Saturday, January 29, 2011

Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Walleye (1/29/11)

After a rough loss last night the Blades rolled into Toledo looking for a much needed road win. Although the Walleye have spent most of their sophomore year struggling to find what they had last year, they have been turning things around lately.

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The question was, who would want it more?

Starting line: Graham, Paquet, Ibeault, Beca, Lemieux, Goepfert.

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The Blades opened things up right when Francis Lemieux scored his 21st of the year at the 2:51 mark. The Blades kept up the pressure for most of the period.

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They were rewarded when they were able to (finally) convert on the power play around the nine minute mark, with Alex Imbeault's 25th of the season. The Blades were able to keep the pressure up, kill two penalties, and pretty much dominate the entire period. When the buzzer sounded at the end of the period, the Blades led 2-0.

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The SOG really showed their dominance in the period. They had a season leading 21 shots on net, to the Walleyes 10.

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The Blades kept the pressure up in the opening minutes of the second. They were rewarded 4 minutes in when Imbeault scored his second goal of the game on the first official shot of the period to make it 3-0. That goal seemed to wake up the Walleye who began to respond with a lot of physical play.

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It didn't matter though, the Blades responded to that with another goal from Drew Larman to make it 4-0. A few minutes later, the Blades scored once again on the power play with a tip in from Mike McKenzie to make it 5-0. Unfortunately, Toledo finally woke up they ruined goalie Bobby Goepfert's shut-out to make it 5-1, they made it 5-2 secnds later. Luckily, the period ended before the Walleye could get any more goals, and the score at the end of the period remained 5-2.

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You had to hope going into the third that the Blades realized that Toledo was ready to pounce on any opportunity they were given. Too bad the Blades didn't realize it right away.

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The Walleye took advantage and forward Tyler Doig netted the power play goal, and a natural hat-trick, to make it 5-3. Thankfully, that woke the Blades up. Imbeault netted yet another goal, and a hat-trick of his own to give the Blades a three goal cushion about a minute after that. You could tell how much that goal took the standing room only Toledo crowd out of the game. What sounded like a raucous atmosphere over the radio broadcast quickly turned to little to no noise. Lemieux added the final nail in the coffin two minutes after Imbeault's goal with one of his own to make it 7-3.

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There was no other scoring after that, but there was plenty of action, including a between the benches fight between one of the Walleye and Mathieu Roy. In the end, the Blades won 7-3. The game sheet is here. All photos are from the 11/17 and 11/19 games against the Walleye.

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(Still one of the coolest pictures I've ever taken)

Some thoughts:
- The Blades listed to me! They signed goalie Shane Owen to a try-out contract.
- Imbeault was one of the best pick-up of the off season, the others? Lemieux and Raymond.
- Thanks to Greenville losing in Reading the Blades' win allows them to tie for division lead. Unfortunately, the Royals now move into first in the conference with that win.
- Goepfert had another solid night, timely saves, and he came up big when the Blades needed him most.
- It would be nice to see him get a little more support though, they have a bad habit of forgetting to help him out for big chunks of time.
- I really can't wait until we get a legitimate enforcer (Hendrikx or Fukala I don't care who) back on the ice. It's getting a little absurd.

The Blades have one more game in Toledo Sunday afternoon at 4:00. A win could give them the lead over the Road Warriors and maybe put them in a position to challenge the Royals. I doubt the Walleye will roll over easily. It's going to be good.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Wings (1/28/11)

Sorry for the unannounced break. I figured I needed an all-star break of my own. Also, I was a lazy pants all week and opening my laptop was too much effort. I'm back though, so you don't have to cry yourselves to sleep anymore (I guess I'm delusional as well as lazy, huh?).

The Everblades play their first game back from the all-star break on the road against a struggling Kalamazoo team. With the ECHL handing down several fines and suspensions from the wild game with the Royals today the Blades have to play without some key players and coach Poss. The question is, can they overcome the missing pieces and beat the K-Wings?

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(This never gets old)

Starting line: Graham, Paquet, Beca, Imbeault, Lemieux, Goepfert

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Both teams started out strong, with a lot of back and forth play. Eventually, the Wings were able to draw the penalty. Thanks to some tremendous saves from goalie Bobby Goepfert, the Blades were able to kill the penalty. A few minutes later, they were able to go on the power play.

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Unfortunately, K-Wings goalie Ryan Nie, was able to deny some excellent chances. Thanks to both goalies standing on their heads, the score at the end of the period was 0-0. The Blades led the shots 11-9.

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After such a strong showing in the first period it was obvious the goalies would be deciding which team wins. Unfortunately, the K-Wings were able to draw first blood 6:31 into the first period to take the 1-0 lead. The Blades had a close call minutes later when Nie barely made a save. The Wings put on lots of pressure, but the Blades were able to hold them off.

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After failing to convert on the power play, even though the net was wide open, the Blades took a stupid penalty to nullify their power play. After a brief surge from the K-Wings the Blades were able to once again go on the penalty in the closing minutes of the period. Unfortunately, the Blades weren't able to convert in the last few minutes. When the buzzer sounded the Blades still trailed 1-0, but had 46 seconds left on their power play when the third period starts.

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Although the Blades weren't able to convert on the remainder of the power play. They really started to put on major pressure in the opening minutes. Unfortunately, the pressure was cut short by Ross Carlson taking a slashing penalty. The K-Wings were able to get it past Goepfert a few seconds into the period to make it 2-0. Shortly after that, Alex Hutchings took on one of the K-Wings in a fight.

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Sadly, instead using the fight to shift momentum, the Blades took a stupid penalty right away. Although they were able to kill off the penalty, they continued to allow the K-Wings to put on pressure. They did get a power play in the closing minutes, and even pulled Goepfert for the 6 on 4, but they couldn't convert. In fact, they gave up an empty net goal thanks to a weak turn-over. The final buzzer sounded and the Blades had lost 3-0. The game sheet is here. Photos are from the 11/29/10 game at Germain and the full set can be found here.

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Some thoughts:
- Ryan Nie was a big reason the K-Wings won, he denied 41 shots!
- It seems the break was good for Bobby Goepfert, despite the loss, he had a really great game.
- They need to start converting on the power play. They can't let the opportunity be wasted anymore.
- What will really solve the problems they're having? Three words- Crash the net.

The Blades will now get right on a bus and drive all night to Toledo where they play again tomorrow night. Hopefully, they can rebound like they always seem to and get some wins.

Monday, January 24, 2011

FGCU HOCKEY & NAPLES DAILY NEWS

Club hockey: FGCU hosts Gulf Coast Clash » Naples Daily News
Club hockey: FGCU hosts Gulf Coast Clash » Naples Daily News

THANK YOU WAGNER PHOTOGRAPHY & FGCU ICE HOCKEY VOLUNTEERS MELISSA BELL (DIRECTOR OF MARKETING) AND KAITLYN BRANDT FOR THEIR HELP WITH THIS SUBMISSION TO NAPLES DAILY NEWS.

GO EAGLES!

News and Notes

Here's a quick round-up of the news you need to know.

- That little brawl the Blades had Saturday (which I missed, grrrr) made Puck Daddy. That's the third post on them this season!

- A re-cap of the game on Saturday.

- Photos from Wednesday and Friday are up on Flickr. I love this one of Mike Egener.

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- I put two videos up on the blogs YouTube page.

- I love this article on Bobby Raymond. He's got to be the most underrated player in the ECHL right now.

- If you get the NHL network you'll be able to see the ECHL All-Star game. It's on at 6 pm Thursday.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Royals (1/21/11)

 After Wednesday's domination there was no doubt the Royals wouldn't just lie back and take another beating. The question was, would the Blades ease up? Or would they come back even stronger?



The Blades had a lot to gain from a win. Walking away with two points would tie the Blades with the League leading Greenville  Road Warriors.

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The Royals came out with all guns blazing in the first. They put on major pressure and saw that pay off 2:29 into the game when the slipped one past goalie Bobby Goepfert. They continued to dominate throughout the rest of the period and once again saw their hard work pay off with a power play goal on a Matheiu Roy boarding penalty. The Blades had no real answer for the Royals play. They saw themselves trailing 2-0 when they left the ice.

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The best thing about the second period was seeing the Blades slowly wake up. They slowly started to pressure the Royals more and more. Eventually, it paid of when, in the closing minutes, Ross Carlson scored his seventh goal of the year to make it a 2-1 game.


Unfortunately, the ref decided that was a good time to make two B.S. calls on the Everblades. This included a call  on Lawson for, I kid you not, throwing the stick, and then called Lemieux, who was already in the box, for a game misconduct. He was obviously not happy with that call, and he let the Refs know how he felt. They of course decided to tack on an abuse of the officials during the intermission. Of course the Royals were able to convert on the 5 on 3 that was dropped in their laps to make it 3-1. They weren't able to convert on the 5 on 4 in the closing minutes so the score remained 3-1 at the end of the period.


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After being on the receiving end of some unfair treatment, the Everblades responded the best way any hockey team could. They put on major pressure and kept the Royals on their toes. David Fischer scored his second of the year at 7:38 and a little over seven minutes later Carlson scored yet again to tie it up 3-3. That seemed to wake the Royals up, but it was a little too late. Amazingly, the Blades put a total of 22 shots on net in the third, the Royals only managed 8. When the final buzzer sounded it was still tied up 3-3. That meant only one thing... over time!

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After such a great comeback you could tell the momentum had shifted in the Everblades favor. The Royals tried their hardest, but looked a little tired and sluggish. Both teams had some great chances, but perhaps the best was a wrap-around attempt from Cedric McNicoll (at least I think it was him, I could be wrong). With neither team able to score it meant it was shoot-out time. I do have video of this, and hopefully, I'll have it up sometime Saturday afternoon.


The Blades elected to shoot first.
  • Alex Imbeault- No goal
  • Yannick Riendeau- No goal
  • Cedric McNicoll- No goal
  • Chris Blight- No goal
  • Matt Beca- No goal
  • Ben Gordon- No goal
  • Tony Mosey- GOAL!
  • Eric Castonguay- No goal
  • Mike McKenzie- No goal
  • Casey Haines- DENIED!
Thanks to the newest Everblade, the team was able to cap off an awesome comeback, and win a game they really deserved to win.

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    Some Thought:
    - The officiating in the ECHL continues to be terrible, at some point something will have to be done. There was no reason Matt Beca should have been speared in the head while the Ref watched.

    - Lemieux second game misconduct was for abuse of the officials. He may be getting a call from the league tomorrow. There is the real possibility that he can be suspended for a game or two.

    - Good news time! Greenville lost their game tonight, which evens the Blades up with them for 1st place in the division.

    - Mosey's turning out to be a nice signing, he's been producing pretty well so far.

    - Goepfert had some early struggles, but seemed to shut it all down in the third, OT, and the shoot-out.

    - I don't recall seeing much shot-blocking. Not a good bad habit for the Blades to be picking up right now.

    - The Blades have strung together 4 straight wins. Nice to see them bounce back from their rough patch.

    The Blades have one more game against the Royals Saturday night. It's going to be interesting to see who comes out on top.

    Friday Links

    It's Friday, and around here that means one thing... links!

    - In case you missed it, Justin Bourne had a great post on Puck Daddy about fighting when your teams on the losing end of a blow-out.

    - Your Wikipedia hockey page for today- "The Hockey Song"

    - I must own this hockey chair! If only it wasn't more expensive than the customized jersey I'm saving up for.

    - I think a link to Third String Goalie has become mandatory on Fridays around here. Today's is a look at the 88-89 Penguins jersey. What better way to look at it than to remember Mario Lemieux's five goals five ways?

    - This look at the origins of hockey is very interesting.

    - I can't believe I forgot this when I did my book list a couple of posts ago, but I also received Eddie Shore and That Old Time Hockey for Christmas.

    - A kitty and a reference to one of my favorite movies? Yes please.

    funny pictures - You must cut down the mightiest  tree in the forest ...
    see more Lolcats and funny pictures

    Thursday, January 20, 2011

    Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Royals (1/19/11)

    After knocking out the Everblades in the playoffs last year on our ice, the Royals have become a little bit disliked around the arena. The fact that they're second in the conference standings, and one of the few teams in the East with more points makes stealing some wins from them important.


    They've been strong over the last ten games, going 6-1-2-1. The Everblades, on the other hand,  have been struggling through a slump that's led to a 3-6-0-1 record in their last ten.  It's not all doom and gloom though, the Blades have been showing signs of improvement. Add to that the return of Cedric McNicoll from Charlotte and Elging Reid from the IR and there are glimmers of hope.


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    Both teams started out strong in the first. They traded chances until the 7:39 mark, when Matt Beca was able to put the Blades on the board first to give them the 1-0 lead. Less than a minute later the royals responded to tie it up. The Blades didn't give up though, and Beca scored yet another goal to once again give the Blades the 2-1 lead.Unfortunately, two minutes later the Royals answered back to make it a 2-2 tie. A minute after that Alex Imbeault was able to convert on a power play to give the Blades a one goal lead for the third time that game. Thankfully, no one else scored, and the score at the end of the period was 3-2.

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    The second period did not start off very well for the Everblades. They had to begin by finishing off a penalty from the first. Then, a Royals player earned a penalty shot on a hooking call. He was able to get it past Goepfert and make it a 3-3 game. That goal seemed to shake the blades and they scrambled for the next few minutes of play. Thankfully, the hockey gods were on the Blades side and they didn't let the Royals take the lead. Eventually, they woke up, and Mike McKenzie was able to convert on the power play to make it 4-3. Imbeault made it 5-3 about a minute later. At the close of the period the Blades held a comfortable 5-3 lead on the Royals.

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    With a whole 20 minutes of hockey left to go, there was no question the Royals would work their hardest to get back. They traded many chances, but neither team was able to take advantage until about six minutes in when Cedric McNicoll was able to convert on the power play to make it 6-3. That power play was thanks to a boarding call as well as several roughing calls made on the Royals. Both teams went back to trading chances until the Royals were able to convert on a power play that was courtesy of a Phil Paquet hook. In the closing minutes the Royals pulled their goalie, during another power play no less, but weren't able to use the advantage in their favor. In fact, it worked against them. Mathieu Roy was able to feed a pass to Alex Imbeault and he was able to fire it into the empty net to earn a hat-trick. The final score when the buzzer sounded was 7-4. The game sheet is here.

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    Some Thoughts:
    - That was a big win. With Greenville's struggles lately, the Blades can take the top spot in the division and conference with two more wins (and two Greenville losses).

    - When someone gets a hat-trick you're supposed to throw your hats! Geez people it's a semi-rare event!

    - Matt Beca and Alex Imbeault are going to be in the Reading goalies nightmares tonight. He could not stop them!

    - 3 for 6 on the power play! Good to see the Blades get back that aspect of their game, especially against a team prone to stupid penalties.

    - It was obvious the Royals were frustrated. They took some stupid roughing penalties and their goalie was chopping at anything that went near his crease.

    - Except for the few minutes after the penalty shot the Blades played pretty well.

    - Now, I'm the biggest Geppy homer you'll ever meet, but I noticed Bobby Goepfert was not as solid as he usually is, he seemed to struggle at certain points. Hopefully, it was just a bad night.

    - It would be really nice if we didn't give up goals right after we score. It's hard to hold onto a lead that way.

    Tuesday, January 18, 2011

    YouTube Tuesday

    Happy Tuesday everyone. The Blades are back in town for a week of games against the Reading Royals. It's a big series for so many reasons. Hopefully, we can get some healthy players back. Who am I hoping for? Some kid named Jared Staal...



    You may remember the 12/22 game for being the one that had the line brawl and total domination of the Gladiators. It was quite a game. Hopefully, the next three will be too. Although, I'm not in a hurry to see a line brawl and goalie fight again. That was a bit scary.

    Monday, January 17, 2011

    News and Notes

    First let's get the exciting new out of the way. Former Everblades goalie Anton Khudobin had his third NHL start last night. He managed to earn a shut-out against the Canucks! Here are two links to catch you up on how he did.

    - Hockey Wilderness has the game re-cap here, and their Wilderness Walk (their collection of Wild story links) here.

    - Over at Puck Daddy, he earned the second star of the night.

    - At NHL.com he was named one of the three stars of the night, and they included some great pictures of him in their photo gallery.

    On to our current Everblades.

    - Here's the NDN game re-cap from Saturdays game.

    - This story on David Fischer is a must read. If you don't get a little misty eyed there's something wrong with you.

    - I forgot to mention I got pictures up on Flickr from the Cincinnati series, 1/5 and 1/7. I also put pictures up from last season that I found buried on my hard drive. The Royals game is here and the game against the Jackals is here.

    - Mike McKenzie has another post up on his blog. It's a good one.

    This week's series will be a big one. The last time the Royals came to town they crused the Blades playoff chances. Hopefully, we some players will be healthy enough to be moved from the IR. We'll need them.

    Friday, January 14, 2011

    Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Stingrays (1/14/11)

    The Everblades rolled into South Carolina on a six game losing streak. The Stingrays, on the other hand, have been riding high on a six game win streak. The question is, will both teams get to seven, or will they both start over from scratch?

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    Both teams came out strong in the first period. Both teams traded chances, but in the end, the Everblades were able to score first when Matt Becca stuffed a dirty goal past the Stingrays goalie at the 12:43 mark. The Stingrays responded four minutes later when an odd deflection shot past goalie Bobby Goepfert. Neither team was able to get ahead, and the period ended with both teams tied 1-1. The Blades led the SOG 11-8.

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    Once again, both teams came out strong to start the period, but it all started to turn around when the Everblades found themselves on the power play.A simple deflection off of Mathieu Roy's skate gave the Everblades their first power play goal in a long time and the lead. Exactly a minute later Drew Larman was able to give the Blades a more comfortable lead as well as earn his first of the year on a nifty little deflection that was originally credited to Mike Egener. The Blades weren't done though, at the 12:16 mark, Mike Egener decided to get the goal he lost back by ripping one in on the power play. Tony Mosey, one of the recent Everblades signings, got his first professional goal on an unassisted tally three minutes later to give the Blades the most comfortable lead they've seen in a while.When the 2nd period ended the Blades left the ice with a comfortable 5-1 margin on the Stingrays, they trailed the SOG 11-13.

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    After a strong showing from the Blades it was obvious the Stingrays were going to try to make one of their own. Unfortunately, they chose to do this by playing rough. This of course led to them taking three penalties in a span of about eight minutes. When it was obvious they weren't coming back they decided to take rough to a whole new level of goon. Their players attempted to involve Evgeny Timkin who made the wise, and very disciplined, decision to say niet to their funny business. When that didn't work, they used a stop by Goepfert as an excuse to create a scrum. The highlight? The Stingray who chose to punch Ed Snetsinger, one of the least aggressive Everblades, in the back of the head. The Everblades weren't able to make them pay on any of their power play chances, and Gopefert remained strong to keep the score unchanged. The final was 5-1, and the Blades once again trailed SOG 5-11. They broke the Stingrays 6 game winning streak, and ended their own 6 game losing streak.

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    Some Thoughts:
    - Who said DON"T PANIC? I'm going to go gloat now.
    - Tony Mosey got his first professional point, and his first professional goal!
    - Might be premature to call this, but it sounds like he and Drew Larman have a little chemistry.
    - Kevin Fukala did not play, he and Mike Egener were both fined for the little fight after the game yesterday.
    - Great to see the Blades break the losing streak, that was going on way too long.

    The Blades return to Gwinnett for a game tomorrow. Hopefully, they keep up the solid play that won them the game.

    GULF COAST CLASH

    THE EAGLES ARE BACK AND ARE HOSTING THE GULF COAST CLASH. A SIX GAME, 3 DAY WEEKEND OF ACHA DIVISION II HOCKEY.

    FGCU HOSTS:
    Boston College on January 14th at 8:30 PM
    Michigan State on January 15th at 8:30 PM
    Colorado University on January 16th at 7 PM

    ADMISSION=FREE
    PARKING=FREE
    FGCU T-SHIRTS=. . .FREE
    (Please come with your student i.d; general admission and non-FGCU fans pay $5 per game)

    GAME DAY SPONSORS INCLUDE:
    Ignite (Friday)
    Kappa Alpha Order fraternity & FGCU GREEK LIFE (Saturday)

    For the same FREE or $5 price, come watch:
    Michigan State vs. Colorado University Jan. 14th at 6 PM
    Colorado University vs. Michigan State Jan. 15th at 6PM
    Boston College vs. Michigan State Jan. 16th at 4:30 PM

    Be loud, be proud & GO EAGLES!


    6 GAME, 3 DAY WEEKEND SCHEDULE

    Friday Links

    Happy Friday people! Here's your usual set of links.

    - Big news! All reports point to former Everblades goalie Anton Khudobin starting in net tonight for the Wild as they take on the Avalanche. You should be able to catch it if you have Center Ice or Gamecenter. If you don't you can check out the Wild's beat writer on Twitter for live game updates. It's always exciting to see a former Everblade make it to the big time, and hopefully, this is just the beginning for him.

    - How awesome is this? A working hand-held hockey video game from the 80's. I have to admit that calling something from the 80's vintage does make me a bit sad.

    - The ECHL officially opened it's store. It's a crappy and hard to navigate as I thought it would be.

    - This story is pretty cool.

    - I loved this look at the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. Just another thing to add to my to do list.

    - Your Wikipedia hockey page for today- "Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey"

    - Third String Goalie is as awesome as always. This time, they cover one of my favorite players right now.

    - I hate when this happens...

    funny pictures - Ralph broke his glasses and had to wear his extra pair...
    see more Lolcats and funny pictures

    Thursday, January 13, 2011

    Re-Cap: Everblades vs. Road Warriors (1/13/11)

    It's no secret that the injury plagued Everblades have been struggling lately. Luckily for them, the Road Warriors haven't been doing much better. All the Blades need is some simple play and defense.

    Converting on the power play wouldn't hurt either.

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    The first period started out as you would expect from two desperate teams, lots of back and forth without too much success. Then the Blades got called for too many men. The Road Warriors had some chances, but none of them were too good. Then it happened.

    Ross Carlson managed to get a breakaway, and score a short-handed goal to give the Blades the 1-0 lead.

    The Road Warriors came back hard, forcing the Blades to stay in their zone for an extended period of time. They were eventually able to tie it up on a weird play that saw the puck rebound off of the ref's skate on to a dump-in right onto a Road Warriors stick. The subsequent shot bounced up in the air off of goalie Jaroslav Janus and was batted in by a glove. Unfortunately, it's not the Blades month, and the ref ruled it a good goal to give the Road warriors the tie. Less than a minute later, the Road Warriors were able to take the lead a minute later with a power play goal on a Drew Larman hooking penalty.

    The final score at the end of the first saw the Blades down 2-1. The Blades trailed in SOG 7-13.

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    The 2nd was relatively quiet, some great chances, and a post each for each team. The Blades did take quite a few stupid penalties, and the Road Warriors were not called on several penalties. In the end, thanks to both goalies playing solid, the score remained 2-1. The Blades continued to trail the SOG for the period 7-12.

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    As much as I'd like to write about the Everblades amazing comeback, it didn't happen. The Blades played pretty strong, but two goals from the Road Warriors in the latter half of the period put the nail in the coffin. The final score when the buzzer sounded was 4-1 and the Blades sixth straight loss.

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    Time for some thoughts:
    - Yes the roster is depleated, but so is most of the rosters in the ECHL. This should not be a crutch.
    - Janus was the only thing that kept the Blades in the game. He was left out to dry way too many times.
    - I'm obviously biased, but the officiating was terrible.
    - For some reason Kevin Fukala felt the need to get into a meaningless fight after the buzzer sounded. Totally pointless and will probably earn him a suspension the Blades don't need right now.
    - The Everblades just can't catch a break or get any luck. Sheesh.
     - Wish I could tell you how successful the new Olidis guy is (he's apparently a face-off specialist), too bad the ECHL doesn't think that's a stat worth tracking, along with TOI and blocked shots.
    - Slumps suck .

    Honestly, the only way to express my current feeling toward the hockey gods is with this kitty.

    funny pictures of cats with captions
    see more Lolcats and funny pictures

    One more game tomorrow against the super hot South Carolina Stingrays. Their slump earlier this year has completely turned around, and their currently on a six game win streak. I'm so not excited.

    Wednesday, January 12, 2011

    DON'T PANIC

    I'm going to have to stop with all these literary references before this blog gets all high brow and fancy.

    So... five straight losses. Sucks right? Yesterday's was particularly cruddy considering they were winning when I left for a grocery run only to turn the radio on in the car to hear they let the Gladiators storm back. Before turning that radio back on I had already written a post crowing about how the Blades are winning with a gutted roster, and how awesome they were.

    Obviously, I scrapped that plan.

    Admittedly, I'm a little grumpy about the recent string of losses and my under-preforming NHL teams are not helping matters. But, you know what? It could be worse.

    We could be on our tenth straight loss, right Gwinnett?
    We could have only 21 points in the standings, the league worst record, right Reign?
    Most importantly, we could still have Malcolm Cameron coaching.

    Seriously, we're not in a terrible position. The injuries gutting the roster are not helping, he inability to convert on the power play is killing us, but we're still in a good position in the conference.

    Besides, how many of you remember the 08-09 season? The Everblades dominated just about every team they played, had the best record, then disappeared in the playoffs (I honestly still have nightmares of that puck going right over Leggio's shoulder).

    I'd much rather they slump now, let the injured guys get healthy, and come back better than ever and looking for blood (and points).

    From now on, I'm pulling this out when I start hearing any rumblings. You've been warned.

    funny pictures - I've had it up to here  with your otter nonsense
    see more Lolcats and funny pictures

    Tuesday, January 11, 2011

    YouTube Tuesday

    Happy Tuesday people! I've got two videos for you today. Both come from Saturdays game. The first, I'm posting without comment.



    For the second, I will only say... look who's becoming all tough and gritty on us.



    You can see a much better video of this on the Everblades website, looks like the guy McKenzie ended up fighting wasn't the guy he was planning on taking on.

    Humorous Pictures
    see more Lolcats and funny pictures

    There is a game tonight at least. This will be the first time the Everblades take on the Gladiators since the big line brawl and goalie fight. It should be good.

    Friday, January 7, 2011

    Friday Links

    Happy Friday everyone. Here's a heaping helping of wonderful links!

    First up, some Everblades news.
    http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=5842485777230239903
    - First up, the ECHL announced great news yesterday. Mike McKenzie was named rookie of the month. It's great to see his hard work is finally getting noticed.

    Owly Images

    - In other big news... Ernie Hartlieb is coming out of retirement and will play in tonight's game!

    - Finally, it appears the Everblades have decided to take a second chance on Kevin Fukala. I'm going to link to this story on him without any comment.

    Now, on to our regularly scheduled links.

    - Found some hidden gold over at the Third String Goalie blog.

    - My first thought upon seeing these vintage hockey gloves was "How Cool!" My second thought, "Good lord I bet those smell like 50 years worth of sweaty hockey players."

    - Your Wikipedia hockey page for today- "Power Hockey"

    - I love these ideas for an improved NHL All-Star game from Hockey Broad.

    - I know I usually post kitties, but how could I resist that face?

    funny pictures of dogs with captions
    see more dog and puppy pictures

    Thursday, January 6, 2011

    FGCU Ice Hockey vs Virginia Tech

    Your D2 Eagles showcase their #1 Southern ranked talent JANUARY 7th & 8th vs Virginia Tech. Games times are at 830 PM at Germain Arena. . .

    . . .Parking is FREE for all
    and Admission is FREE for FGCU students and $5 for non.

    Be loud, be proud & GO EAGLES!



    Wednesday, January 5, 2011

    Top 10 Hockey Books

    I had a request yesterday that I just couldn't resist. I realize I'm always making recommendations for hockey books, so making a top ten of my favorite hockey books was a brilliant idea. I'm going to preface this by saying that this is by no means a list of the greatest hockey books ever written. In fact, this is more an example of where my hockey interests lie.

    10. The Code, by: Ross Bernstein- Perhaps a bit outdated now, but still really interesting for the perspective a lot of the players provide. Still a good look into why fighting in hockey happens and why it'll be around for awhile.

    9. The Boys of Winter, by: Wayne Coffey- A really great look into the story behind the famous miracle on ice. I loved the detailed look at each one of the players and a the information on a lot of details you never hear about in the documentaries.

    8. The Rebel League, by: Ed Willes- A great book about the insanity that was the WHA, and all the changes for the better its existence led to. It's hard to believe what the NHL might be like today if the WHA had never happened.
     
    7. Jean Beliveau: My Life in Hockey, by: Jean Beliveau- An amazing look at an amazing man, in his own words. This book should be required reading for every single professional hockey player, and perhaps every fan.
     
    6. Hockey Dad: True Confessions of a (Crazy) Hockey Parent, by: Bob McKenzie- Definitely the funniest book on this list, and probably the sweetest. It's written by current Everblade forward Mike McKenzie's dad, and it's well worth your time.

    5. Saving Face: The Art and History of the Goalie Mask, by, Jim Hynes & Gary Smith- This is perhaps more of a coffee table book, but it's still a good read. It has absolutely beautiful pictures, as well as a very thorough overview of how the goalie mask evolved.

    4. Pelle Lindbergh: Behind the White Mask, by Bill Meltzer & Thomas Tynander- A really interesting look at a promising goalie who had his life cut short too soon. I do not recommend reading this book in public if you cry easily. It's absolutely heartbreaking. It's still a good read though.

    3. Hockey Night in Dixie, by, Jon C. Stott- I can't recommend this book enough to anyone who follows minor hockey or is a Southern hockey fan. It has the bonus of having a chapter devoted to the South Carolina Stingrays, and the Everblades get a mention or two in the book as well.

    2. Zamboni Rodeo, by Jason Cohen- Another look into minor league hockey. This book focuses on one teams struggles throughout a really tumultuous season. I loved the focus on the players and their reasons for playing.

    1. Jacques Plante: The Man Who Changed the Face of Hockey, by Todd Denault- I really can't say enough about this book. It's a well written look at a truly fascinating man. Definitely a must read.

    Honorable mentions:

    - Shorthanded: The Untold Story of the Seals, by Brad Kurtzberg- I just got this for Christmas and I'm really excited to dig into it. It is a bit big though...

    - Ice Warriors, by: Jon C. Stott- Another Christmas book I can't wait to dig into.

    - The Game, by: Ken Dryden- I've been stuck on the 85th page for months now. I have no idea why I can't get into this book, it really is interesting.

    So, what about you guys? Any books you think are must reads?

    Tuesday, January 4, 2011

    YouTube Tuesday

    Today's YouTube video is an old gem from 2007. In it, David Cornacchia (stats here) takes on Tim Spencer of the Alaska Aces.



    The Everblades start their three game homestand tomorrow night against the defending Kelly Cup Champion, Cincinnati Cyclones. This marks the return of former Everblades Benn Olson to Germain. His return coupled with the animosity from the Everblades wins in Cincinnati and the Cyclones ongoing struggles should make for a great series.