| | The minor leagues aren't always about player development. Sometimes they are
about player resurrection.
After having back-to-back 20-goal seasons in St. Louis, Jim Campbell
disappeared last year and finished with only four goals. The Blues exposed him in the waiver
draft this fall, and when there were no takers, loaned him to the Manitoba Moose of the IHL.
In 10 games there, Campbell scored just one goal. It got so that he became a healthy scratch.
|  | | Campbell hopes a stint in Worcester will get him back in a Blues uniform. |
At the end of their tether with Campbell, the Blues sent him home -- to
Worcester of the AHL, the city he was born in 26 years ago. In making the transfer, St. Louis
sent two messages. One was that they have not given up on Campbell. The other is
that if this doesn't work, nothing will.
"He can make a statement about how he wants to improve his situation and
help the organization," Blues coach Joel Quenneville said. "Let's see how he does.
There's no excuses this time."
Campbell had three goals in his first two games, and after five games with
the IceCats was 3-4-7. He scored 41 goals in 60 games in 1995-96, his last season in the
AHL, so this should be a comfortable spot for him.
"It's definitely a confidence thing," Campbell said. "Once you start putting
a few in it seems like all your shots go in."
This might be Campbell's last shot, however.
IHL Notes
The Detroit Vipers blew a 3-1 lead at Cincinnati on Nov. 6, then finally
lost in a shootout, 4-3, but were absolutely thrilled to get out of town with that one point.
The Vipers were outshot 60-12 by the Cyclones. That set franchise records for most
shots allowed and fewest taken. Goalie Zac Bierk made 57 saves to steal the point. The
period-by-period shots advantage for Cincinnati went 23-5, 18-4, 19-3.
The IHL lost a respected veteran when Grand Rapids Griffins forward Danton Cole retired because of injuries after playing just two games this season. Cole moved behind the bench as an assistant coach.
Orlando gained some veteran strength, though, when Todd Krygier -- who has 100 NHL
goals -- rejoined the team. He went 2-2-4 in his first three games.
The Eastern Conference is made up mostly of teams with NHL affiliates while the West is largely independent. When comparing records, there isn't much difference. East teams are
55-41-11. West teams are 47-38-11.
Len Barrie came back back to the United States after playing in Germany for most of the last two years and started this season with the Long Beach IceDogs. Barrie was an early leader in the IHL points race and, after going 10-10-20 in his first 17 games, was called up by the Kings. Barrie had
not played in the NHL since 1995-96.
Jock Callander is 4-5-9 in his first 11 games
with Cleveland and could break the all-time scoring record before the month is out. He's
six points shy.
AHL Notes
The Wilkes-Barre Penguins went 11 games before winning their first in the
AHL, a 5-3 victory at Hamilton, a team that had won only two at the time. The Penguins began their inaugural season with a 13-game road trip, and by the time the trip had ended, their leading scorer was also the team leader in penalty minutes -- bad man Dennis Bonvie. Bonvie started the season with 132 points and 2,078 penalty minutes as a pro. He was 0-10-10 with 64 PIM after Wilkes-Barre's first 13 games. The Penguins finally opened at home on Nov. 13 and celebrated with a 4-2 victory over Kentucky.
The once-feared
Philadelphia Phantoms have become less than ordinary and have lost four of their last five games. In the midst of the slump, Philly made an odd roster move when it loaned leading scorer Jim Montgomery to Manitoba of the IHL. Montgomery had more points than Peter White, a three-time AHL scoring champ, but it is worth noting that White is the son-in-law of Flyers general manager Bobby Clarke.
The league doesn't keep records about such stuff,
but Hartford defenseman Terry Virtue had an unusual achievement when the Wolf Pack was
shut out 3-0 by Worcester on Nov. 10. Hartford was charged with 18 minutes in
penalties in the game, and Virtue received every one of them. He got two roughings, a
slashing, an elbowing and a 10-minute misconduct.
Saint John defenseman Darrel
Scoville went 1-7-8 in 61 games as a rookie for the Flames last year. He was 2-8-10 in his first 14 games this season and was called up by parent Calgary for a brief visit to the NHL
before being returned.
The expansion Louisville Panthers have embarked on a 15-game
road trip during which they play 13 different teams. Louisville took two of its first
three games on the safari.
Miscellaneous minor-league notes
After being a dominant team in the West Coast Hockey League for three
seasons under former NHL sniper Walt Poddubny, the Anchorage Aces started this year 1-9-3
under new coach Bob Wilkie. Wilkie was fired Nov. 10 and replaced by Poddubny,
who had resigned during the summer to return home to Thunder Bay, Ontario.
The Wheeling Nailers of the East Coast Hockey League started the season with nine
consecutive losses before finally beating Baton Rouge on Nov. 11. The Nailers lost their next
game, too, to make it a 1-10-0 beginning. Wheeling has already tried four different
goaltenders.
In contrast, the best record in the low minors belongs to the Bakersfield
Condors of the West Coast Hockey League. The Condors are 11-1-0. Their leading scorer is Paul Willett at 12-14-26. Willett has been in the minors since 1990, and the WCHL is his
fifth league.
Bill Ballou covers professional hockey and baseball for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.
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