At Sentencing, Eagleson Asks for Forgiveness From Players

Alan Eagleson turned to some of the hockey stars he bilked and asked for their forgiveness Wednesday before heading off to jail to serve an 18-month sentence.

“I sincerely apologize for any harm that might have been caused and I hope I will have the opportunity in the future to make a positive contribution,” Eagleson, his raspy voice cracking, said as he turned to face former Toronto Maple Leaf greats Frank Mahovlich and Carl Brewer in a packed downtown Toronto courtroom.

The former hockey power broker was led away by security guards after pleading guilty to defrauding Hockey Canada, Labatt’s and the NHL Players Assn. of hundreds of thousands of dollars in Canada Cup revenue.

A day earlier, Eagleson pleaded guilty to three counts of mail fraud and was ordered to pay a fine of $700,000. That money will go to a trust to repay those he cheated.

Eagleson will not be eligible for parole for at least six months and likely will serve his sentence in a minimum-security facility.

Brewer, a longtime pursuer of Eagleson, was unperturbed by reports that Eagleson would soon be out on parole.

“One day, three days, three months--it doesn’t matter,” Brewer said. “He’s a convicted criminal.”

The Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto will vote March 31 on whether to strip Eagleson of his membership.

“To the best of my knowledge, this would be the first time ever for any of the major sports halls of fame that someone has been elected would have that membership revoked,” said Scotty Morrison, chairman of the hall.

Eagleson was inducted into the hall in 1989 as one of the game’s builders.

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Montreal Canadien goaltender Andy Moog lashed out at a compressed Olympic-year NHL schedule that he says is overtaxing players and leading to a rash of injuries.

Moog told the Montreal Gazette that fans are being shortchanged because players are getting injured or are unable to offer top performances because they are overtired.

“The players have this schedule, the Olympics, the All-Star game in Vancouver and, if that isn’t enough, all of us have letters telling us we might be getting an invitation to the world championships if our teams don’t make the playoffs,” Moog said.

“How much of this are we supposed to take? How much are the fans supposed to take?”

NHL Vice President Arthur Pincus disagreed.

“It’s unfortunate that injuries are always part of the game,” Pincus said. “As far as the schedule goes, the compression results in one more game every seven weeks.”

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Houston businessman Chuck Watson, trying to convince the NHL to grant him an option for a future franchise, is offering a $35-million loan to an Edmonton group to help keep the financially struggling Edmonton Oilers in the Canadian city, Houston television station KRIV reported Wednesday night.

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Right wing Doug Brown of the Detroit Red Wings signed a three-year contract with the team. Financial terms were not disclosed. . . . Ottawa Senator right wing Daniel Alfredsson, who sidelined for a month because of a broken right fibula, has received clearance to return to the lineup and will join the team in Denver for today’s game against the Colorado Avalanche.