Published: October 12, 2008 12:10 am      

Mike Mastovich | Newman! Crunch beat team to punch

Talk about being beaten to the aluminum foil punch.

On Tuesday, the Syracuse Crunch announced that the American Hockey League team would raise a banner featuring the No. 7 worn by Paul Newman’s character Reg Dunlop in the 1977 movie “Slap Shot.”

The ceremony was scheduled during the Crunch’s Saturday night game against Rochester at the War Memorial at Oncenter.

“We find it very appropriate that (in) an arena where parts of a legendary movie like ‘Slap Shot’ featuring a legendary actor like Paul Newman were filmed, that Newman’s legacy should be recognized and honored throughout the season,” Crunch President Howard Dolgon said in a release announcing the ceremony.

Nice touch.

It’s great to see Syracuse honor Newman, who died at age 83 on Sept. 26. After all, as Dolgon stated, part of the movie was filmed at that War Memorial.

Now, how about Cambria County War Memorial Arena and the Johnstown Chiefs honoring Newman? Most of the movie was filmed here, particularly at the War Memorial, in 1976.

New Chiefs GM Bill Bredin said there already are plans to honor the Oscar-winning actor.

Bredin officially took over on Sept. 30. He’s hit the ground running, attempting to shore up season-ticket sales and assemble a front-office staff while preparing for a regular season that opens Friday night.

With the much anticipated War Memorial study released this week and Chiefs’ management group Roustan United Arena Solutions’ W. Graeme Roustan pitching 30 business, community and government leaders for a potential $380,000 in new sponsorship, it’s understandable that news of a Newman tribute be out of the spotlight.

Bredin stressed that the Johnstown Chiefs won’t forget to memorialize one of the most famous Charlestown Chiefs.

“We are going to honor Paul Newman by wearing a No. 7 patch on all of our jerseys for the entire season,” Bredin said. “We do have something special planned for later in the season. We don’t want to let the cat out of the bag. We will announce that at a later date.”

Syracuse, one of the Chiefs’ new affiliates, set a high standard for honoring Newman.

The organization also extended an invitation to Newman’s widow, actress Joanne Woodward, to attend the banner-raising ceremony.

“I think if anyone should be ‘retiring’ his jersey it should be us, here in this building,” Bredin said. “I’m surprised they’d want to do that considering he wasn’t part of that organization. (But) I think it’s a great tribute to Paul Newman. Being that Syracuse is an affiliate, I’d rather see it done there than elsewhere.”

The Johnstown and Charlestown Chiefs are almost interchangeable in some hockey circles. Chiefs majority owner Neil Smith was excited about purchasing the so-called “Slap Shot” team back in 2002.

Opposing players and Chiefs skaters new to Johnstown marvel at the War Memorial and look for links to the movie, often reciting lines from the script.

This spring a “Slap Shot” gallery opened in the former pro shop. Last week, Tribune-Democrat editor Chip Minemyer wrote a column suggesting that the arena do more to have a visible “Slap Shot” presence.

Even Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin referred to the Chiefs – Johnstown and Charlestown – during her Saturday morning rally at the War Memorial.

“She took the stage and without any prompting, she came out and said, ‘It’s great to be here in Johnstown, home of the Johnstown Chiefs and in the arena where they shot “Slap Shot,’ ” said Bredin, who presented Palin with a No. 08 Johnstown Chiefs jersey prior to the rally. “I think that hit home on what the Chiefs mean to this community.”

The Chiefs must play catch-up to Syracuse. But it’s still worth unveiling some high profile plans to honor Newman and “Slap Shot.”