Junior Hockey

A junior hockey tournament held to promote goodwill suffered a diplomatic setback when a 12-year-old American whacked a Russian on the back of the neck with his stick. James Gabriel, of the Seattle Junior Admirals, was suspended from the Beaverton, Ore., tournament, and might be suspended from the sport regionally, for deliberately hitting Vladimir Kirsanov, 13, of the Khabarovsk Amur Pee-Wee Team, near the end of Sunday's game. Kirsanov, who was treated and released at a hospital, had received a minor penalty for bumping Gabriel with his forearm.

One of the Flyers' most intriguing prospects reported to rookie camp yesterday at the Skate Zone in Voorhees with a mended shoulder and a new frame of mind. Right winger Steve Downie, the Flyers' first-round draft choice in 2005, might not make the roster out of training camp, but he certainly figures in the team's future. The 20-year-old Downie, who had surgery in late April to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder, said he was feeling fine physically. In the past, his physical tools were never questioned, but Downie's fiery personality has resulted in several suspensions.

Eric Lindros needs the Winter Olympics like he needs a hockey stick to the head. He doesn't need the exposure. Lindros is already considered one of the very best players in the world. At 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, he's already a Canadian teenage heartthrob. Lindros doesn't need to prove his value. He's already gotten multimillion dollar offers from the National Hockey League. In fact, a serious injury at the Olympics could ruin that prospect. And the 18-year-old center doesn't need the practice.

Former NHL star Theo Fleury claims in his autobiography that he was sexually abused by a junior hockey coach in Winnipeg. The account is detailed in "Playing With Fire. " The book is to be released next week; excerpts appeared online. The former Calgary Flames forward accused Graham James of abuse. James was jailed in 1997 after admitting to sexually abusing two players on his junior hockey team, one being ex-NHL player Sheldon Kennedy. James served 3 1/2 years in prison and currently coaches junior hockey in Europe.

When Russ Farwell was named general manager of the Flyers in June, Ken Hitchcock called the promotion a feather in the cap of every Western Hockey League executive. Farwell was the GM of the WHL's Seattle Thunderbirds, and Hitchcock was the head coach at Kamloops, Seattle's toughest WHL rival. Although he saw Farwell's promotion as a positive sign for all junior hockey executives, Hitchcock wasn't sure what it meant for him. Less than two months later, Hitchcock discovered that it meant a promotion, when Farwell hired him to be an assistant to coach Paul Holmgren.

Pittsburgh Penguins assistant coach Bryan Trottier has filed for Chapter 7 protection under the U.S. bankruptcy code. In documents filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Pittsburgh, Trottier, a former player for the Penguins and New York Islanders, listed assets of $141,629 and debts of $9.5 million to 23 creditors. Under Chapter 7, a filer's assets are sold by the court to pay off creditors. Some of those owed invested in Trottier's ice-rink business in Port Washington, N.Y. The business, BT Skating Corp.

Two years ago, at age 17, Jean-Marc Pelletier reached a crossroads, one marked by tough choices and familiar to hundreds of teenagers in Canada and the United States. Should Pelletier - one of Quebec's best young hockey players, a standout goaltender at the College de Montreal and for Richelieu in the Quebec Midget Hockey League - join the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, for which he had been drafted? Or should he accept a scholarship to play at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y?

Ken Hitchcock, two victories away from the Stanley Cup, is having a wonderful time. The Dallas Stars coach meets with the media every day, twice on game days, and he always gives the impression that there is nowhere he would rather be. Even after the Stars' 2-1 loss to Buffalo Tuesday night, which sent the series back to Dallas for tonight's Game 5 tied at 2-2, Hitchcock was upbeat, expansive, calmly analytical. Discussing the gut-wrenching twists of the evening with him was like debating with your neighbor across the fence the performances in a movie you both have seen.

Ryan Sittler has a lot to like about his life. He has played hockey all over the world, has won a full scholarship to one of America's finest universities, has earned a regular shift on an experienced team that has a great chance to win a national championship, has played his home games in front of rowdy capacity crowds at a wonderful old arena . . . and will have a juicy contract waiting for him when he decides to turn professional. The last part is the problem. If Sittler were any other 20-year-old sophomore, he could complete his collegiate eligibility and join the pros in two years, when he is 22 years old - and good and ready.

Art Dorrington has never considered himself a pioneer for black Americans in hockey. It just happened to work out that way. Dorrington was the first black American to skate professionally in the United States. That was in 1950, when he joined the Atlantic City Gulls of the Eastern Hockey League. "It was an honor to me, but I was at right place at the right time," Dorrington said. "I was doing what I wanted to do. Just the way it happened. " These days, Dorrington, 73, runs a hockey program in Atlantic City that reaches underprivileged youngsters in the black community and puts them on the ice at Flyers Skate Zone, a few blocks off the boardwalk.

BRAYDEN SCHENN has been quiet. Since Feb. 16, Schenn has netted just one goal for the Flyers over his last 13 games, including last night's 3-0 victory over New Jersey. Through 41 games, Schenn has collected just 12 points - the same total as Chris Pronger, who has not played since Nov. 19. But Schenn would rather wait until the season ends before being judged on his up-and-down rookie year. He says he still has a few tricks left up his sleeve. "It's impossible to review your season, yet," Schenn said.

Mystx and Xcalibur, two local club programs, are among the teams in a new junior indoor field hockey league that plays its games at the 422 Sportsplex near Pottstown. The under-19 Junior Premier Indoor League, sanctioned by the U.S. Field Hockey Association, has 12 of the top indoor clubs in the country from Connecticut to Virginia. The Mystx team, coached by former Mount St. Joseph coach Tina Reinprecht, is based out of Feasterville in Bucks County. Xcalibur, with co-coaches Brian Hope and Tammy Eisenhard, plays out of the Sportsplex.

Jack Campbell made 22 saves and the United States remained unbeaten at the world junior hockey championship with a 3-0 victory over Switzerland yesterday in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Chris Kreider, Matt Donovan and A.J. Jenks scored for the Americans (2-0), who opened the tournament with an equally impressive, 7-3 win over Slovakia on Saturday. Benjamin Conz made 46 saves for Switzerland (0-1). With a partisan crowd behind them, the Swiss were the stronger team in the opening period, generating more scoring chances than the Americans.

Former NHL star Theo Fleury claims in his autobiography that he was sexually abused by a junior hockey coach in Winnipeg. The account is detailed in "Playing With Fire. " The book is to be released next week; excerpts appeared online. The former Calgary Flames forward accused Graham James of abuse. James was jailed in 1997 after admitting to sexually abusing two players on his junior hockey team, one being ex-NHL player Sheldon Kennedy. James served 3 1/2 years in prison and currently coaches junior hockey in Europe.

This has been a season of firsts for Claude Giroux. He made an NHL team, scored his first goal, is recognized as one of the up-and-coming rookies in the game and now he is looking forward to his first NHL playoff series. "I'm very excited," Giroux said. "I've been watching playoffs since I was a little kid. It was my favorite hobby. I wouldn't miss a game, even the late games on CBC. I would never miss them. It's just exciting hockey and I can't wait to get my first crack at it. " If Giroux's first playoff experience goes as well as his first NHL regular season, he should be more than just a kid in his first postseason.

L UCA SBISA was getting a stick ready in the Verizon Center, long before most of his teammates had arrived. As he was putting the finishing touches on the tape, a line of Flyers began arriving, led by Mike Richards . Without looking directly at Richards, Sbisa began hopping up and down and grinning. Richards got the message and he began hopping up and down until, at just the right moment, the two hopped into each other, a kind of sideways chest thump. The little byplay brought an ear-to-ear grin from the Flyers captain.

Jaroslav Janus led Slovakia to a surprising quarterfinal victory over the United States in the world junior hockey championship, making 44 saves in a 5-3 decision yesterday in Ottawa. Slovakia will face Sweden in the semifinals today. In the second quarterfinal, Russia beat the Czech Republic, 5-1, to set up a semifinal against four-time defending champion Canada. The victory was Slovakia's first over the United States in nine meetings in the event. Ian Cole, Jonathan Blum and James van Riemsdyk scored for the United States, with van Riemsdyk, a Flyers prospect, scoring with goalie Thomas McCallum pulled for an extra attacker.

The United States coasted into the world junior hockey championship playoffs with a 12-0 rout of Kazakhstan last night in Ottawa. The United States will play Canada in a matchup of 3-0-0 teams today, with the top spot in Group A on the line. Kazakhstan (0-3-0) will head to the relegation round. Aaron Palushaj led the United States with two goals and two assists. Colin Wilson also had two goals, while James van Riemsdyk, a Flyers prospect, and Ian Cole each had a goal and two assists.

One of the Flyers' most intriguing prospects reported to rookie camp yesterday at the Skate Zone in Voorhees with a mended shoulder and a new frame of mind. Right winger Steve Downie, the Flyers' first-round draft choice in 2005, might not make the roster out of training camp, but he certainly figures in the team's future. The 20-year-old Downie, who had surgery in late April to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder, said he was feeling fine physically. In the past, his physical tools were never questioned, but Downie's fiery personality has resulted in several suspensions.

Semen Varlamov made 25 saves and Russia beat Switzerland, 6-0, yesterday in Leksand, Sweden, to retain the Group B lead in the world junior hockey championship. Ilya Zubov, Alexander Bumagin, Igor Makarov, Evgeni Ryasensky, Artem Anisimov and Vyachelslav Voinov scored for Russia (2-0). In the other Group B game, Teemu Lakso scored twice to help Finland beat the Czech Republic, 6-2, in Mora, Sweden. Belarus (1-0), Finland (1-1) and Switzerland (1-1) were tied for second with three points, followed by the Czech Republic (0-2)