»

December 31, 2004

Game Recap vs Kingston (30-Dec)

Attendance: 20081. 67's set new CHL attendance record

Ottawa falls to Kingston, 6-5. OHL game summary here. And there is a whole lot of 'in the news' for the 67s. So, here we go.

From the Ottawa Citizen, Chris Yzerman writes Father's death shakes 67's Hunt. And from the Ottawa Sun, Barre Campbell writes Tribute honours 'big fan'.

The 67's honoured the late father of team owner Jeff Hunt during last night's game. The players decided to wear stickers on their helmets bearing the initials S and H in memory of Alexander "Sandy" Hunt, who unexpectedly passed away in Florida on Tuesday.

From the Ottawa Sun, Barre Campbell writes Corel Centre set to 'easily' smash jr. attendance mark. From SLAM! Sports, Frontenacs edge 67's.

We obviously wanted to come out with two points, but to play in front of a crowd of 20,000-plus, it's a bonus for all of us," said Bonello. "A lot of guys might not play in front of 20,000 people ever again."

From the Kingston Whig-Standard, Claude Scilley writes A hockey crowd for the record book . I have to post some snippets from this article, because it gives players' views:

For Todd Griffith, it was a night to remember.

[. . .]

"This is great," Griffith said after last night’s game.

"I’ve never played in anything like this. Twenty-thousand people show up to watch our team play hockey … it’s a great feeling."

[. . .]

"To get in the record book as a team is more important than as an individual," Griffith said. "I thank Killer [67’s coach Brian Kilrea] and the Ottawa organization for doing this. It’s not every day you get to play in front of an NHL crowd."

Griffith said players tried not to look into the stands, but it was a difficult temptation to resist.

"If you get a penalty, and you’re looking up, and especially when they do something like the wave you can’t believe what’s going on.

"You [hope] it wouldn’t affect your play but to some degree it does. You get a little bit more nervous."

[. . .]

Frontenacs assistant coach Tony Cimellaro said he tried to make light of the situation to relieve the tension.

"We joked about it," he said. "We thought we were Hickory from Hoosiers, coming in from our little barn with 2,000 people into this big stadium.

"There were a couple of them who were a little fidgety but for the most part our older guys kept everyone in key and we had a pretty good warmup, got all the jitters out. To get up 2-0 was a great help for us, too."

Frontenacs forward Tony Rizzi said the experience of last night gives a player an idea of what it’s like to play in the NHL.

"You look up and see [that crowd] and you think, ‘Wow, it’s amazing to play in front of something like this.’

"If having 20,000 people watching you doesn’t motivate you, then hockey must not be your thing. You sit on the bench and look around and think, ‘Wow, it would just be great to do this for a living.’"

From the Ottawa Citizen, Chris Yzerman writes 67's rack up attendance mark.

"Whether it's us, the Senators, junior B, Tier 2 junior A.... The fact is, people in this community love hockey and that's why we've been able to have the number of people here for this game that we have," said Shawn Williams, the 67's director of business and community development.

From the Ottawa Sun, Barre Campbell writes Kingston spoils party.

The 67's, playing their third game in as many nights and the second straight against the Fronts, hoped for a better ending to a historic night.

But the mood was downcast following the game in the Ottawa dressing room, normally occupied by the NHL's Senators.

"The crowd gave us that extra energy," said forward Brad Bonello, who scored once and added three assists. "It's just frustrating to come one goal short."

Kingston goalie Dayne Davis was the star, making 59 saves for a win that vaulted the Frontenacs past Ottawa into third place in the East Division standings of the Ontario Hockey League.

"We have to give him a lot of credit because he did play well," said Bonello of Davis.

"We'd get a lot of shots but we just never went to the net. There were rebounds that we didn't get to, a couple of times where guys were just one step too slow getting that puck in front of the net."


Overall impressions:

The Corel Centre was definitely packed right up to the upper, upper bowl. With that number of people, the traffic was extremely heavy – it normally takes about 15 minutes to get to the Corel Centre on a non-game day – last night it took 1 hour to get there and parked. But we left early, expecting it.

I was hoping that the 67s would be really pumped to play . . . but then I saw Guadagnolo in net and came to my senses. Okay, okay – the boys did score more than one goal for him, but whatever – a loss is a loss . . .

The 67s looked very uncoordinated – bumbly. Of course they had moments. The offence looked better than the defence (what defence?). The defence fell apart again. At one point, Guadagnolo faced a three on one! And Kingston scored, of course. The defence was pitiful, really. If you look at each of them individually, they have talent . . . it’s when they play together that they look like they’ve just started playing the position. I thought that Killer said they needed defence, but the new guy, Jarram, only played a couple of shifts last night – not enough to get a good overview of him. Is Kilrea asking the defence to do things that are unnatural for them, and this is what is making them look awkward? Wharton said that he was told not to play offensively – that Killer wanted him to be a defensive defenceman. Well, last night the defence were the ones rushing to the net – leaving their positions open, allowing break-aways, short-handeds, etc. How come they were playing offensive? Like I said, something is really wrong. Killer once said that he would continue coaching as long as the guys still listened. Is this the team that convinces him to pack it in? I hope not.

Impressions of the 67s:

Bonello continued to play his style of game.

Colbert, I have started to believe, is too timid/polite/nice/ to be a d-man, our leading d-man, and the Captain. I think he has an introverted nature (and there is nothing wrong with that - I’m one!), but an extrovert is what is needed. Somebody feisty like Bonello, with Colbert’s size, and ?’s skill. I think back fondly of Russ Moyer and Brendan Bell. They could stop a rushing forward at the blue line, and score too! Some on the BB’s are saying they think that Colbert should be traded. I don’t know if he should be traded. He’s just not the guy to lead the team. I can’t really see him working them up before a game – but I’m not back there so who knows what he does.

Impressions of the Fronts:

Griffith and Kotsopoulos had a great game. They got the SH goal in the third period. Sitting behind the bench (which is were we where), you could see how excited they both were, and eager to get back on the ice each time they came off. Griffith was definitely one of the better (if not best) players on the ice. Also noticed Pronk and Rizzi.

Davis faced 64 SOG! He made 59 saves! And he played in the game before as well. A great job. He made a couple of really good saves in the third to keep them ahead of the 67s.

OTTAWA SCORING
1, Joslin, (Mancari, Bonello), 16:14
1, Bonello, (Joslin, Bickell), 16:32
2, Akeson, (Bonello, Talbot), 02:21 (PP)
3, Talbot, (Bickell), 04:04
3, Bickell, (Bonello, Joslin), 17:30

KINGSTON SCORING
1, Kotsopoulos, (Smolenak, Griffith), 03:45
1, Pronk, (Rizzi, Kolarz), 05:56
2, Griffith, (Kotsopoulos, Smolenak), 07:06
2, Hughes, (Stewart, Nemeth), 15:12
3, Pronk, (Mangan), 04:27
3, Griffith, (Kotsopoulos), 06:20 (SH)

OHL three stars were: 1. Pronk KIN, 2. Bickell, and 3. Griffith KIN.

Reffing: Beer. It was oke-dokee. At one point, the Kingston coaches went nuts yelling, swearing, and generally losing it. Beer skated right over to the bench, finger pointed at the coach and yelled right back, "You shut the f*** up!"

And I must comment on what an interesting perspective one gets when sitting directly behind the bench. Ah the sights, the smells, the sounds! One guy lost a tooth, which was placed upon the black shelf behind the bench, unfortunately right in front of me – I could have passed on that realistic display. And the smell – good lord these boys smell. The Corel Centre usher said the NHL guys don’t stink like that because their equipment is washed after every game. (It’s part of the game, I know, but I’d rather have a less real experience and avoid the smell.) The cursing, the standing up when their guys rush down the ice, the trainer shoving his hands down or up player’s equipment right in your line of view – I can’t imagine spending NHL $$$ on those seats – you never see the game.

That’s it for 2004. Let’s hope that 2005 brings better things (ahem, players, ahem) for the 67s.

Oh, and one more thing:

Go Canada Go!

December 30, 2004

Game Recap at Kingston (29-Dec)

67s tie the Frontenacs 2-2. See OHL game summary here. SLAM! Sports has 67's tie Frontenacs. From the Ottawa Sun, Battochio saves the night for 67's

"Danny was the star of the game again (last night)," said 67's coach/GM Brian Kilrea.

What a surprise - not! In other news . . . OurSports Central has a summary of the game for Kingston: Frontenacs tie 67's.

Pre-game notes via TEAM 1200/Dave Schreiber and AJ Jakubec (not on television).

  • First, condolences to Jeff Hunt and family. His father passed away Tuesday night.

  • Kingston players out of the line up: Anthony Stewart, who is at the World Juniors (which is good news for the 67s), and Shutron and Emerson, who are at the Under 17s.

  • And, the same guys out for Ottawa - Kaspar, Petruzalek, McGinn, and Lahey, and newly out is Aitcheson. Btw, watched a bit of the Czech/Swiss World Junior game and Kaspar and Petruzalek seemed to be doing okay out there. They had some really good chances, and had assists. Now if only they can continue when they come back to Ottawa!

  • David Jarram will be in the line up tonight. AJ spoke with him, and he said he knows he’s there for his physical ability.

Some notes from Schreibs’ pre-game interview with Killer:

  • On Mancari’s record of late, Killer said: He’s working hard, he’s getting ice time, he’s being rewarded. I hope it rubs off on a few other guys.

  • On Bonello and the penalty shot, Killer said: He’s had a couple of break-aways this year and I was hoping that he would score to take them [Oshawa] out of the game. I was looking for the game, if I was being sentimental I would have chosen Mancari for the hat trick.

  • On Kingston without Stewart, Killer said: They’ve got a good hockey club. They’re one of best teams in the league. They have great talent with or without Anthony Stewart.

  • On Jarram’s role, Killer said: We know that he’s not the total answer, and we’re not going to put that kind of pressure on him. He just has to work hard.

They didn’t give the line ups on the radio, so looking at the OHL game summary and listening to the radio, I get something like this:

Line up:
1st Bickell, Bonello, Mancari
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
3rd Akeson, McIlveen, Alphonso
4th Kiriakou, Ouellette, Beard

Defence pairings:
Colbert, Joslin
Van Herpt, Reid
Lawrance, Jarram
And on the PP, they are splitting the defence, so that Colbert is with Reid and Van Herpt is with Joslin.

Staring goalie: Battochio (Davis starting for Kingston)

_____

General impressions of the game (note, these are auditory impressions, not visual):

First period.

Ouellette had a fight with Mangan – according to Schreibs, Ouellette got the better shots in – got Mangan’s helmet off and landed four or five shots in a row. Frontenacs score first, off the rush, by Griffith from Smolenak. Battochio keeping his team in the game. Kingston having the better scoring chances. Kotsopoulos getting SH chances. The 67s continue to have problems with the PP. Schreibs and AJ seem to be getting disconnected - cutting out. Todd tied up the game during the ‘technical difficulty’. Todd seems to be having a good game. Had another good scoring chance. Good second effort by Talbot. Shots even at the end of the first: 13-13.

Second period.

Great play by Todd to spring a 2 on 1. Talbot and Hulit also working hard. Van Herpt injured – fell into the boards awkwardly, but apparently he will be okay. Bonello, Mancari, and Bickell had some good chances. Davis KIN making some good saves. Kingston scores again. Good work by the Frontenacs, good possession for about 20 seconds, Rizzi KIN let a quick wrister go, beats Battochio. Smolenak seems to be getting a lot of scoring chances in the second. Bickell scores - a high light reel goal. A tremendous, tape-to-tape pass from Alphonso. Bickell made a power move around the d-man, and roofed puck. Bonello draws a penalty just after the goal. He's so good at that!

Third period.

67s continue to take penalties. Jarram gets two in the beginning of the third, Bonello another. An enormous save by Battochio, from a shot by Smolenak. Jarram has been benched, presumably for taking all those penalties. He might be just a little over-eager, this being his first game with Ottawa.

OT.

Davis makes a big save right off. Battochio also making saves. Van Herpt making a lot of good defensive moves. An enormous save by Davis. He stones Hulit. Smolenak getting one good last chance before the end of the game. It's a tie. They each come away with 1 point.
_____


OTTAWA SCORING
1, Todd, (Hulit, Colbert), 10:11
2, Bickell, (Alphonso), 18:56

KINGSTON SCORING
1, Griffith, (Smolenak, Kotsopoulos), 02:43
2, Lyons, (Rizzi, Petrow), 06:01

OHL three stars: 1. Davis KIN, 2. Battochio, and 3. Griffith KIN

TEAM 1200 three stars: 1. Battochio (at his best tonight; especially good in the third, during three consecutive penalties; 43 saves), 2. Davis KIN (solid as a rock; outstanding; really shone in second period, late in third, and OT), and 3. Bickell (like a bull in a china shop; a force offensively all night long.)

Attendance: 2147.

Reffing: Two refs - Parlette and Burchell.

Next up is the big game or ‘the attendance record-breaker’ at the Corel Centre (not the horn . . . I so hate that horn). According to the Official 67s site yesterday (link) there are only 450 ‘overflow’ tickets available.

The Corel Centre announced tomorrow’s Ontario Hockey League (OHL) game between the Ottawa 67’s and the Kingston Frontenacs has only 450 overflow tickets remaining at $10 each (excluding CRF and convenience charges). Fans are encouraged to purchase remaining overflow seats before tomorrow as all other bowl seating and standing room is sold out.

Overflow seating allows fans the opportunity to purchase a general admission ticket and to sit in a seat that is unoccupied by someone unable to attend the December 30th game for any number of different reasons. It is anticipated that a number of variables will lead to some seats not being occupied at game time and overflow seating allows the maximum number of people into the Corel Centre to be part of this historic game.

Interesting article on the Frontenacs site regarding the big game, by Patrick Kennedy, Fronts to play in front of big crowd:

Next Thursday in Ottawa another major-junior record is likely to tumble, and the Kingston Frontenacs will share in it.

The Dec. 30 Ontario Hockey League game between the Frontenacs and the Ottawa 67’s is a sure bet to establish a new standard for largest audience ever to watch a junior hockey game.

December 29, 2004

Game Recap vs Oshawa (28-Dec)

67s win 4-1 over the Generals. See OHL game summary here. And the Gens have a game recap posted here. And in the news . . .

From SLAM! Sports: Ottawa beats the Generals 4-1. A snippet:

I just said to myself I just have to keep going," said Mancari, who has seven goals and eight points in his last four games and was the OHL offensive player of the week just before the break.

"We're missing a lot of guys and now's the time to step up. I had a slow start to the year so this is about time."

From Durham News, Brian McNair writes New coach, same old result for Oshawa Generals . A snippet:

With GM Brad Selwood behind the bench in place of the fired Bob McGill, the Generals lost yet another road game and yet another divisional game, this time by a 4-1 count to the 67’s.

And from the Ottawa Sun, Bruce Garrioch writes Killer deal lights fire under 67's. On letting Bonello take the penalty shot:

"I know people are going to question why I didn't give Mancari the chance at the hat-trick," said Kilrea. "Bonello has had a couple of breakaways and he's been successful."

Overall impressions:

The first game without Wharton. The 67s were missing 5: Kaspar, Petruzalek, McGinn, Lahey, and Wharton. Reid was back for the first time this season. He will need some time to get conditioned, I’m sure. Kiriakou called up to play from North York Rangers. He was the 67s’ 4th or 5th pick(?) in the OHL draft last year.

Line ups:
1st Bickell, Bonello, Mancari
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit (started)
3rd Akeson, McIlveen, Alphonso
4th Kiriakou, Ouellette, Aitcheson

Defence pairings:
Colbert, Joslin
Van Herpt, Reid
Lawrance, Beard

Battachio got the start.

Impressions of the 67s:

Todd. Had a really good night. Scored some goals, worked hard. Was awarded second star.

Bonello. Had a penalty shot . . . and missed! But, he came back to score an even strength goal right away, so he made up for it.

Mancari. Continues to play well. He has definitely stepped up as the leader of the team. He and Heshmatpour went at each other again, but no punches were thrown as they couldn’t get their arms free. Mancari ended up sitting on top of Heshmatpour who was flat on his back on the ice. These two seem to have developed an interesting hate relationship. Other stuff: there are some comments on the 67s' BB about Killer and Mancari not getting along during the game - hence the penalty shot given to Bonello. Lord knows what's wrong with this team behind the scenes - I don't care what happens behind the scenes/in the room, but on the ice - and I hope that they will sort it out before the season comes to an end . . .

Kiriakou. Played well for his first game.

Hulit. Seemed to take a couple shifts off. Maybe has the flu or something. He still played well though – better than most of the others.

Reid. Had a good solid game, especially considering this was his first. As mentioned above he will need some time to re-condition, but his presence is definitely noticeable.

Impressions of the Gens:

Piva. Super speedy rookie. He was wiley, too.

Nasby. Seemed steady in his end.

Trudell. Strong player for Oshawa. Captain.

Tsimikalis. Had an okay game. No boos, thankfully. He had a lot of face-offs against Talbot. (And an aside - we saw him singing along with the 67s’ theme song at the start of the game.)

Others that stood out: Kavannagh, Berti, and McBride.

OTTAWA SCORING
1, Mancari, (Bonello, Bickell), 17:01
2, Todd, (Talbot, Hulit), 12:05
3, Mancari, 03:55
3, Bonello, (Bickell, Beard), 17:18

OSHAWA SCORING
2, McBride, (Berti, Heshmatpour), 16:22 (PP)

OHL three stars were: 1. Mark Mancari OTT, 2. Brody Todd OTT, and 3. Elgin Reid OTT.

Attendance: A sell-out, 9832. there were a few empty seats, but the police have been giving out tickets at random RIDE stops during the holiday season and so that could explain the empty seats w/sell-out.

Reffing: Pearce. Not bad, not bad at all. One thing though . . . during the second period, Sawyer OSH and Alphonso went at each other, and then Akeson came flying into them. Akeson was only charged with roughing – not third man in or whatever – as well as Alphonso (roughing). But Sawyer ended up with 2 roughings. Does that mean he was charged with roughing w/Alphonso and then roughing w/Akeson? A couple goals waved off for both teams. They happened in the other end of the ice from our seats, so couldn’t really see anything. Apparently the one goal for the 67s that was called off was d/t a delayed penalty call – when the Oshawa player touched the puck the play was supposed to stop, but at the same instant the puck went in the net. Hence, the goal not allowed. They 67s went on the PP, but didn’t score.

Parking: Not a prob and all the Grey Cup seats are down.

Next game: Tonight in Kingston, then both teams travel to Ottawa to play at the Corel Centre Thursday.

December 28, 2004

Interview With The Coach

Notes from the interview with Killer on The TEAM 1200/Dean Brown and Bruce Garrioch this afternoon.

Killer said that Wharton spoke with both himself and Jeff Hunt yesterday. Wharton said that instead of waiting, he would rather go ahead with the trade so that he could get up to the Soo in order to meet the team and get playing. He will be in their line up tonight. Wharton felt that his style of play was curtailed in Ottawa – he is more of an offensive defenceman, and he was not able to play this style. The team required straight defence.

David Jarram will be flying to Ottawa from the Soo today, and he will be at the game tonight – though not in the line up. Killer said it wasn’t fair to expect the new guy to travel all day and then play that night. So he will watch. Killer said that he watched Jarram play twice – he is impressed with his enthusiasm [like Bonello, I wonder?] and his physicality.

When asked if the other guys on the team should be concerned that Wharton has been traded, Killer said yes. He said that players must realize that their performance has not been good in the first half. If Kyle Wharton can be moved, and he being such a good defenceman, they’d better realize that if they’re not performing they could be moved as well.

Killer did say that other plans are definitely in the works. He said that a piece of the puzzle is still missing, and that they are still working on a couple of things. He said that they are limited by the number of cards they hold, but that he does anticipate more changes. “Something else will happen, we’re just waiting to see if rosters stay the same.” He said he won’t comment on anything because of a number of reasons: the league must have final approval and they have limited hours right now due to the holiday season, a number of teams have players away at World Juniors and Under 17, injuries could come up that would prevent the player from being traded. Killer said that the team is missing 5 players right now: 2 at the World Juniors (Kaspar, Petruzalek), 2 at the Under 17 (McGinn, Lahey), and now Wharton. He said he doesn’t want to gamble with potential points.

Some good news: Reid will be back tonight. He got clearance and felt good yesterday. He will get his feet wet a little at first. Killer said that the team has really missed him, both on the ice and in the room.

Welcome To Ottawa, David Jarram

Kyle Wharton has been traded to the Soo for David Jarram. From the official 67s site:

The Ottawa 67’s have obtained 17 year old, Kitchener, Ontario native David Jarram from the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in exchange for defenceman Kyle Wharton.

Jarram is a defenceman listed at 6’02” and 197 lbs., he will be arriving in Ottawa later today, but will make his debut for the 67’s tomorrow night in Kingston. “We are looking forward to getting David in the lineup. He’s a young defenceman with a physical presence” said Brian Kilrea.

David Jarram was a 2nd Round Pick in the 2003 OHL Priority Selection and is eligible for the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. The Kitchener native has a right handed shot and is in his second season in the OHL.

December 20, 2004

Interview With The Coach

Even though Killer was not on the bench this past w/e, he had his usual post-w/e interview with The TEAM 1200/Dean and Bruce Garrioch. He had this to say:

[paraphasing]

I saw eight teams that had players we were interested in, but that doesn't mean that we're not interested in other teams; I just couldn't get to see them.

This is the first time that I have taken off games [to go scouting], other than the odd game due to sickness. Maybe I've missed one game, but never three.

We practiced well last week, and Bert [O'Brien] and Vinnie [Malette] are very close to the team. Sometimes you play better with a different face. Also, sometimes it's good to get away for me too.

Disappointmented with the level of play, but when you get to Christmas, kids' minds wander and it's a tough time to get motivated. But teams that beat you get motiated, so why can't we?

With the tie against Belleville it's good, because they didn't pull away from us. In Barrie, we came back and that win was a big win for us. Bert and Vin worked a few players really hard, so they were tired for the next day.

(Garrioch asked: Mancari has lifted his game.)

Mancari's done that lately. He wants to take up for Bonello, who he feels gets picked on a lot. He worked hard and I just found out that he was named player of the week for the league.

(Dean asked: whats on you're shopping list; what could you realistically expect to get.)

First thing we would like, number one, is some authority in our own end. I'm hoping to do something to get some muscle in our own end; to win battles in the corners. Priority number two, is for somebody to quarterback on the PP. If you get to the playoffs, you can avert other teams from taking liberties if you have a strong PP. Also, I'm hoping to get someone in here with desire. We're a nice, quiet, peaceful team, and I think we need character in here to get the team going.

Rosters are frozen until next Tuesday. But we're definitely going to makes changes after this Christmas break. This team we have has grown and stayed together fine, but just not the right feel.

Konopka and Galbraith were emotional guys. They were the type of guys that would go through the door. Right now we have a bunch of guys in the room who will hold the doors for someone else. I haven't seen the emotional level rise, or play with urgency or do anything to win. Attitude and desire have a major impact on wining.

There is so much parity in the league right now, that some teams may raise the bar a little too high, and the question is how much do you want to pay. I don't want to rob the next year's team to pay for this year. Hoping that I can do something without borrowing too much on the future.

Petruzalek comes in here and plays with an edge. Kaspar is still adjusting to this league. He was more dymanic earlier on than he is now. I'm hoping that when he comes back from Juniors he will realize there is more to the game than just skill, like desire.

[/paraphrase]

I think that he's made the trade - just not releasing the details.

Mancari Named OHL Player Of The Week!

From the OHL today:

The Ontario Hockey League today announced that Ottawa 67's right winger Mark Mancari is the OHL Player of the Week for the week ending Sunday December 19 after scoring five goals and eight points in three games.

Mancari scored two goals and added a pair of assists in a 6-6 tie with the Belleville Bulls on December 17. He added two goals and assisted on the game-winner in a 6-5 win over the Barrie Colts on December 18 and capped the weekend with a shorthanded goal in a 3-1 loss to the Mississauga IceDogs on December 19.

Mancari, a 19-year-old London native is tied for the team lead with 14 goals this season. The Buffalo Sabres' draft pick also has 12 assists for 26 points in 33 games.


Mancari

Trade Rumours

On the trade front, there are ‘hot’ rumours swirling around Owen Sound.

An interesting thread on NOOF, Attack have made a deal with the 67's.

Spooner: This morning's radio station CFOS, Attacks' play by play guy Freddy Wallace confirmed a deal between the Ottawa 67's and the Owen Sound Attack. Unfortuantely, with the trade freeze, no names where mentioned. Any ideas's from Ottawa fans?

Then this:

Spooner: UPDATE: Our 8:30 am show said, "The Attack have made a deal with 67's". Just listened to the 9:00am show, and it now has been down graded to, "Have the Attack made a deal with the 67's".

Interesting. Some names thrown about: Mike Smyth, Adam Smyth’s brother.

Schreibs said today on The TEAM 1200/Gross that he had spoken with Killer and was told that he had not yet made a deal; he was still talking to teams at this point. Schreibs said that there is a media freeze until December 27th, so it is possible that a deal has been made, but cannot be discussed/announced.

Interview With The Captain

In his usual post-w/e interview with The TEAM/Dave Gross and Dave Schreiber. They had this to say [paraphrasing]:

Schreibs: Only 6 guys on the bus back – the rest stayed in TO for Christmas.

Colbert: Pretty tired in Mississauga. Had trouble getting puck out of our own end. Mississauga scoring those 3 goals took the wind out of our sails. Guadagnolo played a grat game. the goalies are keeping us in the games. Had day off Monday to rest up. Vince Malette ran practice on Tuesday and had different drills. Went back to the basics on Wednesday and Thursday.

Schreibs: Mancari 8 points including 5 goals in 3 games. Great to see him play the way he did. He wants to be more consistent. Had a great night Friday night. Hulit, Talbot line carrying the team. Talbot quietly leading, Hulit dynamite since coming to the team.

Colbert: Mancari stepped up this w/e; knew he had to contribute more.

Me: Not too much exciting there.

67s In The News

Taking a look at the post-w/e news on the 67s. First, the game summary from the Ice Dogs’ perspective. Kudos to Guadagnolo, as evidenced by these snippets:

Had it not been for a superb effort from Ottawa starter Anthony Guadagnolo, the game’s outcome would have long been decided by the time the final buzzer sounded. Guadagnolo made 46 saves, the majority of which were from close range as the IceDogs peppered him with 43 shots over the first two periods.

[. . .]

After the puck was dropped it didn’t take long to notice that many of the Ottawa players were doing all they could just to keep pace with the IceDog attack. Mississauga out-shot the 67’s 18-5 in the first period. Guadagnolo was ready from the get-go, making quality saves on both Tom Zanoski and John Hecimovic to keep the game scoreless after one.

SLAM! Sports has this: OHL roundup, and from the Ottawa Sun: 67's simply 'Dog tired. A snippet:

"Nothing left at all," said O'Brien. "We were outshot 18-5 in the first period."

[. . . ]

Ottawa goalie Anthony Guadagnolo was outstanding in defeat, making 46 saves.

December 19, 2004

Game Recap (at Mississauga)

67s lose 3-1 to the Ice Dogs. See OHL game summary here. Thankfully the game was broadcast on Rogers television, because The TEAM 1200 call went out for the first ten minutes of the second, and sporadically thereafter.

Line ups and whatnot:

1st McGinn, Bonello, Mancari
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
3rd Bickell, McIlveen, Akeson
4th Aitcheson, Ouellette, Lahey
Alphonso out, Lahey in.
Guadagnolo gets the start. (Here we go . . . Please, please get a win for him.)

Overall impressions:

The 67s came out slow. They were out-shot 18-5 in the first period! They looked tired, and the defence looked weak. The defence still aren’t standing up to the opposition forwards. The Ice Dogs came out strong in the second, scoring two goals within the first four minutes, and getting two chances where Guadagnolo just robbed them. The 67s’ defence absolutely fell apart. They were just standing in front of the net – no attempt to take their man, no attempt to forecheck. The 67s came out a little better in the third (with the help of a number of Ice Dog penalties), Mancari scored a SH goal, and they pulled Guadagnolo in the last seconds --- but it was too little too late.

Impressions of the 67s:

Mancari got a great SH goal at the beginning of the third, where he stripped Ouzas of the goal when Ouzas went behind the net to work the puck out himself. Mancari grabbed the puck off of Ouzas’ stick, and took a shot before Ouzas had time to get back in position. Nice. That’s five goals for Mancari this w/e. Yep. Stepped up big time. After this w/e he is now tied with Talbot for second in points for the team, first being Petruzalek.

Guadagnolo made some big saves in the first period – but c’mon: 18-5 SOG in the first! 25-6 SOG in the second! Overall, 49-24 SOG. What the hell is wrong with the defence? I’m starting to believe that they have some sort of conspiracy against Guadagnolo, you know, play so badly that his stats continue to get worse, he gets traded, etc. (Yeah, I know it’s a stretch.)* Whoever says that Killer is scouting for a ‘scorer’ is absolutely nuts (or Killer is, if this is in fact what he is doing). They need defence . . . 6 defencemen would be nice. The only d-man playing in this game was Guadagnolo. [* UPDATE * Okay, his stats actually improve b/c the SOG are so high, but look at the previous two games, the 67s scored 6 goals in each game! 6! Today, they score 1. I'm going to look back over the games Gaudagnolo played in, to see how many goals the 67s scored. Currently his record is: GPI 16, MINS 845, GA 45, Avg 3.20, SV% 0.915, W 2, L 9, T 3.]

Impressions of the Ice Dogs:

Hecimovic. I’ve always liked watching him play. Carcillo didn’t take any suspension-inducing penalties! (He did get a 10-minute misconduct though.) Ouzas was in nets. He is having quite the season. He was named OHL player of the week last week for back-to-back SOs. Hey, if not for Mancari he would've got another.

OTTAWA SCORING:
3, Mancari, 02:37 (SH)

MISSISSAUGA SCORING:
2, Swift, (Hecimovic, Butera), 02:42
2, Marchese, (Carcillo), 03:58
2, Caputi, (Jeffrey, Svacina), 08:24

TEAM 1200 three stars: 1. Guadagnolo-OTT, 2. Caputi-MIS, and 3. Marchese-MIS

OHL three stars: 1. Caputi-MIS, 2. Guadagnolo-OTT, and 3. Marchese-MIS

Interesting side note: Talbot was interviewed on Rogers television (Mississauga) during the first intermission. When asked by the interviewer about the 67s comeback last night against Barrie, Talbot said that Coach O’Brien gave the team a positive speech during the second intermission, and the team came back to win the game. He said that Killer would have yelled at them, but O’Brien cheered them up. This is interesting in light of the Tsimikalis incident. I’ve wondered how many other players don’t see eye-to-eye with Killer’s style, and if this is part of the problem with what we are seeing with the team. Discontent among the troops, or some of the troops. Interesting indeed.

And a quote from StatsGuy after the second period: “Just when you say this is the worst game they’ve ever played . . . they play a worse game.”

That’s all for the 67s until after Christmas – December 28th vs Oshawa. McGinn and Lahey will head off the to Under-17s, and World Juniors will be on December 25th.

Game Recap (at Barrie)

67s win 6-5! What a game. See OHL game summary here. This game was broadcast on Rogers television, and TEAM 1200 with Schreiber and Jakubec. And from SLAM! Sports: Ottawa hobbles Colts. From the Ottawa Sun: Mancari still hot for 67's.

Interesting: Mike Kelly, Windsor GM, was in Barrie to ‘watch’ the game.

A little tinkering to the 67s line ups from the game last night.

1st McGinn, Bonello, Mancari
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
3rd Bickell, McIlveen, Akeson
4th Lawrance, Ouellette, Alphonso

Battachio given the start.

So, Bickell moved to the McIlveen line, with Akeson. Lawrance takes Lahey’s spot on the energy line.

Overall impressions:

The 67s came out with energy. They were quick to the puck, made good passes, the defence were able to move the puck out of their zone. Good stuff. The 67s started the scoring off with two PP goals by Talbot. Barrie came back to tie it up. The second period was a little weaker for 67s, but they picked it up again in the third. Overall they were 3/5 on the PP. Which is a good sign. Ottawa scored the first two goals, but Barrie came back and scored 4 straight. The 67s continued to work hard, scoring the next 3. Each team got one more. That the 67s were able to come back when they were down is another positive.

Impressions of the 67s:

Mancari had another great night. He worked hard, and had a couple of beautiful goals. The way he has played the last two nights, with his size, you can see what an overall asset he is to the team. Talbot and Hulit continue to impress. Battachio had a better game tonight. He made saves at some critical moments, but he did let in 5, so not the best we’ve seen from him. The defence still looks a little unsteady, especially when opposition forwards skate down the ice to the net. They seem to have a hard time physically checking/blocking these guys. Bonello, Todd good. Akeson had some moments – second effort, forechecking moments.

Impressions of the Colts:

Little is an amazing player. It seemed like he was on the ice constantly. At the beginning of the second, he was cut in the face by Colbert (accidental high stick), left the bench, and eventually came back to score in the third. Also impressive: Hisey, Crombeen.

OTTAWA SCORING:
1, Talbot, 08:41 (PP)
1, Talbot, (Hulit, Todd), 09:54 (PP)
3, Mancari, (McGinn), 01:01
3, Mancari, (Wharton, Bonello), 04:09 (PP)
3, Hulit, (Talbot, Todd), 05:13
3, Bonello, (Mancari, Van Herpt), 18:52

BARRIE SCORING:
1, Hisey, (Hotham, Little), 12:57 (PP)
2, Fuller, (Hisey), 00:34
2, Tremblay, (Martine, Little), 08:47
2, Hisey, (Fuller, Crombeen), 12:39
3, Little, (Fuller), 09:36

TEAM 1200 three stars: 1. Talbot, 2. Little, and 3. Mancari

OHL three stars: 1. Talbot 2. Little, and 3. Hisey

Attendance was 4170, and the Barrie Rogers television guys (John Bartlett and Gene Pereira) said that this was a good turnout. As an aside, I thought these two did a good job. I couldn’t believe how positive they were for Ottawa though --- I’m used to homerism with Rogers broadcasts. These guys had an interesting feature, where they focus on an opposition player and then show highlights at the intermissions and end of the game. What a great idea. Another way to learn more/see more about the different players in the league. They focused on Hulit.

Next up: Sunday in Mississauga. The first (of four) meetings. I’m interested to see how the 67s match up against this team, although the Ice Dogs are without one of their top guys – O’Sullivan – who is away at the USA World Juniors.

December 18, 2004

Update On Game Recap (vs Belleville)

First, I forgot to mention the 67s' line ups for the game last night. Considering they have lost two guys on the top line (Petruzalek and Kaspar), this is somewhat important, interesting. The line up:

1st Bickell, Mancari, Bonello
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
3rd Akeson, McIlveen, Lahey
4th McGinn, Ouellette, Alphonso

Second, articles on the game:

From SLAM! Sports: Bulls draw 67's. Speaking to the back-and-forthing:

The Bulls fell behind five times in the game and the longest they took to answer back all five times was two minutes 42 seconds. Three times they drew level within a minute.

From the Ottawa Sun, Bruce Garrioch writes: 67's, Bulls light it up in wild tie. Mancari on his Gordie Howe:

"That's the first Gordie Howe I've had in my career," said Mancari. "I just thought that guy (Bobby Davey) was taking liberties with Brad Bonello and I felt I had to step in. I'm willing to do that. I haven't had a great first half and I thought this was a good weekend to try to step it up and contribute more."

And from the Belleville Intelligencer: Bulls, 67’s on scoring spree.

Oh, one more thing: no update yet on Thornton's injury.

Game Recap (vs Belleville)

A tie game, 6-6 in OT. See the OHL game summary here. Belleville’s game recaps are posted here. (At the time I posted this, they have the last game vs Oshawa up.)

Brian Kilrea will be absent for this w/e’s games. He is on a scouting mission, so we will see what happens in the next few days. The impression, is this is an odd thing for Killer to do: leave the team for 3 games. Some say this is showing how frustrated he is with the team, others say that it is simply a matter of timing. I think that the trading deadline is December 30. It’s the only time he could fit it in. There’s an article by Bruce Garrioch in the Ottawa Sun, Killer scouting for scorer. A quote from Kilrea:

"I'm going to meet up with (67's scout) Joe Rowley and I'm going to see four games on the weekend. We'll see what happens. If I can find a way to help this club, then I'm going to make some moves."


Also missing, are Petruzalek and Kaspar who are away at the Czech World Junior camp. Reid and Aitcheson are still out.

Overall impressions:

This was an interesting game. There was lots of scoring – the 67s would score, and then the Bulls would score within minutes to tie it up. This back-and-forthing went on for the whole game.

The 67s had a weak start to the game. They had a hard time bringing the puck out of their zone, so they ended up icing it (at least 4 times in a row). It was a boring start. After the first goals though, things picked up a little. The second period was much livelier, and the third was very exciting as both teams tried to score the game-winner. The OT period had a lot of end-to-end play, with some great saves by both goalies.

The 67s scored the second shorthanded of the season (Van Herpt, from Bonello; Talbot has the first SH), along with a couple of PP goals.

Impressions of the 67s:

Mancari was definitely the star of the game tonight. He worked hard – skated fast, had break-aways, a fight, goals, assists. A Gordie Howe hat trick night. He definitely stepped it up. Holy crap, he’s a big boy (standing next to Scott McArthur during the post-game interview on the Rogers broadcast). They never seem as big when they are standing next to each other, you know, when they're all wearing helmets and skates and shoulder pads etc.

Bonello – again, one of the most consistent in both effort and ability. In one instance, he forechecked hard during the 2nd Belleville PP to keep the puck in the Bulls' end. He ended up stealing the puck, feeding it in front of the net, where Van Herpt skated in and shot it into the net. It was a beautiful SH goal, resulting entirely from Bonello’s hard work.

Hulit continues to work hard. I’m so impressed with Hulit. He is traded from a team he’s been with his whole OHL career (Oshawa), after being specifically told he wasn’t going to be traded. He comes to Ottawa and just works so hard and makes all the natives look bad. That line – Talbot, Hulit, Todd – is just rocking. In fact, Hulit got his 100th career OHL point tonight. (Remember Talbot got his 100th last week).

Battachio had his first really bad game. He was pulled at the beginning of the second period (3:30), after letting in the 4th Belleville goal. Considering his record though, he deserves a ‘gimme’.

Guadagnolo came into the game, and made some good saves, especially in the third and OT. But, you’ll note: the 67s didn’t win . . . because they never win with him in nets.

Wharton is not looking very good. I actually cringe when he is on the ice now. He doesn’t seem to know where he should be positionally. He gives up the puck, as well as makes bad passing decisions (passes in front of his own net when opposition are close enough to steal the puck).

Joslin is the one d-man that plays well – consistently. Colbert is also good, but has had some off nights. Van Herpt scored tonight, and he did skate/work hard. I didn’t notice Lawrance or Beard on the ice tonight – which is not necessarily a bad thing for defence.

Impressions of the Bulls:

Brophey a talented player that seemed to be at the right place at the right time (of course, with Ottawa’s defence that’s not saying a whole lot . . .). But, he did score and help with scoring.

Leavitt also had a good game. Played tough, took some penalties, scored a goal.

Tobia made some ‘game-saving’ saves during the end of the third, and especially during the OT. Overall though, not a great night – he did allow 6 goals.

Davey – bugging Bonello, fought with Mancari.

Thornton was injured during the beginning of the third period delivering a hip check against McIlveen, who went down himself. Thornton apparently got the worst of it. He went down and couldn’t get up. Both team’s trainers went out to assist him. He was eventually helped off the ice by two teammates, with the crowd giving him applause. He appeared to be unable to put weight on his right leg. I hope that he’s okay . . .

OTTAWA SCORING
1, Van Herpt, (Bonello), 09:01 (SH)
1, Todd, (Hulit, Talbot), 13:36
2, Mancari, (Bickell, Joslin), 00:49
2, Mancari, (Bonello, Joslin), 08:01
3, Hulit, (Talbot, Mancari), 05:45 (PP)
3, Hulit, (Colbert, Mancari), 10:20 (PP)

BELLEVILLE SCORING
1, Rorabeck, (Hughes, Sonnenburg), 09:49 (PP)
1, Brophey, (Rancourt, Cunningham), 14:17 (PP)
2, Brophey, (Berard), 03:31
2, Thornton, (Cunningham, Brophey), 04:38 (PP)
3, Leavitt, (Brophey, Rancourt), 06:47
3, Cameron, 11:15

TEAM 1200 three stars: 1. Mancari, 2. Brophey, and 3. Hulit.

OHL three stars: 1. Mancari, 2. Brophey, and 3. Joslin.

Attendance: Announced was 9011. There were quite a few empty seats though.

Reffing: Burchell was awful, just awful. Inconsistent calls. Not calling anything during the last 2 minutes of the game. Yuck.

Parking: Not a prob. All the Grey Cup seating is now down at the canal entrance.

A note on the December 30th game at the Corel Centre: apparently they have sold over 17000 tickets now, and are selling standing room only. Wow. I cannot imagine what it will be like for these guys to play in an NHL arena with (if they do get the sell-out) 20000 screaming fans. Hell, that’s more than the Sens draw.

December 15, 2004

News On Dec-30 Game At Corel Centre

Quick interview with Jeff Hunt on TEAM 1200/Garry and Dave today regarding the game that has been moved to the Corel Centre.

The Corel Centre is announcing today that they have officially increased their seating capacity to 20500.

The Ottawa 67s’ December 30th game against the Kingston Frontenacs has moved from the Civic Centre to the Corel Centre.

Initially it was thought that this was to provide increase seating for the Bell Capital Cup tournament members who wished to attend, as the game was close-to-being/already sold out at the Civic Centre.

Apparently this seat increase at the Corel Centre was the final push to move the game, said Hunt. He wants to make history by attempting to break the Junior Hockey attendance record set by a team in Detroit, which had over 19000.

Currently, Hunt said they have sold 16800 tickets for this game.

What is interesting, is that the night before (December 29), Ottawa will play in Kingston in front of their home crowd which is averaging 2048 2051 [Updated 15-Dec-04]. Both teams will come to Ottawa the next night and play in front of 16000+! That’s nuts . . . but oh so cool.

For more news see: Official 67s News On December 30th Game


* * Update 16-Dec-04 by Sid * *

Article by Barre Campbell in the Ottawa Sun today (67's packing house in quest for record).

Detailed info at the Official 67s site (Ottawa 67’s Look To Set Attendance Record at Corel Centre).

Also, StatsGuy talked to a colleague today who was interested in attending and had called re: tickets. They are selling into the upper bowl (300 level). I heard on the TEAM 1200 today that they have reached the 17000 mark.

December 13, 2004

Interview With The Coach

Killer had his usual post-w/e interview today on The TEAM 1200/Dean and Gord. The overall tone of the interview was very subdued, like all three knew the w/e was bad and didn’t really want to do it but soldiered on anyway . . . Here is what they had to say:

A lot of guys aren’t playing well.

Not sure why, might be due to Christmas? Has spoken with other teams who are seeing the same thing re: effort. Also, Soo had the day off before. The 67s didn’t get home until late, d/t problems during the Peterborough game with glass (took 30 minutes to change one of the panes), and then with the drive in the snowstorm.

When asked about Mancari’s quote in the paper (We don’t know what’s going on in the room right now, we don’t know what’s going on on the ice), he said he’s not sure what exactly Mark meant by that, that they'd need to ask Mark. Killer said that he believes that you win games from the room out. He said he’s not sure if there are malcontents in the room, but they will find out and deal with it.

If you play bad and lose, it’s bad in the room.

Asked about leadership on the team: There are some problems with leadership, and other areas are deteriorating. For instance, Mancari’s goal the other day is the first for him in a month. He works hard and kills penalties, but no offence lately.

You always have a happier team when you’re winning, and right now everything is magnified because they are having problems.

Talbot and Hulit have hit if off well, thank goodness. Petruzalek was dynamite during first period yesterday. Kaspar has a tendency to get lost.

Playing well is contagious.

We’ve got a lot of players looking for excuses, and trying to blame others – not looking in the mirror. Gord said, “You’re only good as those around you.”

This has been one of the more frustrating seasons for killer. A lot of kids think they’re playing better than they are, and he’s disappointed in some of the areas of the players.

The 2 Czechs are leaving Wednesday. This is a big thing for them. Wishing them all the best. They’re going to play for their country, in Minneapolis, so they will still miss going home and having Christmas there.

Killer thought Colbert would have been given a look for Team Canada, but didn’t. He said Colbert’s the rock on our line.

Thoughts on London: It’s done from the top down. Give the Hunters credit for what they have put together, the players playing with a lot of confidence. Losing players [for Team Canada selection camp] they still have confidence they can win. The biggest thing, is that they think they can win every game because of the talent it the room. You have to tip your hat to them.

67s In The News

An article by Barre Campbell in the Ottawa Sun today, 'Hounds put bite on sagging 67's. Some snippets:

The 67's can only blame themselves that their nine-game unbeaten run on home ice came to a crashing end yesterday, thanks to a shoddy effort against the Soo Greyhounds.

[. . .]

"We played 20 minutes of hockey, and that was it," said 67's winger Mark Mancari. "They outworked us. They beat us in the corners. They beat us offensively and defensively.

[. . .]

"It ranks up there with the worst. That was a pitiful performance on the blue line," Kilrea said. "If you don't play well in your own end, you'll never win games.

"We had some guys masquerading as defencemen, and it caught up with them."[emphasis added]

[. . .]

"We don't know what's going on in our room right now. We don't know what's going on on the ice," said Mancari.

Neither do we . . . but we hope someone will figure it out soon.

Interview With The Captain, "No excuses"

Colbert had the usual post-w/e interview with The TEAM 1200/Garry Galley and Dave Gross. He came right out saying they had no excuses for the team’s performance this w/e. They played bad, period. He said they had a brief player’s meeting after the game, but didn’t give details. He said that the team needs to forget about what happened this w/e and move on. [I don't agree with this --- I think they need to remember everything about it: Use it as a learning tool. Use it to grow from. Don't pretend it didn't happen . . .] Gross asked Colbert what Kilrea said to the team when he went into the room after the game, and Colbert said Kilrea didn’t say much, in fact he was speechless. Both Gross and Galley say that a big trade may be brewing. Colbert said that he is sure that Kilrea is looking, as he is always looking to make positive changes for the team.

I’m worried that the team has taken on some sort of collective self-esteem/confidence problem. Mancari had a brief comment prior to the televised game on Rogers broadcast the other night, that the reason they didn’t play well ‘away’, was that they didn’t have as much confidence in away team barns. That when the opposition fans cheered for the home team scoring etc., it really drained the 67s’ energy. This is not good. You have to learn to take that negative energy, and use it for fuel. It makes me wonder if the team will only continue to get worse: when they start playing so dreadfully at home, the loyal home crowd quiets and at worst, begins leaving early (I’m sure the players can see the lines filing up the staircases). The thing is, if the 67s aren’t going to make an attempt (which is what it looks like to the fans), then the fans aren’t going to sit there and cheer or come to games. It’s depressing. At least try, for the love of pete! We know you’re not going to win every game, and don’t expect you to. But we do expect you to work hard, play your position, don’t sulk, remain challenged, in short . . . don’t give up!

December 12, 2004

Game Recap (vs Sault Ste. Marie)

The Greyhounds win 7-3 over the 67s. OHL game summary here.

Ottawa line up:
1st Bickell, Petruzalek, Kaspar
2nd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
3rd Akeson, Bonello, Mancari
4th Ouellette, McIlvene, Lahey

Defence pairings:
Colbert, Joslin
Wharton, Beard
Aitcheson, Van Herpt

Staring goalie Guadagnolo. Healthy scratches were Alphonso, McGinn, Wharton, and Reid still out with the injury.

General impressions:

This was a very bad game for the 67s – the worst I’ve seen this year. They had no jump, no energy, no second effort, turned over the puck constantly, allowed odd-man rushes, had no defence in their own end, could barely get the puck out of their own zone at times, etc., etc. They were 0/7 for the PP. Granted this was the 67s’ 3rd game of the w/e, but the Soo have also been on a multiple game road trip (this was their 4th game in 5 days). A terrible showing by the 67s. The only players that stood out were Guadagnolo, Talbot, Hulit, and Todd.

Impressions of the 67s:

Guadagnolo – I don’t understand why the team cannot play when he is in net. What is up with that? The defence were terrible in front of him today. They’re more of a liability on the ice, as they block his view of the shooting lanes. Do they expect him to score the bloody goals as well? C’mon guys.

GPIMINSShotGAASV%WLT
147504643.190.914282
Guadagnolo's standings from OHL

Talbot, Hulit, and Todd continue to work hard. Definitely the hardest, best working line for the 67s. Talbot had a hard hip check at the end of the game, so hopefully nothing serious will result from that.

Impressions of the Greyhounds:

What a fast skating team. It was so nice to see a team that could skate, and puck handle, and pass! Players that stood out to me were Pitton, Kennedy, Desjardins, Jarrett, Tuma, and Staubitz. I mean, the whole team looked good next to Ottawa, but these guys I noticed for their quickness, their forechecking, their puck handling, scoring, their ‘bigness’ (Tuma), their PK work, etc. Good on them. They deserved to win. They looked like they were playing against their little brothers, the 67s.

Soo line up:
1st Pitton, Kennedy, King
2nd Thomas, McInerney, Lawrence
3rd VanderVeeken, Desjardins, Jarrett
4th MacLean, Puntureri, Leszczynski

Defence pairings:
Tuma, Smith
Staubitz, Jarram
Cuthbert, Good

Staring goalie Cech. Scratches were Day, McKinley, Lalonde, and Carter who is at the Canadian World Junior selection camp. (Can’t imagine how much worse the score would be if Carter were in the line up . . .)

OTTAWA SCORING:
1, Talbot, (Hulit, Todd), 12:56
1, Mancari, (Akeson, Van Herpt), 16:07
3, Todd, (Talbot, Hulit), 12:45

SOO SCORING:
1, Jarrett, (VanderVeeken, Desjardins), 07:30
2, Puntureri, (Good), 02:29
2, Pitton, 02:35
2, Kennedy, (Jarrett, Smith), 15:04
3, Pitton, 00:46
3, Thomas, (McInerney, Staubitz), 13:46
3, Desjardins, (VanderVeeken, Jarrett), 19:29

OHL Three Stars were: 1. SSM - 17 Jason Pitton, 2. SSM - 25 Blair Jarrett, and 3. SSM - 14 Tyler Kennedy

TEAM 1200 stars were: 1. Pitton-SSM, 2. Puntureri-SSM, and 3. Kennedy-SSM

Attendance was 8618.

Parking – lots of it.

Ref – Carroll. Had some bad moments – for both teams. Like against Ottawa with Bickell’s ‘boarding’ which wasn’t, and against the Soo with Kennedy’s non-goal which clearly was a goal (Carroll did reverse the call, and rightly awarded the goal.) Otherwise, typical.

December 11, 2004

Game Recap (at Peterborough)

Peterborough wins 3-1 over Ottawa. OHL game summary here.

Pre-game notes with Schreiber and Jakubek/TEAM 1200:

Petruzalek was injured last night, and will not play tonight. He is out with a slight concussion. Akeson is still out with flu.

The line ups for tonight:
1st Lahey, McIlveen, Kaspar
2nd Bickell, Bonello, Mancari
3rd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
4th McGinn, Ouellette, Alphonso

Battachio will start in net.

Pre-game interview with Killer: [paraphrasing]Talbot, Todd, and Hulit did a good job last night. It would be nice to see the others chipping in though. We need more than one line going. We didn’t finish well. The most important thing is we won. Petruzalek took a puck in the ear last night [during warm-up], and had a little discomfort and dizziness. We felt it would be better that he stay home and rest. McIlveen was nervous last night, but he can skate and get on the puck quick. He was playing with Kaspar and Petruzalek, and at times didn’t know what they were going to do. But we don’t what they’re going do and we’ve been watching them for three months.[/paraphrase]

Notes during the game, via TEAM1200/Schreibs and AJ:

1st period: The 67s did not start off very good. Schreibs said that Peterborough was definitely dominant in the first period. The Petes’ goal resulted from an odd man rush. Sounds like they were making many mistakes.

2nd period: Some quotes – "67s struggling mightily against the Petes' forecheck; it’s all they [67s] can do to ice it to get it out of their own end; they have no jump; they’re not skating; they’ve come out with no intensity whatsoever." Oh boy. Bickell hasn’t been playing well, so Killer has demoted him. McGinn has been put up on the line with Mancari and Bonello. 67s really struggling without two of their better forwards, Petruzalek and Akeson.

3rd period: Almost five minutes into the third and the 67s just cannot get anything going; Ottawa seems like a different team on the road; 67s continue to be badly out-hustled. Talbot, from Hulit, finally scored in the third. Broken glass caused quite a lengthy disruption in the game --- 20 minutes or so (during which time, AJ and Schreibs discussed the loud fans who sit next to the media boxes in these smaller rinks, clanging bells, swearing, and generally heckling them and making their life unpleasant!). Battachio made every effort to keep them in the game, but the others just didn’t step up.

Overall: The 67s didn’t have the energy, they didn’t skate, they didn’t pass. They didn’t show up. Give the Petes credit. They out-hustled the 67s. AJ said that the second period was one of the worst of the season he’s seen from the 67s. It’s especially disappointing against a divisional rival.

OTTAWA SCORING:
3, Talbot, (Hulit, Colbert), 06:23

PETERBOROUGH SCORING:
1, Kaleta, (Reddox, Ryder), 07:53
2, Ryder, (Reddox, Kaleta), 04:33
3, Ryder, (Kaleta, Hendrikx), 01:39 (PP)

The OHL three stars were: 1. PBO - 23 Daniel Ryder, 2. PBO - 27 Patrick Kaleta, and 3. PBO - 22 Liam Reddox

The TEAM 1200 three stars were: 1. PET - Ryder, 2. PET - Kaleta, and 3. OTT – Battachio

Attendance: 2869

Ref: Mike Pearce

Congrats Once More To Knights

The London Knights have broken the record: unbeaten in 30 (28 0 2). Guelph didn't let them have it easily, though. The game went scoreless to the end, including the OT period. A bit of an irony that the record-beater game was a 0-0 tie. Anyways, they did it. They are part of the history books now.

I heard that one of the Knights players already has his stick displayed in the Hockey Hall of Fame (from the game on Wednesday night) --- now how cool is that for an 17/18 year old? Pretty darn cool.

Game Recap (vs Oshawa)

Ottawa wins 5-2 over Oshawa. OHL game summary here. Articles on the game: From SLAM! Sports Generals surrender to Ottawa, and from Dave Gross, Ottawa Sun, Talbot's four points march 67's past Generals

OTTAWA SCORING:
1, Talbot, (Petruzalek, Kaspar), 09:53 (PP)
2, Hulit, (Talbot, Todd), 09:18
2, Talbot, (Van Herpt, Petruzalek), 12:21
2, Hulit, (Talbot, Colbert), 19:28
3, Bonello, (Mancari), 18:59 (EN)

OSHAWA SCORING:
3, Torres, (Trudell), 11:40
3, Trudell, (Halasz, Torres), 16:05

Ottawa Lines
1st Petruzalek, McIlveen, Kaspar
2nd Bickell, Bonello, Mancari
3rd Todd, Talbot, Hulit
4th McGinn, Ouellette, Alphonso

Sitting out were Akeson (flu, via Rogers broadcast), Lahey, Reid, and Aitcheson.

General impressions:

McIlveen centred the first line, surprisingly. Petruzalek moved back to the left wing position with McIlveen at centre. Bickell moved to the second line.

Both teams came out a little slow. "It's a good thing they're [Ottawa] not playing a good team," said StatsGuy. Ottawa was a little unsteady in their end in the first period. Tsimikalis centred the 2nd line for Oshawa, and when he touched the puck on his first shift the crowd booed, and booed half-heartedly every touch for the remainder of the first period. They were definitely not the majority. I think he played a good game. He had a lot of ice time, and he was on the ice for both of Oshawa's goals (no points though). The 67s played better in the second period, then had some bad moments in the third --- allowing Oshawa to score two goals.

On the 67s home record, they are now (9 1 1), with an 0.864 average. This home record is the second best average next to the London Knights who are now (14 0 2) at home.

And on the home game front, the 67s have only played 11 home games (17 away games) compared to other teams who have played between 14 and 17 home games. Contrast this with Kitchener, who have only played 11 away games.

OHL Three Stars were: 1. OTT - 27 Julian Talbot, 2. OTT - 9 Chris Hulit, and 3. OTT - 30 Danny Battachio.

Impressions of the 67s:

Talbot was the star of the game. He's tenacious. He worked hard every shift. When he wasn't scoring goals, he was setting them up. (He had the hard hat on for the post-game interview on Rogers broadcast, btw.) Recorded his 100th career OHL point. Since Hulit's arrival, Talbot has 3G and 4A in 4GP. The game prior to Hulit's arrival (ironically, versus Hulit and the Oshawa Generals) Talbot had a hat trick and 1A. He's had 3 OHL Game Stars: 15-Oct-04 2nd star at home vs SAR, 24-Oct-04 1st star at home vs PLY, and last night 10-Dec-04 1st star vs OSH. (He wasn't awarded a star during his hat trick game, go figure.) And this snippet from SLAM! Sports:

"Me and Hulit have been clicking since he got here," Talbot said. "I don't know what it is, but we keep working hard and it just keeps coming."

Hulit, oh what a player, what a game. He works so hard, and tonight was rewarded with 2 goals against his former team. He's got 4GP in total for Ottawa. He's been awarded OHL Game Stars twice: 05-Dec-04 1st star away (Corel Centre, OT winner) vs TOR, and last night 10-Dec-04 2nd star at home vs OSH.

Battachio made his usual great saves, although one he let in in the third wasn't a particularly difficult save. With 18GP this year, he's been awarded OHL Game Star 8 times: 24-Sep-04 3rd star away vs SUD, 01-Oct-04 1st star at home vs SUD, 17-Oct-04 2nd star at home vs BEL, 24-Oct-04 3rd star at home vs PLY, 20-Nov-04 1st star away vs OWE, 26-Nov-04 3rd star at home vs OSH, 03-Dec-04 3rd star at home vs TOR, and 10-Dec-04 3rd star at home vs OSH.

McIlveen played a good game. He didn't look out of place on the first line, his first OHL game. While he didn't register a point, he played well, skated fast. Things will continue to improve with more ice time with his team mates.

Brody Todd has 3A in 4GP, primarily since Hulit arrived.

Bonello’s points have slowed over the last couple games. Last night he had 1G(EN), and last w/e he was 1A in 3GP. Overall, though he is 10G and 9A in 18GP. He’s been awarded OHL Three Stars twice: 30-Oct-04 2nd star away vs SAG, and 26-Nov-04 1st star at home vs OSH. He remains a feisty, scrappy, hard working player who is so fun to watch.

The 4th line were their usual energetic selves - working hard, getting chances. Alphonso continues to play a mature game.

Impressions of the Gens:

Hesmatpour, with his size, makes his presence known. (Kavanagh also looked pretty big out there.) Heshmatpour and B. Todd had the only fight of the game --- a tilt at a face-off at the end of the second period. Impressively, Todd didn't get flattened or thrown to the ice. He stood his ground against the giant.

Tsimikalis was interviewed on Rogers broadcast during the 1st period intermission. When asked about his reason to leave the team, Tsimikalis said he didn't see eye to eye with the Coach, and that he wanted to part ways before it got really bitter. Trudell and he are working well together. He was nervous prior to this game. He said he got some cheers and boos; it was a little overwhelming, but eventually he got over it.

Trudell had a good game, scoring and assisting in their two goals. In fact, that line worked hard.

Thompson made a few good stick poke check moves, to block shots on his goal.

Neal looked pretty steady.

Reffing was not bad tonight - Parlette did a good job.

8 moms were appreciated prior to the game. Each player escorted their mother out to centre ice and gave her a bouquet of flowers. (Joslin, Akeson, Mancari, Alphonso, Wharton, Colbert, Battachio, Bonello?)

Announced attendance was 8860, but many people did not show up d/t the snow. There were a lot of empty seats. Parking not a problem. Grey Cup seats halfway down on the canal side (not sure about Bank street).

Next up, Peterborough Saturday night. Then back to the Civic Centre to host the Soo on Sunday.

December 10, 2004

Tsimikalis Returning To Ottawa

Article in the Ottawa Sun by Barre Campbell on the reception Tsimikalis is expecting to receive when he returns to Ottawa with his new team, the Oshawa Generals, tonight (General reception?). A few interesting snippets:

Peter Tsimikalis doesn't know what to expect when he arrives at the Civic Centre tonight as a member of the visiting team.

A pleasant reception from the good fans of Ottawa ... or a couple of rotten tomatoes?

"I've been talking about it with some of the guys, and I think I might get booed," said Tsimikalis, the ex-67's centre who'll be in the Oshawa Generals lineup for tonight's tilt against Ottawa.

[...]

"Fortunately, I left on good terms," said Tsimikalis. "I don't know if the fans know that, and maybe they don't really know what went on behind the scenes. But no matter what, they're entitled to their opinion."

I'll be one on the cheering side. I understand that not every player and coach will get along. People have different personalities and characteristics, and what works for one may not work for another. I certainly don't think of Tsimikalis as some sort of traitor to Ottawa. Like he said, we don't really know what went on behind the scenes - we may have an idea, but we're not the principal players in this situation. I've lived long enough to know that some people just rub each other the wrong way, and the best case is to move on to a better fit. I hope that he does well with his new team, and that he makes it to the next level. And if anyone around me boos, well I'll just cheer louder.

December 09, 2004

Welcome To Ottawa, Paul McIlveen

The 67s have acquired McIlveen from the Waterloo Siskins, an OHA Junior 'B' Team. The official 67s press release (link):

Ottawa 67’s sign 18-year-old forward

Date Posted: 09-Dec-2004

The Ottawa 67’s have signed 18 year old free agent Paul McIlveen. The Waterloo, Ontario native had scored 16 goals and 17 assists in only 16 games with the OHA Junior 'B' Waterloo Siskins.

"McIlveen had been contemplating taking the U.S. College route, so we are excited to have him join our team." Brian Kilrea said after completing the deal. "The Siskins were very good about releasing their best player to us."

McIlveen will be in Ottawa’s lineup tomorrow night when the Oshawa Generals are in town, he will wear number 16.

Paul McIlveen #16
Centre/RW
5'11, 170
March 24, 1986
Shoots right

McIlveen's stats: GP-16, G-16, A-17, PTS-33, PM-38, PPG-4, SHG-1, GWG-1.

December 08, 2004

Standing O To London Knights

They've officially tied the record set by the Brandon Wheat Kings of 1978-79. Undefeated in 29 (28-0-1). Whatever you think of the Knights, the Hunters, whatever, they definitely deserve congratulations. This is a very memorable experience. One of the few positives about the NHL lock-out is that London has garnered national attention for their achievement.

To break the record, they will play at home on Friday against Guelph. This one is will be on Sportsnet.

RankGPWLTOTLPTS%
1/52928010570.983
London's standings from OHL

And one particular incident that stood out . . . I was listening to the game over the 'Internets', and it buffered out at the very end of the game, so that when it reconnected all I heard was the announcers calling a Ranger player an ass, and unsportsmanlike etc. I had no idea what happened. Well, on NOOF they're saying that a Kitchener player scooped up the game winning puck at the end of the game and skated off with it, with London players chasing after him. Apparently it was all in jest, and the puck was eventually turned over to the Knights. Hmmm.

Out Of Control

Another article on out-of-control parents/fans/players attacking players/refs/other parents. Now this is what I was trying to get across in one of my previous posts about cutting the refs some slack this year. People are living on the thin edge these days; who knows what will make them snap. There is a fine line between passion for a game/team/player and lunacy. There are a lot of yahoos in the stands, and one I witnessed last year was over the top. He'd stand and yell at the top of his lungs, his face getting redder and redder, spittle flying, until I thought for sure he was going to stroke out. These yahoos use foul language and act like lunatics in front of children. These unstable people surround us at games, so it concerns me --- who will lose control and do something horrendous. I've seen people throw crap on the ice in extreme situations. I would seriously think twice about reffing as a career choice/volunteer choice until something is done to curb the violence. It's crazy. It has to stop.

From the Ottawa Sun today, an article written by Laura Czekaj entitled Hockey dad eyed in attack on ref:

Allegedly shoved official into door after son was kicked out of game

A GLOUCESTER hockey referee needed stitches to his head Saturday after he was allegedly attacked by an irate hockey dad whose son was kicked out of a minor hockey game for an illegal check. It was the most recent case of off-ice violence to hit Ontario hockey rinks in the past few months.

Referee Mike McKeough had been working a game on one of the two rinks at Fred Barrett Arena in Leitrim and was waiting for some fellow officials at about 6:15 p.m. when they were approached by the parent following a tournament game involving the Carleton Place minor bantam rep B competitive team.

"He was saying 'this is the second game you've cost us, you're a terrible f---ing ref, you better watch or I'll put your head through the glass'," said McKeough, 24.

"I told him to shut up, cool down and grow up," he said.

As McKeough turned to walk away, he said the parent lunged at him.

"He grabbed me from behind and shoved me face first into a steel door frame and a concrete wall," he said. "I got a gash in my forehead about an inch long that took seven stitches to close it up."

The force of the blow caused McKeough to fall through the unlocked door and lose sight of his attacker.

"I was seeing stars and trying to stem the blood coming from my head," he said.

But District 9 Referees Association president David McCarthy said others had to pull the enraged parent away to keep him from continuing the attack.

HIT WITH HELMET

"He was going to jump on top of him by the sounds of it," said McCarthy. "The linesman behind him used the only force he could and used his helmet to try to hit him in the back of the shoulder area."

Ottawa police were called, but the suspect had left before they arrived. As of yesterday, police said they knew the man's identity but had not made an arrest, nor laid any charges. The investigation was continuing.

McKeough, who was driven to the Winchester Hospital to be stitched up, has already missed refereeing seven games and took two days off his job as a snow-plow driver.

While he has been threatened before, McKeough said it was the first time in his eight years as a referee that he has actually been assaulted.

"Any parent who does this kind of stuff has to be banned," said McCarthy, who has also witnessed and been the victim of a steady onslaught of verbal and sometimes physical abuse in his 23 years as a ref.

Every act of aggression against referees means fewer people want to perform the job, said McCarthy. The incident has left a blemish on an otherwise good tournament.

"They are sort of scarred with this, even though it has nothing to do with the tournament," he said.

Although incidents involving serious physical violence at minor hockey games are relatively rare, there have been a recent spate of attacks and incidents off the ice involving angry parents.

Durham police have charged the mom and sister of a player after they allegedly threw a metal bar and a cup of hot coffee at a player during an Ontario Hockey Association Junior A game on Sunday.

A Toronto hockey mom, who allegedly flashed her chest at parents of the opposing team at her 11-year-old's hockey game last month, is facing banishment from minor hockey rinks.

Seriously . . . yahoos.

December 06, 2004

Interview With The Coach

A few notes from Killer's post-w/e interview with The TEAM 1200/Dean and Gord:

It was a tough w/e - 3 games in 3 days. Thought they played pretty well for a team that played three in three.

He had good things to say about the Corel Centre staff. There wasn't anything that was overlooked; all the rooms were done up; they were allowed to hang stuff up the day before the game; they even had Killer's favourite beverage ready after the game.

He feels the team started off pretty good yesterday, but fell a bit in the second, and then came on in the third. He said they wanted to take it to them in the OT because they needed the win. They played OSH the week before and now with TOR, they need to get [points] distance from these teams for play-offs.

Killer said that they used the fourth line a lot (more than TOR), and all the d-men got equal time. He said that they got a big lift out of the so-called fourth line, who played better than others. Killer said that the fourth line didn't have a bad shift.

Killer said that Hulit had had [scoring] chances throughout the game, and Talbot was also getting offensive chances. This is why their line started in OT. Killer said that Hulit, Talbot, Joslin and Colbert had decided enough was enough.

Gord said that Hulit's goal wasn't a pretty goal, and Killer quipped, "It depends where you're sitting." I agree. It was a beautiful goal for the winning side, ultra-crappy for the losing.

Killer went on to say that they haven't had a dominant PP, but have had some tremendous PP possession. Hulit and Talbot seemed to find each other immediately. Kaspar is good on the point b/c he has a good shot. Killer said they are still trying to find the right fit for the PP.

Colbert had a good game. He's getting his shots off now. He had one day off in the last few days, due to the CHL/Russia series. He'll have a bit of time off this week to recuperate.

On Alphonso's two goals of the season, Killer said that they've been giving him good shifts. He works hard; always has a smile on his face; he's a prankster; he's a joy in the room. Killer said he really likes him. He said the whole line - Alphonso, McGinn, and Ouellette - worked hard.

Lahey was sick this w/e, so he didn't sub into the line up. Wharton was also sick with the flu, but played on Sunday. Lawrance had an infection, and Reid has the shoulder injury. The defence is taking an awful hit this year.

Notes On Yesterday's Game

From SLAM! Sports: 67's take care of St. Mike's. Hulit on his OT game winning goal:

"I was thinking shoot the whole way. I decided to put the puck on net and good things happen I guess," said Hulit, who also had an assist and now has four points in three games for the 67's.

The same copy is also in The Toronto Sun, with this headline: Major OT letdown for St. Michael's.

And also on the NHL site with this headline: Chris Hulit scores in overtime to give Ottawa a 4-3 win over St. Mike's.

Hulit has certainly made a name for himself this past w/e.

And from The Ottawa Sun, Dave Gross has this article: Hulit's a winner when it counts. Some interesting snippets:

"I was just thinking, shoot the whole way, and I put the puck on net," offered Hulit with a grin outside the 67's dressing room at the Corel Centre.

* * *

"Hopefully I've impressed a few people here," he said.

* * *

Kilrea said Talbot, Todd and Hulit was his top unit all weekend long.

"There's no doubt they were our best. They were probably our best Friday and Saturday and today," said Kilrea whose team grabbed four of a possible six points. "They're going to get better because they're going to work (and stay) together."

The line collected nine points in the three games. Hulit had a pair of goals and two assists.

"He plays both ends of the rink and he doesn't get himself trapped. When he gets the puck he's looking for Talbot and I just think it's a great fit," said Kilrea.

Hulit's definitely impressed me. I think that this line will only get stronger as they have more time to learn about each other's strengths etc. I'm hoping that Lawrance and Reid return to the defence, healthy and soon. For next Friday's game, Ottawa will host Oshawa and Tsimikalis. I hope that he gets a warm welcome from the fans. I know I'll be cheering for him.

December 05, 2004

Game Recap (at Toronto*)

The 67s win 4-3 in OT over Toronto at the Corel Centre*. OHL game summary here. Toronto has a piece up on their site (link).

OTTAWA SCORING:
1, Kaspar, 04:47
2, Talbot, (Todd, Hulit), 16:10
3, Kaspar, (Petruzalek, Colbert), 07:11
4, Hulit, (Joslin), 00:12

TORONTO SCORING:
1, Adams, (Wilson), 03:59
1, Ivanov, (McIver, Boyce), 11:29 (PP)
3, Wilson, 01:45

OHL three stars of the game: 1. OTT - 9 Chris Hulit, 2. OTT - 83 Lukas Kaspar, and 3. TOR - 5 Ryan Wilson

Hulit was the star of the game, scoring the OT goal. He worked hard throughout, getting shots on the net (he had one ring off the cross bar). He continues to impress me with his consistent effort. This is his third game with the 67s. He now has 2G and 2A. Way to go. (The 67s still have Tsimikalis up on the team list, and Hulit has not been added yet.)

Kaspar had a better game, scoring twice. He still didn't look great, but hopefully the scoring will increase his confidence.

Bonello drew three penalities, although the 67s were not able to capitalize on them. They were 0/5 for the game. Not good.

Battachio had an okay game. Both he and Peters-TOR made some good saves.

I didn't think that Ottawa, or St. Mike's for that matter, played well. They had spurts of hard work, but played disorganized and bumbly for much of the game. The last ten minutes of the third period were particularly bad. The 67s need to work on having a consistent effort throughout the game.

Attendance: 8211.

Reffing: Smith, and I've nothing else to add.

And that freaking horn . . . I hate that horn. They blasted it for BOTH Toronto and Ottawa!

And one more note regarding Tsimikalis: it's good to see Tsimikalis has started off on a good note with Oshawa, with 1G in 1GP.

67s In The News

Did a quick search of the news sites. Found the following articles:

Belleville tops the 67's, SLAM! Sports.

Strong Will helps endure tough schedule, Barre Campbell, Ottawa Sun.

I didn't realize the NHL posted junior game recaps on their site, but here is one for last night's Ottawa/Belleville game: Connor Cameron scores winner as Belleville beats the 67's 5-2.

December 04, 2004

Game Recap (at Belleville)

The Bulls win 5-2 over the 67s. OHL game summary here. For the Belleville perspective, they have a section for game reports.

OTTAWA SCORING:
1, Colbert, (Mancari, Bonello), 11:03 (PP)
2, Hulit, (Todd, Talbot), 05:39

BELLEVILLE SCORING:
1, Brophey, (Thornton, Rancourt), 00:59
1, Beleskey, (Berard, Hughes), 16:44 (PP)
2, Cameron, (Leavitt, Maksym), 10:58
3, Maksym, (Leavitt, Cameron), 08:45
3, Rancourt, (Thornton, Brophey), 15:44 (PP)

AJ Jakubek and Dave Schreiber did the call on TEAM 1200.

AJ did a pre-game interview with Killer about last night’s game. Killer felt the team played well in the first period, then sat back a bit in the second and third. Overall, it was a good effort. Killer said that Hulit played well. They put him on the PK because that’s what he did with Oshawa. He was solid in his own end. He’s a big kid who the moves the puck well. The fourth line had a good night. They played in the opposition’s end, so they didn’t have to depend on the defence. They ended up scoring twice. Lahey and Wharton are both out with the flu. Mancari will probably play some defensive shifts tonight.

General notes on the game:

Tonight was Belleville’s teddy bear toss, and Brophey got the first goal at 0:59 of the first period.

At the end of the first, Schreibs said it wasn't a good period for the 67s. They looked like they were "skating in cement." Belleville dominated most of the period, with Guadagnolo keeping the 67s in the game.

Bonello drew a penalty, which resulted in the Colbert goal.

Hulit scored his first goal, “a beauty; goal scorer’s goal; top shelf, right corner” according to AJ.

Sounds like the Bulls outworked the 67s. The 67s “Lacked effort; Played better in the second; Didn’t get a whole lot out of the veterans.”

And of course, with Guadagnolo in nets . . . well, they never win with him in nets. (Which I don’t get at all.)

Attendance: 2905.

OHL Three Stars: 1. BELV - 26 Connor Cameron, 2. BELV - 9 Cody Thornton, and 3. BELV - 17 Matt Beleskey

Next up: Toronto at the Corel Centre. Please, I pray, do not let St. Mike’s score a goal. I know this is asking for a lot, but I hate that blasted horn when it goes off for the other guys.