Young St. Paul star next hurdle for Bucs
Des Moines Tribune
Friday, 3-19-82
By Don Clasen
In its last opening-round game of the United States Hockey League playoffs Saturday night, the Des Moines Buccaneers will have to contend with a ringer of sorts in the already awesome St. Paul lineup.
The player is Phil Housley, a senior at perennial prep powerhouse South St. Paul, Minnesota. Hourly, expected to be the first American picked in this summer's National Hockey League draft, has helped St. Paul to a 2-0 record in the playoffs.
The Bucs and Vulcans will face off at 7:30 o'clock Saturday at the Des Moines Ice Arena.
The Bucs fell to 2-2 in the playoffs by losing, 7-6, Thursday night at Austin, Minnesota. They must win Saturday night to remain in contention for a spot in the best-of-five championship series next week. Also, either Austin (3-0) or St. Paul (2-0) will have to lose their remaining games. One will fall tonight when Austin plays St. Paul.
Sioux City, which eliminated Dubuque, 7-2, Thursday night, could be the key to the Bucs' slim playoff hopes. St. Paul finishes Sunday at Sioux City, while Austin is at Dubuque.
If two or more teams finish the first round with the same record, the tie will be broken on the basis of head-to-head competition, then goals for and goals against.
In three games, the Bucs have the most goals (26) among the contenders. Austin has 21 in three games and St. Paul only 10 in a pair of contests.
During the regular season, St. Paul won 5 of 8 games against Des Moines.
If Des Moines loses Saturday night, all but four Bucs will put their sticks and skates away for a year. Myles Hart, Scott Rupp, Scott Lauder, and Greg Shivley will compete with the USHL all-star squad in an international tournament April 6-14 in Switzerland.
Meanwhile, St. Paul's young star could prove a tough assignment for the Bucs. The defenseman collected 3 assists Sunday against Dubuque. As a prep, 5' 11", 175 pounder scored 26 goals and 26 assists in 18 games.
Housley is likely to be on the ice at the same time as his older brother, Larry, a forward.
The younger Housley isn't expected to terrorize the UHSL foes too long, however. He's expected to forego a pro contract for a scholarship at Minnesota or Wisconsin.
Also among top summer draft prospects is Tim Masher, a center out of East Grand Forks, Minnesota. The Bucs' Hart, Mark Pagnac, Karl Kringlen and Jeff Strandell all played with Mishler as a prep.
USHL Playoff Standings |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEAM | W | L | T | GF | GA | PTS |
| Austin | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 15 | 6 |
| St. Paul | 2 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 7 | 4 |
| Des Moines | 2 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 20 | 4 |
| Dubuque | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 17 | 2 |
| Bloomington | 1 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 21 | 2 |
| Sioux City | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 0 |
THURSDAY NIGHT'S GAMES
Austin 7, Des Moines 6
Sioux City 7, Dubuque 2
TONIGHT'S GAMES
Austin at St. Paul
SATURDAY NIGHT'S GAMES
St. Paul at Des Moines
Bloomington at Sioux City