The NHL / Julie Cart : So Far, Quebec’s Rendez-Vous Is Floating in a Sea of Problems

There was a time when all of hockey was thrilled about Rendez-Vous, the two-game series between the NHL All-Stars and the Soviet Union’s national team in Quebec City.

Some of the thrill faded, though, with the revelation of ballot box stuffing by fans voting for the All-Stars, particularly in Quebec City.

Then there were complaints about the high cost of the players’ lodging.

And a wrangle over ticket allotment for the two-game series has just been resolved, Alan Eagleson, executive director of the NHL Players’ Assn. said late Tuesday night.

Eagleson had demanded that the location of seats for players’ families and friends be improved or the players would play elsewhere. Rendez-Vous president Marcel Aubut met his demand late Tuesday night, the Associated Press reported.

“Mr. Aubut and I confirmed that the NHLPA would receive 500 seats within the first 27 rows of the Colisee,” Eagleson said in a statement issued from his Toronto office. “Of these, 125 will be box seats and this will satisfy our requirement.

“Mr. Aubut agreed also to supply the NHL with an additional 500 seats in a breakdown that is satisfactory to Mr. (John) Ziegler (HL President).”

The 125 box seats are 50 more than Aubut had previously offered in the negotiations with the players. Eagleson said Aubut was able to persuade some Nordique season-ticket holders to give up seats.

One of the more petty aspects of the Rendez-Vous squabble, though, involves Abut’s parade.

He came up with the idea of a parade through the streets of Quebec City, featuring marching bands and a float from every NHL city. The organizers agreed to build the floats and then bill the clubs.

Everyone went along with that, at first. Now, Harold Ballard, owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, has decided that he doesn’t want the Toronto float to be in the parade. He has refused to pay the $15,000 construction costs for the float, which depicts the CN tower, City Hall and Maple Leaf Gardens.

Ballard says he doesn’t want his team involved in the parade because the Soviets are involved in the two-game series. Ballard didn’t say why he changed his mind--since he knew all along that the Soviets were involved--nor what he planned to do about the $15,000 bill.

Aubut has been criticized for excessive extravagance in the $10-million (Canadian) gala. Included in the week are a fashion show, a $350-a-plate gourmet dinner and a rock concert at the Colisee.

In addition, a local museum is being redecorated to resemble the Paris restaurant, Maxims, and Lee Iacocca, president of Chrysler Corp., is being flown in to address a businessmen’s lunch.

Figures released last week by the players’ association reveal that goaltenders are the lowest-paid players on Canadian teams in the NHL.

They are paid substantially less in Canada than forwards and defensemen, but they are paid substantially more on U.S. teams.

NHLPA figures show that the average base salary for a goalie in Canada is $153,077 (Canadian), compared to $169,967 for forwards and $155,018 for defensemen.

In the United States, goaltenders are at the top of the scale. Here, the average goalie makes $167,000, compared to $157,433 for forwards and $147,782 for defensemen.

Including all positions, the average salary in the NHL this season is $156,000, up from $145,000 last season.

NHL Notes The balloting is over in the fans’ All-Star voting for the Rendez-Vous, which is replacing the traditional All-Star game this season. After seven of the eight voting weeks, Pittsburgh center Mario Lemieux had a commanding lead over Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky, the NHL’s ranking star. Barring a blizzard of ballots for Gretzky in the final week, Lemieux will be the starting center. That kind of voting may prompt the league to take the balloting away from the fans. . . . A bumper sticker seen in Buffalo: “Go Bills--and take the Sabres with you.” . . . When Torrie Robertson of the Hartford Whalers woke up in Montreal General Hospital after recovering from surgery on his broken leg, he found that he and his roommate had something in common. His roommate? Chris Nilan of the Montreal Canadiens, who was recovering from surgery to repair torn ligaments. Hospital officials later separated the feisty forwards, but they got together again and shared a forbidden pizza. . . . Former NHL player Dave Tallon on the weather in Winnipeg: “I wouldn’t say it’s cold, but every year, Winnipeg’s athlete of the year is an ice fisherman.”