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Gold Hawk Down: Trouble in Hawkesbury

Just a short tidbit of information that has come across into my brain while I have been browsing and watching some of the past CCHL games that I’ve missed due to being a little under the weather lately. To say that the Hawkesbury Hawks have hit a slump is not something that should be taken lightly. The team is only 10 games into the 2013-2014 campaign and they currently sit at the bottom of the Robinson division with a record of 1-8-1.

Ouch.

Needless to say head coach Shawn Anderson is not a happy man. The players on the ice have not been competing at top potential and clearly it shows. The coaches know it, the fans know it and most importantly, the whole league seems to know it.

There needs to be a shake up in the locker room for them to get back on track. I sense this coming. There’s been too many games that have fallen into losses with a high deficit. Players like Yannik Laliberte and Zach Car needs to step up their games and provide some more scoring. Granted, I know they’re giving it their all but it’s not enough to compete with the competitiveness in teams like that of Carleton Place, Cornwall and Nepean.

I can’t harp on the goaltending. Matthew Jenkins and Guillaume Therien are doing everything they can to keep the pucks out of the net. Yes, most games the shots have been close but when you have no defence standing up to help you well, the situation turns bad in a hurry.

Somebody needs to light a spark to get things moving in the right direction for the Hawks and FAST. If not, be prepared to be in for a loooong season. Hell, being 1-8-1 into your first 10 games in the season is long enough.

We’ll see how the Hawks take flight when they face the first place Carleton Place Canadiens on Friday night at home.

Side note: Do something with that gold jersey. Get a big bad logo on it PLEASE.

Fan Voice: Mark Woodcock AKA “The Angry Budgie” and the Manchester Phoenix/Phoenix Coyotes

Mark Woodcock comes to us from the United Kingdom and happens to be a rare breed of fan. By that I mean, a fan of of the Phoenix Coyotes. I had to get into the mind of a Phoenix fan. (No disrespect to Manchester haha).

March Hockey: Where are you located and how did you get into hockey?

Mark Woodcock: I live in a small town called Macclesfield not too far from Manchester Airport and really got into hockey from birth, by my parents. My mum was a physio for our local Ice Hockey team the Trafford Metro’s so, my brother and I, went to hockey games in the pram! It was natural that I began to play the sport too, have loved the game ever since!

MH: What makes you a passionate fan of the Manchester Phoenix?

MW: They are my team, I have been a supporter of Ice Hockey in/around Manchester since my birth and, the Phoenix are the current incarnation. I have been their since the birth of the current Phoenix and, through the two years the team were put on ice while a new Ice Rink was built. There is a real community and fan orientated passion about this club. A shared sense of pain through the years that stands the club in a good place for the future.

MH: Who is the one player that really stands out on the team and why?

MW: I was going to say one of the import forwards, you know the guys who score all the goals. But at this level players don’t usually stick around for multiple seasons. There is one name, however, that has stuck around, possibly the greatest hockey player our small island has produced, Tony Hand. While he may be the wrong side of 40 this man still puts up multi point games every season. He is the lifeblood of the club, any player who is on the same line as him, will have a career year in points! I’m sure I could score 100pts a season if he was assisting!

MH: How does the EPIHL do in terms of fan interaction?

MW: The EPL is largely a development league so is only really semi-professional. That goes for the off-ice staff as well as the players, as a result the fan interaction can only go as far as a small budget will allow. That being said clubs do their very best. Everyone will do a meet the players event, Christmas parties and end of season parties. Along with numerous player signings after a game for example. So, I guess, there is quite a good level of interaction. Continue reading “Fan Voice: Mark Woodcock AKA “The Angry Budgie” and the Manchester Phoenix/Phoenix Coyotes”

Oshawa’s sharpshooter Michael Dal Colle named CHL player of the week

After garnering Ontario Hockey League player of the week honours, the Canadian Hockey League announced today that it named Oshawa Generals forward Michael Dal Colle their player of the week.

And rightfully so.

Dal Colle was on a tear for the opening week of the Ontario Hockey League. He lead the Oshawa Generals to two road victories notching up 7 points; 4 goals and 3 assists. Definitely a player to keep an eye on this season.

Dal Colle is eligible for the 2014 National Hockey League draft and is expected to go in the top 20. He earned himself his first taste of international competition when he struck gold with Team Canada at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament in the Czech Republic back in August.

The Richmond Hill native is in his second OHL campaign with the Oshawa Generals. The Generals are back in action on the road in Guelph this Friday. Puck drop is 7:30.

Oshawa’s home opener is two days late when the Kitchener Rangers come to town.

Cornwall River Kings make a splash with Valleyfield Braves trade

Announced today, the Cornwall River Kings shipped centre Olivier Proulx to the new expansion team of the Valleyfield Braves. In return, the Kings received an integral piece of their inaugural season in Steve McJannett. Along with McJannett came scoring machine Dominic Chiasson.

So what does this mean for Cornwall?

Clearly, the River Kings won the trade. Cornwall has everything to gain in this 2 for 1 deal. Chiasson seemed to find his groove in the LNAH after spending 9 years in the United league. A 10 year vet of the LNAH, he has suited up for 411 games and managed to notch 522 points. This will be a welcome addition of fire power to the Cornwall River Kings line up.

McJannett on the other hand, is not quite a scoring machine like Chiasson but one tough man to have on the ice. This will bring more of the grit, toughness and size that is needed for the River Kings. Coach Simoes played with McJannett last season with Cornwall, so he knows exactly what kinda of player McJannett is, on and off the ice.

Things are improving at a steady pace for Cornwall and are easily starting to put the nay sayers to shame. A few more transactions and signings to go before they’re ready to be at the state they were in at the beginning of last year’s debut, but the right people are in place to make this team thrive.

Cornwall’s next home exhibition game is October 5th when “The Battle of the 401” commences in Valleyfield coming to town. Should be a great night of hockey.

In honour of Jonathan Bernier and Ryan Miller’s fight, a goalie fight compilation

In case you haven’t heard, there was a huge line brawl in last night’s Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres match up. Complete with Phil Kessel doing his best “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan impression and everyone’s favourite: a goalie fight.

For your viewing pleasure:

Of course, this got me to thinking. Why not honour the greatness that is a goalie fight. Here are some scrums that stick out in my mind.

First off the bat is Philadelphia’s favourite hot headed goaltender, Ron Hextall. While Hexy is most remembered for being insane and slashing the hell out of players, there’s one incident that pretty much shuts him up in the years following. His opponent? None other then another Leafs, Felix “The Cat” Potvin.
Hextall gets his ass handed to him by Potvin. One of the best goalie fights of all time.

Continue reading “In honour of Jonathan Bernier and Ryan Miller’s fight, a goalie fight compilation”

River Kings fall flat in first pre-season game against Trois Rivieres

With half of the lineup filled with young players trying to fight for a roster spot, the Cornwall River Kings skated to a slow pace and fell flat as the Trois Rivieres Viking pounced to a 6-4 win.

Can’t hold it against them however. The River Kings are trying to build a solid and gritty team and only have weeks to do it. The willingness of this group of young lads who are coming out on the ice have to be commended, as well as the Cornwall brass for keeping hockey in Cornwall for another season.

All in all, coach Steve Simoes is liking what he see’s on the ice so far. Along with last night’s blue and white game, today’s pre-season match up showcased the younger calibre on the team. While veterans, Corbeil, Lessard, Faubert, Jasper and Lacasse were suited up, it was the 15 young lads trying to put on a show.

Nicholas Corbeil opened up the scoring for Cornwall who also notched the River Kings 3rd goal as well. Chris Ayotte and Anthony Piteralli added one each which gave Cornwall 4 goals on the night. It nothing but a show from Trois Rivieres end as Etienne Archambault lit the lamp 3 times and Benjamin Casavant slid in two. Michael Belanger added one more to end the Vikings night with 6 goals.

Although the players were playing their hearts out, I have to tip my hat to both River Kings goaltenders, Loic Lacasse and Marco Cousineau. Both made some brilliant saves to keep the River Kings in close.

Can’t forget about Jonathan Jasper’s HUGE open ice hit as well. Fans went wild.

The Kings are back in action on the 27th when they invade Valleyfield to take on the Braves. The first game of “The Battle of the 401” series.

Ryan Kujawinski, Darcy Greenaway lead Kingston Frontenacs to victory in home opener

Ryan Kujawinski. (Photo by Aaron Bell/OHL Images)

After throttling the Peterborough Petes by a score of 11-4 on Thursday night during the season opener, the Kingston Frontenacs didn’t let up steam for their home opener on Friday. After giving a moment of silence in honour of Acadie Bathurst Titan prospect, Jordan Boyd who passed away on the ice last month, it was time for to usher in another Kingston Frontenacs season.

A historical night for their opponents, the North Bay Battalion who played their season opener as residents of North Bay once again after the OHL had left the city for so many years. They returned however, not to form.

In front of a passionate crowd of 4412, the Kingston Frontenacs put on a show for the hometown fans. New Jersey Devils prospect Ryan Kujawinski and Darcy Greenaway led the show with two goals each. Kujawinski is such a joy to watch, great hands and stick handling ability. He will be within New Jersey’s line up in the next few years.

Greenaway. (Photo by Aaron Bell/OHL Images)

After scoring a hat trick in Peterborough the night before, Greenaway came back to Kingston and notched two in the home opener. Now with 5 goals on the season, Greenaway now leads the team in points. Remember, it’s still early in the season.

2014 draft prospects, Sam Bennett, Spencer Watson and Roland McKeown were a force on the ice as the Frontenacs seemed to over power the Battalion. The big lads used their body to their advantage against the somewhat smaller North Bay squad.

All in all, it was great to see the K-Rock Centre rocking again. An amazing and optimistic atmosphere filled the arena and made it a great game to watch. Kingston’s back folks. Hope the OHL is ready.

Kingston is back on the ice September 27th when head to Niagara and take on the Ice Dogs. Puck drop is 7pm.

Hard Headed: The NHL and the helmet debacle

By Ed Kimberley
Coventry, England

Most of my writing on March Hockey has covered the EIHL. However, I thought I’d make a quick remark about the new NHL rule surrounding the removing of your helmet before or during a fight. Under the new rules removing your helmet now comes with a coincidental 2 minute penalty on top of the standard 5 minute major for the fight itself. Although this doesn’t seem like much a penalty, its presence seems merely a formality as we have seen in a latest round of preseason games there is always a way around it:

Note that Barch and Gallant are both communicating pre-fight “hey no leave it on just undo it, and ill take it off.” To me it all sounds so very chivalrous and a fantastically typical response between two respected tough guys before they go.

Why bother then with the rule might you ask?

Well it’s a bit of a paradoxical situation. The NHL is trying to avoid being sued by players families as a result of head injuries sustained in fights, very similar to the situation the NFL is facing at the moment. However by having players leave their helmets on during a fight, it also causes a different injury problem: hand injuries. Now this may not seem too bad and I would say I would rather have a broken hand or finger than a concussion but it’s still an injury that will cause players to miss games.

If we look back to when helmets were made mandatory in the NHL, players were trying to get the helmet off the other combatant. Sure this causes more damage when you hit them, but it also prevents broken fingers, knuckles, wrists and hands through striking a helmet. Speaking from my limited experience, punching a helmet hurts; I have broken a few fingers and split knuckles during a fight because of this. Now fortunately at the level I played I didn’t really have to worry about missing practise or missing a game but in an NHL where the enforcer role is changing, and these guys are literally fighting for their ice time. Not only does adding an extra 2 minute eat into the limited time they have already but I question how effective it will be?

The OHL fighting rule that requires the helmets stay on and mandatory visors doesn’t seem to have deterred hockey’s future throwing the fists (although this is something Ashley will know more about). (March’s note: OHL only allows 10 fights a year per player.)

The EIHL has not adopted this rule, although there is legislation regarding jersey tie downs. IF you don’t have your jersey tied down before a fight you can get thrown out of the game for illegal equipment. This is to protect guys who get lost when their jersey is pulled over their head leaving them pretty vulnerable. Now in theory again this is a great idea, however it is flawed. Firstly I haven’t seen a lot of enforcing of this rule. Secondly a lot of guys I have spoken to have had their tie down break during the fight, (its essentially a Velcro strap) making it difficult to judge if it was tied down in the first place. Thirdly I know how restricting they can feel and although a regular fighter might sacrifice this for extra movement fights, well, just happen and being caught unawares can lead to a fairly irritating ejection.

Don’t get me wrong, I want to see fighting stay in hockey but first and foremost players do need to be protected. Derek Boogaards death came as an indirect result of blows to the head he had sustained in a fight, something we don’t want to see happen again. However there needs to be another way around this problem.

Carleton Place Canadians come from behind; steal Colts thunder

Cornwall, Ontario

Kelly Summers. (Photo: Robert Lefevbre. IceLevel.com)

After a myriad of penalties in the first period by the Carleton Place Canadians, the Junior A squad found themselves in a 3-1 deficit heading into the second against the Cornwall Colts.

Heading into Cornwall’s barn, Carleton Place was looking to keep their first place Robinson division standing intact. If it wasn’t for Cornwall’s red hot goaltender Jordan Piccolino, there was no doubt Carleton Place would have been way ahead. More chances and keeping the puck in Cornwall’s end seemed to be all that was happening in the first 10 minutes of the game.

Then came the penalties. 4 penalties in 10 minutes kept the Cornwall Colts on a never-ending powerplay. Capitalizing on the Canadian’s mistakes, the Colts managed to score 3. However, that was pretty much all she wrote.

The Carleton Place Canadians are a big group of lads who use their size to their advantage. Not afraid to use the body against the smaller Cornwall Colts. Penalties seemed abundant, but some were warranted. The second period saw the teams play almost evenly against one another. It was the third where the Canadians woke up.

Clarkson, Michigan native Vinny Post earned second star of the game honors by beating Piccolino to notch the game up at three. With one more goal each to head into overtime, it was Clarkson University’s committed Kelly Summers who sealed the deal for Carleton Place.

CCHL’S THREE STARS

1. Stephen Baylis (CPC)
2. Vinny Post (CPC)
3. A.Roumeliotis (COR)

MARCH’S THREE STARS

1. Jordan Piccolino (COR)
I can’t say enough about this kid. If it weren’t for him, the score would’ve been run up by a mile. Thoroughly excited for his future; brilliant to watch.

2. Kelly Summers (CPC)
Scouts were abundant in the Ed Lumley Arena, including one from the Dallas Stars. No doubt this is who they were keeping an eye on. Summers hockey sense and ability to drive plays is what makes him a key part for Carleton Place and will be for Clarkson University next season.

3. Marley Quince (COR)
While he was kept off the score sheet and took a stupid penalty, Quince is a joy to watch. His speed and stick handling are what keeps him on the ice every second shift. Sometimes can be a bit flashy though.

Australia’s dream is one step closer: Nathan Walker’s quest

On Saturday night, a mere three hours west from where I sat watching on television, a National Hockey League preseason game was taking place in the Yardmen Arena in the city of Belleville, Ontario. The community of Sterling-Rawdon won the Kraft Hockeyville challenge and was presented a National Hockey League game in their community.

While the teams of the Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets took to the ice that is the home of the Belleville Bulls, only one name stood out to me. No, not Evander Kane or Dustin Byfuglien. Hell, not even Alexander Ovechkin.

That name was Nathan Walker.

Nathan Walker made history Saturday night becoming the first Australian to compete in a preseason NHL game as he skated with the Washington Capitals. He even helped out in the 4-3 shootout win, earning an assist on Washington’s first goal.

Walker was actually born in Wales, United Kingdom but grew up in Australia and found his love for the game. In 2007, he moved to the Czech Republic to help his play, suiting up for both under 18 and under 20 squads. Along the way he made stops in the Australia Ice Hockey League with the Sydney Ice Dogs.

Scouts saw something in this young kid as he signed a contract with the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL for 2013. It was here in North America that the NHL started to really pay attention. After failing to be drafted in the 2013 Entry Draft in New Jersey, the Washington Capitals handed him a spot in their training camp leading to his debut Saturday night.

The sky is the limit for Walker. Given his talent and age, there is no doubt to see him in an NHL jersey sooner rather then later. Australia should be proud of the hockey talent they are producing.

Soon enough, and hopefully the world will take notice, the NHL might have a Aussie invasion.