Ren and Stimpy includes
a Christian Brothers hockey stick, a nod to his hometown of Warroad,
Minn.
by CNB