He’s Looking for Light at the End of Tunnel

Defenseman Rich Pilon of the New York Islanders was struck in the right eye by a shot from Detroit Red Wing Brent Fedyk on Nov. 4. The injury caused a scar to form over Pilon’s retina and he is unable to focus on objects.

NHL rules require that players have at least 20-70 vision in each eye and Pilon, from a medical perspective, has no vision in his right eye.

Said Pilon, 21: “Sometimes I think to myself that I can get in awesome shape and be like Paul Coffey, be a star, and they’ll have to let me play,” he told the New York Post. “They’re just stupid thoughts.

“But if I get mad, I pump iron. You can’t drown in your sorrows. When you do that, life’s done and there are too many things in life, no matter how negative this is.”

Add NHL: Mike Smith, general manager of the Winnipeg Jets, on preseason tours of the Soviet Union by NHL teams: “I don’t think, if you’re trying to rebuild a hockey club, you should be doing it on the plains of the Ukraine.”

Last add NHL: Pat Burns, coach of the Adams Division’s Montreal Canadiens, on the weakness of the Patrick Division: “Whoever comes out of our division has a ticket to the Stanley Cup finals.”

Trivia time: On Feb. 23, 1906, who won a 20-round decision over Marvin Hart in Los Angeles for the heavyweight boxing title?

The real deal: Wally Backman, signed as a free agent by the Pittsburgh Pirates, says he won’t miss playing for the Minnesota Twins.

“After I was in the American League for a month, I knew that I only wanted to play in the National League,” Backman said.

“It wasn’t because of the caliber of ball. It was just the way the game is played (in the American League). It’s just sitting around, waiting for the big home run.”

Add real deal: Heavyweight champion Buster Douglas, visiting Las Vegas, said he favored that city as a fight site over Atlantic City, N.J. “I feel very comfortable here. Vegas is real; Atlantic City is just a carbon copy.”

Quiet . . . too quiet: Abe Lemons, Oklahoma City basketball coach, on the best way to distract a free-throw shooter: “What gets you is total quiet. Kids love to play with noise and a full house. That’s the reason we didn’t play well at Rice. There was never anyone there.

“Try total quiet a few times. After having the noise reverberating in your ears all game, all of a sudden, it’s quiet. That’s tough.”

Trivia answer: Tommy Burns.

Quotebook: Jimmy Connors, on recent criticism of John McEnroe’s on-court behavior: “What’s happened in the past has been far worse, not only from McEnroe, but from Connors and a lot of others. So why the fuss now?”