Today in history: January 4

January 4 in Indianapolis hockey history

1947: The Capitals suffer a strange loss to the St. Louis Flyersa. Don Clark’s shot hits the fence behind the net – where the glass would be today – pops up into the air, bounces off the top of the goal, hits Caps goaltender Red Almas in the chest and dribbles into the net for the game-winner to give St. Louis a 3-2 victory. 

1956: Leo Lamoureaux replaces John Sorrell as Chiefs’ coach. Leo would coach the team for parts of four seasons, leading them to the Turner Cup Finals in 1957 and the Turner Cup championship in 1958. 

1983: Dave Hanson – better known for his role in Slap Shot – scores six seconds into the third period to help the Checkers beat Salt Lake 8-6. It misses the CHL record by one second. 

Birthdays

Dmitri Nabokov: Center for the Ice for 48 games, primarily in the 1997-98 season, when he had six goals and 15 assists, and also scored twice in five playoff games. He was the 19th overall pick in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft, and had seven goals in 25 games with the Blackhawks in 1997-98, showing flashes of skill. He would be dealt to the New York Islanders the following year, and total 13 points in 30 games before returning to his native Russia to play in 2000. He retired after the 2008-09 season. A native of Novosibirsk, Russia, he is 35. 

Jamie Morris: Ice goaltender from 1999-2003. He got red hot in the 2000 Miron Cup Playoffs, replacing Benoit Thibert in net halfway through the opening-round series against the Tulsa Oilers and then catching fire. He backstopped a sweep of the first-place Oklahoma City Blazers in the conference finals, then did the same in a seven-game victory over Columbus in the Miron Cup Finals. He was the 2000 CHL Playoff Most Valuable Player. Morris played four seasons for the Ice -- out of their five in the CHL -- with a 52-51-13 record and a 3.43 GAA. He had 5 shutouts in 128 games, and naturally holds virtually all of the CHL Ice goaltending records. He was also an adept puckhandler, and had 14 assists, including seven in 2000-01. Upon his retirement as a player, Morris settled in Indianapolis and is a firefighter. He is also in his fifth season as the Indiana Ice's goaltending coach. A native of Winnipeg, Man., he is 38. 

Corey Waring: An amateur "playoff-only" signee for the Ice in 2000, Waring came to the Ice after playing at Western Michigan University. He was scoreless in six playoff games. He played the next two years in the WPHL, ECHL and CHL, including a 27-goal, 60-point season for CHL El Paso in 2001-02. He played senior hockey in his native Canada for four years after that. A native of Brantford, Ont., he is 36.