by John Austen

Lawton in Italy as hockey consultant
Les Lawton, head coach of the Concordia women’s hockey program, is in Lecco, Italy, where he is serving as a consultant to the Italian women’s national team as it prepares for the B Group World Championships.

The veteran Stingers coach will be overseas until April 7 evaluating the Italian program, helping the team get ready for the championship and mentoring the Italian coaching staff. He may also assist with long-term planning and the recruitment of players.

“It’s an honour to be invited to work with the Italian program,” Lawton said. “I’m eager to get started. It could be the beginning of a long-term relationship.”

There is a lot of interest in women’s hockey in the area right now. Lecco will host the World Championship, which gets under way March 31. Joining Italy at the championship are: Norway, Denmark, Great Britain, Netherlands and Slovakia.

Lawton is the winningest coach in women’s hockey history with a record of 501-158-63 for a winning percentage of .739. His Stinger teams have won two national championships and 14 Quebec titles. At Concordia, he has helped develop 14 Canadian and U.S. national team players.

Lawton was also the head coach of Team Canada in 1994 when the team defeated the U.S. 6-3 to win the gold medal at the World Championship in Lake Placid, N.Y.

Chris Page signs pro contract
Left wing Chris Page, the leading scorer on the 2002-03 Concordia men’s hockey season, has signed a professional contract with the Missouri River Otters of the United Hockey League.

The 24-year-old Drummondville native played his first professional game March 8. The following day he made a name for himself by tallying his first goal, adding two assists and then firing home the winning goal in a shootout. The goal gave Missouri a 5-4 victory over the Port Huron Beacons.

The River Otters play out of St. Charles, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. The team is currently in second place in the UHL’s Western Conference with 77 points in 68 games.

With the Stingers, Page scored 25 goals and 17 assists for 42 points in 24 regular season. He was second leading scorer in the OUA and seventh in the CIS. During his three-year career at Concordia, he collected 57 goals and 56 assists for 113 points in 88 games.

The River Otters have also attained the rights to Concordia captain Patrice Roy. The veteran centre is currently considering his professional options.

Kaye, Allard lauded
Sue Kaye and M.C. Allard, both fifth-year seniors with the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team, were named to the CIS All-Canadian team recently at the national championship awards dinner in Regina.

Kaye, a defender from Truro, N.S., is a two time All-Canadian and a three-time Quebec conference all-star. She was one of 10 defenders invited to Team Canada’s training camp in January 2003. She was also a member of the Canadian junior team in 1998-’99. With five goals and 14 assists in 26 games, Kaye is the leading scorer among defenders on the Stingers.

Allard, also a two-time All-Canadian, was named to the QSSF’s first all-star team in 2001, 2002 and 2003. This year, the Quebec City native was rewarded for an outstanding season that saw her finish first in QSSF scoring with 39 points in 20 games. She also plays on the Concordia women’s soccer team.